Category: Technique

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Pt. V: Taming the Martyr Dragon

Continued from Taming Your Avalanche Dragon, published 17nov15. Martyrdom Martyrs believe we are the “victims” of a situation and see ourselves as oppressed. As a victim, we feel like we have no choice in a situation; that others are deciding things for us and that we have no other option but to heed the directives …

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Pt. IV: Taming the Impatience Dragon

Continued from Taming Your Avalanche Dragon, published 17nov15. Impatience Impatience is characterized by needing to have something now and the phrase “Don’t get in the way” depicts how single minded we can be when consumed by this dragon. People with the impatience dragon are stricken with the fear that if things are not happening quickly, …

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Pt. III: Taming the Self-Deprecation Avy Dragon

  Continued from Taming Your Avalanche Dragon, published 17nov15. Self-Deprecation If self-deprecation is our dragon we do not feel worthy. We suffer from a lack of self-confidence and feel that our contribution is not of value, so we do not speak up and share what we know. If we have this dragon and are paired …

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Pt. II: Taming the Arrogance Avy Dragon

  Continued from Taming Your Avalanche Dragon, published 17nov15. Arrogance There is a big difference between confidence and arrogance. A confident winter backcountry guide or enthusiast also has an ear to listening to other people’s input. There is a willingness on the part of the confident individual to welcome new information from anyone in the …

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PR: AvaTech launches crowd sourced AvaNet

Editors Note: The following press release comes from Backbone Media, Avatech’s public relations firm. Ordinarily I’d rewrite the information a bit, but this is a fairly straight forward announcement of a software platform that has the potential to dramatically improve the understanding of the snowpack in regions that we like to ski. The key to …

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Taming Your  Avalanche Dragons

Over the last ten years there have been fantastic advances in the field of avalanche safety through research and technical development. Additions made to snow stability evaluations like ‘fracture character’ during the ‘compression test’ deepen our awareness of what is happening with the snow. There have also been the developments in terrain assessment tools, which …

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Rerun: Backcountry Economics 101

  In these strange economic times most people I know are sticking to basics and any money for frills is very judiciously spent. If it’s not a necessity, it needs to act like an investment with long-term benefits and quick paying dividends. Which is why, even though skiing has always been a luxury, you need …

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