Years ago I went to our local library to search for an avalanche book. I had already skied the backcountry of Chamonix and I had learned the basics of avalanches, but I felt I needed to know more. I was going to ski the classic route of Haute Route (from Chamonix to Zermatt) with my friends and I wanted to lower the risks by understanding more about avalanches. Unfortunately I found only books written in 70s. Although the basics of avalanches were understood already in the 70s it is clear that today we understand much more about avalanches, mountain weather, rescuing and avalanche gear. I wish my library had Tony Daffern’s Backcountry Avalanche Safety back in the day.

Tony’s book is comprehensive and well-organized. Even though there is a lot of detailed information like those related to mountain weather it’s all pretty easy to read and understand, even for people like me whose first language is not English. This book is already third edition and it focuses on two basic user groups: those who wish to avoid avalanche hazard by careful route-finding, and those who deliberately seek steep slopes to ski or ride.

Backcountry Avalanche Safety clearly explains the basics of snow and avalanches, identifies avalanche terrain, promotes trip planning, describes the skills needed for safe backcountry travel and provides guidelines for skiing and snowboarding steep slopes, all with an emphasis on managing risk.

Tony Daffern’s Backcountry Avalanche Safety book begins with the anatomy of an avalanche accident and a case story of a typical avalanche. It continues with a long discussion of mountain weather and snow structure which are essential information for understanding the behavior of avalanches. Next Tony gives detailed descriptions of various snow avalanches, and after that he focuses on describing different avalanche terrain. After 100 pages of detailed information of avalanches Tony Daffern’s Backcountry Avalanche Safety discusses about trip planning and avalanche gear, not forgetting the latest innovations such as Avalung and avalanche airbags. Finally Tony talks about traveling in avalanche terrain, rescuing avalanche victims and skiing and riding steep slopes.

There are over 200 pages of valuable avalanche related information in this book. As I said in the beginning Tony Daffern’s Backcountry Avalanche Safety is by far the best avalanche book available. There’s all you need to know about avalanches. Strongly recommended!

Tony Daffern himself is a climber, hiker and ski mountaineer with close to 50 years of experience on various mountain ranges throughout the world. Tony lives in Calgary, Alberta.

If you are interested in this book check the latest price and place an order in Amazon.

Oh, and if you are not yet our fan in Facebook, check out our page and add us to your contacts!

From these Facebook messages I got an idea to write about skiing the classic backcountry runs because many of our readers would like to ski the backcountry, but they are lacking information. So this is a kick start to a whole new article series called “Riding Classic Backcountry Runs”.

And now comes the disclaimer. Please notice that these articles are just for your information. These articles help you to spot new runs to ski, but in order to survive you need much more than just a pair of skis and these articles printed in your pocket. Skiing the backcountry is dangerous, and skiing mountain face like the north face of L’Aiguille du Midi can kill you. It is serious, so take it seriously, but have fun. Never go alone in to the mountains. Make sure you have a guide or someone who is clearly experienced.

Riding Glacier Rond of Chamonix

It was back in 1997 when I landed in Chamonix my very first time. I didn’t know anyone there, so I was a real newbie. I knew I had to find skibums who were willing to take me to the mountains with them because alone I would probably end up dying.

Soon I met other Finns, so it was pretty easy to join them after couple of wild after ski parties. These guys were helluva good skiers. They had very ambitious goals to ski pretty scary places, but they were not sure about my skills, so it took me about 2-3 weeks to convince my new friends. After that I was introduced to the Gods of powder snow and steep couloirs.

During my first season in Chamonix I met Jarkko Henttonen, one of the pioneers of the sport in Finland. We all knew him from magazines and stories (check Trey Cook’s article in which Jarkko and Ode Siivonen are part of the story), but meeting him in person was really cool. Anyhow, even “cooler” was to ski with Jarkko who back in the day was already one of the best freeriders in the world. It was a privilege to learn from an experienced mountain man.

In this article I am going to present you Glacier Rond which is one of the best known backcountry runs of Chamonix. Even though I have skied it many times, I wanted ask way more experienced Jarkko Henttonen few questions of riding Glacier Rond.

Jarkko, how would you describe Glacier Rond, one of the classic backcountry runs of Chamonix?

I wouldn’t describe it as a backcountry run actually, as it is more in the frontside of things. I mean, it´s visible from the valley and has lift access. Anyways, first of all, it’s pretty big. The top of the run is at about 3600 meters and the bottom is like 700-800 meters lower and it is fairly steep, too. Rond is quite a straightforward and rather clean line, and I think it is a quite beauty.

It’s divided into two sections: the top section is a face, basically a hanging glacier and the lower section is a big nice couloir. The face is quite airy, has a bit intimidating entry into it and it is also somewhat exposed, too, so it has a cool ambiance. The face is about 200-300 m high and it ends up in a pretty massive drop on the bottom of it. Fun place to be for sure, but also bit scary. The couloir is straight and eases out towards the bottom, so it´s bit more fun riding.

A great run, no doubt, true classic for sure.

How difficult and exposed is Glacier Rond?

I don’t know if it has any kind of sort of more official difficulty rating, but I’d say it would drop into somewhere like grade D, dificile, or difficult. Lou Dawson, the American guy who runs the Wildsnow blog, has this rating system called D-system and I feel Rond would be somewhere around D 10 or something like that.

