The ski jump, the rock, and the rescue helicopter.
Hayden Whiting never imagined he would need rescuing – especially not when he was just on a day out skiing with friends.
A builder and former bike mechanic from mid-Canterbury, Hayden is at home in the outdoors and Mt Hutt is on his doorstep. But on one winter’s day back in 2020, his day out didn’t go as planned.
“I had scoped out this jump on some quite steep terrain. I watched a few people do it and thought ‘oh yeah, I’ll give it a go’. I landed off to one side where there was a powder stash, but it had been snowy and windy and it turned out under that powder stash was a rock.”
Hayden landed on the rock and then “tomahawked” down the mountain.
“My mates initially joked I just had a dead leg but I couldn’t move and the pain wouldn’t go away. That’s when I started freaking out a bit.”
When ski patrol arrived they felt his deformed leg and cut his pants open only to find his femur (thighbone) sticking out.
“I think they rang the helicopter right there and then!” Hayden says.
Others on the ski field came to help, with patrollers digging a ledge for the stretcher so they could get Hayden down the mountain.
“I saw the helicopter landing in the car park before they even got me into the medical room. The rescue helicopter crew spent a good 45 minutes stabilising me. When I heard the paramedics talking about how close the bone could be from the artery, that’s when I realised how serious it was.”
Hayden was helicoptered directly to Christchurch Hospital where he had a five-and-a-half-hour surgery with rods and screws used to put his leg back into place. He’s had follow-up surgery since then to relocate some of the screws holding his leg together.
Hayden says his leg strength is back to about 75% of what it was before the accident, and he thinks that’s as good as it’s going to get.
“It’s definitely slowed me down a bit. I bought an e-bike so I could start riding again, which felt great. I’ve also been back to Mt Hutt skiing again. I needed to get over the fear the accident gave me, but I’m definitely not doing jumps like I used to!”
Hayden says while he felt a little embarrassed having to use the rescue helicopter, thinking there would be other people more in need, he was “pretty thankful” they were there for him.
“The rescue helicopter crew were amazing; I definitely felt more relaxed when I knew they’d arrived. They made me feel so comfortable and relaxed and were super professional – it really reassured me that I was in good hands.
“I’ll always be grateful the Westpac Rescue Helicopter was there for me that day. It’s an incredible service.”