{"id":7972,"date":"2021-12-07T10:19:31","date_gmt":"2021-12-07T18:19:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/nwac.us\/?p=7972"},"modified":"2021-12-08T09:21:48","modified_gmt":"2021-12-08T17:21:48","slug":"pre-season-preparation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/nwac.us\/2021\/12\/07\/pre-season-preparation\/","title":{"rendered":"Pre-Season Preparation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Photo by Scott Schell<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Snow, rain, snow, rain, rain, rain, SNOW! <\/p>\n\n\n\n

That pretty much sums up November and early December for anybody in the Cascades and Olympics itching for their winter fix. If you\u2019re like us, that means you\u2019re also impatiently checking weather forecasts, pulling out and prepping your winter gear, buying yourself early holiday presents, cutting skins, or tinkering with the sled.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, one of the most valuable ways to prepare for the season is to refresh your avalanche knowledge base. Below are some tips from our staff at NWAC to shift you back into the backcountry mindset.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Review Avalanche Course Materials<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Avalanche courses are fire hoses of critical information but it\u2019s difficult to retain all the information presented, especially if you were new to backcountry travel. [If you have yet to take an avalanche course a link to a list of programs for this winter is listed below]. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

For starters pull out the binder or resurface the online content used in your avalanche course (hint: the precourse emails sent by the provider have a lot of that info!). Read through your notes and review basic and advanced concepts. Think through how both your understanding of avalanches and your backcountry travels have changed since your course. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Do you have a better grasp of avalanche terrain and where avalanche problems can be found in the areas you are travelling? Are you making the right observations and can minimize your risk based on what you observe? Do you remember what the acronym FACETS<\/a> stands for? When was the last time you reviewed rescue skills or simply practiced with your beacon?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avalanche course curriculum is the best place to start a review of all things avalanche at the start of the season. Especially when it\u2019s raining.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Read Accident Reports<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Accident reports are powerful tools to help you understand the factors that lead to avalanche accidents and fatalities. These are reports of avalanches that had serious outcomes for not just the victim(s) but also for partners, witnesses, rescuers, and families – not light reading material in any way whatsoever. At the same time, they are also a stark and necessary reminder of something easy to overlook in the stoke for the first powder runs of the year – backcountry travels will always entail risk. It\u2019s up to each one of us to minimize this risk to ourselves, partners, and others with whom we share the mountains.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Avalanche forecasters publish these reports to provide the most accurate record possible of major avalanche accidents. The reports also help professionals and recreationists alike process and hopefully avoid similar accidents. This blog post<\/a> from avalanche expert Colin Zacharias provides guidance on how to tease out important information from accident reports. <\/p>\n\n\n\n