WHAT SHOULD I EXPECT FROM AN OFF-PISTE COURSE?

First thing first, no one expects you to be an off-piste expert, particularly if you are booking onto an introductory course. The chances are the other folk on the course are just like you – they’ve explored patches of powder near the piste before but never ventured a whole lot further.

You can expect not only learn a lot about avalanche safety in the backcountry, but also secret powder spots that you never knew existed. It’s a good idea to be an intermediate/advanced in your riding ability before booking on.

“Finding yourself on a bluebird powder day and carving fresh tracks down an untouched face…. Well, there’s nothing like it”

I’ve spent two seasons in the Portes du Soleil and our guide David took us to dozens of spots I had never been to before. The beauty of going with a mountain guide is the confidence you gain by following someone who has ridden these lines many times before.

While nowhere is 100 per cent safe, it is good to know that your guide has years of experience and knowledge behind him before you drop into a steep descent.

It’s amazing the difference in perspective you gain at the end of a week barely touching pistes at all. Suddenly you don’t see the mountain in the same way anymore. All of those section that were off limits in the past, because you didn’t feel like you were ‘good enough’ to tackle them, open up as a new adventure playground.

CHECK THE WEATHER REPORT

One of the biggest risks to those venturing off-piste is being caught in an avalanche. Most people don’t realise how frequently avalanches occur. 75 people were killed by avalanches in Europe last year alone.

Every morning we checked the Chamonix Meteo weather forecast with David to see visibility, wind strength, which aspects to be wary of and what the avalanche risk was that day.

Ski resorts in Europe tend to use the five tier European Danger Scale when it comes to assessing avalanche risk with 1 being the safest conditions and 5 being the most dangerous unstable snow conditions.

Skiers and snowboarders tend to think that if the risk isn’t labelled as 4 or 5, then there is nothing to worry about – but this isn’t true. Even level 3 is a considerable risk of avalanche, so it is worth being wary even if the signs around resort are only saying level 2 or 3.

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Wind is a big factor to consider as high winds will blow snow from one side of the mountain to the other. For example, if there is a strong wind from the SW, it will dump snow on the NE aspect of the mountain, which means NE aspects would be the ones to avoid.

Sunshine is also another major factor. North facing slopes tend to get less amount of sun in the northern hemisphere while south facing slopes get the most sun.

This means the snow pack on both slopes will be very different. If a south face warms up very quickly during the day, for example, it could cause a slide.

Avalanches tend to occur on slopes angled between 30 and 45 degrees. This is pretty steep, but it has been known for avalanches to occur on slopes outside these angles as well.

If there’s been lots of fresh snow in the past few days, it is also worth being wary as the snow might not have had time to settle and stabilises, leading to a lot of loose snow avalanches.

GET CLUED UP ON AVALANCHE SAFETY

Once you’ve checked the weather, it is time to get clued up on avalanche safety. First up, it is necessary to get yourself three pieces of kit: an avalanche transceiver, shovel and probe. See the kit section above for more details.

Before we left each morning, we would check to make sure everyone’s transceivers were turned on. It is worth keeping your transceiver switched on all day (even over lunch) and not turning off until you are back home at the end of the day.

We went through a detailed process of searching for someone who is buried in an avalanche. It’s a good idea to practice in pairs burying a transceiver and getting your partner finding it using their transceiver.

92 per cent of avalanche victims survive suffocation if rescued within the first 15 minutes of being buried. After that, the rate drops to a mere 30 per cent after 35 minutes. So it’s important to move as quickly as possible.

We also dug a snow pit to assess the snow pack. It’s a great way to see the history of the snow from the first snowfall of the winter up to the present day.

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Not only do you start to understanding how knackering digging at altitude is but you also can see where the layers that might slides are in the snow pack.

This is just a basic guide. By booking onto a proper course with an avalanche safety module, you can get properly clued up on avalanche safety in the mountains.

HOW DO I RIDE IN POWDER?

If you are riding in powder for the first time, you might be surprised how difficult it is. Turning is a lot trickier than normal.

For snowboarders, you want to put more pressure on your back foot than you would on the piste. This helps keep the nose out of the deep stuff.

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However, you don’t want to straighten that back leg too much – otherwise you won’t be able to turn. Keep a slight bend in that front knee to change direction.

Finding it a nightmare to get back up when you fall over in powder? Check out these tips for first-timers.

TO SUM UP….

It might sound like there is a lot of risk involved in venturing into the backcountry. In reality, the majority of people that venture off-piste are absolutely fine.

After all, there is a reason people come back time and time again. Finding yourself on a bluebird powder day and carving fresh tracks down an untouched face…. Well, there’s nothing like it. It is pretty much the most fun you can have on your snowboard.

However, it is always good to be cautious. Make sure you check the weather before you go. Be prepared in case of avalanches. Always buy snowboarding insurance before you go on holiday.

By booking onto an off-piste course like those run by Mint Snowboarding, you can make sure you’ve got the basics nailed – and leave feeling confident next time you head off on an adventure.

Mint Snowboarding run off-piste freeride, backcountry and splitboarding courses throughout the winter from their base in Morzine, France. For more information, visit their website: mintsnowboarding.com

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