Mountain Pros Are Preparing For The Winter Season At Les 2 Alpes!
With the imminent arrival of winter, excitement is reaching the summits of Les 2 Alpes. As every year, the official return to skiing is accompanied by a series of training courses , refresher courses and professional meetings for mountain professionals. Many come to Les 2 Alpes, between November and December, to strengthen or refine their skills in preparation for the winter season, which promises to be long and demanding. In Les 2 Alpes, winter extends from November 30 to May 4, which requires rigorous preparation, both physically and technically and in terms of safety.
Perched at an altitude of 3,600 m, the Les 2 Alpes resort benefits from early snowfall, which allows it to officially open at the end of November. This guarantee of snow attracts not only the first skiers, but also mountain professionals who come to follow specific training courses. Before the big winter rush, Les 2 Alpes is an ideal training and training ground, offering perfect conditions for resuming activity and preparing for an intense season.
Ski patrollers learn to manage their risk-taking in order to minimise accidents at work. They also receive training in risk management, with avalanche triggering exercises carried out in optimal safety conditions. As for dog handlers, they train to spot and rescue avalanche victims, a crucial skill in the high mountains.
In Les 2 Alpes, preparations for winter begin in the autumn, with the aim of guaranteeing everyone, professionals and holidaymakers, a season that is pleasant, efficient and safe.
TRAINING OF SNOW TRAILERS & DOG HANDLER
There are just over 2,500 ski patrollers in French ski resorts. They are not all artificers or dog handlers, but can choose to specialize during their career, after 2 years of seniority. The artificer and dog handler ski patrollers are essential to the proper functioning of a ski area. Beyond on-piste rescue, prevention and safety are the primary missions to allow skiers to progress safely on the ski slopes. Thus, mountain professionals are training, thanks to ANENA, in order to be ready for a new winter season which will begin soon, on Saturday, November 30 in Les 2 Alpes.
Oct. 28 to Nov. 29: Training of artificer ski patrollers - 6th edition
The National Association for the Study of Snow and Avalanches, better known by the acronym ANENA, trains future artificer ski patrollers. ANENA is organizing the shooting attendant certificate sessions with mountain shooting and slow fuse options in Les 2 Alpes, an ideal playground before the winter season. The training is organized between October 28 and November 29, 2024, in 4 sessions (75 hours/session) of around twenty people, or around a hundred people who will be trained and prepared for the winter of 2024/2025. The training, organized for the 6th consecutive year in Les 2 Alpes, is aimed at all French mountain patrollers and is provided exclusively by ANENA, the official national training center.
The training aims to know how to preemptively trigger an avalanche using explosives within the framework of the regulations relating to a PIDA (avalanche triggering intervention plan). The trainee trackers carry out exercises in priming charges, setting up detonators, launching charges, procedures to follow, safety instructions, moving around the terrain safely, etc. Please note that once they have obtained their certificate, each tracker must complete an annual refresher course, i.e. an upgrade to optimize their actions and safety on the ski area!
December 2 to 13: Avalanche dog handler training – 19th edition
ANENA trains trackers and dog handlers in Les 2 Alpes from December 2 to 13, 2024. Around twenty pairs will complete 88 hours of practical and theoretical courses over 11 days: regulations and characteristics of avalanche rescue, identification of the different methods of transport to the search area, composition of the intervention bag, dog handling and practical exercises in the field in real conditions. The key is the National Avalanche Dog Handler Certificate, recognized by the Ministry of the Interior. The pairs generally come from all over France (Isère, Alpes Maritimes, Pyrénées, Savoie, Hautes Alpes and Corsica) but also from Spain and Andorra and sometimes from South America.
PREVENTION OF ACCIDENTS AT WORK: SATA 2 ALPES TRAINS ITS TEAMS IN SAFETY BEFORE THE WINTER SEASON
The safety of teams working on the ski slopes, such as ski patrollers and operations agents, is a priority for the SATA 2 Alpes ski area company. Ahead of the winter season, the company sets up comprehensive training aimed at reducing the risk of accidents in the workplace.
The daily tasks of ski lift staff are varied, as are the dangers to which they are exposed. Aware of these risks, SATA 2 Alpes is stepping up its prevention efforts. Specific training, combining theory and practice, is being organized from November 18 to 22, 2024. The aim of this session is to prepare teams to work safely during the high season.
The training will include several components: theoretical courses and practical exercises at altitude, on the ski area located at 3,200 meters. The teams will participate in workshops dedicated to essential subjects, such as resuming skiing, handling stretchers, reminders of safety protocols, as well as a review of good practices (physical training, nutrition, hydration, concentration, healthy living, etc.) to limit risks.
By implementing these actions, the company in the Les 2 Alpes ski area not only wishes to raise awareness among its staff, but also to strengthen collective safety on the slopes, in order to guarantee optimal working conditions throughout the season.
