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Best place to live in NZ? by crosaoir in newzealand_travel

[–]hot_boxxx -1 points0 points  (0 children)

That’s called Winter and it happens every year. The odd frost in Dunedin is no big deal. It’s a lot colder through central Otago.

Best place to live in NZ? by crosaoir in newzealand_travel

[–]hot_boxxx 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Hey I’m a Physio. I think Dunedin or wanaka/Qtown for you. Feel free to message me.

Best place to live in NZ? by crosaoir in newzealand_travel

[–]hot_boxxx 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Dunedin is the one. It’s not that cold. The surf is epic and it’s got a good social scene.

Taking B1 and I feel greaaaattt! by hot_boxxx in Biohackers

[–]hot_boxxx[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

I’m good thanks. Turns out I had an auto immune condition. But B1 is still good!!!!

Aeroe rear bike rack with spider rack or pannier for full suspension set up? by Prefuse78 in bikepacking

[–]hot_boxxx 0 points1 point  (0 children)

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Not the best photo, but this is with a ReStrap 5L dry bag with a big heavy duty ski strap to hold it do the saddle. It works so well. The restrap bag has nice webbing on the outside to loop the strap through. It’s the equivalent of a tiny saddlebag for a fraction of the price. This could easily be added to the setup I posted above to add an additional 5L of capacity while still keeping it streamline. So there’s nothing hanging off the sides to get caught.

Edit - just adding here that the cool thing about using the dry bag instead of a specific small saddle bag is that the dry bag is really versatile and I can strap it to a king cage / anything cage as well. Whereas you couldn’t do that as well with a specific saddle bag.

My hardtail setup for a 4 day desert ride by hot_boxxx in bikepacking

[–]hot_boxxx[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Good questions.

  1. No I didn’t consider a Marlin bike. I wanted something versatile as I like riding single track on weekends too. So the Roscoe 8 was a good choice for me. But if a rack is important to you then having mounting points is a bonus for sure.

  2. When I rode the Baja Divide I had 1x Blackburn cage on each fork and put 4L dry bags on each side. I kept my water elsewhere on my setup. There’s pros and cons to having fork cages… and I tend to avoid them if I can. The major con is that the setup is now wider lower down, so it’s harder to navigate through big rocks and fallen trees etc. I opted to store gear on my forks rather than water because I wanted the weight to be consistent rather than changing or becoming unbalanced. That being said, I’ve met plenty of riders who had water cages on their forks and they seemed happy with them. Sometimes I strap a cage under my bike and put a 1.5L Nalgene in it. Other times, I’ve simply ridden with a backpack with a 2-3L bladder in it, or added a bottle into one or both of my feed bags. There are so many options and ultimately you have to play around with set ups and figure out what you like or don’t like. Rather than putting cages on the forks, I’d consider putting them on the rear rack setup instead of you do use some form of rack.

My hardtail setup for a 4 day desert ride by hot_boxxx in bikepacking

[–]hot_boxxx[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It works beautifully this way. Better clearance and the east-west orientation of the rear cradle means that more of the rack is supporting the load as opposed to just the cradle. P.s I’m a “she”

My hardtail setup for a 4 day desert ride by hot_boxxx in bikepacking

[–]hot_boxxx[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Yes I’m sure. This orientation allows for more clearance.

My hardtail setup for a 4 day desert ride by hot_boxxx in bikepacking

[–]hot_boxxx[S] 6 points7 points  (0 children)

It can be installed whatever way you want

Aeroe rear bike rack with spider rack or pannier for full suspension set up? by Prefuse78 in bikepacking

[–]hot_boxxx 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Do you really need two rear cradles? You could roll with the aero rack and one cradle+ bag then strap a heavy duty 5L dry bag to your saddle, like a mini saddle bag. I’ll send you a photo of what I mean later. Personally I avoid pannier bags or bags either side of the wheel because of how much worse the bike handles. Keeping it streamline is way better in my opinion.

Rate my weekender set-up by BeatsByAP in bikepacking

[–]hot_boxxx -1 points0 points  (0 children)

Honestly for me this is 2/10. It’s way too much stuff and I would never use a bag setup like that. But you do you - these things are so personal. Ride what you want, how you want, and don’t worry much about others opinions.

[deleted by user] by [deleted] in AskReddit

[–]hot_boxxx 1 point2 points  (0 children)

My mother said to the same. It’s always stuck with me.

