Any Reason To Wear a Beacon In-Bounds?

djty111

djty111

Active member
So since the recent in bounds avalanche at the Canyons in Park City I was wondering how many of you wear your beacon in bounds. I almost never do, but sice this avalanche I have thought diffrently. One reason why I wouldent want to wear it in bounds would be that I would also need my pack with my probe and shovel to be usefull and I wouldent want to ride with a pack in the park. Any thoughts...
 
depends where you will be skiing in bounds. If you're just riding park, there really isn't a need. But if you are on terrain that is more prone to avalanches, even inbounds, then it doesn't hurt.
 
ya it just sucks if I want to go freeride for a few runs then go to the park for a few I dont want to have my pack... the first people to get the sceen in the Canyons avalanche death were the public with there own probes (there was a probe line going) so I guess thats good to have..
 
Really depends on where you ski, and could possibly be pointless if you are alone or skiing with people who don't have rescue gear with them.

I would say I wear by beacon/shovel/probe maybe 70% of the time at crystal these days, and the beacon maybe 95%. Depends on conditions and who I am skiing with. It really isn't a big deal to wear it and due to the terrain and risk of skiing what is essentially controlled BC at crystal, it seems stupid not to.

I would fucking love it if they required beacon/shovel/probe/partner for all the Xtal BC because it would cut the skier traffic down by at least 50%.

If you have it, don't see any reason not to wear it.
 
^ no there are like none at all the canyons and it sucks beacuse you park and then need to take like 4 lifts to get to the top...
 
Yesterday, I was carried off a 30 ft cliff when a 10" slab released underneath me, inbounds at Big Mountain.

I am lucky to be alive, and from now on when I hit up the steep stuff, I am taking my beacon.

I am pretty sure it was just a freak accident, and that patrol just missed a spot in avie bombing, but I am really lucky I wasn't buried.
 
Awesome.

I wear mine anytime I question the snowpack at all. This means almost every powder day, and then in the spring once the snow starts hitting freeze/thaw cycles. It's also required to wear one skiing the ridge at Bridger, so I end up having mine on probably 60-70% of the time I'm inbounds. It's on me and turned on 100% of the time in the backcountry, regardless of the terrain I'm on.

To me it just seems idiotic to take an uneccessary risk and not wear one when the potential is there. Sure, you're in a ski area, but you also have to realize that ski patrol doesn't have complete control over the mountain and the snow will change as the day progresses--often significantly if it's snowing/windy.
 
beacons look reeeaaaallll good on your jacket. I wear them to school, funerals, the ice cream parlor, everywhere really. Even on dates.
 
well if you have any desire on a pow day to go somewhere, even in bounds, that has not been approved by the ski patrol, wear one.
i wear one on pow days at alpine. mainly cuz i do a lot of hiking and it makes sense to wear it.

 
Here's something to think about:

at most resorts, the person who is most likely to save your ass and do it well is a patroller. all patrollers have beacons, and when they arrive on scene, it's the first thing they look for.

I use my becon every pow day. Helll, you never know. It's not like it makes you ski any worse. it could save your life. I would recomend it.

the other day at mammoth, they blasted the shit out of the top of the mountain for 2 storm cycles. they opened these chutes off the top, and a half an hour later one of them slid to the dirt.

last year, after avy control, a fracture that was several hundred feet acrooss and 6 feet deep in some places went aftter they opened it to the public. anyonce caught in that without a beacon would have died.

in the end, it's worth it.
 
dude ur retarted there have been ,any deaths at resort such as the canyons just like last week and dude alawys exert cuation u will alayws be better

anyone that skis jackson hole knows that most people wear beacons at all times just because of what has happened at other places it always good to be safe and not stupid alawys wear one on 45 plus degree pitches it can slide so easily
 
same dumbass mentality that helps squids justify not wearing leathers and a helmet when getting on a crotch-rocket... "gear is for people who crash!" yeah, have fun getting fucked up.
 
idiot.gif
 
i just want to clarify this, the avalanche at the canyons happened on canyon's land, but technically "backcountry."  the canyons has backcountry access gates, so it was inbounds, but kinda out of bounds
 
For real.

I have been so busy with school, plus am back in CO for a few weeks, that I haven't been up to Crystal at all this year.

I am conflicted about that lift, as I feel it will spread the mountain out more and hopefully decrease skier traffic in SB, but a ton of my favorite shots were in NB. Hope they don't get too fucked up.

I dunno. I am not going to say much until I see how it turns out.

I do think they should require beacons though. That would be amazing.
 
^ya this is the second in like a week or 10 days at the canyons the first guy hit a tree on a run that had a bunch of rocks (before we got snow) the seccond was the other day on the north side. It is outside a gate but they still do avy. work there so its inbounds. Another snowboarder died in the Unitas yestarday when he was cought inder a slide...
 
Here at Stevens Pass, patrollers were doing some routine blasting on Aquarius Face, a open blue run, two days ago. They werent expecting much, just a few inches to go at most, but a 4 foot deep fracture broke along about 600 feet and swept down the run into trees.

In bound avalanches happen. Ski Patrol does what it can to minimize them, but if you have a beacon and know that out of bounds snowpack is sketch, it wouldnt hurt to wear it in bounds as well.
 
This is a good thread. I am seriously going to give wearing my beacon most of the time some serious thought. I ski a lot of runs that are out of bounds but then come back into the area, it's stupid of me not to wear one. I guess I don't because I ski alone most of the time, not smart either. Don't follow my example kids!
 
A lot of people--myself included--will do a quick check if they come across a sizeable slide that could have buried someone. If you're not wearing a beacon and you're still alive in that situation you're SOL.
 
i don't see how wearing a beacon can impose much on a skier anyway? it's non invasive, fairly lightweight and is proven to really help when there are avi's etc.

people should wear them all the time - sure, it may never be needed, but there is that small chance it will - and then you would be happy you had it.
 
yea, definitely a situation where it's "better to have it and not need it, than need it and not have it"

if you have any question of the terrain, you should have it on person, and turned on.
 
its all preparation for the inevitable. If your just wearing a beacon w/o your shovel probe. at the very least your can help with a search. I wear mine inbounds when we get alot of new snow or when i know im going to be skiing some areas on the mtn that are off the beaten path.
 
Dude, i always wear a beacon and have all my gear when im in the BC, i just dont hink its nessesary in bounds.

and i doubt that most people at jackson wear beacons in bounds, how would you even know that?
 
There's been days I knew the snowpack was sketch,and I would be in some sketch terrain, and I took my shovel and probe in bounds. When I shoot powder, I have my backback for my camera anyways so I bring my avy shit too.
 
Some people are definetly wearing there bacons inbounds. The snowpack isnt very good out west and most places are in avy cycles. Didnt you hear about the slide at the Canyons someone died. And it doesnt matter if your partners have bacons the patrol has lots of safety equipment including recco reflectors. which are better than nothing
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top