The Avalanche Hour Podcast (The Avalanche Hour)

We start this episode with Jayne Thompson-Nolan stopping by to give us an update from the American Avalanche Association (A3). She highlights some of the initiatives and achievements from the last year, provides some member updates, and talks about opportunities for grants, scholarships, and continuing education.

We then launch into an interview with IFMGA guide Evan Stevens. Evan is the owner of Zenith Mountain Guides in Squamish, BC. Originally from New York, Evan has always felt a strong pull to climbing and skiing and landed a job with the Utah Avalanche Center after completing college in Vermont. Evan reflects on some pivotal learning moments from some influential mentors during his time at the UAC. We chat about some of the similarities and differences in the structure of guide education and progression in the United States and Canada. Evan talks about the importance of understanding the resolution of the avalanche forecast that you may be utilizing to plan your day. He describes why he and one of his partners started a newsletter: The Weekly South Coast Ski Conditions Report and how it can help local riders add value to the AvCan forecast.

We hope you enjoy!

Fill out our Listener survey here. Thank you!

This episode was made possible through the support of:

Wyssen Avalanche Control

Gordini

OpenSnow: Use code Avalanche50 to receive 50% off your premium All Access subscription!

Safeback

Music: Age Diamante

Zenith Mountain Guides

In this episode of The Avalanche Hour, host Sean welcomes special guest Jess Shade. A high-altitude ski mountaineer, queer woman, and licensed Clinical Mental Health Counselor in Utah and Michigan. Jess brings a unique blend of personal experience and professional expertise to discuss the intricate relationship between mental health and mountain environments.

Together, they delve into the mindsets of those who inhabit the mountains, exploring therapy-based ideas that help individuals process daily events, inclusion, and trauma. Jess shares insights on the changing culture regarding mental health in the snow world, highlighting tools like the Responder Alliance’s Stress Continuum and principles from Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) to promote resilience and psychological flexibility.

They also discuss Jess’s work with organizations like the American Alpine Club’s Climbing Grief Fund and the Utah Avalanche Center, as well as her involvement with Utah’s LGBTQ+ community through the LGBTQ+ Affirmative Therapist Guild of Utah.

Socials:

• The Avalanche hour Podcast
• Jess Shade

Links: 

• Listener Survey

• LGBTQ+ Affirmative Therapist Guild of Utah - An organization of therapists who meet monthly for continuing education. The website has a list of licensed clinicians in Utah who are affirming and trained in working with queer people. 

• Mountain Queers - An organization supporting representation and equity for queer and trans folx in mountain sport.

• Responder Alliance - works to build awareness of stress injury and increase resilience for folks who work in austere environments. Please note they are largely focused on prevention, however many of the resources and tools are very applicable and provide a good foundation for having conversations around stress and trauma.

• Climbing Grief Fund, American Alpine Club - CGF hosts a therapist directory and offers individual grants of up to $600 to individuals who have experienced grief or trauma related to climbing, alpinism, or ski mountaineering. You do not have to be a member of the American Alpine Club to apply for a CGF grant.

• American Avalanche Association - The A3 Avalanche Resilience Project also hosts a therapist directory with folks who have familiarity with the industry. A3 also offers a "resilience grant" of up to $500 to Professional and Affiliate members who are interested in pursuing therapy.

• Survivors of Outdoor Adventures and Recovery (SOAR) - SOAR offers professionally-facilitated peer support groups for folks who have experienced loss or trauma in the outdoors. I just attended one of their community connection workshops on grief and trauma and found it very helpful. Get in touch with this wonderful organization!

• Mountain Muskox - For our northern friends, Mountain Muskox is a fantastic organization that offers professionally-facilitated in person peer support circles in BC and Alberta. They also offer a weekend gathering each fall.

Sponsors for this episode:

• Wyssen Avalanche Control

• Gordini - Use code snowpro40 to receive 40% off Gordini gear through October. (Code:SnowPro40)

• Beacon Guide Books: Use the code AVSAR to get 25% off the Avalanche Search + Rescue: A Backcountry Field Guide

• OpenSnow: Use code avalanche50 to receive 50% off their premium subscription.

Crew:

• Creator - Caleb Merrill

• Host - Sean Zimmerman-Wall

• Producer - Cameron Griffin

Donate:

• The Avalanche Hour Podcast

• The American Avalanche Association 

Music:

• Age Diamante - Chill Pah

Fall is here and winter is right around the corner! Welcome back to Season 9 of The Avalanche Hour Podcast.

In today's episode, Caleb sits down with IFMGA guide and co-founder/CEO of Aspect Avy, Jeff Banks. Jeff's mission in life is to help people do dangerous things -the safest way possible. He's happiest when he's in the mountain mountains helping people live long & adventurous lives.

Jeff has a 20+ year career working as an avalanche professional in the realms of avalanche forecasting, explosive work, and guiding. Jeff is an AMGA instructor team member and examiner in addition to the avalanche training he teaches to the US Special Forces. He has spent 16 winters guiding and skiing in Chamonix, has been a US Ski Mountaineering Champion, and former head coach of Colorado's Olympic Development Nordic Team. Jeff lives in Crested Butte, Colorado with his daughter.

Jeff and Caleb chat about some pivotal moments in Jeff's career that gave him pause about the amount of risk he was taking on while skiing and ski guiding in avalanche terrain. This spurred him to think about a better way to approach traveling in and near avalanche terrain. Aspect Avy was born out of this and Jeff unpacks what this new tool has to offer to winter backcountry enthusiasts.

Thanks to the sponsors of this episode:

Wyssen Avalanche Control

Gordini

Open Snow

Propagation Labs

Check out the ski that Jeff helped design with Romp Skis. The Romp Shepard 99 was designed to meet his needs as a mountain guide. From deep powder to steep frozen corn -They're his all time favorite ski in every condition. It's what the U.S. Special Forces use & about 20 of his guests. They will change your skiing & possibly alter the course of your life.

OTHER LINKS:

The Avalanche Hour Podcast Listener Survey

Avalanche Education Scholarships- Deadlines Approaching!

Darren Johnson Avalanche Education Memorial Fund (deadline October 9th)

American Avalanche Association (A3) Education Scholarships

US Fall Snow and Avalanche Workshop Schedule

Episode 9.2: Dr. Sara Boilen Interviews Cody Townsend.

Cody Townsend discusses The Fifty Project , a web series documenting his attempt to climb and ski all 50 classic ski descents of North America. He reflects on the transition from being seen as a fearless, ego-driven skier to showcasing vulnerability and the behind-the-scenes reality of the sport. Cody shares his experience of a traumatic trip in Alaska where he encountered his limits and felt overwhelmed by fear. He discusses the consequences of risk-taking and the importance of pushing oneself and embracing failure. Cody Townsend reflects on the importance of encountering fear and discomfort to live a richer, more three-dimensional life. He discusses how challenging situations in the mountains can lead to contentment and a deeper appreciation for everyday life. However, he also acknowledges the need to balance risk-taking with its consequences on oneself and the community. Townsend emphasizes the importance of self-awareness and self-analysis in decision-making, as well as the need to prioritize coming home at the end of the day. He discusses how becoming a parent has shifted his perspective and made him reevaluate the level of risk he is willing to take. Townsend plans to regain trust in himself by slowly reintegrating into the mountains without putting pressure on himself.

Thank you to the sponsors of this episode:

Wyssen Avalanche Control

Gordini: Use code snowpro40 to receive 40% Gordini gear through October.

OpenSnow: Use code avalanche50 to receive 50% off their premium subscription.

IPA Collective: Industry pros sign up here for great pro-deals.

We want to hear from you! Fill out our Listener Survey.

In this bonus episode, I chat with Greg Johnson. Greg has a diverse background in the world of snow and avalanches from guiding, to public forecasting, to structural engineering and project management. Greg started 6 point engineering- based out of Nelson, BC. His focus is on avalanche hazard management amongst industry within BC, and it sounds like he stays busy! Music by Chris Kaplinski. WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 https://alnk.to/6bNgvJb SOCIAL CBD 20% OFF LINK: https://www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=ml&ti=908357&pw=282549

In this episode, we sit down with former nordic olympic ski racer turned avalanche forecaster- Wendy Wagner. Wendy is the director of the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Information Center in Girdwood Alaska. She talks about some of the intricacies of the forecast center, its strengths, strategies, and goals. Music by Chris Kaplinski. Enjoy. WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 https://alnk.to/6bNgvJb SOCIAL CBD 20% OFF LINK: https://www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=ml&ti=908357&pw=282549

In this installment of The Avalanche Hour’s Third Thursday; I sit down on a Zoom call with James Minifie, owner/operator of Skookum Backcountry based out of the Yukon. He is also the lead field technician for the region with Avalanche Canada. Born and raised in the Rockies, James has lived in the mountains his entire life. His passion for the outdoors is infectious. He is a fully certified Association of Canadian Mountain Guides -Ski Guide, Hiking Guide and a Professional Member of the Canadian Avalanche Association. https://www.skookumbackcountry.com @skookumbackcountryyukon @avcanyukon Follow us on Instagram @theavalanchehour Follow our supporters on Instagram for up to date news from them. @TASBYMND @10barrelbrewing @interwest_insurance Resources on the socials @americanavalancheassociation @avalanchecanada The Avalanche Hour Savings WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 alnk.to/6bNgvJb SOCIAL CBD 20% OFF LINK: www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=ml&…908357&pw=282549 Music by Chris Kaplinski

Meet Kelly McNeil. Kelly's roots run deep in motorized winter recreation. She talks about her background, some parallels between her education and avalanche outreach efforts, and lets us know what she has on tap for her upcoming interviews. Thanks Kelly for your efforts in contributing to the podcast! Excited to hear your interviews to follow!

In this episode, Kelly McNeil sits down with Duncan Lee. Duncan is a Lake Tahoe native, film maker, professional snowmobiler and avalanche educator. We talk about Duncan’s journey into the world of motorized avalanche education, group management techniques, strategies to address human factors, as well as, many other important topics! Music by Chris Kaplinski

At 5:52 PM on Tuesday, March 31st 2020, a 6.5 magnitude earthquake shook central Idaho and the surrounding area. The quake's epicenter was in the SAC Banner Summit zone, about 20 miles northwest of the town of Stanley. The earthquake occurred at the end of a major spring snowstorm that dropped 2-3 feet of new snow in the mountains adjacent to the earthquake. The avalanche danger was rated as HIGH on the day of the earthquake. (From the USFS Sawtooth Avalanche Center). In the wake of this unique event, we sat down with Scott Savage, Ben VandenBoss, and Chris Lundy- all forecasters at the Sawtooth Avalanche Center. We hear their accounts of this unique event. Enjoy! Music by Chris Kaplinski. If you are interested in being a guest host/contributor to the show, please send me an audio file telling me a bit about yourself, your experience in the snow and avalanche arena, why you want to get involved with the podcast, and your idea for an interview or topic of exploration. Email this file to theavalanchehourpodcast@gmail.com Get 10% off your next pair of WNDR ALPINE skis: WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there.

In his first guest host session, Sean Zimmerman-Wall sits down with a member of Snowbird's Snow Safety Team, Chris Bremer, to talk about operational and personal risk tolerance, the state of avalanche education in North America, and how to not fall off ladders while using chainsaws or hanging Christmas lights. Music by Ketsa. www.ketsa.uk WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 https://alnk.to/6bNgvJb

At the beginning of 2021, two incidents occurred in the eastern part of the European Alps where mountain rescuers were caught by hangfire avalanches during ongoing rescue operations. In this episode, Matthias Walcher interviews two people directly involved, who shed light on the circumstances of the accidents and share the lessons learned: Matthias Schilchegger is a mountain rescue leader in Obertauern (Austria) and Manca Volk Bahun is a snow scientist and avalanche forecaster based in Trzic, Slovenia. Music by Ketsa WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 https://alnk.to/6bNgvJb

In this episode of the Third Thursday Wes Gregg sits down with Kim Vinet who is a CSGA Ski Guide, Professional Skier and Earth Scientist. Freeride skiing launched Kim into the world of backcountry skiing and education back in 2010. After a brief introduction to ski guiding professionally, Kim was involved in an avalanche fatality that changed the course of all 3 of her careers. 7 years later, after a lot of therapy and continued education and certification, Kim is a full time ski guide at Mike Wiegele Helicopter Skiing. We talk about her journey through trauma, PTSD and recovery, the importance of allowing yourself to be vulnerable and how her time on snow has inspired her to develop Affirmative Sustainability; a consulting company dedicated to reducing your corporate footprint and creating sustainable products. To find out more about Kim check out her website www.affirmativesustainability.com Give her and her sponsors a follow on Instagram @kim_vinet @blizzardskis @tecnica_sports @flylowgear @we_are_sungod @revelstokemtnresort @protectourwinterscanada @mikewiegeleheli Music written by Chris Kaplinski and Darrel Weeks Follow us on Instagram @theavalanchehour Follow our supporters on Instagram for up to date news from them. @TASBYMND @10barrelbrewing @interwest_insurance Resources on the socials @americanavalancheassociation @avalanchecanada The Avalanche Hour Savings: WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 alnk.to/6bNgvJb SOCIAL CBD 20% OFF LINK: www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=ml&…908357&pw=282549

In this episode, we sit down with Annes St. Claire. Anne is a researcher and practitioner who works as an avalanche forecaster and educator. She has a foot on either side of the US/Canadian border so to speak as she is from the states but has continued her higher education in Canada as well as works as an avalanche forecaster in Revelstoke. We chat about her development as an avalanche professional and her Master's degree research involving a survey that is hoping to help forecast centers understand their audience better. We hope you enjoy the conversation. Music by Chris Kaplinski WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 https://alnk.to/6bNgvJb

