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SKIING AND THE NEW MATH
EXTENDING A CLASSIC
THIS IS NOT A TEST
GEAR PREVIEW
SKIING CRUD
and more!
Issue IX
Mar. 2001
FIRST
T
TR
RAC
ACK
KS
S
Off-Piste
Volume III Issue IX
A
hh . . . March . . . the close of winter and the dawn of
spring. March can offer some of the best skiing of
the season as much of the country sees more snow in
March than any other month of the year. It is a fine time
to get into the backcountry. As the days grow longer,
use the extra daylight to explore a little bit further, climb
a bit higher, and practice your skills ferreting out prime
snow for making tracks.
However, with spring comes varied snow conditions and the
dreaded sun crust. Don’t let mixed snow conditions deter your
adventure as Nils Larsen brings us all a few words of wisdom for
taming “grumpy snow”. Your bag of tricks can never be too big so
read on and sharpen your crud technique.
Spring is no time to slack on your backcountry skills or avalanche
awareness. Take heed from This is Not a Test by James Sammet. James’
story fits into the Hindsight department that we christened on our
first issue three years ago. A story of disaster narrowly averted, the
tale will most certainly make you think twice about your next
adventure. To follow up James’ piece, Paul Nicalazzo takes us
through the fundamentals of a spinal injury.
With longer days and spring corn on the horizon, Lowell Skoog
serves up a dose of history on the North Cascades’ Ptarmigan
Traverse. Extending a Classic will help fuel your imagination for
attempting one North America’s classic traverses.
And for the numerically challenged, Lance Waring gives us a quick
lesson on factoring an equation. Don’t let the math scare you away;
his tale is one to which we can all relate.
Finally, as we wrap up the publishing season for this winter, we
want to hear from you. Let us know what you like or better yet
what you dislike. Tell us what you want to see in future issues and
help guide us into next season. You can find us on the web or you
can write us the old fashioned way. We are the voice of the
backcountry community and we want to hear from you.
Be brave, stay strong, and we’ll be back again next fall!
Cheers,
Dave
Cover: Skier: Pete Sowar
Location: Video Peak, Roger’s Pass, BC
Photographer: Mathew Scholl
Contents (above): Photographer:D. Waag
Contents (above - top right): Photographer:Karen Holt
Contents (opposite 1): Photographer: Lowell Skoog
Contents (opposite 2): Photographer: D. Waag
Oops!
In our efforts to be perfect - we must admit our faults . . .
ìMichael Halle freelances for the Oregonian in Portland, OR. His
byline in Issue VIII incorrectly stated that he was a Photographer
for the Oregonian.
Warning: Backcountry skiing, boarding, and climbing are inherently
dangerous - people die in the backcountry - be careful out there!
The information in Off-Piste is no substitute for experience or
sound judgement. Play safely, play longer!
2 Off-Piste March 2001
Publisher
Free Heel Press
Editor
David Waag
Contributing Editors
Hans Adomeit, Roger Alfred
Contributing Writers
Roger Alfred, John Buffrey, Karen Holt, Nils Larsen,
Matt Menely, Paul Nicolazzo, James Sammet,
Lowell Skoog, Ray Thomas, Lance Waring
Contributing Photographers/Artists
Chase Jarvis, Jason Laramie, Matt Leidecker,
James Sammet, Matthew Scholl,
Lowell Skoog, David Waag
Web Geek
Karen Holt
Distribution
Publisher’s Mail, Seattle
Printing
Consolidated Press, Seattle
Off-Piste
PO Box 932
Winthrop, WA 98862
509-999-2208
freeheel@offpistemag.com
www.offpistemag.com
Copyright 2001 Free Heel Press
Winthrop, Washington, USA
Printed in the USA
Circulation: 6,000 + at selected outlets in
Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, Colorado,
Idaho, Montana, N. California, Oregon,
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The opinions in Off-Piste do not necessarily represent
those of the publisher or editorial staff. No part of OffPiste may be reproduced in any form without prior written
consent from Free Heel Press.
FEATURES
II N
N S
S II D
D E
E
SKIING AND THE NEW MATH
6
A + B = SKI - LANCE WARING
EXTENDING A CLASSIC
8
LURED BACK TO THE PTARMIGAN TRAVERSE - LOWELL SKOOG
THIS IS NOT A TEST 14
REALITY CHECK ON MT. RAINIER - JAMES SAMMET
FREEHEEL TECHNIQUE
18
BEYOND THE GROOMED, CRUD SKIING - NILS LARSEN
D E P A R T M E N T S
WHAT’S UP 4
LETTERS 5
GEAR TALK 10
GALLERY 12
BACKCOUNTRY MEDIC 16
AVY 101 19
BACKCOUNTRY BETA 20
CALENDAR 23
Issue IX Off-Piste 3
What’s Up
News
Trail Fee Issues Heat Up
The U.S. Forest Service recently outlined its plans to increase
enforcement of trailhead fees throughout the northwest this summer,
in an apparent attempt to increase the revenue and credibility of
the recently-extended Recreation Fee Demonstration Program. In
addition to expanding the number of locations where trailhead
passes are required, the Forest Service will begin issuing warnings
and $50 fines on cars that do not display trail passes, rather than
just leaving “reminder” envelopes encouraging payment by mail.
who have been surveyed are people who willingly paid the fees,
and that the Forest Service has chosen to ignore the voices of people
who are opposed to the concept of paying for the right to recreate
on publicly-owned land. User fee opponents point out that
recreational users are essentially being forced to “support” the
demonstration program, because if they do not buy a trailhead pass,
they will be ticketed and fined for their opposition. If someone
who opposes the program does buy a pass, just to avoid the fine,
the Forest Service will construe their participation as support for
making the program permanent.
For more information on the Fee Demo program and ways to ensure
that your true opinion is heard on this subject, check out the links
to sites listed in the “News” section of www.offpistemag.com.
- Roger Alfred
Oregon Ski Resort News
Mt. Bac
helor Gr
owt
h Plans?
Bachelor
Gro
wth
The timing of the Forest Service announcement is significant. The
summer of 2001 is likely to be critical for the still-experimental,
and highly controversial, Fee Demo program. In October, Congress
authorized the extension of the program for another year, until
September 2002. Because the program’s effectiveness and impacts
are still the subject of considerable debate, the Forest Service and
opponents of the program will be closely watching how the program
is implemented and received this summer. The Forest Service
hopes to show that the fee program works so that it can convince
Congress to make the program permanent in 2002.
The Fee Demo program was created by Congress in 1996 when it
authorized the Forest Service and other federal land-management
agencies to begin a three-year test of imposing fees for recreational
use of public land. The increased revenue would then be used for
maintaining and improving facilities and services on those lands.
The program was created as a temporary “demonstration” to test
the effectiveness of user fees and, presumably, the willingness of
the public to pay them.
Although the Forest Service claims that recreational users fully
support the user fee program, critics point out that the only people
4 Off-Piste March 2001
Following an unsuccessful buyout bid from Park City, Utah based
Powdr Corporation, Mt. Bachelor Ski Corporation in Central Oregon
emphasized its desire to develop base lodging, commercial retail
space, and night skiing. Although such development is not allowed
under the resort’s current agreement with the Forest Service, the
resort’s president believes such development is necessary to remain
a viable business. The resort’s board of directors does not agree
about the need for development, but two key stockholders are
supportive of the idea. According to the Deschutes National Forest
Supervisor, Mount Bachelor is free to submit any proposal it
chooses, however, no changes to the current contract with the Forest
Service will be made without significant analysis and public
comment.
Local environmental groups oppose such development and point
out that since Mount Bachelor owns no private land at the mountain,
the company would have to work out some sort of land exchange
to build any overnight lodging. Any such action would greatly
impact the Bend area and is likely draw the attention of national
environmental organizations.
continued on page 21
Letters
Off-Piste Sells Out?
I love your website. Great photos. B/W
is so underrated. I just have a comment
on the whole new school hype. I thought
Bones’
article,
“S i t
up
straight...because school is in session,”
doesn’t speak to telemark skiing as it
was meant to be. Won’t deny my own
hypocrisy, because I use fat skis and
plastic boots. But I
interpret the new school
movement as an attempt to
re-invent alpine skiing.
Bones asserts that “we have
reached a new level.” Great,
we’re just like those alpine
junkies throwing iron cross
back flips and mute grabs
(BIG YAWN). I guess my bc
buddies and I are tired of
New School hyperbole.
Telemarking SHOULD be at the back of
the classroom, snickering at those who
believe they’re greater than the sum of
their parts. Two skis. Skins. Ditch the
lifts. Go to the backcountry. Ski and
don’t talk about it afterwards unless
someone asks you. Off-Piste, you’re
selling out to the lifts and half pipes.
Keep it simple, or you’ll lose your freeheel soul. John
- John, We were hoping to stir the pot
and recognize the new school movement not to worry though; we have no plans to
buy a lift ticket and pull a mute grab
on our loyal “lift free” readers. We are
dedicated to off-piste skiing and always
drops per liter; let it set for 30
minutes. Use “clean” water: ie. let it
settle and pour off, use alum to settle
it and pour off, or use a simple coffee
filter to remove particulate matter.
You can also buy GSE in a water base
marketed as “Traveler’s Friend” by
Nutrabiotic (or from the WMTC website).
It mixes more easily than the regular
GSE....
Good Luck,
Paul Nicolazzo - Director of the
Wilderness Medical Training Center
www.wildmedcenter.com
Lee vs. Windward
Slope
Hello - My name is Ted
Steiner and I am the
executive director of
Glacier Country Avalanche
Center, Inc. located in
Kalispell, MT. I wanted to
write and let you know that
I really enjoyed reading the January
issue of Off-Piste Magazine. Great job
getting out a lot of good information
about backcountry skiing and safety
while having fun at the same time. If
you would ever like an article about
GCAC, let me know.
Also, I wanted to point out a typo in
the “Backcountry Beta” article on page
20... second sentence of the fourth
paragraph: “lee slopes face in the
direction that the wind blows.” Actually,
those would be the pesky windward slopes
which are well clarified further in the
article - just thought I’d point it
out. It is a great article - simple,
interesting, and fun to read.
will be. - Ed.
