 Poster: A snowHead
|
A friend (and work colleague) of mine is emmigrating to Canada in a month's time.
He'll be living at Sun peaks resort. B*****d!
He's keen to spend as much time off piste skiing as possible but has only previously ventured off with ski instructors in the past.
I was thinking of getting him a shovel and probe as I know he doesn't yet have these bits of equipment.
I've started looking at some items but I don't really know what's what!
I noticed some shovels have the probe inside the handle, are these any good, Or do most people tend to go for seperate pieces?
What length probe should I get?
Given that he'll be living on resort, he'll probably be pretty hardcore so I'm looking for something that he wont need to replace too soon.
I was looking at the black diamond 'deploy 3' shovel for £50. the handle slides down rather than detatches.
I assume the blade of the shovel is worn on the back??
I'm looking to spend around £100 in total. Can I buy good gear for that price?
I don't want some local saying "man, those shovels suck" when he gets out there.
What do you recommend?
Any help would be most welcome
|
|
|
|
|
|
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
|
boris360, ... Metal shovel, carbon probe about 2.6m or 2.8m long.
I have this one: http://www.facewest.co.uk/Ortovox-Shovel-Pro-Alu.html
( BD shovel has some good feedback.I think  JT, has bought one of the BD shovels - he might advise on them if he is along later)
There is a link to 'Facewest' from snowheads home page. Some good stuff there.
|
|
|
|
|
|
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
|
|
boris360, ... also some really good information here on pistehors
|
|
|
|
|
|
You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
|
boris360,
If you can get the BCA shovel, they do an arrangement where you can buy the probe to fit inside. This might compromise thenght of the probe which I think is 1.8 mtrs. But then there is an argument that much over that and you are probably looking at a body anyway.
The average lenght is 2mtrs, I'd say. So the upside is that these poles have a degree of protection for damage in the pack..haven't heard about this, but... against lenght.
Black diamond do a very light weight Transfer Shovel but the handle is a fixed lenght, and also a very compact Deploy shovel. Both metal blades. BCA do the combined probe set-up.
The other thing, can you fit them in your pack..?
|
|
|
|
|
|
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
|
Blakc diamond stuff is good.
their probes with the quick set-up system are really nice.
shovels, you want light but a decent-sized METAL blade, preferably with a contractible handle that's easy to open with gloves. longer handle when unfolded = faster shovelling edit: but more weight.
reliability and weight (lack of) are probly the most important things, in that order. Pretty much everything in the backcountry is a compromise with weight, but life and death matters have to take priority. Besides, you don't want everyone refusing to ski with him because his rescue gear is dodgy 
You certainly wouldn't go wrong with bd.
oh and yeah, shovel gets strapped to outside of pack usually
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
|
|
Thanks for the advice everyone. A few things to consider there!
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Dunno about the Black Diamond stuff, but I've used the BCA shovel with the probe that fits inside the handle. It's nice and compact and feels very robust (all metal apart from a plastic grip at the top of the handle). I've not used it for a real recovery (fortunately).
As JT said, I don't think a probe longer than 1.8m will make a difference - the chances of recovering anyone alive deeper than this are pretty slim (even getting a probe that deep is difficult 'cos avi debris set rock hard)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
I have heard in Canada that with a lot of powder a longer probe might be preferable. Not much in it though... speed of response is the deciding factor in burials, and with a good fix from the transeiver you can always dig a little and then probe. I went for a 2.3m myself.
|
|
|
|
|
|
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
|
boris360, Don't go too short on a probe - remember when using it in anger, there will be about 1m of it out of the snow. The 'search' action is such that the probe is pushed into the snow by both hands - raised high at first, then plunging down, but only to about the searchers waist height. Thus a 2.8m probe will in effect have a search depth of less than 2m. The probe will penetrate snow to that depth reasonably easily, but it becomes exhausting work after 5-10 minutes. It's imperative to practice avalanche rescue techniques. In addition to this great gift that you are buying for your friend, it may be worth contacting the resort 'Pisteurs' at Sun Peaks, to enquire if they run any Avalanche Rescue training sessions.
In my view a metal shovel is superior to a plastic one. The stresses on a shovel during rescue digging are substantial, especially in the area where the blade joins the handle. Rescue shovelling is also exhausting work. As the searcher gets more exhausted, the tendancy is to lever the shovel handle back towards the snow to 'lift' the blade up, rather than using the searchers back and arm strength! This is where shovels can break, so it's important to get the strongest available in preference to saving weight. How the searcher shovels is very important also and there is also a good article, Stragetic shovelling on Pistehors. It may be worth printing this out for your friend to study and practice. Practicing the scenario is key. There won't be any time to think when it's for real. Everything then must go on auto-pilot.
Also, most of the conversation on this Thread is quite rightly on your equipment request, but there is another very important aspect and that is 'Mountain Awareness', i.e. getting the knowledge and experience of mountains, snow, weather, etc, - not to get caught in avalanche scenario.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
|
boris360,
good choice, I have their expert shovel and carbon probes.
I find them a good company to deal with direct as their agent situation in the UK was in a state of flux about a year ago
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
FAQ
