Revelstoke Search and Rescue Call out Saturday Night on Sale

[LBZ]

if you call helicopter, you pay, if S+R calls, BC govt pays..... for now!
This is under review in cabinet as well, as often it is self imposed stupidity, like in this case

I can't see S&R callouts ever being straight up billed to the injured/rescuee simply because there is a much higher chance of there being a body recovery instead of a rescue. Some people may not want to call if they are simply lost because they don't want to pay or can't afford to pay. This is the reason there currently is no charge.

I could however see the potential for a case by case review by an S&R panel of sorts to determine if maybe some of the cost should be put on the victim if it was a case of negligence such as not being prepared with the right survival equipment and/or poorly planning their trip, or failing to plan at all using many of the steps already mentioned in this thread. I think this would be one way to make people think twice before just loading a dozen beer into their backpack and bombing up the hill. Instead of preparing a bit with candles, a compass, flares, plastic heat sheet, etc. and planning a route or riding area, telling someone not riding where you plan to ride, etc.

BTW not saying you shouldn't have a beer on the trail, just saying be prepared in case of an emergency.

 

[maxwell]

I can't see S&R callouts ever being straight up billed to the injured/rescuee simply because there is a much higher chance of there being a body recovery instead of a rescue. Some people may not want to call if they are simply lost because they don't want to pay or can't afford to pay. This is the reason there currently is no charge.

I could however see the potential for a case by case review by an S&R panel of sorts to determine if maybe some of the cost should be put on the victim if it was a case of negligence such as not being prepared with the right survival equipment and/or poorly planning their trip, or failing to plan at all using many of the steps already mentioned in this thread. I think this would be one way to make people think twice before just loading a dozen beer into their backpack and bombing up the hill. Instead of preparing a bit with candles, a compass, flares, plastic heat sheet, etc. and planning a route or riding area, telling someone not riding where you plan to ride, etc.

BTW not saying you shouldn't have a beer on the trail, just saying be prepared in case of an emergency.

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good thought but that government run review panel would likely cost more than they would ever recover from a single individual

 

[LBZ]

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good thought but that government run review panel would likely cost more than they would ever recover from a single individual

True.
Unless they could find a way to have an independent panel made up by volunteer S&R members do the review and then submit a recommendation. Maybe?

I understand you can't plan for everything when in the back country. But when it's straight up negligence that resulted in a rescue needing to be performed accountability should be served IMO.

 

[Lund]

One of the biggest and most expensive rescue of a sledder that i am aware of took place a few years ago in the Coquihalla valley in an area called 10K.
Its basically located near the old Coquihalla toll booth use to be, on the left hand side of highway heading towards Vancouver. It is a great riding area when the weather co-operates, with incredible snow fall's.
The sledder pulled a HUGE chute and near the top the sled basically flipped over and pile drove him in to the snow breaking his back. 911 was called and S&R came out, but unfortunately no one could reach him. So a chopper from Comox air force base (Vancouver island) was called out and a Canadian Forces rescue personnel repelled down to the sledder from the chopper. Because it was late and getting dark with poor visibility, they spent the night on the mountain side. The chopper came back the next morning and plucked them off, the rider in a stretcher.

 

[Ramjet15x]

I know of another were a person broke his back and subsequent other internal damage at Area 51 later in the day, it took a little bit to summon S+R on sat phone, they dispatched ground crew and they in turn called in a heli also from Comox to assist as it was life and death for the individual at stake, which BTW the above also assisted in the current S+R call in Sale. The heli had to fly from Comox to Kamloops to refuel and carry on to the site, the injured person (IP) was then picked up at around 02:00 and flown to Kelowna were he underwent stabilization and hospitalization for about two weeks (???) and made an essentially full recovery

My point is accidents can happen to great people like S+M's, but ignorance is preventable, we as a sledding community are easily pointed out and unfortunatley ridiculed due to it.
My previous post could be viewed as negative to the individuals in question, for this I apoligize.
Education and communication can help to eliminate repitition of these mistakes by others so we all dont need to relearn the mistakes first hand.