The difficulty of the Rond has a lot to do with conditions as you can see in my photo. On this day on the face there was about 10cm of super dry sugar on top of blue ice – terrifying. Down in the couloir and below it was more of the cold dry sugar without the ice beneath – wonderful. As you know, sharp edges are always a good call for the Rond. Trey Cook from ChamonixInsider.

Photo by Trey Cook of ChamonixInsider. Skier James Morland

It has some exposure. As I said, the top part of the route is a hanging glacier that ends up in a big cliff, and if you’d go over that for some reason, for example an avalanche, chances for survival would be as close to zero as they can get.

It’s quite a popular route, and when it’s good quite a few people do it. On best, or worst depending on the point of view, there is heaps of people going there. Probably dozens, sometimes.

When did YOU discover Glacier Rond first time and what made you interested in it?

I first did it in 1993. I think I heard about it or saw it the previous year. Looking at it from across the valley from Le Brevant it looks really cool. Of course you only see the top face, as the couloir is hidden behind the rocks, but it sure looks pretty sweet. It also looks kinda crazy.

Photo by randomnificstuph

Back then not that many people did it, it wasn’t ridden frequently, and it was sort of a thing to do. It was a bit of test piece, and sort of a small adventure to go there. Kinda one step further.

Things are bit different nowadays, standards have progressed, or at least changed, and it’s not that big of a deal to do it anymore.

How challenging or risky riding is Glacier Rond?

It of course depends on how good a skier or a snowboarder you are. If you are a solid rider, can handle steeps and ride in all kinds of snow conditions, including hard snow, and have some understanding about risks and risk management in the mountains et cetera, it’s not that big of a challenge.

But sure it is a risky undertaking. Hard core guys and girls have been in big troubles there. if you screw up there, you can be toast. So, it really is not a place to fool around. For example making a fall could be fatal in some conditions. I’ve seen people fall there, and nothing happened, but I’m not gonna recommend that for anybody.

What other challenges skiers might be faced with up there?

Avalanche risk has to be considered. Getting caught in an bigger avy on the top face.. Well, I don’t even want to think about that too much. The couloir is big and long as well, it would be a pretty cool descent in itself, and if that goes things are for sure going to be bad.

The run ends up in the Glacier du Bossons, and some crevasses may have to be navigated or crossed, so some glacier skills are necessary as well.

The way back either to mid station of Midi lift is not complicated, but it’s still pretty wild mountain environment, and the ride down to the tunnel can also be hectic at times, as some guys have found out.  There are some deep holes in that glacier and it would be bad to fall in to one of those. So pay attention to the crevasses.

Big parts of the traverse back to the lift most definitely is avalanche terrain, so that has to be taken into account. Then there is one more glacier to be crossed, an some glacial moraines has to be crossed, too, and those can have some loose rocks. More less from the minute you leave the safety of the top of Aiguille du Midi till the moment you get away from the mountain you are exposed to some kind of risks, and those should never be underestimated.

Basically it has all the dangers big mountains tend to have.

How would you instruct those skiing or riding Glacier Rond first time?

Be cautious, play it safe, don’t push it too hard and have a good time!

A good day there, though, is just splendid, very good fun, and if you have the skills to go, go for it!

Riders will now travel back home, but will get together again in the end of January when Freeride World Tour lands in the legendary Chamonix. The Nissan Freeride de Chamonix-Mont-Blanc is scheduled for Saturday, January 30th, and the Nissan Russian Adventure by Swatch will take place the next possible day using the start list established in Sochi. This means that riders will meet in Chamonix for both events. The line up is as good as it gets with many interesting contenders for the Freeride World Champion 2010 title.

Freeride events are not anymore just one way to spend time, but serious competitions worth more than average yearly salary of most people. The Nissan Freeride de Chamonix-Mont-Blanc will offer the total prize money of USD 56,200 and the Nissan Russian Adventure by Swatch prize money is set at USD 35,200. The season’s prize money grand total exceeds USD 200,000. Although this is pretty good money for an individual, in general there is much less money in ski industry than in snowboarding industry. Hopefully we’ll see continuous growth, because money is needed to organize big events such as the X Games.

Current ranking in Freeride World Tour is as follows.

Ski Men:

1. AURELIEN DUCROZ (FRA)
2. REINE BARKERED (SWE)
3. SVERRE LILIEQUIST (SWE)

Snowboard Men:

1. XAVIER DE LE RUE(FRA)
2. ALEX COUDRAY (SUI)
3. MAX ZIPSER (AUT)

Ski Women:

1. ANE ENDERUD (NOR)
2. MARJA PERSSON (SWE)
3. JESS MCMILLAN (USA)

Snowboard Women:

1. SUSAN MOL (USA)
2. ALINE BOCK (GER)
3. G. FASNACHT (SUI)

It is a pity that Russian Adventure was postponed, but according to our reporter Jarkko Henttonen riders have had couple of very good powder days. Check out Glen Plake’s video reports below, and especially the last one in which you can see riders enjoying the last day. Not bad, eh? At least Tomas Diet (FRA) enjoyed a lot.

Who is going to follow in the steps of Aurélien Ducroz – FRA (ski/men), Xavier de Le Rue – FRA (snowboard/men), Ane Enderud – NOR (ski/women) and Susan Mol – USA (snowboard/women)? The pressure is already on. Most riders have already begun their physical and mental pre-season work outs.

