Henry’s Avalanche Talk (HAT), the organisation that helps off-piste skiers with essential training and advice, has launched its new 2023 UK autumn tour and it includes a talk at the Kendal Mountain Festival on Saturday November 18, 2.30pm on the Basecamp stage.
The talk is titled: SAFETY IS FREEDOM presented by ORTOVOX & Henry’s Avalanche Talk and is designed to give festival goers a framework to help them benefit most from their time off-piste and when ski touring.
During the talk, Henry Schniewind, founder of HAT, will help to answer the question about what the risk of skiing or snowboarding in off-piste terrain actually is.
The aim of HAT is to educate skiers and snowboarders so that when heading into off-piste terrain, the risk is no more than everyday activities such as driving a car.
The key to HAT’s message is in the application of knowledge, something that initially sounds obvious but is what is often missing in many avalanche incidents that often involve highly experienced skiers and snowboarders, including professionals.
Henry Schniewind, founder of HAT, said:
“We have discovered that if you enter avalanche terrain and do not apply good risk management then it can be as risky as base jumping. However if you apply good risk management, then you can make it no riskier than driving to the resort”.
Henry will also touch on the impact of climate change on snow conditions and how this might affect decision making in the future. Henry said:
“It’s obviously hard to predict what kind of winter we will have in advance but the obvious thing for people to think is that with climate change, we might get less snow and therefore less avalanches. But this is not necessarily the case, it’s more complex and in certain conditions, a warmer climate could cause a number of things, including more precipitation, which during the winter would be snowfall, at higher altitudes”.
ORTOVOX Off Piste Awareness Tour 2023 Schedule Is Now In Progress – Upcoming Dates Include
ESSENTIALS TALK – talks are held in Ellis Brigham stores. Cost, £19.50 per person, with reductions for buying 2 or more tickets. This includes a copy of the HAT Pocket Guide and NEW Safety Rescue Card.
Manchester – Monday 13th November, 6.30pm
Glasgow – Monday 20th November, 8.15pm
Register: henrysavalanchetalk.com/uk-events/essential-talks
IN-DEPTH TALK – talks are held in Ellis Brigham stores. Cost, £19.50 per person, with reductions for buying 2 or more tickets. This includes a copy of the HAT Pocket Guide and NEW Safety Rescue Card.
St Pauls, London – Thursday 2nd November, 7.15pm
Manchester – Tuesday 14th November, 6.30pm
Glasgow – Tuesday 21st November, 8.15pm
Register: henrysavalanchetalk.com/uk-events/in-depth-talks
KENDAL MOUNTAIN FESTIVAL – the UK’s biggest adventure festival. November 16-19, Kendal, Lake District. SAFETY IS FREEDOM presented by ORTOVOX & Henry’s Avalanche Talk, Saturday November 18, 2.30pm, Basecamp Stand.
Register: kendalmountainfestival.com
AVALANCHE TRANSCEIVER TRAINING – these are outdoor events and all start at 11.30am and run for 3 hours. Cost, £75 per person, including transceiver hire if required. Also includes Henry’s Accident Reduction card plus the NEW Safety Rescue card and the ORTOVOX Academy Safety booklet.
Wimbledon, London – 12th November
Wimbledon, London – 26th November
Wimbledon, London – 30th December
Manchester – 18th November
Manchester – 19th November
Sandbanks, Poole – 5th November
Sandbanks, Poole – 25th November
Sandbanks, Poole – 29th December
Register: henrysavalanchetalk.com/uk-events/transceivertraining
