Skiing the Empire Pass area today and things were pretty much as advertised. A long north to south ski cut near the ridge crest surprisingly produced no signs of instability. However, at the first gentle turn heading east a crack opened and propegated north rapidly. The released snow broke up quickly and ran a short distance until the slope angle eased. Visibility was very poor but from what I could see it appears to have fractured on the new/old snow interface, likely on nov./oct. junk. Notable to me was just how touchy the snow felt. Had the slope been steeper for longer I've no doubt this could've turned into a day wrecker.