 

[tejay]

Perhaps a nominal but mandatory insurance fee that would be included with a trail pass. This could help on cost recovery.

 

[CUSO]

Sounds like a great way to destroy a rubber track.. Not recommended, IMO...

Kinda similar to posted above. Hook a small rope or ratchet strap through the windows of the track in one pitch (across the track). Get a long rope and tie one end to stationary object, then hook rope to the middle of the small rope on the track (this will keep the long rope in the middle of the track when u r winching). Start sled and use track to "winch" sled forward (or backward) using track as winch "motor". You can get yourself out of sticky situations with it, it won't "lift" your sled straight up but lets say you ended up nose down in a treewell, you could hook the rope to a tree behind you, hook the rope to the track and put your sled in reverse and winch it backwards. Recommended that you pack down the trail you are winching on (so you are not trying to winch a sled through 3 ft of powder), just minimize as much drag resistance as you can. Try not to ride the sled unless you have to, usually can walk beside it and just work the throttle.

You can also use this method to winch a dead sled out of a tight spot, like down in a little draw or something, or if you have to tow a dead sled up a steep hill. Tie a running sled to a tree (or multiple sleds together if no trees around), then tie 1 end of long rope to bumper of dead sled and other end to track of the running sled (as described above). Tip running sled on its side and use the running sled to winch dead sled out of the problem area. You might have to stop and reset a couple times (so make sure you have a "brakeman" ready at the dead sled when you unhook it or it will go back down......LOL), depending on the length of rope you have or the area the sled is in, but it does work. This method usually requires a long rope sometimes but if you get some "mule tape" its super light and strong, works great for things like this. You will still have to shovel a little "path" to winch the sled out on, but cheaper than calling in air support. Also, watch the front bumper on the "winch" sled if that is what you tie to the tree or other sleds, as you can bend some of these new flimsy ones. Not a big deal but just might take some additional "rigging" to keep it from bending. With both methods you have to watch the winch rope and keep it on the track, otherwise it doesn't work so good. Hopefully I've explained it well enough you get the point.

 

[pfi572]

Sounds like a great way to destroy a rubber track.. Not recommended, IMO...

It works and doesn't wreck the track .
Have done this a couple times to get out of a crappy spot's years ago.
Sleds back then weren't much and no S&R in the areas we sledded.

 

[ZRrrr]

Lots of reading but you get to see what all the calls were about. A fair number of snowmobilers in the winter months, but also lots of skiers and hikers. Tons of missing persons. Numerous boating calls in the summer. Busy group of people!!

 

[Destroyer]

Thanks to the search and rescue guys for coming out. We had a missing soldier and figured it would be a good idea to get more people looking for him.

Nathan thought he was dropping down to a lake where we said we were going to meet. He was lost, he dropped down a drainage that he couldn't climb out of (not from lack of skill trust me, that boy can put that sled almost anywhere it can possibly go) Right then and there he should of started walking up, that's the mistake that was made in the whole situation. In his defense, it was still light out and he seen clear cuts and a logging road that had old tracks on it. He had a compass, the road was pointing in the right direction to the hwy and the km markers were counting down. If he would of had enough gas he would of made it, but that still doesn't help the rest of the group on the mountain searching for him. When i found the track which i thought might be his, I had to follow it. The boys had a fire set up at the lake we planned to meet at. All i could think about was, he is upside down in a tree, or hurt. By this time it was dark and i knew if i dropped my sled down where those tracks went it wasn't coming out. No one wanted to ride down there in the dark. So a buddy and I hiked it with one focus in mind, find nathan. We were well prepared to spend the night. We found where he tried to turn around and come up so then i knew it was his track for sure. We hiked farther, the boy layed some mental tracks through the trees. I thought for sure he messed up somewhere and got it wrapped in a tree, so we kept hiking. Once we hit the road we had to make a decision up or down. Down in nathans direction was the best decision at that point. I knew he was probably ok but hiking up would of taken us longer than walking down the road. And he is by himself, one is weak, two is strong, three is stronger. The rest of the group knew we were following that track. I knew we would be ok. Further down the road we found nathans sled out of gas. then footprints walking down the road. So we kept on walking. Nathan eventually made it to the highway, and on their way to his sled with gas they found us walking. It was a crappy situation, the big mistake was Nate dog not heading back in the direction he went down, He won't make that mistake again. Hind sight is always 20/20. He went into panic mode. Seen a road that would take him down and went for it. I don't regret walking after him one bit.

