Boulder skier apparently suffocated under deep snow at Steamboat
- Details
- Created on Saturday, 19 March 2011 21:20
- Written by Nathan
By ERICA MELTZER, BOULDER DAILY CAMERA
Cooper Larsh was an avid skier who sought out the most challenging runs, said his stepfather, Mark Squillace.
So Larsh's mother, Maureen Ryan, wasn't worried at all when she dropped him off at Howelsen Hill in downtown Steamboat Springs, where the 19-year-old Boulder man was spending spring break.
Larsh was found dead at the hill Thursday after his mother reported him missing.
He did not return several text messages and calls from his mother in the afternoon, and he never showed up at the bottom of the hill, where she was waiting for him.
Howelsen Ski Patrol began searching for Larsh about 8 p.m. and found him at about 9:30 p.m. partially buried headfirst in deep snow by the alpine slide, an attraction operated at the ski area during the summer. Larsh had apparently suffocated on snow in the area, which is off-limits to skiers.
"What it looked like to me is he hit a bump, went airborne, landed, hit another bump, ejected from his skis, went airborne and went headfirst into a snowbank," Steamboat Springs Police Detective Nick Bosick said. "It's an unfortunate accident."
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