Jeff Hambleton is dropping some great knowledge on episode 5.28. Jeff is the AIARE Motorized Program Manager and works with avalanche professionals from around the world and across multiple disciplines. Jeff spends his time building avalanche education tools and training new generations of avalanche professionals. Jeff talks about his venture into motorized avalanche education, the process AIARE has embarked on over the past few years to develop and deliver a motorized specific curriculum, and how cultural shifts happen. We hope you enjoy this episode! Music by Ketsa

'Sode 5.29 features Michael Ackerman who is the Deputy Director of the Silverton Avalanche School. We recorded this episode before the snow started to fly in the fall. Ack and I chat about his career path, how SAS planned to tackle the challenges posed by a global pandemic, some of the ways SAS has evolved and continues to evolve, and his hopes for a bright future for all backcountry users. Enjoy! Music by Ketsa

In this episode Dom Baker has an amazing chat with Brad White. A fully-certified IFMGA / ACMG Mountain Guide with over 35 years of experience in the avalanche and mountain safety industry. He recently retired from a career with Parks Canada as a Visitor Safety Specialist with responsibilities for mountain rescue and avalanche forecasting in Banff, Kootenay and Yoho National Parks. Brad is a senior professional member of the Canadian Avalanche Association and has taught over 50 advanced avalanche courses in Canada and Japan. He has worked on many of the initiatives and committees that have been instrumental in developing the latest best practices for avalanche forecasting, hazard classification and public bulletins. He is also a past ski guide examiner for the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides. You can find more about Brad on his website: https://www.bradfordwhitephoto.com or on Instagram @jbradfordwhite Music written and produced by Chris Kaplinski Episode Produced by Wes Gregg - @wesleylgregg Follow us on Instagram and Facebook @theavalanchehourpodcast Follow our supporters on Instagram for up to date news from them. @TASBYMND @10barrelbrewing @interwest_insurance Resources on the socials @americanavalancheassociation @avalanchecanada The Avalanche Hour Savings: WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 alnk.to/6bNgvJb SOCIAL CBD 20% OFF LINK: www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=ml&…908357&pw=282549

'Sode 5.31 features Jonathan Preuss, a ski guide from the Sun Valley Idaho area. JP recounts an experience of being caught in an avalanche in the Lost River Range in Idaho on April 13th, 2019. He and his partner were attempting to ski 9 peaks above 12,000 feet in a single push when the avalanche occurred. JP's thoughtful reflections of what happened leading up to, throughout, and after the accident have many lessons we can all learn from. Follow along with pictures and maps on JP's blog here: https://www.jpadventures.com/blog/the-mountains-gave-us-a-hall-pass Music by Ketsa: www.Ketsa.uk WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 https://alnk.to/6bNgvJb

In episode 5.32, Kelly McNeil interviews Matt Schebaum and Will Mook of The Mountain Riding Lab. They share their experience as snowmobile guides, avalanche instructors and business owners. We talk about the specifics of motorized avalanche education and outreach. Will and Matt are fun, energetic, and amazing individuals who are educating many snowmobilers each year. Those two are making a huge impact in the motorized world of avalanche education! We hope you enjoy this episode! Music by Ketsa.

In this instalment of The Avalanche Hour’s Third Thursday; I sit down on a Zoom call with self proclaimed ski bum, Kevin Hjertaas. Kevin had a short, unremarkable career as a ski patroller and a stint as a middling professional skier. He was a passable ski coach for a time and a tolerable ski journalist some years ago. In a completely predictable move, he became a ski guide and started M-T-N Guiding. Is how Kevin describes himself in a very humble manner. A quick google search of him shows that he is in the realm of badass skiers. He and I discuss how he is doing following an incident that occured in January of 2020. Here are some places you can find out more about Kevin. Ep.6 The Fifty: Aemmer Coulouir - Skiing The Frozen North https://youtu.be/yFXoRlEH--w M-T-N Guide services http://mtnguiding.com Kevin’s Stories http://skisandmountains.com The Aftermath of Mountain Tragedy - Kevin Hjertaas and Meghan J. Ward https://crowfootmedia.com/2020/08/13/the-aftermath-of-mountain-tragedy/ Community of support https://www.mountainmuskox.com Instagram @khjertass Don't forget to follow us on Instagram @theavalanchehour Follow our supporters on Instagram for up to date news from them. @TASBYMND @10barrelbrewing @interwest_insurance Resources on the socials @americanavalancheassociation @avalanchecanada Check out The Avalanche Hour Savings WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 alnk.to/6bNgvJb SOCIAL CBD 20% OFF LINK: www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=ml&…908357&pw=282549

In this episode, Caleb interviews Knox Williams. Knox was a co-founder of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, and remained the director until retirement in 2005. We talk about the early days for the CAIC, as well as changes and challenges over time. Knox recounts some highlights of a long and successful career working with snow, avalanches, and people. Music by Ketsa.

In this episode of The Avalanche Hour Podcast, Dom Baker has a conversation with Grant Statham. Grant is a Visitor Safety Specialist with Parks Canada based in Banff, Alberta. Starting at 17 years old as a climber and ski patroller, Grant quickly became an ACMG/IFMGA mountain guide by age 24 and since then has pursued a 30-year career in mountain and ski guiding, avalanche forecasting and mountain rescue. Grant’s study of risk has led to the development of many of the avalanche risk management systems used today, including the Avalanche Terrain Exposure Scale and the Conceptual Model of Avalanche Hazard. Grant is an adjunct professor with Simon Fraser University’s avalanche program, a long-time Arcteryx Ambassador works on the side as a risk consultant and ski guide Follow us on Instagram @theavalanchehour Follow our supporters on Instagram for up to date news from them. @TASBYMND @10barrelbrewing @interwest_insurance Resources on the socials @americanavalancheassociation @avalanchecanada The Avalanche Hour Savings WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P Do note that if you order bindings with their skis, there's an automatic 10% ski & binding bundle discount that gets applied and overrides this friends and family one. So, if you are needing to order bindings with your skis, you will have to do so in a separate order unfortunately, otherwise you will only receive 10% off the skis. Good thing is shipping is free, so no additional cost there. HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 alnk.to/6bNgvJb SOCIAL CBD 20% OFF LINK: www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=ml&…908357&pw=282549 Music is written and recorded by: Chris Kaplinski Artwork by: Mike Tea Episode Production: Wes Gregg

On this, the final, Third Thursday and Podcast episode of the 20/21 season Wes Gregg has a conversation with PHD candidate Rachel Reimer. Rachel is a Revelstoke-based skier, Co-Chair of the Diversity and Inclusion Committee for the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides, and a researcher who studies inclusion in mountain-based professions. She shares insights from her studies and lived experience as a skier on inclusion, risk management, and decision making in the backcountry environment. Links Rachel Reimer https://www.racheldreimer.com Rise: A comparative study of leadership, diversity and inclusion in the avalanche and mountain professions https://vimeo.com/364524204 Diversity, Inclusion and Mental Health in the Avalanche and Guiding Industry in Canada https://www.acmg.ca/05pdf/2019DiversityInclusionandMentalHealthStudyFINALReport.pdf Reimer, R. (2017). The wildfire within: Firefighter perspectives on gender and leadership in wildland fire. (Master's thesis). https://dspace.royalroads.ca/bitstream/handle/10170/1054/Reimer_royalroads_1313O_10411.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y. All of Rachel’s other publications are available on her website listed above. Follow us on Instagram @theavalanchehour Follow our supporters on Instagram for up to date news from them. @TASBYMND @10barrelbrewing @interwest_insurance Resources on the socials @americanavalancheassociation @avalanchecanada The Avalanche Hour Savings WNDR Alpine skis 10% off: FOWFFR10-4SZB7P HAGAN SKI MOUNTAINEERING 15% off with code: AvalancheHour15 alnk.to/6bNgvJb SOCIAL CBD 20% OFF LINK: www.avantlink.com/click.php?tt=ml&…908357&pw=282549

Tune in to hear some exciting updates to The Avalanche Hour Podcast for the upcoming season. Link to Wyssen USA Education Scholarship Application. DUE OCT. 15!! https://forms.gle/TSjtTfDzdztmc9UL7 Music by Ketsa

Welcome back to another season of The Avalanche Hour Podcast. We kick off season 6 with a great conversation with Zahan Billimoria. Steep lines, deep snow, and the wilderness experience define Zahan Billimoria’s life. Over the past 20 years, Z has pursued international expeditions, competed in world championship endurance events, stood on podiums, and bagged first descents—all fueled by his passion for human-powered adventure. His career highlights include multiple ski descents of the Grand Teton, first descents in the Teton Range, a ski descent of Mount Rainier’s Liberty Ridge, exploratory ski missions to the coastal range and the Cordillera Real in the Bolivian Andes, and free climbs up to 5.13-. Today, Z splits his time between working as an IFMGA Mountain Guide, leading teams through some of the harshest and most challenging mountain environments, and coaching others to reach their own athletic potentials through his online training company The Samsara Experience. Music: Own World & I Overjoy by Ketsa. www.ketsa.uk Photos: Reuben Krabbe Wyssen USA Pro Avalanche Education Scholarship Application: https://forms.gle/TSjtTfDzdztmc9UL7 Due Oct. 15 https://samsaraexperience.com/ Solving for Z- A Calculus of Risk: https://youtu.be/QHVSeqzI1vU I ride WNDR skis. They are the only ski company to be a certified B corporation. They are swapping out petroleum based materials for bio based materials. Their skis rip. If you want to give them a shot, here is a code to save some cash. FOWFR10-CalebMerrill

We start out this episode with an introduction of the new A3 executive director, Jayne Nolan. Jayne stops by and we chat about her background, the state of the A3, and some of the hopes for the future of the organization. This episode features Alexis Alloway. Alexis has spent two decades working as a professional educator in both classroom and field-based settings. She has taught avalanche courses since 2006 for diverse organizations including NOLS, the Northwest Avalanche Center, Friends of the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center, and Everett Mountain Rescue. Seeing a lack of concise and consolidated resources to help teach and learn avalanche rescue skills, she recently published her first book, Avalanche Search and Rescue: A Backcountry Field Guide. We chat about Alexis’ experience working with Everett Mountain Rescue, the process of compiling and authoring her first book, her thoughts on the current state of avalanche education in the US, as well as some reflections from her experiences teaching in and travelling through avalanche terrain. Today, October 15, 2021 is the last day to apply for the Wyssen USA Professional Avalanche Education Scholarship. The link to the application is here: https://forms.gle/TSjtTfDzdztmc9UL7 Music: Ketsa www.ketsa.uk Need a new pair of skis? Consider WNDR Alpine. I love these skis. Use this code to save some dough! FOWFR10-CalebMerrill

In this instalment of The Avalanche Hour Podcast; I sit down on a Zoom call with the one and only Captain CAPOW, Marty Schaffer! He may be the most stoked individual you’ll ever meet. It’s contagious and he’ll probably bring the best out of you. It has always been Marty’s vision to bring together industry professionals and the recreational enthusiast for an approachable, educational good time in the mountains. Marty and I discuss his history, vision, and the future of Avalanche Education. Please enjoy! www.capow.ca www.blanketglacierchalet.com Follow Marty on instagram @capowguiding Music by: Age Diamante Produced by: Wes Gregg

Episode 6.4 features IFMGA guide Martin Volken. Martin shares his story of becoming a guide service and gear shop owner. Martin talks about what goes into co-authoring several books. He explains a matrix to weigh the likelihood versus consequences of a given hazard that he utilizes when guiding in the mountains. Enjoy the show. Music by @agediamante

Lel Tone sits down and talks about her time spent in the snow and avalanche industry working as a ski patroller, heli ski guide, avalanche forecaster, and educator. She gives an honest perspective to both the highs and the lows that is the reality of her line of work. Lel talks about what her days look like avalanche forecasting for the railroad out of Truckee California, some lessons learned from many days guiding out of the helicopter in Alaska, and reflections of early morning avalanche mitigation routes at the ski hill. There is lots of wisdom in this 'sode. Enjoy. Music by Ketsa Please consider donating to the American Avalanche Association today. Through the end of 2021, your donations will be matched dollar for dollar up to $10,000. This is made possible through a generous anonymous donor. Visit www.americanavalancheassociation.org and click "donate" www.safeasclinics.com

Three experienced women from the Canadian Avalanche industry sit down with guest host Dom Baker for a conversation about parenting and motherhood as an avalanche worker. Lisa Paulson is an ACMG mountain guide – the 8th female fully accredited ACMG mountain guide in Canada. She works as a Visitor Safety Specialist for Parks Canada, doing technical rescue as well as highway and public avalanche forecasting. When time allows, she guides both mechanized skiing and ski touring, as well as teaches both recreational and professional level avalanche courses. Lisa lives in Banff with her family, that includes two kids launching into the teen years! Wren McElroy is currently a lead forecaster with 6 Point Engineering on the Kemano T2 project in Northwestern BC. Wren has taught both recreational and professional avalanche courses and previously was the Snow Safety Supervisor at Whitewater Ski Resort in Nelson, BC. Wren is mom to Conrad, 21 River, 17 and stepmom to Jack 13. Bree Stefanson is an Avalanche Technician with the BC Ministry of Transportation Bear Pass Avalanche Program based in Stewart, BC, as well as a SAR Manager with Stewart Search and Rescue. Prior to this role she did other highways avalanche work, as well as industrial avalanche work throughout northwestern BC. Bree got her start in the avalanche patch as a pro patroller at Castle Mountain Resort. She is also a former CARDA avalanche dog handler. Bree lives in Stewert with her family, including a young daughter. Music in this episode used with permission from the artist - Age Diamante "I Do Love You" Produced by FBRrecording - Wes Gregg The Avalanche Hour Podcast logo designed by Mike Tea The Avalanche Hour Podcast is made possible with the support from: Wyssen Avalanche Control 10 Barrel Brewing Interwest Insurance

