Doug Coombs reportedly killed in avalanche

I found this forum while looking for more facts about Chad Vanderham and Doug Coomb's deaths, and I thought that I would share a few words and pictures on Chad.

A long-time acquaintance of Chad, we solidified our friendship last September on an excursion into the Rockies with one of his closest friends from college (a close hometown friend of mine). Chad, a single child originally from Minnesota, was a straight-shooter and a very intelligent fellow, a very good guy. He was always up for an informed discussion on whatever the topic, even if ended with us being at odds on the subject. He was the best I ever skied with, and one of the safest climbing partners I'd ever had the pleasure to scramble with and had a determined hunger to expand his already solid guiding abilities. During traverses, he had me on belay when there was any exposure to falling in the least bit, even if it was the simplest series of horizontal steps. I had complete confidence in his technical and guiding abilities, and oftentimes during the trip commented on what a privilege it was to be in the company of such fine qualified fellows and have them looking after my own tail end.

While Chad (and Doug's) death is tragic and I wish it never happened, he passed doing what he loved the most at a place that he considered his second home, La Grave, a location he had been frequenting for years - he was no neophyte in the ways of the mountain.

Rest in peace, Chad, it was an honor to have spent time with you while you where on this earth. You, your family, and your closest of friends are in my thoughts and prayers.

http://img158.imageshack.us/img158/8672/chad14am.jpg

http://img80.imageshack.us/img80/9510/chad4or.jpg

"Once in awhile you get shown the light in the strangest of places if you look at it right...."

just wanted to say thank you to doug & chad for pushing the limits and opening new doors of possiblity in our sport. your contributions will always be remembered. heartfelt sympathies to both families & friends for the caring love & support they seek during this difficult time. May you find comfort and peace in remembrance.

Got to meet Doug in 99 at the Tsaina but didn't get to ski with him. Very sad news. Anyone else think it's weird that a day after the JH Tram is gone, so is Doug? RIP

Wow. Just getting of the plane from a trip to europe and read this. So sad. Thoughts and prayers for for the friends and family of Doug and Chad.

:( So sad. Been offline mostly for a little over a week and every damn time I log on it is for some bad news, first EJ's leg, now Doug and Chad :( Couldn't even deal to respond last night.

This morning I popped in my copy of the Hedonist cause I knew right where to find a great shot of Doug skiing, there at the end (there's a mess of films that he closes out too) with him linking precise metronome timed turns down a steep AK couloir like it's nutting - way before fat skis just cranking turns.

RIP :(

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Originally Posted by lemon boy

I knew right where to find a great shot of Doug skiing, there at the end (there's a mess of films that he closes out too) with him linking precise metronome timed turns down a steep AK couloir like it's nutting - way before fat skis just cranking turns.

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I was thinking about that very line yesterday and couldn't remember which film it was.

One or two of the TGR films close with him skiing as well IIRC (continuum and?)

Wow, just read through this. Heartbreaking.

Does anyone have a filmography of everything he was in?

If anyone (Minotaur? Glisseur?) finds out about a memorial fund for Chad, would you please post that information as well? Doug is so (deservedly) high-profile that media attention will be focused on him, and I would like the chance to make sure Chad's family knows both men are remembered and honored.

Article from local Jackson Hole paper = http://forums.epicski.com/showthread.php?t=40002

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Originally Posted by Monique

If anyone (Minotaur? Glisseur?) finds out about a memorial fund for Chad, would you please post that information as well? Doug is so (deservedly) high-profile that media attention will be focused on him, and I would like the chance to make sure Chad's family knows both men are remembered and honored.

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not sure I got you right, but I tumbled over this at pistehors.com: http://www.dougcoombsmemorialfund.com/

Wow, it's tragedies like this that remind you how dangerous skiing can be and how fragile life is. Condolences sent to his family.

RIP to a legend.

Thought you guys might like this. We put up some stories focusing on Doug that have run recently.

http://powdermag.com/features/news/coombs-tribute/

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Originally Posted by greg

not sure I got you right, but I tumbled over this at pistehors.com: http://www.dougcoombsmemorialfund.com/

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What I'm wondering is whether there's also been a fund established in Chad's memory.

Cheers to the man who did everything before it was anything. RIP.

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Originally Posted by KevinDineen

Thought you guys might like this. We put up some stories focusing on Doug that have run recently.

http://powdermag.com/features/news/coombs-tribute/

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That's a great link. I remember that Antarctica story almost solely because Doug was wearing that lime-green one-piece.

Coombs dies in fall over cliff


Skier slipped on rocks while trying to help friend who fell down gully in France.

