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wait, whats going on
i thought everyone here actually loves niseko, but posts all negative stuff about it to reduce the numbers going there.
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What do u mean by "even the pole between their legs"?
were you thinking something naughty?
olden style skiing had no carve and no edges, and you could barely turn and so had no breaks!
you ski with this huge pole you stick it between your legs and almost sit down on it (while holding it up with arms) and it drags on the ground and acts as a break.
i think they also use it on either side to help turn too.
random google image:
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as part of the 50year Niseko celebration last year they had some old style skiing happening on some weekends.
the whole deal. even with the pole between the legs / etc.
those dudes really seemed to know their stuff.
friend of mine was getting around on custom made powder skis at the same time, so turned a lot of heads when people thought he was nuking through 1foot deep pow on old skis
they were designed for the trip and each one looks different, because the real wood top sheet looks different
dont have a pic handy, but stole a similar image from their website to give you an idea
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those ultra top racers have specialized staff that manage their wax even minutes before a race. so if theyre doing it it must make some sort of difference.
i thought id also note that that report also seems to be centered around cross country skiing.
for us non-pro plebs its obviously not as important, but I still only wax my skis once, at most twice a year.
mostly because i cant be bothered. but also cause in powder it doesnt matter.
and if im not skiing powder, id rather be doing something else .... (insert wax joke here?)
but i do definitely notice a difference after a fresh wax tho. especially in the lift line/maze.
afaik it also makes a difference depending on the base you have
google for some stuff about sintered vs extruded bases, from what i understand:
waxing an extruded base makes no difference, and can even slow you down! it just tears off in chunks, until theres nothing left.
almost all skis are sintered which absorbs the wax into tiny pours and glide better because it makes an ultra nice (microscopic scale) surface area.
extruded snowboard bases are heaps cheaper to make (something to do with the width). so most snowboards on the mountain are extruded (unless you went out of your way to get sintered). but the downside is that its much slower.
its kind of ironic.
skiiers are faster on the flat and cat tracks because we have poles, can skate, and have the technology behind us.
youd think it'd be stupid to not make a sintered snowboard... but i guess $ wins in the end and they have to go with whatever is cheapest.
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I love the Flows!!
skiiers like flow bindings also, they make a mixed group much easier to get around with.
non flow binding instructions:
step 1: stop in the middle of the exit ramp, blocking the path.
step 2: repeatedly slam your board down making an ultra loud thump and digging a divot in the hard packed snow.
step 3: plomp down on your ass and sigh a little, how hard your life is. relax for a second and look around at the scenery.
step 4: realize people are waiting for you. start to clear every last grain of snow out of your bindings, even tho it doesnt matter if there is some in there
step 5: finally put your feet into the bindings, and ratchet yourself in
step 6: ratchet both feet again, 4-5 times just to make sure.
step 7: finally start to get going, only to realize youre stuck on a flat bit.
step 8: show off the brown ass patch of your white pants.
flow binding instructions:
step 1: jam your foot in while youre going down the exit ramp of the chairlift, while simultaneously bending over and pulling up the flow binding fastenerer thingo.
step 2: use the speed you have to cross the flat, and join the skiiers in complaining about other slow snowboarders
(and lol, queue the flame)
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[Have they come up with a remote yet with a light on it that would be the easiest way I would think.
yeah gopro3 has wifi (connect to it with your phone) and a remote
wifi is really cool imo. it means you can see what its recording, and line it up properly.
no more 2 hours of footage looking at the sky type problems.
alternatively, you could carry a mirror? lol
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What's the problem?
I think Crisps posted because its probably an indication of things to come.
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plus i dont want to be associated in any way with those tourist muppets heading out into off piste with no gear at all.
Surely you mean out into the backcountry or at the very least sidecountry? Not just the off-piste? Or should we all have gear if we venture just a few metres into the trees on the side of a piste run? Because this 'tourist muppet' who lived in Niseko for 7 years skied off-piste without any gear at all in Niseko all the time
lol yeah, meant the sidecountry and back country (ie, out the gates)
hehe i was just imagining the nannies going soo far that some future aussie ski resort will have laser detectors (like in tennis) that track if you go off the groomer so they can clip ur pass.
