samurai

woah, woah, woah. the dukes are half the weight of freerides? Fritsche Diamar? The freerides are plastic and go to 12 and are insanely light. You mean naxos?

not that it matters. both are supposedly sweet pow rides.

I don't think the gun is wood. It may have metal in it to secure the mounting point over a foam core. KOM, don't you have dukes on yours? Those are supposed to be pretty heavy. I bet the swing-weight of the longer gun made it seem burly in the hand. I would wager that the gun is lighter than the gotama in equal lengths.... based on reputation and my perceived constructions.

don't begin the "I-should-have-gone-longer." bs just yet. I don't think there is anything you could do on a few more centimeters of length. the topsheets will peel, but mine are 4 years old and still strong, so don't sweat it. and yeah, they're not that fun on groomers... (go faster) anyway, just 2 weeks ago I took mine out and actually did something new. I was laying trenches in some crud, trying to find my edge again for the season and suddenly I cranked out this set of like 5 turns with a really tight radius. I had to look back at my tracks to ensure that I had just made th

any more on the goats? nice tr, though. I heard that about rusutsu, too.

the fact that they hired a JH patroller to come out and give them some instruction says alot. The American Avalanche Institute was founded in JH. I've never been to niseko. but I would be really surprised to hear about avi control being done at any resort in Japan to the level that would recognize it as adequate. Personally, just by viewing pics of niseko, I can understand why it doesn't have many slides. and that has nothing to do with patrol. and surely, 750yen/hour doesn't initiate competition from elite paramedics or avi forecasters. (although it is a virutal mirror image

or that there is ample tree coverage.

for my semantic tongue BC= outside of ski area boundaries. albeit 20 miles into the wilderness or through a resort's gate to another peak somewhere. (the latter usually done with some sort of permission from patrol in the states.) Sidecountry is a modern word that refers to short hikes/skins from resort boundaries. The Marker Duke is being marketed as a good sidecountry binding. 'side' refering to the sides of the resort. this is an example of where BC and SC could overlap in their definitions. Frontcountry just entered my vocabulary today. Not quite sure I like it. but that's

classes and lessons in snow management? or turning? We don't mean to be discouraging. It's just that wild snow is incredibly dangerous stuff. It's really easy to make a simple mistake (especially out of ignorance) and have it result in horrific consequences. by all means, study up on the forums. But, if you are willing to invest the initial 5man (or so) to get you situated with some gear, surely you'd be willing to take an entry level avi course for 2man? just a side note- I usually test my partners the first time I ski with them if there is a chance we'll be headed into avi

I can understand people's (westerners') frustration about not loading the lifts to full capacity when there is a long queue. but this is Japan. skiing and snowboarding to the average person here is a social and family activity. Most japanese skiers and boarders could give a rats ass about how quickly they can get back to the top. I say get over it. use the single's lane if it bothers you that much.

technically, poaching means ducking ropes. Going through a control gate is not poaching. (unless the gate is closed) Anything outside resort boundaries is considered BC.

indo- nice avatar. scottish al- find a sushiya that serves your sashimi while flapping its gills for breath.

it also kind of means thanks for the meal. At least, that's how it was explained to me. I never use it to express how much I liked the meal. that gets overdone with the oishii and mai throughout the meal.

mamabear, in all honesty, you may be wearing too many pairs of socks. circulation is your friend. don't wear the same socks you drove to the mountain with. they're already wet. change socks at the hill and put your boots on when warm. Keep your feet from overheating.

^^ exactly. (yamagata)

Uniqlo is my "fleece" provider. You really can't beat the price/quality ratio. My wife and I quite like the casual/around-the-house stuff. sierra trading post .com is my silk and merino provider. Last summer I stopped into their outlet when on a road trip in the states and bought two silk shirts for 10 bucks a pop and a merino lightweight shirt for less than 20.

I have silk boxers from thailand. really.

must get more personal. tsondaboy, your acquistions are puny. you stumble around these forums like some superior god-like structure. STFU already. bedtime, my a$$. How's your greek this week? (btw, nice anime avatar. how old are you?)

silk and merino for me. I'll never go back to synthetic after stocking up on silk and wool layers. unless I'm camping of course, snow camping with wool could suck as it doesn't dry nearly as quickly as poly fibers. silk-silk-merino-down-goretex is my blizzard set up.

Originally Posted By: thursday. with lift queues like these, I wouldn't like to use an hourly ticket faulty!!! that chair isn't loading yet. That's the morning queue. if a 14 day pass is the same cost as a 50 hour pass, the vacationer should still buy the 14 dayer. I can see the benefits to holding a 50 hour pass as a cheap/temporary season pass though for the extended vacation.

what about hokkaido?

I'm not in Hakuba... but I would ssoooo outski you. on topic, Evergreen hires internatially accredited instructors. You won't get the same credentials or experience at (virtually) any ski resort in the world. Those guys go to private firms like Evergreen. I believe the subjective comment was pretty spot on. (I'm not impressed with the J demo team or training or tactics, to be honest. I ski them under the table too. But I'm just the best skier in Northern Honshu.)

my wife got a sweet bikini tan in Hawaii a couple of summers ago. That tan lasted like a year-- no joke. I used to tease her... that she wasn't human for not shedding skin. (She doesn't have any body odor at all either. very strange girl. Hmmm... maybe i did marry an alien.)

my sister was a tanning freak in HS. She would race home after school to get the afternoon sun. My mom used to punish her too. She's 35 with skin cancer. treatable, but present.

just move your iron slower. 140 seems hot. Was your iron smoking? If so, cool it down and move slower. for paper, just put it under your iron. and yeah, hard wax is the suck.