still some oblivious sledders out there.

[kai]

I just wanted to say that there are some really unwise (don't want to call someone stupid even though they were) sledders out there still.

A buddy and i were out sledding and skiing the N aspect slope above grizzly lake at Brandywine yesterday and a group of guys were tearing it up around us.
First of all I don't appreciate guys high marking past us when we are skiing a slope, we were there first and you put us in danger by riding the slope above us. fawk you to you douche bags for putting us in danger! when there was tons of other slopes to ride that were untouched.

A couple of them got stuck up high and all their buddies continued to
do was to high mark above them. Am I the only one who thinks this is stupid?
Even though Avi hazard was Moderate in the alpine, it's no excuse for acting like a fecktard and putting people in danger! If you don't know what result your actions could have caused, just check out the thread "scary youtube video from revy" in the avalanche forum. The high markers buried almost everyone below and one of them (highmarkers) ended up dying.
Sorry for my language but heck I was pissed with these redneck feckkers! They put us and their friends in harms way.
wise up or stay the hell out of the alpine before you kill someone you jerkoffs!

 

[izzni]

I've actually had a similar experience in Vail Pass. I was out there sledding with a guy a used to work with, a few of his buddies, and my dad. My dad gets stuck up on the hill, and while he's stuck up there a bunch of dudes show up and start climbing above and around him.

In any case, next to the hill my dad was stuck on one of the dudes sets off a small slide. Instead of chilling and waiting for my dad to get unstuck (which they should have been doing in the first place) they continue climbing. I eventually try to ask one of the guys to stop climbing for a couple minutes, but when I talk to him he nails it right next to me and hits me with the handlebars as he goes by.

In conclusion, I hate most people under the age of 30 (which they were).

 

[-lenny-]

Totally agree. My group runs into dolts from time to time, and we just hope that they remain lucky and do not get us involved in an incident. Can't count how many times actions of another group have made me cringe. On the other hand, I cringe when I think back to my own actions in the past. My knowledge, respect and understanding of backcountry terrain has come a long way. And definitely always more to learn.

 

[kai]

Hey Lenny
thanks for the post, and I'm glad to hear that you understand the err of your youthful ways, It does take experience or education to gain "Mountain sense."
Highmaking a 35 degree slope above a stuck fellow sledder could truly kill him!
How often have we read about it on this site and others?
I hope others just wise up.

 

[m8magicandmystery]

I've actually had a similar experience in Vail Pass. I was out there sledding with a guy a used to work with, a few of his buddies, and my dad. My dad gets stuck up on the hill, and while he's stuck up there a bunch of dudes show up and start climbing above and around him.

In any case, next to the hill my dad was stuck on one of the dudes sets off a small slide. Instead of chilling and waiting for my dad to get unstuck (which they should have been doing in the first place) they continue climbing. I eventually try to ask one of the guys to stop climbing for a couple minutes, but when I talk to him he nails it right next to me and hits me with the handlebars as he goes by.

In conclusion, I hate most people under the age of 30 (which they were).

i would have shot the idiots like a rabid dog...or had them up on citizens arrest for attempted manslaughter if possible...or..well,,,flattened all four tires back at the parking lot...it just so ignorant...i mean you were communicating with this guy and he just ignored ya...really sad

 

[Racer220]

In conclusion, I hate most people under the age of 30 (which they were).

I'm 27, I hope you don't hate me. And you should change your info since you only 'appear' to the rest of us to be 2.

Stereotyping the 'under 30' generation to be the ones creating dangerous situations is not the mindset to dwell on. You were once younger than 30 and probably don't have the squeakiest clean plate to speak of regardless of if it was sledding/non-sledding related. None of us are perfect riders, but it makes more sense to point the finger all the way from youngest to oldest in this sport.

Anyhow......I don't condone riders of any age that put my life in danger or anyone else that I ride with, and am not afraid to make my point made. I have flagged down riders that I know are over AND under 30 and cussed them for highmarking me while I was stuck. It is absolutely unacceptable to not try and make someone aware of the danger they could be creating. We as riders should always make educating those that choose to cause dangerous situations a FIRST PRIORITY. It is extremely easy to know when someone should not be riding in a certain area just by watching there actions. 'Experienced' can not be assumed the same as 'knowledgeable' when it comes to riding. It's hard to get some people to understand the dangers of the backcountry, but the more times every knowledgeable rider gets to try and educate someone, the more times we can go out and have a better chance of returning home safely. Every single recreational group will have bad eggs, and everyone rider regardless of age needs to step up and help the riders showing a lack of judgment understand that they are potentially going to cause harm to themselves, or much worse others around them. It's a vicious revolving cycle and the best thing any of us can do is try to help people become more aware.

racer

 

[izzni]

I'm 28, and the age thing requires an admin to change.

The dude I managed to talk to didn't bother to shut his loud *** sled off or take his goggles off. And unless he has poor motor skills, I'm guessing the mashing the throttle and hitting me with his bars as he blows by wasn't meant as "Thank You for the tip!"

And your right, being stupid or uninformed isn't reserved for the under 30 crowd. Neither is being stupid, uninformed, and an *******. But you meet far fewer *******s the older the people you are meeting are.

 

[m8magicandmystery]

I'm 27,racer

didn;t read the rest of your post,your toooooo young to have anything credible to say...just joking...a good post ya made

 

[treeboy]

I don't think it matters where you go, there is always going to be a bunch of people that have no backcountry or common sense out there. I had near the same situation a few years ago when one of my buddys was stuck up on the hill and these two others that came in started highmarking above him, not very smart on them.

I usually got people coming over and checking out when I'm diggin pits and I'll show them stuff, but when you see a bad riding situation and confront them with it, amazes me how many just don't care still or can't even reconize the mistake of the situation.

