Kurt fell roughly 40 feet while rock climbing in Arches National Park, Utah, just outside of Moab. He was attending a field school with his university at the time and was bouldering with a few classmates during some free time when he ended up falling. Kurt landed on his feet, attempting to absorb as much of the impact as possible, but given the height, it was impossible to prevent injury. As a result, he suffered a T12 burst fracture and an incomplete spinal cord injury.