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Thread: Which maggots have been caught in a slide?

  1. #51
    Join Date
    Mar 2008
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    Da Norf Lake
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    This maggot has been:
    http://www.sierraavalanchecenter.org/node/5672

    It was unanticipated and scary. I knew I made a bad call, but didn't understand how. This winter we are adding the insurance of airbag packs and I will take level II for better assesment/decision-making info. It was a big wake-up call and hope that you can see this as the same lesson as if you were my partner that day and had watched me take the ride or been caught yourself. That sort of visualization might help you decide how much risk you're willing to run. It's important to remember that the situation completely changes once the slide has been triggered and -as said above- you are at the mercy of the mountain and the snow. Skiing off it is not a reliable safety measure at all. I want to be able to understand the snow better and also stay out of dodgy terrain (and know better what is dodgy terrain). Education, sticking with a partner or rewriting rules when not with one, basically my close call made me question my decision-making more than anything and the rec from the professionals when I reported the incident was to seek out more education. I want the education and I realize how much I want to avoid being caught.

    Last edited by lepistoir; 10-27-2013 at 02:49 PM.
    Even sometimes when I'm snowboarding I'm like "Hey I'm snowboarding! Because I suck dick, I'm snowboarding!" --Dan Savage

  2. #52
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
    Posts
    7,167
    thanx for sharing. as in my ride, you were on a slope greater than 30 degrees with recent wind loading by the looks of the cornices above you. all 4 ingredients were there.

    1. steep enough slope to slide.

    2. new snow/slab

    3. a sliding surface. you dug into it.

    4. trigger. you.

    take any of one those^^^^^^ things away and yer not in avy terrain.

    pretty clear cut/simple. but so easy to fuck it up.

    glad it all worked out

    rog

  3. #53
    Join Date
    Jul 2007
    Posts
    921
    Rog, can you elaborate on what you did wrong, what you would do differently, and what you learned from your experience.

    Thanks.
    #HughConwayMatters

  4. #54
    Join Date
    Dec 2009
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    7,167
    I chose to ski a fresh windloaded slope. I knew the risk as I most certainly wasn't gonna go near the slope while ascending. had I ascended the slope I probably wouldn't be typing this right now. I even told my partner on top of the ridge that the slope might go so keep an eye on me and if shit hits the fan I'd try to ski left up and out of the terrain trap (which I did and what ultimately saved my ass from most of the avy's fury). as soon as made my 4th turn I realized that I had made the right call that the slope in fact was gonna let go, so now it was time to pull out of it or fight like hell to not die if it took me down. ^^^^^^enough wrong for ya? it wasn't our 1st run that day and a slope just a bit skiers left was actually really bomber, but this slope was really pretty smooth and inviting. yum

    what would I do differently? well taking that ride wasn't really all that fun. I felt pretty lucky to get to keep skiing for the rest of the day (not on that slope) i'd probably hafta say that I probably wouldn't ski that slope, or a similar slope when the conditions were similar to that, again.

    what did I learn? with confidence and comfort and hundreds and hundreds of of days up high without incident on days that rate from very low to very high on the avy danger scale comes complacency. having successfully ski cut many big rippers over the years, been involved in multiple fatality recoveries (not fun), being in avy terrain very close to the action is really no big deal and never really scary. it's all just terrain management and being clued in to weather and snowfall, recent and present and how things have been stacking up.

    I learned that it might be a good idea to scale it back a bit on touchy days. I know I've gotten away with murder out there on many a day. taking a big ride is no fun and i'd like to not go through the spin cycle again.

    rog
    Last edited by icelanticskier; 10-27-2013 at 08:03 PM.

  5. #55
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Posts
    2,939
    me.
    west bowl at lake louise in the late 80s? late april, was more buried/pulled into up my waist with 3 buddies late afternoon so as soon as the sun went down it set up like concrete and we were all far enough apart from each other that we couldn't do anything to help each other dig out
    of course we were all skiing 11-17 DIN Solly race bindings so that made extraction that much harder, digging down the back of your own leg to press the heel lever to release the binding, good times.
    i think we got off the hill at 2 in the morning, i wouldn't recommend it

    a couple of winters ago i dug a women who joined our cat group out after she didn't listen to the guide and undercut a very loaded slope, the only thing showing was her pack and she was not getting out without help as she was face down and starfished with tele gear on
    my already low opinion of tele skiers went to the lowest level of hell that day
    what's orange and looks good on hippies?
    fire

    rails are for trains
    If I had a dollar for every time capitalism was blamed for problems caused by the government I'd be a rich fat film maker in a baseball hat.

    www.theguideshut.ca

  6. #56
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    Mar 2008
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    Quote Originally Posted by icelanticskier View Post
    all 4 ingredients were there.

