Professional Skier dies in Avy at Snowbird

Professional skier Jamie Pierre dies in avalanche near Snowbird

The Salt Lake Tribune

Professional skier Matthew Jamie Pierre died in an avalanche he triggered while snowboarding in the unopened Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort resort Sunday afternoon.

Pierre, of Big Sky, Montana, was snowboarding with a friend in the South Chute area when he triggered the avalanche that swept him off a rock cliff, Unified Police Department Spokesman Justin Hoyal.

The avalanche was reported to authorities at 3:15 p.m. and Unified Fire Authority, Unified Police Department and Wasatch Back Country Rescue responded. Pierre was not buried in the avalanche, but was already dead when rescuers reached him, Hoyal said. His friend was uninjured.

The area where the two were snowboarding in would be considered within the boundaries of the resort if it were open, Hoyal said. But until the resort opens, no avalanche control work is being done.

http://m.sltrib.com/sltrib/mobile/52907844-78/avalanche-resort-hoyal-kobernik.html.csp

Jamie Pierre Video at Ski Mad World:

http://madpatski.wordpress.com/2011/11/13/rip-jamie-pierre/

EDIT: More from First Tracks:

http://www.firsttracksonline.com/2011/11/13/jamie-pierre-dies-in-snowbird-avalanche/

Lot of sliding in that early season snowpack in Utah, and across the west.

so sad.  The first day I skied at Brighton in 1994 there was an avalanche that knocked a 70 ton boulder onto a car in the Canyon killing a mother and her 14 year old son.  Incredible how often this really happens too.  

How could a such an experienced pro skier not have proper avy gear when skiing in such dangerous conditions?  Since he wasn't buried the lack of a peeps didn't kill him but shows that he was not taking proper precautions and likely did not do the proper snow accessment before skiing that chute.  Not having a shovel means he couldn't have dug a snow pit to check for stability.

its like the old joke that there are no old bold pilots left alive - a 38 year old pro skier should know better and have gained a ton of experience over his career.  I don't mean to talk ill of the deceased but there is a lesson to be learned here.

ausable skier wrote

How could a such an experienced pro skier not have proper avy gear when skiing in such dangerous conditions?  Since he wasn't buried the lack of a peeps didn't kill him but shows that he was not taking proper precautions and likely did not do the proper snow accessment before skiing that chute.  Not having a shovel means he couldn't have dug a snow pit to check for stability.

its like the old joke that there are no old bold pilots left alive - a 38 year old pro skier should know better and have gained a ton of experience over his career.  I don't mean to talk ill of the deceased but there is a lesson to be learned here.

Dude, he died of trauma. A backhoe wouldn't have saved him. And digging a pit would be futile at this time (Nov 12) - there is no history of the pack to see. Anyway, this is someone who held the world record for hucking at around 250 feet. Not exactly Mr Sensible. I agree, this was someone who was very lucky to make it to 38.

Benny Profane wrote

Dude, he died of trauma. A backhoe wouldn't have saved him. And digging a pit would be futile at this time (Nov 12) - there is no history of the pack to see.

Agree with Benny.

Somewhat ironic that he died skiing/snowboarding somewhat conservatively. In the video I linked up, he mentioned something like that now that he had a family, he was done going crazy stuff.

In that 2006 255ft cliff jump at Targhee, he talked about his religious faith. I guess it wasn't his 'time' to go back then...you never when your time is up. Simple skiing or being hit by a bus. Live now and Play safe.

This is a type of accident could have happened to many of us.

Sure, there was not much of a snowpack to analyze here right now but the signs were definitely there yesterday. I was contemplating skinning up Alta yesterday but didn't because of the widespread reports of collapsing in the snowpack on Saturday. That "whoomping" sound is nothing you ever want to hear. So instead I ended up riding lift-served at Solitude where none of the open terrain is in a potential avalanche zone. I should note here that there's absolutely nothing inherently wrong with skiing a closed ski area around here as long as you understand that it's the same as backcountry terrain and you treat it as such. There's a different mindset around here to skiing a closed ski area than exists back East.

One of the guys I was planning to skin with on Sunday had expressed interest in returning to Gunsight yesterday, where the separate avi that resulted in a fractured femur occurred. I responded that if I were to skin in LCC I would go nowhere near Gunsight yesterday due to conditions and offered some safer alternatives. That turned out to be prophetic.

