David Schlicht: From Commercials to Inspiring Others
03/16/2026 01:44PM ● By Eugene Buchanan
After an amputation, Steamboat local David Schlicht inspires others through his commercials for UCHealth. Photo courtesy of Willie Petersen / UCHealth.
If you’ve watched the Olympics or other sporting events on TV recently, you may have seen Steamboat Springs local David Schlicht, 19, in a commercial for UCHealth.
Now a junior at Montana State University, David became a spokesperson for UCHealth after suffering a ski-training accident in June 2021 at age 15 in Park City, Utah. Hoping to earn a spot on the U.S. Slopestyle Team, he was injured when, after landing on an airbag, a freak wind gust lifted the inflatable cushion from its moorings, flinging him 60 feet into the air.
Fracturing both heels as well as his ankle, tibia and fibula, he went through 10 surgeries before addressing the elephant in the room: a possible below-the-knee amputation to his right leg. Without it, he was looking at more operations, potential infections, pain and less mobility. With it, the world was wide open.
In September 2021, he made the call and had the amputation surgery, returning home first in a wheelchair, then crutches, and finally with a custom-made, carbon-fiber BioDapt prosthetic, complete with shocks and specifically made for skiing and other impact sports. Back on skis a few months later, as well as hunting that fall season, his perseverance and attitude made him a candidate to help spread UCHealth’s message: that anything is possible. In fact, with his hobbies ranging from hunting and fishing to skiing, snowmobiling, water skiing and dirt biking, he’s still as active as ever – enough that he was even awarded a scholarship by the Limb Preservation Foundation to advocate for others who have lost limbs.
Steamboat Magazine caught up with him to touch base on everything from his commercial stardom to staying positive when life throws you curveballs.
Steamboat Magazine: How difficult was it mentally facing the prospect of amputation?
David Schlicht: It wasn’t easy to grasp. The thought of never being able to reach down and touch my right foot again scared me. I remember sitting in a hospital bed trying to imagine my life in 50 years without a lower right leg, and it was almost impossible to imagine at the time. I had never met anybody who had lost a limb before, so I knew next to nothing about living with an amputation. Once I had thought it through, though, I found it easy to make the decision I knew I needed to so thatI could get out of the hospital and back to what I loved doing.
S.M.: How hard was it getting used to the new prosthetic?
D.S.: It wasn’t an easy task. The first time I put one on, I just wanted to take it off, but the thought of walking again helped me push through the pain. At first, I would maybe walk on it for 15 minutes a day, with crutches or a walker. Once I was able to keep it on for more than a few hours at a time, it became much easier to get used to. I started wearing it in high school, with a cane, and that was truly the breakthrough point. After that, I started walking and being on my prosthetic as much as I could, and a few times, much longer than I should have. I had to push myself every day to keep up with my friends, but that helped me become proficient in all activities while wearing my prosthetic.
S.M.: How are things like skiing and mountain biking with it now?
D.S.: I was able to pick up skiing fairly easily when I got on my prosthetic, but I can’t ski like I used to. I still really enjoy skiing, but I have a limited amount of runs before my body starts to hurt too much to bear. I haven’t really gotten back into mountain biking, although I am excited to try.
S.M.: Did you ever feel you’d be in a TV commercial seen by millions watching sports?
D.S.: When I was in UCHealth Anschutz, my doctors prescribed me sunlight, so my parents would wheel me out in my chair into the hallways and down the elevators to the courtyard. There are tons of inspirational stories on posters inside the elevator doors at each UCHealth location. My mom promised me that one day I’d be on them. Every time we rode, we would talk about this. Fast forward to the spring of 2023 and they took photos of me so they could share my story on the elevators. The following year, they wanted me to be the first story in their new ad campaign, “Live Like There Is a Tomorrow,” which ended up being broadcast during the Olympics. Before my accident, I never thought I’d ever be in a commercial, especially one that large.
S.M.: What was it like filming it? Might it lead to an acting career?
D.S.: The filming was pretty interesting. I had never seen what all went into something like that. There was way more equipment and people than I ever imagined we’d need for a 30-second film like that. I am not sure if it will ever lead to an acting career, but I am definitely open to doing some more work like that.
