UPSKILL YOUR OFF-PISTE & AVALANCHE SAFETY
Designed for skiers and snowboarders who like powder snow, this 6 hour course in mountain safety helps to equip you with the skills, knowledge and tools needed to enjoy backcountry snow sports and to stay safe in avalanche terrain.
ENROL NOW
DO YOU WANT TO:
- Make fresh tracks in powder snow?
- Ski or snowboard in off-piste and backcountry environments?
- Stay safe & avoid accidents & injury?
- Become the kind of partner you’d like yours to be?
IF YES, HERE'S THE PATH
- Learn how to understand & analyse avalanche terrain.
- Understand the equipment you need.
- Learn modern skills in forecasting, mapping & route planning.
- Learn from common mistakes in order to avoid them.
- Develop routines for group management and safer travel.
- Build skills for monitoring snow stability and terrain
- Study & practise companion rescue procedures for avalanche response
"Very informative and well presented. George is extremely clear and engaging in passing on critical knowledge, awareness and understanding to all mountain user venturing off the piste."
Neil McNair - McNair Snowboarding - Instructor & Coach, Nov 23
COURSE INTRODUCTION
An introduction to the course and what to expect from it's content
ENROL & BEGINLESSON 1: AVALANCHE AWARENESS
Avalanches kill and injure many skiers and snowboarders every year. Anyone going off piste must understand off piste hazards and avalanches so we can avoid them.
ENROL & BEGINA 6 HOUR ONLINE COURSE TO UPSKILL YOUR OFF PISTE AND AVALANCHE SKILLSET
VIDEO TUTORIALS
Visual, detailed and entertaining overviews of the key concepts.
PRACTICAL TASKS
Get prepared with an organised sequence of tasks
QUIZZES
Test your understanding and recap the most important points
JOIN THE COMMUNITY
Join our Private Facebook Group with 1,000 members
LESSON 2: OFF PISTE EQUIPMENT
The moment you cross the piste markers, you become exposed to a new list of hazards. Skiers & Snowboarders must carry essential off-piste equipment and know how to use it. This tutorial explains what you need, including a checklist to help you prepare.
ENROL & BEGIN
" I thought the course was great! I knew a little about mountain safety going into it but I learnt lots of new information which I'm sure is going to come in very useful. The information is presented in a way which is easy to understand and interesting. I will now be recommending this course to anyone who plans to go off piste."
Zoë Gillings-Brier - Instructor & ex FIS world cup & Olympic Snowboarder
" I really liked how the course was broken down in to a modules that I could work through in my own time. It also provided structure to the learning and teaching. The video clips were well put together and the end of topic assessments were relevant and focused. "
Gavin Carruthers - British Backcountry partner & L4 ski Instructor
LESSON 3: TERRAIN ANALYSIS
Arguably the most important skillset for off-piste skiers and snowboarders. In a world where weather conditions, snowpack and partners are fickle and constantly changing, terrain is your stable minded best friend. Learn how to read the terrain in order to understand how dangerous it is.
ENROL & BEGIN
LESSON 4: MOUNTAIN WEATHER
Forecasting snow, weather and avalanches in mountain environments is an imperative skillset for off-piste skiers and snowboarders. Not only does it help you to avoid dangerous scenarios, it also helps you to find better snow conditions
ENROL & BEGIN
LESSON 5 THE AVALANCHE BULLETIN
For off piste skiers & snowboarders, the Avalanche Bulletin is the best deal in town. If you want to ski or snowboard off piste in powder snow, here are some of the important bits of information you need to know about before you go out into the mountains.
ENROL & BEGIN
LESSON 6: MAPPING & ROUTE PLANNING
When it comes to off-piste skiing & snowboarding, your most important decisions are made before you even leave the house. This tutorial covers the ways you can study & plan your routes to help ensure that you are in the right place at the right time.
ENROL & BEGIN
" A course that may save your life; The course is engaging, interesting and full of great utilisable knowledge. Highly recommended to anyone interested in the backcountry "
Dom Turner - Director & Co-owner of Skiology
LESSON 7: HUMAN FACTORS & HEURISTIC TRAPS
Human psychology causes us to make common mistakes. In Off-Piste environments, these can get you killed. Learn and remember these classic errors so you can make sure you don't fall into one of these psychological traps.
ENROL & BEGIN
LESSON 8: FIELD OBSERVATION SKILLS
As well as forecasting and route planning, skiers and snowboarders must be able to read the real world, identify red flags in avalanche terrain and analyse the current conditions during the day. This tutorial lists the things to look out for and the tools which will help you to 'read' the real world in snowy environments.
ENROL & BEGIN
LESSON 9: SAFER TRAVEL & GROUP MANAGEMENT
Learn the principals and safe travel procedures which allow you to limit your's and your group's exposure to off-piste hazards.
ENROL & BEGIN
LESSON 10: COMPANION RESCUE
Learn the systematic strategies to implement in emergencies so you can be prepared if things go wrong. Your partner's lives may depend on it.
ENROL & BEGIN
"George has taken a complicated subject matter and split it into digestible bite size pieces that are easy to understand. The amazing pics and vids keep you interested, and the whole thing is just super slick and really thought about. Everyone going off piste needs this course!"
Paul Wagstaffe - ISTD L 4 ski instructor
" Thanks George for a really enjoyable, well structured and presented course. The balance of photos, video and words made it super interesting and easy to digest. "
Tim Scott - ISTD ski Instructor @ LGS Snowsports
" Fantastic videos with a lot of good information presented in one place"
Simon D - August 2023
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What is the structure of the online course
Who is the course for?
Is there a pre-requisite level?
Will I earn certification upon completion?
Who made the course?
When do I get the course?
Is there a money-back guanrantee?
How long does it take?
LEARNING OUTCOMES
AVALANCHE AWARENESS
Use greater understanding for avalanche avoidance. Types, characteristics, locations & times. Awareness of other off piste & backcountry mountain hazards.
EQUIPMENT UNDERSTANDING
To know what equipment you need for off piste & backcountry snowsports. How to use it and how to pack and prepare effectively
TERRAIN ANALYSIS SKILLS
in order to understand the likelihood and consequences of avalanches. To have a better idea of where and when to go during certain conditions as a result.
WEATHER & AVALANCHE FORECASTING
Better understand mountain weather relevant to snowsports. How to read and understand weather forecasts & avalanche bulletins.
ROUTE PLANNING
Know how to study & plan your routes before you leave the house. Combine this with improved understanding of avalanche terrain to make smarter plans
SAFER TRAVEL
Understand tactics and protocols for group management and safer travel in mountainous environments. Know about common decision making mistakes to avoid.
FIELD OBSERVATION
Develop skills and tools for monitoring snow, weather and avalanche conditions whilst you are out in the field.
COMPANION RESCUE
Understand rescue procedures and search patterns in Avalanche response.
10 STEPS TO UP SKILL YOUR OFF-PISTE SAFETY & AVALANCHE AWARENESS
ENROL & BEGIN
