Snowboarder almost dies at Mt Baker

[Tobra]

This happened last week. Skiing in the trees, guy spots something. A snowboard, face down in the snow, with a guy attached to it

Handy little shovel he had. No way that guy would have gotten himself out of that without help, attaboy Francois Zuber

[A930Rocket]

I saw the video last week, but wasn’t sure if he was with the guy or found the guy. Either way, good for him rescuing the snowboarder.

Where did all the snow come from?

[Tobra]

The sky

I think the snowboarder was named Ian something or other

[masraum]

Wow! Amazing if real.

Unfortunately, the cynic in me sees videos like this and thinks they are staged so someone can go viral. It certainly came across as genuine, but that's no guaranty.

[pwd72s]

I can understand skepticism...I'm no skier, but a question for those here who do: How many of you carry a shovel?

[masraum]

Originally Posted by pwd72s

I can understand skepticism...I'm no skier, but a question for those here who do: How many of you carry a shovel?

The shovel seemed like a pretty good idea, and I guess if you skied someplace out of the way, not on a busy slope, then that might make sense. To me it seemed unnecessary. I think he could have popped the snow board off of the guys feet and used that as a shovel. It seems like it would have been as or maybe even more effective than his shovel.

[herr_oberst]

Serious off-piste skiers often carry a shovel, a probe, and a transceiver. Avalanches really put a damper on a morning of fresh snow..

[speeder]

There are warnings posted all over the place about “tree wells,” which is what that guy fell into. They can kill you.

[Nordwest]

That guy was packed in tight. Very lucky the skier turned around and saw him. A couple of years ago on powder day I caught a tree branch with my right arm and was launched head first into a tree well. I was solo and it took me about 20 minutes to get out. The first 2 minutes I thought I was going to die. In my expert opinion that is a real video..... Dave

[sugarwood]

[shinrai]

Not fake. These guys have better things to do than stage a video on a day like that.
I got caught in a tree well at Jackson Hole (luckily not completely head first) a while back. An hour to get myself out and completely exhausting. Same day a girl died on the hill going headfirst into a tree well. Anything out of bounds or boot packs we ride with shovels, probes and beacons.

[72doug2,2S]

Looks like a blast, I loved skiing off the trails, but never too far from one. Never heard about a tree well. Interesting stuff and great save

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by 72doug2,2S

Never heard about a tree well. Interesting stuff and great save

I had not either. All my skiing was on groomed stuff or marked trails.

Very interesting video.

[Mike Andrew]

Tree wells are serious boogie woogie for skiers and riders. And, as noted, they can kill you and put a serious damper on a day of riding.

One of my guys slid into one at Cooper last month and had a hell of a time getting out and he was upright. Lost a ski in the well and had to pop the other and crawl out. Luckily, he was with another of the guys and he was able to help him out of the well. He said that finding the lost ski took the most time as it had shot into the wall of the well.

He was lucky - skiing in a pair and dropping in upright. Could have been far worse.

[mjohnson]

We ski the far-out areas at Wolf Creek CO and tree wells are real, and they'll kill you regardless of how "good" you think you are. It drives me nuts that some that we ski with will just blast off down the hill without the smallest care in the world - we (mrs mjohnson and I) kind of leapfrog down the hill, always watching the other. I rarely carry a transceiver or shovel, though I should, but at least we're aware of what each of us are doing. Heck, even with peeps and shovels they've had patrollers die in-area up there in the last decade...

[MarcoB]

Big mistake for the snowboarder to be riding solo in the back / side country. I had a tree well experience 3 years ago on a B.C. Snowcat trip - completely upside down and couldn’t touch the bottom. The more I tried to extracate myself, the further I sunk….Fortunately my partner saw me go into the tree, and he was able to get help to me quickly. Gotta tell you, that was the longest 5 minutes of my life before I felt someone grab my boot.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by MarcoB

Big mistake for the snowboarder to be riding solo in the back / side country. I had a tree well experience 3 years ago on a B.C. Snowcat trip - completely upside down and couldn’t touch the bottom. The more I tried to extracate myself, the further I sunk….Fortunately my partner saw me go into the tree, and he was able to get help to me quickly. Gotta tell you, that was the longest 5 minutes of my life before I felt someone grab my boot.

It looks and sounds VERY scary. hanging there in the snow upside down in the middle of no where, unlikely to be seen until the snow melts, and then still possibly not noticed since I assume there's a lot less traffic when there's no snow.

[Seahawk]

Originally Posted by MarcoB

I Gotta tell you, that was the longest 5 minutes of my life before I felt someone grab my boot.

As a recreational skier only (I know you were on a Snowcat, but just want to say I like my ski runs like I like my women), I can only imagine.

Five minutes is forever.

[cstreit]

THis seems like an activity to NOT be doing alone.

[masraum]

Originally Posted by Seahawk

As a recreational skier only (I know you were on a Snowcat, but just want to say I like my ski runs like I like my women), I can only imagine.

ROFLMAO

Five minutes is forever.

Yes, it would seem like forever.