175:, and laid out trails for the resort that remains at Aspen today. While in the valley, he gave ski lessons and helped form what later became the Aspen Ski Club, (known today as the Aspen Valley Ski and Snowboard Club). The first ski trail, Roch Run, opened in 1937, but while awaiting further funding,
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Roch joined the Swiss
Federal Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research in the late 1930s and became head of the section on snow and avalanche mechanics and avalanche control. During this period, Roch published many scientific articles on avalanche prediction, snow pack evaluation, and glaciation.
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Roch was married twice. He had three children – one son and two daughters – with his wife Emilie
Dollfus. Roch suffered personal tragedy when one of his daughters, along with her friend, were killed in a climbing accident in 1962. This accident would have taken Roch's life as well if a rope
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His experience with avalanches extended beyond scientific observation, as he was personally caught in an avalanche on three occasions, and also was skiing with his son when his son was swept away by an avalanche. After he and his son had survived these events, his best-known quote became "The
58:. He was introduced to mountain sports by his father, who was an avid climber, and he learned to ski at an early age. He won both the downhill and the slalom races at the 1927 Student Olympics in Italy. In his youth he traveled and pursued university education in the United States.
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broke out and development halted. When the resort opened in 1946, a ski racing trophy, the Roch Cup, was awarded to the winner of the combined downhill and slalom race at Aspen. This trophy commemorating Roch has been won at various times by noted skiers including
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By 1936, Roch was already renowned as an expert on avalanche prediction, and also as a climbing guide. Colorado investors, Ted Ryan, and two-time
Olympic bobsled gold-medalist
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and Norgay, reached to within 200 meters (656 feet) of the summit before being forced to turn back due to severe weather conditions and lack of oxygen.
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Over the course of his career, he was a consultant on avalanche issues to private corporations, government agencies and courts in various countries.
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in 1931, Roch was a member of the
Cascade Ski Club. On 26 April 1931 Roch, together with two fellow members of the Cascade Ski Club,
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Roch contributed to advances in avalanche safety in the Alps, in
Scotland, and in the US. He was the first to describe the different
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Roch was born near Geneva, Switzerland, in 1906, the son of an academic physician who would later become the president of the
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consequently hired Roch to come to Aspen, Colorado, to assist in development of a ski resort. Roch conducted a survey of
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and expert, skier, resort developer, engineer, and author. Roch is best known for having planned and surveyed the
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In 1952, at the age of 45, he was the most experienced member of a group of four Swiss climbers who, along with
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46:, ski resort, and also as an adviser on avalanche management whose expertise was sought throughout the world.
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pack that occur in the United States, and it was his lectures and published papers that prompted the
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and
Tenzing Norgay used to reach the summit the following year. Two members of the 1952 expedition,
97:. Over the course of his life, Roch made 25 first ascents in the Alps and 27 first ascents in Asia.
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at age 84. Roch drew on these experiences to publish more than a dozen books on mountaineering.
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in 1928 and later became the president of its Geneva section. While a university student at
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to set up facilities at several western sites to study avalanche safety and prevention.
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277:"Edward R. LaChapelle - Personal Communication Taped phone interview, 5 December 2001"
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and Arne Stene, became the first to descend on skis from the summit of
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was first climbed by a Swiss expedition led by André Roch in 1938.
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438:"Andre Roch, 96; Swiss Mountaineer, Avalanche Researcher"
569:"World Cup Ski Racing in Aspen: A Timeline of Events"
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376:"André Roch, Swiss climber and expert on avalanches"
426:(in French). Geneva, Switzerland: Editions Jeheber.
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469:"The Complexities of the Alpine Meadows Avalanche"
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159:avalanche does not know that you are an expert."
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201:connecting him to his daughter had not broken.
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341:"Ski athlete and innovator, Hvam did it all"
281:Alpenglow Ski Mountaineering History Project
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238:Gardner-Smith, Brent (21 Nov 2002).
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503:"A Defense Attorney's Perspective"
16:Swiss mountain climber (1906–2002)
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405:"Mountain Info. Greenland 2006".
89:Beginning in 1931, Roch made the
374:Goodwin, Stephen (20 Nov 2002).
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544:. 17 March 1941. Archived from
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240:"Aspen pioneer Roch dies at 96"
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62:Mountaineering accomplishments
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275:Lowell, Skoog (25 Jul 2006).
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66:Roch became a member of the
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34:) was a Swiss mountaineer,
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501:Fagan, John (March 1992).
339:Keil, Bill (2009-12-20).
116:, pioneered the route on
624:Sportspeople from Geneva
313:"Obituaries: Andre Roch"
163:Aspen resort development
629:Swiss mountain climbers
131:He last climbed in the
212:Demon of the Himalayas
93:of many routes in the
30:– 19 November 2002 in
634:Engineers from Geneva
619:Avalanche researchers
409:. January 2008, p. 70
507:The Avalanche Review
473:The Avalanche Review
56:University of Geneva
36:avalanche researcher
513:(5). Archived from
479:(5). Archived from
388:on February 3, 2011
22:(21 August 1906 in
579:on 6 December 2000
446:. 23 November 2002
573:AspenWorldCup.com
536:"Sport: Roch Run"
443:Los Angeles Times
150:US Forest Service
95:Mont Blanc Massif
68:Swiss Alpine Club
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467:(March 1992).
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114:Tenzing Norgay
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424:Everest: 1952
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349:. pp. T6
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252:on 2012-01-26
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196:Personal life
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186:Franz Klammer
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146:types of snow
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103:Schweizerland
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321:. 5 Dec 2002
318:The Scotsman
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177:World War II
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91:first ascent
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80:Hjalmar Hvam
72:Reed College
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609:2002 deaths
604:1906 births
465:Roch, André
420:Roch, André
245:Aspen Times
205:Filmography
173:Hayden Peak
169:Billy Fiske
28:Switzerland
598:Categories
583:2009-12-20
554:2009-12-20
521:2009-12-20
487:2009-12-20
450:2009-12-20
392:2009-12-20
353:2009-12-20
325:2009-12-20
291:2009-12-20
256:2009-12-20
220:References
190:A. J. Kitt
182:Billy Kidd
99:Mont Forel
84:Mount Hood
50:Early life
20:André Roch
133:Himalayas
107:Greenland
422:(1952).
44:Colorado
24:Hermance
105:, East
215:(1934)
120:which
76:Oregon
32:Geneva
40:Aspen
541:Time
188:and
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