    1. steep enough slope to slide.

    2. new snow/slab

    3. a sliding surface. you dug into it.

    4. trigger. you.



    pretty clear cut/simple. but so easy to fuck it up.

    glad it all worked out

    rog
    amen. glad I lived to learn the lesson.

    I like to think about an avalanche triangle:
    slope ( steep enough to slide)
    snowpack ( with instability)
    trigger

    old thinking?

    also, I don't recall any cornices, just the crown along the skier's left side of the chute that broke away ( and was obviously sideloaded in retrospect).
    Even sometimes when I'm snowboarding I'm like "Hey I'm snowboarding! Because I suck dick, I'm snowboarding!" --Dan Savage

  7. #57
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
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    I've been involved in one. Broke off under my feet but I found the bed surface and didn't get swept away. Three others did. Found two people (one of whom was already dead, the second lived). Never found the 3rd victim... he also died.

    How it changed my approach? Well I have only done 1 meadow-skip tour in the 2 seasons since that happened. I'm going back out there this year, but I'm sure I'll be dialing back my terrain choices.

    I thought I was OK accepting a certain level of risk for myself, but realized that what I was willing to accept was skewed based on not really having experience what those consequences can be. Now I do realize, and will make decisions accordingly. I don't think I was being naive, but it's much more "real" for me now.

    I love the backcountry and don't think I can give it up completely, but I love being alive more than that.
    Goal: ski in the 2018/19 season

  8. #58
    Join Date
    Oct 2011
    Posts
    321
    ^^ details on ur slide? Were you the trigger or was it remote? Size depth location? Sorry to hear about that...

    I agree with you 100% when you say (relayes more than just skiing).that level of risk is usually heavily dependant on experiences.

    Glad your getting back out there. The mental side is what oftens screws with ppl the most

    Sent from my SCH-I605 using TGR Forums

  9. #59
    Join Date
    Feb 2012
    Location
    Bellingham
    Posts
    66
    I've set off several, been caught three times; skied out twice, totally buried once. I thought I was dead for sure.
    Until you are buried alive there is no way to communicate the total fear that encompasses your entire being. Choking on snow, totally disoriented, unable to move an inch- completely and utterly fucked. The ONLY WAY you will survive is to be rescued by someone competent enough to get to you before you asphyxiate or die from secondary trauma. The time spent buried burns into your consciousness and will haunt you for many seasons. For weeks after, while falling asleep- at that point where you 'fall' asleep, I would wake up gasping for air and in a panic.
    I was only buried for approx. 10 min but that is a long time, just long enough to get really air hungry. The thoughts that flow through your mind during that time really suck. I would flux from being totally scared, to anger at myself for getting into such a fucked state, to hope that someone would get to me. That was the only thing that kept me from going completely ape shit. Hope.
    I learned a lot that day. It was about five years ago now. It was a typical pow day at my home resort. It was also a weekend- I never ski weekends, unless its going off or whatever. I spent the morning skiing inbounds and come afternoon, 'safe' slack country. I have skied this area for years and often I was by myself. This day, I was out crusin alone, taking laps in my favorite zones. It was my third or fourth solo lap when I ran into a friend of mine with a group of her friends. We decided to take a lap together. It was sick. We all hiked out and the group was headed in. I was going for one more before the lifts closed. My friend was on the fence, needing to meet up with her ride before the ski area closed. I was like, 'don't worry about me, I ski this all the time by myself'. She decided to come for one more lap.
    My friend is a total ripping babe, so I was not waiting for her. If anything I was charging harder so she wouldn't pass me up. I came to the zone, a little ridge that had a nose drop of about 15'. I rolled up on it and being early season, saw the landing was rocks and ice. Without slowing down, I turned left off the ridge with the intent of side-hiling right to gain the ridge beyond the icy zone. I was skiing right into a huge gully trap, I knew it-but it was a split second decision. As I skied off the ridge onto the side, I felt it go. At this point it was just a soft slab sluff a couple feet deep. I was still trying for the ridge lower down when WHAM! Lights out. The gully had cut above me about 400', approx 18" deep, stepping down to 2+ feet. I was fucked. I had no idea if my partner even followed my tracks in there since I was too cavalier to slow down and wait for her. Thank god she did. She skied down into the trap, set off the hang fire and got tossed around but was OK. I could hear the secondary slide go under the snow and thought, 'shit were both buried, we're both going to die'. Thank god that she had years of pro patrol and gnar skiing under her belt because she was able to get to me in time.
    I will never forget the lessons learned that day. I still ski a lot of backcountry but I never ski alone anymore. I am also very choosy about my partners. I'm fortunate enough to know a lot of experienced backcountry skiers but some of them don't have the right attitude. You have to be sure that who ever you go with is comfortable putting their shit on the line to save your ass. Not everyone is.
    I posted this because I want other people to learn these lessons without having to almost die from them. I was very lucky. Be safe out there.