There was no doubt on Sunday morning that the day would bring a widespread avalanche cycle. That was predicted clearly in the UAC report on Sunday morning. The latest storm dropped more than an inch of water weight upon severely faceted snow beneath. Dropping into a 40-degree chute without, at a bare minimum ski cutting it first, after you've already set off an earlier slab avalanche, without gear, is asking for trouble. Sure, the gear wouldn't have saved him but it's indicative of the mindset with which the party approached the situation.

I'll admit that it's easy to Monday morning quarterback the situation and less clear when you're the one involved. I've been the target of second guessing before myself, most notably a situation a few years back when one of our party was caught in a slide in the White Pine backcountry adjacent to Snowbird. I was convinced that we had done all the right things, but acknowledge now that there were some signs that we failed to pay attention to. Small signs, but those signs were there...but we sure didn't see them at the time.

I was so sorry last night to learn of the fatality, even more sorry once I learned who the victim was. I used to see Pierre often tooling around the Alta groomers with his little kid. He had backed off of his big mountain huckster lifestyle in favor of raising a family. But he clearly demonstrated some poor judgment that unfortunately led to his demise yesterday.

Benny Profane wrote

Dude, he died of trauma. A backhoe wouldn't have saved him. And digging a pit would be futile at this time (Nov 12) - there is no history of the pack to see. Anyway, this is someone who held the world record for hucking at around 250 feet. Not exactly Mr Sensible. I agree, this was someone who was very lucky to make it to 38.

Benny not sure if you read the SLC newspaper account but based on the below excerpt if he had dug a pit he would have seen the layers and understood the danger

The avalanche triggered by Pierre was one of at least 10 human-triggered avalanches reported Sunday as an unstable snowpack made for hazardous conditions, according to Brett Kobernik, avalanche forecaster with the Utah Avalanche Center.

Kobernik said four of those avalanches were in the unopened Alta Ski Resort. One person suffered a leg injury, but no other injuries were reported in the slides.

Skiers and snowboarders need to treat resorts as back-country ski areas now because there are no ski or avalanche patrols, Kobernik said. The layer of snow that fell in October is weak and sugary and is covered with heavier snow from the recent storm.

"It’s like stacking a brick on top of potato chips," Kobernik said.

He encouraged outdoor enthusiasts to check advisories at www.utahavalanchecenter.org or by calling the center’s toll-free advisory hotline at 888-999-4019.

ausable skier wrote

Benny Profane wrote

Dude, he died of trauma. A backhoe wouldn't have saved him. And digging a pit would be futile at this time (Nov 12) - there is no history of the pack to see. Anyway, this is someone who held the world record for hucking at around 250 feet. Not exactly Mr Sensible. I agree, this was someone who was very lucky to make it to 38.

Benny not sure if you read the SLC newspaper account but based on the below excerpt if he had dug a pit he would have seen the layers and understood the danger

I actually agree with you both, but understand that you didn't need to dig a pit yesterday to understand the situation. It was plainly obvious to anyone willing to look and listen.

Benny Profane wrote

And digging a pit would be futile at this time (Nov 12) - there is no history of the pack to see. Anyway, this is

 Not so accurate

It seems like he was a victim of powder lust which is probably the #1 cause of Avy fatalities.  

As a pro skier I'm sure he owns and knows how to use avy gear.  Not having the proper equipment with him and skiing what he was with those avy conditions is hard for me to fathom but then again he jumped off 250 foot cliffs for a living and i don't.  The risk seems super high based on what our western friend 1st tracks is saying here.

First Tracks wrote

But he clearly demonstrated some poor judgment that unfortunately led to his demise yesterday.

I would agree, except that some people choices and margins of errors some times are razor thin. Not guessing what was in his mind, but maybe he thought he could get away with it even if the risk was considerable. He might have thought to himself that he survived skiing similar situation or worse before.

Some people would think it's poor judgment jumping a 255ft cliff, so for Jamie Pierre, who's knows what he thought.

MadPatSki wrote

I would agree, except that some people choices and margins of errors some times are razor thin.

Let's put this in perspective, then:
1. Similar aspects and similar pitches had already resulted in at least 10 avalanches earlier in the day within a two-mile radius of where this happened, resulting in injuries;
2. Nothing about #1, above, was any kind of surprise;
3. He had already kicked off one himself;
4. 40 degrees is just about the perfect angle for slide potential;
5. You're not carrying gear and therefore doing nothing to minimize the risk;
6. Per the preliminary UAC report you just dive right in (I'll wait, however, to see the final report).

