damian 0 Posted February 13, 2004 Author Share Posted February 13, 2004 Agreed. One of the reasons I do not own any gear is that I am still new to the sport, so advanced gear is still yet to accumulate. But it appears that my activities have moved faster than my natural rate of buying stuff. Also, I don't have (but would love to) a group of people that own the gear and spend all their spare time seeking out the off-course opportunities to use it (well, at least carry it - never want to have to use it). I would love to be part of such a group where we all own the gear, know the gear and are trained in both the use of the gear and in advanced avie awareness. Then we could all go away and enjoy the adventure of this sport, rather than the mundane up and down riding for the sake of riding (and don't get me started on parks and half pipes ). At the moment I am the only guy in a our regular crew that even carries a light BC back pack when I ride, let alone any of the things that I could carry with it. One thing is for sure, I do not want to buy the gear & lug it around whilst everyone else I might ride with goes bare backed light weight and depends on good old db for having what they might need. You know who you are Link to post Share on other sites
Fattwins 0 Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 db what you say is true but ill still be on your asses. Remember most of the areas we are going into are in a way Back Country, Thus should be treated as such. Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted February 13, 2004 Author Share Posted February 13, 2004 oh dont get me wrong, I want to get it.... but I can just see myself carrying the gear and no one else bothering to research and spend the required cash. So when I get buried, so will the only shovel and probe in the group. In a perfect world, when I get avie trained and carry the gear, I will refuse to ride with anyone off-course/BC that does not do the same. As of late I made the rule that I no longer carry anyones stuff in my backpack so I am in training for my hard rules when I am geared-up. Although I do often (in fact, all the time) carry surplus onigiri in my pack for the odd deserving nice guy that I do not want to see miss out on the fresh powder for the sake of taking lunch. My aim is to do some heli stuff in the next season, so I had better get a move on with the preps. Link to post Share on other sites
montoya 0 Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 Naeba/core-games avalanche.. yeah, I remember that. Here's more info from the Tracker site, if anyone wants to know more: http://www.bcaccess.com/techlibrary/press_releases/canada_journalist.html NAEBA, JAPAN (March 5, 2001) - A Canadian ski journalist rescued a buried avalanche victim today using the Tracker DTS avalanche transceiver. Leslie Anthony, 43, of Whistler, B.C. performed the recovery outside the Naeba ski resort, approximately 100 miles northwest of Tokyo, Japan. The victim, 31-year-old cinematographer Ben Mullin of Olympic Valley, California, sustained a skull fracture, severe head lacerations, and a punctured lung. The loose snow avalanche occurred at approximately 3:00 p.m. in a sparsely gladed backcountry area immediately adjacent to Naeba. The resort had received over three feet of new snow over the past week. The slide travelled approximately 400 vertical feet before coming to rest, where it created a debris pile approximately 100 feet wide by 100 feet long, according to Anthony. He, Mullin, and photographer Flip McCririck of Golden, Colorado were skiing in Naeba while on assignment for various publications including Powder magazine, where Anthony is editor-at-large. Anthony said he did not see Mullin when he was caught, but witnessed the avalanche as it pummelled numerous trees, then came to rest on a flat bench. He then skied down to the deposition area, where he immediately picked up Mullin's signal. After pinpointing the victim's location, Anthony freed Mullin's head, which was buried approximately one foot beneath the snow surface. Mullen was unconscious at the time of the burial, but regained consciousness at the scene. Once Mullin was completely excavated, McCririck stayed with him to control the bleeding while Anthony sought help from the Naeba ski patrol. A team of patrollers arrived back at the scene approximately one hour later and evacuated Mullin to a regional hospital. They were aided by Shawn Nesbitt and Vincent Dorian, who had been skiing with the threesome earlier in the day. "I've never seen anything move so fast in my life," said Anthony, who was approximately 10 feet from the slide when it released. McCririck was also caught in the avalanche, but escaped almost immediately. Without a transceiver, Mullin may have lost his life, Anthony concluded. He and McCririck would have had to probe the entire deposition area. According to statistics from the American Avalanche Association, approximately 70 percent of avalanche fatalities are caused by suffocation; approximately 30 percent are the result of trauma. The majority of those who survive are recovered within 15 minutes of the burial. "It was so quick," Anthony said, regarding the Tracker DTS. "I put it in search mode and I had a direction and distance right away. I went the direction it said and I found him less than 30 seconds later." Anthony said the three were skiing the off-piste area all morning in exceptional powder conditions, along with a larger group of freestyle skiers who were in Naeba to compete in the nationally-televised Core Games. In the afternoon, the threesome skied an untracked area that was on a slightly different aspect than what they had skied in the morning. The resulting "powder frenzy" and their close proximity to the resort created a false sense of security, he said. "At that point, we were taking minimum precautions," said Anthony, an experienced backcountry skier. "There weren't a lot of us wearing transceivers. It was one of those days where everyone left the hotel not expecting the kind of conditions that we had. Fortunately, Ben and I never leave home without ours." "I feel good for having been there for Ben," Anthony said. "But