40 Percent Rise in Deaths in the Backcountry Last Winter With winter just around the corner and dreams of powder becoming more frequent there are also sobering reminders of the dangers associated with skiing and snowboarding in the backcountry. Last year in Europe 137 people were killed in incidents in the European backcountry involving avalanches, that’s more than 40% above average. Avalanche Michael Moranz | October 15, 2015 0 Comments
Heavy SNOW in the Alps Today | Photo Tour: It’s snowing heavily in parts of the European Alps today. Eastern Switzerland and Austria are getting hit hard right now. The higher elevations of Solden has already gotten a foot of new snow today. Snow is forecast into the afternoon today in the Alps. St. Moritz has also gotten a foot of new snow today. Industry News SnowBrains | September 23, 2015 0 Comments
Austrian Man Survives 10 Hour Avalanche Burial An Austrian man survived being buried under a massive avalanche in Gschnitztal, Tyrol, Austria for ten hours on Sunday. His companion, a 27-year-old German man, tragically died at the scene. A rescue team was remarkably able to dig out the 23-year-old Austrian alive and conscious after he had been buried under 5 feet of snow. He is making a strong recovery.The two men were reported missing around 6:45pm, hours after they failed to return home for lunch. A helicopter search team spotted the fresh avalanche in the Sandesalm area, at an altitude of around 6,200 feet. The avalanche covered an area around 1,300 feet long and […] Avalanche ameliatraynor | April 18, 2015 0 Comments
Wet Dreams in the Hida Mountains: Shirouma Southeast On Honshu, the transition from winter to spring can be be painful. In March, temperatures rise, but the mountain weather remains as wild as ever. The result is rapid and violent transitions from heat and sun to rain, cold, snow and heavy doses of wind. However, when the Gobi Desert dust finally settles and stable weather windows materialize, opportunities arise […] Backcountry Lee Lyon | April 12, 2015 1 Comment
VIDEO: Speed Rider Slides Chairlift Cable This is nuts. Speed Rider Valentin Delluc slides an out-of-use chairlift cable while ski-gliding down the mountain. The 22-year old frenchman has been skiing his whole life, and started paragliding at age 11. It was only a matter of time before the two came together… From Valentin’s vimeo (translated from French): WARNING: This slide into speed riding is very complicated and dangerous to carry !!! It really does not try to replicate this kind of thing . Only after thousands and thousands of hours of practice I could envisage making this slide . The […] ameliatraynor | April 9, 2015 1 Comment
Line of the Winter | Leo Taillefer Frenchman Leo Taillefer shreds his home mountain of Val d’Isere for GoPro’s Line of the Winter contest. Taillefer has some serious love for Val d’Isere: I traveled the last 7 years for skiing. I did USA, Canada, South America, Sweden, Romania, Bulgaria, Bosnia, and after all trips, I come back [to] Val d’Isere and I see that’s the best place for me. – PLANKS Clothing athlete profile. The good stuff starts at about 1:03. ameliatraynor | April 2, 2015 1 Comment
Interview with Dutch Pro Freerider Irian van Helfteren My roommate, friend and riding buddy Irian van Helfteren is definitely worth an Interview. He was the first dutch man to compete in the Freeride World Tour, is a talented photographer and mountain guide โ who knows the ins and outs of the Arlberg region. He has been living in Ausrtia for over 10 years. He divides his time up between […] Featured Article Eike Poeppelmeier | April 1, 2015 0 Comments
Ski Instructor Charged with Manslaughter in Avalanche Death A ski instructor in Val d’Isere has been charged with manslaughter, following the death of his client in an avalanche in December 2010. The avalanche occurred off-piste in the โcouloir des pisteursโ on the north face of the Charvet. The two men were carried 400 meters by the slide, and while the instructor managed to stay above the snow, his client was completely buried by the avalanche. Thanks to an avalanche beacon, he was found after 20 minutes. The client was already in a state of cardio-vascular arrest, and was airlifted to […] Avalanche ameliatraynor | March 16, 2015 1 Comment