That's not a choice, that's just plain foolish IMO. Not only that, but you're putting rescuers at significant risk to come after you as the location where this happened is a funnel-shaped bowl and there are other lines above the accident scene that could have come down upon rescuers. You also ran the risk of burying some unsuspecting traveler or resort operations employee below you on Death Road or Big Emma, where snowmaking and grooming operations are underway.

Sorry, but from what I knew of Jamie I liked him. And I'm not trying to speak poorly of the deceased, but this just wasn't a smart move. Yeah, it was his choice...but not a smart one.

First Tracks wrote

3. He had already kicked off one himself;

Oh, well, duh.

Benny Profane wrote

First Tracks wrote

3. He had already kicked off one himself;

Oh, well, duh.

No, if you read the Accident Report, Jamie or his skiing partner had already kicked one off earlier.

FT, I'm not disagreeing with you...I was just saying and talking about his risks and choices.

MadPatSki wrote

Benny Profane wrote

First Tracks wrote

3. He had already kicked off one himself;

Oh, well, duh.

No, if you read the Accident Report, Jamie or his skiing partner had already kicked one off earlier.

Does it really make any difference if he kicked one off or his partner standing six feet away did?

MadPatSki wrote

FT, I'm not disagreeing with you...I was just saying and talking about his risks and choices.

I understand where you're coming from, Patrick. And understand that I'm just trying to point out that this really wasn't an "accident," it was more the result of some really poor choices.

First Tracks wrote

Does it really make any difference if he kicked one off or his partner standing six feet away did?

Yeah, I was backing up your statement on that one as I was replying to Benny.

First Tracks wrote

And understand that I'm just trying to point out that this really wasn't an "accident," it was more the result of some really poor choices.

Agree again...that statement is something you learn in an avy course.

MadPatSki wrote

First Tracks wrote

And understand that I'm just trying to point out that this really wasn't an "accident," it was more the result of some really poor choices.

Agree again...that statement is something you learn in an avy course.

Very true. And as I understand it, I'm shocked to learn that he never took one (again, per the UAC's initial investigation).

how could a "pro" skier not have taken an avy courses given how much time he spent being exposed to crazy levels of hazard - did he just trust his life all the time to the flim producer that may or may not have his best interests at heart?  hucking yourself off stuff does not make you a professional - its amazing that lasted this long.  I had trusted that these flim pros were pros in every sense of the word and were highly trained not just in technique but the science of snow.  I had hoped these guys took educated risks that looked crazy to us but were as not really that dangerous if you were a professional athlete with the proper training.  This is a lesson to those kids that want to follow in his footsteps to get educated and practice their craft or else a chute somewhere sometime will have their number.

given his level of experience i agree that accident or ignorance are not the operative words here - with all due respect to the deceased it was more like suicide by stupidity

skimore wrote

Benny Profane wrote

And digging a pit would be futile at this time (Nov 12) - there is no history of the pack to see. Anyway, this is

 Not so accurate

Nice link. If nothing else comes of this, at least it should serve as a warning sign that snow conditions must be taken into account, regardless of how early in the year you're skiing.

That and if you make questionable decisions, you shouldn't count on God to save you.

ausable skier wrote

how could a "pro" skier not have taken an avy courses given how much time he spent being exposed to crazy levels of hazard - did he just trust his life all the time to the flim producer that may or may not have his best interests at heart?  hucking yourself off stuff does not make you a professional - its amazing that lasted this long.  I had trusted that these flim pros were pros in every sense of the word and were highly trained not just in technique but the science of snow.  I had hoped these guys took educated risks that looked crazy to us but were as not really that dangerous if you were a professional athlete with the proper training.  This is a lesson to those kids that want to follow in his footsteps to get educated and practice their craft or else a chute somewhere sometime will have their number.

given his level of experience i agree that accident or ignorance are not the operative words here - with all due respect to the deceased it was more like suicide by stupidity

Well, remember that the next time you plunk down 20 bucks or so for the latest rad ski film sponsored by so and so and so and so. The kids are "pros" because somebody actually paid them to heli ski in Alaska or huck off cliffs in the Teton backcountry. They may have done it for free if the pow was tasty and the cool buzz was provided. Unfortunately, this happens every now and then. Yeah, yeah, I know, he wasn't even working much these days, but, still, he had a reputation to protect, if you know what I mean.