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First Soon to be Annual Beacon Week | Jackson, WY United States | 12/15/08, by hotChocolate

Inspired by the popular Shark Week, a whole 7 days focused on things that can kill you, we thought we would dedicate a week to the one little device that can save your life.

Our first day of Beacon Week starts off on a sad note. We have lost a valued member of the Skiing the Backcountry team.� It seems so unjust to have had such a short life!� But a good, productive life it was.�

While waiting for the snow to fall, we had been working him hard, practicing day and night.� After a couple of days, I realized my little guy was over the hill.� He was giving all sorts of wacky readings, if any at all- my beacon that is... With the gears in grind, it was just time to retire.� So, today we said goodbye to my Ortovox M2.� 5 years old, survived by myself. �

Bummer is that now I have to shell out the dough for a new one.



Most beacons only claim to have a shelf life of four to five years and I am no scientist, but living in the frozen arctic of Jackson, Wyoming could not have helped that lifespan. Also, beacons are fragile pieces of equipment. For some reason the manufactures don't see the need to g-shock these babies. I mean even a Casio watch from K-mart has g-shock protection these days. In short, frequent use will probably lead to a shorter life span and the need for a new beacon.

Another interesting note was that my beacon was becoming harder to search for from people with newer beacons. It was giving off weird transmittances that were not all that consistent. Only after frequent testing did we pick up on it and I can definitely see how it might be over looked.� It's a good idea to not only check and make sure your beacon is working properly, but also check your partner's. Now most of us will do a quick check at the beginning of our tour at a foot away or so. But as I said before, it was only after a couple of tests that we picked up on the inconsistency that could cost valuable time in a real rescue.

Moral of the story: You can never check and practice with your beacon enough.� And if your beacon is aging, make sure that you test that it still functions properly!

Here's the line up for this years beacon week:
Do Electronic Devices Affect Your Beacon Part 1
Does the Tracker Suck at Multiple Burials
Simple Answers to Difficult Questions, Beacon Technology 101
Do Electronic Devices Affect Your Beacon Part 2

I have seen the results on all these, and they are pretty interesting, so come back everyday this week for more Beacon Awesomeness!