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March, 2024

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Shane, You Will be Missed.

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JoshBishop
Posts: 464 - Karma: 748
At the age of 41, ski legend and pioneer Shane McConkey passed away in a base-jumping accident in Italy. He appeared in many films, including: Claim, Seven Sunny Days, Steep, Push, The Hit List, Focused, Warren Miller's Higher Ground, Yearbook, Immersion, Ski Movie III: The Front Line, Ski Movie 2: High Society, Ski Movie, There's Something About McConkey, Walls of Freedom and many more. Along with starring in countless ski films, McConkey had photos published in nearly every skiing magazine, produced many cover shots, changed big mountain skiing with the invention of the rockered ski, and innovated ski base jumping. Aside from his prolific career as a professional skier and base-jumper, McConkey's off snow antics will be dearly missed. Creating iconic characters such as saucer boy and stomping spread eagles naked off 40+ foot cliffs, Shane was absolutely hilarious and even more comical on camera. As a truly inspirational athlete, a legend, a father, a husband, and a genuine individual, the legacy of Shane McConkey will forever live on in the minds and hearts of skiers for years to come.

Rest in Peace Shane McConkey, you will be dearly missed.



Mar 26 2009 7:09PM
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Dainsey
Posts: 2263 - Karma: 378
RIP shane
i just found out about this
do we know how he died besides just base jumping?
Mar 26 2009 7:09PM
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MC_POUTINE
Posts: 1380 - Karma: 115
NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Mar 26 2009 7:10PM
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R.Fahey
Posts: 8602 - Karma: 539
http://espn.go.com/action/freeskiing/blog?post=4018726

There's all the info that's released right now.

RIP Shane. 
Mar 26 2009 7:11PM
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Rosbif
Posts: 2543 - Karma: 930
Just saw this on someones Facebook status and didn't believe it until now, RIP :(
Mar 26 2009 7:11PM
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JoshBishop
Posts: 464 - Karma: 748
Although the exact details have yet to be determined, I heard his ski failed to release, either getting caught in his parachute and sending him into an uncontrollable spin, or not allowing him to deploy his pilot chute.
Mar 26 2009 7:11PM
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jriley
Posts: 197 - Karma: 16
reason why i stopped snowboarding is shane mcconkey...RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:12PM
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alaskakid
Posts: 5540 - Karma: 430
RIP. this is awful. he was such a great guy that did so much for skiing. RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:12PM
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RIDEDIRTY
Posts: 307 - Karma: 10

Sad :(. Were Prayin

Mar 26 2009 7:12PM
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Geoffrey
Posts: 1219 - Karma: 11
Im stunned..... skiing has lost one of its icons.

Best to his family. RIP shane, you will be dearly missed.
Mar 26 2009 7:12PM
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Vinci
Posts: 701 - Karma: 1,472
there goes another legend...

RIP man
Mar 26 2009 7:12PM
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Blandct
Posts: 1858 - Karma: 37
RIP dude vibes to his family

thanks for pushing this sport in ways i would have considered unimaginable
Mar 26 2009 7:12PM
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buckers
Posts: 448 - Karma: 12
Condolences to his wife and daughter.

He was the definition of a legend.

He will never be forgotten.
Mar 26 2009 7:13PM
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jasontheredhead
Posts: 955 - Karma: 243

omg he was such a big influence....

s.i.p. bro

Mar 26 2009 7:13PM
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ReedSkis~
Posts: 2122 - Karma: 98
RIP Shane
Mar 26 2009 7:13PM
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Hansel.
Posts: 4583 - Karma: 112
RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:14PM
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MrLarsen
Posts: 583 - Karma: 16
RIP Shane, a true legend
Mar 26 2009 7:14PM
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Grube
Posts: 962 - Karma: 14
RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:15PM
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cams
Posts: 3937 - Karma: 26
Shane will always have a spot in my heart as one of my top skiing idols growing up. We should all be thankful to be living in a time which got to witness such a master.

RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:15PM
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Leeyum
Posts: 1285 - Karma: 168
thoughts and prayers go out to shane you were one of the guys who got me into freeskiing rip
Mar 26 2009 7:16PM
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Commonwealth
Posts: 3729 - Karma: 11
RIP Shane
Mar 26 2009 7:16PM
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jiblove
Posts: 1228 - Karma: 18
R.I.P Shane

my heart goes out to his family, his beautiful wife and daughter

he was an amazing man, so brave and such an icon in the skiing world

Mar 26 2009 7:16PM
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constpapa
Posts: 835 - Karma: 327
RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:17PM
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rhack
Posts: 200 - Karma: 641
S.I.P. Shane McConkey.
Mar 26 2009 7:17PM
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powderhound100
Posts: 2510 - Karma: 144
man that sucks, I am very sorry to hear that. RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:18PM
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IanAvery-Leaf
Posts: 9926 - Karma: 9,344
Yes Ski In Peace Shane, we all miss you :.(
Mar 26 2009 7:18PM
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abbazabba21
Posts: 234 - Karma: -2
RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:19PM
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yuck
Posts: 8384 - Karma: 2,090
i was shocked, completely stunned.

rip,
Mar 26 2009 7:19PM
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skiminnesota
Posts: 9093 - Karma: 429
this is horrible. RIP.

i loved his segment in "CLAIM"

i dont know how you could watch that segment without a smile coming across your face.
Mar 26 2009 7:19PM
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stormtrooper
Posts: 1190 - Karma: 454
RIP Shane, u were an inspiration to us all
Mar 26 2009 7:19PM
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Trashpuppet
Posts: 529 - Karma: 123
I just got call of it no more than 5 min ago. I cant believe it. ski in peace shane.
Mar 26 2009 7:20PM
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Jordan
Posts: 4079 - Karma: 2,122
RIP Shane.


