Tick the avalanche gear you carry and see whether you are ready for avalanche terrain.
What avalanche gear do I need for splitboarding? Splitboarding needs the same avalanche gear as ski touring: the big three, which is a transceiver, a probe of at least 240 cm (7 ft 10 in) and a metal shovel, for every person in the group. First aid, an emergency blanket and a way to call for help are recommended on top. Without all three of the big three, do not enter avalanche terrain.
Gear is not training. A transceiver you cannot search with is dead weight. Take an avalanche course before you go into avalanche terrain and practise transceiver searches with your partners every season. This checklist checks your kit, not your skills.
Check your kit
Tick what you will carry on your next tour.
Not ready
Not ready. Missing from the big three: transceiver, probe, shovel. Without transceiver, probe and shovel, do not enter avalanche terrain.
The big three (required, every person in the group)
Recommended (adds safety)
Extras (comfort and self reliance)
How the Checklist Decides
Three states. Not ready while any of transceiver, probe or shovel is missing, whatever else is ticked. Required minimum met with all three but fewer than 2 of the recommended items. Fully equipped with the big three and at least 2 recommended items. The extras never change the status.
The Big Three: Transceiver, Probe, Shovel
A transceiver sends a signal on 457 kHz, and every other transceiver switched to search mode can follow it to a buried partner. It narrows the search to an area; the probe then finds the exact spot and depth, and the shovel does the rest, which is most of the work. Digging out a buried person takes far longer than finding them, so the shovel is not the least important of the three.
Why Splitboarders Need It Without Exception
A splitboarder is in avalanche terrain by definition: you climb on skins up the slopes you then ride down. The kit is the same as for ski touring. What differs is the transition: you spend longer than a skier converting between climb and ride, often standing on or below a loaded slope, so choose a safe spot for every transition.
Why Minutes Matter
Survival falls steeply within the first quarter of an hour of a full burial, mostly from asphyxia. Haegeli and colleagues (CMAJ, 2011) found the drop at about 10 minutes in Canada and about 18 minutes in Switzerland. Organised rescue rarely arrives in that window, so the people you are touring with are the rescue.
Where these numbers come from
The big three is the standard. Transceiver, probe and shovel per person is the minimum taught in avalanche education: AIARE in North America, and in Europe the avalanche warning services of EAWS and mountain rescue services such as TOPR in Poland.
The thresholds are ours. The 240 cm (7 ft 10 in) minimum probe length, the 20 by 20 cm (8 by 8 in) shovel blade and the 2 recommended items for "fully equipped" are this site's planning figures, not a published rule.
The survival figures come from Haegeli P et al., Comparison of avalanche survival patterns in Canada and Switzerland, CMAJ 2011.
Frequently asked questions
What avalanche gear do I need for splitboarding?
The big three, for every person in the group: an avalanche transceiver, a probe of at least 240 cm (7 ft 10 in) and a metal shovel. It is the same kit as for ski touring, because a splitboarder on the skin track is in the same terrain. On top of that, carry first aid, an emergency blanket and a way to call for help.
Is a beacon enough?
No. A transceiver tells you roughly where a buried partner is, the probe pinpoints the depth, and only a shovel gets them out. With one of the three missing, a rescue stalls at that step, so the checklist above reports not ready until all three are ticked.
Do I need an airbag for splitboarding?
It is not part of the required minimum. An airbag pack helps keep you at the surface of a moving avalanche, but it does nothing for a partner who is buried, so it comes on top of the big three and never instead of one of them.
Does every person in the group need their own transceiver?
Yes. If you are the one buried, your partners need their own transceivers in search mode to find you, and you need yours sending. One transceiver for a group protects nobody.
Is a plastic shovel good enough?
No. Avalanche debris sets hard within moments, and a plastic blade can crack in it at the worst possible time. Use a metal blade of at least 20 by 20 cm (8 by 8 in).