If you've landed here, you either came across an creatively labeled bottle of hot sauce and scanned a QR code, or you heard the news via our communications channels - welcome!

We're Friends of CAIC, a 501c3 with a mission to support avalanche forecasting and education in Colorado, and we're thrilled to announce this new collaboration with Sendy Sauce, a mountain-based hot sauce manufacturer, to create a  “Spicy Moderate” blend to ignite awareness about Colorado’s notoriously tricky snowpack.

"Layering some Friends of CAIC “Spicy Moderate” sauce on your morning eggs really turns them into a ‘continental” breakfast,” says Sendy Sauce founder Clay VanSteel,  referring to Colorado’s blend of cold temperatures, clear skies, and low density snowfall – a recipe for an unpredictable snowpack that you can learn more about below.

We'll be selling bottles at events across the state, or you can buy your own pack at our partner Sendy Sauce's website below.

COLORADO'S SNOWPACK 

The snowpack in the Colorado Rockies is referred to as a "Continental Snow Climate". Continental snow climates are characterized by relatively cold temperatures, clear skies, and infrequent, low density snowfall. This often leads to a shallow snowpack characterized by weak, faceted snow layers which create a more fickle and unpredictable snowpack structure. Avalanche activity involves buried persistent weak layers and often peaks during a snow or wind event; however human-triggered avalanches are common long after a storm has passed. 

Persistent weak layers are the culprit in most avalanche accidents because they can cause avalanches long after the obvious danger from a recent snowfall. Because weaknesses can last through an entire winter, they are capable of producing larger avalanches that break deeper into the season’s snowpack than one might expect. 

This can result in long periods of time where the avalanche forecast danger falls under the "Moderate" category, or 2/5 on the danger scale, where likelihood of triggering an avalanche has decreased, but if you do trigger one, the consequences are scary and can involve the entire season's snowpack.

(sources include the National Avalanche Center's avalanche encyclopedia)

Learn about the North American Public Avalanche Danger Scale in this video by the National Avalanche Center

AVALANCHE PROBLEMS

Head to the Colorado Avalanche Information Center to learn about the types of avalanches.

TAKE A CLASS

Do you recreate in the mountains of Colorado in the winter? We recommend finding an avalanche safety course near you - options include free awareness sessions all the way to paid multiday classes aimed at advanced users.