“The level among the riders has increased constantly since the first edition of the Tour. It is no longer enough to be a great skier to take part of the Tour. Physical and mental preparation, thorough inspection of the competition face, and top gear, are all important elements that has helped develop freeriding to a professional sport, becomming more and more known by the broad public,” says Freeride World Champion 2009 Aurélien Ducroz of France.

Nissan and Swatch remain as FWT’s main sponsors. Click here for the Freeride World Tour website. We at HomeboySki.com will be watching the tour closely as it advances.

The 30-year-old Dan Loutrel runs Birdos, a small company in Andermatt producing skis of unmatched quality and appeal. Along with respected names such as Shane McConkey (RIP), Pete Turner and Stephan Drake, Birdos is among the chosen few that are suspected to have started the reverse sidecut/reverse camber powder ski revolution a few winters ago. I had a chance to meet the guru during my Easter holiday in Andermatt.

Dan is an unusual thing here: an outsider. Originally he is from Boston and arrived to Andermatt in 2004 while he was hunting powder around Europe. He heard rumours of big untracked powder lines in Andermatt and was soon on his way.

“Arriving here I found just what I was looking for, big untracked lines and a sleepy little Swiss mountain village. Since then I have never left.“, he says. Of course love has something to do in this. He married a local girl Heidi and now hand-builds his cult Birdos freeride skis in the town. He lives with his wife upstairs of his skishop. Not bad.

Interview of Dan Loutrel, the father of Birdos Freeride Skis

[Homeboy] Dan, Birdos Skis are very special. What is your design philosophy?

[Dan Loutrel] Well, I wanted skis without compromises and skis which raw materials you know exactly where they are from. In factory produced skis you will never know what they have been made of and their features vary too much.

[Dan Loutrel] My philosophy is to hand made state-of-the-art skis of best local raw materials and customize every pair to fit best for every client personally. For example the steel edges come from a mill just over the Swiss border that has been producing for the ski industry for 50+ years.

[Homeboy] This sounds so good in these days when everything is made in China. Please name a few adjectives which describeBirdos skis most.

[Dan Loutrel] Unusual shape, unmatched stiffness and camber. You can customize nearly every detail from shape to materials and top sheet graphics. As I am producing only 70 pairs of skis per year I have the time and will to concentrate to fine tune the details. Birdos are exceptional and unique pair of skis, built specially to your desire.

[Homeboy] What is your ski choice for powder day?

[Dan Loutrel] I would say you need 120 mm minimum under foot, at least a bit of rocker tip and tail. For British Columbia style snow, steep trees and pillows, an inverse shape ski is super fine. Quick turning, massive float, the most playful powder ski you can find. For the  Alps you always have to deal with the hard windblown snow, slid out couloirs, etc. For big lines the high alpine I would go with a traditional shape, long radius and moderate rocker in the tips and tails. A ski that floats easily, but can run out the frozen debris at high speed and in fine style with full power. From my models they would be Fat Bird and Puder Luder.

[Homeboy] And what would be your choice for us in Finland, the flat land of icy slopes?

[Dan Loutrel] Heh, I think Joker and Ghetto Chicken 172 cm would work fine in your country. Ghetto Chicken is good for jibbing. However, it should be a ski at least 100 mm under foot to give you decent flotation, but probably not more than 115 mm to make it possible to ski aggressively on hard, icy snow.

[Homeboy] Good that there were something for us too! By the way, how do you see the future of skiing? Which skis will we use in 2015?

[Dan Loutrel] Perhaps the next big revolution will be in the materials. Materials that adapt as you ski, a real integration into the skis that transforms even as you ski. Almost an extension of your feet. But we have to wait a long time for this…

[Dan Loutrel] Ski business would change too, I would say there will be more innovative custom companies with special shapes for special needs. Also all the big companies will have to increase their special model range to stay in the market.

[Homeboy] Thank you for this Dan. Skiing seems to be living its renaissance and, thanks to guys like you, the developing never ends.

Interested in Birdos skis? Please visit www.birdos.com

Photos by Antti Zetterberg. All rights reserved.

Check out these trip report stories for some great information about skiing in Krasnaya Poliana and Nissan Russian Adventure freeride competition. Below is also an embedded video from the competition organisers – pretty amazing terrain and skiing/riding (combined with some “behind the scenes” footage, judging and guiding work,  and few crazy crashes from the competition runs! Backflips and frontflips too, of course…)

Freeride World Tour Russian Adventure, Sochi, Part I

Pro Female Freerider Anniina Karvinen Reporting From Russia

Freeride World Tour Russian Adventure, Sochi, Part II

Freeride World Tour Russian Adventure, Sochi, Part III

Pretty Amazing First Day at Freeride World Tour in Sochi, Russia

Freeride World Tour Russian Adventure, Sochi, Part IV

Very High Level of Competition at the Nissan Russian Adventure 2009 (the results)

My Feelings After Riding in FWT Competition in Sochi, Russia (Anni’s personal blog posts after the event)

I really appreciate this feat – I’ve known these guys since the early 1990’s and seen the band evolve from the early Grunge/skate punk days. I guess the band even had some years hiatus at some time (while the guys concentrated on other things in life). But now they are rocking harder than ever again!

Fumble’s part starts at around 3.00 in the clip below. The clip itself is pretty cool too – Mark Abma skiing Alaska for the first time, a hairy crash and amazing recovery from a Swedish super-skier Kaj Zachrisson and just world class big mountain skiing in Alaska. Pretty much stuff that makes you stoked to go skiing immediately!

