Here is an interesting first person account of the March 10 avalanche near Kaslo in BC.
I am of the opinion that most, if not
all, accidents in the mountains (and perhaps elsewhere) are actually
a factor of the interplay of various personalities and not the result
of lack of skill, education or experience. Frequently, the main
protagonist in the accident has overstepped the bounds of their
expertise, not due to wilful ignorance or the Dunning-Kruger effect
(the incompetent not recognising their own incompetence) but because
of what appear to be modestly enduring personality factors.
Certainly, my own history in the
mountains is chequered with minor incidents, most of which, if I
honestly apprise them have to do with certain of my own personality
characteristics not a lack of skill or knowledge. I am not prone to
overstepping the bounds of my expertise (my own faults lie in other
areas), but I do know many people whose assessment of their ability
is out of lock-step with any objective measure of their ability, and
these are the people whose overconfidence can lead them into
dangerous terrain.
There are instances in the mountains
where one person does make all the decisions for their entire group,
but, this is a paradigm more suited to professional guiding
situations than groups with mixed skill and experience levels such as
this one. Certainly, if one person is going to move into the role of
most “knowledgeable one” it behoves that person to honestly
evaluate their motives for acting as group guide and to be very,
very careful that they do not overreach the boundaries of their
knowledge base. Taking a proverbial step back, and then one more
would be wise.
The best post accident analyses finish
with a series of statements that describe what could have been done
better (or perhaps left undone) in very concrete terms. Without this
final step, days could be spent navel gazing without any progress
towards substantive change. Past behaviour, after all, is the best
predictor of future behaviour. New ways of being must be substituted
for the old ways or we are doomed to continue wearing a deeper and
deeper rut into our pysche.
In the final analysis however, the
ancient Greeks said it all centuries ago when they coined the
aphorism “Know thyself.”
On The Misty Icefield Traverse
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