Ian Tomm
President, Eagle Pass Heliskiing Ltd.

Presentation Description 
Eagle Pass Heliski had a challenging end-of-season. On March 13, a serious avalanche occurred involving workers, and on March 15, the decision was made to shut down operations due to Covid-19. Ian Tomm will reflect on these events and what was learned.

Bio
Ian Tomm is passionate about adventure tourism and has dedicated the majority of his career to backcountry ski guiding, avalanche safety, and industry/sector management and development. He has extensive experience in governance, operations, and government relations. Today, he is the president of Eagle Pass Heliski.

Bruce Jamieson
Avalanche Consultant, Snowline Associates Ltd.

Presentation Description 
A discussion on optimizing the granularity of ratings—from the air quality index to avalanche likelihood.

Bio
Bruce Jamieson started hauling toboggans and working on the avalanche forecasting and control team at the Fernie ski area in 1980. After six winters with two ski areas, he started graduate studies at the University of Calgary, focusing on field studies of avalanches, including snowpack tests. As a professor from 1997 to 2015 and research chair, Bruce managed field studies of snow and avalanches. Now, when not sliding on snow or riding a two-wheeler on dirt trails, he works as an avalanche consultant and educator.

Grant Statham
, Visitor Safety Specialist, Parks Canada

Presentation Description 
The Avalanche Terrain Exposure Scale (ATES) was first developed by Parks Canada in 2004. Since that time, the system has been used to classify avalanche terrain throughout Canada and in many other countries. The original system is now 16 years old and this presentation describes work that is underway to produce ATES v.2.

Bio
Grant Statham has worked in the avalanche industry for 33 years as a ski patroller, avalanche forecaster, mountain guide, CAA ITP instructor, search & rescue tech, and risk policy expert. He was one of the original developers of ATES. He currently works full-time for Parks Canada in Banff/Lake Louise and part-time as a risk consultant. 

Uwe Gramann
Practice Area Lead - Weather and Climate, RWDI

Presentation Description
One of the most popular tools that has emerged recently to communicate future weather conditions are meteograms, or XT diagrams. While immensely practical, these diagrams often convey a false sense of certainty and only little about the larger picture as they apply only to a very specific location. However, certain recurring patterns can be found in all meteograms that help identify potential weaknesses, as well as larger scale weather systems, to make more accurate and reliable decisions.

Bio
Uwe is a Canadian professional meteorologist and practice area lead for RWDI’s climate data and weather forecasting teams. He has worked all his professional life in western mountains of Canada and is passionate about mountain weather, forensic studies, weather models, and, particularly, about communicating meteorological information for decision making - like meteograms.

Laura McGuire

Researcher, Ohio State University Cognitive Systems Engineering Lab

Presentation Description
Typically, the “thinking” work involved in avalanche forecasting and guiding is framed as decision making and risk analysis. However, this is only a partial view of what it means to navigate risk and uncertainty in the mountains. Using findings from a study of avalanche forecasting at a coastal mountain ski resort, this presentation will present new ways of “thinking about the thinking” that goes into safely running an avalanche program and offer some promising directions for improving risk management outcomes across a variety of operational settings.

Bio
As a researcher, Laura studies human performance in high risk/high consequence work. Her research interests lie in studying real work in the ‘natural laboratory’ of mountain environments and understanding the adaptation and resilience needed for working in conditions of uncertainty and change. She has published multiple topics for avalanche forecasting and mountain safety, and presented internationally on her research. 

Karl Birkeland
Director, US Forest Service National Avalanche Centre

Presentation Description
Most dry slab avalanches occur during or immediately following loading by snowfall or wind deposition. In the absence of further loading, avalanche activity decreases over time. This suggests loading favorably changes snow cover properties for avalanche release over short time scales (e.g., minutes and hours), and that changes over longer time scales (days or longer) help to stabilize the snowpack. This study quantifies both the effect of increasing load on the interaction of the slab and weak layer over short time scales, and the longer-term stabilizing changes following loading.

Bio
Karl has worked in the snow and avalanche industry for 40 years, including as a ski patroller, backcountry avalanche forecaster, and avalanche researcher. He currently directs the Forest Service’s National Avalanche Center, where he helps manage and provide program guidance for the U.S. avalanche centers and the Forest Service's military artillery for avalanche control program.

Doug Latimer
Lead winter guide, ACC and Purcell Mountain Lodge

Presentation Description 
Avalanche! the Guide's Guide to Safer Travel in the Mountains is the first truly interactive multi-media presentation/eBook ever produced for avalanche education. The presentation will demonstrate the capabilities of this book. It contains 221 pages, over 100 images, 80 videos, and more than a dozen links to other avalanche resources available online.

Bio
Doug Latimer is the lead guide for the Alpine Club of Canada, and the partner in a video and multi-media production company. He has over 20 years of experience teaching and guiding and has previously taught and guided at the University of Calgary Outdoor Centre.

