Avalung

[Gorillo]

on that at note : what's the deal, worth the weight and hastle ?

Lets say you buried under hands tied up and coat zipped up can you still acces the device...

any users out there ?

[Ferniefreeheels]

I read an article some time ago in some
mountaneering or avalanche safety book. The article was about human emotions in the backcountry. The article suggested that all these devices such as avalungs and balloons give people a false sense of security. This false sense of security may (on a subconsious level) cloud peoples judgement, which can result in poor decision making. An example was given about avy beacons...it stated that when they started to become more widely used, incidents of skiers caught in avalanches went up notebably. Now is this because people got braver when they knew they had a beacon strapped to them...or is it because more people started flocking to the backcountry?

It made a lot of sense to me. I think of myself on my mountain bike. I do a lot More than once have I looked at a drop or a really high ramp or stunt and thought to myself "if I was armoured up, I would probably give that a try"...this is the biggest reason I don't have any armour for mtbiking. Therefore I only do stuff which is managable and within my ability...oh I will push the envelope to a point but I know if I was all padded up I would I would push it that much farther. A FALSE SENSE OF SECURITY!

This same scenario happens in the backcountry all the time. We're humans, we get caught up in the hype, we let emotions get in the way of common sense. Would you make sound decisions based of facts and signs that you observe or would you take a chance that you otherwise would not if you weren't wearing an avalung or a balloon ? There is no doubt this gear will increase your survival chances...but are your odds going down because you are wearing it...that is the question you must ask yourself and answer truthfully!

[Red Baron]

...On the other hand, several years ago (the year before the first Avalung came to market) I watched an intentional, controlled burial of a man, in what amounted to a snowpit, while he was wearing the Avalung. He had a pulse oximeter on that we could see at the surface, along with a 12 lead EKG.

The guy showed almost no reduced capacity to breathe while using the Avalung. It was very impressive, made a believer out of me. Also, the new, smaller Avalung is much more practical than the full vest one that came out initially.

The above poster is right, good decision making is your first and best line of defense, but why not "up" your chances. You also have to take into account other parties touring who may not be as careful as you, that could trigger a slide into your path.

As for use: you pull the mouthpiece near your collar if you are in an exposed area. If a slide starts, you need to bite down on it as soon as possible, to eliminate the need to grab it with your hands. Sure, if you're tumbing, you may not be able to bite it, but that's the wild card.

The whole premise is to keep CO2 away from your face, so you have to breathe both IN and OUT through the Avalung, it vents the "used" air out away from your face, near your body, and in theory, gives you more time to kick yourself in the head for not practicing beacon use with your buddies/rescuers more often...

Is it worth the weight and hassle? Well, at 120 bucks and one pound, thats up to you...my attitude is; hope you never have to use it, but be glad it's there.

[Gorillo]

Very fine point you make. thanxs boyz.