it's tempered by the nonchalant attitude that was going on. Things could have easily gone the other way. I think this was a big wakeup call for everybody." "The underscore of this episode is never to let your guard down, " concluded Mullin. "Always put your seat belt on when you get in the car, so to speak. At least I was with the right guys. I'll be forever indebted to them--and to those beacons." The incident was the second time this year in which a Tracker DTS was used to make a live avalanche victim recovery. On January 3, snowmobilerJeff Swaan, 15, rescued friend Jesse Bowden, 18, under 6 feet of debris after a large snowslide near Quesnel, B.C. Both youths had received their Trackers as Christmas presents just one week before the accident occurred. The Tracker DTS is the world's first digital avalanche rescue transceiver. It was introduced in 1997 by Backcountry Access, Inc. of Boulder, Colorado, touching off a revolution in user-friendly transceiver design. In 2001, the Tracker DTS become the top-selling avalanche transceiver in the world. Link to post Share on other sites
mogski 0 Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 If the trees that db was on were the sames ones I was on(with my backpack) then the palce of this avalanche is completely different cause it was not adjacent! It was right in resort. Still nonetheless I agree with FT and I was hesitant of many of the runs for this purpose. But I did still have a grand time. db when I find my money tree again I will happily join you in purchasing all the gears, getting skilled up learning and riding with you so that there is at least two shovels in the group. Link to post Share on other sites
Fattwins 0 Posted February 13, 2004 Share Posted February 13, 2004 I was wrong about the 3 phils it was vinnie in the trees. Yeah guys its just good to get the stuff cause of where you go. Look for packages hell maybe SJ can figure out a package deal in Japan and post it here. Link to post Share on other sites
enderzero 0 Posted February 14, 2004 Share Posted February 14, 2004 I do not own any back country survival gear but I am now equipped with a fair bit more knowledge. Now I know it is defintely worth investing in the gear. I am planning to outfit a BC pack this summer with beacon, probe, shovel, slope degree measuring device (crucial!) and more. I'm also planning to get some shoes to get to where I can justify having that stuff. Pocket book won't allow for it this year, but now I am aware of what kind of foolishness I have engaged in in the past. That said, if I had it to do over it would have been hard to keep me from dropping in. 'Tis the the paradox we face as powder seekers. Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted February 14, 2004 Author Share Posted February 14, 2004 Quote: Originally posted by enderzero: I do not own any back country survival gear but I am now equipped with a fair bit more knowledge. Now I know it is defintely worth investing in the gear. Yeah, your course in niseko has started the ball rolling. I reckon we should all do it and get totally boned up on the what's what. Then over the years no matter where we all live in the world, we can met some place crazy for some real BC adventure for a week or two. Make it an annual event to get into some of the best untouched powder that is on offer... we owe it to ourselves to ride this stuff and have the avie awareness to know ho to do it right. Get the ball rolling now and in 5 years we could all be strapping in on some extreme Alaskan peak with the helicopter camera man at the ready. Oh, but I will be a grumpy(er) old bugger by then .... & on skis!! (Nah, never on skis when there is powder) Link to post Share on other sites
enderzero 0 Posted February 14, 2004 Share Posted February 14, 2004 Sounds like a plan bro. Link to post Share on other sites
mogski 0 Posted February 14, 2004 Share Posted February 14, 2004 If I promise to get equipeed and schooled can I join you plan too. Please please pleaseee Link to post Share on other sites
sweetaz 0 Posted February 14, 2004 Share Posted February 14, 2004 Quote: Originally posted by d=(^o^)=b: Get the ball rolling now and in 5 years we could all be strapping in on some extreme Alaskan peak with the helicopter camera man at the ready. Oh, but I will be a grumpy(er) old bugger by then .... & on skis!! (Nah, never on skis when there is powder) Where do i sign up?? I'll be doing some avi training this season....can't wait! Link to post Share on other sites
Fattwins 0 Posted February 14, 2004 Share Posted February 14, 2004 Ah all the harpping is paying off. Good to hear you guys talking about it finally. Ender talkem into it. Link to post Share on other sites
montoya 0 Posted February 14, 2004 Share Posted February 14, 2004 We finally got all our gear, after figuring it's better to have it sooner rather than later: Tracker beacons BD aluminum shovels G3 probes MSR and Atlas snowshoes Osprey packs compass 1:25,000 topo maps Most expensive items were beacons and snowshoes, but found a mountaineering store in Tokyo (Kojitsu) with reasonable prices. Overall, spent a crapload, about 8-9 man each, but at least now it's done with. Just need to find a good avie course, preferably someplace near Tokyo. Link to post Share on other sites
damian 0 Posted February 14, 2004 Author Share Posted February 14, 2004 Quote: Originally posted by sweetaz: Quote: Originally posted by d=(^o^)=b: Get the ball rolling now and in 5 years we could all be strapping in on some extreme Alaskan peak with the helicopter camera man at the ready. Oh, but I will be a grumpy(er) old bugger by then .... & on skis!! (Nah, never on skis when there is powder) Where do i sign up?? I'll be doing some avi training this season....can't wait! Sorry babe, no chicks allowed. Nah, only joking. Montoya - I have casually looked for avie courses but they seem hard to come by, particularly on the weekends that I want to do one. Link to post Share on other sites
sweetaz 0 Posted February 14, 2004 Share Posted February 14, 2004 Fraid I'll make you look silly huh?? Link to post Share on other sites
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