Chad Fleischer Recounts His 1995 Crash At Kitzbuhel | ISOS013

"I was going about 96 miles per hour.. It's like pulling a rip cord going down the interstate."
Taken from the JPI Classic "Thin Line," this #WipeOutWednesday features US Ski Team downhiller Chad Fleischer. He takes us through the series of events that lead to his memorable crash in Kitzbuhel.
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[@Insearchofspeed]

Want to get rid of your back pain? You gotta try this bit.ly/3uEaHAA

[@TheGodParticle]

Damn, how he didn't break his back is a miracle

[@mrolsen6987]

The whole video thru I was sure that he sat in a wheelchair. When they showed him landing on the back I was like "yeep, he's done" Lucky Guy! 👍

[@mgn567]

the speed can be an advantage in this situation, the horizontal speed that he had lowered the crashing force

[@youfilin]

I thought in the end the camera will go back and I see him sitting in the wheelchair. But, fortunately I see how he give bows to the crowd!

[@MaxMax-di8kx]

And neck

[@logasterrr_4562]

My man destroyed his leg and he gets up to bow to the crowd.

[@petrsson]

You don't feel it imeditaly because of adrenalin...

[@moses9904]

and then there are people like footballers

[@Rabaluf]

@@moses9904 i wanted to say it, soccer player who get hit in a finger and dont play for 3 months

[@NobaDyKnowZ]

Tore my acl last year skiing first it hurts terribly for some minutes, then you think you're good. After like half an hour the pain really kicks in

[@toms.8833]

Rabaluf that just doesn’t happen

[@hankdieselify]

I can't believe what he did to both those skis, never seen that before. ‘happened to both those skis’.

[@Ju-nq7gu]

At 96 mph and you land in that position its pretty easy to break a pair of skis

[@airotkiv]

It seems to me like they didn't release properly? I can't believe one of them never went off.

[@winterguyVV]

@@airotkiv At those speeds the locking mechanism has to be as tight as possible so it wouldnt release randomly on jumps/terrain. As Molly Bloom have put it "My skis are pretty much welded to my boots."

[@rudavalek]

He put it in matchbox lately

[@hankdieselify]

Never seen them do that though!

[@luigicosta4520]

It’s a miracle he is still alive and with no injuries.....great big guy!

[@sepfirem]

well he did shatter his knee and push his femur into his hip so id say those some serious injuries

[@CreeepsMind]

sepfirem The combination of those to, just being said hurts...

[@savrockismyname3859]

sepfirem he meant permanent injuries I think

[@aspena7883]

@@sepfirem I think he was saying permanent injuries that would leave him disabled

[@spooch9474]

@@sepfirem all the people that said that they weren’t permanent injuries are wrong, chad coached my 4th grade flag football team.

[@nivedlaxsea8114]

20 ft in the air, going 96mph and almost certainly going to land on his neck and his thought was “maybe I’ll at least roll across the finish line.” Absolute indestructible bad ass.

[@arviddistner3017]

20ft? That was more like 280ft, about 85m

[@111jkjk]

Imagine if he did a backflip and landed back on his feet accidentally

[@ulbed]

You mean like this one: kzbin.info/www/bejne/rKbQaKaYg7-pjZI

[@Olliwer]

ulbed No like this one: kzbin.info/www/bejne/moLaZapvjMyLmbM

[@carlnyman3628]

@@Olliwer fuck u got me

[@markusisaksson6023]

@@Olliwer That is amazing =) =) =)

[@filipjohansson5319]

@@ulbed That's intentional though.

[@Abnsdllnnlosnfd]

2:32 That´s what my wife says ;-(

[@johnnywaffles2482]

Oof

[@coachbillturpin]

🤭

[@grahamjarman]

🤣

[@ez_tiwil6qc644]

Damn lmao

[@rolersch7332]

she forcthe streets

[@DougglesMagnificent]

to any non-skiers out there: if you handed me a hammer and told me to make a pair of skis look like the ones in this video after the crash, it would take me a good 5 minutes. that's how sturdily modern skis are made, so the impact here must have been just crazy and horrifying.

[@bob15479]

*sledgehammer

[@willstuart4504]

Couldn't agree more , and the fact he stood and Bowed after that ..lol. Crazy shit.!!

