andylaurel

Way more in Asahikawa...

Oh right. Skiers vs Snowboarders thing? Cool. I'm sure skiing is more fun than it looks... I might zip down tonight after work for a nighter... Nah stuff it, the gradient is too gentle. Hey @Tokyo, how's the night skiing scene down in Tokyo?

I'm confused. Are we ripping on how the terrain isn't steep enough?

I have a season pass for Kamui, so most of my trip reports will be from there. Thursday and Friday saw gale force winds and driving snow here in central Hokkaido which resulted in good conditions for Saturday morning at Kamui. There were wind affected areas but the powder stashes were deep (if slightly heavy). 第５lift opened on Sat morning so we decided to hit the back bowl, but seeing that no one had been down there before us, we got a little lost and had to trek out through the pow. It was hard work, but worth it for the sheer ecstasy of the bowl. Hokkaido locals went to bed Satur

It seems like they enjoy their Machete GTs. The drive to Furano depends on road conditions. I'd say an hour in ideal conditions. I consider all driving in Hokkaido winter to be 上級 as it gets. Be careful on those icy roads!

Rain possibly tomorrow, but snow from wednesday apparently. Yeah I think I'll be Sat and Sun. Cya there!

sTook 代休 and headed out to Kamui again this morning for a couple of hours. No new snow, so the groomers were groomed and the ungroomed runs were tracked out. We found some untracked pow in amongst the trees and had a blast. We need some snow soon! The base at the bottom is so thin, dirt and grass are showing through in patches! Snow forecast for this week. C'mon baby!

Pie eater: Is cheese a thing? I'll get onto that for you. 1st lines were epic. I didn't want to ruin them trying to hold a go pro steady, so I didn't film it, rather I just enjoyed it.

Well Kamui Ski Links in Asahikawa opened today and we got up there early to make sure we could shred some nama pow. I have a season ticket so most of my TRs are going to be about Kamui! Check it out!

A timelapse of Asahikawa in the summer!

A timelapse from my balcony that I made in the summer. Go Pro HD Hero 2.

I have a Go Pro HD Hero 2. Footage can be seen in my Sapporo Kokusai thread. I bought it about a month before they announced the HD Hero 3! I was upset about that! It's a fantastic little camera though. It takes lovely clear still photos. When they see the photos, my friends through photography often ask what new lens I got for my DSLR. They're always surprised when I tell them it's just the Go Pro!

Yeah my pole is actually a monopod for DSLR cameras. It telescopes from about 300mm to 1300mm. I just bought the Go Pro tripod fitting and it just screws on. I saw some chap at Sapporo Kokusai last weekend with a pole that he'd made out of bits of bracing metal and nuts and bolts that he'd clearly bought at a home depot. It looked like the bastard child of a mechano set and a optimus prime. It looked heavy and dangerous if it were to swing up and hit you in the face, or you were to fall on it. I like my set up. It's light and telescopes nicey. I hope to integrate footage from my DS

I live near Asahikawa. Kamui opens this weekend. Pics and vids to come.

I got a new Flow Drifter 163 and a season pass to Kamui. Other than that, nothing.

Innuendo. I like it. I have my go pro attached to a telescopic monopod that goes out to about 1300mm. I shall try 'erecting' it to different lengths.

It was the first weekend they were open for the season, and it was a long weekend. Nothing else in the area is open yet. I dare say that as winter progresses, crowds will be less of a problem. Don't let that turn you off. It's nothing like a busy day at Kawaba or something.

My buddy Ross and I got some 'early turns' at Asahidake on Nov 17th. We suck, so don't hate on us!

Pippu is good, but small. It's super cheap too. I would recommend Pippu for a beginner. No gondola at pippu though, just chairlifts. If it's puking snow, you'll get cold sitting on the chairs. Oh, and Santa Present Park really does exist.

In my opinion, neither Kurodake or Asahidake are worth going to ride on the groomed runs. Those two mountains are all about backcountry/slackcountry. Asahidake's slackcountry pow is indescribably amazing.

Hey guys. I got down to Sapporo Kokusai this last weekend for some fun before my local Kamui opens. On the Saturday, I went by myself. There weren't many people there because there was a tickertape parade being held in Sapporo for the Nipponham fighters baseball team. Sunday, I met with some Japanese friends and rode all day. There were a lot more people there, and the queues into the gondola were long. Thankfully the gondola moves through people really fast so the longest we had to wait was probably only 5 minutes. I made a short video. It's not great, but it was my first time tryin

I ride a Ride DH2 lowrise and a Ride Slackcountry Highrise and they're both great. I've not ridden a camber board in years, so I can't really compare.

I bought it because I'm here in Hokkaido for the next two years and I wanted to have a purpose powder board for deep days that I can still enjoy on groomers. I need to get another set of bindings, and then I'll take both boards to the mountain with me and choose based on conditions. I rode it in knee deep pow today and didn't get stuck once. It's a great board. Pics of rocker profile to come.