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Show A- - 1 be j&tlt V-- - fnkt tribune January Monday Morning 20, 1986 Section C ' 'f' t Preparing for the Unexpected Survival Training Helps By Mike Gorrell Tribune Staff Writer A couple of years PARK CITY ago, Gary Schaefer of Denver was caught in a blinding blizzard in a barren stretch of country miles from Caspar, Wyo. It was too dangerous for he and his partner to proceed any farther. They couldnt see more than a few feet and easily could have become lost. So they shut off their snowmobiles, dug a snow cave and rode out the storm in relative comfort. The weather cleared the next morning and the pair of U. S. Soil Conservation Service snow surveyors returned to their home base, much to the relief of their worried Had the two men not known how to respond to the emergency conditions, they wouldnt have made that return trip. To ensure that other government employees react accordingly when a dangerous situation develops in the Mr. Schaefer and four dozen other participants in the West-Wid- e Snow Survey School pulled out shovels and dug snow caves for an overnight stay last week in White Pine Canyon outside of Park City. The survival exercise was part of a weeklong conference designed not only to keep surveyors alive, but also to improve the quality of snow depth readings which figure prominently in the development of spring plans. Participants came from 10 western states for training in winter survival, skiing, dealing with avalanches, radio communication and equipment maintenance, aid. and mountain medicine-firs- t Admittedly, last weeks overnight campout lacked the feelings of anxiety that undoubtedly were part of Mr. Schaefers earlier experience. Weather conditions were rather nice, actually. Kind of warm with periodic flurries of light snow. The scenery was beautiful. Low clouds hugged the ridges of hills rising on both sides of the narrow valley where the participants were digging in near a grove of aspen trees. People were having fun. "Were going to go visiting once we get our house built, said Rhoda Por-ti- s of Baker, Ore. as she and fellow Oregonian Carol Detroit prepared their snow cave. Come back later and we ll have some tea." back-countr- flood-contr- cross-countr- y 1 Utah Group Thinks Judges Ignore Option of Joint Custody in Divorces ,j j Page Crews Snow-Surv- ey Although joviality was pervasive, the training was serious enough that it will pay off if its ever needed, stressed Jon G. Werner, data collect tion supervisor for the Soil Conservation Services Salt Lake office and coordinator of the conference. This will prepare people to make quality decisions in remote areas under unusual circumstances so they do survive if they get into an emergency situation, Mr. Werner said. Its important, to avoid disasters, for people to be able to recognize dangers and then to follow their training, not to compromise their knowledge and training. You cant just say its dangerous but well go anyway. As an example, he noted, Its like the story about there being a lot of old helicopter pilots, but not a lot of bold old helicopter pilots. You can say the same of snow surveyors. Not a single snow surveyor has died in the line of duty, and Mr. Werner intends to keep it that way. Mental preparation is the key. Part of the problem is the trauma of being in an emergency situation and having to deal with it with only your own resources. Thats our underlying theme. We teach resourcefulness and how to cope with something unexpected, he said. The unexpected isnt as hard to deal with if an individual makes good advance preparations, such as dressing correctly and having adequate tools and supplies. A vital aid for anyone spending any amount of time in the Mr. Schaefer noted, is plastic. It has a lot of uses, but the main ingredient is it keeps you dry, he said. In the shelter which Mr. Schaefer built as a demonstration model for back-countr- other conference participants, a sheet of plastic was placed on top of branches laid in a criss-cros- s pattern above a deep opening dug into the snow. Tree boughs then were placed on the plastic and several inches of snow were added to increase the insulation. "This sleeps three. Itll be nice and cozy. If its 30 degrees below zero out there, itll stay 20 to 30 degrees above in there, he said, pointing to his shelter. Just about the right temperature to enjoy that cup of tea. h Tribune Staff Photos by Dan Miller cave is essential to winter survival, as particifive-day in survival training course learned. To make pants a g tree boughs or one, instructors say to place y skis over a hole dug 30 inches deep, then pack a few inches of snow over that for insulation. The difference in temperatures can be as much as 50 degrees. These photos show how and a smiling John Metcalfe, above, enjoys results. A good snow criss-crossin- cross-countr- By Ana Daraban Tribune Staff Writer In a divorce, everything is divided, including the children. But they are not divided evenly. In Utah, the mother is awarded custody of the children 90 percent of the time. But one person should not have sole possession of the children, according to a Utah group that is fighting for more joint custody rulings. Utah Parents for Childrens Rights believes joint custody should be the first preference in a divorce decree and it is seeking to have four bills passed at the Legislature to mend the situation. The joint custody portion of the proposed HB66, sponsored by Rep. Richard L. Maxfield, is drawn from various bills around the country and lists joint custody as the first preference on a divorce decree. Utah divorce laws list single-paren- t custody as the first choice. When people get divorced, they divorce each other, not their parental roles, said Linda Ruiz, information officer for UPCR. All we want is an agreement between parents to take responsibility of the children. UPCR feels Utahs divorce laws make children look like financial obligations to the father instead of emotional ties. The divorced father, who has spent time with his children, psychologically feels left out of their lives, Ms. Ruiz said. He feels hes no longer a good parent. He gets less hours with the kids, he feels theyre out of his life. He feels like a virtual stranger, she explained. But the mother also feels a psychological pressure if she does not have custody of the children, said Evelyn Ward, UPCR president. In Utah, a mother feels the stigma if she doesn't have them. She may feel she's an unfit parent, or she feels people think shes a bad mother, Mrs. Ward said. If this pressure was not so strong, mothers may be more