By Jim Stanford

In the end, the man regarded by many as the greatest skier in the world simply lost an edge.

Doug Coombs, the Jackson Hole mountaineer and guide who took the sports of skiing and climbing to new heights, died Monday in the French Alps after slipping and falling over a cliff while trying to aid a friend who had plunged over the same precipice. He was 48 years old.

Chad VanderHam, 31, of Colorado later died of his injuries in the incident, which occurred near the resort of La Grave, about 50 miles east of Grenoble in southeast France. Coombs guided skiers at La Grave and also operated steep skiing camps there with his wife, Emily. He was skiing with friends at the time of the accident.

French authorities confirmed the deaths Tuesday and gave a basic account of the incident. Miles Smart, a friend of Coombs’ and colleague at Exum Mountain Guides in Jackson Hole, provided further details in a telephone interview Tuesday from La Grave, where he had been guiding with Coombs this winter and had spoken with a member of the ski party.

Coombs was one of four skiers, all Americans, descending the Couloir de Polichinelle, a steep chute that winds through cliffs and ends in a 200-foot drop, Smart said. To avoid the last cliff, skiers must traverse to the left at the bottom and exit via another chute, said Smart, who skied the Couloir de Polichinelle on Tuesday and inspected the scene of the accident.

VanderHam went first and disappeared from sight. Coombs skied next, saw that VanderHam had fallen over the cliff and yelled to the other two skiers above – Matt Farmer and Christina Bloomquist – to bring a rope.

“Doug skied down to the edge of the cliff and was sidestepping down on some rocks, to try to get a view of Chad, and Matt Farmer saw him slip a little bit,” Smart said.

“He was down on rock slab and wasn’t able to reset an edge because it was all rock slab below him,” Smart said.

Some snow covered the rock where Coombs likely slipped. “He lost his edge when he was peering over the lip, trying to get a view of Chad,” Smart said.

In all, the two skiers fell about 1,500 feet over rocks and steep slopes. Coombs was not breathing and had no pulse when rescuers arrived, Smart said. VanderHam, who likely had lost control when he hit a patch of ice near the bottom of the couloir, was unconscious and breathing but could not be revived, Smart said.

VanderHam and Farmer were aspiring mountain guides, while Bloomquist is an old friend who has been skiing at La Grave for years, Smart said.


Memorial fund set up

Emily Coombs was at the couple’s home in La Grave on Tuesday with their 3-year-old son, David, and was “doing alright” under the circumstances, Smart said. An account has been set up for the family at Jackson State Bank and Trust and the Web site www.dougcoombsmemo rialfund.com.

News of Coombs’ death sent waves of shock and grief through Jackson Hole and the ski world, where Coombs was revered as a hero. His death came a day after the final public run of the aerial tram in winter, and skiers lamented the loss of two icons of Jackson Hole nearly at once.

“A Legend Falls,” read the Web site of Powder magazine, where stories and photos of Coombs often graced the pages.

Mark Newcomb, a senior Exum guide, summed up the sentiment of the community: “It’s going to take a long time to finally sink in,” he said.

Newcomb and Coombs were friends who climbed and skied together in the Tetons. “We shared that passion of being in the mountains and challenging ourselves, certainly,” Newcomb said. “But I don’t think anyone can match Doug’s passion. He was out there so often and always having so much fun and sharing that with everybody.

“That kind of enthusiasm and passion is probably something we will see only very rarely, if we ever see it again, in a person,” Newcomb said.

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort owner Connie Kemmerer released a statement praising Coombs for inspiring guests and staff with his teachings and adventures.

“For me, Doug was Jackson Hole,” Kemmerer said. “... He will be missed every day.”


Gracious, inspiring

Porter Fox, a Powder editor and former sports editor of the Jackson Hole News, recalled writing his first ski stories about Coombs in the mid-1990s. “He was nothing but gracious and inspiring, always,” Fox said.

Fox said Coombs had a purity of spirit, form and vision. “There was not one part of him that wasn’t completely devoted to skiing, and you felt it and were inspired from it when you were around him,” Fox said. “He was truly the best skier ever.”

Coombs was born in Boston and grew up skiing in Vermont and New Hampshire. He later moved to Bozeman, Mont., to ski at the Big Sky and Bridger Bowl resorts and attend college at Montana State University, where he was a ski racer. After earning a degree in geology, he moved to Jackson Hole in 1986 and began guiding for High Mountain Heli-Skiing.

