Slabs and Sluffs: March in Review

Join us for our sixth installment of Slabs ‘n Sluff with  your hosts Sara Boilen and Dom Baker! Sara and Dom discuss the joy of powder turns in low hazard terrain, slope tests on small features and the upcoming spring skiing season.  They also review recent episodes from March and take a look at what is coming up for April on the Avalanche Hour Podcast. Tune in to hear from the ISSW 2026 organizing committee about everything to look forward to from Whistler next fall.  

Sara Boilen holds a doctorate in clinical psychology from the University of Denver (2011). Professionally, she works with individuals who have had interactions with the justice system often in the spirit of helping to make sense of behavior and context. She has taken her professional interests and merged it with her recreational interests to contribute to the field of avalanche sciences in her free time. She is specifically interested in human-related problems and solutions. Dr. Boilen has presented at seven Snow and Avalanche Workshops and at ISSW in Norway. She has written articles for The Avalanche Review and was a co-author on the recently proposed conceptual framework for human factors in avalanche terrain. She lives in Northwest Montana and will carry dessert for you to the top of any mountain her skills will take her to.

Dom Baker is an avalanche technician with the BC Ministry of Transportation at Kootenay Pass, occasional avalanche course instructor and adventure buddy to his kids.  

Episode Summary:

- Sara and Dom discuss winter weather patterns, adapting to rapidly changing ski conditions, and look ahead to spring

- Review of the last month of programming, highlighting interviews that captured the hosts imagination or got us thinking

- Safely poking around on small features to build a better picture of the avalanche hazard

- The ISSW 2026 organizing committee drop by for a chat

- A voicemail from a listener.

Thanks to the sponsors of the show.

Legacy Sponsors:

Darren Johnson Avalanche Education Memorial Fund

AVSS

Drone Amplified

Partner Sponsors:

CIL Avalanche

Safeback

onX Backcountry

Music: Ketsa

Artwork: Mike Tea 

Production: Dom Baker, Bob Keating