This episode highlights Kevin Hammonds. Kevin is a professor at Montana State University in the Civil Engineering department. He is also the current director of the Sub Zero Lab at MSU. Kevin is a great example of someone who is dedicated to merging theory and practice within our field of interest and curiosity. Kevin dives into what is involved in the lab, and some of the interesting research that is going on as well. Tunes by Ketsa: "Thinking Free" and "Peace Out".
Jun 15, 2020•49 min
In this episode, we highlight an interview with Dr. Jerry Johnson, a political science professor at Montana State University. We talk about some of the factors that Jerry feels like are contributing to good decision making in backcountry winter sports. He talks about his involvement with the White Heat Project, and how we can learn about making decisions from other professions, and much more. Music on this track: "Wizard" by Sunsquabi and "Afternoon Soul" by Gramatik. Link to White Heat Project...
Jun 01, 2020•47 min
In this episode, we chat with Dr. Jordy Hendrikx- Director of the Snow and Avalanche Lab at Montana State University. Jordy talks about the path that led him to his current role at MSU. He talks about what a potential applicant might want to focus on before starting an application to the program. We also chat about some of the current research going on in the program as well as the high caliber employment that graduates are finding in the snow and avalanche arena. We hope you enjoy this episode....
May 15, 2020•1 hr 3 min
In this episode, we hear from Doug Richmond. Doug is a career ski patroller who started out at Sugarbowl in Lake Tahoe and skipped around a bit before settling in to his home at Bridger Bowl. Doug talks about the fundamentals of working in the avalanche environment, what has kept him and his team safe during avalanche mitigation mornings, and what makes a good ski patroller. Doug shares a couple of great stories to round out the hour. Enjoy. Music by Ketsa.
May 01, 2020•1 hr 11 min
In this episode, we hear the story of Don Bachman's career in the snow and avalanche world. From ski patrolling to avalanche forecasting for highways, infrastructure, and athletic events, Don recounts lessons learned, mentorships, and a few stories along the way. We hope you enjoy. Music by Ketsa and Lobo Loco.
Apr 15, 2020•1 hr 4 min
This episode features Doug Workman- Jackson, WY based ski and alpine guide. Doug is also the North American Technical Snow Safety Rep for Mammut. We chat about ski guiding in the far reaches of the Earth, some of the ways guide meetings might play out for different operations, as well as some of the current snow safety product offerings Mammut has. Don't forget to check out www.mammutavalanchesafety.com A link to the current survey I talk about in this episode: https://avbullvis.avalancheresearc...
Apr 01, 2020•47 min
In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic....Crazy times. Take a timeout to listen to this great episode featuring Eric Knoff. Eric has been a pro patroller, public avalanche forecaster, as well as an educator. We talk to Eric about his career, his new education company: Six Points Avalanche Education, as well as some of his thoughts (and research) on large column tests. Musical tracks by Ketsa. Mission Ready and Onwards Upwards. Check out Six Points Avalanche Education at www.avalancheclass.com....
Mar 24, 2020•1 hr 7 min
In this episode, I chat with Greg Epstein. Greg grew up in Jackson Wyoming, and is proud to call it home. He has been an extreme skier, film producer for TGR, and is currently one of the Teton County Commissioner. Greg talks about his career and recounts an avalanche he was involved in outside of JHMR. Enjoy! Music provided by Broke for Free via www.freemusicarchive.org
Mar 15, 2020•1 hr 3 min
This episode highlights two avalanche centers that may be smaller in budget and forecast area of other larger centers, but certainly don't lack in professionalism as well as community support. We chat with Gabe Coler and Aaron Hartz of the Central Oregon Avalanche Center as well as Victor Mcneil of the Wallowa Avalanche Centers. We chat about the evolution and growth of these organizations, as well as some of the ways their communities are helping to drive the success of the centers. Enjoy! Musi...
