Basic Avalanche Rescue Drills

Investing in the FreeRide Essentials – transceiver, shovel, probe and backpack – is a big step in your FreeRide journey. You’ve now invested in your safety, the safety of your ski buddies, and possibly even the safety of a buried stranger that needs your help. This officially makes you a member of the Rescue Community. Now what? We think that the instruction manual that came with your transceiver is an excellent place to start your safety training. To trust in your gear and your ability to use it, you need to get to know it first, so get reading and join the cover-to-cover crew.

Once you’ve read the instruction manual you’re going to need to practice, and you’re going to need to practice a lot. We recommend training with the buddies you ride with so that you can be confident in their rescue skills. The good news is that, with a little bit of imagination (and perhaps a few side bets too), avalanche rescue practice can be both fun and rewarding. Learning how to rescue each other – there’s no bonding exercise quite like it!

The worst has happened and a rider has been caught in an avalanche. It’s a terrifying scenario, but one  which plays out every season.

Avalanche rescue drills assume the victim is wearing a transceiver and cover a number of scenarios, starting with a solo rescue of a single victim (sometimes referred to as companion rescue). Once this drill is mastered, training progresses through to group rescue of a single victim and then group rescue of multiple burials. The gold standard required of professional mountain guides is a solo rescue of multiple victims.

 However, regardless of scenario, avalanche rescue is broken down into five phases: 

1. Signal Search
2. Coarse Search
3. Fine Search
4. Pinpoint Search
5. Extraction

So, let’s get real. The worst has happened and a rider has been caught and buried in an avalanche. It’s a terrifying scenario but one which, sadly, plays out every season. 

You are first on the scene. It’s down to you and time is not on your side. Assuming the victim has survived the melee of the avalanche and has been buried alive, they have a 90% chance of survival if you can dig them out within 15 minutes. If the rescue stretches to 30 minutes there is a 70% probability they will die of asphyxiation. No pressure then… 

Before you do anything else, assess the risk of a secondary avalanche. Is it safe for you to mount a rescue? Speed of rescue is critical but it also means that the underlying causes of the initial avalanche – such as a persistent weak layer – have not changed. You’re going to have to make some tough calls if the risk of further avalanches is significant. If you’re with a group you may be able to mitigate risk by holding some of your team back in a safe spot in case you are also buried.

Next, if possible, call search and rescue (SAR) services. If you have read Safety Basics, you will have already saved this number – noting that different countries (and even different ski domains) have different dialling codes and contact numbers. 

The first question you will be asked is your location. What3Words is the easiest and fastest way to communicate this. If you haven’t already done so, download the app to your phone. Do it now. You don’t want to be clutching at geographical straws when the clock is ticking.

You now need to switch your transceiver to search mode and make your way to the last point where the victim was seen – this marks  the first phase of the avalanche rescue drill.

Read the manual, know how to use your kit

Signal Search

At this point you’re just looking for the victim’s signal. From your start point work your way across the avalanche track being sure to maintain the same elevation as your start point. Stop 10 metres short of the flank (the edge of the avalanche debris) and proceed downhill for 20 metres. Now turn back across the avalanche track to make a second pass, stopping 10 metres short of the opposite flank. You should end up 20 metres below your starting point like in the diagram below. Keep on repeating the process until your transceiver detects a signal. 

Please note that, depending on the model of transceiver and your ability, you may be able to extend the distance between each pass, but if you are at all uncertain stick to 20 metres, turning 10 metres from the edge of the debris path.

TIP: Know what 20 metres looks like on the ground and test yourself with a tape measure, a 20 metre length of string or by using your probe.

Coarse Search

Once your transceiver detects a signal, align your beacon and follow until you are 5 metres from the victim. Keep an eye on the distance displayed on your transceiver screen. If it is going up rather than down, return to the spot where you picked up the signal and continue your signal search.

TIP: The transition from signal to coarse search is where knowing the limitations of your transceiver will pay dividends. On the margins of the search range, as the victim’s transceiver is detected for the first time, you’re likely to get some confused readings and the signal may even drop in and out. Knowing when to trust the strength of a reading and move to coarse search will come with practice and experience.

Fine Search

Once you are within 5 metres of the victim, slow your search and get down on your hands and knees. This way you will be able to place your beacon right on the snow surface. Now you can begin your fine search. 

The victim is just 5 metres away, buried somewhere beneath the snow surface. You’re looking to establish the lowest reading on your transceiver, bearing in mind this will not be a zero reading. Keep moving steadily forward in a straight line with your eyes glued to your transceiver distance readings. This is now your sole focus – do not allow yourself to be distracted. 

As you get closer your readings will go down, but at some point you are going to pass over the victim and your readings will start to go back up again. Stop. Return to the lowest reading and mark that point in the snow. Now, move the transceiver either 90° left or 90° right of that point, keeping a close eye on the distance readings as before. This is known as bracketing. Continue this process until you have established the closest or lowest reading. Make a mental note of the lowest distance (eg 1.5 metres) and mark that point. If you’ve searched correctly, the victim is directly below this point.

TIP: By this point in your search, you’re exhausted. Adrenaline is coursing through your veins and you’ve lost track of time yet simultaneously feel the pressure of the ticking clock. To calm your nerves and maintain concentration while bracketing, it can help to call out the distance readings on your transceiver.

