On February 11, 2026, a 27-year-old female snowboarder was on the upper stretch of Copper Mountain’s American Flyer lift when she fell from the lift onto the mountain below. The chair lift safety bar was not in use at the time of the fall. The safety bars on that particular lift are recognizable by Copper Mountain frequenters due to the blue bubble enclosures that protect riders from weather elements.
One witness stated that the fall was at least 20 feet onto the hard-packed snow. The witness further reported that the woman laid motionless after striking the ground with ski patrol arriving soon after the fall. Despite the severity of the fall, Copper Mountain reported that the woman was able to leave the medical facility on her own, though it is unclear if she suffered injuries.
The American Flyer is a six-person high speed chair that serves as one of Copper Mountain’s main lifts. The lift is significantly long, traveling approximately 1.9 miles with a travel time of 11 minutes to the top.
The ski injury attorneys at Bloch Ongert have experience litigating chair lift injury cases. Recent changes to the law in Colorado can allow injured skiers to circumvent the ski areas’ liability waivers when the ski area violates a safety statute, resulting in a chair lift injury. If you’ve been injured on a chair lift, call Bloch Ongert today at (303) 331-1700 to speak directly to an attorney.
The information for this post was sourced from Denver Gazette. The article can be found at https://www.denvergazette.com/outtherecolorado/2026/02/13/27-year-old-wasnt-using-chair lift-bar-when-big-fall-occurred-at-colorado-resort/?utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=OutThere%20Colorado%20Here%20%20Now%2021326&utm_content=OutThere%20Colorado%20Here%20%20Now%2021326+CID_166bd093100d85e62d9d91de2522fb6b&utm_source=campaign_monitor_email&utm_term=CLICK%20HERE