Mar 01, 2020•54 min
In Episode 4.10, I sit down with Don Carpenter- Guide, Educator, and owner of The American Avalanche Institute. We chat about some of the programs that AAI offers for some of the special operations teams of the US Military. We chat about teamwork, partners, travel techniques in avalanche terrain, and of course Don shares some stories of his experience throughout his career
Feb 15, 2020•1 hr 2 min
We sit down with Ed Adams- recently retired professor from Montana State University. Ed was instrumental in the development and success of the SubZero lab at MSU. We chat about his career path, some of the research that he has worked on, and a few stories that happened along the way. Tune in. Music on this episode by Ketsa. Tracks: Night Fly and Greener Grass.
Feb 01, 2020•1 hr 2 min
Episode 4.8 highlights Guide, Educator, Patroller, Professional Expedition Skier Jamie Laidlaw. Jamie shares some of the lessons he has learned in the mountains, and what has caught him off guard in the snowpack. He details some strategy about going into areas where there is no readily accessed information to historical snowpack data. I know you'll enjoy this one. Cheers.
Jan 15, 2020•48 min
In this episode, we first chat with CJ Svela who is the Vice President of the Association of Professional Patrollers. He shares with us what the APP is all about, and some of the educational offerings of this winter for Patrollers across the West. We then chat with Laura Maguire, who shares some of her research concerning decision making and cognitive systems in high risk environments. Check out all of Laura's papers: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Laura_Maguire5 If you would like to help ...
Jan 01, 2020•1 hr 5 min
Danny Holland recounts his perspective of being part of the group that was involved in a fatal avalanche on December 26, 2013 on Cody Peak, WY. This is not meant to be an exhaustive analysis of the avalanche, but more a conversational piece about how the events of that fateful day unfolded. Thank you to Danny for sharing his story. This is not easy. For more information on this event, see the below links. We can all learn from this. Accident Report: https://avalanche.state.co.us/caic/acc/acc_rep...
Dec 15, 2019•49 min
Hopefully you all are stuffed from the recent Thanksgiving holiday. More importantly, I hope you were able to spend some quality time with those people you care about. This episode features a great interview with Doug Chabot who is the current director of the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center in Bozeman, MT. We chat about some of the strategies the GNAFC utilizes to get their message across to as many diverse user groups as they can. We also chat about his work with several organizations...
Dec 01, 2019•1 hr 11 min
We sit down and have a good ol time with BrendEn Cronin. Currently a highway forecaster for Wyoming DOT, BrendEn has been a guide, forecaster, ski patroller, and all around badass kayaker. We cover lots in this episode, and I think we had a pretty good time doing it. Hope you enjoy. Music in this episode: Funk it VIP by Gramatik and DeFunk as well as So Far by Anitek.
Nov 15, 2019•1 hr 10 min
I travelled to Jackson WY last week and sat down with Don Sharaf. Don has spent the better part of the past 3 decades working in the snow and avalanche realm while forecasting, guiding, and educating others in this high risk environment. We break down what we can do given all of our awareness of human factors, talk about how to measure success and failure in avalanche education, whether confidence is outpacing competence and so much more. We recorded this interview in a county library, and unfor...
Nov 01, 2019•1 hr 12 min
This episode features a couple of Crystal Mountain's finest. Robin Pendery is the Assistant Forecaster for the avalanche program and Sara Cohen is the director of the dog rescue program at Crystal Mountain in Washington. We talk about the forecasting and mitigation program with Robin, then dig into the dog program with Sara. You'll learn about what goes into the thought process of an avalanche mitigation morning, as well as what makes a good dog team training program. Enjoy! Music by Broke for F...
Oct 15, 2019•1 hr 16 min
Welcome to the 4th season of the Avalanche Hour Podcast! This episode features the first family of heliskiing in the US. Mike and Joe Royer sit down with me and discuss the history and the future of Ruby Mountain Heli Ski. We also dive into some of the characteristics of this uniquely situated mountain range, the snowpack that we deal with there, and how we forecast for and deal with Avalanche hazard in a busy heli skiing schedule. Music on this episode is Loungin' by Gramatik and Hicktronica fe...
