Bulgaria Ski discussion board

An avalanche has killed a 30-year-old ski teacher above Bansko. The man, whose identity was not disclosed, is said to be a native of Razlog, Bulgarian media reported on February 2 2010.

Reportedly, the man was skiing away from the designated slopes. Given the recent heavy snowfall, the risk of avalanches on most Bulgarian mountains was severe, but that did not stop the man from leaving the protected area.

Bulgarian media reported that he was accompanied by three other individuals when the avalanche struck,. He was recovered quickly from the snow, but apparently received serious injuries while crushed between the rocks and the snow above.

On January 30, a 34-year old Bulgarian woman was seriously injured in an avalanche close to the Banderitsa lodge, suffering head injuries.

She was in a group of seven when they were suddenly swept away by the wall of snow. After the quick reaction by the Mountain Rescue Service, all were rescued. Apart from the woman, no one else was injured.

One day earlier, another avalanche caused the death of young snowboarder, again in Bansko.

On January 26, another skier died after hitting a snow cornice on Bansko's Alberto Tomba ski run.

It would appear that some proactive avalanche provention might be needed in bansko. A lot of people are loosing their lives especially given the smallish size of the resort. Ultimately it's the fault of the person who's hit by the avalanche if they're off the marked pistes but in bansko we're not talking about heliskiing. People are putting themselves in serious danger within reasonable walking distance of the pistes and statistically bansko would appear to be a very dangerous place to ski off-piste compared to other resorts.

Damo, a bit of an overreaction ???... even the heading sounds like a bloody scandal rag heading (Death toll !!!!)
The two boarders were off-piste down the Banderitsa valley from Tordorka. The gulleys they were skiing were accessable from the piste, but both individuals (one known to me personally) were well aware of the severity of the slope, and the posted high avalanche risk. It is very sad, and im sure if they were now capable of hinesight they may have been more cautious...
Conditions can vary from one side of the mountain to the other, this is no differant than any mountain resort, where avalanche is a constant danger, especially after a period of freezing temps, then fresh snow. Note Val'd`isere last season, loads of avalanche protection there, but it didn't help the hotel that was hit.
The seven individuals hit by an avalanche were deep up into the Banderitsa valley, walking across a notoriously prone area on their way up to the Vihren hut... again conditions should have dictated their decision to attempt such a trip...
At the moment the ski patrol can only advise on conditions, although it is deemed illegal to ski outside the marked ski area by the operator for insurance reasons, it is allowed, and hopefully this will continue. To have the controls and restrictions that now ruin the Alps, would be a definate blow for Bansko. It is sad that people die, it is sad in any sport, be it motor racing, skydiving etc... but it is a fact that it happens... This is the cause of the adrenalin buzz, but this can be tempered with good sense and information...
I hit a tree yesterday off-piste, well a branch... took it for granted that it would move as i skied through it..it didn't.. succeeded in gouging my face and bruising my jaw.. two inches one way i would have lost an eye, two inches the other i could have broken my neck..but i didn't, I was lucky, and i will try to be more careful next time...
These overdramatisations of events in Bansko have already had people talking about avalanche risks on piste.... please ?????????

The last thing I'd want to see is off-piste being banned or any draconion measures put in place to curtail the activity. Off-piste is the purest form of the sport and until you've felt the feeling of weightlessness when skiing or boarding in deep untracked powder you haven't experienced it to it's fullest. It's this feeling that makes people take risks. Bansko has some brilliant off-piste, in fact sometimes I think it should be better promoted. I was talking to a ski instructer a couple of years ago who told me that the reason he teaches in Bansko is so he can take advantage of the off-piste skiing, which he went on to say is some of the best in europe. Not many people think or know that. If there were more advertised qualified guides and education more people could experience it safely and off-piste could become a positive promotional opportunity for bansko. If this happened it would be more financially viable for Ulen to look beyond the pistes and to monitor, educate, police, guide and even make safer (By the use of explosives etc) that powder rich resorce they have on their door step. The tree huggers might have something to say about that but unless something is done more people will get into trouble. By the way there is more chance of a UFO landing on your head than snow from an avalanche whilst skiing on piste in bansko.

Total agreement mate, the off-piste here is well visited, the tracked out areas are witness to that...
I suppose it is down to education, and information...
There are the embryonic traces of off-piste schools starting to appear, avalanche and mountain awareness courses are becoming available..
But still we will have the local `blaisey' attitude, especially where safety is concerned, and im assuming the incidents off-piste will continue...
Unfortunately it exists right throughout the Alpine regions, locals who possess fantastic knowledge and are incredible skiers/boarders will push the envelope to get their high, and maybe overlook blareingly obvious signs of danger...
I like you would love to see Bansko as a off-piste destination, it has the area, and with the right development, its concievable that it could happen... Initially my real concerns are means of access, no motorised means, so this leaves touring, still a great pastime, and something that people are looking at in Bansko..