packraft… American Whitewater Safety Code 27 Dec 202427 Dec 2024 It was an honor to be part of the team that revised American Whitewater's Safety Code—and a very welcome opportunity to get paid to write! Sarah Glaser won the contract…
risk management… Evacuation Insurance 26 Aug 20247 Dec 2024 Hello Luc: Thought you might have an answer to a quick question about who pays for a helicopter evacuation. This is a common point of concern and confusion for backcountry…
instruction… The Avalanche Factor—the Modern Era of Avalanche Education 28 Nov 202328 Nov 2023 This is meant to be a book review of The Avalanche Factor by Joe Stock (2023). But the real value of Joe's book is that it captures changes in avalanche…
packraft… Boat control: Why it matters and how to get it 8 May 202328 Aug 2023 There is a frequent debate within the rescue/instruction community about what really matters in swiftwater safety. The conflict is that we can spend a lot of time practicing technical systems…
ice skating… Navigating Pressure Ridges at Skilak Lake 5 Feb 2023 We caught a brief window of skating on Skilak Lake last week. The prominent hazards turned out to be pressure ridges—zones of cracked ice under compression. This post contains: The…
blog… Dead rabbit saves the day! 16 Dec 2022 The wild ice skating season is filled with ephemeral goals—evenings spent monitoring weather forecasts and satellite imagery hoping to catch days on good ice. Days like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qlR_Z0iPafc Grewingk Lake…
equipment… River Rescue Knives 5 Jul 202231 Jul 2024 I teach swiftwater rescue and benefit from observing the pros and cons of various river knives and knife placement. In summary: Anyone working or paddling on rivers should carry a…
blog… The American Whitewater Accident Database 24 Sep 202124 Sep 2021 In September of 2021, American Whitewater (AW) updated their accident database to include "packraft" as an available boat type. Why is this exciting? This update allows us an unprecedented tool…
safety Shallow Water Crossings (Wading) 24 Aug 2021 I returned home after a day of swiftwater rescue practice to messages about a hunter whose body was recovered in the Wrangell Mountains (Alaska). Friends had shared the news because…
