TRUCKEE, Calif. — The Tahoe Mountain Sports’ Avalanche Education Series returns to Alibi Ale Works for an evening of free education, inspiration and support for local nonprofits all presented by Ortovox USA.
This annual tradition will feature two upcoming workshops, Tuesday, Nov. 15, and Tuesday, Dec. 6, to get the community geared up for a winter of safe backcountry travel. Featuring professional avalanche educators, representatives for various gear companies and huge raffles with prizes for all, this Avalanche Education Series is not to be missed.
These workshops are for anyone who likes to backcountry ski, board, snowmobile, snowshoe, or just explore snow-covered mountains. Each event is a stand-alone event, one does not have to attend a previous event in order to attend a future event. All events will take place outdoors, so dress warmly and bring extra layers if needed.
All events start promptly at 6:30 p.m. with doors opening at 6 to secure the best seats and some food before the festivities begin. While each show is free, Tahoe Mountain Sports uses product donated by the sponsors of in order to sell raffle tickets and raise money for the Sierra Avalanche Center, Tahoe Backcountry Alliance and Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue.
Trip Planning and Airbags – 6 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 15
Attendees will learn all about planning a trip into the backcountry. This will include everything including reading the weather, where and how to park, along with route planning and hazard concerns. Experts will also talk about airbag technology and how they work.
If you have an airbag, you are encouraged to bring it along. At the end of the night there will be a huge airbag group deployment followed by free canister refills for Ortovox, Mammut, and BCA canisters. (ABS canisters work through an exchange program and we are not able to offer free exchange for those.)
The evening will wrap up with a raffle benefiting Tahoe Backcountry Alliance, the voice for the human-powered winter backcountry community in the Lake Tahoe area, advocating for and informing our community about critical issues affecting winter backcountry recreation in Tahoe. Prizes include swag from Ortovox, Black Diamond, Flylow Gear, Blizzard Skis, Tahoe Mountain School, Blackbird Mountain Guides, Mystery Ranch, and Dynafit.
Avalanche Rescue, Beacons, & Beers – 6 p.m. Tuesday, Dec 6
For the final event in the Avalanche Education Series, attendees will learn the ins and outs of avalanche rescue. The night will begin with a discussion on the essential avalanche safety tools – a beacon, shovel, and probe.
Industry experts cover how beacons work as well as best practices when using a shovel and probe. Then, professionals from Tahoe Mountain School and Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue will lead you through how a rescue unfolds.
After the presentations, there will be small break out sessions and folks will have a chance to try out demo beacons and practice their skills in a search scenario. The evening will wrap up with a raffle benefiting the Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue. They do great work in the Truckee/North Lake Tahoe area conducting fast, safe rescues and educating the public on winter safety. Raffle prizes include swag from Ortovox, Black Diamond, Flylow Gear, Blizzard Skis, Tahoe Mountain School, Blackbird Mountain Guides, Spark R&D, and Garmin.
Individual events can be found on our event page here.
View the Facebook events here.
A blog with information on all the events can be found here.
