Two days a go in Island Park we went over to our favorite spot we call Brians Bowl. It is a great place that we climb in and the snow is always super deep. We got to the bowl and I was ready to drop in. We stopped took a good look and the cornince on the left side was huge and had not slid. The more I looked towards the top of the bowl you could see where the top layer about three inches has slid in several small areas. My buddies and I looked at each other and said NOPE not today better safe than sorry and we didnt hit the bowl. It is quite simple.. Live to ride another day. Maybe nothing would have happened, but the signs were there and we were not going to risk it.
Is Riding An Avalanche Become The New Fashion ?
- Thread starter Original Tetonice
- Start date
yes this is happening and will happen. Part of the problem is most keyboarders think all slides are the same. Some times you can play with small slides.
With that said i have had enough wake up calls to not want any big slides. But sometimes when the conditions are perfect you can have fun with the small ones.
When i first got into whitewater kayaking running water falls was a death trap. Now they are going off of 100 foot waterfalls. My biggest waterfall is about 15 feet. But there are people out there with more skill than me. There will be an evolution of riding out slides.
tim
this is a bowl that i went into this weekend. One run and i ran out of there quickly. IT wasn't so much if the slide occured but the terrain trap at the bottom. A one foot sluff would have burried 5 feet deep. Look at the whole terrain, not just if it will slide, but if and when it slides where does the slide go.
tim
tim
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The big waves on the North Shore are not what kills surfers. Surfer get killed riding big wave when there body slames the coral or the reef there surfing over.
OT
OT
T
tranquillicer
Well-known member
This is a bit silly. Like saying avalanche don't kill snowmobilers, just hitting the tree it through you into does. Or the hypothermia from being burried under the snow killed you not the avalanche. Surf kills surfers and avalanches kill sledders, Period!!!
Statistics show that, believe it or not, the average person is involved in 9 avalanches before they are killed... some might get lucky and their number might be 20, while others fail the "final exam" on their first slide. I would rather not play that numbers game.... Like said earlier, better safe than sorry!
J
JustinB
Well-known member
Reading through these it makes you think how many avalances that kill sledders are skiers/snowboarders using snowmobiles to get to the places they want to drop in. Not saying skiers/snowboarders are at fault I do allot of backcountry snowboarding. Im saying I know allot of people who snowmobile into areas to ski/snowboard that i wouldnt ride.
How is that BS? Everyone makes a decision about accessing avalanche terrain, whether its an educated decision or not.
interesting stat...you have the source for this?
avalanche.org or lots of other sources have all fatalities by year with full reports for almost all deaths
How many surfers die world wide each season when compared to avalanches caused by snowmobilers ? When you do the search you will discover that the number of Big Wave surfer related deaths are minimal in comparison.
The attitude regarding snowmobilers & avalanches is alarming. Not only are some snowmobilers a danger to themself there also a danger to others who may or may not be in the riding group.
OT
I think this is something really important to look at, some call it BS but it makes a great point. We have all the gear and stuff like beacons and ABS packs and stuff to protect us from the avalanche itself and being burried, BUT, i dont see anyone wearing full NFL style padding for when they get sifted through the trees at the bottom!
terrain traps are something I really watch for, because a lot of smaller or even bigger slides arent nearly as deadly as a small one that drops you off a cliff or ends in a creek so your burried 20 feet down.
I think its safe to say that suffocation/ burial isnt the most dangerous part, yet thats what we are all prepared for.
Just a little food for thought while out riding.
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sticking with the thread...is riding avys becoming a fashion....i really do think there is a breed of snowmobiler evolving that will seek out avy conditions to ride out..its going to be their cocaine..
M
Mcx Nytro
Well-known member
Interesting reading...I think the reason that more sledders are killed is that unlike the wave action which is fairly consistent depending on weather, the snow conditions are constantly changing. one hill that was safe 1 week ago is now a danger. Snow is effected by the weather(constant change) more than the waves...JMHO..........02
Well let me help you with your snow knowledge.
A 200 pound guy on skis exerts more force in pounds per square inch than he does on a snowmobile.
The sled does weigh more but the snow feels less force.
That maybe but it is said that at least one person a year dies at Pipe.
Also think of this...
Big wave surfers KNOW they will be yard saled and tumbled by waves. They KNOW they will get held under for 2 or 3 waves after wiping out. Yet they practice and practice to minimize the chance of death, but they still go out knowing death is gonna show up and give them a go round.
Wouldn't this be like going out and knowing you will set off a slide and practicing survival techniques and wearing ABS, beacon, etc and placing friends out of harms way yet close enough to come in and get you?
Look at numbers as well....how many surfers are of the caliber to challenge beig waves, let alone Pipeline? Now look at how many sledders hit the hills every weekend.
Fair enough but how about once that sled is wheeling up on a face with the belly and skis off the snow and pushing the system uphill? Or jumping off a cornice with a bit of air time before touching down.....the greater mass is going to come into play there upon acceleration.
Point taken but it gets a little more complicated once things get in motion. But even more justification for long tracks and big skis
C
Clarke673
Somewhere between too dumb to quit and flat earth
X2 if riding in avalanche country isn't your cup of tea, stick to the meadows and trails, worry about some one you have never met before jumping the trail in front of you and you having a head on collision.... We will be up in the bowls tearing it up. If you can't deal with the fact that our sport is inherently dangerous then maybe you might want to stay home and watch csi, then you can die from a heart attack.... then you will just be part of a different statistic.
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You sound like you think I made it up...
One of the stats pages in the book "Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain" by Bruce Tremper
A highly recommended read for anyone who plays in the backcountry...
