Skier Dies in Attempt at Jumping Colorado Highway

He 'lacked the necessary speed and distance' to clear US 40, authorities say
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 11, 2024 11:40 AM CDT
Skier Dies in Attempt at Jumping Colorado Highway
Stock photo of the Berthoud Pass after a storm.   (Getty Images/arinahabich)

A 21-year-old skier in Colorado was wearing a helmet and other protective gear but it wasn't enough to save him when his attempt to jump a highway failed, authorities say. Investigators found that the man "was attempting to perform a high-risk skiing stunt by trying to clear the width of Highway 40 and unfortunately lacked the necessary speed and distance and subsequently landed on the highway pavement," the Grand County Sheriff's Office said in a news release. Authorities said a bystander initiated CPR but the man died at the scene, the Denver Post reports.

The county coroner's office identified the man as Dallas LeBeau, 9News reports. The jump LeBeau attempted near the Berthoud Pass summit, west of Denver, was 40 feet, KDVR reports. Friends told KDVR that LeBeau loved to ski and often urged others to take up the sport. "He wanted to do things that nobody else had done. He always said his birthday was the same day as Evel Knievel," says childhood friend Devin Shirk. (More skiing stories.)

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