Coombs was a two-time winner of the World Extreme Skiing Championships in Alaska and served as ski ambassador for Jackson Hole Mountain Resort in the early 1990s. He and his wife founded a heli-skiing business in Valdez, Alaska, where they would go each spring and pioneered hundreds of ski routes.

His feats in the Tetons included the first ski descent of the Otter Body Snowfield on the Grand Teton with Newcomb in June 1996; the first ski descent of the CMC Route on Mount Moran with Hans Johnstone in 2002; and taking clients on the first guided ski descent of the Grand Teton in 2004.

In his 1994 book Driving to Greenland, a collection of winter adventures, author Peter Stark called Coombs “The Dean of Flow.” He marveled at Coombs casually slipping between obstacles.

“To see him ski is to see fluidity, as if he were a droplet of water trickling down a rough plaster wall,” Stark wrote.

La Grave, the tiny French village with a no-frills ski area, had become a second home to the Coombs family over the last 10 years. The Alpine resort, home of the La Meije massif, boasts 7,000-vertical-foot runs and unlimited off-piste terrain that captivated Coombs’ imagination. The resort has only one lift, a two-tiered gondola called le telepherique, and has no grooming, no boundaries, no trail maps or ski patrol.


Endless ski runs

“When I first arrived at La Grave and stared at the majestic glaciated peak of La Meije (13,065 feet), I imagined endless ski runs that would last a lifetime,” Coombs stated on his Web site.

After a fallout with the Jackson Hole resort in 1997, Doug and Emily Coombs brought their steep skiing camps to La Grave and Verbier, Switzerland. The couple retained a home in Jackson Hole and spent a good portion of the summer, fall and early winter here.

Doug Coombs often spoke at ski-related events and shared slide shows of his adventures. He was a regular presenter at Skinny Skis’ annual Avalanche Awareness Night, which promotes backcountry safety. On New Year’s Day this year, he brought his toddler son to Snow King to ski from the top of the Summit Chairlift.

Exum’s Newcomb said while it’s natural for people to conclude that death is an inevitable fate for someone who plays in extreme terrain, in this case special circumstances were at work that may have affected Coombs’ instincts.

Newcomb compared Coombs’ climbing and skiing of hair-raising couloirs to a city person savvy about walking the streets, knowing which neighborhoods to avoid and how to behave so as not to draw attention.

Coombs always was conscious of the consequences of a fall in such terrain, and that mind-set “forces a precision and a control,” Newcomb said.

“In this situation, I have to think that the added level of adrenaline in watching his friend go down and wanting to do something ... might have made that sixth sense slightly off-kilter,” Newcomb said.

“I’m absolutely sure that if his friend had not fallen, he would have skied right past that ice, and it would have been just another run on a great day.”

I can only concur with all the great things that have been said already here given my 15 minutes that I was fortunate to spend with him. Here is my Doug Coombs story.

I met Doug once skiing in Jackson Hole in Feb. '95. I was skiing with an instructor who also happened to be a judge for Extremes in AK (Mike Leverino), when we happened upon Doug and Emily at the Sublette Chair. We rode up with them and then headed over to the Expert Chutes where they both took off as I gasped looking down what was probably the steepest terrain I had ever stood at the top of. On the tram ride back up Mike told me who they were. You never would have guessed from talking to him that he had won the World Extreme's twice before, he was just your cool buddy that meet up with on the hill.

It's always been on "my list" to do one of his camps. Sad, sad news for the skiing community, from my experience he was a great guy, personable, talkative, and informative even with a gaper from TN.

I bought a pair of X-15's a few years (5?) later and was super stoked to see this picture in Powder. I still have those skis, I'll have to drag them out and make a few runs on them.

http://powdermag.com/coombs-climb-d.jpg

I've refrained from posting anything to let it all sink in. Doug was both a pioneer and an ambassador for the sport. As long as we ski he will be there with us in spirit, whether we are challenging ourselves on a blue groomer or making a first descent, there will be the man in the yellow & red Marmot looking down, smiling, and saying "nice line".

teledave - do you man Chris Leveroni, or is there a Mike Leverino. Either way, thanks for sharing your encounter with Doug and Em.

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Originally Posted by Karl Stall

teledave - do you man Chris Leveroni, or is there a Mike Leverino. Either way, thanks for sharing your encounter with Doug and Em.

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Pretty sure it was Mike Leverino, but that was a lot of beers ago. Does your man fit the description, JHMR instructor in winter of 94/95 & Extremes judge? I could easily be mistaken.

Wow, this sucks. I am latefinding out the news, thoughts and prayers.

Chris Leveroni, Wow that name brings back memories....

