barok

keep trying miki, it gets alot easier, and then alot more fun.

the length of a piece of string depends on which piece of string you are talking about, and whether or not you are stretching it out, or just leaving it limp. also depends on whether or not the string is wet and to a limited extent, the temperature and humidity.

21 so far this season, and all the resorts around me (in Wisconsin) are starting to close. i'm going to shoot for 23. it was by far the worst season ever, where i'm at.

sure ivo, the swallowtails, split boards have been around forever, but my point was that today all these products are available and marketed worldwide. there are several companies now making swallowtail boards, and likewise with split boards and longboards. this was not always the case. the fact is, because of the increasing popularity and diversity of the sport, there is more product readily available today than ever before. you have so much of a choice. why second guess it ?

skiers probably go faster, jump higher, etc. all day long. it's the strength and aerodynamics you gain by having two planks, and looking straight ahead in a tucked position. still doesn't change the fact that boarders have more fun.

I've heard alot of heresay, not on this board really, but elsewhere, that snowboarding is almost more popular amongst japanese girls than it is guys. is there any truth to it ? anecdotal evidence is from instructors who say that they get many more girls in their lessons than guys. other evidence is the fact that while only one japanese guy qualified in the halfpipe olympic contest, two japanese girls qualified in a smaller field of competitors. (now i know this was just one contest, and i'm not even 100% sure of these numbers, it's just what i remember) still other eviden

well it depends what you mean by peak ? as far as the number of people doing it, it will increase in the US, probably increase in europe and china and other parts of asia, decrease or stay about the same in japan, Canada, and in S. America. But these are just it my estimates based on what I read. as far as the sport itself, we are now seeing a rapid progression. both in freestyle and freeriding. in the freeriding arena, people are riding the backcountry more and more, riding first descents all the time, and learning how to take on the toughest conditions th

well it could go off, but i think if you look at some of the things that you say objectively, i think you're right on some counts and wrong on others. first off, that icey crust of a surface you are riding on has very little to do with snowboarders and much more to do with the freeze at night, thaw at day climate that is springtime in the mountains. second, skiers have twice as much edge per person, than do snowboarders, so you can blame yourself as well. i'll admit if there is a thin layer of powder over a sheet of ice or hardpack, that is prime turf for a beginner snowboard

i board and drink alot. the alcohol provides a very clean fuel that keeps me warm and keeps my energy level up. well allright i admit that it's probably just the alcohol playing tricks on my brain, but whatever. i would never drink in sketchy conditions however, or when i'm riding freestyle (pipe, park, etc.) only when there is tons of powder and there is nothing to lose. btw. . . i've been down on the british beers as of late due to rumors from my friends that they put all kinds of conditioners, preservatives and gelatin in the beers - does anyone

yep i used to ski, might try it again someday if someone wants to switch with me. i quit because snowboarding was much more fun and because i didn't have to walk around in uncomfortable boots carrying toothpicks all over creation.

madison, wisconsin

it's good exercise, and unlike running, you're not even really thinking about how hard it really is, once you get a good clip going. it's super low impact, so your knees aren't cashed once your done with it. of course, i haven't done it since i was a kid, if it's snowing and i have free time, i'm going riding.

camel dude, you sound like an infomercial spokesman. i can just see it "superb conditions, fresh powder, now how much would you pay ? ? but wait that's not all if you call now we'll include this deluxe set of ginzu knives. . ."

yep, that stuff they were throwing on the halfpipe was sodium nitrate (fertilizer). Like many salts, it increases the melting/freezing temp of the snow/water. just don't get a facefull.

intermediate. . . freestyle and freeriding. 360's, cliff drops, small rails, switch cruising, lipping the halfpipe. trying to progress to advanced . . . 540's, 360 cliff drops, gnarly rails, aggresive switch riding, boosting the halfpipe. just need more days. werd.

slush riding is actually only third best next to riding on powder and riding on freshly groomed powder (from the night before). riding on the ice sucks. the slush is way more forgiving on the falls and on landings. and it can be sooo nice riding in the sun in a t-shirt.

oo dude, you are averaging 11 or 12 beers per minute. you need to slow down or you are going to have some problems i think.

i like powdery moguls. good for practicing tight turns when there are no trees around. but as for the icey moguls, clap city.

if you are at a good resort, you shouldn't even need to go off-piste, because the entire mountain is open, except for the places where you absolutely shouldn't go (sharp rocks, chasms, etc.) a good example of a good resort is big sky, montana - where there are very few ropes. however that doesn't seem to be the case in japan, so backcountry is a necessity. the off-piste has been discussed to death on this board, so here's my take on backcountry. the majority of backcountry consists of people trucking each other up in pickup trucks or cars to a designated po

yep, it's a clear blue sky. just a play on the word blue, methinks.

I've been thinking about this alot, and i've decided that it's not such a bad thing if some resorts close, or at least suspend operations for a few years or so. There are like 700 resorts in Japan - that's 100 more than the number of resorts in all of North America. And Noth America is Approximately 100 times the size as Japan, with 3 times as many people. Don't get me wrong, I think it's great that during the 80's, Japanese had the wealth and interest in skiing/riding to support all of these fun places, but people are more concerned with saving their money

what's a skier ?

yep, Whistler, Whislter backcountry. gotta be said, even though it was raining when I was there, the potential was unlimited.

you'll notice a significant loss in camber after riding a board 30-40 times. unfortunately, that is about how long it takes to really get used to a new board. camber is the boards ability to retain it's manufactured shape. most boards don't sit flat on the ground, but bend convex in the center. The board is of course still good, but has just lost most of it's pop. of course there are other factors - how hard you ride, whether you jump or not, whether you drop cliffs or not, the type of construction used by the manufacturer, etc. I'd say for most freest

Is the Fish even out yet ? I've never ridden either, but I'd get either that Winterstick or a lib-tech longboard. I think it's lib-tech ? Either them or gnu. Arbor snowboards makes a pretty tight series of longboards as well. their website is farked for some reason though, so you have to search retailers.