 

[geo]

It works and doesn't wreck the track .
Have done this a couple times to get out of a crappy spot's years ago.
Sleds back then weren't much and no S&R in the areas we sledded.

My group carry part rolls of plastic strapping for this. Pretty much free and lots of length in a small package.

 

[Turts]

Not knowing where one of your guys are or not knowing if they are safe at least is a very disconcerting feeling...
I would call in the troops ANY time I felt one of my buds could be in trouble.
I know our riding group has some work to do with keeping better track of where everybody is.
We continue to talk of it and are trying to improve for this very reason.

 

[maxwell]

Thanks to the search and rescue guys for coming out. We had a missing soldier and figured it would be a good idea to get more people looking for him.

Nathan thought he was dropping down to a lake where we said we were going to meet. He was lost, he dropped down a drainage that he couldn't climb out of (not from lack of skill trust me, that boy can put that sled almost anywhere it can possibly go) Right then and there he should of started walking up, that's the mistake that was made in the whole situation. In his defense, it was still light out and he seen clear cuts and a logging road that had old tracks on it. He had a compass, the road was pointing in the right direction to the hwy and the km markers were counting down. If he would of had enough gas he would of made it, but that still doesn't help the rest of the group on the mountain searching for him. When i found the track which i thought might be his, I had to follow it. The boys had a fire set up at the lake we planned to meet at. All i could think about was, he is upside down in a tree, or hurt. By this time it was dark and i knew if i dropped my sled down where those tracks went it wasn't coming out. No one wanted to ride down there in the dark. So a buddy and I hiked it with one focus in mind, find nathan. We were well prepared to spend the night. We found where he tried to turn around and come up so then i knew it was his track for sure. We hiked farther, the boy layed some mental tracks through the trees. I thought for sure he messed up somewhere and got it wrapped in a tree, so we kept hiking. Once we hit the road we had to make a decision up or down. Down in nathans direction was the best decision at that point. I knew he was probably ok but hiking up would of taken us longer than walking down the road. And he is by himself, one is weak, two is strong, three is stronger. The rest of the group knew we were following that track. I knew we would be ok. Further down the road we found nathans sled out of gas. then footprints walking down the road. So we kept on walking. Nathan eventually made it to the highway, and on their way to his sled with gas they found us walking. It was a crappy situation, the big mistake was Nate dog not heading back in the direction he went down, He won't make that mistake again. Hind sight is always 20/20. He went into panic mode. Seen a road that would take him down and went for it. I don't regret walking after him one bit.

I would have done the same thing. But a tough call on the sled if he couldn't get it out of that hole it was either chopper or ride it out the road not sure what I would do in that situation

 

[Destroyer]

We could of left his sled there over night a group of us could of got it out in the morning. We probably would of looked at a map to find out what road that was and just dropped down to it as a group the next day.

 

[pistoncontracting]

I'm always amazed at how many groups never seem to stay together, or lose track so easily.

For the price of a sweet wrap, you could have a decent set of radios.

 

[Destroyer]

Everyones radios including search and rescues range wasn't working very well up there that night. We have radios. Nathans ended up dieing, but even us hiking down his track contacting the boys on the lake. We only had them for like the first km at best.

 

[pistoncontracting]

Good to hear all ended well.

Sometimes it takes stuff like this happening, to put everything in perspective.

 

[TylerG]

Thanks to Destroyer for telling his groups side of the story!