Snow Industry Mourns Avalanche Deaths

We all hold our breaths each time an avalanche story reaches the mainstream news. First, hoping no one was hurt while at the same time recalling our own interactions with slides, and then selfishly hoping that it was no one we knew.

Unfortunately, on Saturday April 20, 2013, the action sports industry was faced with the sobering reality of Mother Nature’s deadly power when five comrades died in deadliest Colorado avalanche since 1962 when a huge field of snow slid near Loveland Pass in Colorado.

The four snowboarders and one skier who died in the slide all lived in Colorado and were all either ski and snowboard industry professionals or veterans of the backcountry, They were equipped with avalanche beacons and proper backcountry gear. The victims included Christopher Peters, 32, of Lakewood; Joe Timlin, 32; Ryan Novak, 33; Ian Lamphere, 36; and Rick Gaukel, 33.

The group had gathered on April 20, 2013 at Loveland Pass Resort for the Rocky Mountain High Backcountry Gathering sponsored by Snowboard Colorado Magazine according to a Colin Bane story on ESPN.com. Timlin was a sales representative for Jones Snowboards and an organizer of the backcountry event. Lamphere was the founder of Gecko Skins and Gaukel was an American Mountain Guides Association-certified climbing guide from Estes Park with extensive avalanche eduction. Jerome Boulay, the only person to survive the slide is the sales manager for Silverton, Colorado-based Venture Snowboards.

Please follow the jump for the rest of the story . . .

While the details of the avalanche were slow to come out, when it did Facebook rippled with memories and photos of friends and coworkers killed in the slide.

Courtney Mercier, formerly of Nidecker Snowboards and a long-time coworker of the sole survivor, Boulay, as well as a long-time friend of Lamphere’s wrote the following on her Facebook page.

“A bittersweet day…the loss of Ian is a devastation that we’ll all hold in our hearts for some time. It seems absolutely inconceivable at the moment. At the same time I couldn’t be more elated knowing that Jerome rests safely at home with his girls. I cry tears of sadness and joy all at once. I LOVE YOU BOTH DEARLY. Thinking, also, with deep sadness of the friends and families of the other 4 lives lost. Such a tragic day.”

While Sales and Marketing Director for Jones Snowboards Maxx von Marbod (pictured above left with Joe Timlin) wrote the following on his Facebook page:

“Hi Joe,

Today I’m missing you my friend. It’s been an honor and a privilege to have known you and I’m inspired by the pure stoke you gave to me and all those whose lives you touched. You were taken from us too soon but I will rest assured that you gave this world everything you had. I choose to remember you as you are pictured here, your smiling face on a wintery day, doing what you loved. Rest in peace my friend. Wait up top!

Love,
Maxx “

In a small circle that reaches far and wide, it is not surprising that the deadliest avalanche in the past 50 years has touched members of the snowsports industry. As the sports push past lift accessible terrain and into the backcountry, it is a sobering reminder that with all great adventure comes the possibility of great consequences.

A fundraiser has been set up for Ian Lamphere’s fiancé and young daughter. Click here for more information.