I caught up with Tom Carter at his home in Lake Tahoe earlier this fall. Tom shares some of his experiences and lessons learned in the mountains. From his early days climbing in the Yosemite valley to exploring snow capped mountains of the Sierra to 30 years of heli ski guiding in the Ruby Mountains, Tom has found joy in all of his adventures. You'll be sure to like this one. Music by Age Diamante @agediamante

Time for another look to the other side of the Atlantic- the Alps. This third episode by the Austrian Avalanche Association starts off with avalanche forecasters Matthias Walcher and Christoph Mitterer chatting about a challenging early season snowpack concerning most of the Eastern Alps. With a persistent weak layer close to ground, strong winds, significant loading and ski resorts still partially closed due to a nation wide lockdown, Austria already claims 4 tragic avalanche fatalities. The second part of this episode features 3 x Freeride World Tour Winner Arianna Tricomi and FWT Open Faces organizer and mountain guide Markus Kogler. Listen in to find out more about these Freeride events and the safety measures surrounding their organization. Austrian Association for Snow and Avalanche www.oegsl.at - die Webseite der ÖGSL Follow us and our sponsors on the socials: @wyssen_avalanche_control @10barrelbrewing @interwest_insurance @theavalanchehourpodcast Episode produced by Wes Gregg @wesleylgregg on Instagram Music provided with permission from the artist: Ketsa - Full Hands Empty Heart Artwork provide by Mike Tea

Show Notes: Eeva and I met through our work with the American Avalanche Association and have spent many seasons working through ways to improve the educational landscape in the US. Her tireless efforts, unique skillset, and overall amazing demeanor inspire me as an educator. For this conversation, we talk about things not directly related to avalanche education, but instead focus on the state of the avalanche community in various areas, how to support each other’s mental health, and share a few anecdotes about time well spent in the mountains. It is with great pleasure that we present this information to our listeners so they can benefit from her worldly perspective. Check out a new research project she is engaged with below: Invitation to participate in Winter 2021-22 Research project WHERE DO YOU WANT TO GO? Do you go out to backcountry to ski or ride regularly? We need your help this winter to collect information about how groups decide where they go to play. This research will increase our understanding on where folks go to ski or ride and why. The participants will fill out a weekly online questionnaire for a minimum of one month. Yes - it will be a commitment, but we will make it as easy for you as possible. Example questions: When did you decide where to go? Who did you go with? What factors made you decide to go there? But don’t worry about sharing information about your secret stash - the participation is confidential and no details about your personal choices will be shared in public. Interested? Fill out this contact form. We will then email you in late December to get you set to participate in the research. https://forms.gle/gfgRBXrQiDpX8jEz9 Questions? Email Eeva Latosuo elatosuo@alaskapacific.edu Research methods have been approved by Alaska Pacific University.

In Episode 6.10, I sit down with Travis Feist. Travis is a pro observer for the Sierra Avalanche Center, longtime avalanche educator, ski guide, and former ski patroller. He splits his time between his skis and his sled, and talks about how his approach to heading out for a day on his sled may differ from a day of ski touring. An all around great conversation that is rounded out with a story of a lesson learned by Travis. braaap. Music on this track is by Age Diamante.

In this installment of The Avalanche Hour Podcast; Wes Gregg sits down on a Zoom call with the owner/operator of Kootenay Backcountry Guides, Judson Wright! Judson is the lead guide of Kootenay Backcountry Guides. After finishing high school in Ontario, Judson moved to the Kootenays and started his backcountry journey. While learning to ski tour in the Whitewater and Kootenay Pass backcountry, the seeds of an idea to bring a local ski guiding operation to the Kootenays were planted in his head. He spent the next 10 years exploring the mountains of western Canada and getting his A.C.M.G. guiding certification. Over time Judson fell in love with showing others the incredible backcountry in his backyard. In 2016 he officially launched Kootenay Backcountry Guides with a mission to increase safety in the backcountry and help others get the most out of their winter backcountry adventures. Judson and I discuss his history, vision, and the future of Avalanche Education. Please enjoy! Check out Kootenay Backcountry guides https://kootenaybackcountryguides.com Check out State of the snowpack https://www.stateofthesnowpack.com/nelson Music in this episode is used with permission of the artist, Age Diamante Artwork by Mike Tea, miketea.com Episode produced by Wes Gregg

In this episode, Kelly Mcneil sits down with Liz RIggs Meder. Liz is the recreation program director for the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education (AIARE). Liz shares with us some thoughts and advice around risk management instruction, the role of public health in avalanche education and what that might look like in the future. We also dive into some important topics speaking to inclusion specific avalanche education. We hope you enjoy this episode! Music by Age Diamante.

This episode features Peter Barsevskis. Peter is a pro patroller at Kicking Horse Mountain Resort and lives in Golden BC. Peter is working through his Masters degree in Environmental Science at Thompson Rivers University. His research is focused on snow and avalanche mechanics with a tool called the Blade Hardness Gauge. Tune in to hear more about Peter’s project. A summary of his research: "The blade hardness gauge (BHG) is a promising new technology for avalanche forecasters and recreational backcountry users. A key predictive tool used in avalanche forecasting is snow hardness, which is a measure of the snow’s resistance to penetration by an object. The hand hardness test has been the standard test for measuring snow hardness since its introduction in 1950. The BHG provides avalanche practitioners a way to quantitatively measure snow hardness without the known biases of the hand hardness test. An important part of avalanche forecasting is predicting the size of potential avalanches. The size of an avalanche corresponds with the hardness of the slab. As the slab hardness increases it is expected that the avalanche size increases according to fracture mechanics and field observations. The purpose of the proposed research is to continue the work in validating the BHG as a superior and reliable tool for measuring snow hardness predicting avalanche size. Studying in the field of natural and environmental sciences this research will search for a relation between BHG measurements and avalanche size by comparing BHG measurements with avalanche size, snow density, snow stability tests and hand hardness measurements." Peter Barsevskis: p.barsevskis@me.com Fraser Pogue: fraser8@gmail.com Blade Hardness Gauge: https://form3.com/portfolio/snow-density-guage/

Episode 6.14 Avalanche Control 101: techniques and technology used in the North American avalanche industry Have you ever wondered what exactly are RACS? What is a Wyssen tower, or a Gazex exploder? What on earth is a Daisy Bell or an O’Bellx? In this episode guest host Dom Baker sits down with a panel of Canadian avalanche professionals to talk through many of the common methods of avalanche control. Joining Dom are Mark Vesely, Robb Andersen and Val Visotzky, who bring with them a wealth of experience and have used all of the different techniques and technology discussed in this episode. The aim of the episode is to provide some background and context for many of the awesome avalanche control stories you may have heard on the podcast over the past 6 seasons. Mark Vesely is an Avalanche Technician with over twenty years of experience in operations, fieldwork, and planning. He has worked in a wide range of sectors including lift access ski areas, industrial work sites, industry training, and guiding. His work experiences have included a variety of contexts in western Canada, the United States, and Chile. The core of Mark’s career has been centered around managing the avalanche safety program at Fernie Alpine Resort from 2005 to 2018. He is a professional member of the Canadian Avalanche Association and a ski guide with Association of Canadian Mountain Guide membership. Controlling avalanches with a wide variety of startegies and tactics has been a big part of Marks career. Robb Andersen is the senior Manager of the BC Ministry of Transportation Avalanche and Weather Program since 2016. Prior to that he ran the Kootenay Pass avalanche program for 6 of the 12 years he spent there. Robb Grew up in Banff and moved to Nelson in the early 1990’s for “just one season” – he’s still there to this day! He got his start in the avalanche world at Whitewater ski resort on the ski patrol, where he worked from 1994 to 2004. Rob had a working CARDA avalanche rescue dog from 2002 to 2010 and was the President of the Canadian Avalanche Association from 2010-12 and Vice President from 2012-16. Val Visotzky was born in Montreal. He started working as a ski Patroller in 1993 at Sunshine Village, also worked at Norquay, The Remarkables in New Zealand and St.Verans in France. He started his MOTI avalanche career in Stewart in 1999, moved to the Coquihalla program in 2003, and Revelstoke in 2010. He started as the 2ic and started running the Revelstoke program in 2013. Music in this episode was “I Do Love You” and “Feelin Good” by Age Diamante, used with permission from the artist. Produced by Caleb Merrill Artwork by Mike Tea, www.miketea.com The Avalanche Hour Podcast is supported by: Wyssen Avalanche Control 10 Barrel Brewing Interwest Insurance

It’s time for another episode of the Austrian Association for Snow and Avalanches @oegsl. Guest hosts Matthias Walcher and Anna Heuberger chat with the “Wayne Gretzky of guiding” RUDI KRANABITTER - an Austrian mountain guide who spent many years working in Canada and became an honorary member of the ACMG, as well as ALBERT LEICHTFRIED, meteorologist, ex-pro ice climber, mountain guide and technical director of the Austrian mountain guides training program. What are the differences between Canada and Austria when it comes to snow and avalanche training and mentality? What can we learn from each other? Music: "Milk" by Ketsa

In episode 6.16, I sit down with Frank Carus. The (now) former director of the Mount Washington Avalanche center talks about his career and experiences working in the presidential range of the White Mountains in New Hampshire. The MWAC is one of two US National Forest Avalanche Centers that hold the responsibility of responding to rescues within their forecast area. Frank recounts a couple unfortunate avalanche accidents that have some lessons for us all. Music on this episode was created by Age Diamanté.

In this episode, guest host Sean ZImmerman Wall sits down with Hector Silva Peralta. Hector is an ACMG Apprentice Ski guide based in Chile, living the endless winter between Chile, Canada and Alaska. Héctor grew up in the mountains , close to portillo ski resort, where he started skiing at a very young age. His longtime commitment to the heli-ski, backcountry skiing, and avalanche industries has given him the opportunity to spend the last 6 years training in professional environments and continuing his professional development through mentorship initiatives in both British Columbia and Alaska. One of his primary focuses is further developing the avalanche and ski industry in Chile following the Canadian and US industry's best practices. Alongside other avalanche professionals in Chile, he is working to create a non-profit organization called Chile Avalanchas, that is aiming to save lives through avalanche education. Chile Avalanchas' ultimate mission is to facilitate avalanche education to the general public as well as build a platform for information exchange amongst recreational backcountry users and professionals in the Andes Range. Hector is also a professional member of the Canadian Avalanche Association and professional member of the American Avalanche Association.

I sit down with Ian Reddell in this episode. Skiing Ian is what we call him. Ian is the Avalanche Mitigation Manager at Solitude Mountain Resort. I had the good fortune to work with Ian while I was ski patrolling at Solitude, and he has been a mentor to me throughout my career in the snow and avalanche world. We chat about Solitude's avalanche mitigation program and techniques for managing and opening terrain with an early season snowpack. Ian reflects on his career and some lessons delivered along the way. Music by Ketsa.

In this episode, I have a great conversation with Brooke "Shiny" Edwards. Brooke talks about her career as a ski guide and avalanche educator...The good times and the challenging times. She reflects on what has become most important to her when guiding and teaching people in the mountains. Shiny talks about her time guiding and forecasting in Japan, Valdez, and beyond. Music by Ketsa. www.wildworldwanderings.com

In this installment of The Avalanche Hour Podcast; Wes Gregg sits down on a Zoom call with 31 year SAR veteran Dave Merritt. Dave wears so many hats in the northern British Columbia area. From being a coordinator of the SAR winter response team, to being a Field Technician on the Northern Rockies Avalanche Canada team, to managing the BC Parks avalanche program and more. We try to talk about it all. Please enjoy! Find Dave Merritt on the socials @outsideventurespg Music in this episode is used with permission of the artist, Age Diamante - Chakra Tonic Artwork by Mike Tea, miketea.com Episode produced by Wes Gregg

On this week's episode, we talk with Matt Entz, owner of Mountain Skillz alongside his wife Jesse in South Fork, Colorado (Wolf Creek). Matt specializes in off-trail technical mountain snowmobiling instruction and motorized avalanche education. He just completed 10th season of operation. Additionally, Matt traveled the midwest and mountain west the past 2 falls presenting on behalf of the Avalanche Alliance about the importance of on-snow training and raising money for the motorized education & safety. Matt talks to us about his path into avalanche education, some thoughts on motorized use and forecasting centers, and what it's like to share a close call. Check out this awesome episode with Matt! Music used with permission from the artist, Age Diamanté - Sunny Day’s Artwork provided by Mike T. Episode produced by Wes Gregg - FBRrecording

Spring is in full bloom but you are still thinking snow? You think a bike is best put to use to approach some late season ski touring this time of year? Perfect- because this podcast requires some devotion as it dives into the depths of avalanche research. Two of the most cutting edge researchers in the field, Johan Gaume and Bertil Trottet, uncover their newest findings on crack propagation and avalanche simulations. Forward thinking and innovative insights sparked with pure enthusiasm to dig deeper into the understanding of snow and avalanches. An episode by Matthias Walcher and the Austrian Association of Snow and Avalanches @OEGSL Music: “Just Talking” by Ketsa "Supershear slab avalanches“ Presentation by Johan Gaume, EPFL Lausanne: https://youtu.be/eZwToPsYBCc