Mark Abma is one hell of a skier for sure. And IMHO Salomon has been stepping up a notch with their latest freeski offerings, especially with Czar and the coming Shogun; Abma’s pro model with super “poppy” bamboo core!. Check out Salomon team testing the Shogun in Chile on another Salomon FreeskiTV episode. Btw. this reminds me alot of Chile trip a had some years go – read more on the post, “Skiing in Chile; Resort Review – Termas de Chillan”.

PS. Check also out Fumble’s site on MySpace and YouTube:

MySpace

YouTube, FumbleChannel

Ski Men: Sverre Liliequist (SWE)
Snowboard Men: Cyril Neri (SUI)
Ski Women: Jess Mc Millan (USA)
Snowboard Women: Aline Bock (GER)

Amazing kick off for the Freeride World Tour 2009 in Sochi

After the first day of competition with fresh snow and sunshine with an enthusiastic crowd, the 56 riders had a day to recuperate as Day 2 was postponed due to warmer temperatures.

Surprising at that may be in Krasnaya Polyana, situated 40 minutes from the Black Sea, this future Sochi 2014 Olympic site for on-snow sports (all other sports will be in the city of Sochi) does not usually have such mild temperatures in the winter. However, the sun increased the temperature so much that the O°C point was at 3800 meters! With the summit chosen for Day 2 reaching 2200 meters (resort at 500m with lots of snow), the mountain guides decided to postpone the competition day (possible competition days spanned from January 21-24) so the riders could compete in better conditions.

On Saturday, the temperature has comeback down to the seasonal norms, and even with the cloud cover, the riders were able to compete.

On the crest of the top ski lift, after a one-hour walk there were 4 possible starting points (2 accessible with harness only) forming a circle facing the ski lift, the show was particularly spectacular. Suspense was in the air until the end as Aurelien Ducroz (FRA), leader of Day 1, and Henrik Windstedt (SWE) were amongst the last to compete (start list was in reverse order of Day 1).

Overall Results of the Nissan Russian Adventure

Placing 3rd both days of the competition, the consistency of Sverre Liliequist (SWE) pays off. This situation is a bit unusual for him as we have seen in the past; his powerful, aggressive ‘Viking’ style often causes him to fall. His intelligent line choice revealed his extreme agility on various terrains. Aurelien Ducroz (FRA) just missed the top of the podium with only one tenth of a point difference; these are the closest results ever for the Freeride World Tour.

This story of consistency was almost the same for Cyril Neri (SUI), as he placed 2nd and 4th; this proves he really studied his options to take the most impressive and smooth lines that played into his style of riding. This victory is undeniably thanks to his rich experience.

Jess McMillan (USA) is the undeniable winner of this competition with her fast and aggressive lines. Elyse Saugstad (USA) unfortunately fell when landing an impressive jump; she will get her chance to defend her title of World Champion on her home mountains in Squaw Valley USA.

Aline Bock (GER) is undoubtedly the revelation of this first stage of the Freeride World Tour. She broke away from the traditional runs integrating numerous jumps thanks to her début as a freestyler. Gaining confidence from this first victory, she will certainly continue to impress everyone throughout the season.

2nd Day Results

With an unfortunate fall in the first run, Henrik Windstedt (SWE), World Champion 2008, lead today with a perfect run, a line of true freeride expression full of power, fluidity and dexterity with a high level of difficulty.

In the women’s ski competition, Janette Hargin (SWE) lead this run with an aggressive start and impressive jumps including a cliff jumps of around 4 meters. She really used the terrain to her advantage.

In snowboard, the freestyler, Aline Bock (GER) made an awesome début in freeride leading today’s run with a fluid line using the terrain, especially with her jumps.

For the men, Flo Orley (AUT) brought together speed and absolute confidence for his line and magnificent jumps notably a 360° on a cornice and a back flip in the final area.

Next FWT-event is Nissan Tram Cham Face in Squaw Valley, USA, 27 February– 4 March 2009

The stages of the Freeride World Tour 2009 (FWT)
20 – 25 January: Nissan Russian Adventure- Sochi, Russia
27 February – 5 March : Nissan Tram Face – Squaw Valley USA – New event
8 -14 March: Nissan Freeride de Tignes, France
20 – 29 March: Nissan Xtreme – Verbier 09, Switzerland

The Freeride World Qualifier 2009 events (FWQ)
30 January-2 February: the North Face Masters of Snowboarding – Snowbird (USA) –
Sister event of the Nissan Tram Face Squaw Valley USA
5-15 February: Scott Big Mountain Fieberbrunn (AUT), sister event of the Nissan Freeride de Tignes (FRA)
13-16 February: the North Face Masters of Snowboarding – Crested Butte (USA), sister event of the Nissan Tram Face – Squaw Valley USA
15-19 February: Freeride de Chamonix (FRA)
19-22 February: Winter Mysticxperience (ITA) Monte Rosa
20-22 February: The Monster Golden Ticket in Squaw Valley USA,sister event of the Nissan Tram Face – Squaw Valley USA
6-8 March: the North Face Masters of Snowboarding – Kirkwood (USA)
4-7 March: Salomon Extreme Freeride Championships – Taos, New Mexico (USA)
13-18 March: Nendaz Freeride (SUI), sister event of the Nissan Xtreme – Verbier 09 (SUI)
31 March-5 April: Jasna Adrenaline (SK)
22-26 April: Röldal Freeride Challenge (NOR), sister event of the Nissan Russian Adventure – Sochi 2010
*A sister event is a FWQ which will qualify the winners of each category to participate in the FWT event to which it is linked

In this article homeboys provide you a list of must have equipment for backcountry skiing. This might not be the “right” list, but it is based on our years of experience on backcountry skiing and it should be pretty much complete. I believe there is no “right” list of equipment, but without certain equipment skiing the backcountrycan be tricky, risky or simply not fun.

