 Poster: A snowHead
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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That's pretty scary. When the guy was struggling for breath under the snow my heart was racing!
Surprised to see the guide with a plastic shovel. Those things are useless.
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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?
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Good thing his buddies were well equipped.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| rob@rar wrote: |
That's pretty scary. When the guy was struggling for breath under the snow my heart was racing!
Surprised to see the guide with a plastic shovel. Those things are useless. |
It worked.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I managed 28 seconds before feeling sick and bailing. 
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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| achilles wrote: |
| rob@rar wrote: |
That's pretty scary. When the guy was struggling for breath under the snow my heart was racing!
Surprised to see the guide with a plastic shovel. Those things are useless. |
It worked. |
Have you ever used a plastic shovel to move snow?
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Isn't that the same one used for the Avalung advert?
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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.
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Good clip - gives a sense of actually being buried... wondering if and when you're gonna be dug out.
Good advertisement for the BCA Tracker too
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*note to self* go practice with your avy kit again 
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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did the skier have a avalung?
What struck me is how well the sound still travels in the snow (and that the helmet cam didn't die!) and even if you can hear the rescuers you can't communicate back, and if they didn't have tracker what a nightmare death that would be as you can here them searching in the wrong spots..
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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I assume it was a fairly shallow burial if the camera still had enough light getting to it to record an image, as well as picking up the sounds of his rescuers on the surface.
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| zammo wrote: |
| *note to self* go practice with your avy kit again |
Indeed, although better to learn about snowpack stability to avoid the nightmare scenario in the first place?
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You know it makes sense.
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Must have been very cold, the snow didn't seem to have compacted much.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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rob@rar, Must admit that I swapped my Black Diamond metal one for a Ortovox shovel with polycarbonate blade. Seems to be OK. The metal has to be the best choice for performance. However, I thought with my aged legs I would be less tempted to leave a shovel out of the backpack if I had the Ortovox than if I had a heavier shovel. For a young fit bloke like you no problem - and I take your point about that burial being fairly shallow.
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Poster: A snowHead
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| papasmurf wrote: |
| did the skier have a avalung? |
According to the YouTube commentary, yes, but it wasn't in his mouth when he started the run. He apparently tried to put it in his mouth when the avalanche happened but it didn't stay. Interesting commentary:
"He had a Black Diamond Avalung on, but as you can tell from the video while he's talking as he's dropping in, it wasn't in his mouth to start. He tried to shove it in the instant of starting to get sucked down, but it didn't stay. It was just off to the corner of his mouth he said, and he definitely got snow / ice build up as you'll see on the second sweep of the mouth by the guide after they get to him." (YouTube)
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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The really hard part turning around and not skiing after having done the hike, always helps to have the female voice of reason along.
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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?
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achilles, the few grammes extra for a metal blade are pretty insignificant compared to the difference in a plastic blade when shoveling snow. My BCA metal bladed shovel is not much heavier than an equivalent plastic one.
I was shocked how much more ineffective a plastic blade was having spent a week digging snowpits and locating and retrieving buried backpacks. The plastic blades flexed so much it made the effort significantly more strenuous. Giving that the only time you're going to be using it is to save the life of a skiing buddy who has minutes to live I think I'd like to have a shovel which is going to make it a bit easier to move maybe a tonne of snow.
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rob@rar, i am always tempted to offer to swap shovels with plastic shovel carriers so they can use my metal shovel to dig me out should the worst come to the worst 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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speaking of which I should *really* get a metal shovel, any recommendations, decent prices??
Last edited by Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do. on Mon 21-09-09 15:02; edited 1 time in total
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Interesting as I'd suspect that retaining the avalung mouthpiece in your mouth as you're potentionally being rag dolled about and gasping may be fairly hard.
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rob@rar, a session of back-packing made me of the school that every gramme saved helps. I saw a BCA metal-blade shovel after I bought my Ortovx - and I must admit it looked good. I shall make a point of checking my shovel out in heavy snow next January.
