Skiing Beyond Safety's Edge Once Too Often

[highpeaksdrifter]

Someone posted this link in the Snow Journal forum. It's a good article about Doug Combs and skiing in LA GRAVE.

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/17/s...3c572b14847&hp&ex=1147924800&partner=homepage

 

[ALLSKIING]

That is some crazy stuff to be skiing....Sad story.

 

[AHM]

The Article in the NYT was not all that good

The article sensationalized skiing in La Grave. It is not a get off the 'phreque life and death situation. Not even close. Getting off the phreque is quite easy and there are a couple nice lines off the top that pose very very little risk. La Mieje, and the fantastic town of La Grave can be skied by most intermediate skiers. The real issues are the altitude and the variable snow quality that is off piste skiing and the lack of signs. So, to sensationalize the place as life and death skiing is simply not valid. It is safely skied by many many skiers each day, in much higher avalanche conditions than the day Doug and Chad slipped. Skiing is a dangerous sport, and it is no more dangerous in La Grave than it is buzzing down your local hill, close to the trail edge and loosing control and cartwheeling into the trees. La Grave is a fanatastic place and well worth the visit for any skier interested in skiing in a place that treats skiing with the respect that it should be given. AHM

 

[ALLSKIING]

Skiing is a dangerous sport, and it is no more dangerous in La Grave than it is buzzing down your local hill, close to the trail edge and loosing control and cartwheeling into the trees.

While I agree that the NYT did sensationalized the story a bit. The fact is that LA Grave can be way more dangerous than my local hill if you ski in the places that Coombs did.

 

[JimG.]

The article sensationalized skiing in La Grave. It is not a get off the 'phreque life and death situation. Not even close. Getting off the phreque is quite easy and there are a couple nice lines off the top that pose very very little risk. La Mieje, and the fantastic town of La Grave can be skied by most intermediate skiers. The real issues are the altitude and the variable snow quality that is off piste skiing and the lack of signs. So, to sensationalize the place as life and death skiing is simply not valid. It is safely skied by many many skiers each day, in much higher avalanche conditions than the day Doug and Chad slipped. Skiing is a dangerous sport, and it is no more dangerous in La Grave than it is buzzing down your local hill, close to the trail edge and loosing control and cartwheeling into the trees. La Grave is a fanatastic place and well worth the visit for any skier interested in skiing in a place that treats skiing with the respect that it should be given. AHM

I felt the same way when I read it...they could have written the same story about Tuckerman Ravine or the Great Gulf in years when there were fatalities.

Their goal is to sell newspapers, and sensational stories sell them.

For me, the creepiest part was the picture of Doug and Chad taken probably minutes before the fatal falls.

 

[ALLSKIING]

For me, the creepiest part was the picture of Doug and Chad taken probably minutes before the fatal falls.

Me too, I almost felt like I was there.

 

[AHM]

Look at the stats...............

Dave: first off all, more people are injured killed at your local hill than La Grave. Secondly, where Doug/Chad/Matt etc were skiing isn't that dangerous. What happened was someone slipped on some melt-freeze near the egde of a rock band. Spring skiing presents that issue. Rocks can hold heat and affect the snow around then and change the localized consistency. It can happen anywhere. Skiing is a dangerous sport. And my take is there are a whole lot more people in the clinic at the K(where your picture is taken) than I have ever seen air lifted out of La Grave. As I have said, skiing is dangerous and a slip can be costly, whether it is a slip skiing the trees at Jay and slamming into a tree or a fall in La Grave. As a previous poster said, the same can be said about Tucks, GG, or really anywhere. It could also be said that ski touring through glaciated terrain where you are roped together to avoid crevasse falls is "extreme" and "dangerous", but rarely are people injured in those situations. The bulk of the injuries in the sport happen at Local Hills and they are just as dangerous as La Grave. Think about all the people you know injured at local hills and then think of the skiers you know who are injured/killed in steep situations, I think if you do the math, you'll find the former much greater than the later.AHM

 

[SkiDog]

Just a sad sad story...Doug did a lot for the sport of ski mountaineering, and should be applauded for that.

The part I find the MOST depressing is that his son will never know him......he will hear great things about his dad forever from those who knew him, but thats NO subsitute for having your dad around.....

I wonder if he should've "scaled back" a bit once he had a child to care for....the child is likely provided for financially in Dougs absence...but again...i'd take my dad over money ANY DAY...

M

 

[ALLSKIING]

Just a sad sad story...Doug did a lot for the sport of ski mountaineering, and should be applauded for that.

The part I find the MOST depressing is that his son will never know him......he will hear great things about his dad forever from those who knew him, but thats NO subsitute for having your dad around.....

I wonder if he should've "scaled back" a bit once he had a child to care for....the child is likely provided for financially in Dougs absence...but again...i'd take my dad over money ANY DAY...

M

It said in the article that there son was the reason Mrs Coombs did not head up on that last run. She wanted to be a bit more careful now that she was a mother. That being said I don't think Doug could have lived a happy life not skiing everything and anything.

 

[SkiDog]

It said in the article that there son was the reason Mrs Coombs did not head up on that last run. She wanted to be a bit more careful now that she was a mother. That being said I don't think Doug could have lived a happy life not skiing everything and anything.

I agree that Doug likely couldnt have removed himself completely from ski mountaineering and still "enjoy" his existance, but maybe...taking "less" risk would've been smart.

This situation however was hard to predict, and then compounded by the fact that this was a "friend" that fell he was trying to rescue..brings emotions into the mix and thats never good....truly a sad sad accident and my thoughts are with his surviving wife and child.....

M

 

[ALLSKIING]

I agree that Doug likely couldnt have removed himself completely from ski mountaineering and still "enjoy" his existance, but maybe...taking "less" risk would've been smart.

This situation however was hard to predict, and then compounded by the fact that this was a "friend" that fell he was trying to rescue..brings emotions into the mix and thats never good....truly a sad sad accident and my thoughts are with his surviving wife and child.....

M

I sent in a $20 check and got a poster.

http://www.k2skis.com/

 

[SkiDog]

I sent in a $20 check and got a poster.

http://www.k2skis.com/

I did the same?

M