willing to give custody to fathers, she noted. Some of the fault also lies with attorneys and the way divorces are processed in the state, Mrs. Ward and Ms. Ruiz said. In Salt Lake County there are approximately 5,000 divorces annually. Of those, 20 percent of the divorcing fathers ask for custody of their children, Ms. Ward said. This is because few attorneys will fight for the fathers custody, she said. Adding to the burden is the process. In a divorce, the court appoints a social worker or a psychiatrist to interview the children. Unless the reports reveal the mother is unfit, a judge automatically awards her custody. For a father to obtain custody, he must prove the mother is unfit or the mother must give the children to him. UPCR also is concerned with children's rights, ensuring that parents do no treat them as tools. Divorce cases have shown, for example, a mother denying her access to the children because he was late on his child support payments. Or a mother moving out of the area without telling her and listing only a post office box to where he can mail the support money. Fathers sometimes retaliate by stealing their children. Salt Lake City Police statistics reported 18 cases of fathers stealing their children in the first six months of 1984. In 1985, 34 cases were listed in the same period, Ms. Ruiz said. Many parents are concerned through joint custody that children will be divided up unevenly for visitation purposes. But through joint custody, the amount of time children will spend with each parent will depend upon the agreement the parents reach, she said. For example, a mother may have a child, who is already registered for school, stay with her during the school year and then turn the child over to its father for three months. This would avoid disrupting the child's school life and the feeling that he or she is being dragged around from parent to parent. Child support also has been a dilemma in divorces. Many stories have been recorded about fathers moving away from the state to avoid paying monthly child support. But UPCR claims even this problem can be lessened through joint custody. According to several recent California studies on child support, it ap six-mon- th pears joint custody reduces delinquency on payment. The studies estimate a 6 percent default on support payments in joint custody awards as compared with 78 percent default of support payments in sole custody awards. Joint custody is the way to go but it should not listed as the first preference, according to Barry Naef, president of the Utah chapter of the United Fathers of America organization, which fights for the rights of divorced parents. "Im not sure everyone needs it joint custody, he said. If mom and dad have worded the agreement improperly, the judge will enforce the agreement. Parents should be aware of their options and should not be forced into joint custody. But Sonja Smith, president of Kinder, a newly organized childrens rights group, has several reservations about changing Utah's divorce laws. She feels the proposed bills will "endanger the rights of children. It takes a special kind of couple to establish a joint custody. If it doesnt work, therell be a big fight and that can have a devastating effect, she said. Many judges believe joint custody is legal Were expectfiction ing them to work together and be good friends said one judge. They couldn't get along in a marriage. How are they going to get along in a divorce ? Joint custody requires an extraordinary level of cooperation, communication and good will between parents, she said, and to see courts ask for joint custody when parents may still be antagonistic and who do not wish to cooperate on a daily basis may exacerbate an already tense divorce situation. If the Utah bills were to pass, they could allow for the possibility of a coerced agreement. A parent who does not want joint custody but is afraid of losing sole custody if a judge learns that he was uncooperative and refused joint custody may feel he has to agree to joint custody in order to avoid the risk of losing custody all together. One right of the children that may be endangered are the amounts of child support paid, since the money is lowered in cases of joint custody. According to a research paper by Jessica Pearson and Nancy Thoennes, of the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts in Denver, joint custody is being used to justify low support amounts. In cases of joint custody, support was awarded only 38 percent of the time, with another 9 percent receiving support for part of the year. In cases where no support was ordered, the annual earnings of the two parents were equal at the time of separation. However, under joint residential custody, the children were not living equally in two households; when there were no support orders, the average amount of visitation was 51 weekdays and 84 overnights per year. This means that the children were living with one parent more than two thirds of the time, yet that parent was receiving no support. Another difficulty facing joint custody is the feelings of district court judges. Barbara Gee, an intern at the Hinckley Institute of Politics at the University of Utah, recently interviewed eight judges from Utah's 3rd District Court on joint custody. Of the eight judges, only one favored joint custody, saying, "If parents are mature enough to understand joint custody, it can work. Many judges, however, believe joint custody is "legal fiction. One judge summed up the majority of the opinions when he stated, "Were expecting them to work together and be good friends. They couldnt get along in a marriage. How are they going to get along in a divorce? It takes a rare person to put aside their personal feelings." inappropriately Area Births Birth! reported at Solt Loke area hoipltal! Include: Holy Pioneer Valley Mr. and Mr!. Jame! S. Flnloyion, daughter. Mr. ond Mr!. Jett Welter gar d, ion. Mr. ond Mn. Bryan Neville, ion. Mr. and Mn. Crolg Hoyi, daughter. Mr, and Mn. Mlchoel T. Brown, ion, Hos- pital Mr. ond Mr!. Slone dauohter. Mr. ond Mr!. Warren Hunt, ion. Mr. and Mr!. Stan Strickland, !on. Mr. and Mn. Lynn Day, dauohter. Mr. ond Mr!, Lee Cling-er- , daughter. Mr, ond Mr!. Gilbert Voiquet, !on. Cross Jordan Valley Hospital I.ukeview Hospital Mr. and Mn. Andrew Ledbetter, daughter, Cottonwood Hospital Mr. and Mn. Chet Caldwell, daughter. Mr. and Mn. Larry F. Lunt, ion. Mr. ond Mn. Joieph B. M'lkonln, daughter. Mr. and Mn. Scott B. Nelion, doughter. University Hospital Mr. ond Mr. Henry Oullei, daughter. Mr. ond Mn. Timothy Rolte, daughter. Mr. and Mn. Brent Looile, daughter, |
