At age 15, Ira Riklis accompanied his family to France to enjoy some world-class skiing. The place they chose was Courchevel, a magnificent ski area located in the Tarentaise Valley, Savoie region of the French Alps, and part of Les Trois Vallées, the largest linked ski area in the world. For a young man enthralled by Jean Claude Killy, his skiing hero, it was especially thrilling to be skiing in the Olympic champion’s home slopes.
The slopes and scenery were spectacular, the small hotels lovely and the food—French haute cuisine—was sublime. All in all, it was a delightful trip, up until Ira Riklis’ last run before the family was to pack up and head home. He was taking it easy, savoring his last trip down the mountain, until he hit a patch of powder that grabbed his ski edges and pitched him forward. The pain and the fact that his right leg (with ski still attached) was in a position that was simply not possible if your bones are still all in one piece, made it eminently clear that he had suffered a serious break. Thus ended his first—and last—skiing trip to Europe!