Skier who tumbled 2,000 feet down Colorado mountain says helmet saved his life

A 37-year-old New Mexico man is lucky to be alive after plunging 2,000 feet down a Colorado mountain while skiing Tuesday, rescuers say.

“My helmet saved my life,” the skier told San Miguel County Sheriff’s Department officials after his release from a hospital Wednesday.

A fellow skier notified authorities at 1 p.m. Tuesday that the man had tumbled down Wilson Peak near Telluride, rescuers wrote on Facebook. They had been skiing the north face from the summit when the man fell and tumbled down the mountain.

Rescuers found the man had “multiple traumatic injuries” and airlifted him to an airport, where an ambulance took him to a hospital, sheriff’s officials said.

The 14,023-foot Wilson Peak is in the San Miguel Mountains.

This story was originally published April 22, 2021 at 10:29 AM with the headline "Skier who tumbled 2,000 feet down Colorado mountain says helmet saved his life."