THE OFFICIAL 20/21 TAHOE SKI & SNOWBOARD THREAD. PANDEMIC SCHMANDEMIC!

**MTT** · 03-07-2021, 11:42 AM

Originally Posted by powdork

Damn HJ5 thats heavy.

Thanks for taking the time to share this. I too am very curious as to how he broke both legs.

Unless it was tree's and rock's. Of a fall off a cliff? That's not supposed to happen.

If I ever get messed up like that I hope someone like you is around to get me to the other side.

**frorider** · 03-07-2021, 11:52 AM

Originally Posted by gimpy

Whoahhhh..... thanks for sharing hj5. The silver lining here is that your buddy will not be getting a bill for the heli ride cuz the chp one doesn’t charge....... if he’d been picked up by calstar.....$boom$

How many BC regulars here have Calstar’s annual membership? We’ve had it forever since it’s pretty cheap. However I dunno if they find ways to screw you over on the billing for a rescue.

hj5, glad the rescue was relatively smooth.

**powdork** · 03-07-2021, 12:09 PM

Originally Posted by frorider

How many BC regulars here have Calstar’s annual membership? We’ve had it forever since it’s pretty cheap. However I dunno if they find ways to screw you over on the billing for a rescue.

hj5, glad the rescue was relatively smooth.

Aren't there two different services we need to worry about here?

**CC_skier** · 03-07-2021, 12:12 PM

Thanks everyone, all things considered he's doing good. He got released from Barton yesterday afternoon, obviously got a rod put in for the spiral tib/fib but his other leg they were able to put it in a boot and allow it to heal. Family was able to come in yesterday for him too.

It does seem like there was some sort of binding release issue, neither ski released. I'm not really sure what happened, cuz his toes weren't cranked and we were able to take his skis off relatively easily. I guess maybe if his skis dove deep enough, there wouldn't be enough force translated to the bindings to get them to release? But yeah to be clear no cliffs, no trees, no real obstacles where we were. Skis just took a dive.

And I guess for clarity's sake, we made the call at 2:20 and he got into the helicopter and was off by 7 or so, about four and a half hours for him. The helicopter came at around 3 and circled around for an hour and a half before landing, I think at one point it landed down at the road before coming up? It was definitely out of sight/sound for about 20 minutes at one point. Winds were pretty high, and I was mentally preparing to have to drag him out with the SAR team coming up on foot. So chopper landed at 4:30, SAR got to us at about 4:50, and we got him to the helicopter by 7ish.

The rest of us skied out after he left. I think we should have made the call sooner, but we took a few minutes to look him over to make sure we knew what was happening before calling. Given where we were on the slope it also took two people to get him situated, it didn't seem possible to have one person calling while the other person got him set up. After all I guess it wouldn't have made much of a difference, but we could have save 20 minutes or so. To get him off the slope we were on (open slope above tree line), we got him on this lighweight roll-up sled thing with straps and one of the SAR guys got set up and belayed him down while we slid down alongside the sled and guided it down. Kept doing that with belayer having to yo-yo down the slope twice, then we used the rope to pull him about 200 meters through the flats and then back up a different slope to the helicopter. There wasn't any snow on top of the knob, so we had to carry the last 75 feet or so and then myself and a couple others loaded him up in the helicopter. The whole thing was friggin bonkers.

I think the most jarring this about the whole experience was that we weren't doing anything that felt sketchy. It was windy and the snow was variable, but visibility was great and we were just picking our way through this relatively easy slope. I think he came to a spot where the slope was starting to flatten out, so the snow might have been getting slightly more sun, but it wasn't a change in aspect or anything obvious. And having even basic Wilderness First Aid, AIARE 1, and some time working summers as a lifeguard at a lake definitely helped. I think having those trainings/experience gave me a clear-ish picture of what getting him out was going to look like and made it slightly easier to stay relatively calm while we were waiting.

**MTT** · 03-07-2021, 12:18 PM

Tech bindings with toes in tour/lock mode?

