Hmm, I may be wrong then. Either way, not a situation many of us would find ourselves into. Superpipes are 22 feet tall, plus if she was 10 to 15 feet out means a 25-35 feet fall to flats.
That's why I hate riding pipe. There's much less room for error. Too much pop, you're dropping an extra 20 feet to flat. Too little pop, you're decking out and folding yourself over a hard lip. No thanks.
She was an extremely progressive skier. One of the very few female pipe skiers I was actually stoked to watch. Everyone else, you could just call their line. 540, opposite 540, alley op 180, big 180, 720. Sarah went huge, and was throwing tricks that would have done well in the men's division.
I don't think she had children but she sure has lots of fans and aspiring skiers who regarded her as a hero. The young woman in the white helmet/purplish jacket at 0:12 in that video is a 17-year-old from our town who trained with Sarah Burke and had the fortune to have her as a mentor and coach. Understandably, Dara's parents are a little freaked out by this situation but continue to support her freestyle aspirations. She is headed for her first X-Games in a few weeks. You have to admire the pluck of a young person who posts this on her FB page the day her hero died:
"I'll cry for Sarah today, and Ski for Sarah tomorrow and never forget!!!"
I never got the "She died doing what she loved" thing. Is that any consultation for someone dying at 29? It's a horrible situation, but it's a situation where she knew the risks, and she decided to go for it anyway. I mean, she's probably one of the first people to die after a fall in the halfpipe, but that kind of thing was bound to happen eventually (especially with people pushing the boundaries further and further). I'm just having a hard time feeling as bad in this situation as I did when CR Johnson had his freak accident and was put into a medically induced coma.
I guess the important thing to get out of all of this is that you have to be aware of the risks you take when you're out on the hill. I've been wearing my helmet this year a lot more than I usually do (which is good because I've rattled my head pretty hard a couple of times teaching park lessons). And I just ordered a beacon, probe and shovel for when I go to Alaska this spring. It's a dangerous sport, but there are some things that we can do to mitigate the risks.
I'd rather die (quickly) doing something I love if I had the choice. It's part of life. It's short so enjoy it while it lasts.
I agree wth Jack. When my time is up I hope someone finds me asleep at a base of a big azz maple tree with my shotgun in hand.
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