Slackliner Saves Man Hanging Unconscious from Arapahoe Basin Chairlift

A professional slackliner climbed up an Arapahoe Basin chairlift tower to save a man who was hanging from his neck.

According to the Denver Post's Jesse Paul, the man's backpack got twisted in the chair at the Colorado ski area. He was dangling off the lift with the strap stuck around his neck.

Mickey Wilson, a professional slackliner, mounted the lift's tower after bystanders unsuccessfully attempted to reach the unconscious man by forming a human pyramid. He said patrollers then "perfectly tossed me the knife" so he could cut the backpack strap.

"It was one of the most scary things I've ever seen, honestly," Wilson said. "Just seeing a person get the life sucked out of them. I kind of stopped thinking and just started acting."

Other onlookers cautioned him not to climb the lift's ladder, but Wilson ignored their warnings.

Per Arapahoe Basin, the rescued man was taken by ambulance to a medical center. Wilson, who spoke to him later that evening on FaceTime, said he was wearing a neck brace but appeared OK.

[Denver Post]