The Euros know about the off-piste
risks, and accept them. You die off-piste in France, for example,
and the collective response is "tant pis."
One might ask what it is about the American psyche that 1) demands
that others explain to us why what we're thinking about doing
isn't a good idea before we even do it, and 2) gives us license
to blame others if our own actions produce a bad result.
Damned shame about these kids. But one ventures into avalanche
terrain at one's own risk. And if you're an elite-level skier who
doesn't recognize possible avalanche terrain when you see it, it
ain't because your coaches failed you.
On 1/10/2015 9:51 PM, Michael Taub wrote:
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yeah, my thoughts exactly. The avi danger was considerable at the
time. Someone really dropped the ball. Really sad, they were
great kids.
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Nate
Vinton, a ski writer that I have a lot of respect for,
seems to imply that the skiers were not properly made
aware of the dangers of skiing off-piste in Europe. If
that is indeed true, it is a damning indictment of the
U.S. Ski Team staff and/or organization. It would mean
gross negligence on the part of the coaches present and/or
the staff who developed the European training program for
development skiers, and would demand serious
repercussions, not the least of which should include job
terminations.