In this episode Dom Baker sits down with Graeme Marshall, Mitch Ryan, and Laura Waterer. Graeme Marshall lives in Nelson, BC with his wife and their three great teenage kids. He is a BC Certified Teacher and a Professional Member of the Canadian Avalanche Association. Graeme’s inspiration for creating the Adventure Tourism Leadership and Safety (ATLAS) Academy developed over years of working as an outdoor educator, guide, and safety tech in a variety of seasons and with a number of organizations. When not leading trips with ATLAS, Graeme tries to get out whitewater canoeing, mountain biking, and ski touring with friends and family. When at home he will likely be strumming a guitar or spinning a record with a wicked cup of coffee by his side. Mitch Ryan got a taste for backcountry skiing in the ATLAS program at LV Rogers High School in Nelson, BC. He started off in the winter world of work as a volunteer patroller, quickly switching to full time as soon as he was old enough. These glory days consisted of winters at Whitewater Ski Resort, the odd tail guiding stint, wildfire firefighting around the Kootenays in the summers, and surfing and ski touring in all the free time he could find. After cutting his teeth in the Kootenays and going through his CAA level 2 he wanted bigger mountains and landed a job as an avalanche technician at a remote gold mine in northern BC, where he still enjoys spending his winters today. Grateful to grow up in the small mountain town of Nelson BC, Laura was an avid skier from a young age. In Grade 12 she first stepped foot in the backcountry as part of the outdoor education program at the local highschool. After spending some years traveling around the world and completing post-secondary education in Vancouver, Laura moved back to the Kootenays for a season of volunteer ski patrol at her home hill of Whitewater Ski Resort. That has since transformed into a 10-year career with the snow safety program starting as a volunteer and moving into the assistant patrol director position, and now full-time forecasting. Passionate about mountain safety and giving back to the community, she volunteers with Nelson Search and Rescue and teaches avalanche education courses on the side. In her spare time, Laura explores the Kootenays with her partner and young son. ATLAS program: https://www.sd8.bc.ca/programs/adventure-tourism-leadership-safety-atlas Avalanche Awareness Beyond the Boundaries Society (AABBS): https://skiwhitewater.com/lessons-programs/professional-courses/youth-avalanche-skills-training-aabbs/ Avalanche Canada youth outreach @behind_thelines Music in this episode is used with permission of the artist, Age Diamante - I do love you Artwork by Mike Tea, miketea.com Episode produced by Wes Gregg

Episode 6.24 features Fred Alldredge. Fred is a lead guide for Ruby Mountain Heli Skiing, he is a helicopter and air tanker base manager for wildland fire incidents, he is a safety coordinator for Antartic Logistics and Expeditions, and he has been a guide on high altitude Himalayan expeditions. Fred talks about his relationship to risk, and the application of risk management in these different avenues. A lot to take out of this one. Enjoy! Music by Ketsa. www.ketsa.uk

Episode 6.25 features Nikki Champion- an avalanche forecaster with the Utah Avalanche Center. Nikki grew up skiing on the icy hills of Michigan, but transitioned out west as quickly as possible. She earned a BS in Civil Engineering from Montana State University, during that time she worked as an educator for the Friends of the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center, as a research assistant in the Subzero Science and Engineering Lab, and an avalanche instructor for various other services throughout Montana. Following her time in Bozeman, Nikki headed north to Alaska to work with the Chugach National Forest Avalanche Information Center and teach avalanche courses for the Alaska Avalanche School. During the summers Nikki works as a mountain guide for RMI Expeditions, primarily guiding in the Pacific Northwest, and Alaska. Photo Credit: Alex Aberman. Music for this episode provided by Ketsa.

Mike Welch is a ski patroller, heli-ski guide, owner and guide of Sundog Ski Guides, father, and friend to all. I sat down with Welch at the end of the 2022 ski season to chat about his path, thoughts on producing operational avalanche forecasts, risk tolerance, and much more. I hope you enjoy this episode. Music by Ketsa www.ketsa.uk Mike's Bio: Mike Welch has spent most of his life working on snow in the Chugach Mountains. Mike began his on snow career somewhat accidentally while flipping through a course catalog while attending the University of Alaska Anchorage. The Outdoor Emergency Care course that he took that fall semester many years ago propelled him on an unexpected journey into the world of avalanches, ski patrolling and ski guiding. Starting his career as a nighttime ski patroller at Hilltop Ski Area in Anchorage helped him understand that it does not have to be a steep or big slope to produce trauma. Early in his career he was invited to help out during the world extreme skiing competitions as a volunteer medic. Here he learned about some of the types of consequences possible on steep, big mountains. Working at Arctic Valley, Alyeska and Alta Ski areas further reinforced the understanding of what can happen on big slopes in the wintertime. Sixteen years ago Mike stepped back from full time ski patrolling to work as a ski guide with Chugach Powder Guides. Heliskiing took his respect for big mountains to a whole different level where one can find oneself many many miles from hotel rooms and hospitals in moments. Mike is now pursuing a lifelong passion and turning it into a career by starting dueling backcountry ski and snowboard touring businesses, Sundog Ski Guides and Sundog Snowboarding. Mike can be found riding the Mountains of South-central Alaska by winter and floating her waters by summer.

This episode features an interview with Eddie Schoen. Eddie is an IFMGA Mountain Guide and accounting/project manager for Wyssen Avalanche Control (US). Eddie and I chat about a variety of topics- including comparisons of his risk management process when backcountry skiing with clients compared to when he is skiing with his personal partners. We also chat about his recent experience taking a CAA Ops level 2 avalanche course and we discuss lessons learned with his role at Wyssen. We hope you enjoy this episode! Music provided by Ketsa.

Jeremy Hanke sits down to chat the state of motorized avalanche education in North America. He has long been a vocal member of the snowmachine community, often bridging conversations between user groups with the single goal of reducing avalanche fatalities. Jeremy talks about his own experiences in a couple different avalanches that happened early in his career. We chat about how far motorized avalanche has progressed in recent years, and Jeremy shares his views on where we can do even better to serve the motorized backcountry user. In cooperation with the Canadian Avalanche Association, Jeremy and his company SoulRides had a big hand in the production of Throttle Decisions, a series of engaging avalanche education videos. If you haven't seen these, you should go watch them now! Here is a link to the teaser of the video: https://vimeo.com/65512043 http://jeremy-hanke.com/ www.soulrides.ca www.skadifoundation.com Music by Ketsa

In this episode, Wes Gregg has a chat with ACMG Technical Director, Mike Adolph. This conversation is based on the concept of providing listeners an opportunity to hear directly from the source how the Technical Assessment Program works and the history of the ACMG. Mike Adolph is a ACMG/IFMGA Mountain Guide and also the current ACMG Technical Director. He's currently residing in Alberta splitting his time between Red Deer, his kids attend a Spanish school there and Nordegg. Mike tries to maintain a diverse winter guiding background that includes some mechanized skiing, ski touring, ice and alpine climbing as well as working as instructing in the ACMG training and assessment programs winter courses. He has been working as a guide for 25 years and completed his mountain guide certification in 2007. Skiing with his wife and two kids takes up a lot of free weekends during the winter months and is pleased to say that he's had several opportunities to ski first tracks at the local hill in Red Deer. ACMG Mission Statement: The ACMG's mission is to protect the public interest in mountain travel and climbing instruction by: Developing and administering rigorous standards for certification and professional conduct; Aiding the professionalism of its members through public advocacy and program delivery; and, Training and assessing future guides and instructors to the highest standards of risk management. web links: www.acmg.ca Association of Canadian Mountain Guides About the group. Courses and certification programs offered. Technical tips. List of certified guides. (professional association of trained and certified guides and instructors) www.acmg.ca ACMG training and assessment program - Movement screening dates and locations can be found here ACMG Course Dates and Fees (tapacmg.ca) ACMG Course Dates and Fees - tap@acmg.ca People can also find Mike at: www.viaferratacanada.com (He's built 2 ferratas in his local range) Alberta Via Ferratas | Via Ferrata Canada Via ferrata climbing for everyone in the David Thompson Rocky Mountains. Get info and guides for the Nordegg area Via Ferratas. www.viaferratacanada.com COE.ca - Rock & Ice Climbing Guiding and Courses, Youth Programs, and Retreats in the Canadian Rockies. Courses and Guiding for rock, ice and alpine climbing as well as kayaking and caving. www.coe.ca Music in this episode is used with permission of the artist, Age Diamante - Chakra Tonic Artwork by Mike Tea, miketea.com Episode produced by Wes Gregg

In this installment of The Avalanche Hour Podcast; Wes Gregg interviews Erin Tierney the President of the CSGA as the second installment of the 'Who is the ACMG? Who is the CSGA? Erin has worked in the avalanche industry since 1997 mainly as a heli ski guide and instructor for the CSGI. Lately she has enjoyed exploring the different arms of the avalanche industry as a forecaster, avalanche tech and now as an instructor for the CAA ITP program. Erin lives in Mount Currie, BC with her family. Find out more about the CSGA/CSGI: canskiguide.com Facebook: Canadian Ski Guide Association president@canskiguide.com Music in this episode is used with permission of the artist, Age Diamante - Chakra Tonic Artwork by Mike Tea, miketea.com Episode produced by Wes Gregg

In this episode, I sit down with Jordy Shepherd. Jordy is an ACMG/IFMGA mountain guide and CAA Professional Member based in Canmore, Alberta. In his diverse career he has worked as a BC Park Ranger, National Park Warden and Visitor Safety Specialist, Independent Guide/Instructor, Operations Manager and Lead Guide, and Consultant. Jordy has been involved with the CAA AvSAR training program since it’s inception, and is a course leader for the CAA AvSAR training program. Throughout our conversation, Jordy lays out the strike team shovelling method which is a newer iteration of the strategic shovelling process. We also chat about some rescues/recoveries that Jordy has been a part of, and lessons learned throughout his career. Enjoy the show. Music by Ketsa. Resources: Find out more about the AvSAR Advanced Skills Course: https://www.avalancheassociation.ca/page/AvSAR Canadian Companion Rescue Skills Course Schedule: https://www.avalanche.ca/training/courses?level=CRS Strike Team Shovelling: Positions and Rotation: https://backcountryaccess.com/en-us/blog/p/strike-team-shovelling-positioning-rotations Using the Diamond Method for burials deeper than your probe: https://backcountryaccess.com/en-us/blog/p/strike-team-shovelling-using-diamond-method-deep-burials Final Stages of Avalanche Excavation https://backcountryaccess.com/en-us/blog/p/strike-team-shovelling-final-stages-avalanche-excavation

In this episode, Caleb sits down with Jared Drake, Steven Siig, and Jim Plehn. Jared and Steve are co-producers and co-directors of the recently released documentary Buried: The 1982 Alpine Meadows Avalanche. Jim Plehn was an avalanche forecaster for Alpine Meadows Ski Resort during this time. We chat about some of the details of this tragic event including weather, terrain, snowpack, and human factors as well as details of the rescue and recovery efforts. We explore the importance of bringing more exposure to events like this in the hope to help community processing and healing as well as educating people to the risks associated with recreating in the mountains. I hope you enjoy this great conversation with Jared, Siig, and Jim. Music by Ketsa www.buriedfilm.com

Host Dom Baker is back with Episode 5.6! We get a great early season update from Grant Helgeson of Avalanche Canada. Following that, Dom sits down with Tyson Rettie. Tyson is a ski guide and avalanche professional. He got his start in the avalanche industry as a tail guide at Big Red Cats at the age of 19. He currently works as an avalanche forecaster at Avalanche Canada as well as the founder and executive Director of Braille Mountain Initiative. Check out https://www.braillemountaininitiative.com/ for more information on Tysons work introducing visually impaired people to the backcountry. Links: www.avalanche.ca www.braillemountaininitiative.com https://filmfest2022.banffcentre.ca/films/snow-blind-632486813cba23003041fc4c https://thepowdercloud.com/news/avalanche-canada-launches-flexible-forecasts/ All Photos: Steve Shannon @steveshannonphoto Music: @gravy.tunes

Episode 7.8 features and interview with Patty Morrison. Patty has been a long time ski patroller, avalanche forecaster, and avalanche educator at Stevens Pass Ski Resort in Washington. We chat about Patty's path of her career in ski area avalanche forecasting. She explains some of the terrain, weather, and snowpack nuances of Steven's Pass and highlights some of her research on wind loading patterns at the resort. She reflects on the events of the high profile Tunnel Creek Avalanche and shares some wisdom for a newer generation of backcountry riders and up and coming ski patrollers. Music "Back When" and "Come Back" by Ketsa

In Episode 7.9 of the Avalanche Hour podcast, Matthias Walcher and Paul Dobesberger from the Austrian Association for Snow and Avalanches talk to Walter Steinkogler, the COO of Wyssen Avalanche Control about avalanche mitigation strategies in Europe and North America. Also, Christoph Mitterer from the AWS Tyrol gives us the latest conditions report on snowpack and avalanche danger in the Alps. We hope you enjoy the show! Music: Change and Tussle by Ketsa. www.ketsa.uk

I sat down with the authors and editor of the latest volume of The Snowy Torrents book. This book chronicles avalanche accidents that occurred in the US during the decade of 1986-1996. We discuss how the book can be used as a learning tool, highlight some accidents, and discuss how our way of looking at these accidents has evolved over time. Audience members contributed some great questions along the way. We hope you enjoy. Music by Ketsa Link to purchase the book: https://www.amazon.com/Snowy-Torrents-Avalanche-Accidents-1986-1996/dp/B0B7Q5QWQW

In Episode 7.10, Sean Zimmerman - Wall interviews Anna Keeling. Anna goes deep in this episode about her experiences as a mountain guide, shifting industry culture, living your values, and connecting with the wild environs we hold so dear. Anna is an IFMGA guide from Christchurch, New Zealand. Home is now Kura Tawhiti/Castle Hill Village (NZ) and Salt Lake City, Utah. Mother of one and owner/operator of Anna Keeling Guiding (AKG), Anna has spent her life zipping around outdoors - winning the world’s first expedition adventure race and many multisport endurance events. Anna now trains and examines mountain and ski guides for both the New Zealand Mountain Guide Association (NZMGA) and the American Mountain Guide Association (AMGA). With a focus on affordable recreational avalanche education, she’s taught avalanche courses for AKG, the New Zealand Mountain Safety council, Utah Avalanche Centre, the American Avalanche Institute and Utah Mountain Adventures. Now she joins AIARE to teach pro courses. A writer, Anna was the Ski Columnist for the Christchurch Press from 2011-2014 and managed the writing and development of the NZMGA guide manual as well as publishing six articles for The NZ Climber. She now blogs for CHILL and freelances for other outdoor publications in addition to consulting for various guide and work safe operations. Website: https://www.annakeelingguiding.co.nz/ Blog: https://annalouisek.wordpress.com/ A3 Donation: https://www.coloradogives.org/organization/AmericanAvalancheAssociation Music: Culturez by Shoalin Dub/www.ketsa.uk Production help from Cameron Griffin

