Big Mountain...how to?

[Jynxx 4]

I love to get into it. I find myself watching those Big mountain snowboard vids... sigh

What to do?

Any ideas on preparing oneself, progressions, skill sets ? Anyone doin' it?

[iiyamadude 6]

Whats that in English?

[Schneebored 0]

Originally Posted By: iiyamadude

Whats that in English?

Opposite of a small mountain.

Originally Posted By: Jynxx

Any ideas on preparing oneself, progressions, skill sets ? Anyone doin' it?

Skill set - Be very good so you dont get dead
Essential equipment - Helicopter

Haha sorry....not 100% sure either what you mean either.

[jared 0]

Makes sence to me.

 

I got a good book on the subject - I will post details when I get home as I cant remember the exact details. Writen by a Euro mountain guide. Well worth a look. Its not so much about the actual ski/snowboard skills as the ones required to get into / out of the mountains, avie stuff, bc travel etc..

[Mike Pow 52]

Originally Posted By: Jynxx

I love to get into it. I find myself watching those Big mountain snowboard vids... sigh
What to do?
Any ideas on preparing oneself, progressions, skill sets ? Anyone doin' it?

Where you going to be next winter Jynxx?

[mitchpee 10]

Jynxx...

 

As someone who has skied a lot of "big mountain" lines in UT and the west I may be able to offer you a few things that have helped me.

 

#1 and most importantly confidence- if you know you can make it down that steep, rock filled path you can. There have been times I have been scared shitless well knowing someone died in the very territory I was skiing in. However, after watching someone dropping in and swallowing my fear I realized it wasn't that bad.

 

The best thing I remember before dropping into a big line is that this is my life, this is what I do for fun. I live, eat, and breathe skiing. So when I am standing on top of something that feels a bit uneasy, if it is doable I tell myself that and just throw the tips down. That is the best way. Create your own superstition. My friend taps his poles together twice and then goes. For me...I scrape any existing snow off my skis and drop in (any video I am in you will see my skis scrape over each other before I do anything big).

 

I am not a pro and there are people that have skied much gnarlier stuff than me. I feel like I have done some stuff in my time that may qualify what you are talking about though.

[Jynxx 4]

Thank you all for any advice and stories you can share.

I never had much mental barrier on doing things but I'm more careful these days.

I sometimes wonder now if the confidence I had before was naive but I got up and kept going so that must count for something. Probably having more fractures in my life in the last 10 years and also happens to be while on snowboards. Something about surfing on the snowy mountains makes me feel alive.

As I watch those vids, I am wondering ... maybe i should start doing airs in pow. It looks inevitable the better line will involve jumping off but would I be able to land it?

Maybe I join Mitch and build kickers.

Would I be able to point it down and go that fast? I would on skis ( I have freedom of stance) , but on snowboard ? So should I do it on skis? No, I would be worried about losing one ski.

I don't know what I can do, and what's good for progression. I know when I have doubt, what's doable can suck. When I go for it, it comes out sick! well... keeping fingers crossed.

I have this feeling "Big mountain freeriding" can kill you, but so can other snowgoers on piste.

 

MikePow, not sure about winter plans at the mo. Got to do this german intergration langage course and get a job. My parents haven't seen Missus yet so we might go visit Japan and a bit of Hokkaido. Not sure yet because we want to get out of her parents house and get our own place near the mountains. Fresh start.

[Tubby Beaver 209]

Last feb when I went to Niseko, we were riding out one of the gates (not annupuri side). I stayed high instead of going into the small valley, all of a sudden I flew off of this "cliff". It wasn't big, prob only 10 or 15 feet (maybe not even that) but it was the first time I did that and it was a total accident (I really started paying attention where I was going after that!! ), but I landed it and felt like I was king of the world!! I look at those vids and think, "wow....I wanna do some of that!!", just need to get the balls to start trying shit and building up the jumps

[MrSingh 0]

Unfortunately there are no "big mountains" in Japan. Other Fuji-san that is...

