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SALT LAKE CITY — A weekend of backcountry snowboarding took a scary turn for a snowboarder near Brighton Ski Resort.
Loren Richardson and his friends are in Utah for the powder. They love the backcountry, despite the risks, and they were prepared.
"It's good to have your beacon on you, your shovel, your probe, and a radio," Richardson told KSL-TV.
Despite meticulous preparation, what unfolded caught him off guard.
As Richardson was making his final run of the day, he experienced an abrupt shift from the exhilarating rush of carving through fresh powder to a chilling confrontation on private property.
"As I dropped into that driveway — now I know — I thought it was more of a road," Richardson said.
It turns out that it was a private driveway. A homeowner, armed and agitated, confronted Richardson with a gun.
"I'm like, I'm gonna get shot," Richardson said.
Richardson left quickly.
The encounter captured on camera caught the attention of Brighton Mayor Dan Knoop, who was concerned, to say the least.
"They shouldn't be going there, but they do," Knoop said, alluding to the persistent challenge of trespassing in the area. Knoop said he thought most people consider the skiers and boarders as part of living in the backcountry.
He emphasized that resorting to intimidation and brandishing firearms is unjustifiable.
"It's never acceptable to be brandishing a gun, to be pushing people, swearing, yelling at people," Knoop said.
He's standing there like out of a scary movie with this gun in hand, looking straight at us ... It was terrifying.
–Loren Richardson
While police have been in contact with the homeowner, concerns linger about the potential for further escalation.
"My biggest concern, I don't want him to get injured, I don't want him to injure anybody else," Knoop said.
"He's standing there like out of a scary movie with this gun in hand, looking straight at us with a chair behind him," Richardson said. "It was terrifying."
