Monthly Archive for July, 2008

Inside Info - Part II

Published
by
Andrew
on July 31, 2008
in 07 Avalanche Avoidance
. 0 Comments

The snowpack is the third major factor and also the trickiest one.  Like the weather, its history is more important than its immediate surface conditions. The plot thickens with the snowpack as there are almost always weaknesses in it, but they are difficult to quantify.  Snow is the building block of avalanches, but it is these tiny weaknesses between the blocks that actually cause them. Assessing the snowpack is difficult because these paper-thin layers are hard to identify and quantify amidst many feet of snow.

An avalanche triggered by a very surprised mountain lion in the Wasatch Mountains. No cats were hurt during the making of this photo and the tracks led away from the debris.
An avalanche triggered by a very surprised mountain lion in the Wasatch Mountains. No cats were hurt during the making of this photo and the tracks led away from the debris.

Thinking of avalanches in terms of terrain, weather and snowpack simplifies the decision process as you need all or a combination of these elements to have a slide.  If the weather and snowpack are unstable, but you are on flat terrain, you won’t have an avalanche.  Or, if you are in avalanche terrain, but the weather and snowpack are stable, you probably won’t have an avalanche. 

Thinking in terms of this triad also makes it easier to extrapolate decisions when you are unsure of one of the factors.  If you are in a) avalanche terrain and know it has been b) storming for the last two days, it’s a safe bet that you will trigger some slides, even if you know nothing about c) the stability of the snowpack.

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Inside Info - Part I

Published
by
Andrew
on July 30, 2008
in 07 Avalanche Avoidance
. 0 Comments

(continued from Monday’s ABC’s of avalanche train of thought)

With so many variables hidden under a blanket of white, where do you even begin?  Simplify the process by breaking it down into the big three categories; terrain, snowpack and weather.

Will it stay, or will it go now? New snow, steep slope and a clear day... what to do?
Will it stay, or will it go now? New snow, steep slope and nice weather…

Terrain is the easiest.  If golf courses are too flat to avalanche and vertical walls won’t hold snow, the prime avalanche angle must be somewhere right in between.  As it happens, 38 degrees is the magic/tragic angle where avalanches are most likely to occur.  For reference, this is about as steep as an expert slope at a ski resort, or in other words, perfect ski mountaineering terrain.

Weather is the next factor and has a direct correlation with avalanches.  Stable weather means stable snow, and turbulent weather means turbulent snow.  The important weather information is its history, not necessarily what it is doing at the moment.  Statistically, most avalanche accidents happen just after a storm when the weather has cleared, but the snowpack is still adjusting to its new loading.  New snow is the big, obvious ogre, but wind is the evil villain that lays hidden deadly traps.  Rapid warming creates unusual avalanches and rain would be far more dangerous if it wasn’t so unpleasant to ski in.

continued tomorrow…
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For 15% off on a Mountain Hardware Huckster backcountry skiing pack from Backcountry.com, click the photo below…

Crested Beauties

Published
by
Andrew
on July 29, 2008
in Trip Reports
. 3 Comments

Polly has been trying to get me to go to Crested Butte, Colorado for the last couple of years under the pretense that “it has beautiful wildflowers.”  I’d hardly walk outside the front door to look at wildflowers, let alone drive for eight hours,  but after three years, I caved in, and am happy I did.  What she should have said was “Crested Butte has killer mountain biking and excellent Mountain Unicycling and, unlike Utah in the summer, it is nice and cool.”

We camped out with Than & Kristy Acuff, and although there were afternoon thundershowers almost every day, we were able to get in some excellent rides, including Deadman’s Gulch, Doctor’s Park, Snodgrass and the 401 trail.  Having ridden a few of the classics, I understand why Crested Butte produces speedsters like Dave Penny and Ethan Passant - the hills are tough, high and steep.  Coming from the land of machine-cut, carefully graded mountain-bike trails (Park City), the CB trails were a full-on challenge.

