In February 1975, he had a dramatic and spectacular fall during the downhill race at Megève and suffered a concussion and a broken nose which kept him out of action for several weeks.

Britain had never produced a successful male downhill racer, and Bartelski's performance resulted in the French television commentator saying, "Ce n'est pas possible!

British television viewers began to tune in more regularly to Ski Sunday each week to follow the performances of a surprise hero, but Bartelski failed to improve on his biggest result.

Towards the end of his career, Bartelski began to make appearances in the commentary box for Ski Sunday on BBC television, the programme which gained him his fame in his home country.

In the late 1990s, he switched to behind the television cameras, as an assistant producer for Trans World International (TWI) and moved to Octagon CSI in 2001.