Grapefruit Seed
Extract?
Hello, I noticed that you recommend the
use of grapefruit seed extract (gse) in
your 1st aid kit for water purification
(Issue III). I use gse for its antioxidant properties and was intrigued by
your suggestion. How many drops/quart
do you use to be considered effective?
One other house cleaning item: our
website for Glacier Country Avalanche
Center is somehow missing from OffPiste’s avalanche resources section....
looks like you have “NW Montana Rockies”
and then our phone numbers- which are
correct. The actual name of our regional
avalanche center, which publishes a biweekly advisory for the NW Montana
Rockies is the “Glacier Country Avalanche
Center” and the advisory is available
online at: www.glacieravalanche.org
- john - e-mail
-John ,We referred your question
to our medical expert, Paul Nicalazzo.
Here’s what Paul has to say:
I’ve been using GSE for treating water
for 15 years without incident. An
investigator for the FDA uses GSE to
treat Gardia and Amebic infections and
finds it more effective than Flagel etc.
You can use the straight GSE at 5-10
Well, now all I have to do is get you a
subscription.Keep up the good work.
Cheers, Ted
Director,GCAC
Steiner,
Executive
Ted - Thanks for the correction,
the compliments, and the update on the
GCAC info. To clarify the definition
of a lee slope, we should explain that
a lee slope is a wind loaded slope that
faces opposite to the direction from
which the wind blows. - Ed.
Temperature Gradients
The snow temperature graph in Paul
Baugher’s snow profile does not look
steep. As a matter of fact, it looks
quite gentle. The Canadian Avalanche
Association refers to a temperature
gradient where the ground temperature
is zero degrees and the snow temperature
ten centimeters below the surface is
minus ten, in a one meter snow pack, as
a strong temperature gradient. The more
gentle the slope of the temperature graph
line the stronger the gradient. If the
temperature near the surface of the
snowpack was minus two degrees and the
ground temperature was zero degrees in
a one meter snowpack the temperature
graph line would in fact be steep. This
would be a weak temperature gradient
which promotes strong bonds between the
snow crystals and rapid settlement of
the snow pack. The strong temperature
gradient would promote the building of
faceted grains and depth hoar in the
snowpack, which because of their large
crystal size and poor bonds between the
crystals, promotes weak layers that are
more likely to fail with skier triggers
or with additional snow load.
Thank You, Steve Thomas
- Steve, Thanks for your input. We
refered your comments to Paul Baugher and
here is what he has to say.
Please re-read this portion of the
article. I hope that clears up the
confusion.
“The first storm of this season deposited
about a half meter of snow in the
Cascades in early November. The weather
remained cold and clear for three weeks.
This allowed a substantial temperature
gradient to weaken the snowpack. The
next storm cycle over the Thanksgiving
holiday resulted in slightly stronger
wind deposited snow over the relatively
weak base layer of the snowpack.”
The fracture profile graphic showed a
gradient of -7 degrees C. Prior to the
storm cycle associated with this release
it was across a 50 cm snowpack.
Furthermore, the average ambient
temperature prior to the storm was also
generally colder (10 or more).
This profile also showed the load of
new snow (hence the critical balance of
stress and strength) from the
Thanksgiving storm. At this point, the
continued on page 21
Issue IX Off-Piste 5
Photos By David Waag
M
ath
was
never
my
forte. Sure,
I
learned to muddle
through the rudiments of simple
arithmetic, but the esoteric
elegance of a well-balanced
quadratic equation always
eluded my intellectual grasp.
Fortunately, a life of skiing has
gradually
honed
my
mathematical skills.
dressed to take advantage of
“Ladies Ski Free” days. At one
desperate point when funds
were low and the skiing was
good, I even sold pints of my
blood in exchange for lucre . . .
In hindsight, I realize that the ATeam was based on puerile
hedonism and that our simplistic
math was that of a typical junkie
skiing and are comfortable on
most all resort terrain. However,
my own taste in skiing has
shifted away from the ski area. I
have fallen in with another set of
ski partners who have taught me
another
branch
of
ski
mathematics. I think of them as
the “B-Team” with the “B”
standing for “backcountry”
You see, skiing is all about numbers. Skiers
are adept with DIN settings, sidecut ratios,
and cant angles. We measure our days in
vertical feet and the quality of snow by its
depth and percentage of water content. A
competent mathematician could even
quantify the complex physics of skiing based
on the principles of geometry, vector
analysis, and trigonometry.
While I cannot boast the numerical skills
necessary to explicate the act of skiing on
paper, I recently discovered a new formula
that sheds light on the chemistry of skiing.
Allow me to explain.
QUANTIFYING THE “A” VARIABLE
I met Russell and Walt the first day of my
freshman year in college. I knew they were
kindred spirits when I saw them enter the
dorm lugging bulky ski bags. We quickly
realized we had traveled from opposite ends
of the nation with the same purpose: to ski
Colorado.
On Vail’s opening day, we loaded skis into
Russell’s decrepit BMW 2002 and chugged
up I-70. It was a classic Colorado ski day—
fresh snow, blue skies, and miles of new
terrain. At the end of the last run, one of us,
overcome with the impetuous enthusiasm
of youth, proclaimed us the “A-Team.” The
“A” stood for “adventure,” and we shared
many over the next four years. Fueled by
friendship and a passion for skiing, we
sampled most every ski area in Colorado,
Utah, New Mexico, and Wyoming.
Resort skiing is an expensive addiction for
dedicated ski bums masquerading as college
students. We quickly learned the nefarious
mathematics necessary to extend our meager
budgets. The bottom line equation was
simple: no money equals no skiing. So, we
went to absurd lengths to keep the numbers
on our side.
We flirted with the wrong side of the law,
clipping lift tickets in parking lots. We ate
“A-Team Stew,” a vile mixture of crushed
Saltines and the other free condiments
available in the base lodge. We cross6 Off-Piste March 2001
scrounging up the cash for
another fix. Looking back, our
skiing fixation seems manic. But
it was a formative time and in this
case, a touch of manic behavior
forged strong bonds.
Fifteen years later the A-Team
has scattered. Walt lives in
Seattle; Russell resides in San
Francisco; I hide in Telluride. We
try to ski together every few
years but the fundamental ATeam equation has changed. As
our financial resources have
We quickly
learned the
nefarious
mathematics
necessary to
extend our meager
budgets. The
bottom line
equation was
simple: no money
equals no skiing.
increased, our vacation time has
decreased proportionately.
Another change is our preferred
mode of descent. Over the years,
we have picked up telemark
QUANTIFYING THE “B”
VARIABLE
Fred and Bruce comprise the
“B-Team.” For two decades,
Fred has explored the ins and
outs, the twists and turns, the
subtle lines of ascent and
descent in the drainages of
Utah’s Wasatch Range. Bruce
lives and skis in the rugged San
Juan Mountains around
Telluride, Colorado. In a valley
filled
with
hardcore
backcountry skiers, Bruce is the
keenest of them all.
When Bruce was but a pup, he
wintered in the Wasatch. He
met Fred, and the two had a
gluttonous winter of powder
skiing. After that winter, Bruce
took leave of Fred’s tutelage
and made his way home to the
wild snow of Colorado.
I met Bruce fifteen years ago in
Telluride, and he mentored me
through my apprenticeship in
backcountry skiing. The first
season, I acquired skins, beacon
and shovel, and I learned to link
passable telemark turns. But it
was not until the next winter,
when Bruce invited me on a
powder-skiing pilgrimage to
visit Fred, that I realized the
complex mathematics of
successful ski touring.
At the outset, Fred and Bruce
posited the theorem: “With
proper planning, vertical feet
gained on foot are always worth
the effort.” By week’s end, the BTeam theorem was indisputably
proven. During that week in the
Wasatch, I observed the
Rutschblock, the shovel shear,
and the myriad of other
quantifying tests that shape our
understanding of the snowpack.
I learned to note wind speeds
and changes in temperature. I
found that aspect, slope angle,
and elevation were key elements
in snow quality. I came to admire
the sparse Euclidian beauty of
a safe skin track winding
cleverly around an exposed
pitch. I discovered that
backcountry skiing is a cerebral
game—as
much
an
understanding of numbers and
geometry as it is athleticism.
That week I tasted the joys of
backcountry powder skiing.
And I wanted more. Over the
next decade, I got more—in the
European Alps, Canadian
Rockies, and New Zealand’s
Southern Alps. At home, Bruce
and I continued to tour in the
San Juans and we never missed
our annual foray to ski with
Fred in the Wasatch, The BTeam’s relationship, although
somewhat equalized by time,
still retains a sense of
patriarchal lineage with Fred as
grandfather, Bruce as father, and
me as Junior. Together we have
survived whiteouts, avoided
avalanches, and savored the
delightfully diverse snow
conditions
that
make
backcountry skiing so intriguing.
COMBINING THE
VARIABLES
As my infatuation with
backcountry skiing grew, I
harbored a dream of combining
the A and B Teams but not with
meaningless chit-chat over a
beer. No, I wanted to take the
A-Team off-piste and share
with them the joys of
untrammeled snow. I bided
nay time, waiting for these
subsets of friends to orbit
within skiing distance of each
other. Finally, through a
for a day of understanding, a
day of instruction like they gave
me long ago. And I prayed that
the snow would be good in the
Wasatch when my Teams
finally met. I sought a union of
friends
based
on
the
brotherhood of skiing.
But when my two teams finally
converged at the same
coordinates
one
March
morning, I discovered a
dangerously
unbalanced
equation.
Russell stated his position
“Look guys, I just had a second child last month.
I’ve skied four days this year, and I live at sea level.
I’m thirty-five years old and out of shape. I want
skiing, not a climbing expedition.”
Walt, ever the diplomat,
attempted compromise. “How
about if I ski Alta with Russ
while you guys go hike?”
But that was not what I wanted.
I wanted to unite a posse of old
ski partners in the backcountry,
not to be torn between them
like an anterior ligament in
heavy sun crust. I paused to
gaze at the four tense faces
gathered in Fred’s living room.
Bruce took a sip of coffee from
his big ceramic mug and
pointed out the window.
“Look, it’s snowing.”
