Snowboarding round the world

[connackers 0]

I`ve had my heart set on a snowboarding trip round the world for a year starting next winter. Recently i`ve been thinking it may not be the most sensible thing to do in terms of future job application, especially considering the time and cost.

 

Then started thinking of doing it but trying to get more out of it than just the fun and adventure side. Turning it into an organized charity thing. Something along the lines of getting a few people together and turning it into a challenge. For example how many countries you can go to, or miles of pistes etc. Go to some more interesting places such as Iran, Turkey, India, Chile and so on and generally try to make a big deal out of it.

 

Has anyone on here ever tried to do anything similar and know of any practicalities of doing something like this? Is it something that sounds interesting, or a complete non-starter? Just looking for vague ideas at the moment to see what is or isn`t possible.

 

And apologies if this reads like it`s in the wrong section! Maybe it should be in off topic...

 

Any comments or advice would be much appreciated.

[BagOfCrisps 24]

Not any help, but doing that would be just awesome. I just wish I was in a place in my life/career where I could do it.

 

Good luck mate.

[slow 0]

Have you got that idea from him?

http://www.roundtheworldbybike.com/reports_planning.asp

 

If you never heard of him, he is a British guy doing "round the world by bike". He is amazing! You can learn from him how to prepare for "adventure".

Are you thinking to snowboard like Himalayan mountains or the Andes??

 

Good luck!

[connackers 0]

I`ve heard of a couple of similar cycling things that seem epic. Unfortunately I won`t be able to do something on that scale. It would be awesome to plan a trip across the major mountain ranges of the world but that is way beyond my snowboarding or organisational ability. Was thinking more about going to resorts but in a fair few different countries.

 

A basic list of countries that would be feasible are Japan, Canada, U.S.A, France, Switzerland, Austria, Bulgaria, Turkey, Iran, Pakistan/India. Then Argentina, Chile and New Zealand in the winter. There`s obviousily a whole host of other countries that could be included for example Spain, Andorra, the Scandinavian countries, many more in East Europe, Russia, a few more in the middle east, China and S.Korea; and Bolivia and Australia in the southern hemisphere. Though think at least 2 weeks in each country is going to be the most practical and that would limit options somewhat. As well as working out the best times to go to each place and how to get there without it getting extortionate. I`d probably have to spend a month in a couple of places to keep costs down.

[marnix 0]

You could try to sell your story to a magazine to make something out of it, but you will need good pictures.

If you are into touring try Pakistan or even Afghanistan that will make up a good story to sell to a magazine. There are plenty of people making a living by writing about their (snowboard)travels.

 

Try to make your trip different, by going to different places (South-africa) or the way you travel. (Once heard about a Japanese guy cycling around the world with his standard Japanese 3-speed bicycle).

[connackers 0]

Do you have any links to people writing about their snowboarding travels? Or first hand info on Afghanistan, Pakistan or S.Africa? Would be very interested to know more.

 

Definitely will be trying to go to some more unfamiliar countries. Looking at the possibility of going round the world only travelling to adjacent countries. Something along the lines of Japan to S.Korea to China to India to Pakistan to Afghanistan to Iran to Turkey to Bulgaria to Romania to The Ukraine to Slovakia to The Czech Republic to Austria to Switzerland to France before finishing up in N.America. Maybe scrap the idea of doing back to back seasons as that`s going to cost a fortune as it is.

[powda tele 0]

If you want to snowboard around the world, just do searches on the net for every country and see what you come up with. You seem to be ignoring many of the more interesting countries that have snow, I think. I did something kind of similar (different sport) quite a while ago, and it isn't that hard. People will always pass you on to a contact in the next country. You'll get the most out of it if you go to places that are famous, as well as places most boarders have never thought of.

 

Charity? Have you thought that perhaps the expense of two weeks in all these countries (including the numerous flights and resort tickets) might be contrary to any idea of fund raising for charities. What you would spend in a week would do a lot in a 3rd world country. Note that those guys riding around the world for charity are doing it in an environmentally friendly way, a very cost efficient way, and working their butts off. Doesn't quite sound like jetsetting around on a snowboarding holiday. I'm all in support of anyone raising money for charity, but perspective helps.

 

As for your future work prospects. If you think it's not a big problem, then I say do the trip. For most people, their time in Japan will add nothing to their employability back home anyway. Presuming you're teaching English here, if you don't want to go into teaching when you return home, then you can pretty much right off your time here as far as work experience goes. When a future employer reads your resume, they're only concerned with prior work experience that is relevant to their work/company. Everything else is irrelevant.

 

Good luck.

[connackers 0]

Cheers for your reply powda,

 

Am interested in doing it for myself. The charity thing is a bonus if it`s tenable. As you point out if I was solely serious about the charity side i`d be doing something else entirely.

 

I want to find someway of doing it that makes it challenging enough for people to take the idea seriously and be able to raise a decent amount of money. There are a lot of very similar (though no doubt much more worthy) charity raising ideas. This interests me as a fundraising activity because it seems a little different and may get a different group of people and companies attention than those that typically give money.

 

Am curious which other countries you were thinking off? Would prefer to do a slightly different route through Europe, going more south through Yugoslavia, Bosnia-Herzegovenia, Croatia and Slovenia. Also a detour into the middle-east could be interesting as Syria, Lebanon and Israel are all skiable. Not too sure at the moment what is practical in terms of time.

[spook 0]

last year i read in a brit snowboard mag about some guys riding in pakistan. pretty epic snow but it was proper backcountry stuff.

and when i was in turkey i met an american ex-pat who talked highly of the snow there, and also in iran. apparently in iran there are seperate male and female runs... should be interesting if nothing else, although things seem to be getting a little more unstable there at the moment. and i've read about craig kelly riding in iran too.

the guys that run www.boardtheworld.com do trips every year to different places - this winter they did a tour through eastern europe. there's a list of previous trip journals on their website that are a bit of introductory reading.

[marnix 0]

Iran used to have seperate runs. But no everything is mixed except some of the liftlines (So women can just walk through while the men have to wait for 20 minutes).

[marnix 0]

Just read some stories about Pakistan and from years ago Afghanistan. I know a guy who has been to S-Af (it was all man-made and just a few short lifts).

But the overland trip Iran - Turkey - Greece - Bulgaria - Slovenia - Austria sounds very good. Maybe toss in Cyprus

 

I'd like to go to Lebanon and Israel but I think I'll wait another few seasons.

[powda tele 0]

I agree Iran and Turkey would be good. Lots of eastern Europe would be good. Try central Asia as well. Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan for example, have big mountains. Russia - so much there. India is done by many a tourist, but still interesting. Nepal - if you think it's politically safe enough. Chile is also done by many, but there's a lot more in South America. Then there's China, and don't forget checking Africa. Don't limit your ideas by what you've heard about in the past. Do some googling and search for ideas. I bet people have done ski trips to anywhere there's snow. Many of them put something in mags or on the net. There's a wealth of info out there if you go through it all. Good luck.