[pie-eater 207]

The biggest mountain near my home is called Billinge Lump

 

 

The mountains here are bigger than that. Well, some of them.

 

You can see Liverpool, Manchester and even Blackpool Tower from the "summit"

 

 

(and some cows)

 

[Yuki's Passion 1]

Originally Posted By: MrSingh

Unfortunately there are no "big mountains" in Japan. Other Fuji-san that is...

I think rather than just big mountains, they are talking about steep, hairy, dangerous lines, of which there are many in Japan. Lines around Honshu are as steep and crazy as lines in AK, minus the heli, making them that much tougher IMHO.

[Jynxx 4]

You bet

[MrSingh 0]

That's true.. problem is, the ride is over all too soon.

[Jynxx 4]

Used to freefall 10000ft in 60 seconds from a plane.

Never thought it was over too soon.

Time slows down when you are " In the Zone ".

[SKI 15]

Oh yes

but it can always be longer

 

[Jynxx 4]

OK

I have a practical question.

When you go air, Do you know where you are going to land at the speed you are taking off?

Do you check your landing area? If the Answer is "Yes when I can" But if you can't, how do you access the situation?

[Jynxx 4]

Another question. I'd love to hear from Mitch about this (and from others)

What goes in your head when you see rocks ?

I have hit subsurface rocks and once I have cartwheeled and landed on a small rock, and I wear a back protector for situations like this.

So what do you do. Do you avoid them? Ollie over them ? When I see one, I think it would be natural that there are others but who knows where? How do you pick a line?

[mitchpee 10]

Originally Posted By: Jynxx

Another question. I'd love to hear from Mitch about this (and from others)
What goes in your head when you see rocks ?
I have hit subsurface rocks and once I have cartwheeled and landed on a small rock, and I wear a back protector for situations like this.
So what do you do. Do you avoid them? Ollie over them ? When I see one, I think it would be natural that there are others but who knows where? How do you pick a line?

Oh man, rocks are fine if I know I am going to clear them. There have been a ton of cliffs that I have barely or sometimes clipped a few rocks. However one time, I was hitting this cliff called "dead tree cliff" which really isn't that high...maybe 10m? and just before takeoff clipped my ski on a rock sending me into a tomahawk down a rock face. Luckily just hit my back which had a backpack on and got a pretty good dead leg but other than that I was somehow fine. Roommate expected me to be unresponsive when I came to. Lost my ski for a good hour too of digging which was anything but fun. Made for a good adrenaline source though! haha.

Hitting a jump at speed though is a bit different. I learned a couple different doubles in the past few years and seeing the ground below you, then the sky, then the ground, then the sky again, then finally the ground is a trip. On some of the smaller ones you don't notice as much. One of the bigger jumps I did it on it was a very peaceful feeling but still very scary to go down that inrun and actually throw the trick.


SOme of my crazier buddies have some stories though. Crazy kids throwing huuuuuge doubles now that don't seem to phase them at all. I still have yet to stick one on a park jump clean.

[mitchpee 10]

Originally Posted By: Jynxx

Used to freefall 10000ft in 60 seconds from a plane.
Never thought it was over too soon.
Time slows down when you are " In the Zone ".

Still have yet to do that. Perhaps make ya go with me one day haha.

[hellyer 216]

Originally Posted By: Jynxx

Thank you all for any advice and stories you can share.
I never had much mental barrier on doing things but I'm more careful these days.
I sometimes wonder now if the confidence I had before was naive but I got up and kept going so that must count for something. Probably having more fractures in my life in the last 10 years and also happens to be while on snowboards. Something about surfing on the snowy mountains makes me feel alive.
As I watch those vids, I am wondering ... maybe i should start doing airs in pow. It looks inevitable the better line will involve jumping off but would I be able to land it?
Maybe I join Mitch and build kickers.
Would I be able to point it down and go that fast? I would on skis ( I have freedom of stance) , but on snowboard ? So should I do it on skis? No, I would be worried about losing one ski.
I don't know what I can do, and what's good for progression. I know when I have doubt, what's doable can suck. When I go for it, it comes out sick! well... keeping fingers crossed.
I have this feeling "Big mountain freeriding" can kill you, but so can other snowgoers on piste.