I know the weather patterns in
the Wasatch well enough to
deduce that if it is snowing in
town, it is dumping in the
mountains. Taking a deep
breath, I turned to Russell and
Walt. “Look guys,” I said. “You
know all the powder the ATeam has skied together on the
resorts over the years? Today
will be better. Trust me.”
The upshot of my tale is not that
we had a fabulous day in kneedeep snow, although that is the
truth. The results are even
sweeter. By the time we reached
the car, Russell and Fred had set
a date to introduce their wives
next month in Napa County at
a wine tasting. And Walt had
invited Bruce to come tour with
him in the Pacific Northwest. As
I had hoped, the day had
blossomed
into
new
friendships.
combination of serendipity and
frantic e-mails, it came to pass
that Russell and Walt were
both to be in Salt Lake at the
same time as Bruce and me. I
borrowed backcountry gear for
the A-Team. I asked the B-Team
clearly: “Look guys, I just had
a second child last month. I’ve
skied four days this year, and I
live at sea level. I’m thirty-five
years old and out of shape. I
want skiing, not a climbing
expedition.”
Although I’m still not
mathematically inclined, I
propose a new equation which
summarizes this tale in concise
terms. According to my
calculations: A + B = Ski.
Lance Waring does his math and skis
in Colorado’s San Juan Mountains.
Issue IX Off-Piste 7
Extending
a Classic
Lured Back to the
Ptarmigan Traverse
Text & Photos
By Lowell Skoog
years passed between that first
glimpse by pioneer skiers
Watson and Hoffman and
serious attempts to actually ski
the traverse.
“Oh my gosh! What is that?”
Resting on their skis above Sibley Pass, near the
heart of the North Cascades, Walt Hoffman and
partner Dwight Watson gaped at a panorama never
before seen by skiers.
It was May 1937. Hoffman, fresh from a winter in the
Alps, had accepted the invitation of his friend Watson
to scout the little known area on skis.
Watson, one of the few climbers to have explored these mountains,
replied, “Why, that is just the crest of the Cascades. Why do you ask?”
“I just thought I was back in the Alps,” said Hoffman.
They later wrote, “A hundred peaks uplifted in the nearer vicinity, and
the valley of the Skagit lay with its emerald green beauty. Most thrilling
of all was the Cascade Crest region south of Cascade Pass where the
white of winter is lost amid the wild confusion of pinnacles deep etched
and forbidding.”
I
n 1937, the North Cascade
crest between Cascade Pass
and Dome Peak was largely
unknown. A few climbers,
including
Watson,
had
ventured into the region at
points along the divide, but the
crest as a whole was almost
completely unexplored.
A year later, at the height of the
Depression, four former Boy
Scouts from an obscure Seattle
group called the Ptarmigan
Climbing Club traversed the
entire crest on foot, climbing all
the major summits along the
way. The achievement of Calder
Bressler, Ray Clough, Bill Cox,
and Tom Myers went
undocumented for twenty
years, but it passed into
campfire legend. The Ptarmigan
Traverse had been born.
Fifteen years passed before the
route was again traveled in its
entirety. In 1953, the area was
still so mysterious that the
second
Traverse
party,
including photographer Tom
Miller, dubbed themselves the
“What is South of Cascade Pass
Anyway?” expedition. As others
followed, the veils of mystery
were removed and the route
came to be regarded as a
Northwest classic. Still, forty
Credit for the idea of skiing the
Ptarmigan goes to Bill Nicolai.
He had done the traverse on
foot and told his friend Steve
Barnett it would be a perfect
trip for skis. The pair set out in
May 1977. They camped above
Cascade Pass and spent the
afternoon and following day
watching avalanches rumble off
the walls of Mixup Peak, sweep
the slope they hoped to cross,
and thunder over the cliffs into
Pelton Basin below. Discretion
won out and they retreated with
hopes of returning another day.
A year later, Barnett and two
friends tried the traverse in midJune. The forecast wasn’t perfect,
but no major storms were
expected either. Unfortunately,
they found that along the
Ptarmigan Traverse, so-so
weather can mean no-go
weather. Pinned down by fog
and drizzle for days mid-route,
they ran out of food and finally
bailed out, navigating across the
South Cascade Glacier by
altimeter and compass, then
stumbling along a very
rudimentary trail to the Cascade
River road. As Barnett later
wrote, “The ten rainy miles out
on this trail are not remembered
with a warm glow.”
Inspired by a Barnett slide show,
Brian Sullivan, Dan Stage and
Dick Easter set out to ski the
Ptarmigan in June 1981. In three
days they traversed from
Cascade Pass to White Rock
Lakes, making several skiing
and peak bagging side-trips
along the way. Foul weather on
the fourth day kept them cooped
up in their tents, tiny one-man
jobs that Sullivan dubbed
“squeeze tubes.” Determined to
make their escape on the fifth
day, they navigated in fog over
Spire Col, dropped to Cub Lake,
and thrashed their way out
Bachelor and Downey Creeks,
arriving at the Suiattle River
road after dark and soaked to
the bone.
The following June, I made the
second ski crossing of the route
with three friends. Mark Hutson
had been in Steve Barnett’s party
in 1978, and realized that
moving quickly would give us
the best chance of avoiding fog
and rain. Our strategy was
rewarded with three days of
perfect weather. It was my first
real ski traverse, my first time
along the Ptarmigan, and
something inside me resonated
with the experience.
I recall scrambling up the
Photos clockwise from top: Ptarmigan Peaks, White Rock Lakes Camp, Bruce Climbs Red Ledge, Bruce Skiing Chickamen Glacier with Sinister Peak behind
8 Off-Piste March 2001
summits of Le Conte, Sentinel Peak, and
Old Guard on day two, and still having
enough energy to make a ski run with
Mark down the South Cascade Glacier at
Bruce nearing Sinister-Gunsight Col
sunset. I remember finding a little windsculpted ridge next to White Rock Lakes on
the third morning, and yielding to the urge
to drop my pack, sidesteped up the hill,
swooped down and threw a helicopter off a
jump in my climbing boots and Ramer
bindings. The photographers in the group
were caught off guard the first time, so I
climbed back up and did it twice more.
More importantly however, I remember the
feeling of untouched wilderness and the
sense of flowing through it on skis. There
were no tracks, no fire rings, no trampled
meadows, nothing to dispel the illusion that
we were the first people ever to set foot or
ski in this country.
I skied other high routes in the Cascades and
Olympics in the years that followed, but the
Ptarmigan Traverse continued to draw me
back. In 1986, my wife Stephanie, another
friend and I spent a leisurely week in
summer walking the route, bagging all the
peaks I’d missed on my faster-paced ski trip.
In June 1988, I pushed the pendulum the
other way, skiing the route with my brother
Carl in a single headlamp-to-headlamp day.
route a try. We seized what looked like a
good weather window crossing our
fingers that it would hold.
Still, the Ptarmigan wasn’t finished with me.
I read about the adventures of the third
traverse party, led by photographer Ira
Spring in 1957. The third party had extended
the route past Dome Peak, over the
Chickamin Glacier, along the Hanging
Gardens to Totem Pass, and then to Image
Lake and the Suiattle River. North Cascades
author Harvey Manning has called this “the
most fully classic version of the classic”
adding, “no version that omits Dome can
be considered *the* Traverse.”
As we climbed into the clouds at Cache
Col on our first day, I pondered whether
we’d jumped the gun. Under dreary
skies, Bruce, Matt, and I made our way
to Spider-Formidable Col and camped
with muted enthusiasm. But as the clouds
dissipated overnight, so did our doubts.
We awoke to brilliant alpenglow on
Sentinel Peak and the LeConte Glacier,
the radiance of the snowfields
emphasized by an outline of black rock
spires.
Manning’s words haunted me. I’d skipped
As we skimmed along a contour toward
Yang Yang Lakes on the second morning,
I reveled in the feeling of flow that is
unique to a ski traverse. Beyond the
“. . . four former Boy Scouts
from an obscure Seattle
group called the Ptarmigan
Climbing Club traversed the
entire crest on foot . . . The
Ptarmigan Traverse had
been born.”
Dome Peak both times on skis, though I’d
climbed it on foot with Steph. Returning in
June 1982, just a couple weeks after my first
trip, Steve Barnett and partners had skied
Dome Peak, probably the first party to do
so. The idea of making Dome the
centerpiece of a longer trip appealed to me,
and I daydreamed about the mysterious
Hanging Gardens, first visited by Dwight
Watson and Hermann Ulrichs in 1936.
Finally, I imagined putting a little “ptwist”
at the end of the Ptarmigan, by ending the
trip at Holden Village near Lake Chelan,
thus combining a crest route with a west-toeast crossing of the range. I was hooked.
However, between other ski projects,
working too much, having a son, and other
good excuses, twelve years went by
before I would return. In June 2000, I lined
up Bruce Goodson from Seattle and Matt
Firth from Twisp to give the extended
Bruce and Matt on Summit of Dome Peak
lakes, we booted up a steep snow finger
and traversed to Le Conte Glacier. Here
we dropped our packs and scrambled up
Sentinel Peak, the best viewpoint on the
entire route.
continued on page 19
Issue IX Off-Piste 9
O
nce again, the pilgrimage to
Salt Lake City for the annual
Outdoor Retailers Trade Show
was productive. With almost 800
exhibitors showing their wares, we
schizophrenically felt like kids in a
candy shop and minions in a sea of
gear. After much deliberation, we
have put together a list of our
favorite gear highlights- items
that have a unique sense of style
or functionality.
Clothing
introduced a conductive laminate that can be
integrated into a wide range of fabrics and
allows battery powered heating of the
garment. North Face is introducing this
technology in a jacket with heat panels, but
look for it in gloves, mittens, and footwear in
the near future.
