Saturday, 31 January 2015
Before the storm...
A few shots from last week before the big snows rolled in. A fun week coaching Andy, Jim, Jon and Pete - we even managed to find some good snow!
Friday, 30 January 2015
Snow!
The forecast large snowfalls have arrived!
Great tree skiing to be had currently - but care will be needed when it clears as the already very spicy snowpack will now be even more so until this lot has time to settle down properly (could be some time!).
Last week I was coaching a couple of IFMGA mountain guides and their friends - a good time was had by all and we managed to find some good snow to ski despite ending up on Plan C (or beyond) a couple for times. For once someone else had a camera (and knows how to take a mean photo), so thanks to Andy Perkins for this one of me testing out my new Whitedot Skis Director Carbonlites - very impressed so far:
Great tree skiing to be had currently - but care will be needed when it clears as the already very spicy snowpack will now be even more so until this lot has time to settle down properly (could be some time!).
Last week I was coaching a couple of IFMGA mountain guides and their friends - a good time was had by all and we managed to find some good snow to ski despite ending up on Plan C (or beyond) a couple for times. For once someone else had a camera (and knows how to take a mean photo), so thanks to Andy Perkins for this one of me testing out my new Whitedot Skis Director Carbonlites - very impressed so far:
Tuesday, 27 January 2015
Calm before the storm?
The last few days have been quite pleasant in the 3 Valleys, though visibility has been a bit challenging at times...
On Sunday I had a fun day coaching Brian and Linda from the Eagle Ski Club:
Since Monday I have been working with a couple of British Mountain Guides and their friends, with a steeps-oriented 'tune-up':
When visibility has allowed there has been some good snow to be skied, though care is still needed due to the thin snowpack and there were some clear signs of wind-loading on certain slopes today. Forecasts are currently predicting a fair (or very large) amount of snow from tomorrow evening onwards time will tell how much actually falls, but a large dose of caution will be needed throughout the weekend and into next week!
On Sunday I had a fun day coaching Brian and Linda from the Eagle Ski Club:
Since Monday I have been working with a couple of British Mountain Guides and their friends, with a steeps-oriented 'tune-up':
When visibility has allowed there has been some good snow to be skied, though care is still needed due to the thin snowpack and there were some clear signs of wind-loading on certain slopes today. Forecasts are currently predicting a fair (or very large) amount of snow from tomorrow evening onwards time will tell how much actually falls, but a large dose of caution will be needed throughout the weekend and into next week!
Sunday, 25 January 2015
Off Piste Improvers course - Val D'Anniviers
Last week I was in the Val D'Anniviers running the offpisteskiing.com and Jagged Globe Off Piste Improvers course.With a good snowfall on the Saturday and reasonably stable weather forecast for the week we really hit the jackpot with conditions - still finding perfect untracked powder on Friday afternoon!
From our hotel base in Grimentz we had easy access to the great skiing in both Grimentz and Zinal which offer great terrain for skiers looking to step up their off piste skiing. A big thank you goes out to Chas, Peter, Pete, Kate, Linda and Aiko for their enthusiasm and willingness to take new ideas on board - everyone really stepped up their game throughout the week!
Day 1 - starting the week in style with powder and blue skies!:
A run down past the Moiry dam on day 2:
Day 3 - still good powder in Zinal's 'Middle Bowl':
A trip away to Chandolin & St Luc - still good powder even on the sunny side!:
In the Chamois couloirs:
Ending the week as it began, 600m+ vertical of perfect untracked powder straight off the lifts!:
From our hotel base in Grimentz we had easy access to the great skiing in both Grimentz and Zinal which offer great terrain for skiers looking to step up their off piste skiing. A big thank you goes out to Chas, Peter, Pete, Kate, Linda and Aiko for their enthusiasm and willingness to take new ideas on board - everyone really stepped up their game throughout the week!
