Carrying avalanche gear

[Bowtie496]

tragic story but lots of contradictions. How did they know the danger was rated high and observed several fresh avalanches but didnt recognize they were in an avalanche zone, thinking they were in a safe zone.

Regardless, thats horrible but glad there was survivors. It just sucks ur literally gonna wear a vest and shovel/probe for someone else.

I was involved with this incident as part of my job. They knew the avy danger was high that day. They picked that particular area because they believed it was it out of avy danger. They were stopped at the very edge of the run out zone. Had they been parked 15 yards closer to the hill, it probably would have been four fatalities. Ten yards further away from the hill then there would have been no burials. The avy debris was fairly soft at the burial areas. We were actually post holing a little. Just yards away towards the hill, the snow was the typical rock hard avy debris. The survivor who was buried 105 minutes had decent air pockets because snow was not set up. She is now a big proponent for avy education and speaks about this experience at classes and outreaches.

 

[revrider07]

To the original poster you should carry some type of pack on you with survival gear to spend the night on the mt. I remember the group in co a few years back one was buried and deceased the other was separated from his sled and could not find it in the slide. I think they were brothers.A few items sos blanket,fire starter and few other items could mean the difference if you come home. In all reality it's your choice to make. One other danger would be losing your sled in a creek or lake. My group came across a group of two where both sleds were in the creek in late evening 20 miles from the lot they would have surly spent the night they did not even have a rope on there sleds. Have a safe season

 

[boondocker97]

I sat through a class with Mike Duffy last week and tried to pay attention to some numbers. Here are some things I recall (to the best of my ability):

Complacency kills: almost 70% of people caught in avalanches are considered to be "locals" or consider themselves familiar with the area. Weather and snow conditions last season caused areas to slide that people haven't seen slide in 20-30 years. So because something "never slides" doesn't mean it's safe. Heli skiing groups give the same veto power in the group for the youngest and oldest. This is because studies have shown that older, more experienced people are more likely to be complacent (no specific study was sited). High avalanche fatality years are followed by low fatality years. Mike showed numbers by year and this and it's disturbing how the cycle repeats every couple years. People brush up on training and are more cautious after high death years, then it creeps up again by the 3rd year.

According to Mike, avalanche statistics (other than how many people are killed) are sparse, and unreliable. He believes this is due to the high number of events that go unreported. In his experience interviewing people involved with slides, approximately 40% of successful rescues or close calls go unreported. Also 40% of avy bag deployments go unreported. I also have never seen or been directed to one singular agency that collects data from all regions to group together as one. This leads me to believe that gear is helping save people when a mistake is made and a slide occurs by human trigger. I've heard in a few different classes that 1/4-1/3 of people caught are killed by trauma. Not a lot you can do for them. Using and being familiar with gear and using good rescue techniques increases chances of survival for the remaining percent that are caught.

After the class I asked specifically about the gear on the sled vs on your back and how often that plays a factor. His answer was "all the time." He didn't have a percentage off the top of his head and said he'd have to go back through his interviews to get that number. If he believes it's significant then that's good enough for me.

 

[christopher]

After the class I asked specifically about the gear on the sled vs on your back and how often that plays a factor. His answer was "all the time."

Carry what you need to SURVIVE on your body.
Everything else can go on the sled.

 

[summ8rmk]

Carry what you need to SURVIVE on your body.
Everything else can go on the sled.

I believe i need a woman to survive.... JS...

[emoji12]

 

[sno*jet]

^lol

im so sick of avy stuff after last year, I hope we don't get another year like that or i will be downsizing sled next season instead of upgrading.
this gear we use is caveman stuff anyway, what if the military or nasa was into this stuff we would see a lot more effective devices than an oh chhit handle attached to a pool floaty on your neck and these "you're getting warmer" Marco-polo style beepers.
needs more tech..

 

[Jason4]

Conversations about high consequence/low probability events can be difficult but usually in avalanche discussions they are reserved for buried persistent weak layers and other avalanches are considered to by higher probability. Personally I have never been buried in an avalanche but I have been caught and carried more times than I can remember, somewhere more than 5 but less than 10 I think. I have kicked off other large avalanches that I haven't been carried in. I have lost people that I personally knew most seasons to avalanches. That's my motivation that keeps me pursuing higher levels of avalanche education.

In the PNW last year we had a group of sledders get caught in a slide with all 4 carried and 2 of the 4 killed. It happens and just a little awareness could have prevented it and a quicker rescue likely could have saved lives.
http://media.nwac.us.s3.amazonaws.com/media/filer_public/42/bb/42bb3b55-b152-48bb-9516-74005b9fb65d/20180303_longspass_nforkteanaway_fatalities_finaldraft.pdf

Carry at least a shovel and probe in a small backpack and put the rest of your gear on your sled. A pack that small will only weigh a couple of pounds and won't stop you from getting rad but it might save your friend's life.

 

[Mountain_Cowboy]

I think hauling my trailer to and from the sno-park with all the brainless idiots on the road is most dangerous part of sledding.


No avy pack for me, and I often ride alone.. but I prefer to live dangerously.


I do carry a shovel and survival gear on my sled in case I need to dig in for the night.

 

[2XM3]

Shovel and saw etc etc all on the sled, I have a abs pack, hate wearing it but it is what it is.