26 year-old, Alex Thompson is lucky to be alive after getting caught in an avalanche just beyond the boundary of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in a zone locals refer to as the “Air Force Chutes.”
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According to The Jackson Hole News and Guide, Thompson was riding with friends on closing day at the resort when they decided to venture beyond the gates into an avalanche prone area known as Granite Canyon. He was properly equipped for backcountry travel at the time of the accident.
“Yesterday a snowboarder triggered a small slab avalanche in a very steep chute. Due to the sustained pitch of the slope he was carried a long distance and injured.” – Bridger Teton Avalanche Center
Traversing across the top of the couloir, Thompson triggered what the Bridger Teton Avalanche Center referred to as a “small slab avalanche.” That same slab avalanche would ultimately carry the snowboarder roughly 1,000′ down the chute over rocks, ice, and debris. He sustained an unidentified injury during the avalanche and was transported to the bottom of the chute by ski patrol before rescue personnel could transport Thompson to St John’s Medical Center.
*Heal Up!
Find the entire JH News and Guide article here: Snowboarder caught in slide