The aptly named "Julie Andrew's Meadow." I was tempted to burst into a round of "The Hills are alive with the sounds of music" but restrained myself.
The aptly named “Julie Andrew’s Meadow.” I was tempted to burst into a round of “The Hills are alive with the sounds of music” but restrained myself.
The infamous Crested Butte wildflowers. Note the venomous insect looking at the viewfinder's juglar vein. Avoid at all costs.
The infamous Crested Butte wildflowers. Note the venomous insect looking at the viewfinder’s jugular vein. Avoid at all costs.
Than Acuff and Andy Southwick on the lookout near Cement Mountain.
Than Acuff and Andy Southwick on the lookout near Cement Mountain.
There's no shortage of rocks on the Deadman's & Doctor's Park trails.
There’s no shortage of rocks on the Deadman’s & Doctor’s Park trails.
Crested Butte - where the rubber meets the wildflower.
Crested Butte - where the rubber meets the wildflower.

Perhaps my favorite ride of the weekend was a trip down the 401 Trail with Tom Moyer on our Mountain Unicycles (aka “Muni’s”).  I got into Muni riding a few years ago and it instantly became my favorite summer activity as it is excellent training for skiing.  Muni riding requires a calm upper body and focus, just like skiing, plus, it makes moderate trails seem challenging.  Here’s a little YouTube video of our descent, set to Deadbolt’s classic “Patches” soundtracks.  (note: Muni riders are NOT into clowns!)

 

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For 15% off on a Mountain Hardware Casa 6 (perfect for camping in Crested Butte) from Backcountry.com, click the photo below…

Back From Crested Butte - Trip Report to Follow

Published
by
Andrew
on July 29, 2008
in Trip Reports
. 0 Comments

We got back late Monday night from a fun wildflower-crushing trip to Crested Butte.  Trip report to follow later today and eventually a little mini unicycle movie.

The mountain biking in Crested Butte lived up to its reputation!
The mountain biking in Crested Butte lived up to its reputation!

Snap, Crackle & Pop – The ABC’s of Avalanches

Published
by
Andrew
on July 28, 2008
in 07 Avalanche Avoidance
. 5 Comments

The physics of an avalanche is as easy to understand as placing one book on top of another, then tipping the lower book up until the top one slides off.  Voila - a bookalanche!  The grip or amount of friction between the books will determine how easily they slide apart.  If they are both dry and glossy, they’ll slide apart at almost any angle, but, if they have somehow bonded together through heat, humidity or moisture, you can turn them upside down and they may not come apart. 

 

One of my all time favorite avalanche education tools was this demonstration by the Alaska Avalanche School where layers of flour and sand are piled up on a flat board, which is then tipped up to 38 degrees where it rips loose and crushes the toys below.
One of my all time favorite avalanche education tools was this demonstration at the Alaska Avalanche School where layers of flour and sand are piled up on a flat board, which is then tipped up to 38 degrees where it rips loose and crushes the toys below.

This book example illustrates two important concepts of avalanches.  One, avalanches occur when a bond (friction) fails, and two; it can be difficult, if not impossible to predict exactly when that bond will fail without some additional information.  At times you could turn a mountain range over and shake it without the snow moving and at other times it will avalanche if you gently poke it with a ski pole.

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For 15% off on a super-deluxe Pieps DSP transciever from Backcountry.com, click the photo below…

Sunday Photo - Ben Goes into a Crevasse

Published
by
Andrew
on July 27, 2008
in Sunday Photo
. 2 Comments

Part of the reason I like this photo so much is that it had a happy ending, but it could easily have gone the other way.

This incident took place during a 2007 trip up to the Wrangell-St.Elias Mountains with Ben Ditto and Grant Guise.  We knew there were crevasses on the glaciers, but once we started climbing up a rocky ridgeline, we decided to leave the ropes and glacier gear behind.