Matt MacDonald
Warning Preparedness Meteorologist, Meteorological Services of Canada

Presentation Description

Atmospheric Rivers (ARs) are long, narrow plumes of moisture originating from the tropics that deliver heavy amounts of precipitation and mild air. With the improvement of numerical weather prediction, the forecast lead time of AR events has increased to upwards of seven days. Avalanche professionals can benefit from advanced planning from both a human and material resource perspective. This talk will examine the Dec. 21-22 AR that dumped one metre of snow in 24 hours on southern BC and highlight some resources for AR forecasting and monitoring.

Bio
Matt is a professional meteorologist based in North Vancouver, BC. For the last decade, he’s taught CAA Intro and Advanced Mountain Weather courses as well as provided custom training to heli and cat ski operators in the ranges of Western Canada.

Pascal Haegli

NSERC Industrial Research Chair in Avalanche Risk Management

Presentation Description
The presentation will describe results of our 2019 survey study where we tried to better understand the skills of different bulletin user types. In this analysis, we explored the question whether the different types of bulletin users have the skills they need to use the avalanche bulletin effectively at their level of decision-making. The research presented is the work of Henry Finn, who recently graduated with his Masters in resource management.

Bio
Pascal is a professor at Simon Fraser University where he holds the NSERC Industrial Research Chair in Avalanche Risk Management. He leads a research group of about 10 enthusiastic graduate students working on a variety of avalanche safety related research projects at the interface of the natural and social sciences. 

Katie Fisher

Student, SFU Avalanche Research Program

Presentation Description
An overview of a survey conducted in spring 2020 that seeks to understand links between the format of avalanche problem information presentation, interactivity, and feedback on hypothetical route choice selection.

Bio
Katie is a graduate student interested in risk communication and decision making.

Florian Herla
Graduate Student, Simon Fraser University

Presentation Description

Snowpack modeling has the potential to expand information sources for avalanche forecasters beyond traditional field observations. But can computer algorithms help forecasters in their challenging exercise of synthesizing snow profile information into a comprehensive picture of existing hazard conditions across the terrain? This presentation will show what these algorithms can already do for us today, and which products are under development for upcoming seasons.  

Bio
Florian has an MSc in Meteorology and is currently doing PhD in Avalanche Hazard Assessment Modeling. He is also am aspiring mountain guide in the German Mountain Guides' Association. 

John Sykes
Graduate Student, Simon Fraser University

Presentation Description
This presentation will describe my current research project on automated avalanche hazard mapping and discuss how I plan to apply the output for future research on analyzing GPS tracking data from mechanized ski guides.

Bio
John is working on avalanche terrain modelling and analyzing GPS tracking data from mechanized ski guides to develop decision-making tools at Simon Fraser University’s Avalanche Research Program. His Masters research at Montana State University’s Snow & Avalanche Laboratory focused on terrain selection of out of bounds skiers based on GPS tracking and survey data. Prior to entering graduate school. John worked as an and avalanche educator and mountaineering guide based in Anchorage, Alaska.

Darren Saul
Ski Patroller, Whistler Mountain

Presentation Description
Case study of an inbounds Na 3.5 during a spring warming event, and the associated uncertainty in avalanche forecasting.

Bio
Darren has spent 10 years with the Whistler Ski Patrol and last has spent the last four seasons assisting with running the avalanche control plan. He is a 2018 CAA Level 2 graduate and Pemberton Search and Rescue team member.
 

Dominic Boucher
Executive Director, Avalanche Quebec

Presentation Description
Analysis of a fatal avalanche accident at Mines Madeleine on February 19, 2020.
                                                                                                         
Bio
Since 2000, Dominic has been involved with the implementation and development of the only avalanche center east of the Canadian Rockies. First known as Centre d'avalanche de la Haute-Gaspésie, Avalanche Québec is celebrating 20 years of existence this year. Dominic combines the tasks of executive director and avalanche forecaster, as well as ITP Level 1 course leader. He now relies on a solid team of seven people including three avalanche forecasters, three technicians, and one communications manager.  

Gilles Valade
Executive Director, Avalanche Canada

Presentation Description
Gilles reviews the past year at Avalanche Canada and looks ahead at existing projects and future plans.                                                                                           
Bio
Gilles Valade is the Executive Director of Avalanche Canada and has been for the past 7 years.

Ilya Storm
Forecasting Programs Supervisor, Avalanche Canada 

Presentation Description
An overview of this winter's avalanche fatalities, placing the winter within the context of recent trends. I'll highlight some of the interesting features of these sad events with an eye toward possible lessons and future prevention.

Bio
Ilya is a forecaster at Avalanche Canada and an ACMG ski guide. He splits his winters between contributing to public avalanche safety through his work with Avalanche Canada, and feeding his hedonistic needs through ski guiding.