This list of backcountry ski equipment covers one day in the mountains. If you plan spending one or more nights out in the wilderness, this list is incomplete for your needs.

If you are not familiar with backcountry skiing, make sure you have a guide. Climbing and skiing mountains without an experienced guide can be very dangerous due to avalanches, crevasses and other risks. If you are already experienced, make sure you have someone skiing with you. Skiing alone is not a good idea and one or more partners clearly increase your probability of survival in case of accidents. Please keep in mind that backcountry skiing is inherently dangerous, no matter if you have guide with your not.

The following list includes some examples of typical products of the category. Most products are available in Amazon web store, but you can also find these in ski stores such as Snowshack, US Outdoor.Com and
Altrec Outlet.

This is just a basic list of items that someone new to backcountry skiing will become more familiar with once he/she learns a bit more. The best “gear” to always have with you is the knowledge of conditions, avalanche situation and your own limits. The best thing to do if you want to get introduced to backcountry skiing is to hire a guide or attend a course.

The ultimate backcountry ski gear list

1. Freeride or backcountry skis – Although you would survive with straight old school sticks, fat freeride skis provide you a ton more joy and fun. Freeride skis are also optimized for freeskiing, as the name says. As days in the backcountry are usually long, with freeride skis you save precious energy which is usually very needed in the end of the day.
2. Touring boots – Just like freeride skis, touring bots are optimized for backcountry skiing, ski touring and mountaineering. With regular ski boots or even race boots you just have additional difficulties.
3. Touring bindings – Touring bindings are optimized for backcountry skiing and ski touring. Regular bindings usually work fine, but touring bindings work even better in the backcountries.
4. Telescope poles – Downhill skiing poles don’t really work in the wilderness, telesope poles can also be adjusted for changing needs such as when climbing a mountain face.
5. Helmet – Nowadays it should be obvious that a good helmet is a must while skiing. Choose a helmet that covers your head well. Some people like Seth Morrison use a fullface helmet with jaw protection, similar to motocross helmets. A helmet is a cheap insurance, so don’t forget it.
6. Gore-Tex jacket and pants or similar – Almost anything can happen in the mountains so it is good to be ready to overnight in the mountains in case of an emergency. Gore-Tex jacket and pants protect you from water and wind, which is very important especially in cold weather. We recommend good brands such as Marmot, North Face and Mammut.
7. Avalanche Transceiver – Also called as “beacon” in Europe. Make sure you have one, it works, and you know exactly how to use it. You need it if you get buried in an avalanche or you are searching your partner who got buried. Your survival depends very much on this little electronic device, so it is absolutely a must have item.
8. Avalanche shovel – If your partner gets buried by an avalanche, all you wish is that he is wearing his tranceiver and that you have a good shovel. Digging him/her out of the snow without a shovel is desperate and a shovel is a must-have. If you haven’t used an avalanche shovel before, please notice that digging with wrong technique can be very exhausting. The more effectively you dig, the more chances of survival your buddy has. We strongly recommend learning the effective shoveling technique developed by Manuel Genswein. Rescuing avalanche victims is done with a combination of avalanche transceiver, avalanche probe and a shovel. The first two are used for locating the victim, while a shovel is used for digging. Everything must happen as fast as possible, so sound skills should be learned before skiing outside the ski area. Otherwise it’s gonna be like gambling, you either win or lose, depending on how lucky you are.
9. Avalanche probe - Have you seen people probing an avalanche area with long sticks? That’s called an avalanche probe and is a must-have also. Finding the exact location of avalanche victim many times requires a probe, because the victim can have meters of snow above.
10. Ski skins - To make it possible to get up… Simply attach the ski skins on the bottom of your skis and start lugging your weight uphill. Remove the ski skins and put them in your backpack when skiing downhill.
11. Mountaineering backpack – A good backpack is a must in the mountains. Skiing and climbing 10 hours a day with a lousy backpack is worse than hell. You enjoy skiing powder much more if your backpack fits with your back and doesn’t move up and down and left to right.
12. Ski strap – Sometimes in the mountains you need to take your skis on your shoulder and start walking. If you don’t have a ski strap with you, it can be very annoying to carry skis that tend to drop all the time. Ski strap keeps your skis in a nice pack which is much easier to carry than separated skis. You also need ski straps if you’re using an A-frame carry with your backpack.
13. Goggles – Skiing knee deep powder snow fly all over your face. Use goggles to have some visibility and to protect your eyes from the wind and the sun.
14. Sunglasses – If you go to the mountains without wearing sunglasses, it takes only 1-2 hours and you can’t keep your eyes open. Light in the snowy mountains is very bright, so sunglasses are absolutely needed up there.
15. Sun cream – One day in the mountains without sun cream can seriously burn your skin, and that can increase the risk of getting melanoma. Make sure the sun cream you carry is protective enough. I usually use children’s sun cream with protection level of 40-50.
16. Mobile phone – In case of accident your first thought can be “how to get help”. In a situation like that mobile phone is your best friend. Make sure your phone works well and the battery is charged. I usually carry a second phone or at least an extra battery in order to avoid mobile phone malfunction.
17. Map and a compass – Make sure you won’t get lost in the mountains, not even in a blizzard. Make sure you have a map of the area and you know how to use a compass.
18. Water - Man cannot survive long without water. Although accidents don’t happen every day, it is good to have at least one liter of water in your backpack, because you get thirsty many times during a day.
19. Energy such as Power Bars – In addition to water you also needs energy, and that is loaded into energy and power bars. So grab a few with you..
20. Headlamp – If you need to overnight in the mountains, a headlamp is a must to have. Even if you wouldn’t overnight, a headlamp is still needed, because right after sunset you might need some extra light. A small headlamp is bright, powerful and very light.
21. Camera – Skiing the backcountry is something many people never experience. With a small digital camera you can make sure you will remember your trip and can also show it to your friends.
22. Bivy blanket – In case of emergency a bivy blanket or bivy sack can provide you warm enough sleep. Make sure you have one in your backpack, because spending a night on cold mountains without bivy sack can be extremely cold.
23. Utility knife such as leatherman – Sometimes you need to adjust ski bindings or screw your boots. A Utility knife or Leatherman knife can be a great help out in the mountains.
24. First aid kit - In case of an accident it is good to have a first aid kit. It doesn’t need to be a big one, because in most cases you need to cover a bleeding wound. Few adhesive bandages and couple of dressing is a minimum.
25. Insurance – Many people forget it, but make sure you don’t. Skiing the backcountry without insurance covering possible costs of helicopter transportation and medical treatments is stupid. Costs can easily climb up to tens of thousands of dollars after an accident.

