Telluride Backcountry Chats

2020-2021 PI Avy Fund Backcountry Chats

The Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund is back for its fourth season of Telluride Backcountry Chats. Join us to increase your knowledge and awareness of and in the backcountry. Check back often as we will be adding more dates and information soon. This season’s chats will be held virtually online via Zoom. If you miss the live event, the recording will be made available. We hope you can join us!

Thank you to our sponsors: Telluride Mountain Guides, San Juan Outdoor Adventures, Mountain Trip and Telluride Helitrax. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please email telluridemountainclub@gmail.com.

A great backcountry awareness program to kick off your season is Know Before You Go (KBYG) from Friends of the CAIC. Not much science, no warnings to stay out of the mountains, no formulas to memorize. In about an hour, you will see the destructive power of avalanches, understand when and why they happen, and how you can have fun in the mountains and avoid avalanches. Watch for the first time or refresh your memory via this link: https://support.friendsofcaic.org/pages/know-before-you-go-online.

2020-2021 Events

Monday, March 15
6:20 PM
Virtually on Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87190566715

Group Communication Tactics for Effective Decision-Making with Jayson Simons-Jones

Effective Decision Making is imperative in the high consequence world of professional avalanche work and winter recreational backcountry users. Communication tactics are at the cornerstone of how the decision-making process is carried out leading to either effective decisions with good outcomes, or ineffective decisions with unintended outcomes. Much in the world of avalanche education course curriculum has been focused on giving tools or checklists to implement communication as a skill to be employed in backcountry decision making tactics. I am hoping to explore a bit of the deeper psychology behind the communication process in how it plays out in groups, and specifically to initiate a conversation on how both specific communication behaviors and tactics can elicit effective team decision making, and what to be aware of in the process to determine if your group or professional team is working towards good or bad decision making communication strategies.

Jayson is an IFMGA Mountain Guide based in Colorado, where he has been a backcountry ski guide, avalanche forecaster, avalanche course educator, ski patroller, snowcat ski guide, and avalanche consultant throughout the scope of his career over the past 20+ years. These days he is balancing the new frontiers of working as a mountain guide amidst a global pandemic and a sketchy Colorado snowpack year with graduate studies in group communication and development strategies, hoping to add value to the conversation around increased decision making tactics and theories in a high risk, high consequence environment.

Monday, March 1
6:15 PM
Virtually on Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86216302329

Building Expertise with Sarah Carpenter & The American Avalanche Institute

This presentation is an exploration of building expertise – how can we improve our skills and knowledge in an environment where we don’t often get good feedback? Backcountry skiing is complex and demands knowledge and experience with so many skills. The goal of this presentation is to offer some tools and techniques to foster life long learning.

Sarah Carpenter is a co-owner of the American Avalanche Institute. She teaches avalanche courses to both recreationists and professionals and loves sharing her excitement about the winter environment with others. Sarah also works as a ski guide in the Tetons. She lives in Victor, ID with her husband, Don, in a house they built together (with a lot of help).

Monday, February 1
6:15 PM
Virtually on Zoom: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87008247965

Powder Fever and Longevity in the Backcountry with Bill, Fischer & Coop

The values of a process-oriented approach to skiing in avalanche terrain

We all know the feeling, standing on the top of untouched powder and already dreaming of the turns to come. That’s why we do it, we love to ski. It’s a way of life and it has lead all of us to this town in the middle of the San Juans. But how do we grapple with our inner desire to get the fresh tracks? How do we temper our decision making and focus on our process so that we can sustain skiing as a way of life for many years to come? In this chat, we highlight the values of a process-oriented approach to skiing in avalanche terrain.

Fischer Hazen was born and raised here in the San Juans. Skiing was his first passion in these mountains and is what keeps him here dreaming of winter. He spends his year working for Mountain Trip guiding big snowy mountains around the world, teaching avalanche education courses and backcountry skiing guiding!