Episode 7.10 In Episode 7.10, I sit down with Garrett and Joe from Propagation Labs. Propagation Labs carries the torch of the work that these two helped out with during their time as engineers at Avatech. Joe and Garrett talk about the history of snow penetrometers in modern day snow science and the evolution of their product, the Snow Scope. They share their ideas on the utilization of the Snow Scope in helping to decrease uncertainty around spatial variability within the snowpack and who it is designed to be used by. Another very exciting product from Propagation Labs is their development of the Snow Scope app- to be used with or without the Snow Scope as a way to record both manual and Snow Scope snowpits digitally on your phone. Hope you enjoy this one as much as I did while learning more about Propagation Labs. - www.propagationlabs.com Music by Ketsa: www.ketsa.uk Brought to you by: - 6 Point Engineering - www.6pointeng.com Partner Podcast: - Delivering Adventure Podcast-https://deliveringadventure.com/

Jenna works at Alta as a part time ski patroller, at Powderbird Heli Skiing as a tailguide, and as an instructor for the American Avalanche Institute. She also works as a PA in Neurosurgery, Trauma, and Critical Care at Intermountain Medical Center. She is a council member for the newly incorporated Town of Brighton in Big Cottonwood Canyon, and has spent multiple seasons on Denali as a medical provider for Denali Rescue Volunteers. She’s presented at Snow and Avalanche Workshops in Utah, Wyoming, Oregon, and New Hampshire, and has contributed to The Avalanche Review and Ascent Backcountry Snow Journal. Here’s a link to the podcast on Apple: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/utah-avalanche-center-podcast/id1327581604?i=1000459555748 And here’s a link to the podcast on the UAC podcast site https://utavy.libsyn.com/why-forecasting-is-poker-and-not-chess-a-conversation-with-jenna-malone And here’s a link to Jenna’s WYSAW Talk: https://vimeo.com/475545319?embedded=true&source=vimeo_logo&owner=4475613 And here’s a link to Heather Thamm’s WYSAW Talk: Forecasting for a scary low: https://vimeo.com/475482344?embedded=true&source=vimeo_logo&owner=4475613a Utah Avalanche Center Drew Hardesty blog post on Expert Intuition: https://utahavalanchecenter.org/blog/26871 Margaret Wheeler’s podcast with Utah Avalanche Center on “Does Culture Eat Training for Breakfast?” Wheeler Podcast

Simon Trautman grew up running around in hay fields outside of Lander, Wyoming. Following a stint as a US Navy Corpsman, he earned a BS in Geology at Western Washington University and an MS in Earth Science from Montana State University. His research focused on wet snow avalanche phenomena. He has worked as an avalanche forecaster for the Moonlight Basin Ski Patrol, the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, and the Sawtooth Avalanche Center (where he served as the Director from 2012-2014). Simon joined the National Avalanche Center in the summer of 2014. Simon is the current acting director of the National Avalanche Center. In this episode, we chat about the history of US avalanche centers, the role of the NAC in guiding US avalanche centers in a common direction, and some of the recent developments of the Avalanche Center Dashboard. Simon explains what goes into writing an avalanche forecast, and the best way for the public to use the forecast. Music by Ketsa www.avalanche.org Backcountry Avalanche Forecasts Explained: https://youtu.be/UJTynkEwllY An Introduction to the North American Danger Scale: https://youtu.be/r_-KpOu7tbA Avalanche Problems Explained: https://youtu.be/DkbnT_9-cHU Braille Mountain Initiative Climbathon: https://www.braillemountaininitiative.com/climb-a-thon

In this instalment of The Avalanche Hour Podcast; Dom Baker interviews the legendary Dr. Bruce Jaimeson. Bruce has been working with avalanches for over 40 years, and providing training since 1985. Bruce headed the ASARC (Applied Snow and Avalanche Research) Program at the University of Calgary Department of Civil Engineering from 1998 to 2013. Bruce Jaimeson taught professional level avalanche courses for the CAA from 1992 to 2019, as well as recreational avalanche courses through the 80s and 90s. Bruce continues to provide specialized avalanche workshops , CPD and webinars for avalanche practitioners and industry. He is a retired Avalanche Professional with the Canadian Avalanche Association and a life member (non-practicing) of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta. Links: https://www.brucejamieson.ca/ Music in this episode is used with permission of the artist, Gravy Artwork by Mike Tea, miketea.com Episode produced by Wes Gregg

In this episode, Caleb sits down with Dallas Glass, Deputy Director of the Northwest Avalanche Center. Somebody get him a badge! Dallas talks about his progression as a skier, patroller, mountain guide, educator, and avalanche forecaster. He describes the history of the NWAC, explains some of the inner working details that help to drive consistency across many different forecast zones and forecasters, and recounts some memorable avalanche cycles during his time there. We hope you enjoy it. NWAC - https://nwac.us/ Caleb: Intro (1:04) Caleb: Introduction of Dallas Glass (2:26) Dallas: About his beginnings (7:15) Dallas Life Lessons (10:02) Life Outside (10:18) Tight Team (11:28) People to Serve (12:30) People to Mentor (13:10) Needs a badge (14:09) The history of NWAC (NorthWest Avalanche Center) (14:56) https://nwac.us/about/about-us/ The organizational impact of NWAC (16:33) Hiring Forecasters: What it takes (20:20) The Forest Service & public involvement (22:50) Public observastions: help share data (25:50) Weather forecasting the future(32:24) Field Days and Forecasting (40:31) Target observations(44:40) About the danger levels (48:25) Near miss (54:29) Trip plan for the day (1:00:38) Partner Pairing (1:02:26) Minimize Unknowns (1:05:39) Life and death reality (1:07:30) Outro (1:12:55) Socials: The Avalanche hour Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/theavalanchehourpodcast/ Dallas Glass - https://www.instagram.com/dallaswglass/ NWAC - https://www.instagram.com/nwacus/ Sponsors for this episode: Wyssen : https://www.wyssenavalanche.com/en/ 6 Point Engineering: https://6pointeng.com/ Athletic Greens: https://athleticgreens.com/avalanchehour Crew: Host - Caleb Merrill Producer - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Donate: https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate

Join guest host, Brooke “Shiny” Edwards in an intimate conversation exploring the literacy of loss through the different lenses of nervous system regulation and incident support as she takes a deep dive into the mental wellness toolbox with professional counselor and avalanche educator, Sydney Badger and Mountain Muskox board member and ski guide, Kim Vinet. Sydney shares the importance of adventure-informed therapy and Kim asserts that our ski professional community needs to become literate in stress injuries, trauma, and loss. Many resources are shared in our show notes for this episode and the conversation is a celebration of togetherness in community as we rally together to overcome the stigmas associated with mental health. Sydney Badger is a registered clinical counselor who runs her virtual private practice, Back to Earth Counseling. She started her career in counseling after identifying a need to support recreationists and professionals who experience trauma incidents. Sydney is passionate about adventure-informed therapy and is currently undergoing trauma training as a Somatic Experiencing Practitioner. Before working as a counselor, Sydney worked in the outdoor industry as a ski coach, river guide, and backcountry chef. She remains active in the ski industry by coaching women on snow, teaching virtual workshops, and offering avalanche education through a nervous system lens. Sydney's unique background and experiences enable her to connect with clients on a deeper level, particularly those who have experienced trauma in the context of adventure sports. She believes in the healing power of nature and encourages her clients to incorporate outdoor activities into their therapeutic journeys. Kim Vinet returns for another interview on The Avalanche Hour with this conversation. If you haven't heard it, check out her previous episode, 5.26. Kim is a CSGA Ski Guide, Professional Skier and Earth Scientist. Freeride skiing launched Kim into the world of backcountry skiing and education back in 2010. After a brief introduction to ski guiding professionally, Kim was involved in an avalanche fatality that changed the course of all 3 of her careers. Kim is a board member of Mountain Muskox, an organization that provides safe, supportive, professional and peer-facilitated, group circles for anyone who has experienced loss or trauma in the mountains. Kim is also the founder of Affirmative Sustainability; a consulting company dedicated to reducing your corporate footprint and creating sustainable products. Music: "I Dig You" and "Manwell" by Ketsa Links: https://www.mountainmuskox.com/ https://www.responderalliance.com/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2hc2FLOdhI

On today's show, we're joined by Iain Stewart-Patterson. He is a Professor Emeritus and was one of the founding members of the Adventure Studies Department at Thompson Rivers University in Kamloops BC. From his start as an Outward Bound instructor through his certification as an ACMG/IFMGA guide, Iain has led expeditions around the world and has facilitated many dream ski vacations whether accessing the terrain by heli or on foot. Iain has been guiding and instructing snow, rock, and ice adventures for over 42 years. Blending theory and practice, he earned a PhD, in which he investigated the decision processes used by expert heli and snowcat guides in avalanche terrain. Iain will share insights from his path to becoming an IFMGA guide, his entry into motorized travel in the mountains, the development of a motorized guide curriculum, and relevant research around the role intuition plays within expert decision making. With such a wealth of knowledge and experience, Iain is the perfect guest to discuss the complexities of decision-making in the mountains. Episode Breakdown: - Intro - Caleb: Introduction of Iain Stewart-Patterson (2:40) - Iain: Introduction to his beginnings (3:44) - Iain: Talking about building an Apprentice Guide Resume (8:24) - Iain: Explains the Adventure Studies Program at Thompson River - - ---- University (9:56) - Iain: Goes into his journey toward the motorized community (16:22) - Iain: Digging into avalanche motorized education (20:46) - Iain: Discusses the differences between ski and motorized travel (27:06) - Iain: Clarifies the process of creating an education curriculum (39:34) - Iain: Helps us understand snowpack penetration results with motorized travel (49:16) - Iain: Educates us about the expert halo and how to consider risk (58:20) - Iain: Incidence of over exposure (1:14:00) Outro (1:20:00) Socials: The Avalanche Hour Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/theavalanchehourpodcast/ Iain Stewart-Patterson - https://www.instagram.com/iainstewartpatterson/ Links: Thompson River University - https://www.tru.ca/adventure-studies.html Bruce Jamieson and Iain - https://vimeo.com/551688410 Stress Measurement Study - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165232X14002079 Sponsors for this episode: Wyssen : https://www.wyssenavalanche.com/en/ Crew: Host - Caleb Merrill Producer - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Donate: The Avalanche Hour Podacast - https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate The American Avalanche Association - https://www.americanavalancheassociation.org/donate

On today's episode, we have the pleasure of speaking with Kate Koons, a highly respected professional in the Avalanche industry. Kate is a resident of Victor, Idaho, and holds several critical positions in the field. She is a pro instructor for the American Institute for Avalanche Research and Education (AIARE), was the past A3 (American Avalanche Association) pro training coordinator, and currently serves on the A3 board of directors. Kate shares with us her fascinating journey, from her NOLS experience to her current work supporting the crew in Antarctica at McMurdo Station. She delves into the immense pressure that comes with such a role and shares with us valuable insights on self-care and the importance of taking much-needed breaks. As a leader in the industry, Kate sets an example by taking time to rest and unwind, all while remaining an active participant in the world around her. While she enjoys spending time with her furry companions, she is also passionate about immersing herself in diverse experiences, such as exploring Muslim culture in Pakistan. Socials: The Avalanche hour Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/theavalanchehourpodcast/ Guest - Kate Koons - https://www.instagram.com/kkoons/?hl=en Crew: Host - Sean Zimmerman-Wall Sound Editor - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Sponsors for this episode: Wyssen : https://www.wyssenavalanche.com/en/ 6 Point Engineering - https://6pointeng.com/ Donate: https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate Music- Ketsa- Can’t Stop We, Boppin