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i heard that some aussie resorts are requiring helmets now or they wont <something something> (i zoned out). i think wont let you take lessons maybe?
in any case, the adjustable and removable vents / etc in my helmet make it my go to head keeperer warmer upperer for any day skiing.
plus i dont want to be associated in any way with those tourist muppets heading out into off piste with no gear at all.
my insurance may not cover a fall out there. but a helmet has definitely meant the difference between "haha i hope you got that triple forward flip stack on camera" vs "helicopter please, im a vegetable"
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S,oooo you are buying a Niseko condo and when not using it will rent it out at very reasonable rates to fellow SJ'ers, especially the ones from QLD?
<- quickly adds some queensland parts to his profile
*edit, wrote it backwards!
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No worries Kokodoko.
Anyone got any suggestions about transport for a day trip from Rusutsu to Niseko?
there are several companies (eg NGS) that run day trip busses from niseko welcome center to rusutsu, and also do the reverse i think too? the price often includes lift ticket
off the top of my head NGS cost 6800.
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ive never tried the points pass, my impression was that its for day trippers who do one or two runs and call it a day.
eg, a 12 trip pass will only last 3 runs.
the lesser houly tickets are just half day and one day tickets, but the 30 and 50 hour passes will probably last you a lot more than your 8 days (50 hour pass is plenty for 2-3 weeks)
the leftover time is not meant to be transferable ...
oh, you can pay by credit card / etc, but theyll get angry if you dont bring 1000yen cash deposit for each lift ticket (unless theyve changed it).
theres a 'plus' atm in town now.
you will want to choose weather to buy grand hirafu tickets, or niseko united tickets.
niseko is actually 4 ski resorts combined. the hirafu ticket works at 2, the united ticket works at all 4.
i think the 2 (niseko and hanazono) areas are probably plenty for an 'experienced beginner', but perhaps an intermediate skiier would want to tour around a little. you might mix up which tickets you have for which day.
there are two bus companies that I know of, skybus and whiteliner, that run from the airport (and other places) directly to niseko.
last bus leaves at about 9:30pm, which happens to be the same time as when many aussie flights land, and so you cant make it in time. the bus takes about 2 hours.
i use whiteliner mostly, skybus is about twice the cost, but use smaller more comfortable minibusses, they drop you right to your door, and is cheaper for big groups i think.
whiteliner stop at the welcome center, which is about 400m up the road (as in youre walking downhill). but the vale is pretty fancy, wouldnt be surprised if you can organize a free pickup from welcome center. worst case, a taxi is like $5
both need to be booked online several days in advance (the websites are in english). tho I did forget to book once and whiteliner had no problems fitting me on a bus.
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There is no early bird season pass for Niseko.
It has stayed the same price as last year or is at a discount. not sure which.
Cant find price. doh!
I was pretty pissed when I heard there was no discount, but it looks like its still cheaper in the end anyway.
My 'budget' from last year says that it was 152,000
with a 30% discount if you ordered before August 2011 (106,400)
and 15% for October 2011 (129,200)
This year it is 105,000, so we'll still save a little in the end.
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Well, it wasn't just your post but I took out the link from your original post.
Apparently you later re-edited it back in because it re-appeared, and so I have just re-edited it out again.
Can we please leave it at that.
sorry, my bad. i was stuck on the edit screen for a while with some sort of forum maintenance.
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Thanks for the mail David!
Anything, i did find their website, but i wanted a first hand impression...
As you said, the sharing is a cool thing for me, especially cause i'm traveling alone, and riding off-piste alone is not a good idea, so making some friend is a must!
Do you know approximately how long is the bus ride from there to the closest lift base stop? I knew it wasn't a ski-in ski-out accomodation, and the price is so good for one month... 58000yen for 30 nights!! So waiting for a bus and walking a bit is ok, as long as the ride is not too long, and i am still able to catch the first chair in some way.
