“If it wasn’t for my friends knowing the signs and symptoms of a concussion, I would not be standing here today,” Kelsey Boyer says. “My brain was bleeding for two weeks, and my friends caught the signs and took me into the emergency room. After I was released from the hospital, I suffered from a lot of symptoms that I didn’t know anything about. My entire life changed.”
In 2016, after sustaining several head-ringing hits in a two-month timeframe, Kelsey was diagnosed with a subdural hematoma that had shifted her brain 11mm. She immediately went into life-saving surgery.
Prior to the surgery, Kelsey was a serious slopestyle competitor and Olympic hopeful. Now, she faced serious complications and extensive rehabilitation. She had to relearn basic coordination and speech and learn to manage all-consuming emotions brought on by the changes in her brain chemistry. Nevertheless, she persisted.
In her own monumentally badass fashion, Kelsey rose above the harrowing experience and got back to boarding a year later. She channeled her inner-strength and newfound insight into Save a Brain, a Salt Lake City based 501(c)(3) non-profit organization focusing on education and prevention of traumatic brain injuries in action sports, launched in 2020.
Save a Brain now provides numerous resources to the broader action sports communities and beyond, ranging from virtual programs and free tools like their free, downloadable Concussion Guide, to in-person events like the Right Brain, Left Brain silent auction, and more. In 2023 alone, the nonprofit managed to raise more than $66,000 towards reducing traumatic brain injuries among action sports athletes. That same year they partnered with pro snowboarder Grace Warner and her sponsor, Red Bull, to carry out the “Mental Health Awareness Month 30 Days of Helmet Giveaways.” Every day for the entire month of May, a random winner received a new helmet free of charge. The giveaway served as a “dual-purpose initiative to highlight both physical safety and the symbolic protection of mental health,” according to the annual report posted to the organization’s website, saveabraininc.com. But that’s not all. Kelsey and Save a Brain’s work are making an immeasurable impact on individuals in action sports communities, as well as their friends and families by proxy, whether they themselves shred or not.
“We implement helmet checks at elite contests,” Kelsey says. “We made a cookbook for people to help them get back into cooking after an injury, and to learn about brain-healthy foods. We have Happy Helmets, where we donate new helmets every month to other non-profit youth programs and schools. I started a podcast called The Headquarters. We’re trying to create a conversation and a safe space for people [to talk about recovery from brain injuries]. I always say that if I didn’t have support after my injury, I would not be here today, because it was so hard for me to go through.”
Understandably, Kelsey sometimes gets frustrated by the limitations on her snowboarding. She might downplay her own riding ability, because she keeps it more controlled and closer to the ground these days. But style doesn’t lie, even if it’s only coming through in turns. Kelsey rips with poise and precision, especially in powder. Even after all she’s been through, she’s continually pushing herself on and off the mountain, all while learning to integrate a deeper sense of humility, grace and compassion to herself and others along the way.
“Snowboarding is triggering for me, because I used to be a competitive slopestyle snowboarder and now, I can’t, because I hit my head so much,” Kelsey says. “But redeveloping a new relationship with my snowboard has been such a beautiful thing. Having my friends with me through that process has been really nice. It’s taught me a lot of self-awareness and self-love. I have a different perspective on the world and just… having a second chance to live life.”
Kelsey Boyer, all smiles in Tahoe. Photo: Krista Holden