As a side note, Patagonia and Polartec
developed a fleece fabric known as
Regulator that has been a Patagonia
exclusive and the core of Patagonia’s
fleece line. Polartec has renamed these
fabrics and will make them available
from other manufacturers as
“Polartec Special Edition.”
www.polartec.com
head, ankle, etc. Both lamps have a
replaceable lens (transparent, red, and green)
and boast burn times up to 150 hours.
www.petzl.com
Black Diamond introduced two headlamps
this year. The Moonlight ($34.50 70oz)
incorporates 4 LEDs and 3AAA batteries and
has a burn time up to 140 hours. You can
switch between two and four LEDs to control
brightness. The Space Shot($59.50) combines
LED and halogen power, so you can switch
between light types. This lamp also utilizes a
voltage regulator to ensure consistent light
output throughout the burn time. Weighing
240g, the 6-volt battery for the LED and 6 AA
batteries for the halogen reside in a bag that
hangs around your neck or clips to your pack.
www.blackdiamondequipment.com
Innovation abounds in the
Moonstone is back on the scene
design of fabrics with stretch
with a new line of clothing that
being an important function.
focuses on details and strives for
Skis
Cloudveil in conjunction with
innovation. The Schoen Sauvage
Toray Industries developed an
(women’s) and Ganz Sauvage
On the ski front, as you may have
ultra thin, flexible, nonporous
(men’s) jackets incorporate a
guessed, fatter is again the catchword.
membrane laminate that works
Cloudveil Snaz
zipper on the top of the
Basically, the majority of skis now
with stretch fabrics for use in
sleeve. Getting
measure up in the high 90’s
outerwear like shells and pants. Look for this
warm? Simply zip
or 100’s at the tip. Karhu is
waterproof, breathable, and flexible fabric,
open the sleeve, slip
back with a full new line of
Clouburst™ Stretch, in Cloudveil’s
it into your pocket, and
skis, the Deso - 103/71/93
VisionQuest and Snaz collections
presto you are wearing a vest.
(190cm) (available in a twin
www.cloudveil.com.
Moonstone is utilizing the
tip), the Dharma - 103/71/
waterproof
zippers
made
famous
Stretch woven fabrics such as Schoeller
93 (190cm) (softer, lighter
Dryskin continue to grow in popularity and on the Arc’Teryx clothing. Word is Moonstoone Ganz Sauvage version of the Deso), and
many companies are now incorporating that Arc’Teryx sold the technology to
the Ryder - 109/74/101
YKK
(the
zipper
company),
so
expect
to
see
it
Schoeller fabrics into their product lines.
(190cm). To maintain a consistent carving
on more garments throughout the industry.
Solstice
introduced
its
arc, the Karhu line maintains a constant
www.moonstone.com
Alpenglow jacket ($189),
width at the waist (within each model)
made of Schoeller
and adjusts the tip and tail dimensions
Hardware
Dryskin Extreme. This
based on ski length.
fabric is very durable,
Once the minority, LED headlamps are
Tua introduced a new model into the
stretches with your
now available from several
Crossride series, the 112
body, offers superb
manufacturers.
LEDs
- 112/80/100 and
breathability, and
use 1/10 the
offers the M3 to replace
blocks wind, light
power
of
the venerable Excalibur
rain, and snow.
incandescent
and the Mega - 98/70/
www.solstice.com
bulbs, operate
88. www.tuaski.com
Polartec continues to
within -40° to 176°
The Petzl Tikka
Black
Diamond
obsess over every little
F (-40° to + 80° C), last
maintains a their Arc
thread it weaves trying to
up to 100,000 hours and are virtually
Solstice Alpenglow
series and introduces the Mira - 112/79/
maximize the functionality
unbreakable. While their light is not as warm
102.The Mira uses a foam core and fiberglass
of our base layers. Marketed as Power Dry as an incandescent bulb, it is brighter and
wrap to achieve a fat ski that can take on more
with X-Static, they’ve enhanced their
enables clearer visibility.
than just powder.
fleece fabrics by weaving in
Petzl introduced the Zipka and Tikka
silver fibers to add a natural
K2 has made few changes to their line and
($34.95, including batteries, 70
anti-microbial element to
offers the Work Stinx as their big fatty.
grams), a headlamp that utilizes
stop odors. Using tight knit
3 leds, 3 AAA batteries and can
In addition to their twintip (which is a great
construction and micro
illuminate
an
area
of
30+
feet.
carving ski) the TM18 - 106/64/95.5, Atomic
fibers, Wind Pro fabric
The
Zipka
is
an
ultralight
introduced the Ten-ex, a fat board measuring
adds four times the wind
version
of
the
Tikka
that
in at 118/84/110. Several manufacturers (K2,
resistance of traditional
replaces the headband
Karhu, Atomic, Rossi) are producing twin
fleeces. For those of you
with
a
retractable
roll-up
tip skis to satisfy all of your “switch” desires.
that are never warm
strap,
so
you
can
put
it
Although the twin tips do not change
enough, technology is
around
your
wrist,
Black
Diamond
Moonlite
general ski performance, they do beg for
on the way. Polartec
10 Off-Piste March 2001
new
school
moves.
www.atomicski.com
www.karhu.com www.k2ski.com
Boots
Although the boot market is
settling down, Scarpa continues
to update the technology behind
their Terminator line and has
added a third buckle to the T2
while Garmont unveiled the
Excursion; a new plastic boot
aimed at the touring market using
softer plastic, a lower cut, and
lower price than other boots in
their line.
Etcetera
The venerable down sleeping
bag folks at Feathered Friends
introduced two women’s bags
called the Egret and the Petrel.
The bags feature improved fit for
women and the down for which
Feathered Friends is famous.
For the ultra light contingent out
there, check out Feathered
Friends new Vireo half bag.
Designed to be used in
conjunction with a down jacket,
the zipperless bag weighs in
between 16 and 24 ounces
dpending on the fabric used.
www.featheredfriends.com
Steamboat based Big Agnes has
given thought to how way we sleep
and how to make it more
comfortable. They removed the
insulation from the bottom of a
sleeping bag and replaced it
with a slot for your sleeping
pad. The obvious advantage is
you can’t slide off your sleeping pad
and with a fixed bottom, you can’t
get tangled in your bag. To
accommodate the pad, the base of
the bag is wider than most mummy
bags, which means more foot room
or more room to store booties,
clothing, or whatever else you keep
at the base of your sleeping bag. The
bags accommodate any 20” wide
pad, and come in 2 sizes (<= 5’10”
and > 5’10”). They make several bags
in both 600 fill goose down and
Polarguard 3D. Big Agnes also
produces sleeping pads in several
shapes and sizes. Finally, they make
The Girdle, a webbing contraption
that makes any stuff sack into a
compression
sack.
www.bigagnes.com
Spring skiing conjures up visions of
corn snow, sun, and long days.
These elements combine to fry your
skin. With the controversy
surrounding PABA and other
petroleum chemicals in sunscreens,
you may wish to try an alternative
approach. All Terrain produces
sunscreens using Z-Cote, a
transparent, microfine form of zinc
oxide that blocks both UVB and
UVA rays. Because they use starch
instead of alcohol, the sunscreen is
not greasy and doesn’t sting your
eyes. Also check out their Lip Armor
made with shea butter, hemp seed
oil and Z-Cote, it feels good and
tastes OK. www.allterrainco.com
For eyeglass wearers, check out
Zooke. Not only will this product
clean your glasses and goggles it will
keep them from fogging up and it
works. www.zooke.com
Bindings
One of the more active corners of
the freeheel market is the world of
bindings. The big news is that
compression springs can be found
on just about everyone’s bindings.
Basically, big boots have shown
the limitations of the expansion
spring and Voile and Rottafella
both joined G3 and Rainey by
offering compression spring
bindings at the show. Read on to
find out more about two of the more
unique binding developments
Voile/Telebry
Telemark Binding
Release Kit
W
ith the tele market
moving towards stiffer
boots and wider skis, the
evolution of the releasable binding
has been left in the dark ages, with
a few exceptions. A new promising
T-Safeout Release Kit
development in releasable Tele
Bindings is the new T-Safeout from
Telebry in collaboration with Voile.
The T-Safeout is a release kit that
can be used with existing tele
bindings in the same way that the
Voile Release Kit and the Rottafella
TRP-100 are used. The system is
currently designed to work with
any binding using a 3-hole
mounting pattern and consists of a
release plate, which attaches to the
binding and a release unit, which
attaches to the ski.
The prototype we received from
Voile is mounted with a Voile 3pin cable binding. The T-Safeout is
easy to mount because it uses the
3-hole Tele-Norm pattern common
for years. The system is relatively
light at 14oz/pair, less than half the
weight of the Voile release kit and
the Rottafella TRP-100. The kit adds
12mm of lift between the ski and
binding. The system is adjustable
based on body weight, skiing style,
and equipment.
The system releases in all directions
with relative ease however is
difficult to remount. Keep in mind
the binding is a prototype and
Voile believes the system needs
some design work to meet the
needs of aggressive skiers with
plastic boots.
The other major concern is that the
T-Safeout has no brake. The
purpose of using a release binding
is to prevent injuries and to get your
skis away from your body during
a crash or avalanche, so the addition
of a strap would be silly. Lets hope
Voile works a brake into the next
generation
I’ve skied with releasable bindings
since 1995, and given the limited
selection of releasables on the
market, I am excited to see
something new. The T-Safeout is a
good innovation in a market with
very few choices. With the addition
of a brake and work on the
engaging system as promised by
Voile, the T-Safeout could quickly
become the standard release kit on
the market, as well as on my skis.
www.voile-usa.com www.telebry.com
- Matt Meneley
Rainey Designs
Hammerhead Binding
T
his spring Rainey
Designs will introduce
a promising new telemark
binding to the market. The
Hammerhead, named for its
distinctive profile, shares some
basic design features with the
Superloop, yet uses them in very
different ways. If you look at the
photo, perhaps the most obvious
part of this new binding is the
rather large spring emerging from
under the 23.5 mm shim. This 6.5
inch compression spring allows
2 INCHES of travel - making it
a very tight flex. The cables then
run through the toe-piece and
under the foot to the u-shaped
heel bar and rear throw. Even the
rear throw is updated with a ‘tail’
that helps to seat the lever in the
proper groove on your boot.
We had the chance to use a
Hammerhead prototype for a day
of backcountry skiing. Though
the test was certainly not
exhaustive, some conclusions can
be made. With the cable in the
front guide while skinning, the
binding flexed smoothly and
offered very little flex resistance.
For each descent we ran the cable
in the middle position. This
position gave the binding a nice
tight and snappy flex. After
practicing a few times, moving the
cable from one position to another
becomes straightforward and fast.