**CC_skier** · 03-07-2021, 01:18 PM

Originally Posted by MTT

Tech bindings with toes in tour/lock mode?

Nope, he had them in ski mode. Not sure if the heel piece might have been set high. And to your earlier post, thanks means a lot. I know he would’ve done the same.

Sent from my iPhone using TGR Forums

**TahoeBC** · 03-07-2021, 02:32 PM

Originally Posted by powdork

Aren't there two different services we need to worry about here?

I believe in recent years the insurance has been consolidated to use both services in our area plus others in quite a few states.

https://calstar.org/membership/

Highway patrol is free but they will not transport you to the hospital, either transfer you to ground transportation or another helicopter service if deemed necessary.

**powdork** · 03-07-2021, 06:05 PM

yeah i guess thats the airmedcare umbrella

**gone2alpine** · 03-07-2021, 08:20 PM

At least one of the two choppers doing training that day was CHP. I am not sure about the second. Most of the laps seemed to go from Subway to about Grouse Rock and back. They were crazy low at times. Riding the Scott chair near the top of the chute, the chopper was passing lower than our elevation.

Originally Posted by old goat

BTW--Thursday there was a helicopter doing laps over AM. It flew from the base area near the bottom of Subway out over the ridge at the head of Ward Valley and back. Same route each time. Was doing that nonstop the whole two hours I was there. Didn't seem to be carrying anything. Training? Might have been CHP.

**powdork** · 03-07-2021, 08:22 PM

Speaking of all this. Hwy 50 at Zephyr Point will be closed for a long time. Multiple car (at least three) multiple fatality crash.

**MashedPotatoes** · 03-07-2021, 10:37 PM

dang that is some heavy stuff and freaky breaking both legs like that. makes a skier shudder..

Kirkwood skied good today. Interesting mix of slight winter and mostly spring conditions but pretty smooth and edgeable on most of the mountain, good day to be there with the groms.

**bodywhomper** · 03-08-2021, 12:57 AM

Best of healing and recovery for your friend. Glad you had cell service. Makes me think again about an in-reach cuz of all the cell service holes in the Tahoe and motherload areas.

Don’t the chp helis have a “long line” for hoisting patients?

Originally Posted by frorider

How many BC regulars here have Calstar’s annual membership? We’ve had it forever since it’s pretty cheap. However I dunno if they find ways to screw you over on the billing for a rescue.

hj5, glad the rescue was relatively smooth.

FWIW, some Corp insurance covers air ambulance as “in-network” coverage.

**powdork** · 03-08-2021, 09:29 AM

Pleasant surprise to wake up to a winter storm watch.

**old goat** · 03-08-2021, 10:42 AM

Originally Posted by bodywhomper

Best of healing and recovery for your friend. Glad you had cell service. Makes me think again about an in-reach cuz of all the cell service holes in the Tahoe and motherload areas.

Don’t the chp helis have a “long line” for hoisting patients?

FWIW, some Corp insurance covers air ambulance as “in-network” coverage.

Too windy for long line I think--sounds like the chopper had a hard time just landing. When that skier was injured on Tallac--last year (?) they long lined him out.

**powdork** · 03-08-2021, 11:03 AM

Originally Posted by bodywhomper

Don’t the chp helis have a “long line” for hoisting patients?

Just as important for dropping in emergency personnel

**old goat** · 03-08-2021, 11:29 AM

Originally Posted by powdork

Just as important for dropping in emergency personnel

I like the sequence in The Horn (Netflix) where they drop the doctor to attend a victim, fly the victim out but no room for the doctor so they leave him to fend for himself, without skis. He eventually got patrol to sled him back to base. I don't think they liked the doctor much.

**bodywhomper** · 03-08-2021, 12:42 PM

In the western slope river canyons when there is an incident, somebody has to walk out and drive to a point with cell service to call first responders, first responders will show up by truck and foot, first responders will radio for helicopter long line (sometimes they have to relocate to have a radio signal), heli (usually chp) shows up and long lines patient (if they can long line), patient is transported to a staging location where a private ground or air ambulance is waiting, patient is transferred to private ambulance and shipped off to hospital.

