Dramatic Footage Shows a Snow Kiter Getting Caught in an Avalanche

Earlier this year, French kiteboarder Laurent Guyot shared this chilling avalanche footage from the Col du Lautaret, a high-mountain pass in the Alps. On his YouTube channel, Guyot explained that the snowpack was unstable but they were prepared with avalanche gear. It looked as though they were shredding high-quality snow when an avalanche let loose above them, burying Guyot’s friend, Lionel. The footage is completely mind blowing, as Lionel either tries to air out of the avalanche, or is shot out by the wind the falling snow creates, before being dragged into the debris. The captions on the video are detailed, as the kiter escaped with little more than a sprained knee. Things could have been much worse.