T.J.

this reminds me, i was reading a story online earlier this week about some BC skiers in utah and in the pics they all had tubes on their chest that i'm assuming when to some kind of air supply. it was almost like scuba gear for avalanche saftey. does anybody (besides these guys) actually use that stuff or are these guys being over protective (not that i think there is such a thing with avalanche safety).

__________________
Passion Over Fashion

killclimbz

Jesus, that is what I call an average day. Freaky? If you mean shit eatin' grin than yeah it's freaky...

T.J.

gimme a break, i'm from the east coast man!

no its cause these werent official "glades" we kind of made our own trails and didnt look at a trail map. we get to the bottom and we are literally in the valley of 2 mountains in waste deep powder just sinking. we had to crawl out of there up to the nearest trail which took forever.

__________________
Passion Over Fashion

killclimbz

Do you mean an avalung???

I ride with one every time out in the bc. It's not an airsupply, but a way to extract air out of the snowpack. It has a valve that when you breathe in it sucks air out from the snowpack in front of you. When you exhale the valve flips and exhales the air behind you. That way the co2 builds up away from where you are breathing. Tests and real life scenarios have proven that it will work for over an hour. Of course the trick is getting the mouth piece in your mouth. I have been known to ride with it in my mouth on slopes that I considered suspect enough to slide. Generally if I am that paranoid I am going to go somewhere else.

Black Diamond makes the avalung. They now have packs with it integrated into the system. Definitely a good device to have if you manage to survive being buried...

killclimbz

Again, sounds like an average day in the bc

kri$han

So the general concensus then, for back country is that you should be boarding with the bag full of survival gear then, eh?

like what?

Avalung
Water pack (integrated in the bag, types)
Transciever
Whistle
Snow probe/pole
Shovel

what else?

__________________
Official 'Eh' Team representative

Kris
Toronto Prelude Club

T.J.

@KC

yeah, thats the thing. i never saw that before. the article didnt focus on it so i assumed with was an air supply or something. pretty cool stuff.

__________________
Passion Over Fashion

T.J.

Also, where can i find good info about the BC at jay peak (big jay i think its called). i know access from the resort is closed but its still open to hiking.

and its seems pretty popular so i'm assuming its not some secret 'locals only' spot right?

__________________
Passion Over Fashion

killclimbz

Not really survival gear, but be prepared for what area you are traveling and what it will take to get out should the shit hit the fan.

Say it's a roadside, sidecountry lap day. Beacon, shovel, probe are the basics you should be carrying and so should your partners. Everyone should also know how to use 'em. For a day outing in the backcountry, in addition to the above, water, food, first aid kit, and I like to bring a warm layer. Down or Prima loft. Should someone get injured a warm layer can be critical. Having a candle can warm a snowcave up by 5 degrees. Doesn't sound like much, but if you have to hole up, it can make a huge difference.

Basically though, you want to carry stuff that is appropriate for the adventure you are going on.

Knowledge about how to travel in avalanche terrain is a must for any of these scenarios. Without that everything else is moot.

killclimbz

Yeah, Big Jay is no secret by any stretch of the imagination. Hell, I've never been to the east coast to ride and have known about it for years.

There is a trip report over at Splitboard.com from Big Jay. You might follow that link and send the author (BigJay strangely enough) a message about it. You can let him know I forwarded you to him. He seems nice enough and might even offer to give you guys the tour. He certainly knows the situation there so he would be a good resource.