The accounts told above of Doug's actions and death have shattered me once again. Time to leave work early and morn.

He would have done that for any of the hundreds of skiers/riders he shared runs with over the years. It's just the fucking odds that caught up with him.

I haven't responded to this yet, as I didnt feel I could add anything other than the good thoughts and prayers that I have already and continue to send. I never had the pleasure of meeting Doug. I only knew him through the pictures that covered the inside of my high school locker years ago, and the stories I would read that made me move to the mountains.

Now, after having a couple of days to let this sink in, I have found some personal irony in my reflections. I usually consider such a tragic accident to be another reason to tell myself to play things safe... You're not seventeen anymore... maybe back off a bit. I'm finding though, that every time I re-read this thread, I just want to ski more, better, harder... Climb bigger, more remote...I crave adventure more... And it's all because of how damn inspiring Doug is. Rembering Doug and his monumental feats, really makes me want to seize the day in the way he would... and enjoy every second of it. Only he could make me percieve such a horrible moment as losing a hero, as the climax of inspiration.

-Z

@Black Market

All this coresponding to the information I have with one correction. The LAdy Christina Blomqist is a Swedish Citizen.

Thanks to all who have so spoken kindly about Chad, he was a close friend of mine. Chad truely was a great person, and an extreamly kind & selfless individual. I've known Chad since we were in highschool and we shared many great adventures together in MN and CO. Like others have said, Chad died doing what he loved.

You will be greatly missed my friend, but never forgotten. Chad is remembered by his parents and a fiercly loyal group of friends around the globe. My condolences also go out to the Coombs family.

Nels Larson
Boulder CO

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Originally Posted by Knockneed Man

Now, after having a couple of days to let this sink in, I have found some personal irony in my reflections. I usually consider such a tragic accident to be another reason to tell myself to play things safe... You're not seventeen anymore... maybe back off a bit. I'm finding though, that every time I re-read this thread, I just want to ski more, better, harder... Climb bigger, more remote...I crave adventure more... And it's all because of how damn inspiring Doug is. Rembering Doug and his monumental feats, really makes me want to seize the day in the way he would... and enjoy every second of it. Only he could make me percieve such a horrible moment as losing a hero, as the climax of inspiration.
-Z

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Interesting thoughts. I, too, share these feelings of being inspired to explore and expand my limits. In reading the experiences that so may had with Doug -- his ability to get you to go bigger, have more fun, learn more, and challenge yourself to a higher level -- I'd think that the ultimate tribute to him is to continue to pursue our lives and experiences to the highest level that we're able.

Since we are sharing stories now, here's a couple.

In 98, I was in Valdez doing the heli skiing thing. Our group skied Kiwi, a beautiful classic Chugach face. We got to the bottom and were basking in the moment, having a safety meeting, waiting for our heli to pick us up. Another group came down a few minutes later and Coombs nailed the run, obviously and skied up. Me, being the smart ass as always said "Sorry Coombs, we already got it". Doug just smiled and laughed. Here is this chubby smart ass guy talking smack (light heartily of course) to the guy who pretty much pioneered heli skiing in the area and he just smiled.

Another time, I was skiing down the Hobacks at Jackson on a hero day trying to keep up with the man, and when we got to the bottom, the road to the rope tow, he clicked my pole and with a big permagrin said, "that was like a heli run".

OK, those are my first hand stories. A very humble, cool guy, even to us regular folks. He will be missed and I send the very best to his family and close friends!

Here is a photo of Kiwi form that day.

Do You Realize - that you have the most beautiful face
Do You Realize - we're floating in space
Do You Realize - that happiness makes you cry
Do You Realize - that everyone you know someday will die

And instead of saying all of your goodbyes - let them know
You realize that life goes fast
It's hard to make the good things last
You realize the sun doesn't go down
It's just an illusion caused by the world spinning round

Wow. RIP, although i did not know the men, I had heard a lot about Doug and his amazing mountaineering experiences. This brings the number of casualties within the borders of France to 55. Devastating season.

enlosandes, that is a great picture of kiwi - classic chugach run for sure.

Doug would love that picture, too. All these stories are wonderful and paint a true picture of a great man.

I met Doug a few times during my years in Jackson (93-96).

I was always like a deer in the head lights next to him, like a little kid standing next to his legend. Doug was the reason why I moved to Jackson. Watching him in the early ski movies made me dream of skiing in Jackson.

Our brief conversations never went beyond the casual hello until one day I was lucky enough to run into Doug at the village.