Mar 26 2009 7:20PM
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MEGAZORD
Posts: 4531 - Karma: -7
An epic blow to the freeski community.
Mar 26 2009 7:21PM
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ECski
Posts: 976 - Karma: 13
Shane was the first person who i saw on tv freestyle skiing. He spearheaded my ambition to become a freeskier. He was truly a legend and he will be dearly missed.

R.I.P. Shane McConkey
Mar 26 2009 7:21PM
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freelowda
Posts: 1311 - Karma: 1,583
From ESPN:

Decorated big mountain skier and BASE jumper Shane McConkey was killed earlier today in a ski-BASE accident in the Italian Dolomites.

A member of the Red Bull Air Force and pioneer of the ski-BASE-ing phenomena, McConkey experienced problems in the air after launching off a cliff with the expectation of deploying his parachute canopy and then soaring down to the ground—as he had done successfully some 700 plus times before.

"He did a double backflip off the jump and he has these releasable bindings so they come off in the air and then he flies off in his wing suit," filmmaker Scott Gaffney, a longtime close friend of McConkey's, told ESPN Action Sports in an interview this afternoon via phone.

"But one ski did not come off. And when that happens the drag on the skis causes you to flip over, so the skis' over your head. So he was struggling with the one ski. Then he also got into a bad spin. So he may have never even pulled his pilot chute. And that's coming from JT Holmes, who Shane was with in Italy and who reviewed the footage of the accident. So the combination of the ski, the spin and the pilot chute, apparently. Because you can't throw the pilot chute like that; if you throw it while you're upside-down and it wraps around the ski, you're done."

McConkey was filming with Matchstick Productions and Red Bull at the time, according to Scott Gaffney, who said McConkey apparently died on impact with snow on the ground below the cliff. Gaffney was not clear about the size of the cliff. "But it had to be a sizable cliff, at least 400 feet, for him to be planning on flying his wing suit away from it," Gaffney said.

McConkey, 40, of Olympic Valley, Calif., is survived with his wife, Sherry, and their three-and-a-half year-old daughter, Ayla.

This afternoon Gaffney was at home in Squaw Valley with his brother, Robb, also a close friend of McConkey's, reeling from the news. "With what Shane does," said Scott, "it's a call you always picture getting at some point. But you realistically don't ever expect it to happen."

Added Robb Gaffney, "Shane's been a part of our lives for quite a while now. I'm just sitting at Scott's house processing the whole thing. The texts and calls are coming in, and you can really even feel it in the air in Squaw right now. I'm thinking about Sherry and his little girl. But in this area people have always loved Shane, so Sherry and Ayla, they're going to have an immense amount of support around them. That's one thing for sure; that's Shane's legacy."

Mar 26 2009 7:23PM
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Hannah.
Posts: 4625 - Karma: 56
rip shane conkey, always loved seeing him ski
Mar 26 2009 7:23PM
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3ski6guy0
Posts: 9201 - Karma: 132
just heard the news too. this is so horrible. rip shane. you are the man
Mar 26 2009 7:23PM
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207
Posts: 8969 - Karma: 3,846
Wow :( I'll be skiing tomorrow in remembrance of him.

RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:23PM
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Deletedtoday
Posts: 4060 - Karma: 398
noo
Mar 26 2009 7:24PM
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Trashpuppet
Posts: 529 - Karma: 123

something really weird happened in air and he got upside down and couldnt pull his shute in time. something went wrong with the skis he was wearing.

I am not positive about this info. just word of mouth

Mar 26 2009 7:24PM
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stormtrooper
Posts: 1190 - Karma: 454
i wonder if msp has gotten any footage of him yet this year, the movie will surely be dedicated to him
Mar 26 2009 7:24PM
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garrett.
Posts: 9304 - Karma: 3,670
i was having such a good day too. RIP Shane McConkey
Mar 26 2009 7:24PM
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BKlein
Posts: 1031 - Karma: 81
Wow
RIP
You'll be missed
Mar 26 2009 7:24PM
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summersover
Posts: 5777 - Karma: 233
He was someone who did so much for our sport and its devastating to lose such a great guy
My condolences to his family and at the very least Shane died doing what he loved unlike Travis who was taken from us in an even more brutal fashion
My prayers are with Shane, Travis and anyone who has died in the ski community this year
We share a common love and it is always hard to lose one of our skiing brothers or sisters
Mar 26 2009 7:26PM
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assface
Posts: 4319 - Karma: 2,031
RIP his claim seggy was the best
Mar 26 2009 7:26PM
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IanAvery-Leaf
Posts: 9926 - Karma: 9,344
word :.(
Mar 26 2009 7:27PM
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Bpaddock
Posts: 376 - Karma: 204
NOOO thats so shocking! i couldnt beleive it was him, he was sick! RIP
Mar 26 2009 7:27PM
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PacificRimJob
Posts: 24704 - Karma: 29,687
I seriously think i feel sick... like... seriously so sick...

my god.
Mar 26 2009 7:27PM
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short_and_steezy
Posts: 760 - Karma: 18
RIP, you will be missed
Mar 26 2009 7:28PM
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Steezy_E
Posts: 537 - Karma: 648
RIP shane you were a fuckin god on skis.. thanks for making the sport i love so much better
Mar 26 2009 7:28PM
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