Decorated big mountain skier and BASE jumper Shane McConkey was killed earlier today in a ski-BASE accident in the Italian Dolomites.
Shane McConkey
Hometown: Olympic Valley, Cali. Family:Wife, Sherry; Daughter, Ayla Nickname: Cliff Huckstable Sponsors: Red Bull, K2, Sessions, Nordica, Marker, Oakley, Squaw Valley USA Accolades:
* 1996, 1998: IFSA World Tour of Freeskiing, World Champ * 1999: Winter X Games Skier X, 2nd * 2001: Skiing Mag Top 25 Skiers in N.A., 1st * 2002, 2005, 2006: Powder Mag Reader's Poll Awards, 1st * 2005: Laureus World Sport Award, Nominee
Film Parts:
* 1997-2008: Matchstick Productions * '95, '99, '00, '02: Scott Gaffney Pictures * 1999: Teton Gravity Research * 2005: Warren Miller Films
A member of the Red Bull Air Force and pioneer of the ski-BASE-ing phenomenon, McConkey experienced problems in the air after launching off a cliff with the expectation of deploying his parachute canopy and then gliding down to the ground—as he had done successfully some 700-plus times before.
"He did a double backflip off the jump and he has these releasable bindings so they come off in the air and then he flies off in his wing suit," filmmaker Scott Gaffney, a longtime close friend of McConkey's, told ESPN Action Sports in an interview this afternoon via phone.
"But one ski did not come off. And when that happens the drag on the skis causes you to flip over, so the skis go over your head. So he was struggling with the one ski. Then he also got into a bad spin. So he may have never even pulled his pilot chute. And that's coming from JT Holmes, who Shane was with in Italy and who reviewed the footage of the accident. So the combination of the ski, the spin and the pilot chute, apparently. Because you can't throw the pilot chute like that; if you throw it while you're upside down and it wraps around the ski, you're done."
McConkey was filming with Matchstick Productions and Red Bull at the time, according to Gaffney, who said McConkey apparently died on impact with snow on the ground below the cliff. Gaffney was not clear about the size of the cliff. "But it had to be a sizable cliff, at least 400 feet, for him to be planning on flying his wing suit away from it," Gaffney said.
McConkey, 39, of Olympic Valley, Calif., is survived by his wife, Sherry, and their 3½-year-old daughter, Ayla.
Graeme Murray/Red Bull Photofiles This afternoon Gaffney was at home in Squaw Valley, Calif., with his brother, Robb, also a close friend of McConkey's, reeling from the news. "With what Shane does," said Scott, "it's a call you always picture getting at some point, but you realistically don't ever expect it to happen."
Added Robb Gaffney, "Shane's been a part of our lives for quite a while now. I'm just sitting at Scott's house processing the whole thing. The texts and calls are coming in, and you can really even feel it in the air in Squaw right now. I'm thinking about Sherry and his little girl. But in this area people have always loved Shane, so Sherry and Ayla, they're going to have an immense amount of support around them. That's one thing for sure; that's Shane's legacy."
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dirtyfrank0705 wrote:
At the age of 40, PunkDavid will check his own prostate and then bill his doctor.
Without Shane, my new skis, which are the most amazing skis I've ever been on, would not have been possible. He was actually a member of another board I'm on. Here are some of his comments on ski base jumping:
Quote:
Cliff Huckstable Cliff Huckstable is offline Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 15 Hello everyone, Well I just have to chime in here. And yes of course I am biased. 7 years ago we heard this exact same discussion in the ski world except that it was about sliding rails. A lot of people didn't want to see it in movies. "Its not real skiing" they would say. Now of course rails have become a very popular part of skiing and there is not much argument. I'm not saying that this is going to happen with ski base jumps. Its far too difficult and dangerous and expensive for it to become a large part of skiing. Its kind of like ski mountaineering. "Oh thats lame, he had to use a rope in order to do that line." You don't hear this comment being made. You don't see a lot of ski mountaineering in movies and the activity isn't practiced by much of skiing's population. It is however an activity which allows skiers to do lines and access places in the mountains which one couldn't normally go. It gives skiers a whole new direction and challenge. The simple fact is that the use of a parachute (or a rope) has enabled skiers to do things and go places and have a blast with their skis on. There are way more people getting into ski base jumps than you may think. In 20 years I think we may see some very amazing descents accomplished in the Alps and every where else. If you don't like watching rails or any kind of mountaineering in ski movies then you shouldn't like to see ski base jumps either. That makes sense. If you do enjoy some of that stuff then don't be too quick to brush off ski base jumps. They are going to become more and more popular with the back country/mountaineering crowd. Last comment: ski base jumping is exceptionally dangerous. All the jumps you have seen in the movies make it look like it is very easy. I hear a lot of comments along the lines of "Did you have to use a parachute for that one? Why can't you sack up and hit it like a real man without a parachute?" Line twists, unstable deployments, line entanglements with ski gear and several other possible malfunctions are all very easy malfunctions to have when jumping with skis on. All these can cause a wall strike and possible death. Not injury, death. What you see in the movies may look easy. When done right it is but it can kill you very easily too. Ski base jumps are all very meticulously planned out. From the time you push off to the time you land the parachute. While it may or may not have a large place in ski films today the activity will continue to grow and add to the back country experience for many skiers. By doing so it will solidify its place as a legitimate addition to the sport of skiing. Peace. Shane
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:47 am Posts: 46000 Location: Reasonville
i didn't see this coming.