Jonathan Cooper (“Coop”) has been searching out adventure and powder skiing all around the mountain west for just over a decade. He landed here in SW Colorado and has been on a journey to understand his own human foibles through the complex nature of the San Juan snowpack.

Monday, January 4
6:15 PM
View the recorded video here: https://youtu.be/KyqbjXTLuiY

Risk Assessment & Treatment with Ryan Howe

Assessing and dealing with risk in avalanche terrain can be a confusing and mentally exhausting process. It is tempting and potentially catastrophic to lean on our intuition and the decisions of others, rather than doing the hard work of disciplined evidence gathering and patience. Fortunately, we have access to super useful conceptual framework tools and cognitive triggers. In this PI Fund backcountry chat, we’ll discuss a very practical-down and durty to quick and purty- “Dirtbag Risk Assessment and Treatment”.

Ryan Howe has worked as a full time, blue collar avalanche professional since 1998. His career path has followed a wobbly orbit as a guide, educator, ski patroller, operations manager and author.

Monday, December 7, 2020
6:15 PM
View the recorded video here: https://youtu.be/ecwovlArRc4.

Welcome Back Winter + Getting Your Head in the Game

If you are headed into the backcountry this winter, join us for a little refresher on all the things you’ll want to think about this season. Joining us will be Matt Steen (Snow Safety Director at Telluride Helitrax), Jon Tuckman (Snow Safety Director at Telluride Ski Resort), and Mike Barney from the CAIC. We’ll be covering:

Snowpack: current hazard, trends, and observations
CAIC website, observations, and weather
Ski area boundaries and what you need to know
Backcountry gate etiquette
Telluride Backcountry Radio Program

GET THE CHANCE TO WIN A ONE OF A KIND REMADE PIECE FROM THE NORTH FACE. The North Face is giving a little love and a smile for the New Year to the Telluride community! Enter to win a one of a kind Remade piece from The North Face between January 8th and January 22nd, 2021, here: https://remadecontest.com/. Thanks The North Face Telluride!

Avalanche Education Courses

Telluride & Regional Avalanche Education

Why take an avalanche education course or class? The question should really be why not. With scholarship assistance from the Peter Inglis Avalanche Education Fund (learn more about that here), there are no excuses not to elevate or continue your learning for the backcountry. To help you out, we’ve put together a list of courses in the Telluride region. In addition to the courses listed below, most guide services and schools in the Telluride region offer custom courses. So grab your ski/snowboard buddies and progress your learning and education this winter!

Remember: if you don’t know, don’t go. Or, hire a guide. If you are frequenting the backcountry, any/all of these courses should be on your radar. Learn more about the AIARE program here and the AAA programs here.

Mountain Trip

2020-2021 schedule is tbd.

Learn more and sign up for courses from Mountain Trip here.

Telluride Avalanche School

December 10th: AIARE Rec. Avalanche Rescue Course

December 11th – 13th: AIARE Rec. L1 Course

December TBA: AIARE Avalanche Rescue Course plus Wilderness Fist Aid (3 days)

January TBA: Avalanche Rescue Course

February 16th – 18th: AIARE Rec. L1 Course

March 5th – 7th: AIARE Rec. L2 Course

March 19th – 21st: AIARE Rec. L1 Course

Learn more about course offerings from the Telluride Avalanche School and sign up here.

Telluride Mountain Guides

Custom Avalanche Education courses based on your group’s background, educational goals and future aspirations. Check it out here.

Intro to Backcountry Skiing, private groups only. This is a great option for those still getting acquainted with skiing in the backcountry. Learn more here.

Silverton Avalanche School

AIARE Rec Level 1

12/5 & 12/6
12/19 & 12/20
1/2 & 1/3
1/23 & 1/24
2/6 & 2/7
2/20 & 2/21
3/6 & 3/7
3/20 & 3/21 Women’s Only Course

View all Rec Level 1 information here.

