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| Backcountry Awareness Initiative for University Ski Clubs | 12/11/2010 7:53 |
| Tragically every year young people perish or are seriously injured in the mountains, from being swept to their deaths in avalanches to alcohol related incidents leading to death or injury from hypothermia. Up to 15,000 students go on university ski trips each winter and statistics show that this age group is most at risk of becoming victims of avalanches or accidents off piste. With some essential basic knowledge many of these accidents could be avoided. | |
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| Swiss prosecution could impact off-piste skiing | 08/11/2010 1:13 |
| On the 27th December 2009 an avalanche in the Swiss Valais resort of Anzère which hit an open ski run triggered a major rescue operation involving 130 people, 8 avalanche dogs and 3 helicopters. The slide was probably caused by 3 off piste skiers. Experts believe that the legal process could lead to restrictions on off-piste skiing near to open ski runs. | |
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| Final run for Georges Salomon | 05/10/2010 17:38 |
| Millions of skiers owe their knees and ligaments to Georges Salomon, native of Annecy, capital of the Haute-Savoie. Last night we learned that Mr Salomon had died at his home by the shores of Lake Annecy after an illness. He was aged 85. Boivin and his Salomon Equipe SX91s on la Moine | |
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| Unqualified guide in fatal accident | 22/07/2010 19:04 |
| Amongst the many missions flown by the PGHM based in Chamonix on the 11th July was the recovery of the body of a Polish climber killed after falling in the couloir du Goûter. The Goûter is the normal route to the summit of Mont Blanc from St Gervais. The climber, aged in his thirties, was leading a group of three Australians at the time of the accident. | |
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| Explosion in number of ski touring fatalities in Switzerland | 15/04/2010 15:19 |
| Three-quarters of avalanche fatalities this winter involved ski tourers according to figures from the Swiss Snow and Avalanche Research Institute (SLF). The average over the last decade has been 42%. In total 27 people have been killed in avalanches since the 21st of December 2009. The average since 1997/98 is 24 for the whole year. After a late start to the winter season the snow pack was unstable over a long period and over an extended geographical area. | |
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| French police warn skiers off mountains | 05/04/2010 11:59 |
| The Rescue Services in the Isère department have flown seven rescue missions in the space of a couple of hours today. Conditions were difficult for pilots with high winds and drifting snow. A series of avalanches in the Isere and Haute-Savoie have left five people dead and others injured. Sebastian Rigaud, a spokesman for the mountain police in Grenoble has advised skiers to keep off the mountains for the next few days. If skiers do go out the greatest care is needed in route choice. | |
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| Review of the 2009/2010 Winter conditions in the French Mountains | 04/04/2010 9:47 |
| If you only listened to the mainstream press you would have the impression of a very hard winter: trains frozen in the Channel Tunnel, major highways all but impassible, ski lifts buried under snow and avalanches causing death and destruction from Scotland to Italy. With the climategate scandal you might also start to believe that global warming was just a figment of publicity hungry scientists? imaginations. However French ski tourers had a feeling of a short winter, with very poor weather and, here they?ll agree with the media, dangerous snow conditions. With the deaths of Olivier Cordeuil and Nicolas Wirsching, Grenoble lost two of the creme of its steep skiing community to avalanches. November snow in the Belledonne | |
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| Save The Sarenne! | 17/03/2010 18:26 |
| At some 17km the Sarenne at Alpe d?Huez is reputed to be the longest black ski run in the world. Starting on the Pic du Lac Blanc at 3330 meters it follows the Glacier de Sarenne over the first section before cutting through a rocky valley before merging with a blue run from Auris. The piste is symbolic, a powerful marketing tool for the resort. | |
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| Spook?s gadget could revolutionize mountain rescue | 27/02/2010 17:27 |
| A system developed by a French company could revolutionize the search for people lost in mountains, even those buried under an avalanche. The device, a portable IMSI (International Mobile Subscriber Identity) catcher, developed by French company Diginext, is currently in use by the military. | |
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| Dalbello V.i.r.u.s. LITE wins ISPO 2010 Footwear award | 13/02/2010 15:37 |
| The footwear specialists of Calzaturificio Dal Bello have picked up this year?s ISPO footwear award for the LITE version of their Virus ski touring boots. The ISPO jury thought the boot was innovative, offering a better package while reducing overall weight. Dalbello V.i.r.u.s Lite ski boot | |
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