Caught in a slide...

[EagleRiverDee]

What another poster said struck true for me as well. In Alaska, we ride hills like that all the time. I tend to stay down lower in the trees, but many of my friends would have jumped on that slope above the trees. Many of us feel safer when riding a treed slope, because the trees act as anchors. Watching this video made me realize that's a false security. That hill didn't look very big, but that was a powerful slab avalanche.

Thank you for posting that. It was educational.

 

[MVR]

Considerable conditions, indistinct slide paths, areas we are familiar with...all are points that should cause us to give pause.
Glad to hear that this had a good outcome but he definitely dodged a bullet. It looks and sounds like safety and rescue protocols were utilized and things went well on scene. I would like to take an opportunity to make a couple points for the viewers who may not have the experience to recognize how this could have occurred and how lucky the victim was.

Statistically about 1 in 3 victims who are caught and carried by an avalanche die of trauma. Being strained through the trees is one of many ways that this happens.

The majority of avalanche fatalities happen when the avalanche hazard is forecast as considerable. Under this condition, human caused avalanches are likely. We like to think of Considerable as "almost high".

As riders, we constantly return to riding areas that are in avalanche terrain and we do not experience any avalanches or even see evidence of them. Everyone can probably think of an area like this that they ride. Just because we haven't seen a slide happen there doesn't mean that it doesn't slide...it just means we have been there at the right time to see it happen. This comfort with a given riding area can cause us to abbreviate our assessment of the hazard and/or make decisions that are riskier than we might make in an area that we are not familiar with. It can make us overlook warning signs and ignore intuitions.

Anchoring. When we look at trees we need to keep in mind that if they are open enough to ride or ski then they are open enough to slide. At times trees on a slope will be the weak point where a human trigger can cause a slide. Look at avy photos and you will notice that a lot of times the crown line will travel from tree to tree to rock(or anything else that punctures the snow pack).
As far as snow pack anchoring from buried objects on the ground...they only anchor the snow up to the height of the object. Above that in the snow pack cohesive slabs can move freely on a weak layer when we trigger them.
Thanks for posting the video guys and giving us avy educators a reason to get on the soapbox Hopefully you will look into working with your avy center to develop a presentation and case study for educational use. What you did right, what you did wrong and lessons learned are helpful for all to hear.

 

[BossRev]

Here is the UAC write up.

http://utahavalanchecenter.org/accident_little_south_fork_3102011

 

[Bendy]

Great!

Bad situation, great outcome. Thanks for posting the vid so we can all learn from it. Glad it wasn't worse!

 

[Rush44]

After being in an avalanche this year, seeing stuff like this gets my heart racing. Glad you had a crew that knew what to do. It is the most important "accessory" to have on the hill.

 

[tundra twin track]

Well Said

It is the most important "accessory" to have on the hill.

Having riding partners that know the program is priceless!

 

[Tec]

It's crazy how easily we put are selves in a terrain trap, even if it's a group Of 3 trees.

 

[Mcx Nytro]

Wow. I never would have looked at a hill like that and thought about an avalanche until now. I am from Alaska, where the "hills" are much much bigger than what I have seen here in Idaho, it hasn't even occurred to me to take my beacon or probe with me when riding here. And just a couple weeks ago we were playing on a hill that looks a lot like the video with trees on it, but probably taller, none of us even considered an avalanche.
Good post.

It's not the size of the hill but how much snow load without bonding that can bite you..Good thing everyone there was well prepared. Thanks for posting the video, we need a reminder like this every so often

 

[TIM]

I am glad it worked out ok. I got to ride\surf a slide yesterday. Started jumping from slab to slab and finally launched out of the debris pile at the bottom. I hope no one has to do that.

 

[MVR]

I am glad it worked out ok. I got to ride\surf a slide yesterday. Started jumping from slab to slab and finally launched out of the debris pile at the bottom. I hope no one has to do that.

You have an opportunity here...Could you share the mistakes you made in order to be involved in an avalanche so that others may learn?

What was the avy forecast for the area you were riding? Aspect, elevation, etc...

What safety protocols did your group use?

You telling your story will help other riders start to realize that though it seems quiet, that mistakes and accidents are happening out there. When we see these considerable to high forecasts and don't hear about riders triggering slides we could potentially develop a false sense of security.

Another one beats the odds, glad you are lucky enough to be ok.

