Seems like a profoundly dicey location for an activity like that. I would have taken one look at the unsecured run-out and understood the potential for this. I'd love the get a translation of what those knuckleheads are saying. One of them is still giggling long after it was clear those guys were monumentally f*#ked.
Seems like a profoundly dicey location for an activity like that.
BVB, the Russian for 'dicey' is 'normal' or, if very dicey, 'interesting'.
They weren't actually saying much other than "there he goes" and when it
was obvious he was in for the big one "he's going down"; the usual Russian
understatement.
Maybe a side issue, but the guy who died had massive spinal injuries. Should have stabilized him where he was then evac'd him, rather than dragging him back up the hill. Hopefully they'll have better medical responders when the olympics come to town.
falling off the top of el cap would be a bad way to die. But being in that ball would be just sooo creepy. I guess because you'd have time to know what's going on. Plus I'm claustrophobic. A definition of hell for me.
Still conscious and able to stand, they were rescued by two skiers, who then pulled both men up to the top of the hill. Burakov suffered serious spinal injuries and died on the way to the hospital. Shcherbakov suffered a concussion and other injuries and remains hospitalized.
What does not go together
A. "able to stand" and "conscious"
B. "pulled both men up to the top of the hill" and "hospitalized"
C. "conscious and able to stand, they..." and "serious spinal injuries"
OMG, I haven't seen galoshi for yonks! Them fookin' Rooskies are all nucking
futs. I seriously think their Mongolian heritage has given them a collective
(no pun intended) sense of fatalism - nothing ever phases them. What, rope
up to walk up the Kahiltna Glacier? Why would you do that? It's dead flat!
It turns out this was a cheap Chinese knock off of a Zorb®. Zorbs are single occupant spheres, and the franchised operations have very strict guidelines for use (first and foremost having proper fencing on the course, obviously). There are also significant dangers inherent with a two-person sphere, prohibiting their use.
There was another incident involving one of these unlicensed, double-occupant knock-offs where a reporter was severely injured when the sphere went off course and landed hard on concrete after jumping an inadequate fence:
The operators of the ride and officials at Lost Valley said they were unaware that they needed a permit and safety inspection before they could offer rides to the public.
“The transparency of zorbs also reflect the open, accessible and inclusive society that Sochi 2014 Games is helping to build,” Dmitry Chernyshenko, head of the organizing committee, said in 2010.
Customers should ask globe riding site operators “Do you comply with the Code of Safe Operations for plastic globes?”; “Are you a signatory to the Code?”.
If not, you (the customer) may be taking your life into your own hands. Remember – Insurance may not be available to those operators that do not comply with the Code.
Chinese knockoffs? Double occupancy? Proper fencing? Licensed operators? Governing body Rules? WTF! As if any of this makes any difference at all.
How about walking up, taking one look at the ball, looking down the hill, and then just saying, "What, are you f*#king nuts? Only an idiot would get inside of one of those things."
Again, humans being humans and asking Darwin to work a double shift.
Let us know!