The next load of fresh snow is on the radar within the next few days and will be the firing shot for the upcoming freeride season. The POWDER DEPARTMENT lives up it´s name and the run for untracked powder faces in the popular Freeride Eldorado close to Innsbruck starts right now! In the POWDER DEPARTMENT, freeriders and freeride novices can find the perfect backcountry and infrastructure, safety events, top equipment and of course loads of fresh powder!

Freeriding on the Stubai Glacier is not a secret any longer but there is still lots of terrain for eager riders to hit. No wonder it is proving so popular as no other resort is so easily accessible from Innsbruck within 45 minutes. Whilst giving a guarantee for perfect snow conditions from early October until June. Not only locals go here a great number of adopted Tyroleans from all over the world know how to appreciate the versatility and diversity of variants of descents in the back part of the Stubai valley.

FREERIDE ELDORADO WITH PERFECT INFRASTRUCTURE

With the Powder Department, also non-local backcountry fans are now able to find the perfect infrastructure for their unlimited freeride experience on Stubai Glacier. Beside info walls in the resort, an Offpiste-Map shows the right access and tracks of the 15 freeride runs with promising names such as „Cannonball“, „Thriller Flake“ or „The Wall“ away from the slopes. All those, who want to get all exact details, can download GPS-Tracks on their mobille advices, check the Powder Department Trackbooks or website www.powder-department.com for detailled information and watch videos of each and every powder run, which will get you in the right motivation, wanting to be the first up there after a great dump to draw tracks into those fabulous faces! Freeride-Checkpoints at the mountain stations „Gamsgarten“ and „Eisgrat“ provide safety instructions and the latest information about the tracks, weather, snow conditions and avalanche danger. At the Freeride-Checkpoints you can check your avalanche transceivers function and battery. Further, an Ortovox Trainingspark is permanently established at the Gamsgarten to simulate the case of emergency and the correct behaviour can be trained at any time.

SAFETY FIRST – SHOP & TEST CENTER

Even, if getting started with freeriding has never been so simple before, every freerider has to be aware of the dangers in alpine terrains. After all, the Powder Department is situated on open glacier terrain with crevasses and outside the marked slopes area. For the own safety and safety of others, a safety equipment, fundamental experience and knowledge are obligatory in the backcountry. Every freerider should be equipped with well-working safety gear, consisting of a helmet and a backpack containing an avalanche transceiver, a shovel and a probe and he should naturally know how to handle his gear in case of an emergency. The Intersport Shops at the Eisgrat and Gamsgarten offer safety equipment for rent and purchase. The sportshops also serve as official Ortovox Testcenters, offering a great range of avalanche transceivers, probes and shovels for testing. Beside functional outerwear, you can find here also substitute batteries for GoPros and further useful accessoires.

NEW PARTNER FOR THE POWDER DEPARTMENT

For the winter season 2014/15 Stubai Glacier welcomes Ortovox as the new safety partner of the Powder Department. Beside a brand-new ORTOVOX training park at the Gamsgarten, two Freeride Checkpoints have been set up by Ortovox in the resort. Ortovox safety gear is available for testing in the two sportshops at the Eisgrat and Gamsgarten. Every Friday morning, Ortovox offers safety trainings at the ORTOVOX TRAINING PARK at the Gamsgarten. Everyone can sign up for the trainings until the Thursday before.

EVENTS, CAMPS & COURSES

All those, who do not feel confident in the backcountry yet or who would like to learn more about freeriding and risk management, can sign up for one of the Powder Department camps or courses.

Winter´s about to start, have fun and stay safe out there!

Welcome at the Powder Department 2014/15!

The Powder Department EVENTS 2014 / 15 Overview

SAAC BASIC AVALANCHE CAMPS 15.-16.11.2014 AND 25.-26.04.2015

SAAC 2ND STEP CAMP 27.-30.11.2014

2 day avalanche camps with theoretical and practical part, the 2nd step camp takes place at Stubai Glacier for the first time in 2014/2015 and provides knowledge for advanced riders

SPORT OKAY AVALANCHE SAFETY DAYS

22.11.2014, 13.12.2014 and 17.01.2015

theoretical seminar for LVS-searching and practical training in authentic conditions at the LVS- training station

ORTOVOX SAFETY ACADEMY FREE EVENTS

07. and 08.02.2015

ORTOVOX LVS- training. Risk management and training of correct use of safety equipment in the backcountry, tour planning in order to minimize alpine dangers.

POWDER DEPARTMENT FREERIDE CAMP

20.-22.02.2015

Three days of freeride action: product demo test, workshops, guidings with authorized mountain guides and much more.

VÖLKL SPLIT UND FREERICE CAMPS

06.-08.03.2015 and 30.04.-03.05.2015

Splitboarding expeditions into the backcountry with Freeride World Champion Aline Bock.

All infos and dates can be found at powder-department.com