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  1. #1
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    Dec 2005
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    Patroller dies in OB tree well

    Not strictly avy related, but this seems like a good place for a reminder about tree wells:
    http://mailtribune.com/news/top-stor...ell-suffocated

    RIP

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2014
    Location
    It's Full of Stars....
    Posts
    4,850
    That's fucking horrible......RIP
    What we have here is an intelligence failure. You may be familiar with staring directly at that when shaving. .
    -Ottime
    One man can only push so many boulders up hills at one time.
    -BMillsSkier

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2011
    Location
    North,NorthEast
    Posts
    3,557
    Damn. 23 years old. Sad

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2011
    Location
    Magically whisked away to...Delaware
    Posts
    3,608
    Fuuuckkk...I have that nightmare. I don't even want to imagine. RIP
    It makes perfect sense...until you think about it.

    I suspect there's logic behind the madness, but I'm too dumb to see it.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
    Location
    Less flat
    Posts
    3,765
    23 Sad - catching all the dying going on across just 2 continents.

    I spent 20min upside down in a tree well. Full video - no bueno

    Peace to all that lost friends and loved ones just this season alone.
    ​I am not in your hurry

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    360
    Shit, RIP that's awful. Young sobering to remember none of this stuff we do for fun is really "safe"

    This is one of my "oh shit" nightmares. I ski alone a lot and this season I've been wearing my avalung in case something like this happened. No idea if I'd be able to use it effectively in this situation, but it probably works better on me than it would if I left it in the car.

    Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    here and there
    Posts
    18,583
    Vibes

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Not in the PRB
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    32,782
    wow, they saw that he fell into the well and climbed up to him and still couldn't save him? ugh.
    "fuck off you asshat gaper shit for brains fucktard wanker." - Jesus Christ
    "She was tossing her bean salad with the vigor of a Drunken Pop princess so I walked out of the corner and said.... "need a hand?"" - Odin
    "everybody's got their hooks into you, fuck em....forge on motherfuckers, drag all those bitches across the goal line with you." - (not so) ill-advised strategy

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Feb 2008
    Location
    Alpental
    Posts
    4,166
    Quote Originally Posted by Danno View Post
    wow, they saw that he fell into the well and climbed up to him and still couldn't save him? ugh.
    It can happen quickly, 2 years ago people witnessed a guy go in a tree well and got him out reasonably fast and he still didn’t survive on a inbounds run
    “I have a responsibility to not be intimidated and bullied by low life losers who abuse what little power is granted to them as ski patrollers.”

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2011
    Posts
    1,020

    Patroller dies in OB tree well

    One of the worst few minutes of my life was hauling ass up hill in chest deep snow on a seriously steep slope to dig out a buddy. The stair climber of Sisyphus- harder I pushed the slower I seemed to go. Then there is the second guessing- I had skins in my pack, but it’s only 10/15m up hill- surely just post hole it right? Fuck that sucked- ended up ok - but no fun atall
    Last edited by LHutz Esq; 02-22-2019 at 01:32 PM.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    360
    Quote Originally Posted by LHutz Esq View Post
    One of the worst few minutes of my life was hauling ass up hill in chest deep snow on a seriously steep slope to dig out a buddy. The stair climber of Sisyphus- harder I pushed the slower I seemed to go. Then there is the second guessing- I had skins in my pack, but it’s only 10/15m up hill- surely just post hole it right? Fuck that sucked- ended up ok - but no fun atall
    Buddy was in a tree well or a slide burial? That's a terrible feeling, brain racing not sure what the right decision is and time is of the essence. Glad it all turned out ok

    Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Nov 2014
    Location
    SLC
    Posts
    5,846
    Quote Originally Posted by LHutz Esq View Post
    One of the worst few minutes of my life was hauling ass up hill in chest deep snow on a seriously steep slope to dig out a buddy. The stair climber of Sisyphus- harder I pushed the slower I seemed to go. Then there is the second guessing- I had skins in my pack, but it’s only 10/15m up hill- surely just post hole it right? Fuck that sucked- ended up ok - but no fun atall
    I think about this a lot, true nightmare scenario.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Not in the PRB
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    32,782
    Quote Originally Posted by LHutz Esq View Post
    One of the worst few minutes of my life was hauling ass up hill in chest deep snow on a seriously steep slope to dig out a buddy. The stair climber of Sisyphus- harder I pushed the slower I seemed to go. Then there is the second guessing- I had skins in my pack, but it’s only 10/15m up hill- surely just post hole it right? Fuck that sucked- ended up ok - but no fun atall
    someone here, I think it was Summit?, mentioned how skiing with a pack/avy gear at a resort can be meaningless if you don't also have skins on you. Which was a very good point. Never occurred to me that having skins still might not be the answer, as it could lead to second guessing like you describe. Not that I would suggest that you're better off without skins, just realizing that they're not a panacea in rescue situations. Yikes.
    "fuck off you asshat gaper shit for brains fucktard wanker." - Jesus Christ
    "She was tossing her bean salad with the vigor of a Drunken Pop princess so I walked out of the corner and said.... "need a hand?"" - Odin
    "everybody's got their hooks into you, fuck em....forge on motherfuckers, drag all those bitches across the goal line with you." - (not so) ill-advised strategy

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Aug 2007
    Location
    United States of Aburdistan
    Posts
    7,281
    Quote Originally Posted by Danno View Post
    someone here, I think it was Summit?, mentioned how skiing with a pack/avy gear at a resort can be meaningless if you don't also have skins on you. Which was a very good point. Never occurred to me that having skins still might not be the answer, as it could lead to second guessing like you describe. Not that I would suggest that you're better off without skins, just realizing that they're not a panacea in rescue situations. Yikes.
    It's not a very good point with some small exceptions. Skins are not really make-or-break for most in-bound issues. Lifts are there with SP usually on top somewhere. And skins are worthless without the right bindings. Sure they might be handy for some super-deep tree well rescues but I'm not putting them in my inbounds pack.

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Nov 2013
    Posts
    1,109
    Quote Originally Posted by flowing alpy View Post
    such a sad story, the young man was just doing his job.
    RIP Johnathan ‘johnny walker’ Likeke.
    He would have been skiing just for fun, Mt. Ashland's south side isn't part of the ski area boundaries.
    TLDR; Ski faster. Quit breathing. Don't crash.

  16. #16
    Join Date
    Dec 2004
    Location
    Where the sheets have no stains
    Posts
    22,067
    ^^^ Maybe so, maybe not. I got paid to ski outside the ropes quite a bit.

    Terrain Familiarization is what we labeled it.

  17. #17
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
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    Not in the PRB
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    Quote Originally Posted by muted View Post
    It's not a very good point with some small exceptions. Skins are not really make-or-break for most in-bound issues. Lifts are there with SP usually on top somewhere. And skins are worthless without the right bindings. Sure they might be handy for some super-deep tree well rescues but I'm not putting them in my inbounds pack.
    Obviously if you don't have touring bindings, it's pointless. But many people, myself included, am always on bindings that can tour.

    I'd not call them make or break, but I can certainly see including in my kit.
    "fuck off you asshat gaper shit for brains fucktard wanker." - Jesus Christ
    "She was tossing her bean salad with the vigor of a Drunken Pop princess so I walked out of the corner and said.... "need a hand?"" - Odin
    "everybody's got their hooks into you, fuck em....forge on motherfuckers, drag all those bitches across the goal line with you." - (not so) ill-advised strategy

  18. #18
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    Dec 2005
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    15,780
    Quote Originally Posted by Not bunion View Post
    ^^^ Maybe so, maybe not. I got paid to ski outside the ropes quite a bit.

    Terrain Familiarization is what we labeled it.
    ^This. Snowpack Analysis too.

  19. #19
    Join Date
    May 2002
    Posts
    33,440
    I fell into tree wells twice in one day at Retallack. With a camera gear loaded backpack. Sucked right in.
    Stay 4-5 feet away from the trees in deep ass fresh when tree skiing.

  20. #20
    Join Date
    Dec 2007
    Location
    Norcal
    Posts
    412
    Damn. Vibes. Terrible news.

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