Review of the three sessions that took place a few days ago in Chamonix as part of the Millet Safety Camp.
After having organized for nine of its clients a hike of 100 kilometers and 7000 meters of positive altitude difference on the GR5 last year, Millet has this time selected several lucky participants for its Millet Safety Camp. On the program this time, workshops on mountain safety via outings around Chamonix.
"The main theme was avalanche risk," explains Pierre Desmottes, Millet's communications manager, who was on hand for the occasion. "For the past four or five years, we've been organizing Safety Academies for our customers, which are theoretical in-store training sessions with a member of the Millet staff and a guide. This year, we wanted to do it in field mode. After the competition we organized, the participants were drawn at random and the five French winners were able to bring along the person of their choice. Obviously, we made sure beforehand that the selected participants knew how to ski tour or at least how to ski downhill at a good level. It was interesting to see the different profiles. We welcomed them for a first evening in Chamonix for theory lessons, before moving on to ski touring the following day."
All participants were supervised by certified guides. "We had three different groups during the week, divided according to nationality, to ensure that everyone spoke the same language," explains Pierre Desmottes. The Francophones (pictured in this article) enjoyed a ski touring outing that was moved to Megève, as it had snowed heavily at the start of the week in Chamonix. We preferred flatter terrain that was less dangerous for avalanches." The participants were advised by members of the Compagnie des Guides de Chamonix, which Millet has equipped for many years. The same applied to the Spanish and Italian groups, who were supervised by guides from Cervinia. The German, Swiss and Austrian participants were supported by guides from Grindelwald. "All three guide companies are equipped by Millet," explains Pierre Desmottes.
In the field, amateur mountaineers and skiers learned how to read the terrain, where to go and where to avoid, avalanche risks, how to use a shovel and probe, and how to use a avalanche transceiver. "Each participant received a Polartec Alpha," adds Pierre Desmottes. "It's a protection we use at Millet for our ski touring equipment. It's a great ratio of warmth, lightness and breathability, ideal for ski touring. Some of you were also able to test a first layer that we'll be launching at Millet next season. It's constructed in mesh form and allows perspiration to pass through while drying quickly.
If the pictures made you want to be there, Millet organizes on the same principle a Steep Camp next March in Cervinia. "It's going to be steep skiing, and you'll need to have a very good level of freeride or ski touring to take part, in addition to some mountaineering notions," concludes Pierre Desmottes. A word to the wise!