Once we reached the top, Grant and I skied one line while Ben shot some photos, then disappeared behind a knoll to presumably ski an adjacent line.  He was gone a while, when suddenly the Motorola Radio came to life with Ben saying “I’m hanging upside down in a crevasse and I’m going to die!”

We asked if he was kidding, to which he emphatically said “NO” and we started running back up the 750′ hill to get him, which took about 20 minutes.  Once we got to the ridge, we could see a shallow depression (the snowbridge), with a set of ski tracks going right into it, then a set of black bases sticking straight up in the air!

We had to cross the bridge ourselves to get to Ben and then fashion an emergency rescue out of a picket and ice axe (still visible stuck into the lower lip of the crevasse) which we tossed down to Ben, who then pulled himself up to the point where we could help yard him out. 

On the way up the slope to get him, Ben, being the photographer, called us on the radio and asked “Take a photo, then yank me out!”  When we got there, we were so dismayed that we forgot about the photo until afterward.

Here Ben is screaming in a mixture of pain as the blood flows back into his feet and happiness at being out of the dark hole.  As a side-note, when he first fell in he was held by a single Dynafit toepiece!

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For 15% off on a Black Raven Ice tool like the one used to pull Ben out, from Backcountry.com, click the photo below… 

StraightChuter.com Raison d’être – Selling Out?

Published
by
Andrew
on July 26, 2008
in Random
. 1 Comment

Last summer I went to an all-day seminar by a woman who helped professional athletes promote themselves.  About halfway into her talk people were squirming in their seats at many of her suggestions and she said “I’m getting the impression that in the climbing and skiing world it’s not socially acceptable to promote yourself or your sport, so how do you guys (and girls) expect to make a living doing this?”  That’s a good question and is why many people guide, write, sell photos or become ski bums - it is very difficult to make a living as a full-time backcountry skier.  Sponsorship goes a long ways, but is miniscule compared to other sports.  I remember driving by a mansion in Rhode Island which belonged to a famous golfer and thinking what a financially poor choice becoming a ski mountaineer was.  Oh well..!

Continue reading ‘StraightChuter.com Raison d’être – Selling Out?’

StraightChuter.com Raison d’être – Content

Published
by
Andrew
on July 25, 2008
in Random
. 2 Comments

As an avid skier, I’m always interested in what skiing friends are up to in different parts of the world and often check out their websites.  In the winter this is great, but it in heat of the summer, it becomes apparent that skiing is a seasonal sport and there is not a lot going on.  I didn’t want to write about repairing my roof, building a swing set for my daughter or going on a car camping trip as they are things that skiers might do in the summer, but are not skiing.  I wanted the main page to be skiing, then skiing and/or skier related topics on the forum.

Continue reading ‘StraightChuter.com Raison d’être – Content’

StraightChuter.com Raison d’être - Part I

Published
by
Andrew
on July 24, 2008
in Random
. 0 Comments

Note: I’ve got posts scheduled over the next four days, but physically I’ll be in Crested Butte crushing wildflowers with a 3″ Mountain Unicycle wheel and have limited computer access.

In 1999 I went on an ill-fated trip to Tibet which was sponsored in part by MountainZone.com.  On the trip, we used digital cameras (which were new & exciting at the time) and had a chance to learn a little about setting up websites.  When I got back,  I bought my first digital camera and set up PawPrince.com (named after my dog, who was a princely beast) mainly just for the fun of it.  At the time, it seemed magical to be able to put together trip reports and share them with friends from all over the world.

  Continue reading ‘StraightChuter.com Raison d’être - Part I’

Photo Gallery - Shishapangma 1999

Published
by
Andrew
on July 23, 2008
in Events
. 0 Comments

After discussing avalanche avoidance for the last few days, it seemed like a good time put up some photos from one of my worst avalanche experiences - Shishapangma 1999, where Alex Lowe and David Bridges died in a massive slide while scouting a route near the base of the line we were hoping to ski.

The event was covered by MountainZone.com and is still available on their website at:

http://classic.mountainzone.com/climbing/99/shishapangma/