Our Mission
Founded in 2010, the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center Foundation is the non-profit organization that helps fund the operations of the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center. Each year, the Foundation helps raise 70% of Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center (BTAC) funding through private donations and grants. Wyoming State Trails, Grand Teton National Park Foundation, and many volunteers provide critical support to help achieve our collective goal of providing avalanche and weather information to recreationalists around the region. The Foundation works tirelessly to raise awareness of the BTAC’s essential contributions of daily, detailed avalanche forecasts, snow and weather data, and avalanche awareness education for Northwest Wyoming.
Each year, over 70% of the Avalanche Center’s funding is derived from community donations or grants from the State of Wyoming.
If you are a winter backcountry skier, snowboarder or snowmobiler, and value the free, scientific, decision–guiding information the BTAC provides, please help support our work.
BTAC Foundation Staff
Liz King, Executive Director
Liz began working in the winter industry as a ski patroller after graduating from the University of Montana in 2008. After becoming a NOLS instructor in 2010 she soon led winter expeditions for the school and taught Level 1 Avalanche Courses. As a Senior Instructor for NOLS, Liz worked on curriculum development and implementation, risk management, and instructor development. In 2016, she stepped into the Program Supervisor position and spent three years supervising instructors, helping to manage the winter programming at the school, and coordinating logistics.
Liz has worked as a Backcountry Ski Guide & Avalanche Educator at Yostmark Backcountry Tours for nearly a decade, guiding clients and teaching students in and around Jackson, Wyoming. In 2019, she joined the AAI Instructor Team – leading both Recreational and Professional courses. That same year Liz took the position of Preventative Search & Rescue Manager at the Teton County Search & Rescue Foundation. In that role, she spearheaded the Wyoming Snow & Avalanche Workshops and oversaw the Backcountry Zero community outreach initiative – a Jackson Hole community vision to reduce fatalities in the Tetons. She also served as Associate Director and Interim Executive Director of that organization before stepping away at the end of 2023 to get back into winter work. Most recently, Liz has served as the Education Chair on the Board of Directors at the American Avalanche Association and worked as a public avalanche forecaster. She lives in Victor, ID with her husband, shaggy dogs, and horses.
Sengen Meyer, Outreach Coordinator
Sengen grew up in Northern California, skiing at Palisades nearly every weekend from the time she could walk. After she pivoted away from high-level ski racing, her love for freeskiing grew, and she spent the winter of her gap year in Jackson coaching for the Jackson Hole Ski & Snowboard Club (JHSC) and skiing as many days as possible. She continued competing casually through college at Cornell University, where she earned a B.A. in Environment and Sustainability. She returned to Jackson after college, drawn by its unparalleled access to (almost) all her favorite outdoor activities. She joined the Bridger-Teton Avalanche Center as Outreach Coordinator in September 2024. In addition to her work with BTACF, Sengen coaches alpine ski racing for JHSC and works for the Jackson Hole Land Trust.
Board Members
- Mitch Dann, Chair
- John Klaczkiewicz, Vice-Chair
- Stewart Johnson, Treasurer
- Paul D’Amours, Secretary
- Mark Snell, Fundraising Chair
- Bob Peters, Fundraising Chair
- Chris Leigh
- Chris Harder
- Jesse Stover
- Jen Reddy
- Jenn Sparks
- Lynne Wolf
- Karen Wilbrecht
- Patricia Campbell
BTAC Forest Service Forecast Staff
Frank Carus
Frank started with the US Forest Service at the Mount Washington Avalanche Center in 2011 and has been the Director of BTAC since 2021. Frank worked as SAR team leader or Incident Commander for many avalanche and mountain rescues in New Hampshire and has investigated more avalanche incidents and fatalities than he would like and is a trained Critical Incident Stress Peer Supporter. He has an obvious passion for learning and has taken the AMGA Alpine, Ski, and Ski Mountaineering guide courses and has worked as a mountain guide and rescue instructor since 1996. The human relationship to risk-taking is an endless source of fascination for Frank.
frank@bridger-tetonavalanchecenter.org
Alex Drinkard
Alex grew up near Spokane, WA where his fascination for mountains and deep powder snow began. His career with the USFS started in silviculture/forestry while obtaining a BS in Environmental Sciences from Portland State University; where he collected water quality data and wrote grants for non-profit organizations. He pursued wildland fire after college to chase the ‘ski bum’ lifestyle. This enabled him to spend winters in the British Columbia backcountry blending his passion for snow study, splitboarding, and snowmobiling. Since 2020, he has worked on the Bridger-Teton NF during the winter months. When Alex isn’t digging pits, tracking layers, or cataloging avalanches he enjoys gliding downhill sideways on a piece of wood.