It was a mid Dec weekday (I forget the year but it was the winter that they opened the tram the too the top on the 1st day). The resort was pretty much empty. We were in one of those 6” to 8” everyday for a week storm cycles and I was lapping the tram.

Around 1PM I get in line next to Doug. We casual greet before the ride up and I kick in near him at the top of the bowl. As he shoves off, he gives me a little nod to follow and straight down the Bowl to the Hobacks we went.

His turns were so powerful, yet smooth and graceful and I remember thinking he is never out of balance. Something to this day I try to, but rarely achieve in my skiing.

I was sucking wind by the goat path entering into the Hobacks and was hoping he’d stop before hitting it the next 2500’. I was so wrong and Doug plunged right in to the Hobacks full tilt. I was trying my best to keep up and about half way down had to stop or else my quivering thighs would have exploded. Just as I catch my wind, I see Doug hit the cat track and look up. I push off and finish the run, continuing to suck wind all the way to the puma lift. Doug was waiting for me at the lift with a huge grin on his face. I couldn’t believe it; he waited for a flat land kid like me with only a few seasons under his belt.

We spent the rest of the day hitting everything and anything. I started out super shy but soon learned Doug was one of the friendliest and laid back guys you’d ever meet. I got to ski the afternoon with him and we talked about skiing and climbing and laughed at the fact that the mountain was empty. It was one of the best days of my life.

You will always be a Legend.

You will be missed and I pray for your friends and family.

Rest in Peace Doug.:frown:

This is interesting:

pulled from www.nelsap.org (New England Lost Ski Area Project)

http://www.nelsap.org/ma/bedford.html



"Here’s a little secret - the talented Doug Coombs may have made his very first turns at Little’s, but you’d have to get him to admit it before mentioning it. A few years younger than I, he is a BHS grad also and lived up the street. But that is another story!"


http://www.nelsap.org/ma/bedfordfaraway.jpg


http://www.nelsap.org/ma/bedfordterra.jpg


sad news..... :(

Fuck.

Doug was a real pioneer in our sport.

He was a man who epitomized passion for glisse and life.

He lived on the edge for far longer than most of us ever could.

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Originally Posted by filthyfrenchbum

Wow. RIP, although i did not know the men, I had heard a lot about Doug and his amazing mountaineering experiences. This brings the number of casualties within the borders of France to 55. Devastating season.

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If it was an avalanche as the French press are saying:

http://fr.news.yahoo.com/05042006/5/...bs-se-tue.html

then that is 56 victims. But so far it seems clear both men slid and fell (see Black Market's post above) so 54 avalanche victims in France this season. None of them at la Grave which has a pretty good safety record considering.

I was truly shocked to hear of the death of both Doug and Chad in La Grave on Monday.

I have skied with them both here over the past 5 years or so and remember meeting them on my trip last year sharing the lift to the top of the mountain. Doug was a legend I remember looking up to as a kid and Chad was cracking guy and a great skier. I didn't know them well but always bumped in to them every year either on the mountain or in the bar. Its very very sad.

I have a friend who lives in La Grave and the report from the team who rapelled in to the line the next day to investigate is that Chad slipped on snow covered sheet ice at the top of the couloir and fell over the cliff below him. Doug went to investigate and fell just above the same spot.

They will be missed.

Another article. Nothing new about the accident but some info on fundraising:

http://snewsnet.com/cgi-bin/snews/04679.html

Nuge here trying to contact those who knew and or looked up to Doug. Feel absolutely terrible. Doug defined American mountain guiding. Only man to link the world to places like the Ford Couloir, and La Grave. Doug died skiing. What am I doing? is it still cool? should i keep doing it the way Doug did it? are you going to keep doing it? Are there any real American ski guides left? "Where are all the rastamen that used to be down here in Babylon?" Joseph Hill. Doug inspired me to challenge myself in the mountains rather than do shitty things like shoot somebody (even accidentaly) or screw someone or get blown out wasted or breaking alot of property. He was a hard worker I am sure to accomplish this. I miss that alot and feel crappy. Respect and love to Dougs wife. There will be sun after all this rain. Love, Michael Nugent R.I. P.S....I am currently residing i Rhode island getting things in order to return to Bozeman in the fall maybe earlier. If any friends of mine get this i figured i might let you know

The word 'legend' keeps getting used over and over in this thread. Probably because there isn't another word in the english language that could possibly fit any better. RIP.

Please note a memorial fund has been setup at www.dougcoombsmemorialfund.com

Edit: I looked back and realized I was reposting the story from Jackson Hole News (see post 303). Deleted story, but thought I would point out the memorial fund.


From JH News http://www.jacksonholenews.com/
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