[@keiahnigbruder1453]

KoivuTheHab you're definitely not nice

[@mtadams2009]

@KoivuTheHab Your a complete dick. I have skied for many years and I dont care if this was 1995 I have never seen a pair of skies explode like that and I have broken and eliminated a few pairs in my life. I dont know anyone who has skied at those speeds, ski racer at that level are skiing at another level.

[@keiahnigbruder1453]

Scott Gibson how is he being a complete dick? Way to keep a discussion civilized

[@sciencenate]

I’ve been skiing for almost 30 years... I’ve literally never seen skis explode like that...This guy is lucky to be alive.

[@ethics3]

That's nothing. You should see what happened when my EX Canadian wife sits on a chair . YIKES !!!!!!

[@jrviade85]

Never?? Didn't you watch this video??

[@Kimberlystarkovich]

His skis exploded cause if you did not know they were wooden skis

[@brendannell5930]

@@ethics3 When you "EX Canadian wife", do you mean your ex-wife who is Canadian, or do you mean your wife who was formerly, but is no longer, Canadian?

[@ethics3]

@@brendannell5930 Seems you are the only one who can't understand this

[@MissLilRedRooster]

Blows my mind that skiers get to 90+ MPH on those runs. He was so lucky he did not break his back. Like, pure luck he didn't break it on that initial impact, I'm not even sure how he didn't.

[@newworldorder5513]

He tells it so well. Glad the dude can still walk.

[@actionms8566]

Why the dramatic Music? He's quite the happy guy.

[@davidsv6104]

A ctionMS thats the why 😃.

[@davidsv6104]

A ctionMS i hear 0 😃

[@davidsv6104]

A ctionMS just.. cum..aileeeen. 💋

[@EzekielThirtyThree3]

Clearly you are not familiar with the Hahnenkamm. He can be happy, but you don't play happy music when Jaws is circling.

[@ImTehRiZe]

Zeke Piestrup lmao youre overdramatic

[@protonjones54]

This guy must be made of rubber to be able to stand up after that crash, after withstanding the g force created from decelerating at 90 mph to 0 in just a few seconds, along with the impact force too. I'm surprised he didn't get a traumatic brain injury from it. Absolutely insane!!

[@Nine7Media]

I’m sure he had a headache after

[@travis4266]

W J adrenaline doesn’t prevent injuries. It might put you into shock which would prevent you from feeling lots of pain, but you’d still be injured.

[@Sttm35]

Wonderful sportsman character.

[@guyincognito.]

"What's your DIN setting?" "I just bolt my boot to the ski".

[@scottmorgan701]

Heh, heh, heh Guy. Thank you for the chuckle......Blessings.

[@Kimberlystarkovich]

Probly super high

[@flyingviking5281]

Had to google 96 mph which is around 154 km/h, and that's on skis. Completely insane!

[@rileygellhaus1930]

Man I thought when I hit 46 mph on my skies I'm going fast I could only imagine 96 mph!

[@jarnold1789]

Hehe things start getting interesting around 65 mph. 75 mph feels quick. 90 mph+ around corners and over rollers must be something else

[@jeremyraucci1543]

All I can say is WOW! I wipe out going 25 mph and I’m wondering if I’ve broken an arm or leg and this guy is going 97 and he does basically the bellyflop of skiing and he’s bowing.

[@Kimberlystarkovich]

Yea my highest is 63 mph he’s good according to his brother

[@0ki7o]

When in trouble, tuck for double

[@nilsjohansson1860]

Team rocket

[@jackelliott7853]

Osprey McKeegan could be some weird rule for that race idk

[@Kamy667]

Yo check out daichi hara's crash Exactly your comment xD

[@daquanfromtheblock6448]

when in a pickle, tuck for a triple!

[@BossySwan]

To protect the world from devastation

[@eoghanmacdonald7265]

This video is the only one on KZbin that deserves unskippable adds..... and it doesn’t even have them. That is humble.

[@adamd416]

That guy is so bad ass!! Mad respect. Takes a bow with a broken leg and blown out knee too.

[@SMc-in5bc]

"Siri, do all Chads on Earth have goatees?"

[@jxavier3876]

S. McO my neighbour chad doesn’t

[@jasperfk]

Jude Xavier I know this was a year ago but I just want to point out this is called a Mouche or a Soul Patch and not a Goatee!

[@dariojozinovic3961]

The thin line between podium or hospital. What a great sportsman. Chapeau.

[@3Ishh]

3:03 is what you're looking for

[@paulholmes8211]

You can tell how stoked he was during that run. Still buzzing from it now! !

