Not sure how many watched the XGames, but i'm sure there are avid snowmobilers on this site, and we all know the dangers. Caleb Moore, 25, died today from injuries suffered during his trick attempt at the Games. Didn't look that bad if you watched, especially after he got up and walked off on his own. Had some bleeding around his heart, but it was brain damage that apparently became fatal. Sad day.
P.S. his younger brother was also in the XGames and seperated his pelvis. Scary.
Poor Caleb. RIP.
It was good
RIP
This is quite sad.
If the haters don't hate you then you're doing something wrong. - David Cone
Condolences to his family and
Condolences to his family and friends
"The goal, the expectation of this program is the Big Ten Championship"
Darwinism. Neg Away.
Darwinism. Neg Away.
Asshole. Quite possibly the
Asshole. Quite possibly the least class I have ever seen in a post around here (awkward sentence, not sure how to word it). May Boliva have mercy on your soul.
EDIT: Your avatar makes me think even less of you after this post.
University of Dayton Class of '13 // The Twitterz
Agree - his post deserves the
Agree - his post deserves the banhammer. And I say plenty of terrible things, so I am an expert on the matter.
"to make a complete evaluation off video w/o seeing guys in-person - I don't believe that at all." - Josh Helmholdt
You're a jackass. Enjoy
You're a jackass. Enjoy Bolivia.
He's dead you fucking jerk.
He's dead you fucking jerk. Imagine if this were your best friend, or your son, or your brother. You're a dick.
How could you have a sane
How could you have a sane mind and write that?????
"I get to go to lots of overseas places, like Canada." -Britney Spears
Social Darwinism! Exhibit:
Social Darwinism! Exhibit: you.
I've seen way too many
I've seen way too many injuries/deaths in the X Games, Motocross, etc. to ever get upset with the NFL about their concussion "problem."
It's sad for the sport and the family, but when you're doing flips with 500 lb. machines, this is the risk.
I thought I read somewhere
I thought I read somewhere that this was the first X Games death.
Sent From My Commodore 64
Maybe, but not the first
Maybe, but not the first serious injury.
There are always injuries
There are always injuries with on-snow competions due to what is involved. Ski racing, particualry the downhill, is fraught with peril. Olympic sports like the luge are scary fast.
As somone who lived in Aspen for a couple of years and used to work on the hill for World Cup racing events, you have no idea, untess you have seen it up close and personal, how risky some of these events truly are, although the idea of doing acrobatics with a snowmobile is a bit over the top.
If the athletes who play these sports, winter and summer, want to assume these risks, I say let them. You can't protect everyone from themselves all of the time.
Having said that, my sincere condolences go out to the family of Caleb Moore.
Well...
...although I know it not part of x-games, I'll admit that seeing a ski jump up close will definitely give pause and make you re-appreciate that sport. Scary how big those ramps are. Takes some real guts to attempt that shit.
Yeah, this was the first
Yeah, this was the first death in the X-Games
If you're doing nothing, how do you know when you're finished?
first death 'at' X games, yes...
But there are lots of them for people who are trying to acquire the skills to actually compete in them or events like it, along with scores of serious injuries also. If you go back through the medical history of most of the competitors they are all sporting various forms of surgeries, bone repairs, shoulder/collarbone, neck and head injuries and many at the age of 25 are held together with wire and steel in more than one part of their body. The injuries/deaths aren't directly attributable to the X Games per se, but to extreme sports in general. It is the nature of the business/sport/whatever.
I say this having done my time doing a lot of backcountry snowboarding that some would consider extreme, i.e. avalanche zones, steeps and drop-offs and there is always a risk, hence the term X/extreme.
My condolences to the family friends and fans of Caleb, going that young always sucks.
Backcountry vs. park
I tend to separate backcountry skiing from the park and pipe skiing and boarding that the xgames has really popularized. It seems like in the former, there's a way that people who are unprepared are actively discouraged from going into the backcountry. Usually, you need to be local or know locals to feel confident going through the gates or hiking up somewhere. I've seen people at backcountry gates actively stop people who didn't have proper equipment (not particularly polite conversations, but they got the point across). At any rate, the idea that you're not going to end up at a lift and are going to have to hike at the beginning or end usually serves to discourage most people.
