Fred Syrerson News Today

Camera." on a mountain peak in the french alps, a wrong turn launches a skier over a 250-foot cliff. march 18th, 2008, france. norwegian fred syrerson is one of the worlds top freestyle skiers. at 42 hes also one of the oldest still active. he tests his skills on steep and untraveled terrain like this remote peak in the alps. >> so you want to push your limits a little bit because there is always a better chance when youre up there to try things that you normally cant do every day. >> on this ...

Dunard, have worked out a route down the mountain using landmarks like rock outcrops. they decide on a trial run. the plan is for fred to lead the other skiers. but the filmmaker suddenly changes the plan, worried about freds habit of taking big chances which could lead them all into disaster. >> i said to my team, okay, sorry, guys, we go up one by one. i have a sixth sense, like an alarm. i know fred for a long time. i know hes a charger. hes always want to push. >> a helicopter drops fred off...

I was fighting that the whole way down until the very last meters. and then let the wind flip me over on my back so i could land like horizontally because i knew that this kind of heights, if you land on your feet, on your head, youre done. >> fred slams into the snow. >> the impact is so strong that its like an explosion. and then the sudden silence -- nothing. just silence. and everything white. >> in the helicopter, terry dunard, the filmmaker, spots where fred disappears into the snow. while...

Go. then youre just like, you blank out because then youre only concentrating on the line youre going to ski. so youre kind of very into what youre going to do and focusing on the right way to go down. >> fred pushes off. >> i felt like this is going to be like a cruising and really good warmup run to get the feel of the snow because it was the first run of the day. >> unintentionally, fred turns far off course. >> i thought i was at the right landmark. >> the filmmakers, all on headsets, try to...

>> you hear the wind, and it picks up like more and more and more. so thats -- that was the force i was fighting. i was fighting that the whole way down until the very last meters. and then let the wind flip me over on my back so i could land like horizontally because i knew that this kind of heights, if you land on your feet, on your head, youre done. >> fred slams into the snow. >> the impact is so strong that its like an explosion. and then the sudden silence -- nothing. just silence. and eve...

Landmarks like rock-out props. they decide on a trial run. the plan is for fred to lead the other skiers. but the filmmaker suddenly changes the plan, worried about freds habit of taking big chances which could lead them all into disaster. >> i said to my team, okay, sorry, guys, we go up one by one. i have a sixth sense, like an alarm. i know fred for a left wing time. i know hes a charger. hes always want to push. >> a helicopter drops fred off on the peak. he will begin alone. >> im kind of f...

Dunard and an assistant jump to try to rescue him. but fred is buried. >> im awake. that was the first thing i noticed, like i didnt pass out. and felt no pain. then i started to see if i could move my toes. and when i could move my toes, i was like -- relief. and then i found out that im stuck. and one or two seconds of par panic sets in because im trying really, really hard to use all the muscles in my body to get loose, but no way. i couldnt. >> the filmmakers see the tips of his ski pole and...

>> i thought, you made the wrong decision. you are going to die in a few seconds. i remember thinking, oh, my god, i dont have time to die now. i have so much left to do, you know. >> the camera on the helicopter records the terrifying moment when he launches off the cliff. >> whether i got into the air, just like seemed like i got higher and higher. so its like in the beginning, i was like -- its like an attack for your life in a way. >> blocked now by the surrounding peaks, the helicopter race...

>> then youre waiting for the signal from the helicopter to go. then youre just like, you blank out because then youre only concentrating on the line youre going to ski. so youre kind of very into what youre going to do and focusing on the right way to go down. >> fred pushes off. >> i felt like this is going to be like a cruising and really good warmup run to get the feel of the snow because it was the first run of the day. >> unintentionally, fred turns far off course. >> i thought i was at th...

On a mountain peak in the french alps, a wrong turn launches a skier over a 250-foot cliff. march 18th, 2008, france. norwegian fred syrerson is one of the top skiers. at 4, hes also one of the oldest still active. he tests his skills on steep and untraveled terrain like this remote peak in the alps. >> so you want to push your limits a little bit because there is always a better chance when youre up there to try thing that you normally cant do every day. >> on this day, he and two other skiers ...