Teton Village, WY – Two snowboarders sustained serious injuries when they lost their edge and slipped over a 200-foot cliff near Jackson Hole Mountain Resort on Monday. A third man sustained minor injuries.

The pair who were seriously injured, a 31-year-old man from San Jose, Calif. and a 40-year-old man from Tustin, Calif., were among five riders who had ventured into unfamiliar terrain in the Rock Springs sidecountry just outside of the ski resort’s southern boundary. They were headed to the Why Not Couloir, officials indicate, when they lost their grip on the icy snowpack and tumbled off the edge of the large cliff.

“We are pleased to report there were no fatalities with this serious incident,” said Jerry Blann, Jackson Hole Mountain Resort’s President. “It prompts us all to remember that backcountry travel can have extreme consequences and it is imperative that you know the terrain, know the conditions and be fully equipped for all eventualities. We wish these skiers a full and speedy recovery.”

The two riders who survived the cliff fall were airlifted to an area hospital. The third member of their party who got hurt, a 31-year-old man from Tucson, Ariz., sustained only minor injuries, and was taken away by ski patrol toboggan. All were part of a group of seven friends visiting Jackson Hole.

Jackson Hole Mountain Resort officials closed the Aerial Tram and two backcountry gates for the 90 minutes that it took to rescue the three men.

According to the Jackson Hole News & Guide, the snowboarders were ill-equipped for their sidecountry excursion and lacked appropriate safety gear.

Monday’s incident occurred in roughly the same area as where two similarly unprepared skiers were swept off a cliff by an avalanche less than two weeks earlier.