5th ANNUAL FOUR CORNERS
SNOW & AVALANCHE WORKSHOP
$35October 7th, 2023 @ 8:30 am in Silverton, CO / Silverton School Gymnasium
Doors open at 8 am and the events kicks off at 8:30 am.
4SAW is an annual gathering for avalanche practitioners, mountain professionals and backcountry recreationists held in the Southern Rocky Mountains & Southwest United States. 4SAW includes a full line-up of speakers, workshops, clinics, exhibitors & activities focused on snow, avalanches, backcountry rescue & winter recreation. 4SAW is designed and hosted each year by the Silverton Avalanche School.
4SAW is a grant supported, regional event and the American Avalanche Association (A3) has been a crucial supporter and indispensable partner in facilitation of this regional SAW since 2019. Our sponsors’ and supporters’ contributions cover event overhead and allow us to keep attendance costs as low as possible for attendees.
4SAW is the first, A3 sanctioned U.S-based SAW held every autumn. 4SAW traditionally draws ~300 participants from across the Four Corners and beyond. Each year, Silverton Avalanche School partners closely with city and county officials to design the safest, most accessible and affordable SAW experience possible. 4SAW has become a lynch pin for Silverton’s post-summer, ‘tween season economy. The event receives financial assistance and outreach support from the San Juan County Tourism Board, the Silverton Chamber of Commerce and the Silverton School District.
SAR K9 AVALANCHE DOG CAMP WITH C-RAD
$200October 5-6th, 2023 in Silverton, CO / Silverton School Gymnasium
Silverton Avalanche School is excited to welcome the Colorado Rapid Avalanche Deployment’s (C-RAD)Fall Dog Camp as part of the 2023 4SAW pre-conference line-up. Once again, C-RAD will offer its annual fall training camp in Silverton for handlers & pups from across the Four Corners region.
This course is designed for avalanche dog handlers looking to prepare their teams for the upcoming winter season. It’s also great training for SAR K9 teams looking to develop their skills as professional rescuers. Participants will work on fundamental skills while cultivating new and innovative techniques for avalanche and backcountry search and rescue missions. C-RAD instructors and facilitators are industry leaders and trainers from organizations around the state, country and North America. They represent professional outdoor guide and instructor programs, military and law enforcement agencies, urban and wilderness SAR programs, and have represented their own rescue organizations domestically and internationally on a variety of mission types. They all share a common goal of passing on their passion with others, building the next generation of professional rescuers, and helping each person and team succeed on an individual basis, based on their needs, challenges and strengths.
LEVERAGING DIGITAL MAPPING TOOLS FOR WINTER BACKCOUNTRY TRAVEL
FreeOctober 5th, 2023 in Silverton, CO / Silverton School Gymnasium
Last year’s sell-out leads to this year's encore! Join Silverton Avalanche School Faculty and the CalTopo varsity team for an interactive workshop focused on how to maximize digital mapping tools for planning and navigating winter backcountry travel. We'll cover a wide range of topics, including creating and assessing travel routes using a variety of data sources as well as evaluating current conditions and potential hazards before you head into the backcountry. Participants are encouraged to bring their laptops and set up a free CalTopo account beforehand to get the most out of this workshop. Instructors will differentiate instruction to accommodate all levels of competence and expertise amongst participants. Whether you’re new to digital navigation or your prepping for your PRO 2, this uber popular, pre-conference workshop is not to be missed!
This workshop is offered at no cost and will take place at 2 pm.
TRANSCEIVER TECHNOLOGY WORKSHOP WITH BCA
FreeProfessionals and recreational users have a variety of rescue techniques to deploy during avalanche rescues based on conditions, manpower, and rescuer experience. The method of group search also known as “searching in parallel” has been around for decades. Many of us have seen a static diagram of this method in our transceiver user manuals or in an avalanche rescue course. Seemingly simple in principle, it has received little attention in the way of research or established protocols. This field training session will review the current refinements of this method and involve multiple practice rounds with a goal of all participants taking a turn organizing and leading a group.
This method of rescue leverages the capabilities of many devices and rescuers to cover large swaths of a rescue area in a single efficient pass. In a sense, a leader/team is converting the entire rescue team into a large, networked search array: Something similar to a digital probe-line in it’s simplicity. This method has been subject to testing and we will review the results indicating that recreationists with a simple review of fine and pinpoint searching techniques, and a single run-through of the search-in-parallel method are able to achieve comparable and sometimes better times than professionals using a single beacon searcher leading the same size team.