Scott Simmons, North American Ski Mountaineering Champ, on backcountry skiing
Durango-based ski mountaineer Scott Simmons won the Continental Ski Mountaineering Championships in Golden, British Columbia on Saturday. Scott was selected for the SkiMo World Championships team last month in France where he notched several stellar results against the best racers in the world. The Continental Championship is Scott’s biggest victory to date. We caught up with Scott to pick his brain on one of our favorite sports: backcountry skiing.
Here’s what he had to say:
Dress appropriately
I always wear a spandex/nylon base layer (top and bottom) with my SkiTrab warm-ups. I carry an extra top or layer for the downhill and the windy ridges. I’ll wear a lightweight glove on the uphill skin and have a heavier glove/mitt in my pack for the descent. Gloves tend to get sweaty/wet on the uphill so it’s good to have a pair in your pack. In the spring a baseball cap is best for the uphill and a lightweight beanie for the downhill. The best thing to remember in spring is if you’re warm/comfortable at the start, you’re over-dressed. You’ll have to stop in a few minutes to shed some clothes.
Protect your eyes
I always ski with a pair of Julbo sunglasses. My current favorite is the Dust. The lenses make everything look amazing.
Time it right
Spring skiing is synonymous with corn skiing. Corn snow is the almost slushy layer that emerges on a solid surface when the sun begins to warm the slope.
The best time of day to ski corn depends on many different variables: cloud cover, wind, temperatures from the previous night and the aspect of the slope.
For a south-facing slope in March, the snow can be hard at the top at 9 a.m., have perfect corn in the middle and be too soft on the lower third. It’s always better to get an early start and be skiing on hard snow rather then sloppy mush (which is very conducive to a knee injury). In general, aim to be skiing down no later then 9:30 a.m. Let’s call 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. the golden hour for spring corn.
Let’s talk about avalanche danger
Spring is the safest time of year to ski in the backcountry. Warm days and cool nights (this is called the freeze-thaw cycle) “lock up” the snowpack. You still have to be concerned about wet slides in the springtime. The best way to avoid wet slides is to be done skiing by early afternoon. A couple of rules to remember:
- Watch for pinwheels (pinwheels are initial signs of surface warming…with wet activity likely soon to follow).
- If you’re sinking up to your ankles (6 inches), the snow is too soft to be safe.
- As the snow “warms” stay away from rocks. Rocks warm the snow faster and lead to “point releases.”
- If the temperature didn’t drop significantly below freezing and lock up the snow the previous night, don’t ski.
Keep the snow from sticking to your skins
And don’t forget…
- Always carry 2 pairs of skins.
- Don’t overheat on the uphill.
- Always check the local avalanche forecast.
- Check the range of the day on your beacon.
- Practice beacon searches regularly.
- Invest in light gear.
- Enjoy the uphill as much as the downhill.
- Keep reminding yourself that there’s no such thing as “bad snow” (with the exception of breakable crust). Remember that in a few weeks time you’ll have to hike to summit a peak.
