zwelgen

akekmashiTA? I thought you were Japanese Aki? Just wondering...

yep agree with you there snowbo, neck warmers are the way to go! Just got one as a present in Nov and cant believe Ive been skiing without one until now. Sooooooo good on cold days, so versitle, a bit like skirts really...

a. no b. no c. no d. no hell my house isnt even connected to the sewer sysyem because they are only just putting it in now - in 2003! Unbelievable. So yeah with about a metre of snow on my roof Ive got to get up and shovel it off, sometime really soon before the doors start to stick because of the weight. Oh but the streets are heated in my town...

hot water bottle! I saw an article in a Japanese ski mag and it had all about how to sleep in the car and be warm. They put snowfoam stuff over all the windows with velcro spots, and had a good thick lilo kinda thing. The guy suggested wearing your boot liners to bed to keep your tooties warm!!! It was a fairly recient mag so have a leaf at your local bookstore and you might see it.

Sorry I was meaning the top of the skyline course. You need to ride it to get back to the carpark and its FREEZING on a bad day. Just big time exposed. But theres plenty of places at any resort that in windy whiteout conditions you freeze. ya know what I mean?

I was reading an article in the National Geographic Adventure the other day and it was saying that helmets do little to protect from concussion and it is mostly fractures that a helment would prevent. It also said that unless you are a male between 16 and 20 or something the chances of you getting a fractured noggin were pretty slim, something like 1 in 30,000 days riding maybe? I dont really know much about this just what I read. Oh and it did say that helmets increase your chances of whiplash if they dont fit perfectly and overheating - obviously those people havent been on the ridge a

I didnt post the 2nd one!?! Maybe Nekobi wrote that while I was sleeping - weird... Barok and Ender theres tatami for all.

Quote: But maybe thats why those areas are roped off... ....or maybe not! Thats what I always think: "ahhh it will be sweet, look at all that soft goodness" and then scrape my way down the run. Thats when I get to the bottom and think maybe thats why the area was roped off. But like you said you never know. Had some fab runs at Nozawa last week that were roped off - magic is the only word to describe it MAGIC

YOu can get a train called the Narita Express and it will take you directly to Tokyo and then it goes on to Shinjuku. This is more expensive but a bit quicker and easier than the other (skyline that goes to Ueno). Just ask at the information desk in the arrival lobby. It takes about 1.5 hrs. The shinkansen run about once every hour. I dont know what time you get in but the last one leaves at 10pm. It goes right to the Nagano stn, not too far from your new digs. The courier service to get your stuff from the airport is pretty reasonable, again found in the arrival lobby. It takes abo

just want to stress that if you will be anywhere near nozawa-- go! go! go! went last year it was so much fun- drank so much sake i like it now. have friends visiting specifically to go to this festival. and to add a bit of drama- heard a rumour that a person dies every year from the snow-sake-fire combo...

just want to stress that if you will be anywhere near nozawa-- go! go! go! went last year it was so much fun- drank so much sake i like it now. have friends visiting specifically to go to this festival. and to add a bit of drama- heard a rumour that a person dies every year from the snow-sake-fire combo...

Just a heads up. Theres a crazy insane fire festival in Nozawa Onsen on the 15th Jan. This date used to be a public holiday but has changed recently so this year it falls on a Wed. So the villagers build this MASSIVE structure drink obscence amounts of sake and pour it down everyone elses throats too. To cut a long story short a bit of a fire battle ensues and then they burn the big structure anyway. Flames and cinders going up... Snow coming down... Heaving crowd... Everyone wasted from the firemen to the visitors.. This is possibly one of the most insane things I have

yeah it REALLY bugs me, esp when people seem to get a bit antsy when a single person (me) joins their 3some on a quad. Big thumbs up to 47 for the single person line but really the lifties should be a bit more proactive. They were packing people into the gondola at Nozawa like sardines though which is nice to see but not so nice to ride... I was behiend a lady at Nozawa today and despite the big queue wanted a chair all to herself. Stupid selfish so said some nasty words in English and hoped she wouldnt understand my accent

hey ender! Youre nearly here buddy! Will have to hook up with you and Barok for some welcome drinks and snowdays. I must say Im pretty curious to meet you. Umm what to bring? Youre fav music, food, clothes etc. You can buy most other things and its not hard to take a trip to Tokyo for spending sprees. Catch you in a bit.