EPISODE 7.20 Chic Scott is a renowned mountain adventurer, guide, and author who has been exploring high places for over 50 years. Born in Calgary in 1945, Chic is a fourth-generation Albertan and a third-generation Calgarian with a family history of organizing amateur sports. He represented Alberta at the Canadian Junior Golf Championship in 1961 but took up mountain climbing and skiing the following year and has been passionate about these pursuits ever since. Chic has climbed and skied in many locations around the world, including the Canadian Rockies, the European Alps, and the Himalayas. He has organized clubs and foundations, written books, and worked as a mountain guide. Some of his notable achievements include the first winter ascent of Mount Assiniboine in 1967, the first successful completion of the Jasper to Lake Louise High-Level Ski Traverse, and the first Himalayan summit reached by a Canadian, Myagdi Matha, in 1973. Chic Scott is an epic writer with over 150 articles or journal contributions and 17 books as writer or co-writer, including "Summits and Icefields: Alpine Ski Tours in the Canadian Rockies", "Pushing the Limits: The Story of Canadian Mountaineering", "Ski Trails in the Canadian Rockies", "Powder Pioneers: Ski Stories from the Canadian Rockies and Columbia Mountains", and "Deep Powder and Steep Rock: The Life of Mountain Guide Hans Gmoser". Chic's guidebook, "Summits and Icefields," is considered a classic of the genre, while "Pushing the Limits, the Story of Canadian Mountaineering," is considered the authority on the subject. He has received honorary memberships in the Association of Canadian Mountain Guides, the Calgary Mountain Club, The Alpine Club of Canada, and the Whyte Museum of the Canadian Rockies. In 2000, Chic received the Bill March Summit of Excellence Award at the Banff Mountain Film Festival, and in 2018, he received the Sir Christopher Ondaatje Medal for Exploration from the Royal Canadian Geographical Society. Chic currently resides in Banff, Alberta, where he writes books and magazine articles, gives presentations on mountain topics, and enjoys hiking, skiing, and climbing in the nearby Rocky Mountains. Dom: Intro Chic: From golf to skiing and mountaineering 4:35 Dom: Talks about the changes and prep 7:35 Chic: Illustrates the mountains melting 11:40 Chic: Weather and going into the unknown 15:59 Dom: Ques up the Banff film festival origins 25:05 Chic: Age is a number 31:12 Chic: Explains his love for literature 35:00 Chic: You thought your move was bad 40:00 Chic: Rappelling lesson learned 56:55 Dom: Outro Socials: The Avalanche Hour Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/theavalanchehourpodcast/ Guest - https://www.instagram.com/ Links: Chic Scott’s Website - https://chicscott.com/index.htm Whyte Museum Fireside chats - https://www.whyte.org/digitalvault/categories/fireside-chats Whyte Museum Pushing the Limits Legacy interview series https://www.whyte.org/pushing-limits-legacy Sponsors for this episode: Wyssen : https://www.wyssenavalanche.com/en/ Crew: Host - Dom Baker - https://instagram.com/dom_baken/ Producer - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Donate: The Avalanche Hour Podcast - https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate The American Avalanche Association - https://www.americanavalancheassociation.org/donate Music: Gravy - https://soundcloud.com/gravy Devil’s Punchbowl - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z0I2zpUuy1U

In this episode, we explore the Avalanche Terrain Exposure Scale (ATES). We speak to Grant Statham, who developed ATES while working for Parks Canada. Grant discusses its development, creation of ATES ratings maps, and its evolution. Next, we talk to John Sykes, an avalanche forecaster, about his work creating automated ATES maps. Auto ATES significantly reduces the time needed for creating human-generated maps, allowing for further fine-tuning with local knowledge. Lastly, we chat with Andy Sovick about Beacon Guidebooks. Andy and his guidebook authors have incorporated ATES into their products, which aids in backcountry tour planning. Grant Statham: Grant Statham is a mountain guide, climber, and avalanche forecaster based in Canmore, Alberta. He works for Parks Canada with a team of mountain guides that handle avalanche forecasting and search and rescue in Banff, Yoho, & Kootenay National Parks. He develops risk-based systems, is an adjunct professor at Simon Fraser University, and an Arcteryx Ambassador for 25 years. John Sykes: John began his career as an avalanche professional in 2011. After completing an MSc at the Snow and Avalanche Laboratory, he has been working on a PhD with the Simon Fraser University Avalanche Research Program. John is a member of the board of directors of the Alaska Avalanche School and a professional member of the American Avalanche Association. Andy Sovick: Andy, originally from Fort Collins, moved to Durango and graduated from Fort Lewis College. In 2005, he and his wife Gail moved to Crested Butte. While working as a timber-framer, Andy created the "Off-Piste Ski Atlas" for the Crested Butte area in 2013 and the Silverton zone in 2014. In 2015, he founded his publishing company. Socials: The Avalanche Hour Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/theavalanchehourpodcast/ Grant Statham - Links: WySAW talk - https://vimeo.com/769917679 Sponsors for this episode: Wyssen : https://www.wyssenavalanche.com/en/ Crew: Host - Caleb Merrill Producer - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Donate: The Avalanche Hour Podcast - https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate The American Avalanche Association - https://www.americanavalancheassociation.org/donate

In today's episode, we're thrilled to host Melis Coady, who has just triumphantly wrapped up her 7th season as the executive director of the Alaska Avalanche School. With over two decades of experience in the challenging fields of mountaineering and avalanche studies, Melis has since emerged as a prominent figure in outdoor education, bringing her deep knowledge to roles such as a mountaineering instructor, climbing guide, and wilderness medicine instructor. Making her home in Talkeetna, Alaska since the late 90's, Melis first navigated the intricate world of snow and avalanches through daring expeditions in Alaska. These experiences laid the groundwork for her career, leading to her role as a climbing instructor for the renowned NOLS and Alaska Mountaineering School. Her determination and expertise then propelled her to become a high-altitude mountaineering guide, amassing a formidable tally of ascents on Denali, Foraker, and countless other peaks. Melis' adaptability and thirst for new challenges also led her to become a climbing ranger in Denali National Park, where she worked for four summers educating climbers, safeguarding natural resources, and serving as a vital member of a technical rescue team. This adventurous spirit even took her to the South Pole, where was working as an arctic guide for Antarctic Logistics and Expeditions. In this enlightening episode, Brooke and Melis delve into what makes Alaska a uniquely potent and effective classroom for avalanche education. They also explore the intriguing use of the expedition format as a means of teaching formal avalanche courses. With her profound experience and relentless passion for outdoor education, Melis imparts invaluable insights into the world of mountaineering and avalanche safety, making this episode a must-listen. Socials: The Avalanche hour Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/theavalanchehourpodcast/ Melis - https://www.instagram.com/akavalancheschool/ Links: Alaska Avalanche School - https://alaskaavalanche.org/ Sponsors for this episode: Wyssen : https://www.wyssenavalanche.com/en/ Crew: Host - Brooke Shiny Edwards - https://www.instagram.com/wildworldwanderings/ Executive Producer - Caleb Merrill Producer - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Donate: The Avalanche Hour Podcast - https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate The American Avalanche Association - https://www.americanavalancheassociation.org/donate Music: By Ketsa - https://ketsa.uk/ Intro: New Highs Old Lows Music outro: Percussive Melodies 4

As Season 7 of the podcast comes to an end, this episode is a bit of a smorgasbord of guests. First we hear from Dara Miles who reached out after hearing the Avalanche Terrain Exposure Scale episode. Dara started the Colorado ATES project and stops by to tell us more about it. We then dive into a conversations with IFMGA guide Gary Kuehn and Ian Snape from Frontline Mind. They are running a "resiliency scan" amongst snow and avalanche professionals to find out more about our profession as a whole in terms of our reactions to stressful and difficult situations. To wrap up the episode, Kevin Grove, Co-Chair of the 2023 ISSW swings by to give us a glimpse as to what to expect at the Bend International Snow Science Workshop coming up in October. It's been a pleasure hosting and producing the podcast this season, and I couldn't have done it with a little help from my friends. Thanks to all the contributing hosts that shared the load with me: Dom Baker, Sean Zimmerman-Wall, Wesley Gregg, Matthias Walcher, and Brooke Edwards! Also a huge shout out for the production help from Wes and Cameron Griffin. The podcast wouldn't be possible without support from companies such as Wyssen Avalanche Control, Athletic Greens, Six Point Engineering, CalTopo, and Backcountry Nav. Links: Colorado ATES Project Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100087388533494 Frontline Mind: www.frontlinemind.com TAKE THE RESILIENCY SCAN SURVEY HERE: https://collector.sensemaker-suite.com/collector?projectID=141065e1-09dd-48f5-be2a-10158efd03a7 ISSW2023: https://www.issw2023.com/

It’s the season opener of the podcast…Welcome back! In this episode, Caleb sits down with Ken Wylie. Ken is an IFMGA guide who works extensively in the field of human hazard management. His business, Archetypal works with first line workers, guide teams, and more to help people understand how they are showing up to critical decision making processes. Ken talks about his involvement in a tragic avalanche accident in 2003 that left him buried for 40 minutes. Ken wrote a book, Buried 2020 that chronicles his journey to make meaning out of and heal from this avalanche. He has plenty of wisdom to share about what, for many of us can only be our worst nightmare coming to life. Ken talks about parts of the process that has helped him in healing from this life altering event. We hope you enjoy our conversation. Music by Ketsa. Ken’s Website: archetypal.ca Blog: https://www.archetypal.ca/blog Email: Ken@archetypal.ca Video Links: “The Weight We Carry” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wug0wO-P-Ns The Zone Film https://vimeo.com/740476166 Podcasts: The Existence Project: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1oXilw8KXDc&feature=youtu.be Stories From The Field: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/buried-a-story-of-healing-after-a-high/id1440862416?i=1000617688958 Intuitively Aligned Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/ca/podcast/ep-18-from-avalanche-to-awakening-with-ken-wylie/id1684581754?i=1000627584802

Today's episode features Peter Bilous. Peter is a yankee who resides in Wanaka, New Zealand. He has spent 70-plus seasons playing and working in the snow. He has ski tour and heli-ski guided all across the globe throughout his career and has had a big hand in professional avalanche education in New Zealand. Peter is the Avalanche and Snowsports program manager at Otago Polytechnic where about 90% of New Zealand's Pro courses take place. We chat about what has gone into the development and progression of the program. Peter recounts a close call in an avalanche and some of the contributing weather, snowpack, and human factors that played a role. Finally, he talks about some of the accomplishments of his two sons in the Freeride World Tour and Olympics! We hope you enjoy! Music by Ketsa: "Turn it on" and "Plus 9" Otago Polytechnic Avalanche Safety Program: https://www.op.ac.nz/study/avalanche-safety/ ISSW Proceeding Archive by Year: https://arc.lib.montana.edu/snow-science/workshops.php Thank you to Wyssen Avalanche Control and 6 Point Engineering for their support for this episode.

In this episode, Dr. Sara Boilen sits down with Caleb to discuss the broad topic of human factors. We explore the concept that acknowledgment and awareness of our human factors (the perception of our situation and environment, cognitive biases, and heuristic traps) may not be enough. While the concept is embraced within our community, perhaps we lack the tools and framework to deal with them as they will ultimately arise in all backcountry adventures. Sara provides some tools to start this work for yourself and amongst your touring partners. She was fresh back from presenting at the Wyoming Snow and Avalanche Workshop and reflected on some presentations that hit home for her. Music by Gravy. Dr. Sara Boilen is a clinical and forensic psychologist and the owner of Sweetgrass Psychological Services in Northwest Montana. She earned her doctorate from the University of Denver where she researched the impact of rock climbing on women’s sense of hope and courage. She founded Sweetgrass Psychological Services ten years ago to meet the growing need for accessible and affordable mental healthcare in Montana. She later founded Well Montana, a nonprofit aimed at meeting all Montanans wherever they are in their mental wellness journey. She is the board chair of SheJumps and in her free time engages in research, theory development, and education for the avalanche community that she holds dear. She spends her days alternating between testifying in forensic cases, supervising bright trainees in her clinic, providing therapy to clients, and tromping up mountains typically with some sort of dessert in her bag. She lives with her partner and their dog, Klaus, outside of Whitefish, MT. The Monkey Business Illusion: https://youtu.be/IGQmdoK_ZfY?si=GjADdF8qSBsyDUkN "Your gonna be glad I brought two cookies" recipe: https://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/salted-butter-and-chocolate-chunk-shortbread Sara's favorite chocolate cake recipe: https://smittenkitchen.com/2015/02/the-i-want-chocolate-cake-cake/ Sara's Human Factor MadLibs: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/58daf985e3df28fd7e577a10/t/6539b5d58835e52841e6839d/1698280920164/Mad+Libs.png WYSAW recording: COMING SOON!

Caleb Merril and Dom Baker are joined by Eirik Sharp – the President of the Canadian Avalanche Association (CAA). CAA is the professional organization that ensures a high standard of practice for avalanche workers in Canada. The CAA Industry Training Program is registered private post-secondary training institution that provides the professional level avalanche training for avalanche practitioners in Canada. The CAA also provides the information sharing system for avalanche operations in Canada and beyond – InfoEX. In part one Eirik talks about the CAA history, membership structure, avalanche education and the unique challenges of being a software provider. CAA members may work in any number of different facets of the snow and avalanche world, from guiding to education, patrolling to avalanche forecasting, and for operations such as ski resorts, heli, cat or ski touring operations and industrial or transportation settings such as mines, pipelines, highways or railway. This broad set of avalanche practitioners are united by a common training stream, a daily information exchange, and a common standard of practice. In large part this has all been coordinated by the Canadian Avalanche Association Eirik is a long-time avalanche professional based in Whitehorse, Yukon. Originally from Norway, he grew up skiing backcountry and has worked in the snow for 18 years as a researcher, forecaster, educator, consultant, and ACMG ski guide. He has an M.Sc. in GIS with research focused on applications of machine learning to avalanche mapping. He currently works on the Alpine Solutions Avalanche Services engineering team, specializing in terrain modelling and avalanche risk assessment. However, he still gets out into the field to support industrial operational avalanche risk management programs as much as he can through the winter. Eirik is passionate about supporting, promoting, and elevating professional avalanche practice in Canada; he worked for ten years as an instructor with the Canadian Avalanche Association’s industry training program and has served as President of the CAA since 2022. Music for this episode by Gravy @gravy.tunes Episode produced by Wes Gregg at Trigger Backcountry Adventures www.avalancheassociation.ca www.wyssenavalanche.com www.gordini.com www.beaconguidebooks.com

Part 2 of Caleb Merril and Dom Baker’s conversation with Eirik Sharp – the President of the Canadian Avalanche Association (CAA). In part 2 Eirik shares his experiences from a diverse career in almost every corner of the avalanche world. From ski patrol to research, ski guiding to avalanche forecasting in remote places – Eirik has tales to tell and thoughtful reflections to learn from. Dig in to this gem of a conversation. Eirik is a long-time avalanche professional based in Whitehorse, Yukon. Originally from Norway, he grew up skiing backcountry and has worked in the snow for 18 years as a researcher, forecaster, educator, consultant, and ACMG ski guide. He has an M.Sc. in GIS with research focused on applications of machine learning to avalanche mapping. He currently works on the Alpine Solutions Avalanche Services engineering team, specializing in terrain modelling and avalanche risk assessment. However, he still gets out into the field to support industrial operational avalanche risk management programs as much as he can through the winter. Eirik is passionate about supporting, promoting, and elevating professional avalanche practice in Canada; he worked for ten years as an instructor with the Canadian Avalanche Association’s industry training program and has served as President of the CAA since 2022. Music for this episode by Gravy @gravy.tunes Episode produced by Wes Gregg at Trigger Backcountry Adventures www.avalancheassociation.ca www.wyssenavalanche.com www.gordini.com www.beaconguidebooks.com

