We’ve had better seasons! After a trip to Japan with no snow, we returned to Colorado with grand plans to close out the season. It started off quite well; we had a nice day skiing with old friends and watching the Burton US Open snowboarding championship.
Later that night we loaded up on pizza and went to a concert at the US Open festivities.
Everything was going well, and we made big plans to climb to the summit above Beaver Creek the next morning. Avalanche danger was low, the sun was out and temps were going to be in the 50s. We loaded up our packs with skins, sunglasses, avalanche safety gear, and lunch and decided to warm up on a few groomers.
The groomer we were on is called Golden Eagle and it’s where the hold the World Cup Downhill races. It is VERY steep and icy and requires you to ski fast. There is not a lot of opportunity to stop, especially in the steeper sections, because even if you can stop no one else can.
This is the run we were doing. The section around 2:00 is where it happened.
After having a close call with me, an out of control skier ran into Jen. It was a major collision and she was both down and (briefly) out. We had to call the ski patrol and visit the slope side ER. Full backboard and sled ride.
Luckily the hand and face/cheek X-rays were negative for breaks… Just a lot of painful swelling. Unfortunately, the concussion checked out. The doctor said no skiing for at least two weeks, so our season is over. Hopefully the next one is a little better!