Did we forget something or is there something that you’ve noticed is needed but not included here?

It was a beautiful morning March 18th, 2008. The sun was shining over the powder-covered Swiss Alps as Norwegian freeskier Fred Syversen was preparing to ski the perfect line. He had been checking the mountain from different angles and thinking about his line in advance. Fred always wants to avoid undue risks. On that morning he was skiing with Perfect Moment Production’s filming group who were shooting material for their Nuit de la Glisse ski movie.

Fred Syversen is one of the best professional freeskiers in the world, but he had no clue what would happen that morning. He didn’t expect that very soon he would ski a fine line between life and death. He didn’t know that he would be closer to death than ever before.

A helicopter was flying above Fred Syversen and members of the filming crew. The camera man was ready, but Fred waited. He worried about the snow condition, but after a while he decided to go. The camera started rolling. Fred began skiing a beautiful, untouched powder field with the helicopter flying overhead. He skied smoothly but fast, drawing his own tracks on the snow. At that moment, Fred was focused on doing what he knows best, skiing the big mountains.

Fred continued to ski the white paradise. At one point he got very close to the edge of the mountain with over a 100-meter drop on his right side, but he continued towards the cliff he was supposed to drop off. For some reason Fred followed the wrong line. He should have skied more to the left when he realized he was entering the wrong exit cliff. He planned to drop a rather easy cliff, but the one he was approaching happened to be 32 meters higher than Jamie Pierre’s world record. Fred Syversen was skiing 80 km/h, so he had no choice. Either he was going to end up in an uncontrolled crash or he was going to try his best. And hope for the best. Fred decided to survive, and the rest is history.

Fred Syversen – Alpine race skier turned to freeskiing

Last spring we heard rumors of a Norwegian skier setting the new world record in cliff dropping. Many didn’t believe this, but a few weeks ago, the video clip was released  and people’s jaws dropped. It was true. Fred Syversen dropped 107 meters (351 feet) and set the new world record on cliff dropping. Boy, we got interested. We wanted to talk with Fred. Who is this dude who survived such a gigantic cliff drop?

Fred Syversen, age 42, was born in Norway and currently he lives in both Norway and France. Fred is a professional athlete, and his profession is freeskiing. In addition to skiing he runs a small business with his friend. Fred started skiing at the age of 3-4, and it was love at first sight. Soon Fred got into races and did a lot of FIS competitions over the next 11 years.

Just like any other young skier, Fred also had few skiers he admired. The Swedish alpine race skier Ingemar Stenmark was his true role-model and it is no wonder why, because Stenmark was truly invincible. His 86 world cup victories say it all. Fred is also a staunch admirer of Axel Lund Svindal and his skiing. He also mentions a couple freeskiing pioneers, Jean Marc Boivin and Sylvain Saudin, who took the sport to the next level. After thinking a few more seconds, Fred also mentions Lasse Kjus and Kjetil André Aamodt.

Fred found himself studying in France. Back in those days he met Denis Rey and Sebastien Michaud who took him to ski La Grave. This was his first contact with freeskiing, and soon he found himself riding the big mountains. Fred is known from his high speed, which he says is natural for a former race skier. He is sponsored by Dynastar, Lange and Perfect Moment clothing.

What is the driving force behind all those extreme things you do, Fred Syversen?

What makes Fred Syversen push his limits? It is really fascinating to watch Fred ski the big mountains year after year, but where does all that motivation come from?

“I have a competitive spirit.  I guess that gives me a lot of force“.

Years ago Fred Syversen just loved to ski, but nowadays he is deeply involved in gear testing and research & development. Skiing has become his job. All this has taken Fred’s skiing to a new level, but he is still deeply in love with the sport. As Fred says, he wouldn’t do this without his love and passion for skiing.

