timmy,
sorry i typed so much, but if you're heading out into the backcountry you will read all of this and take nothing for granted.
i don't know if an avi I or avi II course should be required. i hope not. haha. a basic avalanche course should definately be in your future if you plan to ride backcountry though. a couple night class and a field session. an avi I course might be very similar to this. worth checking out. it might be the same type of terrain you ride at a CONTROLLED ski area, but the conditions are far and few between in the bc. they are NOT CONTROLLED. a lot of people take this for granted when they ride at ski areas in 'avalanche terrain'. it's skiable becuase the ski patrol does thier job, but in some circumstances, mother nature is mother nature, and she'll kick your a$$ if you're not careful......or unaware of the necessary precautions to be taking.
that is smart that you're going with an experianced bc user, but he's not god. listen to what he/she says and take everything very seriously because the backcountry is a very serious place to explore for anyone, not just the inexperianced user. experianced users who don't get themselves into trouble sometimes find themselves with a false sense of security and taking risks that maybe they shouldn't sometimes. ask your experianced backcountry user friend this when you're about to drop in: how do you feel about the stability of the snowpack? feel like it's safe? if he says yes, then ask for his transciever. does he still feel safe to drop in without his transciever?
if there's enough snow to ride/ski, then there's enough to cause an avalanche. here's an example:
last november i was out with friend riding in a backcountry area near Big Sky. there was about 2' of snow in the heavy areas. we dug a pit, all fluff right down to the ground. started riding. seemed fine. stopped after i had taken a few turns over to a safe area to see how the snow would react. waite for my partner. then i decided where i was gonna go down. to the right or to the left of some trees. i went left. made about 2 turns and felt some crust undernieth my board. hmmmm, that's wierd. the pit didn't show any crust layers at all. then while i was turning into my 3rd turn my nose went under this crust. sent me for a cartwheel. right back to my feet. few. oh, wait. back on my butt just like that. the snow was moving from under my feet. i was in the middle of a slide. sitting on my butt, i tried to scurry to the edge of the slide....a mere 3' away. helpless. i was in it for the ride. then a huge WHOOOOOSH slammed me from behind. this was the rest of the slab rushing down the slope that excellerated the slide to atleast twice it's speed. got thrown into some trees and came to a hault. and yes, it does cure like cement when it stops. the slide was about 20' wide and from the fracture line down to the end of the runout zone it was about 150 yards in length. small slide, but still enough to wake you the fu... up. "you think you know? you have no idea"
i'm assuming you all have transcievers, shovels and probes, AND know how to conduct a search with those tools, right? good. the most important tool you have with you is your head.........use it.
i would also suggest that you should consider yourself of expert ability before you go out and do any sort of backcountry exploring........no matter what level you consider the terrain to be. like i said before, it's not like a controled ski area.
good luck and enjoy yourself. be safe.