Though it was not skied with the
cable in the rear position, a dryland test shows a very, very tight
flex. It will be nice to spend more
time on this binding in a variety
of snow conditions with a mix of
cable and spring settings. The
Hammerhead’s ability to easily
adjust its performance and its
super long spring travel seem to
combine into one sweet skiing
new binding.
www.raineydesigns.com
-Ray Thomas
Rainey
Designs
Hammerhead
almost
impossible
to bottom
out the spring.
Since
many
compression spring style
bindings fail (including the
Superloop) when the spring runs
out of travel, this new design
should eliminate many problems.
It is also possible to pre-load the
spring by tightening the ‘screw’
that runs through the center of the
spring. The Hammerhead also
builds on the Superloop idea of
adjustable flex points. This is
done by placing the cables
around any of three ‘wheels’ on
the side of the binding. The front
wheel offers a flex point more
akin to an AT binding, the middle
wheel is similar to a standard tele
flex, and the rear wheel gives you
Issue IX Off-Piste 11
Gall
“Simply the thing that
Skier: Frode Gronvold
Location: Chamonix
Photographer: Chase Jarvis
Skier: Leif Zapf-Gilse
Location: Roger’s Pass, BC
Photographer: Mathew Scholl
Omnio fierri possent (Everything may happen)
- Seneca, Epistuloe ad Lucilium, Epis. LXX, 9
12 Off-Piste March 2001
lery
I am shall make me live.”
- William Shakespear
“I may not have gone where I intended to
go, but I think I have ended up
where I intended to be.”
- Douglas Adams
Skier: Jake Bogoch
Location: Anywhere
Photographer: Mathew Scholl
Issue IX Off-Piste 13
HINDSIGHT:
Jeff Schuh Photo
This Is Not A Test
Reality Check on Rainier
BY JAMES SAMMET
P
icture this: you’re skiing in the
backcountry on a beautiful day
when, suddenly, something
goes terribly wrong. Your friend just
sustained a life-threatening injury,
and though it’s only a half-hour ski
back to the car, it might as well be
20 miles because your friend can’t
make it down and you can’t move
him. You are exposed to the wind,
and although it is early afternoon, the
winter sun will set in a little over two
hours. What would you do?
It happened to me. My friends and I had skied
the Muir Snowfield on Mt. Rainier dozens of
times; we never considered it to be dangerous.
We had often descended from higher lines on
the mountain, and Muir had always been a
place to let big radius turns rip as the tension
of the upper mountain faded away. However,
this day taught us that trouble can happen
anywhere.
Our group of ten, including my childhood
friend, Ben, left the Paradise parking lot with
bright blue skies overhead, a brilliant view of
the mountain, and a thick layer of marine
clouds stuffed low into the valleys between
the peaks of the Tatoosh. We skinned up to
9,500 ft, just below Camp Muir, and ate lunch
overlooking the Cowlitz Glacier. At two in the
afternoon, we started down. We knew the
skiing would be rough, as the Muir snowfield
had been hammered by the high winds that
blast the area all winter.
I hung back to take photos of everyone passing
above the Cowlitz Glacier. As I packed up my
camera, the last of the group disappeared
down the fall line. Alone, I paused for a
moment to absorb the serenity of the cold
landscape. I had no idea this was the last
moment of peace I would feel that day.
I caught up to the group at the top of a steep
section as they picked their way down
through the sastrugi. Everyone struggled with
the difficult conditions. Then I saw my friend
Martin at the bottom of the pitch turn around
suddenly and run up the slope on his skis. I
knew from his body language that something
was wrong. As I neared the bottom, I saw him
leaning over a slumped body. It was Ben.
I have skied and climbed with Ben ever since
moving to the Northwest ten years ago. As
kids, we learned to ski together at a little ski
area in central Massachusetts. Our paths
diverged during the school years, but we reconnected in the Northwest, where we
discovered the limitless off-piste lines the
Cascades have to offer and began several years
of exploring new terrain. Although I’d seen
him crash before, he always got up, so I knew
it was serious even before I reached him.
Ben was slumped forward on his left side with
his head slightly downhill and his pack on
top of him. He said that when he fell he landed
on his head and heard crunching and popping
noises, and that he now felt a weird numb and
tingling sensation in his right arm, though he
could feel his legs and toes and move his toes
inside his boots. He was obviously in pain
and I told him not to move; I told the group
we were going to treat this as a possible spinal
injury.
Almost immediately, Ben began to shiver
uncontrollably from the cold. It was obvious
that he had experienced some trauma and was
going into shock. I wanted to assess his spine
but I knew that we needed to get him warm
first. Luckily, he carries a pair of Primaloft
pants and jacket in his pack. We slipped him
into the warm clothing and he stopped
shivering.
I began to assess his spine. From the base of
his skull, I palpated each vertebra down his
spine. I have Wilderness First Responder
training, but was very nervous assessing a
spine for real for the first time. I worked my
way down from the cervical spine to the
thoracic spine. Then, in the region of T-3 and
The helicopter arrives, Mt. Rainier, WA.
James Sammet Photo
14 Off-Piste March 2001
T-4 vertebrae, Ben said it hurt. That was bad
and I knew it. In spite of the pain, I sensed that
he was in denial. I told him I thought he had
injured his spine based on the crunching and
popping he heard, the feeling he had in his
arm, and the pain he experienced when I
palpated T-3 and T-4. He said the feeling had
come back to his arm and that it was more of a
sore feeling rather than pain that he had in his
back. He was starting to talk me out of his
injury and said he wanted to stand up because
he thought he would feel better standing.
I let him talk me into letting him stand. I too
was in denial. I didn’t want him to be injured
and I hoped that he would just start to feel
better. After all, I had been with him several
times in the past when he was seemingly
injured after a crash but got up to ski the rest
of the day. I helped him up from behind by
lifting his shoulders so that at least his back
would be in traction. He stood and seemed to
feel better for a moment, and even began to
contemplate walking down. We told him he
wasn’t walking anywhere if he couldn’t ski,
and then suddenly he began to feel like he
couldn’t hold his head up anymore. “Can this
get any worse?” I thought, as my hands
instantly rose to support his head. I told
Martin to get the Sam Splint (a flexible, foamcovered aluminum strip used for temporary
emergency splints) out of Ben’s first aid kit
and form a c-collar with it.
With the improvised c-collar on, we sat him
down, keeping his head supported and his
back in traction by lowering him with support
under his shoulders. Once we had him warm
and stable, Martin and I discussed the rescue
scenario. My cell phone did not have
reception, so we decided that I would ski
down to Paradise and report the accident to
the climbing ranger while Martin and the rest
of the group stayed to take care of Ben. It was
just after 2:00 PM; the sun would set at 4:30.
Spending the night was not an option; we were
too exposed. We decided that if I was not back
in 2½ hours, Martin would start down with Ben
using a sled improvised from skis and poles.
I skied off towards the low-lying clouds below.
I felt very alone and isolated as I entered the
clouds, trying to find the route down. The
snow was rock hard and icy, and there were no
tracks to follow. As the slope steepened, I
realized I was too far right, so I began traversing
back on course. My ski pole stuck in a hole
and ripped out of my hand. I watched as it went
tink-tink-tink down the slope, thinking this
could only happen in a bad movie. Finally, it
hung up on a scrub tree and I carefully
sidestepped down the icy slope to retrieve it. I
traversed some more, and found the route
down. My tension eased as I saw tracks half
way down. The clouds momentarily lifted, and
I stopped when I thought I saw a bunch of
people below. The clouds quickly closed back
in, but their voices confirmed what my eyes
had seen. They turned out to be an RMI (Rainier
Mountaineering Incorporated) group doing a
winter camping class. I explained the situation
to the lead guide, who radioed the National
Park Climbing Ranger. When we made radio
contact, we were told that Martin, too, was in
contact with the ranger by cell phone.
Coincidently, another friend was up on the
mountain that day, had come across Ben, and
his cell phone had reception.
at the risks that would have been involved
carrying Ben off the mountain, and felt
extremely lucky that an airlift was possible.
Martin and I convinced the climbing ranger that
a helicopter was needed, our Wilderness First
Responder certification likely giving our
assessment credibility. Fortunately, there was
a flat spot large enough to land a helicopter
just a few hundred feet from the accident scene.
The ranger directed me and one of the RMI
guides to climb back to the group as an
advanced rescue party while rangers set out
from Paradise towing a sled and back board in
case the clouds blew in and the helicopter could
not land. Meanwhile, it was growing late as
we climbed back to Ben. We monitored
communications with the RMI radio, and about
halfway back up Panorama Point received
word that an Army helicopter had departed
Ft. Lewis 50 miles away. The sun was just off
the horizon when we broke out of the clouds
above Panorama Point, and I could see some
of our group about 1000 ft. above me. Finally, I
heard the rotor blades of the helicopter. I
scanned the horizon and saw it break out of
the clouds below as it flew up above the
Nisqually Glacier. I made it back to Ben just as
they were about to load him into the helicopter.
I felt a big relief seeing him packaged up on a
backboard, knowing that in 20 minutes he
would be at Harborview Hospital in Seattle. A
moment later, the helicopter lifted off and flew
into the setting sun.
Ben is skiing and climbing again, but only after
a week of morphine, twelve weeks in a back
brace, and a year of physical therapy. He is still
my skiing partner, thanks to our training, the
resources of Mt. Rainier National Park, and a
lot of luck.
The remaining group began to ski down. We
met up with the climbing rangers towing the
sled up, and they, too, headed down. Had we
not gotten the helicopter in when we did, it
would have been at least two more hours before
the climbing rangers reached Ben with the sled
and backboard. Then it would have been an
excruciatingly painful and dangerous journey
down the mountain for all involved. I shuttered
In fact, we were extremely lucky. First, Ben was
hurt in Mt. Rainier National Park, which has
excellent resources available. Second, we
established communication quickly (by luck)
with the National Park Rangers and without
going all the way down to Paradise. Third, Ben
fell and broke his back in an opportune spot –
only 200 ft away from a good landing zone. If
just one event during the rescue had gone
wrong - had the clouds lifted higher,
communication with the ranger taken longer,
thus preventing the helicopter from landing our experience would have been much more
difficult.
