National Avalanche School

This week A-Basin is hosting Phase II of the National Avalanche School (NAS). Approximately 20 students, mostly ski patrollers from Colorado ski areas, are taking part in a 4 day field course in and around A-Basin. You may have noticed groups of 5-6 skiers wandering around, digging snow pits, doing beacon searches, and generally checking out the mountain and the snow. The instructors, Ethan Greene, Knox Williams, Scott Toepfer, and Dale Atkins, are like a "who's who" of avalanche professionals. Back in November the students attended the Phase I portion of the NAS, a week long classroom session, in Snowbird. Other Phase II session were held or are being held in Snowbird, Jackson, and Crystal Mountain. With yesterday's excitement, the group picked a pretty good week to visit.