_________________ No matter how dark the storm gets overhead They say someone's watching from the calm at the edge What about us when we're down here in it? We gotta watch our backs
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:47 am Posts: 46000 Location: Reasonville
i mean, what are the chances of dying in a freak ski-BASE accident?
_________________ No matter how dark the storm gets overhead They say someone's watching from the calm at the edge What about us when we're down here in it? We gotta watch our backs
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:47 am Posts: 46000 Location: Reasonville
Buffalohed wrote:
corduroy_blazer wrote:
i mean, what are the chances of dying in a freak ski-BASE accident?
I dunno, probably around 1 in 700.
is there evidence for that claim?
_________________ No matter how dark the storm gets overhead They say someone's watching from the calm at the edge What about us when we're down here in it? We gotta watch our backs
Joined: Mon Oct 18, 2004 5:51 am Posts: 17078 Location: TX
corduroy_blazer wrote:
Buffalohed wrote:
corduroy_blazer wrote:
i mean, what are the chances of dying in a freak ski-BASE accident?
I dunno, probably around 1 in 700.
is there evidence for that claim?
Quote:
A member of the Red Bull Air Force and pioneer of the ski-BASE-ing phenomenon, McConkey experienced problems in the air after launching off a cliff with the expectation of deploying his parachute canopy and then gliding down to the ground—as he had done successfully some 700-plus times before.
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:47 am Posts: 46000 Location: Reasonville
Buffalohed wrote:
corduroy_blazer wrote:
Buffalohed wrote:
corduroy_blazer wrote:
i mean, what are the chances of dying in a freak ski-BASE accident?
I dunno, probably around 1 in 700.
is there evidence for that claim?
Quote:
A member of the Red Bull Air Force and pioneer of the ski-BASE-ing phenomenon, McConkey experienced problems in the air after launching off a cliff with the expectation of deploying his parachute canopy and then gliding down to the ground—as he had done successfully some 700-plus times before.
there could be jumpers who do it 2,000 times fine, could there not? perhaps more of them?
_________________ No matter how dark the storm gets overhead They say someone's watching from the calm at the edge What about us when we're down here in it? We gotta watch our backs
There could be I suppose, but for a sport that Shane himself pioneered, it's hard to imagine there would be too many.
Watch the first video I posted and read Shane's own comments. It's not like he didn't know what the dangers were; in fact he weighed them carefully and still made the choice to pursue the sport. That's not really the point.
Here's an bit from an interview he did on what he dis and risk management:
Quote:
As an extreme-sportsman you need to have sponsors and media coverage. Do you sometimes fell kind of stripped? Wouldn't you sometimes prefer a usual 9to5 job and have fun with your friends and family? Shane: No, absolutely not. Have you been sniffing glue? I have the best job in the world. My job is to go out there every day and have fun with my friends. Not just a little bit of fun, a mother fucking shit ton of fun! When I am not traveling and I am at home I am just that - AT HOME with my wife and daughter. I don’t have to get up and leave them for some shitty 9-5 job that would strip the life out of me. I can go skiing with them if I want. I can take my daughter to the park. Having sponsors and getting to work in an industry and be closely involved with creating toys for us all to play on is very rewarding. Do I feel stripped? Hell no! I specifically chose to work with those companies because I believe in their products.
You are a 1-time father and husband. What about your risk management? Shane: People always ask if I am more careful now that I have a daughter. The answer is no. I have always been careful. I definitely think through the consequences of a dangerous situation more times now before I do it though. It makes perfect sense if you think about it. Before a person has a child they don’t risk their own life irrationally. So when you do have a child you still are not going to risk your life irrationally. The only thing that sometimes bothers me is that if the worst thing happened and I were to die then my daughter would grow up without a father. And I would not get to experience that. When people who engage in inherently dangerous activities as their life’s passion or job finally have children they have a choice to make. Quit your passions or keep doing them. My biggest goal in life has always been to pursue passion and to make dreams a reality. I love my daughter but if I had to quit my passions for her then I would be setting the wrong example for her and I would not be myself anymore.
_________________ I am a Child, I'll last a while. You can't conceive of the pleasure in my smile.
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:47 am Posts: 46000 Location: Reasonville
incredible photo.
_________________ No matter how dark the storm gets overhead They say someone's watching from the calm at the edge What about us when we're down here in it? We gotta watch our backs
Joined: Sat Aug 13, 2005 11:31 pm Posts: 7162 Location: The Only "Non-NESN" County CT Gender: Male
corduroy_blazer wrote:
incredible photo.
I only wish I had the balls to do that kind of skiing...I've vowed to go heli-skiing at least once before I die or at least real off-piste backcountry skiing... just skiing the glades in New England is so intense I can't imagine how amazing it must be out west on a real non-resort mountain...one day
_________________
dirtyfrank0705 wrote:
At the age of 40, PunkDavid will check his own prostate and then bill his doctor.
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:47 am Posts: 46000 Location: Reasonville
In the end, it's not the years in your life that count. It's the life in your years.
Abraham Lincoln.
it sure seemed this guy lived up to that proposition.
_________________ No matter how dark the storm gets overhead They say someone's watching from the calm at the edge What about us when we're down here in it? We gotta watch our backs
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