Summary
Cindy Gagnon was backcountry skiing in Canada when she was buried in an avalanche.
Just a few hours later, the people she was skiing with — her friends — acted like nothing had happened. They reveled in the fresh powder, hooting and hollering as they skied home.
How could that be? And what did it mean?
This is a story about a type of denial we all engage in, whether in the wilderness or in our careers. It's a denial that simultaneously explains — and impedes — our ability for survival. And it might make you think twice about the decisions you make in the future.
Producer Bishop Sand, host of the new podcast Qualia, brings us the story.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | Hi, I'm Willow Belden and you're listening to Out There, the podcast that explores big questions |
| 0:11.7 | through intimate stories in the outdoors. |
| 0:17.4 | A quick announcement before we get started, we are starting to plan out our first ever live event. |
| 0:23.6 | It's going to be a storytelling workshop and we want to tailor it to you. |
| 0:27.6 | We put together a brief survey to learn a little bit more about what you'd want out of a workshop like this. |
| 0:34.6 | So if you're at all interested, head over to our website, out therepodcast.com, |
| 0:39.7 | and fill out the survey. It'll take you about three minutes and will help us design an event |
| 0:44.3 | that's valuable to you. Okay, on to our story today. |
| 1:04.1 | If you walk into any university classroom and ask the students who will get an A in this class, |
| 1:10.1 | a large number of kids will raise their hands. |
| 1:12.8 | But we all know that can't be true. |
| 1:15.8 | Most students will get a C, some will get an A, but not many. |
| 1:19.8 | You can even tell students this, ask them again, and they'll still raise their hands, despite the facts. |
| 1:27.4 | This is a story about this kind of denial, a denial that we all participate in. |
| 1:33.3 | It comes to us from producer Bishop Sand. |
| 1:36.3 | This story centers on a woman who knows the outdoors well. |
| 1:42.3 | Her name is Cindy Ganyan. |
| 1:46.2 | The wild backcountry is her playground and her office. |
| 1:50.2 | She's a backcountry guide and has been leading people on outdoor adventures for over 10 years. |
| 1:56.1 | In this kind of elite outdoor adventure world, guides like Cindy often buddy up and go on trips for bigger |
| 2:01.5 | thrills, without clients, just for fun. |
| 2:08.6 | On this day, Cindy's in Canada with some of her friends, and a hired guide, hiking up mountains |
... |
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