Pinpoint Search

Once you have marked the point with the lowest reading, resist the strong urge to start digging like mad and deploy your probe.

This is the moment you will be taking off your rucksack and delving inside to access your shovel and probe. It’s a good idea to assemble both at this point. Don’t be tempted to remove your gloves to speed this process up. If you do, your hands will get cold very quickly in the next phases which  will slow you down more.

Resist the strong urge to start digging like mad and deploy your probe.

Pretty much all probes snap into place the same way – by throwing the tip away from you and pulling the cord or cable – but there are an infinite number of locking mechanisms. Make sure you know how to deploy and lock yours. The strength and integrity of your probe is dependent on all the sections fitting together correctly so it’s worth taking a second or two to check this. There’s a high risk it will fail or break if it hasn’t locked together.

Insert the probe into the marked point at 90°, perpendicular to the angle of the slope. If you’re lucky and you did your fine search correctly, you’re going to hit the victim first time at a depth that roughly corresponds with your transceiver reading. If not, keep probing in an expanding spiral leaving 25 – 30cm between each probe until you get a strike. Now leave the probe in place for reference.

TIP: To practice probing, place a transceiver into a well stuffed backpack to give yourself something reasonably sized to aim for and bury it in the snow. (Remembering first to check the transceiver is transmitting!) When you strike it with your probe, you’ll know – it will feel different to anything else in the snow.

Extraction

Making a note of the depth of the burial from the markings on your probe (e.g. 1.5 metres), step downhill and estimate a point where you can dig straight forward to the tip of your probe. Using this method is safer for the victim – you reduce the risk of injury by standing on them or filling in their air pocket – but you will also conserve energy.  Instead of digging down to the victim, dig into the hill to create a platform for CPR, First Aid, and re-warming. Extraction will also be easier. 

You will be surprised at how exhausting moving snow can be so you should pace yourself. Think about where you deposit the snow as you dig – you should only have to move it once. If possible, let gravity help you by moving it diagonally downhill in the direction of your 4 or 8 o’clock.

On finding the body, quickly establish where the head is. Clearing the victim’s airway is your primary concern at this point. Any other injuries can wait.

TIP: When choosing your shovel, don’t be tempted by an inexpensive light-weight model with a plastic blade and a tiny handle – those are for ski-mo racers not FreeRiders (see Common Safety Mistakes when FreeRiding.) Bigger shovels move snow faster. Invest in the largest shovel that you can practically wield that will fit in your backpack. Consider a shovel that also doubles as a hoe to clear snow more effectively when you’re part of an extraction team.You may also need to get a specialised backpack, ideally one which has a separate compartment for your rescue gear. 

Now you know how it’s done, you need to get out there and practice. And then practice some more. When setting up your training sessions here are some things to consider:

1.   Practice with your FreeRide crew. Make sure their skills are at least as good as your own.
2.   Keep it real. When setting up a rescue practice there’s a temptation to make it fiendishly complicated – and unrealistic. Remember, you’re trying to build and develop skills not catch people out. 
3.   Transceiver, shovel and probe. It’s easy to focus all your attention on the shiny gizmo with the flashing lights, but modern 3-antenna transceivers are actually pretty simple to use. Make sure you invest at least an equal amount of time developing your pinpointing and extraction skills. Repeat after me, transceiver, shovel and probe… 
4.   Race against the clock. Put yourself under time pressure. Anything over 15 minutes is a fail, but keep practicing until you can routinely pinpoint and extract your victim in under 5 minutes in a search area the size of a football pitch. 
5.   Use your own equipment. This may seem obvious but the best TSP combination is the one you practice with regularly. Start your practice with everything packed as if you were heading out into FreeRide terrain. This way you will quickly learn that stowing your shovel and probe under your lunch, skins, water bottle and spare layer is not a good idea.
6.   Focus on the core skills. Practice safe travel and you shouldn’t need to worry about multiple burials, so focus on the core skills you need rather than the skills that will impress your buddies. Switch to multiple burials only when your single searches feel instinctive and habitualised. 
7.   Practice like your best friend’s life depends on your rescue drills. And hope that you never need to put them to the test. Did we mention that you should practise, practise, practise?

And finally, some top tips from the professionals.

A study of 120 rescue drills performed by professional ski patrollers identified the following findings:

1.   Familiarity with equipment. “The most important component of quick rescue is familiarity with the equipment used”
2.   Physical conditioning and fitness. “During a rescue, even a simulated one, people are under enormous stress: hearts pound, minds race and lungs are ready to burst. Physical conditioning was a significant factor in speed of rescue.”
3.   The quickest times were by those who followed textbook rescue strategies. “In a crisis we default to our training; the better the training, the better the outcome.”
4.   Training matters, but modern gear gives an edge. “Even in the hands of trained professionals the old analogue beacons are at least a minute slower than the newer digital beacons during the final steps of pinpointing.”
5.   Fumbling is a significant cause of delay. “Not having critical tools ready for deployment (finding and assembling shovels and probes) resulted in longer rescue times.”

So there you have it:

• Invest in quality equipment and know how to use it. 
• Practice like your best friend’s life depends upon it (and then practise some more).
• Get in shape.