S.M.: Any plans for the summer?
D.S.: No real set plans, but I will definitely be out fishing and enjoying the outdoors as much as possible.
If you’ve watched the Olympics or other sporting events on TV recently, you may have seen Steamboat Springs local David Schlicht, 19, in a commercial for UCHealth.
Now a junior at Montana State University, David became a spokesperson for UCHealth after suffering a ski-training accident in June 2021 at age 15 in Park City, Utah. Hoping to earn a spot on the U.S. Slopestyle Team, he was injured when, after landing on an airbag, a freak wind gust lifted the inflatable cushion from its moorings, flinging him 60 feet into the air.
Fracturing both heels as well as his ankle, tibia and fibula, he went through 10 surgeries before addressing the elephant in the room: a possible below-the-knee amputation to his right leg. Without it, he was looking at more operations, potential infections, pain and less mobility. With it, the world was wide open.
In September 2021, he made the call and had the amputation surgery, returning home first in a wheelchair, then crutches, and finally with a custom-made, carbon-fiber BioDapt prosthetic, complete with shocks and specifically made for skiing and other impact sports. Back on skis a few months later, as well as hunting that fall season, his perseverance and attitude made him a candidate to help spread UCHealth’s message: that anything is possible. In fact, with his hobbies ranging from hunting and fishing to skiing, snowmobiling, water skiing and dirt biking, he’s still as active as ever – enough that he was even awarded a scholarship by the Limb Preservation Foundation to advocate for others who have lost limbs.
Steamboat Magazine caught up with him to touch base on everything from his commercial stardom to staying positive when life throws you curveballs.
Steamboat Magazine: How difficult was it mentally facing the prospect of amputation?
David Schlicht: It wasn’t easy to grasp. The thought of never being able to reach down and touch my right foot again scared me. I remember sitting in a hospital bed trying to imagine my life in 50 years without a lower right leg, and it was almost impossible to imagine at the time. I had never met anybody who had lost a limb before, so I knew next to nothing about living with an amputation. Once I had thought it through, though, I found it easy to make the decision I knew I needed to so thatI could get out of the hospital and back to what I loved doing.
S.M.: How hard was it getting used to the new prosthetic?
D.S.: It wasn’t an easy task. The first time I put one on, I just wanted to take it off, but the thought of walking again helped me push through the pain. At first, I would maybe walk on it for 15 minutes a day, with crutches or a walker. Once I was able to keep it on for more than a few hours at a time, it became much easier to get used to. I started wearing it in high school, with a cane, and that was truly the breakthrough point. After that, I started walking and being on my prosthetic as much as I could, and a few times, much longer than I should have. I had to push myself every day to keep up with my friends, but that helped me become proficient in all activities while wearing my prosthetic.
S.M.: How are things like skiing and mountain biking with it now?
D.S.: I was able to pick up skiing fairly easily when I got on my prosthetic, but I can’t ski like I used to. I still really enjoy skiing, but I have a limited amount of runs before my body starts to hurt too much to bear. I haven’t really gotten back into mountain biking, although I am excited to try.
S.M.: Did you ever feel you’d be in a TV commercial seen by millions watching sports?
D.S.: When I was in UCHealth Anschutz, my doctors prescribed me sunlight, so my parents would wheel me out in my chair into the hallways and down the elevators to the courtyard. There are tons of inspirational stories on posters inside the elevator doors at each UCHealth location. My mom promised me that one day I’d be on them. Every time we rode, we would talk about this. Fast forward to the spring of 2023 and they took photos of me so they could share my story on the elevators. The following year, they wanted me to be the first story in their new ad campaign, “Live Like There Is a Tomorrow,” which ended up being broadcast during the Olympics. Before my accident, I never thought I’d ever be in a commercial, especially one that large.
S.M.: What was it like filming it? Might it lead to an acting career?
D.S.: The filming was pretty interesting. I had never seen what all went into something like that. There was way more equipment and people than I ever imagined we’d need for a 30-second film like that. I am not sure if it will ever lead to an acting career, but I am definitely open to doing some more work like that.
S.M.: Any plans for the summer?
D.S.: No real set plans, but I will definitely be out fishing and enjoying the outdoors as much as possible.