I went straight from high school to univ and was glad I did it that way so I was finished by the time I was 21 and free to do whatever the hell I wanted. At university I worked loads of jobs and part time stuff came out of some summer jobs I had too. I have done some volunteer work too but just to sound extremely selfish you can get the same experience in a job and get paid for it. Dont underestimate your summer holidays either. I worked at a ski field in Japan for 3 months at the end of my 1st year of university and left with a wad of cash in my back pocket(and a snapped acl ) A

Quote: Originally posted by Fattwins: blood sweat and tears spend a good number of 100 plus days sking anything and everything. Ride it all and you get better. Dont be afraid to fall[/QB] Id been thinking about this comment for a while and took it on board and have been really pushing it. I had a few runs on the halfpipe at Noz the other day and had a blast! Just wanted to say cheers for the thoughts. Sounds like cortina was a blast, maybe will see you and oufs2 next time.

I thought Vietnam was bad but not as dangerous as Japan. There is lots of traffic in Vietnam and chaos but not the sheer stupidity of people here (ok except for not turning the lights on at night "to save petrol") I am amazed at the idiots that overtake you on slipery as roads when youre not even going that slow. An idiot passed me the other morning when I was following a snowplow. But where do they do it? On a blind corner going onto a bridge (ie super icy) which was exactly why I hadnt passed the snowplow yet. Thats why the damn insurance here is so costy. I hate driving with my Japanes

just go bigger and risk it. Had a bad accident a few years back that shattered my confidence but its back with a vengance so this is the season to do it up.

yep I agree with you there nagoid. But If I had to choose one then the double thumbs up goes to 47/goryu for taking the plunge and opening super early.

I reckon with skiing you need to keep your skis closer together than on groomers because you can hit different stuff that can throw you. Keep your tips up but your weight forward. Imagine squatting more - getting your butt closer to your feet and your shoulders over the front a la Japanese squat toilets and you should be in a good stance. And keep the bouncing going so both feet are more equally weighted. And be glad that youre on skis and can walk out of most stuff and get your skis back on top when you get stuck.

yeah Id rather have ice than rocks and tree stumps. But maybe thats why those areas are roped off...

I have to shovel it off but always get the locals to help me out as am scared of falling. Its easy to slip but there are these rails on mine, supposed to hold the snow on so it doesnt all slide off when you shut a door and you can grab them if you slide. But you would have to be up high or fall on your head to do some damage. Sometimes round here you can just climb the snow thats fallen off and walk onto the roof. It was really weird the first time I saw it. Still some of the old geezers you see up there. I wouldnt send my grandfather up there to do it, unless it was my next door neighb

Ive been on the roof at mine now. The first time was my first winter here when I needed to shovel the snow and talked my workmates into helping me. What a view! Ive been up a few times just to enjoy the peacefullness. No db I think youre not mad

Youre on Sunrise. Ill be waiting for you.

I am extremely bored at work today so have done a bit of a look. This is what was on a website: Fujisawa Hakkoda Onsen Hotel If you want to stay near the mountain, this is a great place to stay. We did a group trip here last year and stayed in a large tatami room. Two meals, and an onsen down the hall for 8000 a night. You can ski right to the door. It's great for weekend trips. Phone # 0177-38-2233 (book ahead) Directions: From Aomori-shi you can take 103 out, and it's about twenty minutes from the city. It's signposted all the way pretty clearly and you can't really miss it. Fr