Thanks! That's what I'm looking for. A way to take the classroom portion of the course online, prior to taking the field course. Many of us live in remote areas and access would be more efficient time-wise as well as financially. That way when we get to the physical course in the snow we would have a more in-depth knowledge base. It would also serve to increase the interest in training, the overall general knowledge base, conversation and foster an overall interest in course work for all the untrained b/c novices, ski, split board, trekkers and snowmobile currently getting in over their heads.
Is there a way to foster the expansion of access to this information given that the numbers of untrained b/c dwellers is expanding exponentially w/ the advent of all the new gear? Taking an Avy course needs to be as easy as buying new bindings, skins, skis, or boots. Avy training still seems very "boutique".... How do we encourage a more holistic approach that is more accessible?
That’s a great question - and a difficult one to answer in terms of how. AIARE has to be taught by a guide who’s certified (and the process is quite rigorous). Folks I know who teach also earn their income working as forecasters for recreational use or avy forecasting/control for DOT, climbing guides, and ski patrol. They live in places where their skills are transferable, there’s a critical mass of students to run courses through the winter, and locations where they can easily teach the on-snow portion of the class, which accounts for 2/3 days of the coursework.
The other piece I’ll note is that avy knowledge is hard to build no matter where you live. Note that’s different than accessing education. My forecaster/instructor friend always says “backcountry users have a lifelong apprenticeship in snow,” which is totally dorky, but totally true. I learned a lot in my AIARE. I’ve learned even more since, with each refresher and trip planning session and day spent on the snow. Likewise, I appreciate that AIARE isn’t designed for efficiency. It’s designed for efficacy. My classroom portion was really interactive and I had a lot of questions that couldn't have been clarified with a video, nor could my guides ask me questions to test my understanding. And that rigor is important for people like me who put a lot of weight on formal avy education when assessing potential partners. My life depends on their assessment and rescue skills. I don’t want that education to be quick & dirty. It's a lot of time and the price definitely gave me sticker shock, but in hindsight, I wish I had gotten shittier gear for my setup and put the difference towards a top line beacon, a float bag, and a guided day or two in winter after my AIARE 1 where I could plan my own tour and have them along as "backup" for feedback about my decision making (the first few tours are still really intimidating after a class. A few friends mentioned that they just came out of their AIARE scared as hell to tour on their own).
That being said, I agree that there's a huge gap between the free hour long avalanche awareness seminars and putting 3 days and $1000+ towards tuition and safety gear. Here are a few of my favorite "tweener" resources:
-Avalanche Canada has an incredible deep dive on the
Cherry Bowl Rescue and the resources in Chapter 5 are top notch, especially their online
tutorial.
-+1 to Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain. The Avalanche Handbook is also a solid choice, and if you're a visual person, the Allen & Mike guides have a lot of illustrations.
-BCA has a really huge
library of tutorials and case studies. I really like the Send + Return podcast. There are few people I admire as much as Lel Tone and she's an incredible teacher.
-Pick a forecast zone and read the forecast every day and check the weather for the zone. Look up any of the pieces you don't understand. Then start ballparking the avalanche hazard based on the weather forecast. It's super helpful to follow the snowpack through the season to really understand its weaknesses, and being able to estimate the forecast is super helpful because the avy forecast is based on the weather forecast, and the weather forecast isn't always accurate. It's also helpful for lodge trips or traverses where the daily forecast isn't accessible.
-Find a mentor (regardless of how much coursework you end up doing, there's always someone who knows more and has more experience). Find your local hiking, outdoor, and backcountry ski communities - either online or in person. I've worked with a handful or two of women from a women's outdoor group I'm in, but I've also had a few women hit me up through my Instagram. I found a few on Tinder, but I don't recommend it. At some point, they'll all be booting up in the same parking lot on a Saturday morning, despite there being *plenty* of other places in Washington to ski. Finding mentors is much, much easier when you yourself are dedicated to investing in education and doing as much as you can to pull your weight within a group. A decent number of people are willing to take out a newbie on a low-risk tour to get their feet under them with their gear, but most are more willing to invest time in mentoring you if you have a class on the calendar or at least plans to take it that season.
-SAFE AS is only taught at a few resorts each year, but is a one-day classroom + rescue lesson that's pretty low cost. It's all inbounds, so there's no extra gear to get and Lel usually brings extra rescue gear to help with the costs. It's the perfect amount of material for someone considering an Avy 1 or wanting to learn about safety inbounds.
-Scholarships for AIARE 1 are out there and a surprising number aren't fully utilized each season!
Excellent course and very thorough listing of actual physical courses. I'm not finding direct access to an online classroom option on their website.
