WATCH: Skier Nearly Dies Attempting Insane Jump Over the Truckee River
A bucket-list jump for a Tahoe skier nearly had him plummet into a ravine with a gushing river. He barely made it across the gap, and went back to land the death-defying jump in extravagant fashion.
Chris Whatford used this year’s historic snowfall in South Lake Tahoe to attempt a jump he’s been scouting for years – across the Truckee River. Here’s his first attempt, which nearly turned into a catastrophe:
After Chris had figured out the speed, he ended up overshooting the landing with an epic backflip. Check it out:
“First off I want to give a huge thank you to @walklightphoto for thinking of this silly idea 11 years ago on a hike with me,” Chris wrote on Instagram. “4 years ago we went to look at it with snow and I honestly thought it wasn’t possible with the speed…”
“After composing, jasper waxed my skis while the team and I threw all the salt we had on the in-run. This is the point I decided I was going to flip. No way I was going to come up short again, and clearly it’s impossible to go too far.”
“Thank you Mother Nature for the experience and lessons. I’ve never done anything as mentally taxing as this.”
What an incredible jump accomplished by Chris, which took a lot of effort and scouting to make sure he didn’t plummet into the raging river below on the first jump. Keep pushing the limits!