  10. #60
    Join Date
    Jul 2012
    Location
    getting warmer...
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    Quote Originally Posted by Shorty_J View Post
    I thought I was OK accepting a certain level of risk for myself, but realized that what I was willing to accept was skewed based on not really having experience what those consequences can be.
    True that. I too got caught last winter, but managed to miraculously stop myself on the bed surface and skied away physically intact. What Shorty said is so damn true, that we talk about risk like we are okay with it, because we think we will always win the probabilities. Only takes one to really change that equation. Stay safe, life is worth it.

  11. #61
    spook Guest
    Potential pain =/= real pain

  12. #62
    spook Guest
    Quote Originally Posted by WestCoast View Post
    I've set off several, been caught three times; skied out twice, totally buried once. I thought I was dead for sure.
    Until you are buried alive there is no way to communicate the total fear that encompasses your entire being. Choking on snow, totally disoriented, unable to move an inch- completely and utterly fucked. The ONLY WAY you will survive is to be rescued by someone competent enough to get to you before you asphyxiate or die from secondary trauma. The time spent buried burns into your consciousness and will haunt you for many seasons. For weeks after, while falling asleep- at that point where you 'fall' asleep, I would wake up gasping for air and in a panic.
    I was only buried for approx. 10 min but that is a long time, just long enough to get really air hungry. The thoughts that flow through your mind during that time really suck. I would flux from being totally scared, to anger at myself for getting into such a fucked state, to hope that someone would get to me. That was the only thing that kept me from going completely ape shit. Hope.
    I learned a lot that day. It was about five years ago now. It was a typical pow day at my home resort. It was also a weekend- I never ski weekends, unless its going off or whatever. I spent the morning skiing inbounds and come afternoon, 'safe' slack country. I have skied this area for years and often I was by myself. This day, I was out crusin alone, taking laps in my favorite zones. It was my third or fourth solo lap when I ran into a friend of mine with a group of her friends. We decided to take a lap together. It was sick. We all hiked out and the group was headed in. I was going for one more before the lifts closed. My friend was on the fence, needing to meet up with her ride before the ski area closed. I was like, 'don't worry about me, I ski this all the time by myself'. She decided to come for one more lap.
    My friend is a total ripping babe, so I was not waiting for her. If anything I was charging harder so she wouldn't pass me up. I came to the zone, a little ridge that had a nose drop of about 15'. I rolled up on it and being early season, saw the landing was rocks and ice. Without slowing down, I turned left off the ridge with the intent of side-hiling right to gain the ridge beyond the icy zone. I was skiing right into a huge gully trap, I knew it-but it was a split second decision. As I skied off the ridge onto the side, I felt it go. At this point it was just a soft slab sluff a couple feet deep. I was still trying for the ridge lower down when WHAM! Lights out. The gully had cut above me about 400', approx 18" deep, stepping down to 2+ feet. I was fucked. I had no idea if my partner even followed my tracks in there since I was too cavalier to slow down and wait for her. Thank god she did. She skied down into the trap, set off the hang fire and got tossed around but was OK. I could hear the secondary slide go under the snow and thought, 'shit were both buried, we're both going to die'. Thank god that she had years of pro patrol and gnar skiing under her belt because she was able to get to me in time.
    I will never forget the lessons learned that day. I still ski a lot of backcountry but I never ski alone anymore. I am also very choosy about my partners. I'm fortunate enough to know a lot of experienced backcountry skiers but some of them don't have the right attitude. You have to be sure that who ever you go with is comfortable putting their shit on the line to save your ass. Not everyone is.
    I posted this because I want other people to learn these lessons without having to almost die from them. I was very lucky. Be safe out there.
    Thanks for scaring the shit out of me again. I always ride alone and I've read and seen enough of the buried alive stories and videos that I'm shocked you only had problems falling asleep for weeks. Those are dark scary places I'm sure.

  13. #63
    Join Date
    Oct 2008
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    Quote Originally Posted by steezybomber View Post
    ^^ details on ur slide? Were you the trigger or was it remote? Size depth location?
    It's a long read...

    http://www.tetongravity.com/forums/s...light=incident
    Goal: ski in the 2018/19 season

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