AST-1 Avy training with Amber Wood.

[Veedy]

A BIG shout out and HUGE thanks to Amber Wood and crew for the awesome weekend of avalanche training course this weekend in Revelstoke. I have taken many avalanche training courses along with search and rescue and snow stability training, but her course is by far the best I have seen. The hands on and up front knowledge you gain is unmatched. There were almost 40 in the course and I personally know about 90% of them. Most of which I ride with on a regular basis, or is on the mountain the same time as our crew. Just knowing that there are guys out there with the same training and knowledge makes me feel that much safer. I STRONGLY suggest everyone falls off their wallet and gets this training. Buying a
air bag ,beacon, shovel and probe isn't going to save your bacon up there, but knowing how to use it to it's fullest effeciency WILL. Get out there and do it.
The Boost crew was there, and we worked in perfect unison ( well maybe not PERFECT haha ) as a team to find multiple burials. The same thing everyone should be practicing at least once a month.

Pics to follow....

 

[Veedy]

Amber in class

 

[Veedy]

Check this out... Chad Rebec with a cup of tea !! this photo is priceless..

Rozzy flexing the guns.

 

[Veedy]

Learning proper probing techniques

digging a pit to check layers and crystal formations, and to do shear tests.

 

[Veedy]

Amber doing the fist and poke tests..

 

[Veedy]

Snowpack is quite exceptional for only being half way up the mountain and mid - December.

 

[modsledr]

Thanks for the post and pics Veedy...good to see the Boost crew setting an example!! hats off to all of you!!

 

[Cpt.Ron]

Great post and pics Veedy,

..I was wondering if you guys weren't going to be rather cold up there yesterday, ..but it looks as though Amber kept you warm and busy by DIGGING. Right on!!!

I should have taken the course myself, (just an in-opportune time for me), but definately great to see all of these guys taking this seriously and educating themselves. Learning about the snow pack and potential risks from a Pro is great. When it comes to rescuing buried victims, It may not be their own lives that they save, but that of their friends...., and how COOL is that!!!!

Good on you guys!!

 

[Veedy]

It was a cold one up there yesterday, Cpt Ron. We worked our butts off to keep warm. But the knowledge gained was WELL worth it. Your son will now be able to teach YOU a thing or two now, lol.
We thought we were avy savvy before this course. This opened up a whole new attitude among our crew of riders. And I think this is where every person that rides this terrain should have a mindset. We can't afford to lose anyone in our sledding community. Last season was pure tragidy for all of us. Let's learn from our past.

play safe everyone !!

more pics to follow...

 

[triple Black]

I really cant say enouph about how great this course was. Amber did a great job and really left me fealing confident with my tools at the end of the weekend. Ive been riding my whole life and feal as though I am good a judging snow conditions. We have always known how to use our equipment and even practice atleast once a season but to learn the science of the snow and become hickup free in multi Barial situations as well as conveyor shoveling techniques is as priceless as chad with a cup of tea!!

By the end of the weekend our group was able to search out and retrieve 7 burried becons in a set up scenario within 14 minutes. Amber and the other instuctors were not easy on us here either, they burried stacked beacons up to 6 feet down to confuse us and we had the knowledge to be very succesfull!

Thanks so much to Amber and all the instuctors for a great "Snowmobiler Oriented" course. Thanks to Randy Swenson for organizing and seeing that all us Boost brothers attended. I left fealling allot more prepared for a situation hopefully we will never have to go through for real. Also learned more in depth how to prevent the situation in the first place! All in all a great experience with so many great people attending!! Lots of fun and lots of great info!!!


Safe riding everyone!
Laird MacDougall

 

[Climbmax]

shovelling sucks......but so worth it when needed.
3,000 lbs of snow moved in one simple recovery wow...... no wonder I'm tired.
Well said boys!!
Safe sleddin'
RS

 

[Trader]

Agreed

Can't say enough good about this course and will be encouraging everyone I know to invest the time and money in training. Anyone who is thinking about it but doesn't take the course will have a very hard time living with themselves if they are ever involved in an avalanche situation. Great job and a big thanks too all of the instructors.

 

[Scott]

So was she f i s t i n g the snow?

 

[CatWoman]

Excellent thread!! Thanks for taking the time to post so much info, and the pics. Pics help show a lot of what the hands on training does for a person. You truly do learn a lot with class AND field time for avy education. A great instructor helps in that learning process.

Fantastic to see you guys setting a good example.......thumbs up to all of you!!

Seems every time I do field classes it's always extra cold out. Maybe it's to help us get more motivated on the shoveling part of things to warm up.

 

[Scott]

powderhoundbrr, I don't understand why you don't like my post.
You gave my post a thumbs down and red rep.


Aside from doing a Rouche (sp?) block test, the bent knee test (when you have skis and stand above the pit), and the shovel sheer test, it's a really good idea to put your fingers in the snow when you dig a pit. You need to feel the layers of ice and the granular make-up of the snow. Some people even put the snow in their mouth to feel it. If you hit it with your fist you can get a good sense as well.

 

[Veedy]

Hey Scott,
Yes ! she showed us how to fist and finger the snow. When you work your way up to four fingers it gets a little firm in there. After that you use your whole fist.

 

[Veedy]

Here's a good example of fingering.....

and fis ting....

 

[BigFish BC]

great post veedy i wish we could get a coarse like that up here the guys around here could use one.i see render is in over his head as usual ha ha.

 

[Scott]

Hey Scott,
Yes ! she showed us how to fist and finger the snow. When you work your way up to four fingers it gets a little firm in there. After that you use your whole fist.

Yes, absolutely. I wasn't trying to be a smart azz...I was being serious. I think the person who negative repped me hasn't had an avy trainging before...he probably thought I was being dirty. He needs to rethink the "thanks" he didn't give me. LOL

People hardly EVER talk about fingering and punching (fis ting) the snow. That is one thing they talk about in the avy class but people don't usually report on.
I always have my students take their gloves OFF to finger the snow...you get a REALLY good feel of those hoar and ice layers.

 

[CoyoteGirl]

Fantastic to see you guys setting a good example.......thumbs up to all of you!!

I agree! 2 thumbs up from this girl!