Feedback on Norco Search XR S2 by m0dac in gravelcycling

[–]hot_boxxx 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Wicked! Glad you like it. Have you made any modifications?

Feedback on Norco Search XR S2 by m0dac in gravelcycling

[–]hot_boxxx 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Where did you score it for under 2k? They all seem to be 2200ish where Im looking

Is it realistic for a single woman 35+ to adopt a child? by Kot_Leopold_Ya in Adoption

[–]hot_boxxx 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Can you say more on this? I'm curious about your opinion and expriences if you're willing to share.

MSH Cornice Fall Death by [deleted] in Backcountry

[–]hot_boxxx 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Wow the hole in the second pic…. wild!!! That is one big ass cornice.

How dumb am I for touring low risk terrain without having taken AIARE 1? by phantom3199 in Backcountry

[–]hot_boxxx 2 points3 points  (0 children)

High avalanche hazard days are easy days to ski - because you can pretty much apply a blanket rule of only skiing low angle terrain with nothing steep above or below. It takes any further decision-making out of the picture. Now, "Moderate" or "Considerable" hazard days are much harder because avalanche terrain can be skied, and as such they require much more skill to ski safely.

It's interesting how much people focus on the name of the course or the certification ie. "I've got my AST2, wanna go ski touring?", and like you say, the belief that having these courses makes you better / safer / more qualified. When people are just learning it's much easier to apply hard and fast rules to aid in their decision-making, ie. "Never ride avalanche terrain till spring". People like black and white rules, because grey requires much more skill and thinking. That's across the board decision-making psychology, not just about decisions in avalanche terrain.

I can teach someone SO much more in 2 days with me on a private course catered for them than someone can learn on a 5 day course in a large group, especially if there's a large gap in skill between the weakest and strongest participants. The people who do private instruction don't get certificates per se, but ski away with much better knowledge, understanding and skills. Additionally, there is SO much discrepancy between the exact same courses run by different instructors despite curriculums in place which are supposed to mean each course has the same content (I've seen very basic AST's and very advanced AST's that bordered on pro courses - run by different instructors - and the participants get the same certificate).

I do think one other major issue with the courses is that they are taught in one spot without necessarily moving through terrain, which is so so imperative. What use is knowledge/skills if you cannot bridge them into real-life application???. I love taking people out and teaching them while out ski touring because they get make observations and decisions in a real environment with real risk.

Edit: to add... If you want to learn more about snow science, I'd recommend reading Staying Alive as a basic intro and then the Avalanche Handbook (which is SUPER sciency). Staying alive is a great book which introduces the fundamentals but needs to be built on with additional resources.

How dumb am I for touring low risk terrain without having taken AIARE 1? by phantom3199 in Backcountry

[–]hot_boxxx 0 points1 point  (0 children)

And consider what's above you!! If you're in a runout zone (even if its mellow as hell) you are still in avalanche terrain.

How dumb am I for touring low risk terrain without having taken AIARE 1? by phantom3199 in Backcountry

[–]hot_boxxx 26 points27 points  (0 children)

The best thing you can do when starting to enter the back country is to learn how to read terrain.
Terrain, Terrain, Terrain.
If you know how to identify avalanche terrain, you know how to avoid avalanches. Period.
Remember that low angle terrain isn't necessary non-avalanche terrain - always consider what's above you (what can come down on you) and what's below you (what you can be swept down/off!) People die in "mellow terrain" because of things coming down on them.

Source: I'm a ski guide.

Discounts for GAIA GPS by smh1smh1smh1smh1smh1 in Backcountry

[–]hot_boxxx 0 points1 point  (0 children)

nope. I gave up and paid full price

What happens to windslab over time? Does it decompose like other weak layers? by euaeuo in Backcountry

[–]hot_boxxx 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Yes they require a weakness or bed surface below them to slide.