Day 1 - starting the week in style with powder and blue skies!:
A run down past the Moiry dam on day 2:
Day 3 - still good powder in Zinal's 'Middle Bowl':
A trip away to Chandolin & St Luc - still good powder even on the sunny side!:
In the Chamois couloirs:
Ending the week as it began, 600m+ vertical of perfect untracked powder straight off the lifts!:
Saturday, 24 January 2015
Good news... bad news...
A spectacular day yesterday to end a week of good snow and sunshine for the Off Piste Improvers course in the Val D'Anniviers, overshadowed by the news on the way home that Brendan O'Sullivan and 'American Dave' Rosenberger had been killed in separate incidents in the Mont Blanc range.
I never met Brendan, but he was a regular partner of Ben Briggs' with a CV of steep and serious descents and an active figure in the current steep ski/board scene. I only skied in Dave's company once, on the West face of the Eiger, and he blew me away with the ease of his positive, solid skiing on funky snow. Some big big snowfalls are predicted for the end of this week - take it easy out there folks!
The 'Captain' taking off on 600m vertical of perfect powder straight from the lifts yesterday afternoon!
More photos to follow from last week...
I never met Brendan, but he was a regular partner of Ben Briggs' with a CV of steep and serious descents and an active figure in the current steep ski/board scene. I only skied in Dave's company once, on the West face of the Eiger, and he blew me away with the ease of his positive, solid skiing on funky snow. Some big big snowfalls are predicted for the end of this week - take it easy out there folks!
More photos to follow from last week...
Thursday, 15 January 2015
3 Valleys conditions update - 14 Jan 2015
Despite all the doom and gloom being talked about the ski season this week has mostly been great if you used a little creativity:
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday the camera stayed at home as it was snowing, but we spent the day skiing powder on & just beside the piste...
Today:
Monday:
Tuesday:
Wednesday the camera stayed at home as it was snowing, but we spent the day skiing powder on & just beside the piste...
Today:
Sunday, 11 January 2015
Hindsight bias in avalanche incidents
Following yesterdays post, a number of comments (on other social media) prompted me to go and dig out a really interesting video on hindsight bias (see below).
The basic premise is that 99% of avalanche incidents, when viewed with posterity, are blindingly obvious. It is very easy to fall into a judgmental point of view "Why the heck did they ski THAT slope?", "Why did they stop THERE?", "They were stupid!". Yet prior to the incident it clearly wasn't so glaringly obvious that it was going to happen and people made a decision to ski the slope the way they did.
To get back to the 5 Jan avalanche - and I am not in any way connected to the group in the video - here are a couple of extra thoughts in response to some of the comments I have read:
- the entry to the Foglietta north face is rocky and 'clean' paths in are few and far between (this is not obvious from the vid) so it is not uncommon for skiers to be following a single track on to the face
- the top pitch of the face is approx 400m vertical to the first really big flat area (what might be considered a really good island of safety. Groups have the following dilemma (particularly for groups led by a professional): do they just drop in and ski the whole face one at a time, or try to find regrouping points that are as safe as possible at reasonable intervals? If an instructor or guide skis the whole pitch and then a client has a problem first turn, then they have a long skin back up to help them out.
The basic premise is that 99% of avalanche incidents, when viewed with posterity, are blindingly obvious. It is very easy to fall into a judgmental point of view "Why the heck did they ski THAT slope?", "Why did they stop THERE?", "They were stupid!". Yet prior to the incident it clearly wasn't so glaringly obvious that it was going to happen and people made a decision to ski the slope the way they did.
To get back to the 5 Jan avalanche - and I am not in any way connected to the group in the video - here are a couple of extra thoughts in response to some of the comments I have read:
- the entry to the Foglietta north face is rocky and 'clean' paths in are few and far between (this is not obvious from the vid) so it is not uncommon for skiers to be following a single track on to the face
- the top pitch of the face is approx 400m vertical to the first really big flat area (what might be considered a really good island of safety. Groups have the following dilemma (particularly for groups led by a professional): do they just drop in and ski the whole face one at a time, or try to find regrouping points that are as safe as possible at reasonable intervals? If an instructor or guide skis the whole pitch and then a client has a problem first turn, then they have a long skin back up to help them out.
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