The recent events at Snowbird ski area struck a familiar chord. For those who are unaware, a helicopter training there in February resulted in a crash landing of two helicopters just below the ski lift in Mineral Basin. Fortunately, everyone was ok despite the incident occurring so close to skiers/riders and ski area infrastructure. Monarch had a similar event back in March of 2009. A Black Hawk helicopter with the Alaska National Guard was attempting to fly over Monarch Pass in a blizzard. Some of our staff members had heard the rotors of the helicopter slashing through the mountain air. Then suddenly, they could not hear anything. The pilot had lost control of the bird and it spun down into the trees just outside the Gunbarrel boundary rope towards Old Monarch Pass. Patrol responded to the scene shortly after the incident. The crew was somehow uninjured and had already walked down to the highway below by the time we arrived. A CDOT truck had been passing by and transported the flight crew down the pass. The scene was secured and a military operation to remove the disabled helicopter ensued over the next week. A chinook was brought in to fly the wreckage away. Just another wild story from one of the original ski areas in Colorado.