I've never seen that with people going into the park and pipe, and they've usually seen enough to know how to approach a jump. They have no idea how to judge proper speed or what to do when they're in the air, though (this seems a bigger problem with skiers, who tend to either speed check at the last second and land on the transition or to lean back and just go everywhere). Maybe I'm just thinking about this difference because I saw about 4 people get sledded off the park when they had no business being in there while I was skiing with my kids last weekend (and seeing how much they wanted to hit the kickers after watching the xgames, and they're 5).
How long has the X games been
How long has the X games been around in comparison to football?
"You have enemies? Good. That means you've stood up for something, sometime in your life." - Winston Churchill
May be the first death
Far from the first life that was forever changed from a devasting injury. People love doing it, but the average freestyle motocross riders body is broken by age 30.
The Bottom Line said
The Bottom Line wrote about this being the first death out of 3,100 competetors in the events history, or something along those lines.
How many times have you been on the freeway and had someone fly by you at 100 mph then end up 2 cars ahead of you at the off ramp? What's the point? -Mark Harmon
just for comparison...
At any given time, there are 1,696 players on the NFL's 53-man rosters.
Another thing.
NFL players don't typically careen into crowds during games.
That was ridiculous. They let a guy with virtually no experience on a smowmobile try to flip one in front of spectators behind zero protection.
Yeah, not unless you count
Yeah, not unless you count the Lambeau Leap.
To be clear, you're talking
To be clear, you're talking about someone else in the second paragraph. Caleb Moore, the guy who died, had pretty extensive experience jumping snowmobiles.
As someone below mentions, there must have been something weird with the snow because this event had an unusual number of huge crashes. There hadn't been much snow in Colorado until this week, so they may have been using artificial snow, which has significantly different qualities than real snow.
Mixing Stories
You are combining two stories from this years X-games. The "runaway" snowmobile was Jackson Strong's sled, when his clutch got stuck and sent the sled towards the spectators. Caleb Moore was injured on the clip below.
Also, Caleb (and his brother) have been in the X-games for 4 years. Yes originally they had no experience on snow, being from Texas, and were 4-wheel stunt drivers. But in the past 4 years they have plenty of experinece.
Have you ever watched
Have you ever watched downhill racing? Racers go off the course all the time. Even motorsports have instances where cars fly into the stands and take out spectators. Check out European rally racing. Crap, going to a baseball or hockey game has some degree of risk to spectators from balls, bats and pucks.
I have never owned a snowmobile, but I would assume that it would have some sort of an automatic shutoff or override should the rider fall off. Perhaps that failed.
I know people.
I know this is two different stories. It was a response to something other than the original post. Also the problem is that downhill skiiers etc. are not allowed to partake in the highly dangerous events without experience. The snowmobiler who lost control had hardly ever rode the thing and he lost control of it and it shot into the crowd.
The last article I read had him in stable condition.
I'm not a fan, so it isn't like I've been searching for articles, but it wasn't all that long ago. I suspect they all know the risks.
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift
First X Games death in 17
First X Games death in 17 years.Its crazy how they do these stunts and don't have more injuries.
"Are you an official here?Because you've officially given me a boner."
Damn, my roommate and I saw
Damn, my roommate and I saw this crash live. RIP.
I saw his crash live, and I
I saw his crash live, and I was absolutely shocked to see him stand up and walk around afterwards. So sad to hear the extent of his injuries, but that crash looked absolutely awful. Thoughts are with his family.
USING GRATUITOUS AMOUNTS OF CAPS LOCK SINCE APRIL 2011
Yeah, I saw this live and
Yeah, I saw this live and legitimately thought that I may have just witnessed someone die =/. I was very relieved to see him walk off, but clearly everything was not okay. Tragic.
This is horrible. I know it
This is horrible. I know it wasn't at the X-Games but Sarah Burke's death last year and Moore's death this year are devastating. Two great young athlete's at the top of their game struck down in their prime. R.I.P. Caleb.
University of Dayton Class of '13 // The Twitterz
I have watched a decent
I have watched a decent amount of the X-games over the years and I swear that snowmobile big air produced more nasty wrecks than any single event I have seen..
