Every winter the unfortunate truth
is that some season workers will die in avalanches. If you
go into the backcountry this winter, you must make sure
you are know what to expect and what to do if your adventure
goes awry.
Educate
Yourself (Facewest comment)
On its own it's not sufficient, but
reading our features on avalanche safety (parts one
and two) will
help. You may also consider reading some of the titles listed
in our bookshop.
Training Courses
Facewest,
the backcountry specialists, run two day residential courses in
North Wales to help riders appreciate and understand avalanche
danger, and give them the skills to perform succesful rescues.
All courses are run by UIAGM mountain guides, with a max of 14
people per course and cost only £99 per person including accomodation
and meals. They also sell a full range of backcountry equipment.
The Ski
Club of Great Britain is running a safety evening in
conjunction with Orthovox at their Wimbledon offices on
7 December at 7.30pm. There will be a demonstration of avalanche
transceivers and other safety equipment as well as back
country and touring equipment. The evening is open to members
and non-members and will be free of charge. For more details
or to book please ring 020 8410 2026
Have your say!
One member of the CdS
recently wrote to us complaining that her employer had offered
only 10 minutes on the subject during their week long training
course: ''We were told
to either hire a guide, use transceivers or steer clear
of the off-piste altogether.'
However, when you only earn £50
per week how realistic is it to hire a guide? And
shovels and transmitters alone won't make you invincible.
Do you think that tour operators
should provide avalanche training for their staff? Vote
in this month's You the
Jury and have your say.
We welcome any responses
from tour operators on their policy on avalanche training.
If you do a winter season, you will go
off-piste...
If you're there for a season you should
have at least one powder
experience - it's difficult to explain why it's so special,
but it's the main reason why we go back and go back. All
we want to make sure is that you make sure you can.
