The Gore Range Gravity Alliance is teaming up with Colorado Adventure Guides to offer a women's AIARE 1 course open to women and non-binary folks. The first day will be in CAG's classroom in Silverthorne, and days 2 and 3 will be on snow with one day likely on Vail Pass or near Vail. This AIARE level 1 is a 3-day introduction to managing avalanche hazard where you will learn a repeatable process to manage your risk and learn from your experiences in the backcountry. Students will also practice preparing for and carrying out a backcountry trip, keeping track of conditions, communicating, making decisions about hazards while in the backcountry, and learning rescue techniques if an avalanche occurs and someone is caught. Our Level 1 course will include 24 hours of course work at a minimum. We want to make sure that you get the education that you need and don’t cut corners in delivering the best product so that we can maximize your commitment! Your instructors: Katie MacKnight Katie got her start learning to ski in Crested Butte, CO along with her first backcountry hut trip to the nearby 10th Mountain Division Friend‘s Hut. Upon returning to Fort Collins to complete a degree in Restoration Ecology and graduate studies in Forestry/Fire Science, she began familiarizing herself with the Medicine Bow and Never Summer Ranges. She is certified as an EMT-B and then Wilderness First Responder since 2008, Katie has safely enjoyed a decade and a half of navigating Colorado’s big backyard by way of mountain bike, cataraft, and skis and enjoys sharing that passion with others. Jess Lewis Guides in Washington, Colorado and Canada. Jess grew up in the mountains of Colorado where she spent her days adventuring with her family. Her romps through the Mountain West and descents of western rivers sparked in her the desire to guide from an early age. Jess has guided on four continents including Antarctica and she spent three years living and working in Patagonia working in that magical and wild landscape. She calls Colorado home and loves guiding there but will happily travel to more distant regions. Her desire as a guide is to share with others the world that she knows and inspire them to discover their own strength and courage. Her favorite medium is rock but she can happily walk uphill in the snow for hours because nothing beats those high mountain sunrises. Leave No Trace Trainer.