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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.
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achilles, an avalanche is not just heavy snow - have you ever walked across an old one?
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rob@rar, I'll try and give it some welly. The avalanches which seem the worst are those where the snow seems like blocks of ice rather than snow. It must be tough having dig that stuff with any shovel. Mind you, I wonder what the survivability is if you get buried in one of those.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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That was bl00dy scary. I think i will be sticking on the piste for a few years yet.
What happens when you go off piste with a guide? Would they insist on everyone having emergency kit or is it basically up to you if you are stupid enough not to carry it?
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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The second you see the slab crack you know it's going to be bad news. Shows how fast it happens. He was a very lucky guy.
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| Quote: |
According to the YouTube commentary, yes, but it wasn't in his mouth when he started the run. He apparently tried to put it in his mouth when the avalanche happened but it didn't stay. Interesting commentary:
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I doubt Black diamond would be using this video on their website as an avalung advertisment if that were the case. But if it's true......
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You know it makes sense.
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rob@rar, achilles, I have a plastic avalanche shovel.
I keep it in my car for snowy days in the UK... 
Get a metal one.
ph, most of the time - if you are going anywhere interesting - the deal is you either already own the kit or hire it. You might be the muppet who triggers the avalanche onto someone else and then has to find them/dig them out.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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| ph wrote: |
| What happens when you go off piste with a guide? Would they insist on everyone having emergency kit or is it basically up to you if you are stupid enough not to carry it? |
if you don't have the kit you don't go. guides will usually supply it to those without
the kit is at least as much about saving your buddies as it is about saving your own skin
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Poster: A snowHead
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stoatsbrother, easiski now has my old metal spade in the back of her Chevvy.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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kitenski, this is the next one I want to get - had a play - really nice stow mechanism
For anyone visiting the US - Snowbigdeal have some great transceiver/shovel/probe combo bargains
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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?
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| rob@rar wrote: |
| zammo wrote: |
| *note to self* go practice with your avy kit again |
Indeed, although better to learn about snowpack stability to avoid the nightmare scenario in the first place? |
too right - hard to tell from the video but it looks as though the slide was predominantly below him which I would presume to be a better set of circumstances than a great block from above.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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According to Chappy...
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| The guy in the video was the first one to drop from their group and while not a guide (he was going tail-gunner style), had a lot of Utah and AK backcountry experience |
Yeah... right. Typical "backcountry" dude who doesn't have a clue.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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| kitenski wrote: |
| speaking of which I should *really* get a metal shovel, any recommendations, decent prices?? |
It is no good being metal if the gauge is too thin.. I've seen some collapse under a boot..
The shop exchanged it with no qualms but the point being it was useless.... and failed the dig test.
From what I have seen, Ortovox do a good line..
The Ali pro and Expert are decent, IMV and just about the right trade-off between weight and strenght. The Expert can chop down trees... but the weight is significant, IMO..
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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to my 1000% untutored eye that slope looked like an avalanche waiting to happen from the very outset - especially that slight windblown cornice effort just before the cracks started to appear. Lee slope?
And I thought all the wise guys said you don't strap into your poles in powder?
Horrendous.
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Intrestingly if you actually read the very long commentry you will discover that they spotted him because one of his gloves came off just before the avalanche stopped and must have ended up on teh surface, it was that glove that guided them to his general location, makes me wonder if in fact the old fashioned streamers are not in fact some of teh best ways of finding victims
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hmm, I have the Grivel steel blade (plastic) shovel, think the guy in the shop convinced me using some sort of mind control... since then i've seen a lot of good reviews and some awards as well. But still not completely convinced! was i duped???
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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.
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| dulcamara wrote: |
| was i duped??? |
Easiest way to fin out is to test it. Dig a snow pit, preferably using a borrowed metal blade shovel to see which is easier. I was shocked at the difference between the two types.
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D G Orf, except that there is no evidence that they have ever worked. Surely you remember?
Let's not do that one again. 
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