It is so important to be prepared for a self-rescue
in the backcountry. Everyone talks about
avalanche safety these days - transceivers,
probes, Avalungs, and other gismos are hot
topics - but no one talks about what it really
takes to rescue someone. Have you ever
improvised an emergency sled? How long does
it take? What would you use? Have you ever
tried to pull someone out for practice? Try it
and you will find out just how difficult it can
be, and just how good your sled building skills
are. Unless it is all downhill to safety, it is nearly
impossible for one person to pull another
person out by themselves. Try putting
someone in an improvised sled and then
keeping him or her warm. Unless you carry
the right gear, this is a difficult task.
Learning about avalanches, wearing
transceivers, and doing transceiver searches are
all essential skills for the backcountry. But after
uncovering your buried victim to discover that
they are unconscious and have unknown
injuries, how are you going to keep them warm
and get them out safely? These are essential
skills. Remember that cell phones don’t always
work and helicopters cannot always fly.
Want to know more about Spinal Injuries? Read
Backcountry Medic (p.16) by our in house medical
expert Paul Nicolazzo.
James Sammet lives in Seattle, WA and still skis
with his buddy Ben.
Issue IX Off-Piste 15
Backcountry Medic
Spine Injuries and
Skiing
trauma from a fall (landing on your back on
rocks for example) will also do the trick, as
can an avalanche.
by Paul Nicolazzo
Fortunately, tumbling or sliding absorbs
most of the energy generated in a typical
skier fall. Yes, you may be sore, you may
even twist your knee, or even break your
leg but you usually don’t break your back.
Usually, because the force is absorbed
elsewhere.
D
ealing with a spinal injury is not
something most of us care to
ever deal with first hand. If you have
not read James Sammets article, This
is Not a Test (p.14), you should. The
article replays the scene of an
accident involving a spinal injury.
Fortunately for the victim, his
partners recognized the potential for
injury and took several key steps to
ensure the victims safety. Read on to
find out more about the dynamics of
spinal injuries.
How do you know if a fall is serious enough
to fracture vertebrae? How do you know if
you should put your friend on a backboard,
The Field Ruling Out Process
The National Association of
EMS Physicians recommends
the process outlined below; it
takes training and practice to be
accurate. Parts of the motor
exam have been simplified for
this article but the physiology
and concepts are accurate. Nor
does the article thoroughly
address the lifting and moving
of a spine injured patient,
subsequent immobilization in a
litter, or evacuation techniques.
Most suspected spine injures are just
that...suspected. It’s rare to actually have a
patient with an unstable spine but it does
happen and the consequences are
potentially
severe:
paraplegia,
quadriplegia, even death. Field assessment
is very low-tech and, by necessity, very
conservative. Most people who fail the field
assessment process do NOT have unstable
spinal injuries and eventually walk out of
the emergency room . . . after an x-ray
confirms the spinal cord is injury free. To
help understand how to evaluate a potential
spine injury in the field, we must learn to
recognize the mechanism of injury (the force
or movement required to cause injury), how
to clear (rule out) spinal damage, and
finally how to proceed when spinal damage
is suspected.
The Mechanism of Unstable Spinal
Injuries
All spinal injuries begin with a mechanism
of injury. Most spine injuries are caused by
compression or direct trauma. Landing hard
on your head, as in Ben’s case, or on your
butt or feet are examples of compression.
The energy of a fall travels up (or down) the
spine compressing vertebrae and
occasionally causing fractures. Direct
16 Off-Piste March 2001
begin a rescue, etc? The answer is you don’t.
Any fall with significant speed behind it
could, given the right circumstances,
fracture vertebrae. Vertebrae are small bony
circles with wings. The spinal cord runs
through the center of the vertebrae. If a skier
falls the wrong way, a vertebra could break.
If broken, a simple movement may cause
sharp bone fragments to cut the spinal cord,
paralyzing the victim from the broken
vertebra down. Remember that the spine is
bone and with proper care the bone will heal.
However, what concerns us in the field is
protecting the spinal cord from damage
caused by movement secondary to the initial
breaking of a vertebra. This is where medical
training helps. Since you cannot tell if a
person has injured their spine solely by
mechanism, you must learn to rule out the
possibility of injury with a thorough field
exam.
Illustration by Jason Laramie
1.) Approach from the front and
ask the victim to remain still. If
one of their vertebrae IS broken,
you don’t want them to move.
Wait a few minutes allowing
stress related to the fall to
dissipate. The patient’s body, in
response to stress, may release
endorphins that block pain and
make an accurate field
assessment impossible. Stress
can also affect the brain leading
to poor decisions. Keep the
patient warm; support them.
Sandwich the head so that it
doesn’t move. Support the
victim’s back in the position
you find them. If you HAVE to
move them, support the entire
body during the process and
move very slowly and
carefully. A movement towards
normal anatomical position is
generally safe. Avoid any
movements that cause spinal or
shooting pain.
2.) AFTER you are sure that the
stress is gone (there WILL be
stress) and the victim is awake,
alert, and cooperative, ask if
there is pain anywhere along
the center of their spine.
Patients with a fractured
vertebra will complain of pain
at the point of injury.
3) Next, press firmly on each
vertebra (preferably skin to
skin) as you slowly move your
fingers down the patient’s
back. Typically, the pain of a
fractured vertebra is sharp typically. Since you want to be
conservative, if a vertebrae
hurts when you press on it,
consider the patient’s spine to
be injured.
4) Ask if the patient has any
tingling, shooting, or electric
pains starting from his/her
spine and running down one or
both arms or legs. Pressure on
the spinal cord or spinal nerves
due to a spinal fracture is the
most common cause of
shooting pain immediately
after a traumatic event.
5) Next, examine and compare
the strength in each hand. They
should be equal. Do the same
with each foot. A noticeable
difference in strength between
sides may be due to pressure
on the spinal cord from a
fractured vertebra.
6) Since the sensations of light
touch and pain are carried in
different spinal tracts wthin the
cord, take a sharp instrument (a
pin works well) and something
soft (perhaps a glove) and see
if the patient can tell the
difference between a soft touch
(the glove) and a pin prick on
the top of each hand or foot.
Have the patient close his/her
eyes during the exam.
Occasionally, due to a partial
cord injury, patients may NOT
be able to distinguish between
the two sensations; they both
feel the same. Remember, that
most patients who fail the
ruling out process in the field
do NOT have a spine injury
and will walk out of the
emergency room on their own
after x-ray. The more parts of
the field examination a patient
fails the more likely they have
an injured vertebrae. Act
appropriately to the situation
and protect their cord from
damage by immobilizing their
spine. If the patient is awake &
cooperative with no spine pain,
no spine tenderness as you
palpate their vertebrae, no
shooting pains, no noticeable
weakness in their hands or feet,
and is able to distinguish
between light touch and pin
prick pain, they do not have an
unstable spine injury; no
vertebrae have been broken.
Let’s go back to Jim and Ben for
a few minutes (This is Not a Test
p.14). Both Jim and Ben quickly
recognized (because of their
training) the need to keep Ben’s
spine mobilized. Jim and other
group members gently moved
him into a sitting position
where they could support his
spine and protect him from the
cold. Well done. Next, Jim
began to assess Ben’s spine. Did
he wait long enough for the
stress of the fall to fade? Maybe.
It’s difficult to tell from the
article. Was Ben awake and
cooperative? Able to feel pain?
Yes. Did Jim complete the
ruling out process correctly?
Yes. And Ben failed. He DID
have spine pain. He DID have
tingling pain in his right arm
that resolved as his spine was
aligned. He DID complain of
pain at T-3 and T-4 when his
vertebrae were pressed. Jim
was right when he thought Ben
might have a spine injury. At
that point, Ben should have
been treated as a possible spine
injured
patient
and
immobilized
but
what
happened is all too common.
Ben began to rationalize his
symptoms . . . and Jim agreed.
Neither Ben nor Jim wanted to
admit that Ben could have
injured himself so seriously.
Neither wanted to go through
a long evacuation from the
mountain. And nightfall was
coming, it was getting colder,
etc. I commend Jim for his
honesty in relating this part of
his story. It is something we can
all learn from. Jim reluctantly
assisted Ben to his feet.... When
Ben said he felt like he couldn’t
support his head Jim
immediately immobilized his
spine (by supporting his head)
and began an evacuation.
Again, well done. Luck and
skill combined for a happy
ending to Jim’s story. Most of
the time when an injury
happens in the backcountry,
we need both luck and skill.
You can stack the odds in your
favor by planning for the
unexpected. Take a good
course in wilderness medicine.
Learn how to build shelters and
evacuation sleds. Carry extra
clothing for emergencies. Know
the rescue possibilities in your
area AND how to contact them.
And...well...carry your lucky
rabbits foot too.
Paul Nicolazzo is Director of the
Wilderness Medical Training
Center. www.wildmedcenter.com
Issue IX Off-Piste 17
Part IV
Crud Skiing
S
now, in its natural state, has
personality. Many natural
snows, especially the ones we
hope for and dream about, are
friendly and often lovable, however,
there are days when the snow is less
than ideal. One of the pleasures of
backcountry skiing is ferreting out
good snow when the conditions are
less then perfect. But there are days
when, despite all your sniffing
around for different aspects,
protected gullies, and good trees you
find nadda . . . it’s just a grumpy
snow day.
as skiing all soft snows. A stable two footed
platform (even weighted), flexibility in your
ankles/knees/hips, and an upper body
that’s quiet and that directs you into the next
turn. The difference? The worse the snow,
the less tolerance there is for errors.
In addition to these basics, there are a few
other specifics that will make your skiing
more successful. Heavy dense snows offer
more resistance than that light stuff we all
love. Since speed is the fuel that fires your
turns, carrying a bit more speed in heavy
snow gives your turns more power to carve.
Many skiers have a natural tendency to slow
down and ski VERY CAUTIOUSLY in junky
snows, perhaps brought on by the fear of
yet another thrashing. Though quite
understandable, this apprehension works
against the skier. The skier who runs out of
juice 2/3rds of the way through a turn is
the one who pitches forward in a graceful
slow motion arc as his/her skis stop moving.
