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SNOWBOARDER ASSUMED THE RISK OF INJURY CAUSED BY A CREVICE THAT HAD FORMED IN THE AREA WHERE SNOWBOARDERS USED A MOUND OF SNOW TO “CATCH AIR,” THE DEFENDANT DEMONSTRATED THE CREVICE FORMED NATURALLY (SECOND DEPT).

The Second Department, reversing Supreme Court, determined that the defendant ski area was entitled to summary judgment in this snowboarding injury case. A mound of snow was used by snowboarders to “catch air.” Plaintiff was injured when he used the mound to “catch air” and landed in a five and a half foot crevice:

“[B]y engaging in a sport or recreational activity, a participant consents to those commonly appreciated risks which are inherent in and arise out of the nature of the sport generally and flow from such participation” (… see General Obligations Law §§ 18-101, 18-106) . … A skier or snowboarder generally “assumes the inherent risk of personal injury caused by ruts, bumps or variations in the conditions of the . . . terrain” … . …

The defendant demonstrated, through the deposition testimony of its employees and the affidavit of its expert, that the crevice was likely caused by a combination of changing temperatures, natural wet springs in the area, and water draining from the snow whale. Underground springs and surface run-off are common on mountains and can undermine the integrity of the snowpack, resulting in voids, holes, crevices, and sinkholes. The defendant demonstrated that it did not create the crevice and that the crevice was the natural consequence of variations in surface and subsurface snow conditions (see General Obligations Law § 18-101). We conclude that the defendant made a prima facie showing of entitlement to judgment as a matter of law by demonstrating that the infant plaintiff assumed the risk of injury that could be caused by the crevice, and that the defendant did not do anything that unreasonably increased the risk … . Festa v Apex Capital, LLC, 2019 NY Slip Op 02853, Second Dept 4-17-19

 

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