Jamie Pierre facts for kids

Matthew Jamison "Jamie" Pierre (born February 22, 1973 – died November 13, 2011) was a professional free skier. He was famous for jumping off very tall cliffs on his skis. Jamie Pierre set a world record by jumping 255 feet (78 m) (about 77 meters) at the Grand Targhee Resort in Wyoming. He was known for pushing the limits of what was possible in skiing. Sadly, Jamie Pierre died in an avalanche in November 2011.

Jamie Pierre's Life Story

Matthew Jamison Pierre was born on February 22, 1973. He was one of eight children. Jamie started skiing when he was ten years old at Buck Hill, Minnesota. He quickly fell in love with the sport. After high school, he decided to live as a "skibum." This meant he worked small jobs at different ski resorts to pay for his passion. His brother, Chris Pierre, often joined him.

In 1995, Jamie entered his first extreme skiing competition. This was the start of many exciting adventures. For the next ten years, Jamie Pierre kept getting better at skiing. He also jumped from bigger and bigger cliffs. However, when he was 32 in 2005, he got married and had a daughter. After that, Jamie decided to be more careful. He said, "The plan is to ski more, fall out of the sky less."

Ski Films and Movies

Jamie Pierre was one of the few skiers known for making the biggest jumps. Because of this, he played an important part in many major ski films of his time. He worked with several film companies, including Warren Miller, Teton Gravity Research, Matchstick Productions, Flying Circus, and Rage Films.

While working for Warren Miller, Jamie Pierre appeared in five movies:

• Cold Fusion (2001)
• Journey (2003)
• Off the Grid (2006)
• Playground (2007)
• Children of Winter (2008)

World Record Cliff Jump

Jamie Pierre was famous for pushing the boundaries of skiing off cliffs. People started to notice him in 1999. A black and white photo of him jumping off a 40-foot cliff appeared in Powder Magazine. The cliffs he was jumping from quickly grew in size. He started with 50-foot jumps, and soon he was jumping from 90 feet. His first jumps over 100 feet were in Utah.

In 2003, Jamie Pierre jumped off a 165-foot cliff in Wolverine Cirque, Utah. In March 2004, he cleared a 185-foot cliff in Engelberg, Switzerland. Pierre wanted to break the current cliff jumping height record, which was 225 feet.

After looking at many cliffs, he chose a 255-foot cliff. This cliff was in the backcountry of Grand Targhee resort. On January 25, 2006, he successfully made the world record jump. Dozens of people watched him. He landed headfirst in the snow and his friends had to dig him out. In 2008, another skier named Fred Syversen broke Jamie's record. He survived an unintentional 351-foot cliff jump.

Jamie Pierre's Death

On November 13, 2011, Jamie Pierre was hiking at Snowbird Resort in Utah. He wanted to snowboard some early season snow. The resort was not open yet, and no avalanche safety work had been done. Pierre and his friend, Jack Pilot, planned to ski an area called South Chute.

During their trip, Jamie triggered an avalanche. The avalanche carried him over rocks for about 800 feet. He stopped partly buried and died from the injuries he received. Jamie Pierre is remembered by his wife and two children, a daughter and a son.