MikePow, not sure about winter plans at the mo. Got to do this german intergration langage course and get a job. My parents haven't seen Missus yet so we might go visit Japan and a bit of Hokkaido. Not sure yet because we want to get out of her parents house and get our own place near the mountains. Fresh start.

Jynxx, I read your posts and am constantly amazed at your variety of knowledge and subject matter but I wonder,...................Do you actually read what you write?

[Jynxx 4]

Sure, Snowjunky. Mind you that I did say on another thread that lots of people do not understand What I am talking about. I assume that most of these people are interested to get "the point" of the idea and/or make their counterpoints get across. In my case I leave a lot of things for interpretation, because I am interested in how that person's mind work out the many dimensions of what "that conversation" may imply. Reason? I think no one really understands what people are thinking, or talking about because words have different meanings and paint different pictures. So my understanding is not so much about in defining those moments in the conversation, but rather in the awareness, the mindfulness in what that might mean.

 

Of course, I'm not talking about some simple stuff like "Pass me the salt, would you, sugar?"

[Jynxx 4]

Hey, Mitch Thanks for that.

So you are saying by " clearing the rocks" ... If I can go over them meaning If they slide under me, it's OK. So I avoid hitting it square on the tip, clipping the edge, etc. ?

 

One thing about landing. I can understand if the landing is steep and powder, the better.

But do you worry if there is a rock underneath ? Like jumping in a water hole without knowing that water hole?

In skydiving, it's like "The sky is the limit until you hit the ground" I can do a dozen backflips in a row and not worry about hitting the ground. You can fly a super small canopy at 100 km/h + but you still gotta land it. You land without injury, then it's a good skydive.

[Tex 3]

Originally Posted By: Jynxxtopic with )

Sure, Snowjunky. Mind you that I did say on another thread that lots of people do not understand What I am talking about.

Really. Strange you make perfect sense to me


Guess it is your thread to go off topic with anyway

[mitchpee 10]

Originally Posted By: Jynxx

Hey, Mitch Thanks for that.
So you are saying by " clearing the rocks" ... If I can go over them meaning If they slide under me, it's OK. So I avoid hitting it square on the tip, clipping the edge, etc. ?

One thing about landing. I can understand if the landing is steep and powder, the better.
But do you worry if there is a rock underneath ? Like jumping in a water hole without knowing that water hole?
In skydiving, it's like "The sky is the limit until you hit the ground" I can do a dozen backflips in a row and not worry about hitting the ground. You can fly a super small canopy at 100 km/h + but you still gotta land it. You land without injury, then it's a good skydive.

Ah I worry about it a lot but it's pointless. When there's 100 inch base of snow it covers anything and the real big rocks become pillows. Sometimes here you get treewells but that's the closest we get to anything that pops up and gets ya.

Yeah if you clear them, just air over them haha. Just have to judge speed right so you DO clear over ALL and not just some of them

[Jynxx 4]

I'd love to try those pillow lines. I feel good about that. When I know there's enough fluffy stuff, I don't mind landing on s flatter slope.

Actually, the steeper it gets, the less thickness coverage there is, isn't there. Anyways, Roger on the no point in worrying.

 

Hey, any of you snowboarders carry snowshoes with you out there?

Reason I ask is:

What do you do when you see really good powder out of bounds, you see a single ski track going down, You don't know where it's going or if you can get out. And I'm thinking, "Maybe, this skier had a mate on a snowmobile waiting to get him out. Certainly he had a touring ski setup, etc... "