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Hi folks new here wave

Thinking of doing Japan either this coming winter or the one after.

 

I have a few Japanese friends here in the US and one of them, a guy in his 40's, used to live in Japan and ski every winter for about 20 years. He seems to know the place really well but is known at times to come up with some broad exaggerations bless 'im, so I thought I would share one thing he came up with last night.

 

He said that the 'snowboarding boom' in Japan is now over and skiing is gaining back popularity at the expense of boarding.

 

Anyone able to share their thoughts on whether that's true or just a but of hot air?

 

Cheers. Great to find this place. thumbsup

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Don't know about that Zski

In Nozawa February this year, heading back to the village along the home cat track I started to count snowboarders as I passed them. I lost count at around 143 (98 sitting on their bums as I passed them) stir

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I read reports that said sales were down on both ski and snowboard equipment but more so for new snowboards. I didn't see anything I could say was a real change on the slopes though.

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I don't think it's changed much. If anything the youngsters would choose board over skis.

 

The sales thing is just people waiting for perhaps next year to buy, given the gloomy outlook. And since boarders are on average a younger crowd, even more so on the spending front.

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Interesting ... but would be surprised if true.

 

I have however noticed that the skier-centric Thredbo is WAY more heavily populated by boarders this year than previous years (still not 50/50 yet though!)

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I believe the growth of boarding has ceased but there is little to say its in a decline, with the development of twin tip ski's to the level that they are today, many are finding they can do more on them and this area is in growth.

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Same here. At Maiko, Kagura, Nozawa and Hakuba, was more 'boarders then skiers, but think they have started to become more dissipated over time as more areas open up to them.

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Don't forget the converts..

When you have been skiing for a long time since you are a kid and not a big deal for some time, you give snowboard a go and your snow craze come back...

wow, this thing can carve with one effective edge putting weight on one board.and I see myself doing things what it took so long to do with skis...your hooked

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A good analogy Jynxx but if only it were that easy. Have some skier friends who tried snowboarding last season, or the season before, at Gala Yuzawa and they just couldn't get it into it. They complained about the 'mechanics' of it compared to skiing and didn't like the feeling of going down, "sideways"

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Seems to me the other way round sometimes - snowboards everywhere!

 

Places last season that seemed to be overwhelmingly snowboard country when I went - Maiko, Gala Yuzawa, Kandatsu.

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One interesting thing I saw this past season was some of the kids in those school groups that clog up the gelande on weekdays taking snowboard lessons instead of ski lessons!

 

It would be funny if in twenty years all the retiree oyaji's in the gondola were boarders, and all the young, fashionable extremos were skiiers.

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Originally Posted By: RobBright
A good analogy Jynxx but if only it were that easy. Have some skier friends who tried snowboarding last season, or the season before, at Gala Yuzawa and they just couldn't get it into it. They complained about the 'mechanics' of it compared to skiing and didn't like the feeling of going down, "sideways"


Interesting point Rob.

When I first took to a board I was a total novice to anything snow ... but the two ladies I was travelling with were both proficient skiers. One is still boarding - she wanted to switch back to skies this season, as she felt it would see her into her older years more easily - but has some knee problems, and is likely to stick with boarding. the other switched back to skiing - and had particular trouble with lift technique as she always wanted to get off toes pointed forward (disaster!).....but just this trip she said "I wish I had not sold my board, I miss it and would like to have a play every now and again".

In Switzerland we saw lots of elderly skiers - one guy was in his nineties on the lift with us! And I wondered if in another 20 or 30 or 40 years we will be seeing elderly boarders...
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I think in europe most under 30 people can ski if they snowboard. Why? If they started from kids (because your parents ski) they will first ski at a younger age (recommended) until they are 5 or 8 and they wanna snowboard. Some kids start at about 12 when everyone else does it and more youngsters snowboard these days.

I'm sure there will be more elderly boarders in 20 years, I see them even now. They know the mountains for a long time and some are doing it in the half pipe. WOW

I have seen older couples taking up snowboarding here and having a blast. Why not.

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Rob,

It took me nearly 6 months to stand on a surfboard going out there nearly every day.

Maybe a week to get my skis a little more parallel turns.

Snowboarding...Two days of really falling hard I wished later I had bought my protectors and helmet in the first place. I saw myself was a absolute noob on the mountain and thought it's gonna take me five years to get like that watching everyone else. But the first 2 days I concentrated on finding my best stance, and where I wanted to be on the board, ( I am 1 1/2 inch set back on a 157 now, but I wanted to be centered on a 151 twin tip then )

It was really convenient this rental board had bindings that was "instant" to change the angle without carrying any tools.

Got my heelside on my first day, tried doing the toe side more on my second day. Toe side was a bit scary for me. These two days were on a rental salomon 151 with a 1 inch setback.

On my 3rd day with my own equipment, things started happening. And I had an German speaking Italian instructor who really pointed out how the body movement works on the dynamics. It clicked. Still I fell big time but I wag getting into it "leading the board" and feeling how the board flexes, weighing and un-weighing, etc.....

I really think it is easier for beginners to have a Twin Tip centered board. and a good instructor who can demonstrate what you are doing and make you aware. It's not that different to skis and I like the feel and what a snowboard can do.

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what side did everyone find easier to manage when beginning boarding. I definitely found the toe edge easier, my brother tred to get me to stand up onto my heel edge but that to me was alien and way too difficult at first. It was much more natural to kneel into the mountain and push myself up onto my toe edge rather than try and dig my heel in from a sitting position. I was way more comfortable riding on my toe edge than my heel edge

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