 

[EagleRiverDee]

Here is the UAC write up.

http://utahavalanchecenter.org/accident_little_south_fork_3102011

I sent the UAC write up to my friends, because this terrain is exactly the type of terrain we often seek out. We like to ride slopes with trees. One of my friends concurred this was a real eye opener and he plans to send it to one of his friends who refuses to get an avy beacon because he doesn't think he rides in avy terrain. Well, he rides terrain like this all the time.

Thanks again for posting this.

 

[TIM]

mvr

I made a couple of mistakes that almost cost me big time. I will start a thread in a day or two. Right now i am just glad to be alive.

tim

 

[MVR]

I sent the UAC write up to my friends, because this terrain is exactly the type of terrain we often seek out. We like to ride slopes with trees. One of my friends concurred this was a real eye opener and he plans to send it to one of his friends who refuses to get an avy beacon because he doesn't think he rides in avy terrain. Well, he rides terrain like this all the time.

Thanks again for posting this.

Great! This is how these tools should be getting used! Everyone of us can probably think of someone who should see this...

We have had buddies like this who didn't want to lay the cash down for training and rescue equipment...they got dis-allowed from riding with us until they had what they needed

 

[MVR]

mvr

I made a couple of mistakes that almost cost me big time. I will start a thread in a day or two. Right now i am just glad to be alive.

tim

Take your time bud, we're glad your alive too.

 

[HeadedNW]

Glad you are OK , the helmet cam footage looks quite familiar minus the trees comming at me. I was burried on Saturday after some clown cut above me .
A couple lucky #%&*@^! we are !!

 

[Mcx Nytro]

I sent the UAC write up to my friends, because this terrain is exactly the type of terrain we often seek out. We like to ride slopes with trees. One of my friends concurred this was a real eye opener and he plans to send it to one of his friends who refuses to get an avy beacon because he doesn't think he rides in avy terrain. Well, he rides terrain like this all the time.

Thanks again for posting this.

To refuse to wear a beacon is totally selfish. If you don't want to be rescued Thats one thing but not to want to share in looking for your buds....That is inexcuseable

 

[James T Kirk]

Glad you are OK , the helmet cam footage looks quite familiar minus the trees comming at me. I was burried on Saturday after some clown cut above me .
A couple lucky #%&*@^! we are !!

I hope you hunted down the "clown" and beat the living sh#t out of him.

 

[Mcx Nytro]

Glad you are OK , the helmet cam footage looks quite familiar minus the trees comming at me. I was burried on Saturday after some clown cut above me .
A couple lucky #%&*@^! we are !!

It really is hard to believe that after all the avy threads and reported deaths that someone would do something so foolish. You must live under a rock or not give a you know what to do something like this. If it was one of your riding parrtners you might want to take him out back of the shed.....and shed some light on riding smarts. Having fun is one thing.but highmarking just to be #1 is not just foolhearty but just plain wrong.....02

 

[Rush44]

It really is hard to believe that after all the avy threads and reported deaths that someone would do something so foolish. You must live under a rock or not give a you know what to do something like this. If it was one of your riding parrtners you might want to take him out back of the shed.....and shed some light on riding smarts. Having fun is one thing.but highmarking just to be #1 is not just foolhearty but just plain wrong.....02

I know you probably mean well, but I think this might be a little out of place. Are we really going to beat each other down simply because someone climbed a hill in the winter? It's what we do.

It would be nice if avalanche training and safety equipment ensured that you would never be involved in a slide, but we all know that isn't the case. What does avalanche training and preparedness allow you to do? MITIGATE. You look at the signs, calculate your risks, and then take what you feel to be appropriate action.

I know that the only way I could be 100% safe was to simply not go out. I could stay at home, sell the sleds, and wash my hands with this sport. Some of us may do that after a close call and the rest of us will understand. For me, hanging it up isn't an option. I choose to take calculated risks for the sake of doing what makes me feel truly happy and alive.

 

[James T Kirk]

I know you probably mean well, but I think this might be a little out of place. Are we really going to beat each other down simply because someone climbed a hill in the winter? It's what we do.

It would be nice if avalanche training and safety equipment ensured that you would never be involved in a slide, but we all know that isn't the case. What does avalanche training and preparedness allow you to do? MITIGATE. You look at the signs, calculate your risks, and then take what you feel to be appropriate action.

I know that the only way I could be 100% safe was to simply not go out. I could stay at home, sell the sleds, and wash my hands with this sport. Some of us may do that after a close call and the rest of us will understand. For me, hanging it up isn't an option. I choose to take calculated risks for the sake of doing what makes me feel truly happy and alive.

A big part of MITIGATION is making sure you are controlling the elements that are in your control. Climbing above someone is an unnecessary risk that you can easily control.