Maybe along with the avi courses we need now riding etics too...

 

[Mcx Nytro]

Being young once I do remember the immortal attitude of it would never happen to me. But i never put OTHER people at risk,even then!!Is it fair that we round up all the ignorant riders into the young category???NO!! But sit back and take a look at things like the videos coming out be it motorcycle or sleds. What attitude do you see in them?? EXTREME!! Used to be back in Powder bound days(see I am aging myself,these are videos in case everyone doesn't know) it was all about the powder and TRYING to climb out of things like the Superbowl. Heck back then it took us hours just to GET to the super or sugar bowl. The mental awareness of riding is lagging far behind the technology in sleds. Gone are the days where you would get into line to run a hill only AFTER the last guy was well on his way down. Courtesy and consideration have gone the way of the dodo bird: and it is sad but this me first, I have rights, and don't tell me what to do, generation, YES generation(which can and does include people of all ages) have taken over every where, not just in the mountains. You want to know the worst part??When someone dies , or kills one of his friends or a complete stranger, ONLY THEN do people speak out. I do think that we all do need a course on riding etiquette, a little reminder we WILL go over before every trip out. This might just work, and save a few lives in the meantime........02

 

[EagleRiverDee]

We ran into some db's like this not too long ago ourselves. Miles- literally- of untouched snow and they were literally riding within feet of our group, kicking snow onto a guy that had stuck his sled climbing, etc. I think they think they're "cool" because they're proving they're more skilled riders. They were more skilled, but that didn't change the fact that they were jerks. We ended up leaving a valley that we were in first, just to get away from those jerks because they wouldn't stop harassing us.

 

[Reeb]

Hence why I like to ride with my core group of buddies. We know where to park, what to wait for, and how to laugh(at the guy stuck on the hill while we sit off to the side watching) Unfortunately I'm usually the guy stuck!

I almost got into some fisticuffs with a guy when he repeatly took run after run up this hill my dad was stuck on. Not only was he endangering my father, but they were in a chute about 25ft wide and had 10 or so guys sitting at the bottom watching. That whole group was running around the hill doing their own thing......we watched from up top on the other side of the valley. I got so pizzed off I drove down to the group and parked sideways in front of about 5 sleds.......just about had an angry mob on my hands when a father of two of the young guys stood beside me and told them I was right. This was on Boulder mtn and the father mentioned not even a year(at the time) had passed since the Turbo Hill Slide and they were doing the same thing. What really got his attention was that I pointed out my dad on the hill and I think he realized that if it was him up there, or one of his boys.....he wouldn't have condoned what his group was doing.
Later that week the father with both boys in tow(both in their 20's) laid down some cash for 3 SnowPulse bags in my store. The dad didn't even have a probe or beacon!

Another example is my old boss and the owners of the other shops in town - old guys 50+ years and been sledding for 30+ type of idea.....none wear beacons, have packs, or carry probes. Shovels is the most of what they use, my boss won't even carry a Aluminum shovel because his plastic one is lighter! They keep saying they've ridden all these years and no problems, these hills never slide, don't worry about it, experience experience age age etc etc - all we are, are young punks trying to tell them "how it is"
One of those guys lost a son Xmas eve in 2007, another is on SAR!!!! And the only reason he has a beacon is because he uses his SAR one!!! Won't even buy one for himself - just "borrows" from SAR. I mean WTF? I thought only teenagers and twenty somethings thought they were invisible! Seems like the older some ppl get, the more they think they know. While it might be true in most cases......there are those neaderthals that have somehow escaped the rath of Darwin's Surival of the Fittest....

And one fo those old guys - his son was in the same Xmas Eve slide but managed to self-rescue - had to be told multiple times afterwards nott o climb while others are on the same hill. He almost gave up sledding yet his adrenaline gets the best of him at times and he forgets what we are all preaching about. He is the co-owner of the place I used to work and although it seemed daunting to give him a scolding at the time - I was overwhelmed with the idea of having to dig out, or get dug out of another totally preventable situation.

I hate to tell this story but it hits home everytime I remember it - One of those business owners who had been riding the area for 30+ years with his brother and family, came in to get his kid a Christmas gift....I said he should get his kid(one of my riding buddies at the time) a Avalanche Gear Set(Backpack, probe, beacon, shovel) but he scoffed at the idea and bought him a cover for his sled instead.
My buddy passed away Dec.24th 2007 in an avalanche that took another friends life and left 4 buried. None of my friends had beacons(One had one under the Xmas Tree) and we spent the night and into the morning digging out my buddies......all because they weren't equiped(I cannot stress enough about an AST1 and preferably AST2 Courses)
I lost two friends that day, and another friend a year later in the same spot because I couldn't stress to them enough about safety.

Now there are times where a hillside is perfectly safe and sitting at the bottom, or getting a photo op with two sleds carving downhill can be done.....but there are some very simple rules to follow at ALL times and highmarking above someone else is a definate no-no. We've all seen it play out way too often lately because some dolt just can't help himself.....

 

[Reeb]

Hell my own dad forgot his Avy bag and beacon a few rides ago, he didn't drop into any bowls with us, he didn't make any runs up any hills, he put on half the km's the rest of us did......

A bunch of my cousins from Ontario came riding and ONE of them left their beacon back at the cabin.....I took them riding the cutblocks and meadows all day.....was I popular all day long? Not a chance......did I have to explain to my family why I couldn't find one of my cousins in a slide? Nope. And that's all that matters to me. I still get razzed from those cousins about Mr.Safety. and they only got 2 days in the "mountains" and one riding meadows because I refused to lead them into the mtns. But in the end, I still have all my cousins, and a clear conscience.