Scary sequence of some skilled skiers on unstable snowpack in the backcountry near Big Sky, Montana. Wiley Miller is the guy who landed the jump and set the slide in motion. Brad Trotter was off to the side, camera rolling and had this to say about the incident:
This post is being shared in hopes to support the current issues with our snowpack here in SW Montana, as well as many areas with similar issues in the snowpack across the western US. We dug multiple pits and after a thoughtful discussion I decided the slope was willing to deal with me riding it. We had multiple people in safety positions ready to assist if needed prior to dropping in, a standard we strive for everyday in avalanche terrain. After 3 hits the slope gave way. Perhaps I struck a shallow area of the landing, perhaps my assumed confidence in the slope was wrong… most likely a combination. My takeaway, that of hyper increased caution. This is my career and I’m admittedly forever a student in the world of snowpack education, yesterday was a step in furthering that.