Walk into the woods.

Keep walking. Walk off tracks. Do not plan where you are going. Take whatever directions appeal in the moment. Keep walking. When, without realizing you are lost, its then your adventure begins.

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Knowledge Is Power!

In the outdoor industry sometimes it feels like most of the things you need to learn only come from experience... not true!

I think it is super important to constantly be progressing my knowledge in helpful tools and am lucky enough to be working for a company that sees the importance of further education which provides me the means to attend such coarses.

I started off with a NOLS Wilderness First Responder recert class down in Sedona. I have held this cert for over 2 years now and it was time for a required recert of the coarse. A WFR is a backcountry emergency medical class which focuses on the first person on a scene in the case of an emergengy, minor or major. In all cases a WFR is taught to assist in medical emergencies with little to no medical supplies. It teaches creativity with rescue and assistance. Really a rad skill to have for anyone who spends a bunch of time in the outdoor setting. I use my WFR every single day I have worked on the mountain for patrol and have used it a few times around town. Its never good to find someone seriously injured but it is amazing to be able to assist them!

I also began my outdoor climbing guide training through the American Mountain Guide Association. The AMGA a leading association pushing the standards and requirements of outdoor climbing guides. They focus on necessary skills needed to "safely" and efficiently guide any number of outdoor climbing guests on single pitch terrain. I was lucky enough to take the class from a fellow co-worker who is a wealth of knowledge and I felt urged to do a really good job. Its hard sometimes to be working high off the ground, near the edge of a cliff, knowing any mistake could have catastrophic results for your climber below.
Andrew, Kevin, and I
gettin geared up

Overall the class was amazing, the other "students" were really great to work with and I learned a ton of information.
Now I just have to practice it in my personal climbing...

Hanging out at our bottom site
after our last day

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