Grumpy snows have wide
ranging
personalities
including sun baked
powder, over ripe corn,
and heavy wet snows while
perhaps the most ill
tempered snows of all are
the ones with crusts, sun
crusts, wind crusts, or
temperature crusts.
The first rule of skiing
grumpy snow is to get to
know the snow. Figure out
what’s going on with the
conditions and use that to
your advantage. If it’s a sun
crust, ski protected or north Crud Bustin’ - Photo by David Waag
facing slopes where the
crust is thinnest. If it’s wind hammered, Because the snow is denser, it is harder to
figure out the aspect where the snow is the turn the skis when they are beneath the
least affected. Sometimes with crusts, you surface. Unweight your turns off both feet
may even find an aspect where the crust is and get the turn started before they are
thick enough to support you. Wind blown reweighted and carving. As a general rule
snow will often leave you visual clues as to in grumpy snows, try and get your skis in
where it’s more friendly or at the very least
where it will change. The bottom line is that
Many skiers have a natural tendency to slow
although all aspects may yield tweaked
snow, there is almost always variation to be
down and ski VERY CAUTIOUSLY in
found.
Now, there are days when despite your best
efforts or because of route constraints, you
must ski grumpy snow and a few essential
tips will keep you turning. Skiing heavy
and/or wet snow requires the same basics
18 Off-Piste March 2001
junky snows, perhaps brought on by the
fear of yet another thrashing. Though
quite understandable, this apprehension
works against the skier.
or slightly past the fall line before you start
carving and pressuring your skis. This puts
you in the strong position of having your
skis outside and downhill of your center
when you are driving them into the turn.
All grumpy snows share a common trait;
they are like a bad dog and can smell fear
in a skier. Fear breeds tentative and tense
skiing, the opposite of the mentality
needed to successfully ski these
conditions.
Perhaps the greatest cause for the showy
over the handlebars type falls common to
grumpy snows is starting to pressure and
carve the turn too early and not having the
center strongly inside of the turn. Staying
flexible with a good range of movement
allows for the powerful release of the turn
needed to get the skis around
and in position to drive the
next turn.
When the snow gets crusty,
turns get tougher. The first
rule of crusts is don’t let the
crust decide where you will
break through. Being
grumpy, it will always pick
the worst spot. Once you
decide the crust will not
support you, unweight out
of the snow (off both feet)
and turn the skis into or
beyond the fall line before
they reenter. Stance and
upper body position have to
be right-on as you absorb
into the turn with ankles,
knees, and hips. Good luck....
All grumpy snows share a common trait;
they are like a bad dog and can smell fear in
a skier. Fear breeds tentative and tense
skiing, the opposite of the mentality needed
to successfully ski these conditions. Once
committed to skiing grumpy snow, there is
a certain sense of abandon that can breed
success as well as tolerance for the
occasional spanking we all receive that lets
us know that the earth, the mountains, and
the snow are definitely real.
Nils Larsen runs freeheel workshops and
backcountry clinics - learn more at
www.freeheels.com
Extending a Classic
The view from Sentinel is
dominated by Dome Peak and
its Chickamin Glacier, a magnet
for any ski mountaineer. The first
attempt to ski the Chickamin was
in May 1948, when Charles
Hessey of Yakima tried to reach
it from Agnes Creek after a
spending nearly a month skiing
by himself near Lyman Lake.
Hessey had the bad luck of
making his attempt just as one
of the worst spring floods in
Washington history began. It was
perhaps fortunate that he was
turned back by high water in
Agnes Creek. Had he made it to
the upper slopes, the avalanche
danger would have been
extreme. Hessey’s adventure
was years ahead of its time. Even
fifty years later, I’d never heard
of anyone skiing the Chickamin
Glacier.
We camped at White Rock Lakes
and skied over Dana-Dome col
the next morning. I’d hoped to
camp near the summit of Dome
Peak and enjoy skiing
unencumbered down the
glaciers on either side. But when
we checked the weather radio we
learned that our fine weather
window was about to close.
Clouds and drizzle were
expected the next morning. The
summit of Dome was about the
worst place we could think of to
camp in those conditions. We
could bail out from there toward
Downey Creek, but if we wanted
to complete the extended
traverse, we’d better put some
more miles behind us.
continued from page15
we didn’t have more time to
enjoy them. We camped near
Ross Pass on a lovely, still
evening, then watched clouds
amass in the west.
Rain pattered on our tents in the
morning; we slept in. It was
satisfying to know that we had
acted on an accurate forecast,
even though it had meant
abandoning some of our goals.
After pushing farther than we’d
planned the day before, rest was
welcome. By mid-afternoon the
sky lightened, so we broke camp
and hustled over Totem Pass
and around Canyon Creek to
Image Lake. We arrived just
before sunset, and just as the
clouds began to spit again.
As it was, we squinted into
wind-driven sleet while
traversing Miners Ridge to
Suiattle Pass on the fifth day. The
weather gradually improved as
we went, though, and by the time
we reached Cloudy Pass,
patches of blue were opening
over Lyman Lake and Dumbell
Mountain. On our left we could
see the alp slopes of North Star
Mountain. I thought of Dwight
Watson and friends skiing it in
1938, over sixty years earlier. We
removed our skis for the last
time below Lyman Lake, and
hiked down Railroad Creek to
Holden Village in early evening.
My plan of savoring the
Chickamin Glacier on morning
corn snow was foiled. During our
afternoon descent, the glacier
was thick gumbo. The setting
was grand though. The scale of
the glacier resembled the Alps or
B.C. Coast Mountains more than
our humble North Cascades. At
Gunsight-Sinister col, we looked
down a 45 degree slope several
hundred feet high. I ski-cut the
slope at its top, expecting to start
a slough that would dissipate on
the gentler slopes below. Instead
it gained speed and volume,
thundering out of sight into
Spruce Creek valley. We skied
down the newly cleared path,
traversed west, and descended
to the Hanging Gardens.
When we talk about classic
routes, we often speak of their
physical attributes—the scenery,
the route finding, the quality of
rock or snow. The Ptarmigan
Traverse has all of these, but its
stature as a classic is equally due
to the people who pioneered it.
As we cruised down Lake Chelan
on the Lady of the Lake ferry the
next afternoon, I thought of those
people who had made the
traverse what it is —the
Ptarmigan Climbing Club and
the others on foot; Watson,
Hessey, Barnett and the rest on
skis. Each had discovered new
ways to experience this route.
The traverse has now lured me
across its glaciers and up its
peaks four times. Yet, this latest
trip suggests that even more new
possibilities
await
the
imaginative ski mountaineer.
Perhaps, I’ll be lured back yet
again.
I’d imagined for many years
what the Hanging Gardens might
be like and was not
disappointed. The gardens are a
series of granite bluffs and
terraces
adorned
with
krummholz and lush mats of
heather. After the snow
disappears in summer, the area
abounds with charming lakelets
and floral displays. I was sorry
Lowell Skoog lives in Seattle and has
done enough traverses to have the
map study and terrain evaluation
down to a science. In fact, rumor
tells that he is able to correlate an
equation that can be used for
estimating the number of days a new
traverse will require. However, this
equation does not include a variable
for the number of energy bars
required.
Issue IX Off-Piste 19
Backcountry
Beta
Functional Tips
(It’s the little things in life)
A
hh . . . the little things in life can make a
big difference. Since this issue has an
emphasis on safety, we chose to share the
importance of taking a few key items with you
into the backcountry. If you have ever been
involved in an accident or emergency of any sort in
backcountry, you likely know the importance of
carrying an extra layer of warm clothing. A down
sweater, extra fleece, and even warm pants can make
the difference between a dangerously cold stay in the
snow and a comfortable experience. The space vs.
importance ratio for carrying an extra layer should not
even be debated – carry one. It may not be for you
but it will become very important given an emergency
situation, not to mention it is pretty nice to throw on
a down jacket at lunch time so you remain toasty warm
while you enjoy the grand view for which you just
worked so hard.
An additional item that truly meets the definition of
little is a whistle. Attach a whistle to the zipper pull
on your jacket or even the shoulder pad on your pack.
Use the whistle to alert your partners in the event of
an avalanche or to make contact if you become
separated while skiing in the trees.
Finally, if you have not tried the “Incredible Shortie
Pad”, you should. Perhaps less well known than the
extra layer of clothing, the shortie pad will make many
aspects of your life more pleasant and it doubles for
a wide range of emergency purposes. We’ve all got
old ensolite pads; so
put one to use! Trim
off a piece that fits in
your pack and begin
to
discover
the
wonders of having a
portable, table, chess
board, butt cushion,
and emergency splint
without overloading
your pack.
A big part of enjoyin’
the backcountry is
being comfortable
and safe, so remember
it’s the little things
that
make
the
difference. Happy
touring!
20 Off-Piste March 2001
Have a tip of your own? We want to
hear it! But we can’t read your
mind so write it down and send it
our way!
po box 932, winthrop, wa 98862
or freeheel@offpistemag.com
Illustration by Mike Clelland! from Allen & Mike’s Really Cool
Backcountry Ski Book - published by Falcon Books - www.falconbooks.com
W h a t ’ s U p
Pelican Butte
Resort
Following 40 years of dreaming,
and almost $4 million of
spending, the Pelican Butte Ski
Resort near Klamath Falls, OR
appears to have run into a major
obstacle.
The
Clinton
administration’s adoption of
new protections for roadless
areas appears to have
influenced Jeld-Wen Corp. to
abandon plans for the new
resort.
A spokesperson for Jeld-Wen
says they will discuss
options for continuing the
controversial
project,
however, continuing the
project
will
require
Congressional
action
exempting Pelican Butte from
the new roadless area rule
and existing environmental
laws,
including
the
Northwest Forest Plan,
National Environmental
Policy Act, the Endangered
Species Act, the Clean Water
Act, and the Clean Air Act.
Although in 1996 Utah’s
Snowbasin
successfully
lobbied
for
similar
legislation
to
allow
expansion projects associated
continued from p.4
with the 2002 Winter
Olympics, the outlook for
similar action from the new
1 0 7 th C o n g r e s s a p p e a r s
unlikely.