[@itskeirashorts4520]

I'm a snowboarder & I take my hat off to you. Takes some balls to do what you do. Respect 👍

[@dunichtich100]

What a Man to stand up after this... incredible!!!

[@rerewest4703]

Man..you have memories for a life time...Good memories..you didn't need to win..icing on the cake but it's the adrenaline rush of that moment when your in the zone that dreams are made of. Enjoy your life...it's all good.

[@LarmadSomSecuritas]

I went skiing in Italy last year and attempted a backflip on a pretty large jump, I landed pretty much exactly like him and almost broke my back. I was fine after a few months tho.

[@ALLINCLUSIVE2k]

whats "almost breaking my back" ?? either you break it or you dont lmao.

[@LarmadSomSecuritas]

RAPTOR2K Uhh yea? I said I didn't break it?? All I said was that I was close to breaking it

[@hittman23]

@@ALLINCLUSIVE2k 😄😅😂🤣

[@NiTr091]

emil rudenschold yeh did you break it or not idiot?

[@kipkipPatrick]

First run of the trip or heading home the next morning?

[@madratter]

Never seen skis delaminate like that before.. Crazy. Glad he survived and had a great attitude about it 😁 much respect sir

[@zkittlezthabanditt604]

The quality of this footage is actually great, in fact, it's probably better than 80% of security cameras today

[@carlbaumeister3439]

He has a great attitude, doesn't he?

[@ullasievertsen861]

Carl Baumeister yes, I met him today on a flight from Denver and he really has a wonderfull attitude. 👍

[@mikegass2272]

amazing he could get up & walk. The skies delaminated & literally blew up. Glad goes o.k.

[@overkillblackjack2910]

I dont think he really could walk, or, if he was able to, should have walked.

[@JoeSmith-zg7in]

Incredible show,thankyou.

[@MassimoTodaro74]

respect. Great attitude

[@zacharysavage7916]

Coming from someone who has been skiing for 14 years, holy fuck you’re lucky dude... I have never even seen skis just explode like that ever and I have seen a lot of stuff. Miracle you can walk.

[@moemanncann895]

Many countries have a skier that found out the hard way what Kitzbuel is all about. The Todd Brooker ragdoll cartwheel into the protective netting at full speed- Crazy Canucks 🇨🇦

[@qwasd0r]

Not even knocked unconscious, wow. "Tseelshouss" btw.

[@ChocolateFrog]

Maximum respect. I had a bad crash on the Luc Alphand, wouldn't wish the aftermath of a downhill crash on anyone.

[@aspena7883]

And he was still worried about finishing the race!!! That's perseverance. I'm glad he ended up being ok

[@robertbrown2303]

Courage...What a set of balls! Today's lingo, HE SENT IT!

[@laowai2000]

He certainly did!

[@krisfleischer7467]

What a boss.He wasn’t even thinking about Death just trying to win the race.After all that and he is still a positive soul

[@JiriUL]

True 🇺🇸 spirit - after such a horrific crash where everyone else would have stayed paralyzed he stood up to finish his show for the crowd...

[@djarvils]

Very nice explanation! Happy I saw this video!

[@ALEX-ts8pb]

Was my first time skiing today made it 21 feet and I crashed the same way. “When he said I’m probably gonna be paralyzed” I felt that

[@glencecil293]

Great attitude. I'm glad you are alive.

[@snowboardinop]

I had a similar experience to this but obviously i wasn’t going 90 mph i was going around 40 with my snowboard and i tried hitting off the side of a big lip like the one he crashed on. I didn’t fall on my back but i fell on my arm around 15 feet in the air and snapped my humerus in half, i also broke part of my wrist and fractured my growth plate. Of course it wasn’t as bad as this but i had to be in a cast from March 15th to May 10 or 15. It was a bad experience and i had to have surgery but i learned a lesson from it and it was to not get cocky on the slopes because stuff like that will happen

[@baselkicker]

so similar to albrechts crash! but albrecht recovered worse:( its like he lost his true personality that day. hes no longer the same you can see it in his stare

[@bsusak09]

It’s crazy that he’s going that fast, it never actually looks like it when you’re watching. Glad he’s ok

[@carlmarks8170]

The cameras are usually placed so far away for the Alpine Downhill. They use a long zoom lens. You can see more of the action, but it diminishes the crazy speeds these guys achieve. You get a better sense of the speed with the occasional camera placed right alongside the course. They rocket by a 100m stretch in the blink of an eye, like a race car. I think they are some of the bravest, craziest athletes on the planet. One mistake and quite often their bodies are broken.

