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Avalanche Simulator Ride: The Thrill of Being Crushed By Tons of Snow
Posted by Sean Fallon at 10:30 AM on December 22, 2007
The ski resort of Les Deux Alps wants to give visitors a chance to experience what it is like to be caught in an avalanche and learn how to survive without all of that messy "white death" business. The "Robocoaster," as it is called, was the brainchild of of local businessman Marc Dode, who lost a friend in an avalanche several years ago. The simulator is encased in a large dome that features two cabins and a large fan to blow cold air.
It can also rotate around six axes and can throw the user through an arc of seven meters during the course of a two-minute ride, with the final 20 seconds focused on the avalanche itself. The simulator is set to open today at a cost of 10 € or $17 per person. [Les Deux Alps and Pistehors via Get Outdoors]
Comments (AU Comments · US Comments)
There are currently no AU comments for this post.
jrghoull
Posted 6:54 PM 21/12/07
you know i could understand that if u were planning on doing a bunch (or even a little) hiking up some scary looking mountains, to take some sort of course for surviving avalanches...but this sounds more like a ride, or at least an experience too temporary to get anything meaningful out of.
jrghoull
mayz
Posted 6:53 PM 21/12/07
huh...pretty intresting idea, beats any magic kingdom rides. ha
mayz
imaria
Posted 7:53 PM 21/12/07
Wait.
He is marketing a simulator for how his friend died?
I suppose a comment about that being "cold" would be too predictable?
imaria
kendra68
Posted 6:43 PM 21/12/07
Yep, I woke up this morning and said "Gee, I wonder what it feels like to be buried in an avalanche."
I feel sorry about the guy who lost his friend, I guess it helped work out his grief eh?
kendra68
Palestina
Posted 8:51 PM 21/12/07
Video plz!
Palestina
Sloth
Posted 10:16 PM 21/12/07
Is frostbite, a dog with hot chocolate on his collar, and cannabilism included for my $14?
Sloth
aaj111
Posted 11:30 PM 21/12/07
I actually want to go on that.
aaj111
easy2panic
Posted 2:17 AM 22/12/07
"and can throw the user through an arc of seven meters"
Does that $14 include life insurance for when they break their backs?
easy2panic
Red Right Hand
Posted 1:42 AM 22/12/07
And for an extra $12 you will get shagged by a Yeti while you attempt to back your way out of a snowdrift.
Red Right Hand
smeee
Posted 2:10 PM 22/12/07
and thats supposed to be fun?
smeee
logruszed
Posted 8:18 PM 22/12/07
Just date fat chicks with poor circulation.
logruszed
pevans34
Posted 10:29 PM 22/12/07
nice. they should expand this into a theme park, based on the various ways nature ensures your eventual death
pevans34
liin
Posted 2:55 AM 22/12/07
I don't think this is a good idea to market this as "learning tool" for surviving avalanche. It gives mediocre riders the wrong idea. They'd think they can risk shredding anywhere without much land survey just because they rode off this simulator many a times.
Pros do their best to avoid being caught in one, and practiced a great deal on recovering a friend buried in one. And that should be the best way to learn about avalanche. When avalanche comes, it won't be like any simulations.
liin
ACTUALLYMAYBE
Posted 2:23 AM 22/12/07
coming soon - volcano simulator ride: the thrill of being burned by tons of lava
ACTUALLYMAYBE
CrazyGoLucky
Posted 11:33 PM 21/12/07
That sounds about as fun as being eaten by the mechanical abominable snow man on Disneyland's Matterhorn Bobsled ride.
CrazyGoLucky
GeekGoth
Posted 10:22 PM 21/12/07
So, wait hes making 14 bucks a person, off of simulating how his friend died?..now thats a business man
GeekGoth