Slush Puppie

Ortovox 240+ CARBON PRO Avalanche Safety Probe, 240cm, 2011
Ortovox BEAST Extendible Avalanche Snow Shovel, Red

Before I pull the trigger on these, any comments / better options please?

They are for occasional use, personal pack. I already have an Ortovox 3+

Also recommendations for minimalist packs gratefully received. Day use in the Alps, never too far from the piste.

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ShredLife

first off, this: RECALL CAMPAIGN 3+ AVALANCHE TRANSCEIVER

shovel, fine. probe, personally i prefer a 320cm.

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Slush Puppie

Thanks for the heads up, mine's not affected I checked before purchasing.

I read that longer than 300cm is only really worthwhile for organised rescues/probe lines?

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We are all atheists about most of the gods that societies have ever believed in. Some of us just go one god further.
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ShredLife

that sounds ridiculous.

it really depends on your snowpack where you are riding. continental snow never gets as deep as coastal stuff so the slides won't be as deep. its a personal decision. for me i'd easily rather carry a slightly longer, beefier and consequently heavier probe because in the event i have to ever use it it will be during a class 11 shitstorm and i'd much rather err on the side of being prepared.

these are tools to save a life. not worth it for me to use the bare minimum.

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Slush Puppie

I'm sure it can't hurt too much to have a 3m+ one, though pretty much all of the info I've read so far (in the links stuck above) and on European based sites suggest 2.40m is the ideal length a personal pack. Covering typical burial depths comfortably while being easier to deploy and handle. Longer, heavier duty being best for more frequent use applications such as organised search teams. To me this does seem like intuitive advice.

Some sources
Probes | Henry's Avalanche Talk
Avalanche Probes - Snowshepherd
http://www.avalanche.ca/adx/aspx/adx...obe+review.pdf

I'd be interested to here some more perspectives on this before proceeding.

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We are all atheists about most of the gods that societies have ever believed in. Some of us just go one god further.
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killclimbz

Get a carbon 300cm probe if you are worried about the weight. If the shit hits the fan the longer probe isn't always about depth. If you have a 240 cm probe and your victim is buried say around 200 centimeters. When you are probing, it is a lot more work to probe all the way down. You're bending over much more and such. With a 300 centimeter probe it's just a little easier. It's not necessary, a 240 will work, just a thought for you. As far as deploying goes. If you are having problems deploying your probe, you need to practice with it more. Regardless of length.

For the shovel, make sure you are rocking a metal blade.

Being that I am in Colorado and we have a continental snow pack, I used a 240 cm probe for years. Now that I am traveling to Maritime snow pack locations at least once a season, I'm rocking a 340 cm carbon probe. Did some snow pit stuff and that probe got swallowed when trying to measure the snow depth. I had my arm in the snow up to my shoulder and still couldn't hit ground. In an avalanche situation and a deep snow pack like that. Yeah, a longer probe is a great idea.

ShredLife

this guy is jeanyus

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Slush Puppie

Thanks for the feedback. I'm my scenario those deeper burial depths would be very unlikely unless some kind of terrain trap was involved.

I found some more info again: Probes echoing the 240 size as being a recommended choice.

It seems that an extension piece can be added to the one I was looking at if required (travelling to deeper snow location, conditions). Let's face it, if the burial dept is over 2m, you're in trouble full stop

Advice appreciated but i'm going to stick with my original options.

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We are all atheists about most of the gods that societies have ever believed in. Some of us just go one god further.
Richard Dawkins

Triple8Sol

The difference between a 240 and 300 prode is only a few ozs. in weight and a couple extra shaft pieces in bulk. I've always had a 300cm and you're not gonna notice a difference in weight/size that's equivalent to a couple clif bars. Seems strange to risk having a probe that's too short for the rescue vs. having a longer one that might be just a few bucks more. It's not like you're gonna buy multiple probes, so why not get one that will work no matter where you move/travel?

The shovel you listed seems like a good option. I've always opted for one with a telescoping handle too. I used to have a T-handle, but now that I'm venturing over into mitten territory (instead of gloves) I replaced it with a D-handle.

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wrathfuldeity

This past weekend did an avy course and one of the guys had this shovel and it did seem to have some use in the pick position; though I forgot to ask how well it fit in his pack.

Ortovox Grizzly multifunctional avalanche shovel

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