Sierra:

--A professional free skier who competed in the Winter X Games died last week after crashing into a rock outcropping at California's Squaw Valley. C.R. Johnson was with a group of friends when he fell while trying to get through a narrow, rocky section. After falling face-first, Johnson spun and struck the back of his head on rocks. He was wearing a helmet, but the helmet took a serious blow. To read more, click here.

Notes from All Over:

--The death toll from snow avalanches in northwestern China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region rose to seven last week as military helicopters rescue the trapped, local officials said in a statement. A total of seven deaths have been reported in northern Xinjiang's Ili Kazak Autonomous Prefecture and southern Xinjiang's Bayingolin Mongolian Autonomous Prefecture, while hundreds of others are still trapped. To read more, click here.

--The massive earthquake that struck Chile over the weekend hit the Southern Andes during the height of the climbing season. Many climbers felt the tremors on the flanks of Aconcagua, but the impact was minimal and climbers reportedly summitted the same day as the quake. To read more, click here.

--Two backcountry skiers were partially buried in a rare avalanche in the Adirondacks over the weekend. They were in the same slide path as that which killed a skier in 2000. To read more, click here.
--This year's Piolet d'Or ceremony will recognize three significant climbs: the most technical, the most committing and the most exploratory ascents of 2009. The nominations have recently been paired down from 52 to 5. The final awards will be presented in Chamonix, France, and Courmayeur, Italy, from April 7-10. To read more, click here.

--Europeans are bringing expertise on avalanche safety to Utah. A Swiss engineer and leading avalanche-safety expert Manuel Genswein was at a Wasatch ski resort east of Salt Lake City this weekend to show off a device meant for surviving a deadly snow slide — a set of air bags designed into a backpack for floating atop avalanche debris. Skiers hit a rip cord to activate the air bags. Genswein said the $1,000 air bag system is making its introduction in North America after years of use around Europe, where he says it has proven 98 percent effective. To read more, click here.

--Spanish mountaineer Edurne Pasaban said Tuesday she hopes to meet South Korean rival Oh Eun-Sun on Annapurna this April for a race to become the first woman to scale the world's 14 highest peaks. Pasaban leaves yesterday on a trip to conquer both the Shisha Pangma and Annapurna mountains this spring, the last two peaks in her record-breaking bid. To read more, click here.