Hey! Author here. Felt this one in particular needed a reply. I've since actually gotten a bit into alpinism and done a proper course. My instructor (a super e

Hey! Author here. Felt this one in particular needed a reply. I've since actually gotten a bit into alpinism and done a proper course. My instructor (a super experienced British guy in the Alps) refused to teach self-arrests to beginners because he said the risks were greater than the potential benefits. He said a lot of people get hurt practicing it (as you've noted) and so he preferred to really drill down on precautions and crevasse rescue techniques etc. As for the story, I need to note the slope wasn't too steep, but being unable to brake would maybe have sent me down the crevasse (unclear how wide it was, we stepped over it on the way there and it seemed it may have been narrow). I also doubt my technique was perfect, but I just remembered to not just try to have the axe over my head somewhere but rather push my body/shoulder into it with the axe placed more diagonally. I'm certain it was not beautiful nor perfect but at least enough in that situation.