[@sharktooth2888]

I remember that, up till then I had never seen skis explode like that. Chad was a beast.

[@ownalicous1]

this man got up and took multiple bows wow. I am stunned.

[@budree4240]

Good God thank you Lord that eyes have been open and your son can see what the important things in life are. This is clearly the most emotional time of his life. Great job bud. I love the bow at the end. You can make the absolute most out of everything.

[@jfowler7604]

WADR to some of the posters and their comments about equipment etc. This is coming from someone that was in the ski industry at the time, worked racing service at the time, and was very vaguely acquainted with Chad................ >Comparing experiences with one's own recreational equipment is much like comparing your Toyota Camry to the one Kyle drives (#18) most Sundays. >Skis exploding in that manner was rare but not unheard of at that time or subsequently. >Even if the ski survived the crash without blowing up, it would be useless thereafter due to internal stresses, small fractures and multiple bends. >The mounting of the D-Flex plate was part of the reason in that it was not as solid and exerted additional leverage on the topsheet of the ski. >Usually, the toepiece rips out and the the boot just slips out of the heel and the forces are eliminated. >With a d-flex, the front of the plate rips out but the toe and heel are still connected by the plate so the forces proceed to rip out the tail of the d-flex and thus weakening or wrecking the structure. >RACE bindings bear little internal resemblance to retail bindings and absolutely do NOT have vertical toe release. Absolutely NOT. >For a RACE binding not to release in a wreck is relatively common. Male downhillers commonly ski with settings of DIN 20+ (or ++) >At the time most speed event skiers, looked like short cornerbacks, Chad looked like a linebacker. His size and strength helped his body to resist those huge forces. >IME (limited) Chad was (is I'm sure) an awesome guy but having this wreck and surviving it does not make him an icon of downhill. >In fact, at the time, he was probably a top 15-20 world ranking guy on average but WAS one of the best Americans at that time.

[@NZBallBag]

You are one hard man my friend I snowboard and kiteboard and know how hard that hit you took was.

[@1ZazaTree]

I can’t imagine the impact. I went to the famous Dodge Ridge Ski Lodge in California and I accidentally went over a rock and literally did a flip and hit my backbone and it hurt SO bad

[@jrviade85]

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@nobeerlion3991]

Heroic. Cheers from Switzerland.

[@kawythowy867]

Ouch! Damn dude! You sure can ski!! Hope you recovered and are ok

[@KozHornsUp]

It's like first your in pain and then you got to fight the snow slamming into your face while I'm sure you're trying to catch a breath of the wind wasn't knocked out of you. It's amazing how brutal crashes can be and one man can walk away and one could die or paralyzed.

[@WilliamFiler]

I worked a few downhills in Squaw, Ford downhill with top 10 retired guys, Moe, Rasmussen, etc. Top speed was about 84 or so, I can't imagine 96....wow.

[@uuhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh]

I crashed a few weeks ago where I caught an edge and my right ski came off, but I continued to go down on both feet backwards and this video came into my mind as I went down

[@Spoker3000]

His skis were so thight if they broke rather then just releasing

[@2003bjorn]

dast _ that’s how it’s supposed to be in racing. If they release it will be worse

[@2003bjorn]

@Dr Deuteron ive felt it, I used to be a racer and it is not fun ill tell you that. Sometimes you hit full ice with 80 km/h

[@Ju-nq7gu]

@@2003bjorn depends on when they release

[@timothyfoleyjr2796]

dast _ You don’t want a Ski to release prematurely or have a boot “twist out”. The only alternative is to literally bolt your skis on.

[@dacat8171]

Love to listen to his explanation ... 'this is the winning run' ... 👍🏾

[@paulward4417]

Can’t wait to go skiing next week

[@mdlclassguymdlclassguy6488]

That's the heart of a true competitor, glad he didn't get hurt worse 😀👍

[@zacharyjones7948]

Sent it down a double black diamond last week on my atomic super cross skis and hit 60 MPH.... That was terrifying and I felt like I was flying. Can't imagine 90 mph

[@WeberSharpening]

That was me at Kicking Horse a few years ago. Flat light and landed right on my back.

[@adriantardy205]

Great story. I’m so glad you had a second chance at life from this crash.

