Avalanche Courses
Avalanche education in the United States, Canada, Germany, France, Austria, Switzerland or Italy. Find an avalanche course here.
Backcountry Access (BCA) is North America’s leading manufacturer of snow safety equipment, including Tracker transceivers, Float airbags, shovels, probes, and BC Link radios. BCA’s mission is to save lives, not just sell products. BCA has always considered education to be just as important as the gear it makes. That’s why BCA supports avalanche education programs and forecast centers--and why the company backs up all its products with consumer education and knowledgeable customer service.
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Avalanche Forecasts
Get the forecast! Please check in with one of the North American, EU or southern hemi avalanche centers for backcountry travel advisories listed here.
How to Use a Beacon Training Park
A beacon training park is a great venue to practice your rescue skills. Whether you are alone or practicing with your friend, a beacon training park is a great way to practice multiple scenarios in a short amount of time. Backcountry Access has installed over 100 beacon training parks with ski resort, avalanche forecast centers, sled clubs and dealer partners worldwide. Navigate from our website menu to our store locator, to find a Beacon Training Park near you.
SNOWMACHINE: NEW BCA VIDEO DOCUMENTS AVALANCHE SAFETY
BCA's new video “Snowmachine” documents the actions of three BCA sled ambassadors—Dove Daniels, Mike Buck, and Chris Yelverton—Alaskans dedicated to educating current and future sledder about avalanche dangers and safe riding.
AVALANCHE GROUP SEARCH TECHNIQUES – SEARCHING IN PARALLEL
Jim Conway, Bruce Edgerly, and the crew from BCA illustrate how to perform an avalanche rescue with more than one rescuer. Important elements include proper “lane discipline” when establishing search strips, when to abandon your search strip to perform the coarse and fine search, how to manage “rogue signals,” and best practices for communication and leadership on the avalanche debris pile. Essential viewing for both recreational and professional avalanche rescue training. Watch and learn.
Avalanche Rescue - Beacon Searching 101 (Video)
Having an avalanche transceiver is only valuable if you know how to use one. Learn the basics of beacon searching with the BCA.
Avalanche Rescue - Avalanche Probing 101 (Video)
This video takes you through the proper techniques for pinpointing or probing stage of avalanche search.
Avalanche Rescue - Avalanche Shoveling 101 (Video)
When buried in an avalanche, every second counts. Learn the most efficient shoveling and rescue extraction techniques.
Avalanche Rescue - Organizing a Backcountry Rescue (Video)
BCA ambassador and American Avalanche Institute (AAI) co-owner Sarah Carpenter goes the through the steps to perform if your companion gets buried in an avalanche.