Vancouver 12-13 Season - Page 28 - Snowboarding Forum

timmytard · 12-17-2012, 11:40 AM

Hemlock doesn't have main runs really either, Cypress & Seymour you might be able to spot someone just outside a main run.
Hemlock is more wide open, if your buddy goes down, he could be anywhere?

Happened to me too the other day, it wasn't dramatic or anything. I completely forgot till I read this.

I was just going slow, but got weighed down by snow on my board. It happened really slow & I was able to grab on to some branches.

Wasn't really even that deep in it, but my head was lower than my feet because of all the snow on my board.

Still took me a good 5 min of strugglin' to back my ass out of there

Gotta be a little more careful until all those little trees are burried

TT

timmytard · 12-17-2012, 11:43 AM

A few years ago I had a insignificant wipe out, & some how I ended up going under the snow or @ least my goggles did.

I don't are who you are, when shit goes dark black, you panic.
You can't tell how much of you is under, until you try & move.
Luckily for me, when I tried to move, I was able to sit up easily.

It felt easy anyway, I probably could have bench pressed a bus @ that moment in time though, because @ that moment in time, I thought I had too.

TT

AIRider · 12-17-2012, 01:09 PM

Tree wells are scary, read the sticky in the general lounge. I also posted a vid a few pages back. Educate yourselves.

I'm considering buying an avalung.

http://www.adventure-journal.com/2011/01/skier-survives-tree-well-thanks-to-avalung/

grafta · 12-17-2012, 02:27 PM

It was fun tho

grafta · 12-17-2012, 05:11 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Snowolf

Glad you were there and knew what was going on. Two of the most important things to consider when in or near the trees; slow down! Most tree well accidents start from a high speed tomahawk into them. Second use good protocols; it's not enough to just ride with a partner. You need to be leapfrogging the run so you are actually watching each other at all times.

If you haven't done so yet, click here and read this online information from th US Forest Service about NARSID ( non avalanche related snow immersion death) and tree wells:

http://www.snowboardingforum.com/bac...html#post31576

Thanks for putting up the links. Have posted this one on facebook Tree Well and Snow Immersion Suffocation (SIS) Information :: Home

Even more crazy is how spaced out the trees at Hemlock are. You can see in the pic above for an idea. When going fast though, you don't know where you'll end up.

I had two bad tomahawks from flat light and hitting ditches/drops without seeing them, and my gf had a bad incident hitting a cat track at full tilt where we couldn't find one of her skis for a few minutes and had to climb around in waist deep pow.

Shit, it's so fun but my respect levels for deep snow have been bumped right up there!

deepcove · 12-17-2012, 06:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by grafta

You never think it'll actually happen but yesterday at Hemlock my buddy went head first down a tree well.

We rode most of the day lapping, getting some awesome pow turns, face shots, the works. So good, and deeeeep

Bout 3 we decided to head up and try get a couple photos so we were sticking a bit closer than normal. So fucking lucky.

Was waiting a little below my friends line watching him drop, he got a couple big turns in... going FAST. Anyway, he lost it flying forward, head first and whoooomp, straight into a tree well under a small Douglas Fir. All I could see was the bottom of his board. Text book shit.

I was probably 10ft from him, and it took a sickeningly long time to unstrap and climb through thigh deep snow to get to him. He was totally inverted and lucky not struggling, but he could not do a thing. I dug on the lower/shallowest side and it took quite a while to reach one of his arms. When I got there I could figure out where his head was and he was using his free arm to point to where his mouth was... kinda frantically because he'd just run out of air.

Once I got an air channel to him, I got my girlfriend who'd just got down to us to help excavate the remaining snow without collapsing it more and finally got him free.

Anyway, we got him out and he's fine but be we are all a little rattled. I guess we will process what we learned and try be more careful in future. We were LUCKY, and that's about it.

I gotta say, it's probably mainly down to this place that I even know what a tree well is. Read those posts if you haven't already

Holy Crap dude.....i'm glad to hear this did not have a tragic ending. This has certainly given me a wake up call....

**Donutz** · 12-18-2012, 08:02 AM

On a lighter note...

It's snowing in the lower mainland again. Puking down in Coquitlam right now. News is saying it's just going to get "worse".

deepcove · 12-18-2012, 08:26 AM

Coming down pretty good in North Van as well this morning. There were a few flakes falling at Seymour last night....mountain was empty. Here is a park lap from last night.

https://vimeo.com/55836541

grafta · 12-18-2012, 10:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deepcove

Coming down pretty good in North Van as well this morning. There were a few flakes falling at Seymour last night....mountain was empty. Here is a park lap from last night.

https://vimeo.com/55836541

Dude you look young!

Yeah, I hear last night was good... Mm, looks like more dumpage

AIRider · 12-18-2012, 12:00 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by deepcove

Coming down pretty good in North Van as well this morning. There were a few flakes falling at Seymour last night....mountain was empty. Here is a park lap from last night.

https://vimeo.com/55836541

Good run kid.

Now I have to watch my language around here. Fuck.

12-17-2012, 11:40 AM	#271 (permalink)
timmytard Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: I can see Santa shoveling his driveway Posts: 1,334	Hemlock doesn't have main runs really either, Cypress & Seymour you might be able to spot someone just outside a main run. Hemlock is more wide open, if your buddy goes down, he could be anywhere? Happened to me too the other day, it wasn't dramatic or anything. I completely forgot till I read this. I was just going slow, but got weighed down by snow on my board. It happened really slow & I was able to grab on to some branches. Wasn't really even that deep in it, but my head was lower than my feet because of all the snow on my board. Still took me a good 5 min of strugglin' to back my ass out of there Gotta be a little more careful until all those little trees are burried TT __________________ If whatever doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger. Then I am so close to immortality

12-17-2012, 11:43 AM	#272 (permalink)
timmytard Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2009 Location: I can see Santa shoveling his driveway Posts: 1,334	A few years ago I had a insignificant wipe out, & some how I ended up going under the snow or @ least my goggles did. I don't are who you are, when shit goes dark black, you panic. You can't tell how much of you is under, until you try & move. Luckily for me, when I tried to move, I was able to sit up easily. It felt easy anyway, I probably could have bench pressed a bus @ that moment in time though, because @ that moment in time, I thought I had too. TT __________________ If whatever doesn't kill you, only makes you stronger. Then I am so close to immortality

12-17-2012, 01:09 PM	#273 (permalink)
AIRider Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Posts: 564	Tree wells are scary, read the sticky in the general lounge. I also posted a vid a few pages back. Educate yourselves. I'm considering buying an avalung. http://www.adventure-journal.com/2011/01/skier-survives-tree-well-thanks-to-avalung/ __________________ Never take life seriously. Nobody gets out alive anyway. Last edited by AIRider; 12-17-2012 at 01:27 PM.

12-18-2012, 08:02 AM	#277 (permalink)
Donutz Drunk with power...er beer. Join Date: May 2010 Location: Vancouver, BC, Canada Posts: 3,660 Blog Entries: 176	On a lighter note... It's snowing in the lower mainland again. Puking down in Coquitlam right now. News is saying it's just going to get "worse". __________________ Illegitimi non carborundum Mountain Days: 30

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12-17-2012, 02:27 PM	#274 (permalink)
grafta Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Vancouver, BC Posts: 1,752	It was fun tho

12-18-2012, 08:26 AM	#278 (permalink)
deepcove Member Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: North Vancouver, Canada Posts: 52	Coming down pretty good in North Van as well this morning. There were a few flakes falling at Seymour last night....mountain was empty. Here is a park lap from last night. https://vimeo.com/55836541