2021 Prospective Member Application

Alpine Rescue Team has been requested for search or rescue missions over 100 times the past few years. Missions happen on any day of the week, and at any time and typically last for 4-8 hours+ (although a significant percentage of the missions occur between June and September). Do you have enough flexibility in your work/life schedule to attend at least 20% of these missions (the minimum attendance requirement for all members)?

As a member of Alpine Rescue Team, it is required to attend 12 classroom trainings and 7 field trainings per year. This assures every member stays competent and safe in the field, acts within the Colorado Search and Rescue protocols, knows how to use Team equipment, and can act as a valuable team player during missions. Training is all inclusive and there are no 'passes' on training regardless of your level of expertise in any given area. Trainings occur every Wednesday evening and typically 2 weekend days per month. Are you able to make the commitment of attending the required number of trainings? (This pretty much means giving up many Wednesday nights and weekends from here-on-out).

Being an Alpine Rescue Team member can be a significant financial investment as individual team members are responsible for wearing/carrying the necessary equipment to be safe in the field. It is estimated that it can cost about $400-1000+ upfront for a team member to acquire all the necessary clothing/equipment if they don't already own these items.

To be an active team member you are responsible for being physically able and ready to field. As part of this, all prospective members must complete a physical test during the training hiking several mile in the mountains with a 30 pound pack in 3 hours. Are you physically able, and willing to complete this assessment?

Alpine Rescue Team is a non-profit, 501(c)3 organization. The team is very active with fundraising efforts, outside of training and missions, to ensure that we can continue to fund our operations and not charge for missions. We fundraise to ensure that we can provide the necessary training, replace our equipment and vehicles and plan for the future. This involves team members’ attendance and leadership to support various events throughout the year on top of the commitment to training and missions. Are you willing to take an active role in our fundraising events?

To be considered a prospective member, you must pass a background criminal check. Are you prepared to provide the information to complete the background criminal check?

Are you a full time resident within/nearby the area of Alpine Rescue Team’s response area? And do you plan to be here for the next 3-5 years?

Do you have your own vehicle to attend trainings, events and missions?

If selected to go forward could you attend an Interview with the team on Saturday or Sunday, November 13th or 14th at the Shack?

Now you know a bit more about what is entailed to be an Alpine Rescue Team member, and to take part in the prospective member process, do you want to put your name forward this time around?

In the context of Alpine Rescue Team, summer hiking would include regularly gaining peaks with 1000' of ascent of more, being both on groomed trail and talus/scree (such as Bierstadt or Torrey’s Peaks)

In the context of Alpine Rescue Team, GPS navigation involves identifying where you are quickly, quickly changing between coordinate types, datums, marking way points, creating routes, recording and downloading your tracks.

In the context of Alpine Rescue Team, map and compass navigation includes terrain association and identification of hazards, providing grid references, establishing bearings, accounting for magnetic declination, planning routes based upon time vs. distance vs. terrain, some micro-navigation to include aiming off, boxing, leapfrogging.

In the context of Alpine Rescue Team, rope work can be low or high angle. Being a climber gives you a start on this but experience and use of technical rigging systems is a different skill set.

Be honest! Never been on one? Messed about on a snowmobile that one time? Own one and are a regular recreational user? Guide?

Be honest! Never been on one? Messed about on a ATV that one time? Own one and are a regular recreational user? Guide?