stepchild

pukka, thanks kindly. i'm guessing green means a light, damp covering of cress then?

hey AET, who are you? I'm a JET in gunma too...

hey, does anyone know of a decent website, in English, that'll tell me whether expressways are open or not. i am heading up to iwate tomorrow on the tohuku and apparently it was closed last night and they are expecting more snow. good and bad news i guess! we'll be hitting the tohuku in gunma at around 4.30am. damn, it hurts just thinking about how early that is....

I`m on 18, mainly in gunma and niigata. Plenty more to come though hey!!

yeah, i do bits of my old taekwondo warm up. it's more to loosen up all of my joints than to really stretch my muscles. i'm definitely with the idea that the first few runs act as a good enough warm up, but i really like to loosen up my ankles, knees and waist/ hips before i get shredding.

i can still feel it. December 1999, ruthless hangover, belly full of fry-up, Runcorn (near Manchester, England) outdoor dry ski-slope. Yep, dendex, we were warned to clench our fists when we fell so we didn't break our fingers in those funny honeycomb holes. We were also advised not to leave any skin exposed as we were liable to get it ripped off by that lovely wire-wool-esque surface. funnily enough it didn't put me off.... the first snow experience was the three valleys, french alps. not a patch on runcorn......

why do you call yourself bob?

white valley was dead, probably because it's a tiny resort. i had an ace time there with a crew of about 15 snowboarders bouncing around in about 80cm of fresh powder. but anywhere is good with that kind of snow. naeba and kagura weren't that busy on the 27th. okutone on the 2nd was not so crowded either, probably a minute wait in the line for the chair. damn good riding some powder finally..

many thanks to one and to all, anyone in the area on the 18th 19th and 20th of january let's hook up. hmm, second day of my season riding kickers in tenjindaira,i think i shattered a vertebrae or 3 in my neck taking a hard whiplash-style slam. itai!!!

yeah, let`s hook up. i think i will be there with some beginners too so that`s ideal for me.

no, no, i am merely living in the land of optimism. sorry to have led you along. wouldn't it be nice though....it's got to happen some time. although i do have the concern that i jinx seasons. my season in chamonix was the driest they had in ages and the following season in whistler was pretty dire too. maybe i should leave japan for your guys' sake. as long as there are a few feet of fresh at christmas i'm happy. not that any of you lot want to ride with me!!!!!!

hahahaha, it's all well and good, actually heading off to kagura on saturday and minikami on sunday. my buddy rode last weekend and said kagura was ok. i physically cannot wait anymore. have to get riding!! i'll let you know how it is. anyway, it's going to puke all week so it'll be freshies all weekend. that was a crisp looking lettuce by the way...

they've got a long way to go before they even come close to the megaladon that is Intrawest. Those guys own a couple of resorts in North America (inc Whistler), i think 2 in europe, where they are currently expanding in other resorts, and a whole array of holiday destinations literally all over the globe. it is a huge, expanding empire and they show no sign of respite whatsoever. i hope plenty of smaller resorts are able to fend off their advances, it's all about the local hills retaining their character and not selling out. that's what makes visiting different areas so enjoyable. if they (int

good call mate, got mine last week. girls eating cake was my highlight. some good riding too..

anyone planning a trip over christmas and/or new year and need/want/wouldn't mind an extra member. I'm hoping to ride somewhere with a park but am more interested in having people to ride with. i won't slow you down. also, which resorts have decent parks in the nagano/gunma/niigata area? shit, if no-one replies to this i am going to look like a real lettuce!!

you know you're really losing it when you put all of your gear on, strap into your board, in your living room, and then just stand there bouncing your knees, all excited..... or is that just me?...

errr, from an entry in the whistler independent film festival that some friends of mine put together..... those peace-loving canadians, shame about their neighbours south of the border.....

all you have to do now is learn back flips on demand and get your one-footed jibs down. remember, no grabbing between foot and tail or foot and nose.

if i was you, being up in hokkaido and all, i'd go for something pretty tech as i imagine the weather gets pretty heavy sometimes. i'd go for a burton ak, amazing jackets, get a thin shell with really good waterproofing and breathability and then you basically wear a decent fleece underneath on the really cold days. i have seen some shit-hot deals on last year's ak jackets here in japan. they are the flagship burton bc jackets. otherwise i could definately recommend bonfire outerwear as really good, reliable and long-lasting but also pretty pricy. from mine and my friends' experiences, stay cl

what's all this moaning about the bus to tignes? be sure to look at the dam when you approach it. On the dam wall is a huge painting of Monsieur Killy holding up the whole damn like Hercules, it looks cool. damn i wish i was back there.

anyone know the best places to get hold of board/ski roof racks? anyone selling a cheap one?

anyone spent much time in Sugadaira Kogen in Nagano. any parks? good bc areas? also, anyone there around January 18th 19th and 20th please hook up with me because I´m going with my junior high and will be riding on my own otherwise....

ahh you lucky sod. i did a season in tignes last winter and had a great time. there is shed loads to do. the val d'isere park is pretty sweet, not a great pipe but good red and black kickers and 3 little blue kickers in a row. there are rails in abundance, nice rainbow, stepdowns and a good long flat 'un. backside and frontside hips too. the tignes park was a bag of shit last year apart from the pipe which was good. they did say they were going to take the tignes park seriously this year though..... there are great tree runs all over the place, especially Le Fournet (far left of map) and

hey little eyebrows and mina2 you mentioned that you are in gunma this winter. where are you? i am in the south east near ota and tatebyashi. looking for people to ride with in gunma most weekends. so where are you?????????

Fattwins - you are a gentleman and a scholar. just wish i could read them..... cheers