Can't wait for pow, hope it'll be a great season!!
once youre on the bus its only 5 mins or so
busses start at 8:20, but probably 8:30 by the time it gets to you. sometimes on weekends it might be full and just drive by!
grand hirafu runs 'early' busses on powder days, shortly after 8:00 i think? but seems inconsistent.
theres also a hanazono bus that runs even earlier too.
i think the busses run until 9pm.
the walk back to there could take a while. there is a footpath and i often see people walking back at night, but it can be 1/2 foot deep snow and they have to walk on the road (isnt very busy late at night).
unless you want to quadruple your accom cost, i think its probably an ok place to be. and should make it easier to find someone to hit the mountain with.
cheaper accom, and being able to stay for a whole month is definately worthwhile imo.
Folks, please don't make posts simply with links in them.
mine was bad?
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i haven't stayed there, nor even heard about it. but i found little bits of info, and wasn't sure what you had found already.
it looks like they mostly do small shared (sometimes private) rooms, and that the idea is that it's a share-house, and to intermingle with whoever else is staying there.
from the photos, and videos i found on youtube, it looks like this happens quite often. which is pretty cool actually.
is street view looking right at it.
https://maps.google....,24.05,,0,-2.95
its hard to tell without the mountains of snow that im used to, but im 99% sure this is where the niseko free shuttle bus stops every 15 or 30mins, depending on time of day. from that point its about 5mins till you're on a lift.
https://maps.google....68,,0,6.24&z=17
which means right next door is a (famous?) bakery of awesomeness.
ive heard horror stories of people booking accom in 'niseko', which is actually a town quite a while away. and having to take a long bus ride in and out every day. seems you dodged that bullet..
get ready for some deep pow!
edit:
on the lift pass topic,
id recommend an all mountain pass. hirafu on its own is too small for a month.
but for 1 month, id probably still get an hourly pass. i know it sounds strange to get an hourly pass... ever, but at niseko it always works out heaps better imo. 30 or 50, depends on how keen you are. you can always buy another 30 if you run out. from memory, a single 50 was more than enough to get me through a month (you could try to sell the leftover? illegal?).
i was going to explain how the hourly pass works and all, but cbf, ask if you have any q's
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which is why ive restricted myself to a few tiny meagre minuscule morsel like tid-bits of info on the 2nd post. Summary summary. Plus i kinda wanted you guys to do the leg work because i just end up writing reams of text.
wonder if its possible to do a table of resorts with ticks and crosses for each 'feature'
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Go for some of these:
lol, those things are funny.
all its gonna do is cause issues with idiots trying to get the highest top speed.
focus on the numbers, instead of that tree you're heading straight for.
integrate a web browser, and one could update their farmville mid-turn
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just another quick one,
Rusutsu, Hokkaido, for a beginner;
Pros: lots of wide, pretty long, excellent quality easy to intermediate groomer runs. very few flat runouts at the bottom of a run (can think of only 1). lots of open tree powder runs for someone to cut their teeth on. almost same distance and just as easy access as niseko (english speaking, busses from airport, etc). ive never waited in a lift line.
Cons: Accommodation seems expensive (i think its all owned by the mountain). not much of a town / village. I haven't seen any night life at all.
Best for: (level range): Beginner - Intermediate/Advanced
Why you should(n't) come here as a beginner: Yes I would recommend a beginner to go here.
I have skiied rusutsu many times, but only stayed there 3-4 times over night. Weekends have seemed a little busier, but definitely not 'busy' by any stretch, however sometimes there are large school groups.
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the Niseko United Area, Hokkaido, for a beginner;
Pros: english speaking and signage. the 4 resorts combined mean many different learning areas, each with some pros n cons (some are even free). hundreds (well it seems like that) of different ski schools to choose from, with lots of other beginners. lots of kids ski schools and facilities too. powder skiing on edge of groomers (some beginners take to it very well). rare lift queues. hourly passes.