Oct 01, 2019•1 hr 7 min
Last episode of season 3 highlights an interview with longtime Heli Ski Guide Roger Atkins. Roger presented the paper Yin, Yang, and You at the 2014 ISSW. He outlined how approaching each day with a strategic mindset might help guiding operations choose appropriate terrain and manage clients in the best way. This will be a timeless episode, that would be helpful to review once the snow starts flying again. The beginning of the show has some background noise, but it decreases throughout the show....
Jun 15, 2019•44 min
For 45 years, billy barr has been taking weather observations every day from the same location in Gothic, CO. In the wintertime, he makes observations of avalanches of the numerous paths surrounding his house. billy has no vehicle. He skis into town for supplies as the road is closed in the winter. He loves numbers, and with all of this weather data over such an extended time, he has lots of numbers to look at. His work has caught the attention of scientists studying climate change. In this epis...
Jun 01, 2019•1 hr 2 min
As we wind down The Avalanche Hour Podcast season, I highlight a great interview with John Sykes. John is part psychologist, part guide, part educator, and part researcher. Some might say a full unicorn. John graduated recently with his Masters Degree from MSU, and has also recently started a phD program at Simon Fraser University. We chat about his life, about his work, and about his decision making in the backcountry. I reference several surveys that can be taken at the present time, and links...
May 15, 2019•51 min
The corn harvest is on in the PNW! I've been busy in the last couple weeks, but was stoked to make time to review this episode. I think you will really appreciate it. We sit down with Evelyn Lees of the Utah Avalanche Center. She tells us about her career, and dives into a talk that she and Mark Staples have been sharing throughout the US during the Snow and Avalanche Workshop seasons. The topic involves being solo- or "effectively" solo in the backcountry. Enjoy.
May 07, 2019•33 min
This episode features Mark Dundas- avalanche forecaster at the Flathead Avalanche Center in Montana. Mark has been a ski patroller, railroad forecaster, avalanche educator, and has put in many years of trailwork for the National Park Service. He talks about the evolution of forecasting in the Flathead Region of Montana. Enjoy.
Apr 15, 2019•48 min
We've got a great interview with Ben Pritchett- Forecaster, Guide, and Educator based out of Crested Butte, CO. Ben tells the story of his career, and also tells the story of the start of AIARE (American Institute of Avalanche Research and Education) of which he was very involved with for a number of years. We talk about some of the intricacies of forecasting within the Crested Butte area, the relationship between the Crested Butte Avalanche Center and the Colorado Avalanche Information Center, ...
Apr 01, 2019•1 hr 5 min
The Avalanche Hour Podcast Episode 3.13 Jack Reuppel by Caleb Merrill
Mar 15, 2019•59 min
This episode features Mark Mueller. Mark has been one many hats in the Avalanche arena from The Executive Director of A3, to Ski Patrol Director at Squaw Valley to his current role as a highway forecaster for CAIC. There are so many good tidbits in this interview as Mark tells us his story, and gives a glimpse into his day to day routine. Music on this episode is by SoDown. Check out more tracks of theirs on SoundCloud!
Mar 01, 2019•1 hr 4 min
The Avalanche Hour Podcast 3.11 Ray Mumford and John Cameron by Caleb Merrill
Feb 15, 2019•47 min
Today we sit down with Jamie Yount- the Program Manager for the Avalanche Safety Program for the Colorado Department of Transportation. Jamie reflects on his education, career, and the path that he has taken to find himself in this position. He explains how one of the largest state highway avalanche forecasting programs runs. Enjoy. Music today by Schedule One Beats
Feb 01, 2019•48 min
You asked for it, we delivered it. Here is a bonus episode with Flight Paramedic and Vail Ski Patroller Graham Kane. Graham lays out some important fundamentals of post avalanche burial resuscitation and trauma care in a way that is digestable to all no matter your level of training. A must listen for anyone who spends time in backcountry avalanche terrain. Music by Anitek. Enjoy. You might find it helpful to pull up these resources as Graham lays out the WMS and ICAR Medcom guidelines: https://...
Jan 19, 2019•1 hr 13 min
