04/03/2026
In 2010, Tyler Williams was skiing Aspen Mountain when he looked back and saw his ski pole sitting in the snow 40 yards behind him. He hadn't felt it drop. He couldn't feel anything in his right hand.
For a professional big mountain skier and seven-time X Games competitor, that moment was the beginning of a 15-year journey that would test everything he had.
For years, Tyler's symptoms worsened without a clear diagnosis. He had hand surgery. It didn't help. He lost control of the entire right side of his body. Then in 2017, an MRI finally revealed the truth: a rare cerebral arteriovenous malformation growing in the left side of his brain.
"It wasn't good news," Tyler says. "But at least it gave me something to fight."
What followed was a series of gamma knife radiation sessions, multiple brain surgeries and, in 2024, an emergency airlift by Flight for Life to Denver after a brain-bleed episode. His most recent surgery left him with more than 13 staples in his scalp.
Recovery has not been linear. But Tyler hasn't stopped. He lives directly across from Aspen Valley Health, where his rehab team has become family. Every Wednesday, he works with occupational therapist Krista Fox—who has been by his side for over seven years. He also trains with physical therapist Matt Michael, who recently watched Tyler hit his heaviest squat rack lift since they began working together.
"Krista and Matt are my superheroes," Tyler says, voice cracking. "I wouldn't be where I am without them."
One of Tyler's most powerful tools? The SwimEx pool at AVH. For a man whose right side is largely numb, the water is transformative—buoyancy allows him to jump, move and feel his body in ways gravity won't permit on land.
"In the water, I can feel my right side again," he says. "It's like it wakes up."
This past winter, Tyler skied five runs. He wants more. He wants powder. And with the team at AVH behind him, there's every reason to believe he'll get there.
"Healing isn't about finishing," he says. "It's about continuing. It's about believing there's still more to come." Read Tyler's full story and learn more about the rehabilitation services at Aspen Valley Health.
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