Cons: the groomers can get busy on the weekends. the range of beginner ski runs can run out and become repeatative. the steeper green and blue runs can be very poor quality (sometimes even I avoid them!). the green n blue groomers can often be extremely flat, and not very wide. lots of us gaijin / no 'forced' cultural exposure (but if you look you can..). the weather is often very blizzardy and cold.
Best for: (level range): 'experienced' beginner and above.
Why you should(n't) come here as a beginner: I feel there are probably better options in Japan for absolute beginners.. However Niseko would still be acceptable for a mixed group that might split up.
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i think you probably get the idea already, light yellow for the blizzard and foggy days. but you might want some darker colors for the rare sunny days hiking the peak.
but thought i'd add that i really love my zeal sppx goggles (i own two pair now)
they go from almost clear yellow to dark pink, depending on the amount of UV. photochromatic i think the term is. take about 5-10mins to change.
i wear them every day (and night) without problems, while others complain of viz issues. sometimes while driving for extra fashionability points.
i am definitely too lazy to change a pair of goggles if the weather suddenly changes while im on the mountain, and certainly cbf carrying some extras around with me, so theyre perfect for me.
tho, note that some people have complained that they do tend to fog up.
i have noticed some fogging if i take them off when im on a gondola and put back on when i get outside, obviously they cant cope with the heating up and cooling down of not having my face. ive never paid attention if others have had the same issue. imo no goggles would survive that tho?
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Invaluable information Ippy for us two plankers, particularly -
"To be safe, you should probably never come round a snowboarders heel side on a narrow path if they are riding on their toe edge. Since the iron law of snowboarding dictates they must transition to their heel edge, and that this edge is a blind side turn, chances are theyre going to do it just as youre sneaking up to pass them (they cant see you at any point of the transition). In those situations its always best to just follow their toe side line with them until they turn off it. In fact its usually better to follow a snowboarders line and wait for them to drop off it (change edge) rather than try and head perpendicular to it if you can"
Armed with you helpful hints I will now be more confident in approaching a snowboarder from behind on a narrow cat track and stealthfully bump them over the edge
somehow my ski boots & bindings have the ability to eject snowboarders from both of their bindings (flow) in a single close pass. has happened twice now.
but if i go toe side i'm going to miss out on all the fun
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ill be based in Niseko for the whole season, dec -> end of march
be great to meet up with some SJ'ers
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thought I'd add my $0.02, that my main suggestion would be don't be afraid.
I ski Japan every year (usually Niseko), and I have troubles getting friends to come visit (free accom!) because theyre afraid they might get lost in the airport or train or something.
to give you an idea, in the airports the signs are even in bold font english, the japanese gets the small font underneath.
worst case, all you need is a smile
ive skiied in 8 (i think) different countries, and so far the japanese are the nicest politest people - so much so that i feel that many tourists (aussies, brits) definitely need to adjust their attitude.the season is approx mid dec to end of march + a bit of april spring. if you weren't going to go in peak jan-feb time, i would go later (march) than earlier (dec) just to guarantee a good base.
but prepare for a shock. aus & nz snow cannot compare. your addiction is about to get a lot worse!
as much as i love skiing in japan, it seems to be all-on or all-off, great for someone who loves 'bad' weather and ridiculous deep deep powder.
however if i were to be honest, i used to ski colorado every year instead. and i think my skiing 'technical ability' improved more when i was there instead. the mountains are taller, the runs are longer, and the groomers seem smoother. you (most likely) wont get the chance to bury yourself up to your neck in powder tho.
just giving you options to consider is all.
niseko is very touristy and easy to get info on / get to / etc. but i'd defiantly recommend you try another resort or two to get a better feel of japan.
if you intend on sight seeing some Japanese cities maybe a better idea to stay on honshu (the big/main island) instead - of which ive only skiied once so I dont have much of an opinion, Niigata and Nagano seem to be very popular on these forums tho
Slider's bucket list
in Snow talk, trip reports, Japan avalanche & backcountry
Posted
he must mean that its not a good place to start, because its the last place you will ever ski
once you've experienced mt granview, you'll never want to go anywhere else.