[@travelingmindful]

What a positive and cool dude! 😎 inspiring!

[@jazamaraz8029]

Not only is he a total badass, but he can laugh at himself. Whatta guy!

[@Zarniwooper]

Kudos to Chad putting it all in

[@timothyfoleyjr2796]

I haven’t heard the term “rolling down the windows” in a long time. It’s the somewhat involuntary flailing of the arms to regain balance.

[@Christianpaul71]

I skied Kitzbuehl several times. Looking down it is scary as hell and not light and fluffy snow. If inexperienced, once you fall, its almost impossible to get back up.

[@mgbforme23]

What a man! To bow at the end of it showed humility. Just wasn't his day.

[@pierobortolotti4094]

3:05 images that u open the video

[@Cupo666]

Think I had one season of downhill races and the jumps made me finally say "yeah I need to get out of racing before I crash on one of these"

[@nigabastard1268]

This guy can weave a tale

[@DrGonzo-jl9wq]

Flow state, I’ve only experienced it a few times but it’s unbelievable

[@bigmonke7374]

And soccer players are hitting their foot on a sand corn and fall on the ground tolling and screaming

[@va941]

Its called filming for a reason silly.

[@MrAnders9000]

Sand corn? Are you watching desert fotball?

[@martinprearo5713]

MrAnders9000 lmao

[@brunospasta]

Had a similar crash (of course not so fast and not so brutal). In the air I also thought: "Man... my head and my back will be crushed, I don't wanna break my neck." In the end, my head and back were pretty much fine, but one of my knees got crushed when the back of the skis hit the ground. Took quite a long time to recover... still feel if after years. So what to learn from that, if something like that happens, try to turn your body to one side or at least the skis!

[@keiahnigbruder1453]

That feeling in the air when you know you fucked up...

[@keiahnigbruder1453]

My condolences btw

[@purplemonkeyelephant]

Why does he even have bindings if the ski rips off the binding before the boots release? DIN level 1000

[@drizzelat8307]

@purplemonkeyelephant because the binding are there to open on horizontal force not on vertical force. Thats how bindings work

[@RoyalPantsHD]

@@drizzelat8307 *old bindings

[@romaing8791]

RoyalPantsHD Yeah, because nowadays bindings are built to eject both vertically and horizontally

[@mitsukeshukira6261]

Pretty sure its over 9000!

[@Vedad24]

The best winter discipline after sky jumps!

[@goranlalic8627]

Thank GOD for SAVING YOU!!👍

[@joeswanson3294]

Full send

[@xtfcz3714]

what a fucking legend! thought process straight from "i'm paralyzed" to "no i'm not i can still win this" holy shit

[@soulzzplaysgames]

And sadly, we've seen this scenario quite a lot over the years. Pre-jumping that jump can work, but it's really damn risky. And if you mess it up, well, you know what happens.

[@ronrolph]

Pretty awesome attitude from this guy...

[@TheFlightLevel]

One word! WOW!

[@zigwil153]

A lesson to not get cocky no matter how confident you are of a win....

[@solsurfer1558]

LEGEND !!

[@georgemallory797]

That made me sick to my stomach to watch. Gut wrenching. I'm surprised he didn't shatter his pelvis or break his back. That hard corduroy and ice hurts. I've broken my tailbone just pushing it too hard on a snowboard and having the edge fly out on me and forcing my seat down on the hard pack, all of a two foot fall. I cannot imagine how bad he ached a day or two later.

[@sanderpaulsen7857]

Absolutt mad lad

[@Leatherfacet]

My man! Seems like a cool dude!

[@haroldgeernian9816]

Dog the fact that he stood up to bow is probably the best part.

[@GiDD504]

Holy crap I had no idea they go 96mph 😳🤯

[@ryansarni]

Me getting ready gaining speed for the long flat part of the trail:

[@faststongesdrc7075]

Wow. He get up after😀

[@odom2142]

So glad he did not have a head injury from that horrible crash! Sucks about the leg though, no doubt.

[@moralester]

3:22 His entire binding ripped out of the ski, still attached to his ski boot... Holy shit what are his DIN's set to?!?!

[@johnsheridan6452]

They were on the “yes” setting as he knew he had to send it to win it.

[@SleepyE90]

bolt on setting. lol

[@lippaus88]

I like him.. and his philosophy.. seems a great guy

[@slimetimefishing4782]

chillest dude ever