Michael Dennis Grazier
Obituary

Michael Dennis Grazier departed this world, on his final journey over the rainbow bridge, January 13, 2026, off to his next adventure in the sky, where he flies in the clouds with eagles, Free again and at Peace. Despite cancer taking away his voice and breath, he left with a small smile on his lips and a sly wink in his eye, to let us know he wasn’t afraid and no longer in pain.

Born April 20 (4.20), 1952, Michael grew up in Denver, the eldest of five children, in a supportive family who embraced the Colorado lifestyle with an enduring love of sports and the great outdoors. His father, a competitive diver, taught him from childhood, and his oldest sister and brother were both Jr. National Figure Skating Champions, stimulated by the ice-skating rink Dad famously built in their backyard.

A gifted athlete, Mike’s competitive career began at age five in Gymnastics, Swimming, and Ski Racing. He was in the Denver Hill Toppers, competing in Springboard and Tower Diving, loving the feeling of flying through the air, and became one of the early cliff divers at Denver’s renowned Casa Bonita restaurant. By Junior High he excelled in Pole Vaulting and was on the Junior Ski Patrol for Loveland Basin, providing ample ski time and launching off everything in sight.

Graduating from Arapahoe High, where he was a skilled gymnast, springboard and tower diver, ski racer, and Nordic jumper, Mike went on to teach skiing at Geneva Basin under former Olympian Dan Thurston, who introduced him to Gelande Jumping, where he could really fly high through the air.

That varied expertise came together in the groundbreaking new sport of Freestyle Skiing when, at 18, Michael successfully executed the first triple back flip in history on 210 downhill skis, April 1971, in the Flauschink Competition at Crested Butte. He was a member of the elite squad of freestyle aerialists, the Flying Bambini Brothers, and in 1972 became the World Aerial Champion, winning Aerial Acrobatic events on the Chevrolet Tour in both Sun Valley and Vail with double flips, layouts, and mobius.

He and BFF Roger Evans were the first two people to go upside down off a gelande jump—the true beginning of “Big Air”—and he made history again with a 170-foot back layout at 60+ mph at the Vail National Gelande. “Graze” and “Rojo” followed that with another Most Spectacular Aerial, 1st place, at the 1972 Alta National Gelande, with 140-foot “Dual Clockwork Somersaults.”

Mike’s aerial career was put on hold when he shattered his femur in a Canadian competition, which fortuitously kept him out of Viet Nam, but he returned to freestyle competition for the 1973 Vail Aerials, getting upside down with Roger holding his hand to support his bad leg. The duo won the event with the first “Gay Gainer” in history.

Graze stunt skied for Dean Jones in Disney’s Snowball Express (keeping him out of the ’72 Waterville event), starred with Jean Claude Killy in Hot Dog Skiing for Jo Jay Jalbert, and was featured in numerous films for Dick Barrymore (White Horizons, Assignment K2, Yahoo, and The High Cost of a Free Ride), Willy Bogner, Warren Miller, Winter Equinox, and the freestyle documentary Dog Days of Winter. Michael toured Europe with Killy and the K-2 ski team, promoting freestyle; his artistic creativity also expressed in a line of sweaters he designed for Demetre Sport and modeled in posters and on the freestyle circuit.

This iconic Aerial Skiing Pioneer contributed greatly to the nascent sport of Freestyle Skiing, using his acrobatic proficiency to teach hundreds of kids how to get upside down safely at ski camps in America and Europe, including Airborne Eddie’s, Annie Famose, Rossignol’s, and his own “Grazier Flight School” in Crested Butte, directing their freestyle program from 1978–80 and training future freestyle champions like Marion and Ellen Post in aerials. He continued coaching, competing, filming, and performing in exhibitions to promote the sport until 1980. In the early 2000s, he returned to teaching at Park City, UT, focused on small children just starting on snow. Michael relished being their “first instructor”; he knew that “first experience on skis” would make or break the sport for them forever.

Michael embodied mountain life and treasured time spent at the beloved family cabin, built entirely with hand tools, embedding construction skills he employed throughout his lifetime as a builder and master cabinet-maker in Aspen and Telluride. He always had a profound connection to the natural world, with an affinity for all its creatures, and raised cattle, farmed, enjoyed respectful hunting, and once ran a logging mill. He was also an accomplished chef, restaurateur, and major foodie for life.

Scuba diving was his second love, and for over 30 years the Master Scuba Dive Trainer taught Diving and Emergency First Responder classes, certifying over 500 individuals in multiple dive specialties and creating an Underwater Hunting course for PADI, while working Search & Rescue for the Mesa Sheriff’s Department for several years. Michael established Passports to Paradise Dive and Travel, escorting divers on adventures around the world to expand their horizons while deepening their scuba skills.

A Renaissance man of many talents, with fearless courage, a compassionate heart, sharp intellect, and mischievous sense of humor—both a frontiersman and a connoisseur—Michael wore many hats in a rich and varied life. An intrepid innovator, audacious world traveler, and consummate storyteller, Michael’s truest inherent gift, and greatest impact on the world, will forever be his ability to generously transmit his passion, knowledge, and experience through teaching skiing, diving, and life skills, always encouraging others to stretch their limits and dare to be all they can be.

Michael Grazier was preceded in death by his father Robert, son Jade, and sister Patty. He is survived by his mother Elvora; soulmate Jennifer; sons Hayze and Robert; stepson Shane; cherished grandson Rhett; big sister Olivia; sisters Lorie and Sue; brother Ron; numerous beloved nieces, nephews, great-nieces, and great-nephews; and his precious fur babies, Zoe and Stella. His legacy lives on through his family and the many people he taught, worked beside, and inspired with the adventurous spirit he shared so freely, enriching so many lives.