On Sunday, December 14, I went to Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort to shred some pow with friends. Below is my first person account of what went down on our first run of the day, first run of the season for my friend Shawn...
Utah claims the "Greatest Snow on Earth" but this year it's been taking its time getting here. So, like many Utah riders, when I looked at the weather maps and saw the pattern changing I knew this weekend was going to be epic. With a quick call to the Snowbird report it looked like High Baldy was going to open for the first time this season. So, after a long drive from Heber, stopping to pick up my friend Shawn Boyle and waiting in a long tram line we were ready to get some. Up the short hike and out the traverse to an open zone that we had ridden maybe hundreds of times before; below us lay a narrow chute with flat tree zones on either side. We were only there for a matter of minutes to regroup when suddenly a fracture some 2 feet deep and 40-50 feet wide ripped out merely feet away from us. As the seemingly small and slow moving debris rolled down, it quickly gained momentum and mass, funneling itself through narrow spots and gaining strength as it fell. We had noticed a couple skiing below us, the girl had either fallen and was collecting her gear or had gotten cliffed out and was hiking back up. The debris struck her and swept her away without a trace.
Luckily, the highly experienced group we were with called on avalanche training and reacted quickly. We started yelling for the victim and while the main part of our group made their way to the debris pile, I placed a call to the Snowbird ski patrol and joined the search. We were notified by the victim's ski partner that she was not wearing a transceiver so we began probing the debris with anything we had: skis, boards and ski poles at first and then avalanche probes as the patrol came on scene. After an hour of searching three distinct debris zones spread over three different elevations, a friend of mine felt a soft spot with his probe and quickly dug the victim out. Unfortunately, after being down that long, and taking a hell of a violent ride down the entire face of High Baldy, she had stopped breathing. The latest word that I've received was that the emergency crews had been able to resuscitate her but that sadly she had succumbed to her injuries a short time later.
The thing that struck me the deepest today was that accidents can happen to anyone, anywhere, anytime. We were riding in-bounds, in an area where control work had been done and people had already ridden. A spot that we all had ridden many times before. There very easily could have been a half dozen of my bros caught up in this slide as well. The only way to combat the unexpected is to be prepared. Take an avalanche class, know the conditions you are riding, even if it's in-bounds and deemed safe, and know how to respond if an emergency does occur. And get your riding buddies to learn along with you, it truly can save your life or that of your friends.
