A Canadian skier is lucky to be alive after a terrifying fall of 488 metres (1,600 feet).
Ian McIntosh was shooting a ski and snowboard film in Alaska's Neacola mountain range when he started skiing down a line he thought he was familiar with, only to fall into a metre-and-a-half (five-foot) deep trench on one of his first turns, according to the Wyoming-based company behind the production.
The professional skier from Whistler, B.C. then tumbled 488 metres down the slope in just under a minute, losing a ski in the process but escaping without serious injury.
“My neck’s a little stiff, and yeah, I’m marginally sore, but otherwise OK,” he said in a behind-the-scenes video.
While he wasn’t hurt, he probably wouldn’t repeat the experience.
“It’s like being in Mother Nature’s washing machine from hell,” he told the Calgary Sun.
“It’s like being tumbled by NFL linebackers, once every half-second for a minute.”
CORRECTION: A previous version of this story stated that McIntosh fell 187 metres, when he actually fell 488 metres. This version has been corrected.
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