Mom: Eagle-Vail boy wary of skiing after lawsuit

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Associated Press
Vail, CO Colorado
December 27, 2007

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DENVER, Colorado — The mother of an 8-year-old boy who was sued over a ski accident said her son has gone skiing this season, but not at the Beaver Creek ski area where the accident happened.

David Pfahler, 60, of Allentown, Pa., filed a lawsuit in September seeking compensation for physical therapy and other expenses stemming from the accident in January.

Pfahler says that after Scott Swimm, then 7, of Vail skied into him, he had to have surgery for a torn rotator cuff and a procedure to repair part of his clavicle.

Scott's mother, Susan Swimm, said Wednesday that her son was passing Pfahler on a catwalk when Pfahler stopped, and her son skied over the top of Pfahler's skis. She did not see the accident. Scott's father, Robb Swimm, who also was named in the lawsuit, has said it was not a violent crash. However, Pfahler's lawsuit contends the boy was skiing fast.

Susan Swimm said accidents are possible in a sport like skiing.

"It's a really, really sad day when we can't allow a child to have an accident without it resulting in a lawsuit," she said.

Pfahler's lawyer, Jim Chalat, told the Rocky Mountain News that after the crash, Pfahler asked the Swimms to help pay his $35,000 of medical bills but never heard back. Susan Swimm disputed that.

The lawsuit estimates Pfahler's losses at more than $75,000.

Chalat contends the Colorado Ski Safety Act holds children just as responsible for their actions as adults.