Many active skiers also have a number of other interests and hobbies, because there is a lot of “waiting time” in skiing. During summer time, skiers typically do sports like water skiing or mountain biking. For example, the living legend of skiing, Glen Plake, is known as an active water skier. Fred Syversen also has a number of side interests, such as base jumping, mountain biking, climbing, wakeboarding, longboarding and kayaking.

Fred Syversen likes to be active. When he gets tired of skiing, Fred grabs his bike or parachute and goes out to enjoy life. Although Fred is a sporty man, it’s not only sports that keep him busy. This fall Fred founded a company with a friend. He didn’t tell us what SteepZone is going to offer to its clients, but I guess the name says it all.

Death is always lurking right around the corner, but it’s part of the game

One of the biggest name in skiing so far, Doug Coombs, passed away last winter. Doug fell off a cliff and died immediately. The death of Doug Coombs was a shock to us all, although everybody knows that risks in big mountain skiing are sometimes pretty high. Doug knew this too, but I am sure we can agree that he lived his life exactly as he wanted to. Doug enjoyed every bit of the sport.

Fred Syversen almost died as well when he unintentionally set the new world record on cliff dropping. Surviving 107 meters drop was a miracle and a close call. We asked Fred how he feels about the recent deaths of many pro skiers such as Doug Coombs, John Nicoletta and Billy Poole.

“I feel sorry, it is a small community and deaths affect us all, even if you never met them. I knew Doug from La Grave and got to meet Billy in Riksgrensen, Sweden. Those were great guys“.

Death is always lurking around the corner, but pro skiers know it. Risks levels can sometimes be high, but pro skiers always calculate it. Skiers like Fred Syversen take only calculated risks. Accidents happen, as with Doug Coombs, but in skiing steep mountain faces or dropping big cliffs, risks are minimized as much as possible.

It’s a beautiful life out there, so enjoy it

Why are we here? Finding the right answer to this phenomenal question of life on Earth is impossible, but I think we should at least enjoy the life we have been given. Skiing, music and photography, and  of course my children, are my vehicles for enjoying life. I wanted to know what Fred Syversen’s best single skiing related memory is , and his answer was clear and fast:

“Skiing Aiguille d’Argentière, couloir Barbey in 8 turns“.

Not all people have a straight and well thought out answer to this question. It seems to me that Fred has pondered this before. Skiing the couloir Barbey of Aiguille d’Argentiere in 8 turns must have been an extraordinary experience. Barbey is a pretty wide and long run, although not very steep, which makes it perfect couloir to ski fast. You can see Fred ski the couloir in The Contact ski film by Perfect Moment.

Skiers like Fred Syversen have traveled the globe looking for perfect moments in the mountains. They have visited dozens or even  over a hundred ski resorts in many countries. If you want to get a tip on a good place to ski, ask pro skiers. We asked Fred to name the three best ski resorts, not including backcountry skiing. Again, Fred gave a fast and wellthought out answer.

“La Grave, Narvik and Hemsedal“.

La Grave, a small ski resort in France, is known as an off-piste skiing Mecca. Although skiing in La Grave can be very dangerous due to the lack of formal avalanche control, it is very famous among the top big mountain skiers of the world. Every big mountain skier knows La Grave.

Narvik and Hemsedal are both Norwegian ski resorts. While Narvik is small northern ski resort providing excellent off-piste skiing, Hemsedal is the most popular ski resort in Norway. Narvik and its off-piste runs are well known in Scandinavia, and Hemsedal was elected as the world’s 7th best snowboard destination (according to Skistar.Com).

Fred Syversen has skied many mountains and off-piste runs. He says the most exotic places he has skied are Lyngen and Tamok valley in northern Norway, as well as the west coast range of Norway. Although Fred might like to promote his homeland, Norway definitely provides some awesome places to ski. For example, skiing the very cold Tamok and Lyngen is an experience you cannot get in central Europe and Northern America. In fact, Tamok and Lyngen are comparable to Alaska, although the mountains are a bit smaller.

Can you imagine how would it feel to fall 107 meters, get up, and ski down to a helicopter?

Last year Fred Syversen was filming Nuit de la Glisse ski movie with Perfect Moment Productions in Swiss mountains. Although they had safety up there and everything was well-planned, something went very wrong. After skiing a perfect line Fred picked the wrong exit cliff, and unintentionally set the new world record in cliff dropping. Fred fell 107 meters and landed with approximately 150 km/h velocity. It was a miracle Fred survived. So, Fred, what the heck happened that day?

It was a beautiful day, lots of fresh. I worried about the snow conditions that day, more than anything else. It was my first day filming with Perfect Moment, and we were a crew with one snowboarder, 2 skiers including myself and one helicopter. All set to be a good day on the hill. People may say what they want, but the route finding on this was not as easy as it looked from the air (of course ). I took out one spot on the whole route, I was scouting from a side angle. I reached this spot, no worries.

Speed is picking up as it’s getting steeper, and i realize this is the wrong place ( you can say it was a twin spot, you can see it in some of the stills, taken by Felix St. Clair Renard ), it was supposed to go slightly skier’s left here, but instead it goes straight down to a cliff edge. Speed is high, some rocks on the surface and just below the surface, it is also much narrower than it looks on the film, makes me wonder if it is worth the chance of a stop turn, split second decision. All of this happens in a matter of seconds. There will be no stop turn, the risk of a fall will kill me. I know it is a huge cliff, I only see the other end of the valley.

