The Risks and Rewards of Ski Patrol - A Conversation with Jake Hutchinson

Utah Avalanche Center Podcast

Jake Hutchinson was a long-time patroller and snow safety director at the Park City resort formerly known as Park West, Wolf Mountain, and The Canyons. He's also lead-avalanche instructor for the American Avalanche Institute. He joins Drew to talk about the risks and rewards of managing avalanche risk for the resort-skiing public. Discussed in this episode: mitigation practices; the evolution of ski patrol culture; the pressures of opening terrain; the story of a fatal in-bounds avalanche in 2007 and the ensuing legal battle; the lasting pain of bad consequences.