There’s no question that downhill skiing, like any strenuous, fast-paced sport, has its fair share of dangers. But that hasn’t stopped Ira Riklis from a lifetime of enjoying, and getting good at, this thrilling sport. In fact, even a broken leg suffered many years ago at age fifteen hasn’t stopped him from his regular winter excursions to Vail or from becoming an expert skier.
As is often the case in accidents, much the fault lies with the victim. The young, confident Ira Riklis had just purchased a new pair of skis and bindings. The trouble began when he decided he liked the safety straps from his old bindings better than those on the new bindings. So he made what seemed like a clever choice: switch the bindings. The problem was that the old straps were shorter and didn’t have enough play to allow the boot to pull forward and break loose from the binding during a fall, especially a fall directly forward. So, true to Murphy’s Law, it wasn’t long before he fell directly forward, breaking the tibia and fibula on my right leg just above the ski boot.