In my left side vision I see rocks, I think seriously that this is the end! The last right turn gets my angle a little away from the rock band, my takeoff is slightly left because of sharp rocks just on the edge. then airborne, I can see snow underneath, I knew at that instant that I will make this, my whole mind changed from total resignation to attack, I had no feeling of the height, I only knew it was very high ( it is normal to loose your feeling of height when it gets too high ), landing seemed totally flat as well.

I’m out in the air hucking the biggest cliff ever hucked, I am amazingly stable in the air, due to the initial resignation my arms go a little backward for then again to start pressing forward, preventing my skitips from flipping me over on my head due to the wind pressure, which is getting very strong, on my fats. Closer to the ground I let the forces come to use and flattens out on my back to get the largest possible area for the force of impact. Speed at impact is said to be up near 170 km/h.

Explosion !!! the landing was brutal, from going that fast to total stop and total silence was a weird feeling. I was not even unconscious, nor did I even loose my breath. First thing, checking my ability to move my toes, I am OK. Then trying to get out of the bomb hole, no way; I was totally stuck. Panic for a second, can’t breathe. Calm down, ate some snow in front of my mouth. Close my eyes, breath what i could through my nose, try to get my pulse going as low as possible. One of my poles is lying partly above the snow, and i signal with it  you can see it in some of the stills taken by Felix), I could move my right forearm a little bit, for the guys who I knew would come get me as fast as they could. About 4 minutes underneath the snow, according to the rescuers, I was up and about. I put my skis back on, and ski down to the waiting helicopter.

Fred’s story is absolutely the most shocking news from the world of skiing last year. Many big things happened, such as the dramatic crash of Matthias Lanzinger, but Fred’s story is amazing because he survived a deadly drop. We wanted to know more about Fred’s thoughts after the cliff drop. We asked, “What was the first thought when you realized that you survived this incredible jump? What were you thinking when you went to sleep that night”?

“I looked at the cliff several times from underneath after being dug out, even got the helicopter pilot who took me to the hospital to do a last flyby.. like I wanted to remember this one.. I went through that day many times in my head at the hospital, just to be ready for anything that might come up now and in the future. I had some weird dreams a couple of nights at the hospital, but they’ve stopped”.

Don’t try this at home – Dropping huge cliff can kill you

Fred Syversen has been interviewed a few times after his incredible cliff drop, but the injuries he suffered have not been discussed that much. People think Fred didn’t get even a scratch, but that’s not actually the whole truth. Fred Syversen suffered a partially collapsed lung and damage in his liver. The great thing is that Fred has recovered 100%, but his doctor said that the force of impact from a jump like this could tear the main artery of the heart (aorta) and cause instant death! So please don’t go dropping cliffs unless you know exactly what you are doing and what the risks are.

One might think that after surviving 107 meters cliff drop Fred would never step on skis anymore. But no, Fred is still going strong. Soon after the accident Fred Syversen jumped back on his skis and went checking some backcountries. Fred thinks he didn’t become afraid of big mountain skiing at all, and in fact he believes that what happened last year will make him even a better skier.

Today Fred Syversen feels really alive. He goes skiing and enjoys his life as much as possible. Last time I talked to Fred, he was driving towards Chamonix, the off-piste skiing Mecca of the world. Although Fred set the new world record on cliff dropping and survived a pretty amazing drop, he wants to point out that we should all be responsible for crediting good skier’s and not stunts that might get people killed! He is right. Although Fred is now known for his incredible cliff drop, we give him credit for being a damn good skier and a humble mate with whom you would enjoy drinking a beer or two after a good day of skiing.

Photos by Colin Samuels with copyrights. Photos used with permission.

We’ve interviewed Fred about his drop and the interview can be seen here. His awesome drop and many other perfect moments can be seen in Nuit de la glisse movie. Check the trailer below!

The concept is to create a 5-minute film combining 5 outdoor sports activities: Mountaineering, Skiing, Snowboarding, Paragliding & Hang gliding, BASE Jumping & Wingsuit flying. The world’s best specialists in each discipline will utilize their creativity and sense of adaptation to present their sport and their level of performance to enrich the scenario.

In 2008 many well-known athletes, such as Karine Ruby, Liv Sansoz, Julian Boulle and Eric Themel participated in the Nissan Outdoor Games.

The teams will have 7 days–from Saturday, February 14th, to Friday, February 20th, 6pm–to film and edit a short 5-minute film: a definite challenge. All teams will be working on the same playground, the massive Mont Blanc mountain range.

Only the best in each discipline are chosen: the cast brings together 5 teams comprised of athletes, production companies, professional cameramen and photographers from all over Europe and North America.

Comprised of professional movie makers, photographers and sports personalities, the jury will deliberate on Saturday February 21, 2009 to elect the winner of the ‘Golden Peak’ award.

The ‘Golden Peak’ Trophy will be awarded Saturday evening in the center of Chamonix after the public has seen the films live on a giant movie screen. Three other awards will be given: Jury’s Special Award, Best Sports Sequence, Best Photographer.

Although Nissan Outdoor Games in Chamonix is for professional athletes, there will be a lot of things to see and experience for tourists both on the slopes and in the village of Chamonix. It will be a wonderful weekend, so be there!

Pictures by osbornb, alainwibert, phileole