On Jan. 5, 2015, rising U.S. Ski Team stars Bryce Astle and Ronnie Berlack died in an avalanche while skiing at an Austrian resort. If they had known just a few facts, the accident could have easily been avoided. How about you? As an athlete, coach or recreational skier or rider, do you know the basics?
BRASS Avalanche remembers Bryce and Ronnie each year on this day with a simple one-hour educational webinar designed to increase your awareness of the potential dangers you face from avalanches — whether you’re deep in the backcountry or just taking a little side run off a groomed slope at a resort. It’s knowledge all skiers and riders need to know.
BRYCE & RONNIE DAY PROGRAM
- Welcome from BRASS Avalanche board chair Cindy Berlack
- Remembering Hilaree Nelson – Steve Berlack
- Getting the Global Forecast – Lindsay Mann/Dale Atkins
- Athlete Panel featuring Anna Marno and Caite Zeliff
- Showing of Off Piste
Did you miss the program on January 5? Watch it in its entirety below.
Get the Global Forecast
But how do you get the forecast? What does it mean? And how is it different in Europe and other global destinations from what it is in America? If you are an athlete, coach or a recreational skier or rider, this is vital information that can save your life.
Presenters Lindsay Mann and Dale Atkins bring a wide range of knowledge to the discussion. They’ll discuss the importance of forecasts and how to read them — including where you find the forecast each day? And they will highlight the key differences between the USA and Europe.
Get the Forecast
One click at BRASSAvalanche.org will take you to a complete guide to avalanche forecasting services around the world.
A Massachusetts native, Lindsay Mann was a passionate ski racer, helping Dartmouth College win an NCAA title in 2007. She took that passion to the big mountains of the west, developing skills as a mountain guide and a snow safety professional. In 2018, as mountain awareness program coordinator for the Sun Valley Ski Education Foundation, she pioneered an innovative program designed to build mountain and snow safety knowledge. Mann was an early advocate for BRASS, presenting safety presentations to U.S. Ski & Snowboard staff and helping BRASS build its educational programs.
A past president of the American Avalanche Association, Dale Atkins is a highly-respected snow safety professional with over four decades of experience. His career has included longtime work as a ski patrol, along with forecasting for the Colorado Avalanche Information Center and as a technology leader for RECCO. He spent his entire career working in the mountains using his knowledge as a snow scientist and overseeing challenging mountain rescues. His passion for saving lives served as important counsel in the early formation of BRASS, as the families sought a direction to bring education to others.
Avalanche Aware Athletes
As competitive ski athletes, Anna Marno and Caite Zeliff know their craft. But they also know the need for a deep understanding of snow safety. Whether you’re a world class alpine ski racer ripping down mountains at 70 mph or a freeride athlete launching yourself off snow features, knowing the snow and avalanche forecast and being prepared is vital to your safety.
On Bryce & Ronnie Avalanche Safety Day, Anna and Caite will join us for a moderated conversation on their careers and snow safety. These inside thoughts from athletes who spend their lives in the snow will help you better understand how important it is to have avalanche safety knowledge as a part of your own personal educational kit.
Anna Marno
Anna Marno is a national super G champion and former U.S. Alpine Ski Team member. She grew up in Wyoming and raced out of Steamboat Springs, Colo. She also won the 2016 NorAm Cup super G title. After leaving ski racing, she coached for five years at Snowbird, but stepped away this season to focus on her career and spending time in the backcountry. She still stays close to racing coaching for Keely’s Camps, but is now focusing on avalanche safety. Now living along the Wasatch Range in Salt Lake City, she completed her Pro 1 avalanche course in 2021 and is planning to teach with the Utah Avalanche Center.
Caite Zeliff
A native of North Conway, N.H., Caite Zeliff grew up as a ski racer at Cranmore Mountain with her eyes set on the U.S. Ski Team. But a knee injury in her first year racing with the University of New Hampshire set her on a different pathway. Leaving school, she moved to Jackson Hole to ski and starting freeride competitions in 2015 where she found success from day one. In 2018, her life changed when she won the debut Queen of Corbet’s Couloir title. The victory launched her into sponsorships with The North Face and others, as well as filming engagements with Warren Miller, Matchstick and Teton Gravity research.