The
Pelican
Butte
development plan called for
a resort similar in size to Mt.
Bachelor near Bend Oregon.
Supporters saw the resort as
a potential boom for the local
community while opponents
saw the plan as irresponsible
and in conflict with several
environmental laws meant to
protect sensitive ecosystems.
Industry News
New Tele/A
T
AT
Binding in 2002
Ryve Alpine Equipment, a
new company started by G3
Designer, Ted Ayliffe,
recently announced Ryve’s
entrance into the backcountry
ski binding and accessory
market.
In addition to innovations in
skin technology, probes, and
shovels, Ryve is promising a
revolutionary
line
of
integrated telemark / alpine
touring bindings.
LETTERS
continued from p.5
total snow depth had almost
doubled and the temperature
gradient reduced accordingly.
That is why I also wrote in
the article “The temperature
profile shows the remnant
of the steep gradient
prior to the most recent
increase in the snowpack¹s
depth”
The most important thing
for your reader to focus
on was the not the
gradient measured when the
fracture profile was done
but the evidence of a weak
snowpack
structure
indicated by the faceted
layer at the bottom.
Focusing on any single
input (the gradient across
the pack was less than the
threshold value of 10
degrees C per meter at the
time the fracture profile
was dug) can cause us to
miss the big picture. In
this case, we had a skier
release a slab to the
ground because weakening
due to a substantial
temperature gradient prior
to the storm cycle
associated with the
release.
-Paul Baugher, Director of
the Northwest Avalanche
Institute.
www.ryveequipment.com
Issue IX Off-Piste 21
Avy 101
Avalanche Rescue Protocol
By John Buffery
Matt Leidecker Photo
T
iming is everything in performing a fast and
effective avalanche rescue and timing hinges on
preparation. The intensity of an accident scene is
difficult to anticipate and there is no room to be
unfamiliar with equipment or safety protocols. Mistakes
and ineffective beacon skills can mean the difference
between life and death. Practicing with your beacon and
following safe ski protocols are your best resources for a
successful rescue. Although no two rescue scenarios are
the same, several key tips will help conduct an effective
rescue. Whether you are directly involved in an accident
or happen upon an avalanche scene the following
protocols can help make a difference.
1. If you witness the accident, note the point where the skier(s) was
last seen in order to estimate burial location(s).
2. Don’t leave the scene to get help . . . yet. You are the help.
3. First, establish if it is safe to jump in and help. Avalanche paths
often have numerous start zones. You must be as sure as you can
be that another slide is not eminent. Be warry of the crown if you
are above the slide and be cautious of any further start zones. If
you have enough people and the scene warrants, you may choose
to have someone stand watch for additional slide activity.
4. The scene will be high energy with everyone wanting to react
immediately but someone in the group must take an active roll as
orchestrator of the rescue. Send people onto the slope in columns
with beacons on receive. (It may appear obvious but all beacons
must be switched to receive. If one person remains in transmit mode,
the search will not be accurate and time will be wasted - remember
timing is everything)
5. The best way to find someone in an avalanche is to look on the
surface first. Although you will likley need to do a beacon search,
do not rule out the possibility that you may find clues on the snow
surface. The first searcher or searchers must begin as fast as possible
and they should work with their eyes up, not on their beacon. The
beacon’s sound will indicate if a signal is nearby, while their eyes
should scan the area for signs of the victims. Report any audible or
visual clues to the organizer and pull on any item you find in hopes
that someone is attached to it.
6. Probe the area where you find the strongest signal. If you get a
strike, leave the probe where it lays and dig very quickly. If you
have a multiple burial scenario, have someone else dig as you
search for the rest of the buried party.
7. When you uncover the buried patient, find the face and open the
mouth to clear snow that may be stuffed into the throat. If the patient
is not breathing, give two breaths and continue to uncover the body.
Be as gentle as possible when you extricate the patient. They will
22 Off-Piste March 2001
likely be hypothermic and possibly suffering from additional
injuries. Check for a pulse if they are not breathing and begin CPR.
8. At this point, you will need to get the patient warm. Focus on
warming the core trunk area and begin assessing the patients
overall condition. Now is the time to get help for the remaining
part of the rescue. Don’t send anyone out alone, or leave the patient
alone.
Rescues are unpleasant at best. One of the only known elements in
doing a rescue is how to use your beacon. If the rescue requires an
extensive beacon search, you will be glad that you have practiced
and if you don’t find the victim in 3 to 4 minutes, you will wish you
had practiced more.
No one is good at finding beacons without practice. Practice beacon
searches using deep burials and multiple victim scenarios. Practice
searches until you are blue in the face, so you are fast enough that
your buried buddy isn’t. Good luck.
John Buffery is a member of the Canadian Avalanche Association and the
Association of Canadian Mountain Guides. www.safetywrangler.com
Safe Ski Protocols
In addition to snowpack evaluation skills and common sense,
safe skiing protocols must be followed when skiing in
avalanche prone terrain. The following protocols will allow
you the best advantage possible given an avalanche accident.
1. Ski the slope one at a time. Waiting skiers should stand in a
safe zone and with a visual of the slope.
2. Watch each skier on the slope.
3. Each skier should ski to a safe zone with a visual of the
slope to watch subsequent skiers.
4. Use your whistle to alert everyone of an avalanche.
5. Try to maintain communication on the slope. Weather and
terrain features must be taken into consideration when
choosing a slope to ski.
6. Use similar caution whether traveling or skiing across
avalanche prone slopes.
7. Be warry of terrain traps. Does the slope end in cliffs? Is
there a safe exit from the slope?
Essential Equipment For Backcountry Safety
¿ Ski
Partners
¿ Avalanche Transceiver
¿ Shovel
¿ Probe
¿ Extra Clothing
¿ 7mm Cord - for sled construction
¿ Whistle attached to your jacket
¿ Common Sense
CALENDAR
March
3/2-4 Mazama, WA; Methow
Valley Freeheel Fest: 509-996-3194
3/4 Crystal Mt, WA; NW Tele-Race
Series, Giant Slalom: 425-466-2626
3/10-11 Mad River Glen, VT;
NATO’s 25th annual tele fest!
www.telemarknato.com
3/10-11 Brighton, UT; USTSA
Extreme Tele Comp: www.ustsa.org
SEND US YOUR CALENDAR LISTINGS
EVENTS, PRESENTATIONS,
GEAR SWAPS, ETC.
PO Box 932 Winthrop, WA 98862
freeheel@offpistemag.com
509-999-2208
April
4/1 Breckenridge, CO;
Tele Bump Buffet,
bumpbuffet@yahoo.com
3/24 Grand Targhee, ID; Yostmark
Nordic Fest, 208-354-2828
4/7 Crested Butte, CO; 27th
Annual Al Johnson Memorial
Uphill Downhill Telemark Ski
Race. Costumes suggested.
970-349-5210
3/24-25 Crystal Mt, WA; Tele-Fair:
509-493-4952 www.telefair.com
4/12-15 Alta, UT; Spring Tele Fest,
www.excitingescapes.com
3/30-31 Crested Butte, CO; Elk
Mountains Grand Traverse. 970349-1019
4/14-16 Mt. Shasta, CA; Mt. Shasta
Backcountry Glisse Festival. 530918-9086 www.shastaguides.com
3/24 Bridger Bowl, MT; Pinhead
Classic, www.bridgerbowl.com
3/31 3 Loveland, CO; Pin Grin
Telemark Festival.303-571-5580 ext.
170 www. skiloveland.com
Issue IX Off-Piste 23
RESOURCES
Weather, Avy & More . . .
Avalanche Resources
General
www.avalanche.org
www.csac.org
www.avalanche.ca
California
www.r5.fs.fed.us/tahoe/avalanche/
www.r5.fs.fed.us/shastatrinity/mtshasta/
Mt. Shasta 530-926-9613
Tahoe 530-587-2158
Mammoth/Bishop 760-924-5500
Colorado
www.caic.state.co.us
Boulder 303-275-5360
Summit Cty 970-668-0600
Southern CO 970-247-8187
Durango - 970-247-8187
Fort Collins - 970-482-0457
Vail - 970-827-5687
Aspen - 970-920-1664
Canada
www.avalanche.ca
Vancouver 604-290-9333
Western Canada 800-667-1105
Rockies 403-243-7253 x7669
Banff 403-762-1460
South Central (Bozeman) 406-587-6981
Southern (Cooke City/Yellowstone) 406-838-2259
Lolo and Bitterroot National Forest
800-281-1030 or 406-549-4488
New Hampshire
Washington
www.nwac.noaa.gov
www.avalanchenw.org
Cascades/Olympics 206-526-6677
www.tuckerman.org
Wyoming
www.avalanche.org/~svavctr/
Sun Valley 208-622-8027
Panhandle National Forest
208-765-7323 208-752-1221
Payette - 208-634-0409
Oregon
www.untracked.com/forecast/
Bridger-Teton - 307-733-2664
Montana
www.avalanche.org/~uafc
Tri-Canyon Area 801-364-1581
Alta - 801-742-0830
Park City - 435-658-5512
Provo - 801-378-4333
Ogden - 801-626-8600
Logan - 435-797-4146
LaSal - 800-648-7433
Idaho
www.mtavalanche.com
www.montanaweb.com/avalanche
www.fs.fed.us/rl/lolo/rec-contrib/
advisory.htm
NW Montana Rockies
406-257-8402 or 800-526-5329
GCAC - www.glacieravalanche.org
www.nwac.noaa.gov
Southern Washington/ Mt. Hood
503-808-2400
Utah
Weather Resources
General - weather.unisys.com or www.offpistemag.com or www.wrh.noaa.gov
Canada -www.weatheroffice.com
California - www.r5.fs.fed.us/tahoe/avalanche/
Colorado - www.caic.state.co.us
Idaho - iwin.mws.noaa.gov/iwin/id/id.html
Montana - iwin.mws.noaa.gov/iwin/mt/mt.html
Oregon - www.nwac.noaa.gov.
Utah - www.avalanche.org/~uafc/
Washington - www.nwac.noaa.gov.
Wyoming - www.crh.noaaa.gov/riw/index.htm
Return:
PO Box 932
Winthrop, WA 98862
Deliver to: