Avalanche Risk Study

Interesting news story on Ski Press this morning on a recent study completed by Albi Sole at the University of Calgary Outdoor Center. From the story:

…Albi Sole, program co-ordinator for Public Avalanche Awareness Programs at the University of Calgary Outdoor Centre, has just completed his masters degree research profiling who’s at the highest risk of being involved in an avalanche incident. According to Sole, the most likely subject is a male backcountry skier, 25-29 years old, with a bachelor’s degree or higher and earning about $10,000 over the provincial Alberta average. Being accompanied by a woman tends to reduce the risk, while having taken avalanche training does not.

“The risk was at least as high among those who had training as those who didn’t,” says Sole. “The message here isn’t that avalanche training is the problem. It’s just that training opens the door to a recreational activity that is very valuable to this group. For these people the risk they take is more than compensated by the rewards they get. It would obviously be far more dangerous to do these sports without proper training.”

Read the full story at Ski Press here.

Danger…