Death at Stratton

[MadMadWorld]

Could it be a general trail width issue that nowadays seems to necessitate a larger trail sign that can be read from often 100+ feet away whereas in the past with generally narrower trails one was often much closer to the trail sign, regardless of where they stopped near the entrance to a trail?

I guess that's a possibility but when did they really start getting in to using larger trail signs on the ground....10 years at the most? I really don't think a whole lot of trails have been widened or built in that time frame. Maybe it's just bad luck but I think these trails signs are put in places where people tend to gravitate to like a split in a trail.

 

[HD333]

I'm not saying I totally agree with Highway Star but I get what he's saying. Everytime something like this happens, people come up with all sorts of knee-jerk reactions thinking that some change will ensure it never happens again. The fact is skiing and snowboarding are dangerous sports. It ultimately comes down to the responsibility of the person to ensure their own safety. If the sign post wasn't there, it could've been a tree, or a rock, or another person, etc. There is no way to make the sport 100% safe. All we can do is educate ourselves, wear protective equipment, and do our best to minimize risks. But the fact remains that even with all that, injuries and deaths will still happen. If you can't handle that, stay home.

I'm really tired of the way our society tries to assign blame for every injury or death that occurs, and never want to say it was the victims fault, especially if the person is young. I don't know nearly enough about this incident to comment on it in particular. But very often, it is the victim's decisions and actions that lead to their demise. My heart goes out to this kid's friends and family. I'm sure they are devastated, but assigning undue blame will not bring their son back and it will not prevent the accident from happening.

First off vibes to this young kids family + friends.

I agree with C-Rex, we all know skiing/boarding is a risk. I was riding the lift with a buddy this season who is a diehard skier and out of the blue he blurts out, that skiing/boarding is crazy if you think about it. We hurl ourselves down/off things as fast/high as we can in freezing cold temperatures often on sheets of ice.

Skiing/riding is a risk we all take, I do not think we can point the blame at a resort having a sign attached to a piece of wood, on the flip side if signs were not there people could blindly go on trails above their ability and increase the risk of injury.

 

[Euler]

I'm sad for the family and friends of this young man. Sorry this happened.

 

[tekweezle]

So sad. I skied past the accident. Can't figure out how it happened. 91 is kind of a flat traverse that leads to condos and the sun bowl area. It's not easy to cruise on it at high speed either because the snow at the time of the day when this happened (around noon) was kind of sticky. When we passed the accident I thought maybe the victim fell into a tree well.

Oh well.... Condolences to the family.

Another accident on another part of that trail the next day, snowboarder broke his collarbone. I don't know if he collided with anyone since he was alone with just a ski patrol guy putting his arm into a sling.

Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

 

[Tin]

I'm really tired of the way our society tries to assign blame for every injury or death that occurs, and never want to say it was the victims fault, especially if the person is young. I don't know nearly enough about this incident to comment on it in particular. But very often, it is the victim's decisions and actions that lead to their demise.

I completely agree but to go hunting down info about the victim who is an underage kid to make a slippery slope-like point is just bs.

 

[skiNEwhere]

Just because the skier signed a release or implicitly agreed to the risks doesn't make this not a sad story....Very sad loss for the family

R.I.P

 

[thetrailboss]

Again, thoughts and prayers for the family.

The "Monday Morning Quarterbacking" regarding the deceased is in poor taste. We've had many other threads that discuss this topic and that would have been a more appropriate rather than speculating about what the decedent did or did not do on that day and/or his experience or lack thereof based on stereotypes.

 

[skiNEwhere]

Again, thoughts and prayers for the family.

The "Monday Morning Quarterbacking" regarding the deceased is in poor taste. We've had many other threads that discuss this topic and that would have been a more appropriate rather than speculating about what the decedent did or did not do on that day and/or his experience or lack thereof based on stereotypes.

+1

 

[C-Rex]

I completely agree but to go hunting down info about the victim who is an underage kid to make a slippery slope-like point is just bs.

Agreed. I didn't know what the links were. I couldn't access them from work.

 

[ss20]

Skiing is crazy if you think about it. We hurl ourselves down/off things as fast/high as we can in freezing cold temperatures often on sheets of ice.

Can I quote you on this and put it in my sig?

 

[Highway Star]

I completely agree but to go hunting down info about the victim who is an underage kid to make a slippery slope-like point is just bs.

Again, pound sand.

This kid was a real person, not a news story. Real people make mistakes sometimes, and bad things happen. Pointing out that mistake is not disrespectful, learning from them means they did not die in vain and honors their memory.

 

[MadMadWorld]

Again, pound sand.

This kid was a real person, not a news story. Real people make mistakes sometimes, and bad things happen. Pointing out that mistake is not disrespectful, learning from them honors their memory.

Don't go away mad...just go away.

 

[deadheadskier]

So, a tragic accident = a mistake?

What are you suggesting? The kid never try snowboarding at all? You were a beginner once too Highwaystar and probably skied on similar terrain and wiped out. WE ALL DID. The only difference between us and this poor kid is pretty much bad luck on his part. There's no indication that he was riding dangerously and that was the cause of his tragic accident.

But, seriously KEVIN. For someone who gets completely pissed when others use your own first name on the internet, it's pretty darn bad form to go looking up and posting Facebook profiles and HS sports info on someone who is deceased.

Think about it.........

 

[MadMadWorld]

Nice to meet you Kev! You don't mind if I call you that right Kevie?

 

[Highway Star]

Reported posts, harassment.

 

[Highway Star]

So, a tragic accident = a mistake?

What are you suggesting? The kid never try snowboarding at all? You were a beginner once too Highwaystar and probably skied on similar terrain and wiped out. WE ALL DID. The only difference between us and this poor kid is pretty much bad luck on his part. There's no indication that he was riding dangerously and that was the cause of his tragic accident.

But, seriously Highway Star. For someone who gets completely pissed when others use your own first name on the internet, it's pretty darn bad form to go looking up and posting Facebook profiles and HS sports info on someone who is deceased.

Think about it.........

That's Highway Star to you. Please remain professional as a moderator. Thanks. Some of us chose to not publish our lives on the internet. Probably smarter that way.

Nothing wrong with pointing out publicly available evidence that this kid was an accomplished athlete with a public profile, considering that this was an accident involving an athletic endeavor.

Many people survived learning how to ski, ride a bike, drive a car, use power tools and such. A small percentage of people died or were maimed, unfortunately, or had near misses. Calling these events an "accident" is really a misnomer, externalizing the event does no good. Engaging in an inherently risky activity without having the proper training and sustained situational awareness results in mistakes, where injuries occur. These are not accidents. Perhaps luck is on the side of many people, and near misses occur, which should also be learned from.

 

[Gilligan]

...

And a new low had been reached by a AlpineZone moderator. Seriously, DHS, what is wrong with you?

 

[MadMadWorld]

Life sucks when someone finally gets under your skin. If you dish it out you should be able to take it Gilligan. Get over it, it's not like he posted his home address or SSN. It was his freaking first name

 

[deadheadskier]

Yup a new low. :lol: called someone their first name who's trolled for years on this forum without care for pissing anyone off and now he's crying about it. Shame on me

 

[Highway Star]

Yup a new low. :lol: called someone their first name who's trolled for years on this forum without care for pissing anyone off and now he's crying about it. Shame on me

^Reported post.