In a season with over a hundred ski trips, Lauvås publishes perhaps ten photos on social media. – The ski pictures I post are not representative. Kenneth Lauvås from Mo i Rana spends a lot of time in the mountains – and preferably with skis on his feet. – If you only see pictures of people driving steeply, I think many people think that this is normal and that things are going well, says Kenneth Lauvås Photo: Private He still posts ski pictures on social media, but now he has become more aware of which images he publishes. – No one sees photos from the trips I choose not to go on, or the trips where I turn around. Ranværingen has been on cross-country skis for over ten years and has acquired a lot of knowledge about risk assessment in avalanche-prone areas. Now he takes stock of the influence ski photos have on social media. Lauvås believes that the normalization of steep skiing can lead to many people exposing themselves to large and uncalculated risks. Kenneth Lauvås digs a snow profile to find out if the snow is stable. Photo: Private – Using social media as a method With the knowledge and experience Lauvås possesses, acquaintances come to him with questions about tips for ski trips. – I am asked if mountains are safe to travel in, mountains I have not been in for several weeks. – I realized that many people use social media as a method to clarify whether a mountain is safe or not, says the robber. He believes that social media creates an image that it is just a matter of getting in the car and running up steep mountain sides. In reality, there are thorough assessments of the terrain’s complexity and the risks it poses. – The snow can change in a short time – Many people see pictures of a descent and decide to go there based on that one picture, without making their own judgments. The snow can change in a short time and that it is therefore important not to blindly trust photos from other people’s trips, explains the surveyor. Lauvås believes that “influencers” within the skiing environment have a special responsibility to show what lies behind the pictures from steep slopes. – If you keep posting pictures of steep terrain, you also have a responsibility to post the preparations, he says. Writes long posts about risk Nikolai Schirmer is a professional skier and photographer from Tromsø, with many followers on social media. He does not think there is a lack of focus on risk and risk assessment in the skiing environment. – Skiing is the best thing I know and I understand why it appeals to a wide audience, says freerider Nikolai Schirmer. Photo: Private – We often write long posts about risk, says the free rider who has his own YouTube channel where he only talks about risk assessments. – The drama and tension comes from having to make judgments and figure out how to get down a mountainside. Important to drive outside one’s comfort zone Schirmer believes the public understands the risks that come with trips in avalanche-prone areas. – I do not perceive in any way that anyone is trying to paint a glossy picture that skiing has no risks. – It is in our interest as performers that what is risky and scary also appears as such. Then we show that we have made many good decisions. – It has taken me a lifetime to build up all the knowledge, says Nikolai Schirmer. Photo: Privat Schirmer believes that it is also important to drive outside one’s own comfort zone, in order to develop as a skier. – You have to learn the art of driving beyond your ability in a way that does not entail the risk of death or serious injury, he says. – It looks great to drive steeply – It looks great to drive steeply, says leader of the avalanche resource group in the Norwegian Red Cross Aid Corps, Tormod Eldholm. Tormod Eldholm believes that many people have the wrong picture of the consequences of avalanches. Photo: Per-Ivar Kvalsvik / news Although knowledge of avalanches has increased a lot in recent years, Eldholm believes that summit tours are often misrepresented in social media. He has seen many videos of skiers avoiding avalanches and doing just fine. Eldholm believes that it helps make avalanche-prone areas harmless for many. – It usually goes well and the times when things actually go wrong don’t come out very often. – Avoid avalanche terrain when there is a risk of avalanches Eldholm has seen many sad fates from people who have been caught by avalanches and warns Norwegians not to take avalanches too lightly. – We see time and time again that people who are caught in avalanches struggle both mentally and physically afterwards. Many do not get out to ski again. Avoid avalanche terrain when there is a risk of avalanches, urges Eldholm. – Skiing can be just as fun for the vast majority of us, even if the terrain is a little softer.
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Using social media to assess the risk of avalanche danger – news Nordland
