A veteran SAR volunteer's experiences in British Columbia
Regular training day with navigation on the schedule. Map and compass. In the past 10 years, the biggest errors in navigation I’ve seen have all been variations on transcription errors. What happens is this: people will report their position using …
Our SAR Team has an executive; we’re an incorporated charity under the Society Act of British Columbia. This act atates that we must meet some minimum requirements such has having officers of the society, and regular meetings. The executive runs …
Every skier loves to slag a sledder. Forums all over the internets are alive with skiers talking about the Boulder Mountain Avalanche and how it wouldn’t happen to skiers, that the sledders are isolated from the sounds of the snow …
I’d like to talk about one or two things I’ve noticed that can help shed light on why 200 people would go out into such obviously dangerous conditions, and expose themselves to what would seem to be obvious risk. These …
Today over 200 people were on scene at an “unorganized event” known as the “Big Iron Shootout” near Revelstoke, there was an avalanche and several people were killed, many were injured and there are possibly some missing. In the past …
The Paralympics are coming! And everyone is distinctly less stressed out. I did not say less excited, or less enthusiastic. And definitely not less important. However the Olympics get all the attention, and the attention makes everyone here in Vancouver self conscious and nobody navel-gazes better …
SAR members need to know how to navigate. Since we look for lost people, they are often not on a trail, so going off trail is a given for us. Now in this day of GPS, people may think that …
Tuesday is the team’s regular training day. This evening was equipment familiarization, consisting of small engines (boat motors, chainsaws), Argo driving, swiftwater trailer familiarization, radio communications (including portable repeater setup), and various other kits including the advanced base cap kit …
With all of the hand wringing about the Own the Podium program, and was the money worth it I thought I might apply some basic statistics to the problem. Testing weather or not a technique works is one of the …
Field training at the secret Coquitlam SAR Crag on Burke Mountain. Technical travel skills; ascending, descending, convert from ascend to descend, and traversing wet slippery steep terrain. Good thing the weather is cooperating by providing the moisture. The magic number …