Photo: © Tero Repo, taken in Zermatt.

Before you set off on your ski trip this winter it makes sense to find out everything you can about safety and avalanches – especially if you plan to go off-piste. The steep and deep is certainly an adventure, but there’s a fine dividing line between dramatic and dangerous. Knowledge is the best tool for helping to keep safe, so we’ll certainly be attending one of these lectures to brush-up on our snow safety.

The North Face® Avalanche Awareness Series lectures will be given by Ian Sherrington, Chief Instructor at Glenmore Lodge, Scotland’s National Outdoor Training Centre. Ian is an International Mountain Guide, a ski instructor, and works as a tutor for Snowsports UK. He has a huge amount of outdoor leadership experience and has led ski tours in Scotland, Europe and Pakistan.

In a clear, concise way that’s not weighed down by science, this interactive lecture will cover key concepts such as snowpack development and avalanche formation, how to think about terrain when route planning, how to look for signs of unstable snow, the human factors involved, and avalanche airbag systems.

Ian’s experienced knowledge – together with great photos, videos, real-life examples and personal experiences – should make this lecture fascinating as well as practical. On top of this, at each lecture there will be prizes of The North Face® equipment and there’s an overall series prize to win a VIP £1,000 shopping experience with The North Face® in Snow+Rock stores.

Lectures will take place at 7pm at the following venues: Monday November 24: Snow+Rock Port Solent, Tuesday November 25: Snow+Rock Bristol, Wednesday November 26: Manchester Chill Factore, Thursday November 27: Snow+Rock Leeds, Monday December 1: Snow+Rock Covent Garden, and Tuesday December 2: Snow+Rock London Kensington.

Buy your tickets here for £7 (£5 for SCGB members). All proceeds from the lectures go to Disability Snowsport UK.