Jim Frankenfield

Avalanche Safety Courses and Services

1338 Foothill Dr. #170; Salt Lake City, UT 84108
1-877-604-0166; jim@mountain-guiding.com

Level 1 Avalanche Course - Climbers Version

This is a slightly modified version of the standard basic course. The essentials of that description still apply.

This version has an emphasis on human factors which apply to climbing.

Route choices are often more committing with fewer options once on-route than skiers usually have. Decisions must often be based on conditions above which cannot be examined first-hand. Exposure time to the hazard and the potential consequences are often very high. Goal orientation is inherently a part of climbing. These factors and others will be be emphasized more than in a "standard" basic class.

No ski or snowboard travel skills are assumed. Count on using snowshoes.

A Note on the History and Availability of this version ...

This was originally developed and taught in conjunction with the Oregon Mountaineering Association, which offered it once each spring with multiple experienced climbers co-instructing. Unfortunately it was shut down for political reasons by the Forest Service in a manner which made it clear that they will not tolerate it being held anymore in any capacity. (This was done, coincidentally, just months before one of their own employees set up his own private sector avalanche school. Which now has a defacto monopoly.) In the American Avalanche Association "Avalanche Review" in 2004 there was an education "brainstorming" report which listed the need for a climbing-specific class, which is a bit ironic considering that the Forest Service is one of the more dominant forces in that organization.

This climbers version may be offered in different forms in the future, providing a supplement for those students having completed a full Level 1 class or a basic amount of climbing-specific knowledge to those who only climb in spring and summer and do not ski tour. The only way a full Level 1 class, with field time, can be offered specifically for climbers right now is by private arrangement.