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I have mentioned before that skiing is making a comeback in North America and Europe. At many resorts skiing numbers are up and rider numbers are down. Why? well the new skis are helping keep kids in the sport. The fact that skiers can go bigger and do more with their boards.

 

Xgames this year snowboarding took the backseat to sking. the slopestyle and the pipe were run first by snowboarders. Skiers closed out both events. Simon Dumont going 8 feet higher than any snowboarder.

 

Skiing is making a comeback the question is when will the faddy japanese catch on.

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What J-land needs is a good promotor of the new school of skiing. People need to realise that skiing can be associated with a similar culture to the snowboarding one biut up by Jake and freinds. Skiing still has in thei country the image of fluorescent jackets, tight pants and fur lined gloves.

 

Salomon or any other major company with the cash and the will to spend combined with a savvy resort offering everything to back up the "culture advertising" can easily make it work in a few years.

 

The potential is there the resources not.

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I don't want to be related to the New School image though. Snowboarding went through that and is now coming more towards a free riding image. Why should we do the same thing.

 

I think if anything marketing people in Japan should be looking towards freeskiing and getting away from the institutions and rules surrounding resort skiing in Japan. Resort skiing now for many people is getting out there and hitting the bumps and jumps. And that Sucks Poo!

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I dont think wrong direction I think complacent (spelling) marketing. Knowing that Europe was its biggest market ski companies lost interest in the western market. This led in some ways to snowboardings rise in status. Kids not wanted the you have to do it this way style of skiing.

 

Hell the resorts played a big part in it too. ie snowboard parks um sorry skiers this park isnt for you. The industry does have to realize the balance and because there are so many players that balance is hard to find.

 

But come on 22 feet out of a half pipe huge.

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22 feet out of the pipe is huge. And I am always love watching it on TV. Except for the X-Games slang which is so so annoying. But if you hit mute its alright.

 

But marketing new school skiing in Japan does nothing for freeskiing in Japan. All it does is gets a new band of skiers to strap tiny park skis to there feet. But it is entertaining to watch while I am on the way up the chair to ski powder.

 

Skiing may have been misleading to some people during the late 80's early 90's but there were still North American people pushing the limits of freeskiing. Doug Coombs, Scott Schidt, Glen Plake, Eric Pehota, Trevor Peterson and a few other which escape my mind. That was the time when Alaska and BC coast mountains were being pioneered.

 

If we lost people to snowboarding during this time then good ridence. Cleaning house a bit is all that was. Get rid of the people without the ability to take skiing to the next level. And now they start to come back when its easy again. Quitters is all I have to say. Lazy. ha ha ha. lol.gif

 

As for straight skis. You don't need shape to ski powder. Wide is good though. And the first Fat skis came out during this down time of the 80's and 90's. Atomic put out numerous huge skis which to this day are still seen on the mountains.

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And I have one of those old atomics too.

 

Straight skis and powder made me improve so much. Every mistake and you were punished.

 

X games slang sucks but the music aint that bad.

 

Park kids dont understand the relationship between balance ie if you dont turn youll never have good balance just a huckstar. That doesnt bother me the kids are having fun and for the most part are pretty good kids. Like all kids they will come around and the day they understand powder they will do both.

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Touqe can't join a company one day and expect to be President the next. Gotta go through the processes first.

 

Skiing is shooting for where the mainstream is now. Not where it will be. That will come next. There will always be the freeskiers, but not necessariuly the new schoolers. Hot them first now when they are young and you get a loyal follower for life. Look at McD's marketing strategy with the Family set oriented at children.

 

FT, still bogged down with moving but planning to hit the mountain next weekend.

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No no no no no.

 

You were supposed to say

 

"Toque you have no vision. All you care about in skiing is keeping your powder to yourself. You have no interest in furthering th sport nor do you care that skiing is back on top"

 

Then I rebut and tell you to go to hell. I'm going to ski my powder and thats that! lol.gif

 

Debate Debate. This site sucks crap sometimes. I've been lurking a few times over at the Powder site and although they get pretty hardcore about some stuff they do have the right idea. Attacking begginers and getting mad at people who ask stupid questions. Everyone is far to nice here.

 

All in good fun right. It's not fun if everyone always agrees.

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 Quote:
Originally posted by mogski:
Touqe can't join a company one day and expect to be President the next
Exactly. I already said that earlier. Well something like it and if I didn't then I meant to. Skiing is a life long goal. Every year hell even every day there is somthing to work on. Even the pros are still learning. Each year its interesting to see what new lines Shane and Seth ski because they are better skiers.
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I will be joining the ski ranks in coming seasons. Snowboards are only good (for me) on steep powder. In nearly all othetr conditions, skis are better or at worst, on par with a snowboard.

 

Look, to be honest, I think I am a better looking guy with a pair of skis on my shoulders.

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 Quote:
Originally posted by Fattwins:
Thats why I cant be bothered with snowboarding at the moment too much to learn.
it's funny how the more you learn the more you realise you have yet to learn. (i know - v random).

I started learning how to board purely cause none of the peeps i ski with push me to get better....so started getting bored. Am looking forward some ski Park'n Pipe & Freestyle couses for this season tho! yay!
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[/qb]

I started learning how to board purely cause none of the peeps i ski with push me to get better....so started getting bored. Am looking forward some ski Park'n Pipe & Freestyle couses for this season tho! yay! [/QB]

 

This is why i started telemarking. Great fun, now that I have the general hang of it.

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I never started snowboarding for the same reasons FT. Still way too much to learn and having to much damn fun doing. Doesn't mean I don't like boarding. I rode with a boarder for most of his time in J-land. We had a balst togther.

 

When I started out playing golf at 11 I was ridiculed by all the old fuddies. None would play with me and there were very few others my age to play with. In fact the old peoples wouldn't let me on the course some days because I was too young to join their ranks. Didn't matter that I could hit further, play better and new the rules better. I was just too young to understand the ways of golf. However, what each and everyone of them forgot was that the young were the only thing that was going to keep the sport alive. They forget that each year they got older and more and more were dropping like flies.

 

You got a business to run relying on people you don't wanna be counting down the days until your last living memeber dies. You want sustainable numbers. How do you get those numbers you encourage new schools of thought, you go after a younger audience. Make it more attractive to them.

 

The golf club woke up to this in the following years and I became one of a 100 junior players whom were respected in the club. We were the bread and butter for the club for the next 20+ years.

 

This is what I see the skiing industry doing know. They have realised their complacency in the sport they thought they once knew. They saw there was another way of thinking outside of gate racing and recreational trail following. People like Mike Douglas, Seth Morrison, Plake they invited them to dinner and they have been eating it ever since.

 

I think it is great what is happening. I am not afraid others will take my powder, because there will always be powder. The more people there are the harder I must work at making myself the first to get there. Why would you want to keep all to yourself something that you are always sharing with others about in a pub or ona street? You only gotta check this site to get hooked enough to wanna try it. Tis not a sceret so why try to keep it one.

 

Actually on reading this it make very little sense but seeing as I have spent the time writing it I am going to post it.

 

Excuse the babble. I go quite cloudy when I become passionate.

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There are a lot of new school skiers/and oldschool that have been coming and doing promos in Japan. Check out mags like: Powder, Bravoski, and Backcountry Skier (I think) which deal with 99% of the freeskiing movement. For those of you studying Japanese I find them a fun way to "study" But, the likes of Mike Douglas, Shane Szocs, Peter Line, et al usually come to Japan at least once a season for some maginc powpow. Line maybe 3 years ago had the entire team come for a promo and they have come back each year since.

 

But, like above mentioned, the Japanese athletes need to push for the sport too.

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