Ready to ski the backcountry? Better get educated first. A good place to start is the brand new Salomon Mountain Academy, which just went live this fall. The Mountain Academy is an online avalanche safety course designed to be a supplement to traditional, in-the-field courses that cost a lot more money. Designed in collaboration with Atomic and wePowder, Mountain Academy draws from a vast knowledge base of mountain experts, official national authorities, regional avalanche centers, mountain guides, and pro athletes.
According to Salomon, the courses consist of a series of high-quality videos, pictures, animations and self-tests where students will gain fundamental information introducing them to variance in the snow pack, identifying different types of avalanches, and gaining the basic information about rescue tools and techniques.
The curriculum was developed through partnerships with the top experts in avalanche education including:AIARE, the foremost avalanche curriculum organization running programs in South America, Europe and the US, UAC, NWAC and CAIC. Users are self-tested as they go, reinforcing the information they have learned. Curriculum is accessible via direct payment (less than the cost of a lift ticket) or by vouchers obtained through purchasing qualified Atomic and Salomon products.
The Mountain Academy is built around two online modules. The first module, called “Snow Safety Essentials,” helps skiers ride safely out of bounds. It explains the essentials about snow safety, equipment, the different dangers and how to avoid them. The Mountain Academy’s second module, titled, “Deeper into the Backcountry,” gives skiers information they need to ride further off-piste in remote, mountain terrain. It’s a continuation of module one (which is recommended for skiers to go through first), and provides more in-depth information on types of snow, avalanche situations, different terrains and the gear skiers need when they’re participating in backcountry travel.
The goal of Mountain Academy is to make backcountry education accessible and affordable to everyone. Mountain Academy is not meant to replace avalanche, safety and gear training, but rather supplement it and direct participants to sign up for an in-person course in their area.
Sign up for your preferred courses at:
Atomic Mountain Academy – MountainAcademy.Atomic.com
Salomon Mountain Academy – MountainAcademy.Salomon.com