nippontiger

Yeah, I think they are the best looking goggles I've seen. Im not sure the frameless thing is always such a great idea - it leaves the lenses more prone to scratches at the periphery and I've heard of snow getting through the sides of the smith io. Also, Im not sure how much that wouuld contribute to a wide field of view, because I think you will see the foam surround before the frame. The frameless designs look great though! I tried the EG2 and that certainly had the widest field of view of any that I tried (and they have a frame), but when I put a helmet on, it simply pushed the goggles down

I was thinking of getting a pair myself, but the cheapest Ive seen them is around 20k which is just a bit on the pricey side for me. I was also looking at the smith i/o which are a bit cheaper, but not quite as nice, or the Electric EG2 which have a really wide view, but Im not sure of their compatability with my helmet.

Unfortunately Im not going to be able to get up to Hokkaido this year... Another decent powder weekend in Hakuba is what Im hoping for...!

I want more powder days!!!! Last two years, I've had some of my best days skiing in March with knee deep+ fresh powder. Im hoping for the same again this year, but so far its not looking too good, at least for the first week or so.....

Yeah, I remember I had a plan to go on March 12th last year and that was a powder day - obviously didnt end up going, but did go a couple of weeks later and had 40cms of fresh! Its just the weather outlook this year isnt looking too promising.....

Im a bit worried that the winter might be coming to a premature end - JMA have changed their long range forecasts to a mild outlook for most of Japan in March and April. Not much snow on the horizon in the coming week and it looks like our planned trip to Hakuba next weekend will be postponed. Unisys weather maps just show high pressure to the north of japan bringing mild easterly winds - looks very spring-like - no blue colours anywhere near Japan. So, is that it, or can we expect things to turn again in a week or two?

Then curry and Kebabs it is! Oh, hang on....

Well, looks like a weekend off for me - got a plan to go clubbing in Tokyo - some party in Nihonbashi. After that we have a plan to go to Hakuba the following weekend to take advantage of the tickets I got on one of the giveaways! Its really depending on the weather though - we are holding off for another good dump......!

I was on the dreaded Kan-Etsu on Sunday. I went with someone I met up at Kagura a few weeks back - they were coming from Chiba near Disneyland and I had suggested going to Fukushima on the grounds that the expressway is free from Mito, and the Joban and Ban-etsu dont tend to be too busy. Well, they decided that Fukushima was too far for a day trip so we went to Kawaba - traffic wasnt too bad going up, but coming back took absolutely ages. They kindly dropped me off in Tsukuba, but in the end, tolls and fuel came up to 5000 yen each and I cant help but think it would have been a lot cheaper, qu

Skiing - Id try to avoid leaning back on your skis - maybe as you are moving from a tracked/groomed area into powder you might just lean back a bit as you enter to get the tips up but then just try to keep centered over the skis. Try to keep weight even on both skis, otherwise one will sink, and keep your skis fairly close together. On groomers and hard snow, you are trying to put some weight onto the front tips of the skis to get the edges to cut into the snow and give you grip, but on the powder its more about keeping an even platform with your bases. On your turns you want to try to unweigh

Im hoping to get to some resort in Gunma on Sunday - not sure yet, and its not really up to me, but possibly Oze, Kawaba, Marunuma or Hotaka..... Any ideas for a good resort around there (ie close to Numata I.C.) which would have some easily accessible and easy to find runs through the trees??

There I corrected it for you. Or perhaps it needs to be expanded beyond the borders of London somewhere down there. Well, there are plenty of "chavs" where I come from as well: Here you go, another night down the pub in Hull..... http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-humber-17020637

It would be a shame if they had to invest in extra security measures just for one or two foreign idiots though. Im pretty sure they would have had no problems until the Ozzy "bogen" crowd arrived on the scene. I glad the British "chavs" havent, and are not likely to discover Japan any time soon - they are one fantastic reason not to live in the UK.

I was at Kagura yesterday too - was absolutely awesome! Got a little bit of sweet footage on the gopro too. Just need to do a bit of editing....

My friend and I were going to stay at Wadagoya this weekend, but decided against it cos we didnt fancy dormitory style accommodation. We were then going to do one of the JR View two day deals to Kagura which turned out around the same price as Wadagoya, but in the end my friend decided he couldn't afford a two day-er as well as a 3 day trip to Hakuba later in the month so it looks like we might be just doing our usual Higaeri to Kagura this Saturday. Not complaining - we love it!

I almost picked up a pair of those before I got my Keepers but I couldn't find them cheap enough in the end. I heard they're pretty decent - the rocker in the tips should help floatation in the powder and should still be easy to edge on the groomers as they're not too wide. Having said that, I dont feel any difficulty on my Icelantics which are 119 at the waist! It would be interesting to try out a bunch of different skis - Id like to give a really wide, full rockered ski a go and go back to a good quality carving ski to really learn the differences. I've never seen any manufacturers doing an

What did you get in the end, Chriselle?

Would it be too much to ask for it to get covered for a THIRD time this season??? Most of Feb to go yet......

Make no mistake, the Japanese themselves are not averse to some serious binge drinking, but unlike in some western countries it tends not to lead to much trouble. You will often see people blind drunk stumbling onto trains and even the odd pavement pizza, but its very rare to see any kind of aggression or violence or destructive behaviour. It could land you in serious trouble in Japan. Caught trying to trash a beer vending machine? Or punched someone in the face in a drunken fight? Expect minimum 15 days in a police cell - when you eventually get to see a solicitor he will simply demand money

I think people just get well drunk and do this kind of thing for a daft joke with their mates. Hopefully if they do happen to read about this and think about it before they come, it might just ring a very distant bell when they are wasted and make them think twice...!

Had a couple of messages recently from a friend who works in Master Braster in Hakuba. Couple of incidents - first one a few weeks ago: Master Braster had made a flag with some "Gambarou Nihon" messages and so on which they were hoping to send up to Tohoku in support of victims of the disaster. The flag was stolen by some customers. Thankfully, whoever did it must have seen the error of their ways when they sobered up and sent the flag back to Master Braster from Australia. But, last night someone from a group of Australians customers stole a stock of alcohol from the Maser Braster store ho

I didnt pay some city tax once and moved cities. When I registered my gaijin card in the new city, the previous city started sending the bills to my new address. Im all square with them now, but yeah the city tax is a real killer.

Is it better to get the roll-cage mount or the handlebar mount? I though a roll-cage mount might be too fat to go round a ski-pole...

The guy has put a pair of Keepers up in a 178. Might be a good option for you if you decide not to go with the Lines - slightly less radical than the Shaman, in my opinion, and about the right length: http://page19.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/x204993388

Probably outdoor edition would be best for skiing/snowboarding. It comes with a head strap attachment which I trust more than the 3m sticky helmet mounts - also you can use this in combination with the included 3-way pivot arm to film yourself from the helmet. The motorsports edition is also OK as it comes with a selection of helmet mounts. I think the surf one is no good - just comes with a couple of surf board mounts. None of them come with a mount suitable for attaching to a pole though - I bodged one from one of the helmet mounts and an old bike light attachment. I also bodged a chest moun