Backcountry death near Aspen Highlands

ASPEN — The Aspen ski and snowboard community lost one of its own on Friday when Wallace Westfeldt, 22, son of longtime Aspen Skiing Co. instructor Weems Westfeldt, fell to his death in the Tonar Bowl near Aspen Highlands.

Westfeldt, a world-class freeride snowboarder, was part of a Skico-sponsored backcountry film shoot when the accident occurred, according to a Skico press release.

The incident is under investigation, and the cause of death is still undetermined, according to a statement from the county coroner.

At 11:34 a.m. on Friday, Pitkin County sheriff’s deputies received a report of an unknown male skier who was receiving CPR after a fall from a cliff on the west-facing slope of Tonar Bowl.

The area is accessed by traveling out of bounds beyond Highlands Peak.

Deputies dispatched Aspen Highlands ski patrollers, who were first on scene.

Westfeldt was pronounced dead shortly after patrollers arrived, according to a sheriff’s office press release.

See Saturday’s Aspen Times for more on the accident.