“We want to have a positive impact on this industry after a tragic event in our lives,” says Chauncey Johnson, who founded the Snow Angel Foundation with wife Kelli, to educate skiers and snowboarders to be safe on the slopes, by being more aware of those around them – and slowing down.

In 2010, their daughter Elise was killed by a snowboarder zooming down the trail at a high speed.  “She was five, he was doing 50,” he told a group at the recent Snowbound Expo in Boston. Kelli also was seriously hurt, with a traumatic brain injury that required her to learn to walk, speak and ski again. 

The snowboarder was 23-years-old, older than the stereotype of the out-of-control, don’t-care-about-anybody-else teenaged boarder.  He also was killed, in what was one of the worst on-mountain accidents in history that wasn’t an avalanche – although this created an avalanche of sorrow, and then action, for the Johnsons.

There wasn’t a dry eye in the house as he told the story. I stopped breathing as he told it. I was remembering about putting my own kids on skis at that age, and protecting them from the speedsters, even on the green runs we were skiing, including yelling at the speeders to slow down.  Haven’t we all done that!

The accident was on a small, local mountain in Wyoming, close to where they live, but it could have been anywhere.  Clearly, they want to prevent collisions from happening again anywhere.  Honoring the memory of Elise means working full-time to educate young skiers, even Ski Patrollers, about preventing accidents. 

 That’s the reason behind the Snow Angel Foundation – which uses a snow angel for its logo.

www.snowangelfoundation.org

 The Johnsons work with resorts, schools in resort areas and online to promote what he describes as a triangle of safety –

• Speed – keep it relative to others on the same trail
• Space – keep a safe distance from others
• Self – be aware of your limits, including tiredness

The Johnson’s first effort was “Ride Another Day”, a simple theme we can all relate to.  They work with the NSAA, the National Ski Areas Association, to promote the safety message, which continues to be incorporated into their current work under Snow Angel Foundation.

They are now partnering with Killington, which is adding Snow Angel safety signage at lift access, on chair towers even in the lodge.  

They also work with patrollers at various resorts. Ski Patrol used to clip a lift ticket when somebody went down a roped-off closed run, or went 50mph in a 10-30 zone.  Now, they can disengage the electronic ticket.   Johnson wants patrollers to have a positive – not confrontational talk – before it’s reactivated.  Or not, if the misbehaving speeder doesn’t get the message.

He encourages all of us to take an active role in on-mountain safety, by talking to too-fast skiers and boarders.  Johnson suggests starting the conversation by saying something like, “My friends Chauncy and Kelli,” and then tell the story and its lesson.

Simply, we all have a role in on-mountain safety.  Chauncey and Kelli Johnson are leading the way, along with Killington, and we at SeniorsSkiing hope more resorts sign up with the program.

 See you on the slopes!