 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi All
Ok, I'm thinking about buying a transceiver (and no - let's not start another debate about which one to buy - it'll end up with bloodshed between the S1 supporters and detractors!)
My dumb question isn't about how to use it for searches, it's about using it as a beacon/transmitter.
Are you supposed to leave it switched on in transmit mode all the time while you're skiing off piste, or are you supposed to only switch it on when you're in danger territory?
My confused brain is thinking - need to switch it on and leave it on all the time - but would that confuse searchers if loads of people have got transmitters switched on? Verses only switch it on if you need to, but by then it may be too late?!
Help!
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Leave it on all the time, you never know where the danger areas are and if you switch it off you may forget to switch it on again. I switch mine on when I put it on and only switch it off when I take it off. The range is short enough that people unconnected with the rescue effort are very unlikley to interfere with the signal of the victim.
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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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Absolutely! Switch it on when you leave in he morning, switch it off when you come home at night. Do not turn it off at lunch, you may forget to switch it on again.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
You need to Login to know who's really who.
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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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If you find yourself in the aftermath of a slide get involved and get off transmit as many signals could confuse searchers. Otherwise. always on transmit, and always on whatever you're doing. Like a helmet, you cannot predict when you will need it at the beginning of the day. If you are stil in doubt read about the death in CHamonix on Christmas day. A few feet from a piste in a blizzard. A tranceiver could have made the difference.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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If you find yourself in the aftermath of a slide get involved and get off transmit as many signals could confuse searchers. Otherwise. always on transmit, and always on whatever you're doing. Like a helmet, you cannot predict when you will need it at the beginning of the day. If you are stil in doubt read about the death in CHamonix on Christmas day. A few feet from a piste in a blizzard. A tranceiver could have made the difference.
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All
Thanks for the swift answers, and the additional detail and explanations. Great advice indeed!
Tux - I don't tend to ski "danger territory" either! If I'm going completely off piste I won't do it without a guide. But I do often ski the "off piste" sections between marked pistes and ski down the same route as the piste but 30-40 feet inside the treelines that run alongside. Having heard about the dreadful fate of the skier in Chamonix recently who got buried by a mini avalanche whilst skiing between pistes, I figured that a transceiver should be a must piece of equipment for me (and another for my partner).
cheers all.
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Battery life in transceivers is several weeks of normal skiing days. Ortovox web site shows 250 hours transmitting for the S1 and 300 hours for the F1 Focus. 250 hours at 8 hours per day gives 31 days. Search practice will reduce this a little. Much like other people state here, my transceiver is turned on before leaving my accommodation at the start of the day. It is turned off when I have finished skiing for the day. I put new batteries in at the start of each skiing holiday. The old batteries have plenty of juice left so are used in other non-life-saving gear.
Buying one for yourself, Arrows, and another for your partner is good. But more importantly, all of your off piste skiing partners should have them. Transceivers are most effective when everyone in the group has one, anything less can be fatal. Suppose the party member without a transceiver gets buried, the other peoples transceivers cannot help. Suppose instead that the only searcher it the person without a transceiver.
Having got the transceivers, practise searching with them. Have a look at Henry's Avalanche Talk, if possible go to one of Henry's talks and attend a transceiver training session. If you cannot attend Henry's sessions then ask here and I am sure some Snowhead will know where to go for search training and avalanche awareness where you are going.
If the worst happens and you do need to search for a person then, having found them, how will you dig them out? The literature says that digging with hand or skis is very inefficient. So consider getting a shovel and a probe. (The probe helps you avoid digging in the wrong place.)
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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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| Arrows wrote: |
| What price can you put on safety eh?! |
The price of a decent avy course!!!!?
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