Lessons Learned from Aasgard Pass - Online Classroom

6:00-7:30pm PST via Zoom Meeting
Meeting link will be sent to registered attendees the day of the session.

In 1998, Steve Smith had a near-death experience while descending Aasgard Pass, near Leavenworth, WA. He glissaded into a (now well-known) waterfall hole in the snow, and was stuck beneath the snowpack in running water, almost dying of hypothermia. 

This is the story of his improbable escape, and the lessons learned in the aftermath. More than just a technical analysis of the incident, this is a deep dive into post-incident trauma, shame, recovery, and restoration.

Seminar Notes

This presentation will encourage attendees to speak up throughout the presentation and be interactive with prompting discussion questions interspersed within lecture segments. Breakout rooms will be used.

Pre-Reading:  ​​See blog post.

presenter

Steve Smith is a risk management consultant at Experiential Consulting, LLC. He has worked in the outdoor industry for over thirty years, including hundreds of days in the field instructing, administrative leadership roles with national organizations including Outward Bound and The Student Conservation Association, and helping The Mountaineers envision and launch Progressive Climbing Education as a member of the Adult Education department. Steve served as chair of the Wilderness Risk Management Conference (WRMC) for three years. He has a Master's degree in English Composition, along with six years of university-level teaching experience, and earned a Professional in Human Resources (PHR) certification from the Society for Human Resources Management, all of which help him view outdoor education through a variety of educational and administrative lenses. A regular speaker at regional and national conferences, Steve strives to make his presentations fun, engaging, and practical. He lives in Seattle and enjoys exploring the mountains, forests, and coastlines of the Pacific Northwest.