Backcountry Shovel

Novice in the backcountry area. This season i'm hoping to step up and take some courses for avalanche safety. Any  recommendation on shovels that is light for hiking but still strong enough to lift a lot of snow. something ergonomic that wont kill the back? any design flaws to watch out for and so forth? 

Get a metal shovel.  Plastic deflects in hard, icy snow, metal chops.

I prefer shovels with extendable shafts.  Makes it easier to shovel large amounts of snow and to dig deeper.  If you are using it in a burial situation, the average amount of snow you'll need to move is 2 tons.  That's a lot of snow.

Voile, Black Diamond, G3, Ortovox, all make good metal shovels.  If you can get one with a blade that comes to a diamond point, all the better.  The point makes chopping icy blocks easier, which is also something you are likely to find in avalanche debris. 

The neck of the blade is something to look for.  A long neck can make stashing it in you pack problematic.  Depends on what you have.  It's not a deal breaker either though.

Don't forget a beacon and probe.  Get a 3 antenna digital beacon and a 300cm probe.  Especially if you are on the west coast where the snowpack gets super deep.

Yeah, I didn't mention blade size.  Overall, I think all avalanche shovels have a big enough blade size for the job.  A bigger blade just means more weight you can move, which is also more effort to move that load.  A smaller blade moves less snow, but takes less effort.  I have not really seen any studies that say one is much better over the other.  This is preference.

I would get the backpack first and then the shovel bc how they fit matters. I would get one with a shovel pocket.  what I learned in my avy class is; The best is something you can leave the together and get fast. Or have that option. Not wasting time getting a shovel together is great.