avalanche

Scotland just opened the world’s first year-round avalanche training course designed to help rescuers find victims. And while Scotland certainly isn’t the snowiest place in the world throughout the year, wood chips are substituted when the winter weather is lacking.  Transceivers—which some skiers, snowboarders and climbers carry with them on… Read the rest

Extreme skiing lost an iconic member of its community Sunday, November 13, 2011. Jamie Pierre, best known for his record-setting cliff huck, died in an avalanche at Utah’s famed Snowbird Resort. Pierre, snowboarding with a friend in the South Chute area at the still-unopened resort, triggered a slide, which swept… Read the rest

The American Avalanche Association, in partnership with the Flathead Nordic Ski Patrol and Backcountry Access, hosted its first annual Northern Rockies Avalanche Safety Workshop on Saturday, October 1. It was the first clinic of its kind in northern Montana. According to NBC Montana, over 250 backcountry enthusiasts attended the daylong… Read the rest

On April 3rd, the Utah Avalanche Center (UAC) announced that it had reached the end of its funding and, therefore, would be closing for the duration of the season. The UAC, founded in 1980, provides avalanche forecasts and gives daily danger ratings for Utah backcountry areas. Unfortunately, the UAC’s statement… Read the rest

The race between climbers Edurne Pasaban and Oh Eun-sun to become the first woman to conquer the 14 highest peaks in the world is nearing a close.
Spanish climber Pasaban, 36, summited the 8,091 meter Annapurna on Saturday, which means she only has one more peak to conquer. According to… Read the rest

Ten people were killed last weekend when their helicopter was pummeled by an avalanche after landing on the ski slope.
The Mi-8 helicopter had been bringing 18 people to the remote region of Kamchatka for an extreme heli-ski trip. The avalanche crushed the helicopter, carrying it 200 meters down the… Read the rest

A massive avalanche, which killed at least 17 soldiers and trapped 53 more under the snow and ice Monday, plowed into an Indian army training center near a popular ski resort designed to exhibit peaceful progress in the long-disputed state of Kashmir.
The Associated Press reports the avalanche hit the… Read the rest

A public gathering at the Mangy Moose Saloon in Jackson Hole, Wyoming on Wednesday will celebrate the life of ski patroller Mark “Big Wally” Wolling, who died Saturday from injuries suffered while doing avalanche hazard reduction work at the Jackson Hole Mountain Resort.
According to Jackson Hole News and Guide,… Read the rest

Airbags stowed in backpacks can be a life-saver for skiers or mountaineers who notice that they’ve set off an avalanche. But what happens when someone in the group unknowingly sets off a slab of ice and snow? “If skiers fail to notice in time that they’ve set off an avalanche,… Read the rest

Jackson Hole ski patroller Mark “Big Wally” Wolling is in a battle for his life after being buried in an avalanche this morning.
According to reports, Wolling and a partner were using explosives to do avalanche control work when an explosion caused the slope above them to fail. His partner… Read the rest

I never know how to write about this. What kind of epitaph do you write for people that died on a mountain in China, that you didn’t know personally, but have admired from a distance? I don’t know. I just know that it hurts. I just know that there is… Read the rest

There’s nothing better for a Thursday afternoon than watching a crazy Frenchie do ridiculous things like parachute out of an avalanche. Said Frenchie is better known as Antoine Montant, recently named Best Speedflyer of the Year 2009.
Make sure to watch until 3:30 where you can see Montant’s “little mistake,”… Read the rest