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Smiley was an officer with the 1/25 SBCT when he was injured in Mosul, Iraq in 2005.
VAIL — Skiing with your eyes closed is very dangerous, but if you’re Scott Smiley you have no choice.
It has been just over one year since Scott Smiley has skied Vail, and almost two years since he was blinded by shrapnel from a suicide bomb in Iraq.
On April 6, 2005, Smiley and his squad received intelligence of enemy activity in Mosul. Smiley and his squad were checking for car bombs when something went wrong.
“I went out that day with my company commander to find anything suspicious and ask people in the community if they had heard anything about suicide car bombs,” he said.
Eventually Smiley found a suspicious looking vehicle with a man inside.
“He wasn’t parked in an area that most people parked in.” he said.
Smiley fired two warning shots and then the driver blew up himself and the car.
Since losing his vision, Smiley, 26, has been surfing, wake boarding and sky-diving. He is still on active duty, a captain in the U.S. Army.
Smiley will be skiing for three days with a small entourage of friends and family. Joining him for the first time on the slopes since Smiley lost his sight is Army buddy and old college pal Adam Rivette of Colorado Springs and Adam Wilson of Denver. His sister, Mary Lynn, was also on the slopes.
“I’m amazed at his courage. I think it’s just great that he’s out here doing what he loves,” said Wilson. [...]
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