[Getting to Habuka from Tokyo -advice please]

Thanks a lot for the info - sounds the best option...

[Getting to Habuka from Tokyo -advice please]

Some friends are driving down from Kansai to Hakuba for the upcoming 3 day weekend. Their plan is to arrive at dawn on the Saturday and ski/board for Saturday and Sunday and drive back Monday. They have booked a little Japanese place for those two nights.

 

I am hoping to join them from Tokyo, but am not sure of the best way to get there. I am a long legged guy, so not a big fan of the overnight bus idea, as I also tend to not sleep well on buses.

 

Also, as it is about 4 and a half hours from my house to Hakuba (Shinkansen 216 minutes from Shinjuku???), if I leave on the Saturday morning, I might miss a lot of Saturday's slope time. But on the other hand, leaving on the Friday after work means I have to try to find a place for one person for one night, and I know how Japanese places seem to assume everyone travels in groups...

 

However, I have seen that Nagano station is only 90 minutes from Shinjuku. My question is really just how simple is it to get from Nagano to Hakuba? I have seen some tours which mention having to get a bus between the two, but how long does this take and is this time really variable with the weather? I don't really want to miss my shinkansen back to Tokyo on the Monday morning.

 

If this isn't a viable option, I'll probably just end up missing half of Saturday and accepting it, but if there is a better way that someone knows, please feel free to pass me the info.

 

Here's hoping...

 

Thanks, Jester.

 

P.S. They are going to Happou One, which for years I thought was '1', until I learned how to read the kanji... (>_<)

[Burton Boots for large feet]

Thank you all for your advice!

[Burton Boots for large feet]

First of all, thanks for anyone who is able to offer advice on this...

 

I am looking to board this year and have decided to buy everything and go for it. I have tried Victoria Sports and it seems I am a good fit for a 11.5 Burton Driver X (J=29.5cm)

 

Q1) At the time, I didn't see any SL-9's there, but as a general rule of thumb, for Burton, if I fit a 11.5 in one model, will I fit the same in another, i.e. am I an 11.5 in SL-9 too? I am trying to make time to get back down to Jimbocho later this week to try a few more on, but I tend to not find much in my size, so may need to resort to buying online, so need to know if I can risk getting SL-9's or if I should stick to the Driver X's.

 

Q2) Anyone know a decent online resource (or preferably actual store in Tokyo...) for larger size 2007 Burton boots? Preferably with a few bucks knocked off. I seem to be able to find plenty around in the cheaper bracket (20~35% off retail) up to about 27.5 or 28cm, but above that, they are tricky to get hold of. I found a guy on Yahoo Auctions that seems to send them from the US, but it takes a couple of weeks for them to get here and I am kinda thinking to go to Kiroro next weekend to kickstart my season...

 

Q3) I bought a board last week (unused 2006 Airwalk, 260mm waist) for 6,000 yen! Should be fine for learning the ropes, I hope, but will my large feet be ok on this board in Driver X's or should I go for SL-9's anyway?

 

Q4) I haven't thus far considered the Burton ION model, so should I? They do look pretty stylish...

 

Any Burton experts out there able to offer some quick responses? Much appreciated...

 

Jester

[Miyagi? .........(great new site)]

Wow, 190cm!?!?!? Thats a big tool!