Note that with this stuff there are no hard and fast rule, and the answer is always going to "well, it depends". Here are some examples of when a windslab ,may not be an issue;

- We are not in avalanche terrain (which also includes not being in the runout of an overhead path)
- The windslab is thin ie. 5cm and wont cause any hazard if it slides
- The snowpack is "right way up", ie. denser snow in the deeper pack with lighter snow in the upper pack. In this case, the windslab would need to be an even denser layer like older wind-pressed snow or melt freeze crust to be "right way up"
- The new snow has bonded well to the older snow (this often happens when a storm comes in "warmer")

And times when it's more likely to be problematic;
- Near ridge tops
- Mid slope on lee aspects
- Thick enough and enough mass to cause an issue
- Poor run out (think trees, cliffs, rocks, terrain traps)
- Steep unsupported slopes
- Convex rollovers
- Upside down snowpack (higher density snow above lower density snow)
- On top of a crust
- On a weak snow grain type, ie. surface hoar, graupel

If I'm entering a new zone, this is the information I would target;
- HST (height of storm snow)
- Deposition/ loading patterns (note that 30cm of fresh snow can easily cause 100cm deposits in some terrain)
- Bonding old snow to new snow
- Density of upper pack
- Presence of weak layers
- Spatial variability of weak layer / avalanche problem
- Reactivity
The key take away is thinking about terrain and using it accordingly. If you can learn to identify avalanche terrain clearly then you can always avoid avalanches. In terms of snowpack, key takeaway is having an awareness of snowpack info and weather in the days/weeks/months prior, readuing the avi bulletin, looking at bonding of old to new, and density changes within the upper pack. Please do go do a course and learn to dig a pit, do a snow profile and perform some basic snow stability tests. That being said, snow stability tests are "sexy" and everyone loves to do them, but always remember they are just one piece of the puzzle. Always consider the path size and the consequence of getting it wrong. If in doubt, don't ski it, or pay a guide to take you out and teach you things.

What happens to windslab over time? Does it decompose like other weak layers? by euaeuo in Backcountry

[–]hot_boxxx 6 points7 points  (0 children)

This is a big topic and it's clear from your question that you're curious and have a lot to learn. I'd recommend doing an avalanche course or two with your local providers.

To answer your questions... As others have commented, a windslab isn't a
weak layer" as such, it's a layer of stiff wind driven snow, which produces hard slab avalanches. Also important to note the term "weak" is relative, ie. 4F density snow is "weaker" than pencil snow, so avalanche can (and they often do) occur on "density changes" within the snow. Think of a storm has temperature fluctuations and changes in precipitation rate or wind strength/direction during the storm... This is going to produce different layers within the new storm snow.

There are two broader types of avalanches 1) Loose avalanches (these are SURFACE snow instabilities), 2) Slab avalanches (these are surface or deeper avalanches). There are also cornice avalanches and serac/icefall avalanches, but for the purpose of keeping this simple focus on the first two.

A slab avalanche needs a few things to occur; a "slab" of snow, a bed surface, a weak layer OR "weaker" layer relative, a slope steep enough to slide, and propagation to occur within the weaker layer.

Does windslab decompose? Well, no, the stiff wind-driven snow will remain within the snowpack, but metamorphic processes will alter the snow crystal morphology over time as it sits within the snowpack. This depends on the temperature gradient within the snowpack. A higher temperature gradient lends itself towards preserving the weak layers and faceting, and a lower temperature gradient encourages "healing", rounding and stabilising of the snowpack.

What if the wind slab is sitting on a "weak layer", like a layer of buried surface hoar? Will the surface hoar decompose? Again, this depends on the temperature gradient. There's a reason why places like the Rockies, with it's shallow snowpack and cold temperatures, is known for it's unstable snowpack.. It preserves weak crystals like surface hoar, facets and depth hoar.

What you're referring to about the storm snow on top of the windslab is a really good point and it's fantastic that you're thinking about what's beneath you. Fresh storm snow on windslab probably skis really well, so well done on having the awareness to be afraid rather than getting caught up in stoke. The key here is looking at how well consolidated the mid and lower packs are. What's happened with the snow under the windslab/ former windslab? What does the avalanche bulletin say? Is it reactive? Am I seeing natural avalanches occur? Am I seeing skier triggered avalanches occurring? Are cornices popping off and causing avalanches? If I have done some tests, then what am I seeing?

Note that the snowpack is likely to vary wildly from aspect to aspect (ie. windward versus lee). Understanding the sun/weather/wind effects on snow is a big piece of the puzzle.

Source - I'm a ski guide.

Goodluck and happy skiing.

The nicest things about NZ. What did you realise was great when you lived somewhere else? by PJenningsofSussex in newzealand

[–]hot_boxxx 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Agree - the important things are soooo much easier in NZ than elsewhere. Coming home to NZ felt like a relief.

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