Normalization of deviance in backcountry behavior

On February 17, nine backcountry skiers were taken by an avalanche at Frog Lake, in the Northern Sierra Nevada near Truckee, California. Since then, the sense of loss and confusion over what happened has been overwhelming. This accident has impacted everyone in the Truckee and Lake Tahoe community on some level. Because of pending investigations, there are so many unanswered questions that will remain unanswered for a long time.

As the community struggles to understand, people around the world continue to die in avalanches, including our friend, Stratton Matteson, who was taken by an avalanche in British Columbia a week after the Frog Lake accident. A gut punch made worse by finding out only minutes after we recorded the recap of our trip to Frog Lake. A trip to Frog Lake ending only 48 hours before the accident. Losing Stratton as we recorded made us realize it was too early to share. We needed more time to look inward and reflect.

This episode is our second attempt, focused on the realizations we’ve had in the 18 days since the incident, and what we can all personally do to honor the lives lost, as well as move forward with compassion and a commitment to being safe and making smart decisions every time we step into the backcountry.

We send our deepest sympathies to everyone involved in this tragic accident, and we encourage you to consider making a contribution to Tahoe Nordic Search and Rescue. We also urge you to not forget the names of those lost: Carrie Atkin, Lizabeth Clabaugh, Danielle Keatley, Kate Morse, Caroline Sekar, Katherine Vitt, Nicole Choo, Andrew Alissandratos, Michael Henry.

2:10 – 75 percent of this winter’s snow came from 2 storms.

8:00 – Reflecting on the moments leading up to the avalanche near Frog Lake on February 17.

9:00 – Being pulled into the media frenzy in the hours after the avalanche.

10:20 – Why we decided to speak up to the media about the avalanche.

11:30 – The major red flag: the snowfall forecast.

15:35 – Trail Whisperer issues an apology to families of the victims regarding our story in the New York Times.

18:50 – The 8 Cs of dealing with a community tragedy.

22:30 – The culture of judgement of avalanche accidents in the U.S.

27:00 – Tom’s sobering realization skiing on the Tuesday of the avalanche.

32:15 – It’s ok to not travel on high avalanche danger days.

35:00 – Pow Bot shares his revelations from soul searching after the accident.

37:20 – The Normalization of Deviance

42:45 – Reviewing the Sierra Avalanche Center report of the avalanche below Perry’s Peak.

49:45 – Reviewing the human factor in avalanches from Bruce Tremper’s book, Staying Alive in Avalanche Terrain.

53:50 – Accountability – know what you’re stepping out into, even if you are with a guide, and don’t be afraid to speak up.

55:40 – Planning around safety and implementing processes to eliminate group think.

59:50 – Knowing your team, their specialties and how you can leverage them.

1:02:20 – “Stick with the plan” versus “sick with the plan” and establishing the leader.

1:04:35 – The importance of the debrief at the end of the day.

1:06:10 – Matteo – East Coast Matt – calls in on the COR LORD hotline.

1:08:20 – DOPE OR DERP – East coast backcountry skiing.

1:09:30 – The importance of hiring a guide to help you learn the backcountry.

1:12:00 – The assumption of risk and respecting people’s differing levels of risk.

1:13:50 – The boys get fired up for their trip to Ice Creek Lodge in British Columbia, Canada.

1:18:00 – Honoring the life of Stratton Matteson – a legend taken way too early.

1:22:50 – The funny story of Pow Bot’s incident command rescuing a family member.