Speed is Safety – Part I
Moving fast in the mountains is a joy. Heavy camping and hiking has its place, but at the same time, cranking out what is normally a two day trip in six hours is like watching your favorite action film in fast forward. The scenery and thrills are the same, they just come at you a lot faster.
A classic mountain adage is “Speed is safety.” This is true as the less time you spend on a lightning prone ridgetop, in avalanche paths or underneath potential ice fall, the less likely you are to get hit. The flip side is that mistakes happen when you rush. It’s a fine line between hurry and worry.
- Mark Holbrook going from 14,300′ to the 20,320′ summit of Denali in eight hours with only a day pack.
The basis of any fast mountain outing is to reduce your pack weight to a minimum. In climbing, this is known as “A pack, a rack and the shirt on your back.” The skiing version might be “A pack, a snack and there’s nothing you lack.”
Tomorrow: Basic Speed Concepts________________________________
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Category: 17 Light is Right
