Ski Club of Great Britain: Guidance for Skiing with Members

Unlock the thrill of skiing with fellow members worldwide through the Ski Club of GB! Whether you’re a newbie or a seasoned pro, the magic of skiing multiplies when shared with like-minded adventurers. To ensure you have the time of your life on the slopes while staying safe, we’ve crafted some vital guidelines:

 

Skiing Together on the Piste: When skiing in a group, members are urged to maintain control and considerate behaviour, aligning with best practices and respecting weather and snow conditions. Group safety is a shared responsibility.

 

Respecting Boundaries: Groups should never breach closed areas marked by ropes or barriers. Safety is paramount, and these signs indicate areas that resort authorities have deemed off-limits.

 

Adhering to FIS Rules: Familiarise yourself with the International Ski Federation (FIS) rules for skiing and snowboarding. Following these rules is a must for a safe and enjoyable experience. https://www.skiclub.co.uk/discover-snowsports/staying-safe/on-piste-safety/

 

Navigating Unfamiliar Terrain: Exercise caution when skiing in unfamiliar areas. Always weigh the risks and consequences when venturing into unknown terrain.

 

Looking Out for Each Other: If a group member decides to shorten their day, ensure they are accompanied to a safe location before they leave the group.

 

On-Piste Group Size: We recommend keeping on-piste group sizes to a maximum of 12 people.

 

The Thrill of Off-Piste

Skiing off-piste offers a whole new world of excitement and challenges. What do we mean when we talk about skiing off piste; Off-piste skiing is when the skier is not travelling on a groomed and prepared piste, the only exception to this is when the piste is clearly signed as open but has not been groomed. This can then be considered a pisted run.

Itinerary routes as defined by the resort that are marked, avalanche controlled and patrolled are considered off-piste.

Some of the most common dangers associated with off-piste skiing are avalanches, terrain traps, poor visibility, densely packed forest, difficult snow (breakable crust, frozen choppy snow, or heavy wet snow as examples) hard packed or icy snow where there is a significant risk of a long sliding fall. Groups should give due consideration to these factors and the consequences should an avalanche or other incident occur and the dangers they present to the group.

When skiing off piste the Club advises Members to seek an appropriate Mountain Professional to accompany them (Mountain Guide or suitably qualified Instructor) We do however understand that groups may want to travel off piste unaccompanied and have created the guidance below to help groups manage the dangers involved with off-piste skiing.

• Groups off-piste should not exceed 7 members.
• Groups should avoid all off-piste activities when the Avalanche Hazard Warning scale is at High – Level 4 or higher.
• Groups should identify at least one member of the group that is familiar with the terrain before skiing off-piste. The only exception to this is short excursions between pistes where the route and hazards are clearly visible.
• Nobody is under any obligation to ski off-piste so please make sure all members of the group are happy to ski off piste and have the correct and appropriate avalanche safety gear (avalanche transceiver, shovel, and probe) (Equipment requirements in Appendix 1).
• Before skiing off-piste groups should conduct a transceiver check.
• Review the avalanche forecast for the day and discuss with the group before considering your off-piste options, taking into consideration the information provided in these reports when choosing your routes.
• On any given day the resort may choose to close and or open areas of the resort, please seek clarification form ski patrol if you are uncertain on what areas may or may not be appropriate to ski.
• Many off piste routes will not have a clear and safe route back to the marked piste. Groups should consider this when choosing routes with a consideration for the weakest skier in the group.
• Groups should never ski in glaciated terrain without a Mountain Guide
• If itinerary runs exist in resort and are marked on an up-to-date piste map or plan, are acceptable runs if they are clearly indicated as open to the public and are patrolled or marked by the resort authorities. The group should still satisfy themselves that conditions are safe and appropriate, ideally such runs should be well known to some members of the group through first-hand experience. Be aware some resorts may use different terms to define itineraries. If you’re not sure ask Ski Patrol

 

Final Preparations

You’ve met your group and have started to discuss the plan for the day, below are some final considerations when planning a day off-piste.

 

1. Evaluate the groups off-piste experience and training in safety, avalanche avoidance, and rescue skills.
2. Choose off-piste terrain and runs that align with our guidelines.
   • Ensure selected off-piste routes lead to marked runs without the need to navigate complex terrain.
3. You may have suggestions from other Members not currently in the group of off-piste runs and these are to be used as guidelines only. The suggestion of a route, run or variation should not imply acceptance by group that the route, run, or variation is appropriate for the group in any given conditions or prevailing weather.

 

Appendix 1: Required Avalanche Safety Equipment.

 

Avalanche Transceiver

This should be a modern 3 antenna transceiver; this should be less than 10 years old and should be serviced within the service guidelines specified by the manufacturer.

It is recommended that batteries on all transceivers should be changed when they reach 60% and that they are worn in the harness supplied or in a zipped trouser pocket, attached with a lanyard and worn with the screen facing the body (to protect it).

The main manufacturers are – Mammut, Ortovox, Black Diamond, Pieps and Arva.

Avalanche Shovel

This should be a metal blade shovel conforming to the UIAA standard for avalanche shovels, most shovels from the main manufacturers conform to this standard – Mammut, Ortovox, G3, Black Diamond, BCA, Pieps.

Avalanche Probe

This should be an extendable probe that locks easily into place, the probe should conform to the UIAA regulations as regards avalanche probes and be a minimum of 240cm in length. Models are available from all major manufacturers – Mammut, Ortovox, G3, Black Diamond, BCA, Pieps.

 

Appendix 2: Morning Transceiver Check

This check should be carried out each morning unless you are skiing with the same group day after day when a simple send check is sufficient and can be carried out from day 2 onwards. If there are new members to the group, then this check should be done each morning. This check should only take a couple of minutes and should not be onerous.

 

This procedure is in line with avalanche Canada’s recommended transceiver check, it has been developed as modern transceivers do not allow the traditional walk past method of transceiver check.

 

• All transceivers start in the off position.
• All the groups’ transceivers including the Checker are turned to send mode check the battery level and for any error messages (Battery should be 60% or more).
• The group now all turn their transceivers to receive (rescue) mode.
• The checker remains in send.
• The group should all now receive the signal from the checkers transceiver, the reading on their transceiver should approximately match the user’s distance to the checker.
• Once every person has done this the group turn to send and put their transceivers away for the day.
• The checker now uses the group check function on their transceiver to check that each member of their group is in send.
• Once the group has been checked the checker turns their transceiver to send then shows it to the last person in the group to confirm they have been turned into send mode. They then put it in its skiing position on the body.
• Transceivers should not be turned off or removed throughout the day such as for lunch.

 

We recommend you learn how to use the group check function on your transceiver. Each transceiver manufacturer engages its group check function differently. Simply turning a beacon to search will not perform a group check effectively on a modern 3 antennae transceiver that is equipped with a mark function.