Avalanche Rescue Course

December
12/11/2020
12/18/2020
12/26/2020
12/27/2020

January
01/08/2021
01/15/2021

February
02/05/2021
02/12/2021
02/19/2021

March
03/12/2021
03/19/2021 – Women’s Only Course
03/26/2021

Learn more about the one-day avalanche rescue course here.

AIARE Rec Level 2

1/16 – 1/18
2/13 – 2/15

View dates and learn more here.

AIARE Pro Level 1

View all requirements to take this course and dates/locations here.

View more courses offered by the Silverton Avalanche School here.

Peter Inglis, the Telluride Mountain Club, and the Gold Hill Backcountry Access Gates

Pete Inglis, the Telluride Mountain Club, And the Gold Hill Backcountry Access Gates

Words by Steve Johnson

Back in the 1980s, while employed as a ski patroller for the Telluride Ski & Golf Club, Pete Inglis realized the need for public education concerning avalanche hazard within and around the Telluride ski area and the San Juan Mountains as a whole. So Pete formed the Telluride Mountain Club around 1986, which had an initial focus on local avalanche education classes. Pete was appointed as the Telluride Mountain Club’s first president and began running avalanche education seminars for local skiers.

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2015-2016 Backcountry Gear Preview

Let’s face it, we all love gear. Whether you are a climber, a skier, a runner, a hiker, you get the picture… we like new gear. Here is a round-up of our four favorite hot new backcountry ski gear items for next winter as seen at this year’s SIA Snow Show.

The Atomic Backland Boot series takes uphill travel seriously. Boot features to note: heat mold liner, removable tongue, easy ski-walk mode, 98mm last, has insane cuff movement & is super lightweight (the Backland Carbon weighs 1161 grams and has 74 degrees of cuff movement).

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How to Change Preset Channels on the BCA Link Radio

The Telluride Backcountry Radio program was introduced to help with communication in the popular backcountry areas surrounding Telluride. You can learn more about the program and various channels here.

We have received feedback that some groups are using these channels, and some are not, for a variety of reasons. Below we have put together simple steps to show how to change the preset channels on your radios for ease of use.

The radios come with preset channels, A through F, but it is possible to preset your own channels using the dial on the Smart Mic. Follow these simple steps:

Turn the radio on using the power/volume dial.
Select the preset channel (A-F) on the Smart Mic channel selection dial.
Press Menu once (*to deactivate the keylock, see below). The channel number will start flashing in the display.
Select the desired channel using the up/down buttons. Accept by waiting for five-seconds or pressing OK.
Press Menu again.
The privacy code number will start flashing. Select desired privacy code. If the channel or privacy code digit stops flashing while presetting the channels, press menu again.
Repeat this process for each channel (A-F) that you want to preset. All members of your party must select the same channels AND privacy codes.
After channels have been preset, the desired channel and privacy code combination can be selected on the Smart Mic. Therefore, you don’t have to touch the base unit to change channels.

*Keylock: The keylock applies to the keys on the base unit only; it does not lock the controls on the Smart Mic. Activate the keylock by pressing the Menu and Ok buttons simultaneously for 3 seconds. During this time, a countdown from 3 to 1 is shown in the display. Keylock can be deactivated the same way it is activated.

Note: Channels 1 through 7 are combined GMRS/FRS channels. Channels 8 through 14 are FRS channels. Channels 15 through 22 are GMRS channels. The FRS channels (8-14) transmit at 0.5 W, while all other channels transmit at 1.0W. While battery life is longer when using channels 8-14, the range of transmission is shorter.

Please let us know any feedback you have on the radios, the program in general, the channels we have chosen or anything else. As always, stay safe out there!

Breaking News: GOLD HILL BACKCOUNTRY GATES TO REOPEN MARCH 14

U.S. Forest Service to reopen Gold Hill Backcountry Gates access into Bear Creek

After five years, many meetings, much wrangling, ongoing litigation and continued pressure from the Telluride Mountain Club and other user groups, the U.S. Forest Service is re-opening the Telluride Ski Area’s Gold Hill Backcountry Access Gates on Friday, March 14, 2014. (more…)