J2Ski Forum Posts and Replies by admin

A good write-up as usual Tony; glad you had a good week, and hope Wickers is on the mend.

Tony_H wrote:I believe Mrs W got a stiff telling off from Ian when she told him we had gone off piste onto non patrolled sectors. Oops.

:shock:

He showed commendable restraint.

Presumably he was reassured by your having checked the avalanche bulletin and hiring a guide to show you around? And by the fact that you all (including Mrs W) had avy kit with you?

From the Anchorage Daily News :-

A heli-skiing guide died Tuesday morning in an avalanche northwest of Haines, according to Alaska State Troopers.

...

Troopers received a call about 11 a.m. that two skiers from a group of six were buried. Another group of skiers rushed to help recover them, troopers said.

One of those covered in snow was 35-year-old Telluride, Colo. resident Robert Liberman, who died in the avalanche, troopers said. Liberman was leading the group as a guide with Alaska Heliskiing, troopers said.

Another person was injured and later flown to Seattle for medical treatment. That person, a guided client, was "clinging to life," Haines radio station KHNS reported. Troopers are not releasing that person's name pending notification of next of kin.

Troopers said everyone in the group wore avalanche beacons.

Read more here: http://www.adn.com/2012/03/13/2368821/avalanche-kills-colorado-skier.html

Avalanche deaths point to high risk in backcountry

From the Calgary Herald...

Following the third avalanche fatality in a week in the B.C. backcountry, skiers and snowmobilers are being told to steer clear of many mountain areas in B.C. and Alberta, as the risk of slides remains considerable to high and could soon hit extreme.

A 33-year-old Calgary man lost his life while backcountry skiing in the Ghost Peak area south of Revelstoke on Sunday.

The conditions were so hazardous that his body and his five companions could not be brought out by helicopter until Tuesday morning despite two attempts.

Read more: Calgary Herald

Lynn_D wrote:Is this normal for French resorts?

Increasingly common I think... actually, I'm struggling to remember when I last saw a Black that was regularly bashed. Most decent Blacks will be of a sufficient steepness (at least in places) to prevent the safe use of a piste-basher without a winch and tether of some kind.

There are various reasons; not least being that the majority of skiers want it to be like that! Some resorts even reference the energy-saving / green aspect of "pistes nature". :roll:

I tend to steer my ageing (no sniggering at the back) knees away from icy mogul fields nowadays, but there's nothing worse than getting up the mountain on a powder day to find everything's been bashed flat. Thankfully, enlightened resorts will now leave Blacks, quite a few Reds and even the occasional Blue un-pisted on powder days.

Lynn_D wrote:some powder to play in at the sides

But now the powder will be on the piste... so you can ski it in safety, knowing that (as a marked run) it will have been made safe and is protected from avalanche?

I think there is a trend away from "over grooming" runs, at least in France, with a resulting return to more natural, more varied and much more interesting pistes. Variety and a little challenge is what improves us as skiers.

Just MHO, but I think that's a good thing. 8)

At the end of the day though, Black Runs are supposed to be the hardest runs on the mountain - and if you choose to do them then you should expect to be faced with just about any kind of "skiable" slope.

Dreadful news from the World Cup skicross event held in Grindelwald, Switzerland on Saturday.


Picture copyright Getty Images, via the BBC

From the official FIS Press Release :-

The Canadian Ski Cross athlete Nick Zoricic crashed heavily during the Ski Cross event in Grindelwald on March 10th, 2012 and died as a result of the injuries he suffered.

The FIS Ski Cross World Cup in Grindelwald on March 10th, 2012 was overshadowed by the fatal accident. The Canadian athlete Nick Zoricic fell heavily just before the finish in the round of eight, crashing directly into the safety netting and thereafter laying motionless. Medical care was administered immediately by team doctors, with expert care by the Swiss emergency response team Air Glacier following within minutes.

Despite the best efforts of all involved and the reanimation of Zoricic in hospital, he died at 12:35 as a result of severe neurotrauma.

Zoricic, 29 years old, began his ski career as an Alpine athlete and switched later to Ski Cross. He achieved two podium places in his Ski Cross career (2010/11 and 2011/12) and was sixth in the overall standings in 2011.

After the tragic accident the organisers decided to cancel the entire event in Grindelwald, including the remainder of Saturday's race and the World Cup Final on March 11th.

The Organising Committee, FIS, and Swiss-Ski express their deepest condolences to the family and friends of Nik Zoricic and the Canadian Ski Team.

http://www.fis-ski.com/uk/news/pressreleases/press-release-2012/grindelwald.html

Also on the BBC here ...
http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/winter-sports/17326700

Two die in avalanche in the Tetons

From ESPN, confirming the deaths of Steve Romeo (randosteve) and Chris Onufer, a long-time member of the ski area staff;

Two well-known backcountry skiers were killed on Wednesday in Wyoming's Grand Teton National Park. Park rangers found the bodies of Jackson Hole Mountain Resort employee Chris Onufer and ski mountaineer and blogger Steve Romeo on Thursday.

Grand Teton National Park rangers and Teton County Search and Rescue initiated the search after being notified that two skiers failed to return home on Wednesday. They found the car of the missing skiers late Wednesday night in a trailhead parking lot 10 miles north of Moran Junction. They began an aerial reconnaissance flight to Ranger Peak at sunrise on Thursday.

They located a large avalanche debris field on the slope of 11,355-foot Ranger Peak just before 9 a.m. and searchers aboard the helicopter received signals from two avalanche beacons. A physical search of the debris turned up the two missing skiers.

Steve's blog is online here - http://www.tetonat.com/ and there is a Facebook tribute here - FriendsOfSteveRomeoChrisOnufer

Here's a video posted by Steve last week...



RIP guys. :cry:

This past week has seen mostly settled weather with a fair amount of sunshine and generally great skiing conditions. Scattered snows have freshened up the runs on both sides of the Atlantic, and it's reported to be still snowing (albeit relatively lightly) in parts of the Austrian Alps tonight.

European Weather and Snow This Coming Week

The current settled weather is likely to continue through most of the next week, with temperatures generally around the average for the time of year. There is the possibility of a little, scattered snow as we move into next week but expect more sunshine and Spring skiing from mid-mountain down.

8)

Trimmed and locked.