Weston BACKCOUNTRY X FRIENDS OF CAIC OBSERVATION CHALLENGE

With Additional Support from Zeal Optics, Smartwool, Pret Helmets and mountainFLOW

THE CHALLENGE

We're aiming to get more of the backcountry community engaged in helping the CAIC write the forecasts we all depend on to stay safe!

Together with the Haa Aaní Alliance formed by Weston, Zeal Optics, Smartwool, Pret Helmets and mountainFLOW, we've set an ambitious goal of enticing the Colorado backcountry users to submit 5,000 public field reports/observation this season and are putting together a prize pack from the Haa Aaní Collection to encourage EVERYONE to get involved!

WHY THIS MATTERS

The CAIC issues daily avalanche forecasts for 27,656 square miles of mountainous terrain in Colorado. They do this with only 21 forecasting staff!

Public observations provide key information to forecasters when researching and writing the avalanche forecasts that backcountry users of all types depend on across the state. Your observations matter! It might be that you saw signs of avalanche activity, or just noting that the wind was blowing hard on a ridge but the conditions were great on the way down.

These observations add up, giving the CAIC thousands of extra eyes on the ground across the state.

HOW IT WORKS

Submit an observation

- Use the same name/email on each ob

- You can choose to remain anonymous and hide your exact location (don't worry about giving away your stash!)

- Any observation counts! Weather, snow pits, general conditions, recent avalanche activity, etc

- Only one observation per trip will be counted

-Submit as many as you can during the season, the more you submit, the more chances to win

What you can win!

Anyone who submits an observation fitting the criteria between 10/1/23 and 4/31/24 will have a chance to win a prize from Weston Backcountry and their partners:

January: MountainFLOW Eco Wax package (3 bars of wax)
February: Smartwool package (ski socks, hat, t-shirt from the Haa Aaní collection)
March: Zeal Cloudfall // Res + ODT Goggle
April: Pret Fury X or Vision X helmet (blue or gray)

Season End Grand Prize: Choice of Weston Ski, Snowboard or Splitboard from the Haa Aaní Collection

"The CAIC crowdsources information from people like you. It doesn't have to be fancy, you don't have to use jargon. Just tell us where you were and what you saw and attach some images if you can"

Sending in an observation (aka Field Report) is easy - check out this video from the CAIC for a guide to the new form

ABOUT THE CHALLENGE SPONSORS - The Haa Aaní Alliance

The Haa Aani Alliance was formed by five purpose driven mountain brands - Weston, Zeal Optics, Smartwool, Pret Helmets and mountainFLOW in conjunction with Crystal Worl of Trickster Company. These brands understand that while we may live and play in the headwaters of magnificent watersheds, that everything is downstream from us when we're slaying pow. If we all take stewardship of our ecosystems and our impacts on them, we can keep these life-giving arteries feeding our ways of life for generations to come.

>>>Learn More Here