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Show WedThursFri, July 28-30. 2004 The Park Record A-5 CITY BEAT CITY EDITOR: Jay Hamburger 649-9014 ext. 1 1 1 citynewsparkrecord.com Lawsuit PCMR's thrill sleds lack safety devices, legal complaint says By JAY HAMBURGER Of the Record staff " Park City Mountain Resort is facing at least its second lawsuit in two months stemming from accidents acci-dents summertime visitors allege they suffered while at the resort. On July 12, a Boca Raton, Fla., couple sued PCMR in Third District Court for an undetermined amount of money after what they claim was an accident on the resort's 'thrill sleds' in 2002. The ride is also known as a 'mountain sled.' In the 10-page complaint filed at the Silver Summit court, Provo attorney Thomas Seiler claims George Luck was riding a sled for the second time that day when he was ejected, suffering "permanent bodily injury, great pain, sorrow, and suffering." Injuries included a fractured sinus, fracture of his left eye area and fractures in his spine, the lawsuit law-suit claims. According to the lawsuit, law-suit, Luck also suffered a head injury, which has impaired his cognitive cog-nitive abilities, emotions and behavior. Luck lost income because his work suffered and he has incurred Woman is By JAY HAMBURGER Of the Record staff Police are hunting for a man who reportedly grabbed a woman while she was on a popular set of Old Town stairs. According to the Park City Police Department, the woman was walking up Shorty's Stairs at about 10:50 p.m. on Tuesday, July 20 when a man grabbed her by the arm. The bottom of the stairs is on the east side of Marsac Avenue, across from City Hall, where police headquarters head-quarters are located. Lt. Phil Kirk said the victim is a Park City resident but he did not have details about her. The suspect is between the ages of 30 and 36, Kirk said. He described the suspect as between 5 feet 4 inches and 5 feet 6 inches tall. The suspect is slightly overweight with black hair, Kirk said. L & ' :-:: ' ' I y ) )..- j-f ) A h I -.i. j, t V V 'J I L Chez Betty Proprietor 6& ''' 1 ' claims man injured medical expenses, the lawsuit says. Luck's wife, Stacey Luck, is also named as a plaintiff. PCMR plans to defend the lawsuit, law-suit, resort spokeswoman Krista Rowles said on Monday. She said the mountain sleds are very popular and customers are given two-hour guided tours beginning at the top of the resorts Pavday lift. The sleds debuted at PCMR in 2001, she said. In addition to PCMR, the lawsuit law-suit names Vermont-based Thrill Sleds, Incorporated and Nathan Turner as defendants. The lawsuit says that Thrill Sleds manufactured the device and Turner directed Luck as a PCMR guide. A vice president at Thrill Sleds declined to comment. The lawsuit lists seven complaints com-plaints against the defendants, including three negligence counts and what the lawsuit lists as "strict liability." It alleges there are defects to the sled, riders are ejected "due to the instability" of the sleds and that the sleds lack "adequate safety devices including adequate safety harnesses, harness-es, roll bars, braking systems, andor steering mechanisms." The lawsuit claims that Thrill Sleds had a duty to design a sled grabbed He was wearing a black sweatshirt sweat-shirt and jeans. Kirk said. Police are treating the case as an assault. Kirk said the victim was walking home from her restaurant job on Main Street when she noticed the man descending the steps toward her. As they passed, the man grabbed her, Kirk said. The woman then kicked the suspect, sus-pect, ran away and called the police from a friend's house. Kirk said. Four police officers searched the area but were unable to locate the man, Kirk said. The Police Department is continuing contin-uing its investigation. Kirk said the Police Department has not received similar complaints and he said that the encounter appears to be an isolated incident. Anyone with information may call the Police Department at 615-5500. that provided "reasonable protection." protec-tion." The lawsuit claims that the defendants did not stop Luck from riding the sled in a rainstorm, which Luck's side says made the ride unsafe. Meanwhile, the resort last Friday challenged the allegations in a separate lawsuit claiming a person was injured on the Alpine Slide, another popular summertime PCMR attraction. Lawyers for PCMR filed a legal document at the court known as an 'answer' rebutting claims made by Vista, Calif., resident Jane Ross, who alleged she was injured in a Julv 19, 2003 accident on the Alpine Slide. Ross claims she was hurt after she and her son rode down the Alpine Slide as it began to rain. With her son on her lap, Ross went down the slide but was unable to slow down and the sled slid out from under her, the lawsuit claimed. The lawsuit alleges that she suffered suf-fered multiple injuries when she tried to slow herself down by grabbing grab-bing the edge of the slide and using her feet to cushion the impact. PCMR's answer lists 16 defenses to the lawsuit, including that Ross assumed the risk of injury and that the resort "exercised reasonable care." The resort also denied that i i t on sled Ross suffered "multiple serious injuries," as her side claims. The resort specifically denies claims made by Ross that PCMR breached its duties to act in a reasonable rea-sonable and safe manner by failing to properly supervise the slide, failing fail-ing to warn users of the hazards of a wet slide and failing to close the slide when it rains. PCMR wants the Ross lawsuit dismissed and asks that the resort be awarded legal costs. Ross is seeking $20,000 in the lawsuit. PCMR is currently entangled in at least two other lawsuits filed locally, both alleging that the plaintiffs plain-tiffs were injured in ski accidents and that the resort was negligent in the cases. In one, Sarasota, Fla., resident James Olson claims he was skiing at PCMR on Jan. 5, 2002 when he was struck from behind by a PCMR ski patroller transporting an injured skier in a toboggan. In the other, lawyers for Peter and Susan Sonksen, who live in Great Britain, claim that Peter Sonksen fell between 8and 12 feet off a man-made man-made and unmarked drop off at PCMR. Another lawsuit stemming from an alleged wreck between two men at PCMR is also pending. PCMR is not named as a defendant in that case. . I ft, (ompiuntntar) valet piirkinj;, JULY 29- Al Vil 'ST 2 Calico Corners' collection of indooroutdoor fabrirs are all on sale i.vntj .vim most everything else1. 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