Item: 20 YEARS OF VIDEOS FROM THE FIELD: USING THE POWER OF VIDEO TO SUPPORT PUBLIC AVALANCHE FORECASTS
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Title: 20 YEARS OF VIDEOS FROM THE FIELD: USING THE POWER OF VIDEO TO SUPPORT PUBLIC AVALANCHE FORECASTS
Proceedings: Proceedings, International Snow Science Workshop, Whistler, BC, Canada, 2026
Authors:
- Ian Hoyer [ Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center, Bozeman, MT, USA ]
- Alex Marienthal [ Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center, Bozeman, MT, USA ]
- David Zinn [ Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center, Bozeman, MT, USA ]
- Mark Staples [ Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center, Bozeman, MT, USA ]
- Doug Chabot [ Latok, LLC, Bozeman, MT, USA ]
Date: 2026-09-28
Abstract: In the winter of 2006–2007, riding the earliest wave of YouTube and armed with gear that would embarrass us now, forecasters at the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center (GNFAC) posted 16 short videos about snowpack conditions. Those videos drew 26,419 views. Last season, 134 videos drew 6.1 million views across three platforms, in a state of one million people. This large increase in viewership reflects the success of our combination of message, format, and platform in connecting us to a broad audience. Public avalanche forecasters face a hard problem: translate complex, consequential snowpack information into decisions that keep people alive. Written forecasts reach the converted, users who already know about our products. Video reaches everyone else. Last season, our videos were watched five times more than our written forecasts were read. It is not uncommon to meet backcountry users who have digested our video content and carry a working sense of current conditions but have never read an avalanche forecast, and in some cases don't know one exists. Social media algorithms do what opt-in forecast distribution cannot: they find the audience before the audience finds us. That expanded reach multiplies across everything we post. When we issue an Avalanche Warning, a larger following means the message travels farther and faster. The educational value also extends well beyond our forecast area and traditional readership. We've seen especially strong engagement among snowmobilers, a group the avalanche industry has historically struggled to connect with. Over the past 20 years, we've continuously adapted our approach as technology evolved and viewer habits shifted. The goal, efficiently creating engaging videos that warn, inform, and entertain, has never changed. The methods change constantly (e.g., shifting from horizontal to vertical video, increasing the use of "b-roll", or shifting our messaging to focus on advice for the coming days rather than simply reciting current conditions). This paper traces that evolution at GNFAC and draws lessons for forecasters and educators ready to use video as a core communication tool. We'll share what we got wrong, what we got right, and how integrating short-form video can expand your reach and turn a forecast into something people actually remember.
Object ID: ISSW2026_O3.7.pdf
DOI: https://doi.org/10.15788/1790098581
Language of Article: English
Presenter(s): Ian Hoyer
Keywords: Avalanche Communication, Social Media, Video Production, Public Outreach
Page Number(s): 2326 - 2329
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