RIP
sad day!
I like watching the X-games, and my wife and I saw this accident. I have always wonder how safe it's is to have an event where you have a snowmobile performing high risk tricks. Once that Machine is in the air, how much control does the rider have? It's a sad day, and maybe the x-games can do away with snowmobiles doing high risk tricks. My sympathy goes out to his family and friends.
Not everyone wants to live someone else's idea of life.
I suspect that not many of them want to die in a nursing home either. People that want to grab life by the throat will find a way to do so.
May you have a strong foundation
When the winds of changes shift
He competed HAM and I tip my
He competed HAM and I tip my hat for his passion. From one Texan to another RIP.
'Try growing up in Texas a Michigan WOLVERINE'. Follow me on Twitter: RudygoBLUE
It's a risky sport. The
It's a risky sport. The X-Games include lots of events where people fly high in the air at high speed; in the case of snowmobile tricks, they are doing so with large, heavy objects flying in the air with them.
He knew the risks. He embraced them. A freak accident on the landing (as he hit the ground, the snowmobile hit him nose to the chest--not sure how you can prevent that from happening) caused his injury. It is very sad. Don't know that you can do much about it going forward. Auto racing, also a risky sport, continues unabated, albeit with much-strengthened safety precautions (precautions which don't really apply to stunt sports like this).
FWIW the brain complication was a direct complication of the bleeding around the heart; it is likely that blood flow to the brain was interrupted. Very sad.
Servant. Pastor. Husband. Michigan fan in Duluth.
I wonder
if he had an epidural hematoma. You get a lucid period with that. That's what happened to Natasha Richardson after a ski accident. I know Caleb Moore was wearing a helmet, but is it enough protection against a snowmobile crashing on your head?
Very sad.
Was watching it live on tv
Was watching it live on tv with my 9 year old son. I have to disagree, I thought it looked awful on tv. Snowmibile clearly came down full force like a javelin on his chest and head and knocked him out immediately. I was suprised they let him get up and walk off after regaining conciosuness, rather than immobilize him and get him straight to the hospital.
Hindsight is 2020 but you
Hindsight is 2020 but you can't let a guy walk around after that ... he's got to be taken to a hospital right away. Hopefully the medical protocol is reviewed after this incident. This is an uber dangerous sport that needs to be respected in the medical response procedures.
I hate to see people get hurt
I hate to see people get hurt doing what they're passionate about. It's tragic that this kid died. As a father, it breaks my heart.
Obviously I don't think trying to jump a 500lb snowmobile off a ramp and attempting backwards flip is a very good idea.
Really sad, and medically strange
That really sucks.
I read the NYT piece and their medical write-up didn't make a ton of sense. The heart contusion leading to a secondary event in the brain, unless he threw a clot, is weird (and even in that case it is weird). Normally in those cases if there was a primary brain issue and they scanned him quickly enough they would be able to see a bleed iand they could send him to the OR for surgery.
between some of the comments
in this thread, the dan marino thread and the Lohan thread, i am having a difficult day around here.
That just sucks...
As a person who has taken part in a lot of high risk activities during my life I always thank god after things such as this. Prayers go out to his family and other loved ones. What a tragedy. RIP.
Wow
Terrible to hear..thoughts and payers go out to them.
Sadly, just found out that
Sadly, just found out that Moore was friends with a man I know, the son of a person in our church. They know each other through Snowmobiling. Tragic.
Servant. Pastor. Husband. Michigan fan in Duluth.
oh shit that sucks! I love
oh shit that sucks! I love the xgames and the Moore brothers are at the top of their field. I saw both wrecks but never thought this would happen.
Vice.com
My older brother was an avid
My older brother was an avid snowmobiler until one of his buddies took their own head off going too fast and hitting a barbed wire fence or a steel cable or something. I don't remember the details it was 30 years ago. They are a lot of fun, but I would never get on one after that. Its just a fact that these machines while not inherently dangerous by themselves, can be turned into death machines just like cars or motorcycles with hubris or carelessness or in many cases, a momentary lapse of awareness.
Poor Caleb. RIP.
It was good to see Kevin Pierce doing color commentary though.
Nobody home...