Whether we are celebrating, processing, or grieving an event in the mountains, many of us reach for a drink to help us along the way. Alcohol is steeped in our culture as a whole, but can become especially amplified in ski and mountain culture. What happens when it gets out of control for some of us? In today’s episode, several of your hosts from the podcast share their stories of how they came to give up alcohol in recent years. Wes, Sean, and Caleb are joined by Jake Hutchinson to give their perspectives on their relationship with alcohol. Laura McGladrey sat in on the conversation and added some reflective perspective towards the end of the chat. The hope of this episode is not meant to shame or preach, but simply to share our stories and reflect on how alcohol has impacted our careers and personal lives. We hope that this episode will help someone out there who may be struggling with some of the same issues we have faced. Websites: Alcoholics Anonymous: https://www.aa.org/ Responder Alliance: www.responderalliance.com Warriors healing network: https://warriorshealingnetwork.org/ Redside Foundation: https://www.redsidefoundation.org/ Mountain Muskox: https://www.mountainmuskox.com/ Funding: American Avalanche Association Resiliency Fund: https://www.americanavalancheassociation.org/a3-resilience-grant Climbing Grief Fund: https://americanalpineclub.org/grieffund Literature: https://thisnakedmind.com/ https://www.aa.org/the-big-book Music in this episode is provided by Gravy with the track Shabbadoobah from the album Mountains, Valleys, Places Between. You can find his tracks at gravytunes.bandcamp.com. Artwork by Mike Tea, miketea.com Episode produced by Wes Gregg

In this episode, Caleb sits down with Rob Coppolillo. Rob is an IFMGA guide, avalanche educator, and author of The Ski Guide Manual (among other titles). Rob talks about his progression to become a pinned mountain guide, tips his hat to some folks who influenced him along the way, and chats about living and ski guiding in Europe. We discuss some ideas on effective avalanche education as well as what went into writing his books. Rob reflects on a couple close ones....and then reflects on reflecting (debriefing!). We hope you enjoy! Music on today's episode is Ketsa: "40 something" and "Anvil" Thanks to the sponsors of today's episode: Wyssen Avalanche Control Gordini Propagation Labs

Known as the ‘Godfather Of Freeskiing’, Mike Douglas is consistently listed by media outlets as one of the most influential skiers of all time. He began his career as a mogul skier on the Canadian Freestyle Ski Team in the early 1990s. In 1997, he developed the first high-performance twin-tip ski, the Salomon Teneighty, and his freeskiing career was launched. Dubbed the New Canadian Air Force, Mike and his crew of Canadians revolutionized the sport with their tricks at ski resorts across the globe. He even has a signature tick - the D Spin. Mike has appeared in more than 50 ski films, was named Powder Magazine’s ‘Male Skier Of The Year’ in 2003, and was the voice of skiing at the X Games for 14 years. In 2004, Mike founded Switchback Entertainment - a video production company specializing in outdoor adventure films and commercials. He launched the groundbreaking web series, Salomon TV, in 2007 and has produced/directed more than a dozen award-winning films including The Freedom Chair, Tempting Fear, Eclipse, Snowman, Guilt Trip and Fountain Of Youth. From 1997-2017 his role as a marketing consultant and ambassador for Whistler Blackcomb helped propel the organization to the top of the ski resort rankings. He has been named ‘Favourite Whistlerite’ 7 times by the readers of Whistler’s local newspaper, Pique Newsmagazine. Today, Mike is a married father of two, and splits his time between raising his family, skiing professionally, producing/directing films and commercials at Switchback Entertainment, and environmental advocacy work. He is the former Board Chair for Protect Our Winters Canada - an environmental group focused on fighting climate change. He is also on the Board of Directors for the Whistler Blackcomb Foundation. You can find him on social media at: Instagram: @mikedski Twitter: @mikedski Facebook.com/mikedouglas Music for this episode by Gravy @gravy.tunes www.switchbackentertainment.com Sam and Me – Overcoming Climate Anxiety https://youtu.be/itPEPpiMojc?si=E5pLii2ZitxllkDW www.protectourwinters.ca www.protectourwinters.org www.wyssenavalanche.com www.gordini.com www.sixpointeng.com

Caleb sits down with Jon Ferrian. Jon loves to snowmobile. He has been riding his whole life and has a strong passion for spreading the word about backcountry safety amongst a greater audience on his live-streamed podcast, Live Large Universe. Jon talks about the progression in his own backcountry avalanche awareness and how he has seen a shift in the motorized culture to a place where being avy-savvy is cool! Jon created the Live Large University Scholarship program in partnership with AIARE to make avalanche education more accessible to riders. He chats with us about what the Avalanche Alliance is, and how the money from the Avalanche Alliance Sweepstakes is making a difference for all user groups through the support of avalanche forecast centers. Music by Gravy @gravy.tunes Buy your tickets to the Avalanche Alliance Sweepstakes by December 10,2023: https://www.tapkat.org/american-institute-for-avalanche-research-education/Wk1eqk?promo=LIVELARGE Avalanche Alliance: https://www.avalanche-alliance.org/ Live Large Universe: https://www.facebook.com/search/top?q=jon%20ferrian%20live

Caleb starts out this episode catching up with Jayne Thompson-Nolan, the Executive Director of the American Avalanche Association. She lets us know about some updates and initiatives of the A3. Katie Warren drops in to chat about some of her experiences working as a Steven’s Pass Patroller, helping out with highway avalanche mitigation along Highway 2, and a transition of scale to regional backcountry forecasting for NWAC. Thanks to the sponsors of the show: Wyssen Avalanche Control Gordini 6 Point Engineering Beacon Guidebooks Music by Gravy www.americanavalancheassociation.org www.nwac.us www.evergreentrailruns.com

In this installment of The Avalanche Hour Podcast; Wes Gregg has a chat with ski film legend, farmer, and father Chris Rubens. Rubens has been a globally recognized professional skier for the past two decades. Truly dedicated to the mountains and passionate about moving in them, Chris chooses to spend the majority of his time self-propelled in the backcountry, seeking beautiful lines to showcase for the world via film, photo and social media. Over the course of his career, he has perfected the skill of delivering high quality content that resonates with viewers around the world. These days, he strives to inspire his audience to take action living and playing with less impact on the climate. Chris is able to continue his dream through the support from brands that he truly believes in. Take some time to check out the products/businesses he supports. Atomic - Atomic.com Pomoca - Pomoca.com Picture Organic Clothing - picture-organic-clothing.com Avalanche Canada - avalanche.ca Revelstoke Mountain Resort - revelstokemountainresort.com Music in this episode is provided by Gravy with the track Shabbadoobah from the album Mountains, Valleys, Places Between. You can find his tracks at gravytunes.bandcamp.com Artwork by Mike Tea, miketea.com This episode of The Avalanche Hour Podcast is proudly supported by: Wyssen Avalanche Control Gordini USA 6 Point Engineering Beacon Guidebooks Episode produced by Wes Gregg

In this episode, host Sean Zimmerman-Wall sits down with Emilie Drinkwater. Emilie is an AMGA/IFMGA Mountain Guide based in Salt Lake City, Utah but born and raised in New Hampshire. She guides year round, instructs pro and recreational avalanche courses for the American Avalanche Institute, and is a member of the AMGA Instructor Team. Emilie has a great curiosity for remote mountains around the world and has traveled, climbed, and skied in such notable locations as Alaska, Afghanistan, and India. If it were up to her, Iran, Iraq, and North Korea would be next on the list. Until then, she’ll continue enjoying the abundant backyard adventures to be found in the Wasatch and beyond. Music by Ketsa Support for this episode provided by: Wyssen Avalanche Control Gordini Propagation Labs

EPISODE 8.12 Devin Gaan In this episode, Brooke sits down with Devin Gaan who uses the pronouns she/her/they/them. She is a Hong Konger, trans, queer, and an artist, who also recently became a student again. She was raised in Hong Kong before her family moved to Seattle in 1992. Where she was supported by her family through transportation into the mountains, even though they took no interest. She finds culture is very important, but something that took years to learn to take pride in. However that appreciation made space for her to learn to embrace her queerness as well. She used to work in the tech world but found she loves to ski and snowboard and is pursuing a certification to become an AIARE instructor. She would love to be in the mountains as much as possible but in the past few seasons, have focused on the quality of the individual and herself. Fortunately for you Brooke and Devin have a rich history filled with valuable stories. Socials: The Avalanche hour Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/theavalanchehourpodcast/ Devin Gaan - https://www.instagram.com/Devinelleg Sponsors for this episode: Gordini - https://gordini.com/ IPA Collective - https://ipacollective.com/ Open Snow - https://opensnow.com (Code: AvalanchePodcast) Crew: Host - Brooke “Shiny” Edwards - https://www.instagram.com/wildworldwanderings/ Producer - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Music: Intro: Lionheart/Shaolindub by Ketsa uk Outro: Dragonstyle/shaolindub by Ketsa uk Donate: https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate

In this episode, we start the hour by chatting with Joel Gratz, head meteorologist and founder of OpenSnow. Joel tells us why he started OpenSnow and how it can help streamline your weather analysis process to help lead you to your deepest days in the resort or favorite backcountry location. I then sit down with William Sherman of Safeback. Will is originally from Colorado, but now lives in Norway where he works for Safeback. For the last 6 years, Safeback has been developing a product to help extend the avalanche survival curve for victims buried under the snow who have a patent airway. Will explains the thorough independent research that backs the efficacy of the Safeback SBX product, we discuss how it works and how it is integrated into backpacks and vests. He is transparent about the limitations of the system and recognizes that new technology simply can't take the place of conservative decision-making in an uncertain backcountry environment. We hope you enjoy the episode! Music by Ketsa https://www.safeback.no/articles/product-testing/eurac-research-conduct-independent-medical-trial-of-safeback-sbx Support for this episode is provided by: Wyssen Avalanche Control Gordini USA OpenSnow Use code: avalanchepodcast at www.opensnow.com to receive 30% off an all access year subscription to OpenSnow.

In this episode, I sit down with Josh Jespersen. Josh is the deputy director of operations at the Silverton Avalanche School, an IFMGA guide, and a former Navy Seal. We talk about his experience transitioning to civilian life, and how adventures in the mountains helped create perspective and purpose. Josh climbed and skied all of Colorado's 54 14ers in a record-breaking duration of 138 days, and we discuss how he worked to manage risk with such an objective-driven goal. He is the founder and president of Veteran's Outdoor Advocacy Group, an organization that works to enable access to outdoor adjunct therapies for all Veterans in need. We chat about why this is so important, and how the snow, avalanche, and guiding communities can get involved. We hope you enjoy our conversation. Music by Ketsa Veteran's Outdoor Advocacy Group: www.voag.org Thank you to the sponsors of this episode: Wyssen Avalanche Control Gordini USA Open Snow IPA Collective

EPISODE 8.15 Martin Heuberger and daughter Anna(featured in episode 6.15) joins Matthias for an in-depth conversation. They explore the journey of this pioneering Austrian who ventured into the Canadian Rockies for heli-skiing. Heuberger delves into the challenges he faced in establishing a heli-ski operation, including learning the intricate processes involved. The journey was not without its hardships, as he recounts incidents of helicopters being lost and delayed rescue missions. Consequently, he collaborated with various operations to implement check-in procedures, utilizing radios to enhance the safety of crews working in the area. He speaks openly and with vivid detail about encountering physical trauma and how individuals persevered through tough circumstances. He also sheds light on his collaboration with Mike Wiegele, highlighting their significant contributions to the growth and evolution of the heli-skiing industry. Additionally, Heuberger discusses the valuable lessons he brought back to Austria, such as advanced snow profiling techniques. Socials: The Avalanche hour Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/theavalanchehourpodcast/ Guest - https://www.instagram.com/ Links: Stress Measurement Study - https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165232X14002079 Sponsors for this episode: Wyssen : https://www.wyssenavalanche.com/en/ OpenSnow - https://opensnow.com/ (Code: AvalanchePodcast) Gordini - https://gordini.com/ Crew: Host - Matthias Walcher Host - Anna Heuberger Producer - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Donate: The Avalanche Hour Podcast - https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate The American Avalanche Association - https://www.americanavalancheassociation.org/donate Music: Gravy - Wildhorse

Sunshine is a certified ski guide, avalanche educator, river guide, father, and husband who currently lives in Colorado's Roaring Fork Valley. He talks about his early days of backcountry skiing in Colorado before exploring Oregon's Wallowa Mountains as a ski guide for Wallowa Alpine Huts. 10 years ago, Sunshine was guiding a group of guests out of the Schneider Cabin on the South flank of Cornucopia Peak when an avalanche was triggered and tragically took the lives of one of his guests and his tail guide. Sunny spent the night with two other guests who were critically injured before being evacuated the next day. Through our discussion, he provides an honest reflection of the event and of the process of moving forward with his life and guiding career. We are grateful for his contribution to our community through sharing his story, which will undoubtedly help others.

