8 missing in avalanche near fernie

[ridehard1212]

gives me the shivers... pray its better if u can even say that then it sounds.. makes me wonder if i should just go back to boarding.. love the sport but scares me.. i love playing in meadows but u usually climb in or out to get to them..

 

[MTdream]

prayers for our friends in fernie!!!

 

[Sledneck26]

looks like 8 still missing, the 4 more that got out wasnt true i guess. RIP

 

[Freak]

All its gonna take is a Jackarse law firm to start a class action against the big 4 and prove that mtn sleds are unsafe and poof, say goodbye to mtn sleds. Theres not much we can do, the majority of the people dying are not on the forum so we cant reach them anyway. This is a tragic and horribly sad story...

 

[Alberta Boy]

Setup blockades to ALL trails leading to the mountains. Groomed trails are fine, but its the steep sh!t that kills. just my .02 cents!

Jay

Don't take this the wrong way Jay but it is uneducated comments like this that get people killed... it isn't always the steep stuff that kills people... slides can come down on slopes as low of a grade as 22 degrees... HARDLY the steep stuff!

More people need to be educated on avalanche danger... to many people don't know avalanche safety. I agree with a license like MARCUSO said... the more knowledgable you are the less chance that you will be caught in a bad situation. PLEASE GO FOR AN AVY COURSE!!!

RIP! Sad day for those families! I hate hearing these stories... my wife hates them even more!

 

[Zachcreek]

We were out yesterday at Cottonwood Pass, Colorado. Slide activity everywhere. When we stopped, we coud all feel the snow drop all around us. (settling) We stayed in the meadows. Still people were out under chutes, loaded hills etc.

Alot of diffrent layer out there. We have had snow, sun and wind constantly. We saw natural slides everywhere. When we were getting our sleds unstuck, we were pulling slabs of snow just tuggin on the skis. I guess we were digging snow pits with our sleds, a good time to look at conditions.

Enjoy the beauty of the mtns, but respect their power. Sad

 

[unionbaystroker]

i know all these guys all have extensive avalanche training and are always prepared to spend the night out in the bush if they have to

 

[messickzr]

I guess one thing that scares me the most is that a lot of us from the midwest head out west somewhere each year and we are not as educated or familiar with the avalanche threat as locals usually are. I think we can be even more at risk.... It also seems like there is a certain amount of confidence that is gained because you have the right equipment-- beacons, shovels, probes-- and that means you may test the conditions even more. Let's just be safe out there and hope things stabilize.

 

[Snorider]

Only read the first page but I hope any fellow snowesters weren't involved in this. This wasn't what I was hoping to see as the first thread this morning after not being on for awhile.

Prayers are with the "missing" peoples familys. Truely a sad deal. Ride safe and smart,

 

[Blk88GT]

This is terrible news

 

[Bigrock33]

I really hope that it's better than it sounds. That totally sucks. I really feel for the families of the people that may have been lost.

I also think people should be free to make decisions for themselves. I don't want anyone telling me where I can go, or when, on public land. Slowly our freedoms are being eaten away. As long as the avalanche information is made available, and the risks of the mountains are well communicated, people should be able to make the call themselves. Also, without knowing all the details of this incident we shouldn't be Monday morning quarterbacks.

No such thing as totally free..that's not what freedom of choice is about. If you make poor decisions/choices, then be prepared for the hard consequences that come with it. The poor choices of a few are endangering our sport. This isn't about your individual freedom as it impacts others besides yourself. Laws and rules are made to regulate people who make bad choices, whether they are the majority or the minority of people (usually the minority). Compared to the total number of snowmobile riders, the number of snowmobile related deaths by avalanches is quite small, however, the potential negative consequences could potentially effect ALL backcountry winter users. You have a responsibility and obligation to more than yourself. Granted, there will always be some situations that turn out bad even with the best education, best choices,being prepared, etc., but this is not what I am talking about. If you use/ride in the backcountry, in possible avalanche areas, then you should be held accountable for your actions/poor choices. Most all of these avy snowmobile deaths SHOULD NOT HAVE HAPPENED, they were preventable. STAY AWAY from the slopes until the avy experts release more favorable reports - these guys are either being ignored or never being heard. Either way, no excuse! As angry as I am, I am also deeply saddened by these reports and my heart aches for those involved and affected.

 

[Zachcreek]

Backcountry Skiers were the largest group leading the fatalities a few years back. With the sleds that we now have, this is only the begining. Cat and Doo have hill climbing editions, big power and go anywhere potential.

I hate regulations and the "you have to do this to do that." But like a hunter safety course for a hunting licence, maybe a backcountry/Av safety course with your state registration. Just a thought.

Enforcement agencys may want to protect us from ourselves. Trail closure during high avalance danger? Restrictions on sleds. Hope not, but history has pointed to what people are getting killed on and ban the production or sale of these items. Blame the gun and not the shooter.

 

[Howler]

This is very sad and disturbing news. My thoughts and prayers go out to all involved in this horrible event. The saddest thing is that it was preventable. Live to ride and ride to live all....

 

[Zachcreek]

I think it is time they include an avalanche course with every mountain sled purchased.

The dealerships should offer this and tack on the costs to the sled.

OR:

make it MANDATORY, like the boating license, and have it required to operate a sled in AVY terrain.

Didn't see your post on the license, I agree as I posted above. Education will only help our sport. With the deaths in Canada, the rescuers got hit by the second slide. This will only give bad rep for us. An assesment of the hang fire, second layer or another flank may have been ignored or not thought of by the 2nd party on site.

Search and Rescue groups always look at this before sending in the search group. If its not stable, nobody goes in.

This is all difficult, experts get caught and killed also. A number of years back a person from the Utah avalanche center got killed outside of Moab in a slide.

 

[AmericanOutlaw]

Not sounding good today.
http://watch.ctv.ca/news/clip124888#clip124888

 

[raceu4it]

i'll probably get shot for this but, i've been in this sled business for 30 years and i lose friends, acquaintance, and customers every year. and everytime i hear about this i shake my head, my quick take on this 3 days of fresh snow, high winds did blow thru a couple days ago, with as reported earlier in this thread massive "big massive" cornices which i've seen. come on boys "there ain't no rebar in that snow holding it up". so let's use some common sense and pass on a area to live another sled day. and RIP my friends

and i feel real bad for the second group that did what any sledder would do to help in a situation. stay strong to the ones that made it out.

 

[Thistledoo]

WOW....just found out about this the am.....unreal...we ride in this area a bit here and there....its BIG country but we usually wait until later in the season. There are some massive slopes in this area....we have had alot of fresh snow and tons of WIND....not good....thoughts and prayers out to all the families involved

 

[knee deep in it]

does anyone have pics of Harvey Creek?

 

[JamesS]

My thoughts and prayers go out to their family and friends

 

[Thistledoo]

This pic is the kind of terrain it is....