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What does the Brett Kobernik's Ski Pole Penetrometer test?

See:



Dutch's Draw Avalanche Fatality 2-23-2012: Brett says, "Ram easily penetrates very weak snow from surface to the ground".

See at the end of the video after frame 1:49 plus

What does this test prove? How is it quantifiable? Is this test useful to backcountry recreationists?

Obviously we use our probe pole or ski pole to probe for snow pack layers and resistance.

Cowboy showed us this in an avvy clas earlier this season. It's neat as hell. The idea is that is gives you a standard, repeatable way of testing the resistance of the snow to penetration of the rod ( ), i.e. consolidation. This then allows you to 'score' it and make meaningful assessemnt of the snow, instead of just saying it's "3 from the elbow" or "9 from the elbow", which can be very subjective.

On a side note, it's pretty awesome to watch the father of splitboarding at work. He's got all sorts of homemade tools and devices stuffed into various hidden pockets like some kind of superhero, and doesn;t even need a backpack most of the time.