EPISODE 8.16 Experience a unique adventure in this episode as Tele Mike and Brooke take us from the exhilarating rush of heated side-by-sides to the awe-inspiring helicopter rides over Alaska's snowy peaks. This episode isn't just about skiing; it's a profound journey of transformation and discovery. Tele Mike's story begins on the East Coast, where a life-altering moment reshaped his destiny. Witnessing the fall of the Twin Towers firsthand, he was engulfed in a moment of introspection, realizing the fragility of life and the importance of pursuing one's passions. This epiphany led him to Colorado just four months later, where he plunged headfirst into the world of skiing. From an enthusiastic instructor to an adept practitioner of ski mountaineering, Tele Mike's evolution is a narrative of resilience, passion, and an unbreakable bond with the mountains. He shares his rich experiences, discussing not just the thrills and spills but also the critical moments of close calls and rescues that define the spirit of mountaineering. Join us in this inspiring episode as Tele Mike and Brooke bring the exhilarating world of skiing to life, sharing stories that resonate with adventure, life lessons, and the unyielding call of the wild. About Tele Mike: “Tele Mike” Russell has never seen a snowcapped mountain that he did not want to climb and ski. Fierce and soulful, Tele Mike is a big mountain Telemark Skier who is passionate about climbing technical routes and skiing exposed backcountry mountain descents on a global scale. Tele Mike finds gratitude and restitution in guiding and showing anyone how to access the beauty of the mountain in a way that is safe, connected, empowering, and accessible, regardless of ability levels. His ultimate motivation is to amplify ALL voices in the backcountry ski community regardless of an individual’s labels or demographics. And due to his African and Native American heritage, Tele Mike has meticulously curated many mountain experiences for BIPOC communities in an effort to provide positive mountain experiences to underrepresented groups, in an effort to bring about sustained physical and mental wellbeing, and inner peace, while overcoming generational fears of open spaces. Tele Mike also loves to use his artistry to create short cinematic heartfelt mountain adventure films to show people of color that there are other people adventuring in the mountains who look like them, enjoying safe open spaces. https://us.scarpa.com/community/blog/article/mentee-spotlight-michael-russell Socials: The Avalanche hour Podcast: https://www.instagram.com/theavalanchehourpodcast/ Guest - https://www.instagram.com/tele.mike Links: To learn more about Mike, check out his mentee profile at the link below: https://www.scarpa.com/community/athletes/mike-russell Here Just a Few Of Mike’s Adventures: Lumpy Ridge: https://vimeo.com/395827392/4489393b93 Tele Heli Skiing Alaska: https://vimeo.com/516090629/a72873871d Freedom Land: https://vimeo.com/430556554/9708078b8e Keep Loving the People: https://vimeo.com/417072442/e150445532 Sponsors for this episode: Wyssen : https://www.wyssenavalanche.com/en/ OpenSnow - https://opensnow.com/ (Code: AvalanchePodcast) Gordini - https://gordini.com/ Safeback - Crew: Host - Brooke “Shiny” Edwards Producer - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Donate: The Avalanche Hour Podcast - https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate The American Avalanche Association - https://www.americanavalancheassociation.org/donate Music: Ketsa - intro: solstice shack out/shaolin dub Ketsa - outro: run come/shaolin dub

In this episode, Sean Zimmerman-Wall sits down with John Littleton. John's passion is teaching people about snow science and how to travel safely in the mountains. He is a US Navy Veteran and an American Institute for Avalanche Research & Education (AIARE) Course Leader and Instructor Trainer. John holds his AIARE Level 3 Certification and is a professional member of the American Avalanche Association. Having called Lake Tahoe home for almost 20 years. John has been both a Professional Ski Patroller at Palisades Ski Resort and an Outdoor Educator teaching Experiential Education at the Primary, Secondary, and College levels. Support for this episode was provided by Wyssen Avalanche Control Gordini USA OpenSnow IPA Collective

In this episode, Caleb sits down with forecaster Blase Reardon. Blase talks about his experiences public avalanche forecasting at the Sawtooth Avalanche Center, CAIC, and the Flathead Avalanche Center where he is currently the Director. He reflects on operational forecasting in the early days of the forecasting program for the Going To The Sun road at Glacier National Park. Blase has contributed in many ways to our community. We are stronger as a result of people like Blase being so engaged. He is a mentor, a tireless forecaster, an educator, and contributes with his writing degree as a former editor of The Avalanche Review and author/editor of the latest edition of The Snowy Torrents. Tune in with us for this great conversation! Music by Gravy Link to buy tickets for the A3 D5 Sweepstakes: https://www.tapkat.org/american-avalanche-association/KkqZL9

In this episode, Caleb sits down with Jayson Simons-Jones. We chat about Jayson's career as an IFMGA Mountain Guide, a guide service owner, an avalanche educator, and now his new role as the Recreation Education Manager for the American Avalanche Association. Jayson provides thoughtful insights and reflection on how he approaches bringing a deep sense of meaning and connection while taking people skiing in the backcountry. We dive into some of the key points of a great article he wrote for The Avalanche Review titled: Group Communication and Decision Making Tactics. We chat about his new role at the A3 and some of his goals within the position. We wrap up the hour with Jayson sharing some nuggets of wisdom through lessons delivered to him in the backcountry. Group Communication and Decision-Making Tactics TAR 39.4 Page 34: https://theavalanchereview.org/tar-39-4/ We hope you enjoy. Music by Ketsa www.ketsa.uk Support for this episode is provided by: Wyssen Avalanche Control www.wyssenavalanche.com Gordini USA www.gordini.com OpenSnow www.opensnow.com RecPak www.recpak.co Want to level up your tour planning game? Check out www.mtnmapping.com and use code: THEAVALANCHEHOUR to receive 30% off the $25 annual subscription. Thanks Will McKay for putting this great resource together!

Ep 8.20 Mentorship and community building What is mentorship? How does it strengthen a community? Is mentorship even the right word? Let’s dive in… Backcountry skiing and riding can be an intimidating sport to get into. We all know the avalanche and first aid courses are a must, but it can be hard to connect with more experienced backcountry users to practice the skills. How does a person find that mentorship of a more experienced backcountry traveler and build a community of like minded people interested in getting after it and safely shredding the pow? There are organizations around North America (and probably around the world) dedicated to helping new backcountry skiers and riders make those connections. Tune in for conversations with the fine folks from such organizations as The Avalanche Awareness Beyond the Boundaries Society, Ascent Mentorships, State of the Snowpack, and Colour the Trails. Respectively, these organizations open doors and create opportunities specifically for youth, for women, for all backcountry users in a specific locale, and for Black, Indigenous and People of Colour. These organizations provide mentorship in different ways: in a course setting, one-on-one, in a live event setting, and in a group. They are a small selection of the awesome groups creating opportunities for new backcountry users, and creating community in the process. Several other organizations are referenced in the episode. They are listed below. This podcast is all about creating a stronger community amongst those with a curious fascination with avalanches. If you have an organization in your area that is doing great work opening doors, providing opportunities and building community – share it in the comments below this episode, or on the related Instagram post. Thanks for being part of that community! You can find our guests on social media at: https://www.facebook.com/AvalancheAwarenessBeyondBoundaries/ @kootenaymountainculture https://www.facebook.com/ascentmentors/ https://www.ascentmentors.ca/ @stateofthesnowpack @colourthetrails @jujumil Other groups referenced in the episode: @mountain.mentors @incluskivity @theladyalliance @aiare_official @ilsacrew @hoodstowoods @mwv_icefest @phil_henderson Other episodes referenced in the episode: 5:18 – Mt.Jumbo, Missoula Montana 6:23 – Graeme Marshal, High School Avalanche education 8.1 – Ken Wylie, IFMGA mountain guide. 6.11 – Judson Wright 5.13 – Keith Robine 4.4 Brenden Cronin Music for this episode by Gravy @gravy.tunes www.wyssenavalanche.com www.gordini.com https://opensnow.com/ https://www.safeback.no/

It's been a rough week. I hope you can smile while remembering Matt Primomo through listening to our interview from a few years ago. We lost another great human and avalanche professional last week- Nick Burks. A call to action of our community to reach out to The Avalanche Hour with stories of Nick that can be recorded and put together into a podcast episode. Email theavalanchehourpodcast@gmail.com to find out how to get involved. Music by Ketsa. https://ketsa.uk/ Go Fund Me for Stella and Milo: https://www.gofundme.com/f/supporting-stella-and-milo Resources for Grief and Support: Thanks to the help of Erin Good of Updraft Counseling for providing these descriptions. Responder Alliance - works to build awareness of stress injury and increase resilience for folks who work in austere environments. Please note they are largely focused on prevention, however many of the resources and tools are very applicable and provide a good foundation for having conversations around stress and trauma. https://www.responderalliance.com/ Climbing Grief Fund, American Alpine Club - CGF hosts a therapist directory and offers individual grants of up to $600 to individuals who have experienced grief or trauma related to climbing, alpinism, or ski mountaineering. You do not have to be a member of the American Alpine Club to apply for a CGF grant. https://americanalpineclub.org/grieffund American Avalanche Association - The A3 Avalanche Resilience Project also hosts a therapist directory with folks who have familiarity with the industry. A3 also offers a "resilience grant" of up to $500 to Professional and Affiliate members who are interested in pursuing therapy. https://www.americanavalancheassociation.org/resilience-project Survivors of Outdoor Adventures and Recovery (SOAR) - SOAR offers professionally-facilitated peer support groups for folks who have experienced loss or trauma in the outdoors. I just attended one of their community connection workshops on grief and trauma and found it very helpful. Get in touch with this wonderful organization! http://soar4life.org/ Mountain Muskox - For our northern friends, Mountain Muskox is a fantastic organization that offers professionally-facilitated in person peer support circles in BC and Alberta. They also offer a weekend gathering each fall. https://www.mountainmuskox.com/ The Redside Foundation - Redside provides funding for guides who are in need of medical or mental health care. They do not provide counseling directly, but rather they will pay for up to eight therapy sessions for guides in need. While they focus on individuals who live in Montana, Idaho, and Wyoming. If you don't live in one of these states, don't let it stop you from getting in touch. They will help! https://www.redsidefoundation.org/ Bigger Than The Trail - BTTT is an organization that uses trail running as a platform to talk about mental health. They also offer scholarships to folks who experience financial barriers to individual therapy. BTTT will pay for up to eight therapy sessions, however please note they do not have a directory - they work with existing platforms such as BetterHelp or Calmerry, so the therapist may or may not have a familiarity with outdoor / backcountry pursuits. Still, it is a great option for someone who needs support. https://www.bttt.run/support

In this episode, Caleb sits down with Ethan Greene, Director of the Colorado Avalanche Information Center. It is the CAIC’s 50th anniversary this year, and we are happy to have Ethan on the show to celebrate it. Ethan has truly blended the theory and practice of snow and avalanche work through academia and research coupled with his career as a ski patroller-turned avalanche forecaster. We chat about the extensive history of the CAIC and some of the strategies that his team employs including the decision to use flexible forecast zones and the implementation of a stress resiliency program. Music provided by Gravy. https://gravytunes.bandcamp.com Want to hear more about the history of CAIC? Listen to my interview with Knox Williams: https://on.soundcloud.com/FstGgd9Az3zmFrnF7

Episode 8.23 John “Buff” Buffery John “Buff” Buffery has had a long and diverse career in avalanche and mountain risk management, spending time at ski hills, guiding, risk management for highways, movie rigging, and much more. From ski guiding on tele skis back in the early days of his career to building his own split board in the 90s - Buff has pioneered his own path in the mountains. He was Craig Kelly’s personal guide for much of his career, and has guided and mentored the likes of Travis Rice, Robin Van Gyn, and many others over the years. He brings a thoughtful and reflective approach to risk management; a personal style that has accompanied him while pioneering new guiding operations in remote terrain, or rigging stunts for the latest Hollywood blockbuster. Tune in for lessons learned and philosophies developed over a rich life in the mountains. Buff talks about avalanche education for pro snowboarders, the evolution of a path into guiding for snowboarders, and longevity in a physically taxing career – and so much more. Enjoy! Sponsors for this episode: Wyssen : https://www.wyssenavalanche.com/en/ Gordini - www.gordini.com OpenSnow - www.opensnow.com Crew: Host - Dom Baker Producer - Cameron Griffin - https://www.instagram.com/backcountrycam/ Donate: The Avalanche Hour Podcast - https://www.theavalanchehour.com/donate The American Avalanche Association - https://www.americanavalancheassociation.org/donate Music: Gravy - @gravy.tunes

In this episode, Harry Keane interviews one of his mentors, David Lovejoy. We introduce Harry, then turn the mic over to David as he talks about some of his memories of exploring crags, alpine peaks, and snowy mountains across the globe. David attended Prescott College, where he eventually became a faculty member and professor. In the early 1980's, he developed an Avalanche Forecasting course in collaboration with Tim Lane and Jerry Roberts of Colorado's Department of Transportation. This course set the hook for many people who have gone on to make big splashes through their lifelong careers in the snow and avalanche industry. David provides us with insights and wisdom from his years of cultivating his curious fascination with avalanches. Tune in. Music by Ketsa Thanks to: Wyssen Avalanche Control Gordini USA OpenSnow

In this episode our European contributors, Matthias Walcher and Christoph Mitterer from @ÖGSL, interview Snow Scientists, and current intern at @ÖGSL; Manuel Genswein. Manuel is a one-of-a-kind individual and no stranger to the avalanche industry. As a lone wolf, he has been traveling the world for over 30 years bringing his strategies and ideas to the field of avalanche rescue. In this episode we talk about where he grew up? How he got involved with the avalanche industry? and we dive into experiences he has had along the way. He tells us which innovations he is most proud of and what ideas didn't fly? Listen in to find out more and check out Manuel's website for access to his courses and papers: mountainsafety.info Music by Gravy - Freebird You can find his tracks at gravytunes.bandcamp.com. Big shout out to the designer of our sweet logo Mike Tea. You can see more of Mike’s work over at miketea.com Support for this episode provided by: @wyssen_avalanche_control @gordiniusa @opensnow @american_avalanche_association