It’d be the same process if there’s a winter-time incident in a similarly cellular “dead zone.”

**skier666** · 03-08-2021, 01:14 PM

When my wife crushed her ankle just outside of Kirkwood (Alpine County), CHP flew her directly to Barton but that was almost 14 years ago now.

Squaw on Saturday morning was pretty fun if you could find the wind-drifts, stay more on low-angle and avoid the iceberg moguls. Once kids were done with teams, I headed out solo on KT at 3pm and its seemed to get better as it got skied. Chute 75 was surprisingly good in the shade late in the day although crampons would have helped on West Face. Alpine yesterday was glorious. Perfect weather and slayed groomers with 4 year old until departure.

**old goat** · 03-08-2021, 01:30 PM

Originally Posted by bodywhomper

In the western slope river canyons when there is an incident, somebody has to walk out and drive to a point with cell service to call first responders, first responders will show up by truck and foot, first responders will radio for helicopter long line (sometimes they have to relocate to have a radio signal), heli (usually chp) shows up and long lines patient (if they can long line), patient is transported to a staging location where a private ground or air ambulance is waiting, patient is transferred to private ambulance and shipped off to hospital.

It’d be the same process if there’s a winter-time incident in a similarly cellular “dead zone.”

Summary: Don't get hurt in the BC

**mr. hankey** · 03-08-2021, 02:04 PM

Thanks for sharing your story HJ5. Binding non-release...scary stuff. Great reminder that if you go enough times, the likely hood of these one in a hundred type of scenario's happening becomes significant (ok, that sounds stupidly obvious... at least i downplay it regardless). Thinking back to so many examples: your story, TahoBC's earlier in the year, +several friends w/fractures on tours prior years, not to mention other friends accidents/close calls (rockfall, etc. ) . I used to do a lot of solo stuff, especially in the spring, but this stuff is a sobering reminder of what can go wrong, and how much worse it could have been w/o partners like you to help out. Great job dealing with it man.

**bodywhomper** · 03-08-2021, 02:13 PM

Originally Posted by old goat

Summary: Don't get hurt in the BC

Or hilly/mountainous parts of the state.

**frorider** · 03-08-2021, 03:12 PM

Originally Posted by skier666

When my wife crushed her ankle just outside of Kirkwood (Alpine County), CHP flew her directly to Barton but that was almost 14 years ago now. .

Damn 14 yrs? I remember clearly the accident, but would’ve guessed 10 yrs ago. Time flies etc.

In the BC I carry enough rope and straps to build a decent rescue sled, but this discussion has reminded me to drill holes in the tips of my newish AT skis.

**teledad** · 03-08-2021, 03:56 PM

Originally Posted by TahoeBC

I believe in recent years the insurance has been consolidated to use both services in our area plus others in quite a few states.

https://calstar.org/membership/

Calstar and REACH have merged but I believe CareFlight is still separate (though the plan is administered through AirMedCare like the others).

https://www.remsahealth.com/membership/

**janky** · 03-08-2021, 04:20 PM

How did your kid do w/ the race? I was at Alpine Sat and Sunday getting my son back on skis after he sprained his ACL training a few weeks ago. Alpine yesterday was outstanding.

Originally Posted by skier666

When my wife crushed her ankle just outside of Kirkwood (Alpine County), CHP flew her directly to Barton but that was almost 14 years ago now.

Squaw on Saturday morning was pretty fun if you could find the wind-drifts, stay more on low-angle and avoid the iceberg moguls. Once kids were done with teams, I headed out solo on KT at 3pm and its seemed to get better as it got skied. Chute 75 was surprisingly good in the shade late in the day although crampons would have helped on West Face. Alpine yesterday was glorious. Perfect weather and slayed groomers with 4 year old until departure.