Noah McCorkel
Noah grew up on the Front Range of Colorado as the child of two talented rock climbers. He was exposed to the mountains at a young age and first climbed the Grand Teton at age 13. This was a formative experience for Noah and ultimately led him to return to the Tetons for good after graduating from the University of Colorado in 2017.
Noah is passionate about all forms of skiing and climbing and has pursued them at a high level from South America to Alaska. A bit of a dual personality, Noah also enjoys science, obtaining a MS in Geospatial Information Science and Technology from the University of Wyoming in 2023. Most of all, Noah loves teaching and sharing his excitement for the mountains with those around him.
Mike Rheam
Mike works as the avalanche hazard reduction leader for Jackson Hole Ski Patrol and as a forecaster for the Bridger-Teton NF Avalanche Center. Mike is the coordinator and lead instructor for the JH NAS Field Session. He has had extensive experience heli-ski guiding and forecasting and is currently a guide and snow safety consultant for a backcountry lodge in the Alaska Range. Mike floats, fishes, hikes, and skis with his wife and daughter, both of whom ski better than he does.
John Fitzgerald
John Fitzgerald has worked for over two decades as an avalanche professional in both Wyoming and Alaska. Prior to coming to work at BTAC, he was in charge of the WYDOT avalanche program. He has guided on Teton and Togwotee passes and led multi week trips throughout the region. Fitz has also spent time working as a forecaster/guide in Alaska for the Chugach Avalanche Center and Valdez Heli Ski Guides. His extensive experience includes guiding ski touring, cat and heli skiing, conducting avalanche mitigation, and managing remote weather stations & avalanche detection systems. He has been in a leadership role in programs ranging from education to guiding and forecasting. Fitz loves to spend as much time in the snow as possible while empowering the community to make informed decisions-and have fun!
Travis Baldwin
Travis grew up in Charlotte, Vermont, a small town near Burlington. He attended the
University of Wyoming, earning a mechanical engineering degree. During college, he
started working for the National Park Service building backcountry trail crews in
Yellowstone. After graduating and briefly pursuing some engineering-related work, he
returned to Yellowstone for six seasons (2004–2009).
Travis then worked at Rocky Mountain National Park running trail crews for four seasons while his wife, Rebecca, completed a medical fellowship in Denver. After Rocky, he worked at North Cascades National Park as a climbing ranger for the
National Park Service (2013–2015). He and his wife moved to Anchorage, AK in 2016 where he guided on Denali before becoming a seasonal climbing ranger for Denali National Park in 2017. He and his wife were based in Anchorage (and Talkeetna, AK) for 9 years.
Parallel to his NPS career, he began mountain guiding, spending the last eight summers with Exum Mountain Guides after the Denali climbing season ends. He is now based in
Jackson, WY and splits the year between forecasting with the Bridger-Teton Avalanche
Center, patrolling Denali as a climbing ranger with the National Park Service and
guiding for Exum Mountain Guides in the Tetons.
Joey Manship
Joey grew up in West Yellowstone and Bozeman, Montana exploring the mountains skiing, biking, hunting, and snowmobiling. After finishing high school, he moved to Salt Lake City, Utah where he studied at Westminster College. After college Joey continued his drive to be in the mountains by finding a career where he could do what he loves, being outside, and showing the mountains to other people. Joey began working for the Utah Avalanche Center in 2020 and moved on the BTAC in 2025. He loves the focus on educating, serving the community, and sticking his nose in the snow. You will find him skiing, snowmobiling, or cruising the desert when not working for the BTAC or guiding