By Jim Stanford on January 22, 2012
Busy morning for powderhounds atop the pass.
After more than four feet of snow in four days, Highway 22 over Teton Pass has reopened. Despite high danger and an avalanche warning from Bridger-Teton forecasters, the parking lot was full of skiers and snowboarders by 10 a.m.
In the Hoback Canyon, an avalanche apparently ran early this morning to Highway 191, hitting a car. For photos of that slide as well as impressive debris from Glory Bowl, see Teton AT.
More details have emerged about the amount of slide activity on the pass in recent days. In addition to gas-powered exploders, the Wyoming Department of Transportation has been using its 105mm howitzer and bombs dropped from a helicopter to provoke avalanches, said Teton Pass Ambassador Jay Pistono.
An avalanche that occurred in a seemingly innocuous location — the power line road on the south side of the pass — has experts worried about the danger prevalent throughout the backcountry.
The road is the main access route on the south side, and most riders wouldn’t think twice about skinning up it. The slide occurred Thursday afternoon about 200 to 300 yards from the trailhead, when the slope above the road released and piled a significant amount of debris below, Pistono said.
“Of all the things I saw up there, that threw up the most alarm,” Pistono said.
Veteran skier Keith Benefiel, after whom a prominent ridge is named, agreed. “This is as bad as I’ve seen it in decades,” he said of the danger.
As the News&Guide reported, Surprise Slide ran to the road Friday for the first time in 20 years. Surprise Slide is the first gully downhill of Glory Bowl, to the skier’s left of the Northeast Ridge. It is a popular exit for skiers descending the bottom of the ridge. A howitzer round triggered the slide, Pistono said.
Also sliding were the Do It Chutes, on the west side of the pass, and Beaver Slide, just uphill of the Coal Creek parking lot on the west side. Glory Bowl and Twin Slides, where gas exploders are installed, produced several slides.
Despite repeated warnings, skiers and snowboarders continue to venture into the backcountry. While ski patrollers battled to open the in-bounds terrain at Jackson Hole Mountain Resort on Friday, this group climbed and descended Shadow Peak in Grand Teton National Park:
A skier wearing a camera on his head filmed as a slide broke loose and carried him down a slope. The avalanche occurs at about the three-minute mark.
The proliferation of skiers sharing footage of their close calls prompted ski author, blogger and TreeFight founder David Gonzales to observe, “They’re turning skiing into an avalanche reality show.”
Update 9 p.m.: The photo that went viral today, with at least 300 shares on Facebook, purportedly of avalanche debris on Teton Pass, apparently was taken somewhere else, the photographer says. Thanks to BMFR @SamPetri for puncturing the myth.
Update 1/23: Based on comments on Teton AT, the photo of the slide that hit a car appears to have been taken in the Hoback Canyon. This story has been corrected to reflect that change.
Posted under Environment, Sports
Man, Gonzales, you stole that idea right out from under me. I was gonna call it “Natural **ck’n Selection, Bro.” You know, maybe start with Jackson Hole for the first season. Then we could film in Crested Butte, Girdwood, and Silverton in successive seasons.
Picture it:
1. Fade in overly dramatic music set to sensationalized GoPro footage.
2. Overlay intro:
“Follow a group of sick skiers and riders as they throw up their middle fingers to Wydot, BT Avalanche Center, and God himself in their pursuit to get avalanched in some of the wildest ski terrain on earth.”
3. Cut to head shot of Johnny Sikripper. Insert Narrative: “Everyone has their own passion. For me, getting avalanched on film is where it’s at. When I go out in the morning, first thing I do is check the avy report to make sure conditions are optimal. Then, I come up with a tour plan that includes at least 3 different options for getting slid. If I can’t make it happen on my first run, I don’t let it get me down. I just move onto the next one.”
Title for series pilot: “Cognitive Dissonance.”
Filmed just that scene today, Ripple. The aftermath: http://thesnaz.com/post/16329715032/south-side-slides #NFSB
thanks for that shadow peak video.
there are lots of rocks and cliffs in those lower slopes above bradley lake as you come down from shadow peak. throw in the fact that they are protected from the sun and wind, and it’s a ripe zone for low elevation avalanches.
glad they survived. -steve
Total dumbasses…. Unfortunately the increase in go-pros on these folks will increase the real-time footage of “Natural Selection”. I especially am shocked at the scenes where the one with the go-pro is standing below his buddies as they ski on top of one another…..
wow.
I’m not ready to assign “dumbass” to this one.
The real topic here is risk vs reward. The issue is whether or not the perceived risk (or lackthereof) is worth the reward. Different for different people. Way different for younger people–especially men. Biggest influencing factor could well have been that it was a pow day right on the heels of a dry early winter. Bam. Then it might be worth it. Right?
That’s why “Natural **ck’n Selection, Bro” is a winner. Who wouldn’t love to watch a bunch of young men making risk/reward decisions and risking it all? Especially if they were good looking. Local film companies, local sponsors, local talent.
And remember, don’t let a day pass without turning on your Go-Pro.