A 64-year-old Durango man died earlier this month while skiing at Purgatory Resort, according to La Plata County officials.

The skier was coming down the mountain near the intersection of Sa’s Psyche (a beginner run) and El Diablo (an intermediate run) when he fell, said La Plata County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Chris Burke.

The Sheriff’s Office declined to identify the skier, but an obituary published for Kenneth “Greg” Riddle of Durango makes reference to Riddle dying on Jan. 5 “doing one of the many things he loved, skiing.”

La Plata County Coroner Jann Smith later confirmed Riddle’s identity.

Efforts to reach a friend, neighbor and family member were not immediately successful Tuesday.

The fall occurred about 3:30 p.m. Jan. 5 on a steep section of trail just below the Powderhouse and just above the loading area for Lift 2, which is midway up the mountain on the front side of the hill.

Riddle did not hit anything other than the ground, Burke said. A passerby stopped and found Riddle unresponsive. A good Samaritan began CPR until Mountain Safety arrived to take over lifesaving measures, Burke said.

Riddle was pronounced dead on scene.

Riddle appears to have suffered a broken vertebrae in his upper back as a result of the fall, Smith said. It is not yet known if Riddle suffered a medical emergency leading up to the fall, she said.

“It happened pretty quickly,” Smith said. “He was skiing and he fell, and there were other skiers there that started CPR because he was unresponsive, and couldn’t revive him.”

No cause of death had been determined as of Tuesday, she said.

Purgatory ski patrol was on scene within four minutes of receiving the call, the ski resort said in a prepared statement sent Tuesday to The Durango Herald.

“Our hearts and prayers go out to our guest’s family and friends at this difficult time,” Purgatory Resort general manager Dave Rathbun said in the statement. “This deeply impacts our community, and we extend our most sincere condolences to all those who knew and loved him.”

According to his obituary, Riddle graduated from Northampton High School and Northampton County Community College in Pennsylvania. He moved to Vermont and worked for IBM for 40 years before his retirement in 2019.

He and his wife, Lisa Gokey Riddle, raised two children and recently celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary.

The Riddles moved to Durango in August 2021 to be close to their children, according to his obituary. He enjoyed riding bikes to the local breweries, boating, soaking in hot springs, traveling and the view of the La Plata Mountains from his deck.

“Greg lived more life in 64 years than most could in 100 years,” the obituary says.

shane@durangoherald.com