Posted on 01/30/2023 2:43:36 PM PST by BenLurkin
American professional freestyle skier and former world champion Kyle Smaine died after getting caught in an avalanche in Japan Sunday, his newlywed wife has confirmed.
The 31-year-old Lake Tahoe, California-based pro skier was one of five foreign nationals from the US and Austria who were swept in the avalanche while back-country skiing in the central prefecture of Nagano, Japan, around 2:30 p.m. local time Sunday.
Shortly before his death, Smaine shared a video on Instagram showing him skiing during a marketing trip to Japan.
The deadly avalanche took place on the eastern slope of Mount Hakuba, Nagano police said.
Smaine and four other men were skiing in two separate groups on the mountain, which is 8,100-foot high.
The other three skiers managed to climb down the mountain on their own after the avalanche, but Smaine and another man were discovered Monday with no vital signs.
Japanese weather authorities had issued an avalanche warning for the area, following heavy snowfall in the past few days.
Fellow pro skier Adam Ü, who was skiing with Smaine Sunday, told outdoor magazine Mountain Gazette that they had just finished a run when a third skier in their group trigged the avalanche.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
The Japanese Alps, as they are called, often get some serious snowfall.
but was he vaccinated? What aren’t they telling us?
Terrible news...
However, it can definitely NOT be ascribed to the evil chicom-caused vax...
The jab.
Saw this last night
The Japanese alps are very loaded down with snow so it’s no surprise there was a huge avalanche. Also, the cold snap they had last week is dissipating so the snow gets loose.
They aren’t saying it wasn’t the vax. So it’s the vax.
Not what I was expecting. Good one. 🤣
The key to life is to hide under your covers and never come out.
There’s a region of Japan (somewhere near the city of Sapporo IIRC) that gets something like 20 feet of snow each winter. wonder if that’s the place.
Rest in peace, Kyle Smaine and condolences to his loved ones.
If time is up I believe going whilst doing what I love would be my choice in leaving the now.
RIP
I was going to say the key to backcountry skiing is beacons and shovels, but it sounds like they had those as they dug one person out. Kyle was thrown 160 feet in the air so...
Another key is to know the snow conditions using trenches, etc.
Brings back memories of skiing the Pallisades at Sugar Bowl, CA in my younger days. Almost the best paying job I ever had.
My fat end would be dead in a heartbeat now.
Tempting fate. Sometime fate wins…
In before someone mentions the vax . . oops too late.
It’s too easy to get on top of snow covered mountains. If the only way up was snowshoes and climbing gear the majority of alpine skiers would probably not go at all.
It’s kinda like flying into known icing conditions: maybe the plane can handle it, but maybe it can’t. Like someone said: a man’s got to know his limitations.
Did that person survive?
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