Vail Chair Lift: Fallout From The Naked Skier Accident

JR — Thu, 08 Jan 2009 17:25:09 +0000

The Vail chair lift accident that left a skier naked and upside down is leading to new fallout. The man seemingly got into a lift with a nonsecured seat and ended up becoming trapped, dangling from the device with his pants around his ankles.

Naked Skier Photo Fallout

The photos of the naked man on the ski lift quickly circulated around the Internet. It has now been confirmed that the photographer who snapped the naked skier shots — who worked for a Vail-hired contractor called Sharpshooters — has been suspended from the job. Vail insists it never asked the man to take the photos.

Vail Chair Lift Reaction

The Vail community has also cried out against the publicity surrounding the naked skier. The Vail Daily’s “Letters to the Editor” section has already featured notes expressing disappointment with the resort’s coverage of the incident.

“Pretty poor taste in showing the skier who got flipped on the Blue Sky lift,” reads one letter. “He was terrified and I am sure still not laughing about the ‘cheeky’ situation.”

“We think publishing the picture was in poor taste,” reads another.

Do you think it’s wrong for the images to have been published? Check your opinion below, and feel free to leave a comment with your thoughts.

ORIGINAL STORY: Naked Skier: Vail Ski Lift Mishap Leaves Man Hanging Pantless [Photo]

Naked Skier: Vail Ski Lift Mishap Leaves Man Hanging Pantless [Photo]

JR — Wed, 07 Jan 2009 16:46:50 +0000

Have you seen the naked skier? A man at Colorado’s Vail ski resort found himself hanging from a ski lift, upside down and pantless, for a good several minutes last week.

Naked Skier: The Vail Chairlift Accident

The “ski bum,” as he’s been dubbed, apparently got into a ski lift in which the seat was not fully lowered. He fell through the gap and ended up dangling from the Vail chairlift with no way out.

Click to enlarge. (Generally safe for work — you really can’t see much.)

Skier Suffers Exposure

The man’s ski became jammed and his pants — well, you saw it. The Smoking Gun reports the Vail chairlift accident caused no injuries. According to the official report cited by TSG, the man was upside down for about seven minutes before staff members were able to get him out.

You can see more images of the pantless skier snapped by witnesses, including his rescue, here. His identity, thankfully for him, hasn’t been released — and can’t be easily ascertained in any of the snapshots, either. (At least, not unless you can recognize a guy from his bum.)