Resort employee collapses, dies during event
A 24-year-old man died from unknown causes at Winter Park Resort on Thursday, Jan. 28.
Mason Shepard, of Kalamazoo, Mich., was working on a race crew during an event when he collapsed.
He was pronounced dead at 11:59 p.m. at the East Grand Community Clinic and Emergency Center at Winter Park Resort.
Grand County Coroner Brenda Bock said the cause of Shepard’s death was unknown pending an investigation.
Shepard was also an alpine race coach at Winter Park Resort’s Competition Center.
“As a coach, athletes immediately gravitated to Mason and adored working with him due to his ability to relate to the young competitors and his unabashed enthusiasm for the sport,” Winter Park Resort CEO Gary DeFrange wrote in an email to employees on Friday. “Thanks to his years as an athlete in the program, he intuitively understood the struggles and challenges alpine racers face, while making the task of overcoming those challenges positive and fun.”
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