Backcountry Basics – Avalanche Beacon Tips
No matter who you ask for your advice on Avalanche Tranceivers it really boils down to one thing You have to master using your beacon… Keeping your seach skills fast and sharp is very important considering that , In the event of a burial, Your buddy’s life will literally be in your hands.
Gear Check
Battery Level – Replace when the power drops below 40 percent and never use rechargeables.
NO Cell Zone – Phones interfere so turn it off and keep electronics to a minimum of 12 inches away.
Seasonal Maintenance – Take batteries out for summer storage and send your beacon in for a checkup every 5 years.
Triple Time – New, next level triple – attenna tech is found in the BCA Tracker2 Barryvox Pulse, and Pieps DSP. Save up the cash and check the reviews at: Beaconreviews.com
* Time is Life or Death
Stats indicate that burials located and dug out within fifteen minutes have a reasonable chance of survival. After that, the odds are not good. And since moving what could be a ton of Concrete hard snow takes time, zig – zagging efficiently to sweep the path for a signal is crucial during the initial search…
* Take A Lesson
It may look like simple hide and seek, but you don’t want to be the guy who can’t even switch his beacon between send and receive. Take a Level – One Class then review 101 Basics at BackCountryAccess.com The first thing you’ll learn is, in order to find a buried beacon, everyone must switch to receive.
*Follow The Flux Line
Once a signal is picked up, digital beacons enable users to follow a curved, flux line to the burial. Distance and direction indicators keep searchers on the right path as long as they keep moving. For phase three – the key is slowing down, honing in just above the snow surface on the lowest number on both axis.
* Pinpoint, Probe, Dig
A beacon without a probe is not much help, so being vertically probing the snow in a spiral pattern from the strongest signal / lowest number. If the probe strikes flesh,leave it in. Then dig like hell, starting at least the depth of the burial down slope from the probe strike,and scooping away snow to reach the burial.
* Practice Makes Perfect
Speed is success, so up your game by setting up the simulated scenarios or racing your buddies for buried beverages. Or practice solo in one of the 57 Backcountry access beacon training parks out west. The guide standard at Baldface is finding four beacons in less than eight minutes THAT’S FAST