Skier permanently injured after rescue toboggan flips at resort, Colorado lawsuit says

A hurt skier suffered permanent injuries after ski resort employees picked her up in a toboggan and then crashed, according to a lawsuit.

The lawsuit, filed on March 24 against Keystone Resort, says that ski patrollers came to help the skier, Kathryn Stoupas, after she fell and injured her shoulder on Feb. 18, 2021.

They are then accused of operating the toboggan at a high rate of speed without properly securing Stoupas and attempting a dangerous maneuver, causing the sled to crash, the lawsuit says.

“As they proceeded down the… trail, (the ski patrollers) were traveling at a high rate of speed and lost control of the toboggan, causing it to flip on its left side, dragging (Stoupas) on her left side and face along the snow until it came to rest,” the lawsuit says.

She suffered “further injury to her left shoulder,” as well as as, “a fractured left humerus (a large upper arm bone), left arm nerve damage, abrasions and contusions to her face,” the lawsuit says.

The injuries to her arm and scarring on her face are permanent, according to the lawsuit.

Vail Resorts, which operates Keystone Resort, declined to comment on the pending litigation.

The lawsuit accuses the ski patrollers and the resort of negligence.

The ski patrollers operated the toboggan at an “excessive and unnecessary speed” and failed to execute a “slingshot maneuver,” which is used to help toboggans gain more speed, the lawsuit says.

At one point, one of the patrollers was operating the toboggan with only his left hand, the lawsuit says.

The resort company had a duty to “exercise reasonable care” when hiring, training, testing and supervising its ski patrol staff, the lawsuit says.

The lawsuit seeks damages of an unspecified amount to cover Stoupas’ costs, including medical expenses, future rehabilitation expenses and loss of earning capacity.

Keystone Resort is located in Summit County about 70 miles west of Denver. It includes 3,000 acres of skiable terrain and encompasses three peaks in the Rocky Mountains, according to its website.

This story was originally published April 4, 2023 at 3:10 PM with the headline "Skier permanently injured after rescue toboggan flips at resort, Colorado lawsuit says."