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It's not usually so much a case of being buried as being at the bottom of an incline that is at least one body length deep powder all the way up. Or being stuck on a flat bit that's got shoulder high powder on it. Getting out can take up to 30 minutes (and risk of massive cardiac arrest).

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neck deep, I kid you not. went over a lip into a gully and came to a complete stop. Had to spend ages digging down to undo my bindings and then lift my board and then "swim" to shallower snow.

Its quite dangerous any deeper and I could of drowned in the snow.

I have heard of guys submarining in the Seirra Nevadas after epic dumps of snow (2m+)and suffocating to death....scarey stuff when you think about it \:\(

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Didn`t get a chance to mention this last weekend but oh man did Kitashiga Ryuo BEAT ME UP last friday! If some of you would recall it was dumping nonstop in many places last week and Ryuo was no exception. It was snowing the whole time I was there(from about 6pm til 6pm)and I wasn`t able to tell whether they`d put out the groomers or not. Their board park was completely buried. Even on the lower beginner slopes the snow was shin deep! I was really looking forward to trying out the runs on the very top of the mountain but due to heavy fog all day I had to give up that thought. As a result my only choice was to do the downhill advanced run right after you get off the ropeway and that was the killer. I mean, there was just TOO MUCH powder, more than what I`d experienced in Hokkaido(yes, you heard me right)! Everytime I tried turning the nose of my board would get stuck immediately. On the few occasions when that didn`t happen the amount of snow I kicked up was so great that I ended up not being able to see a damn thing. I couldn`t count how many times I got stuck and just how long it took each time to dig myself out...even skiers were getting stuck, that`s how much snow there was! In the end I decided to go against the rules and just rode straight down the mountain while putting as much pressure on my back foot as I could(I felt like I was surfing). That seemed to work but it did get a little hairy. :p I`ve already decided to hold a "revenge match" with Ryuo next month and the next time I`m there I`ll be sure to reset my bindings.

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Friday at Nozawa was the same. That amount of snow just knackers you out. Especially if you race down the powder slopes at full speed. Hit a slight bump and your knees come up and nearly twatt you in the face! Do that a few times and your knees will begin ache. Fall over on anything much less than 45 degrees and despair of ever moving again.

 

With the flat light, the low visibility and all that whipped cream underfoot, at times only the scream of the wind inside my helmet told me I was moving fast.

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yeah, i'd say often too much powder.

 

there have been at least 5 days where i get stuck every run or so, and i have been buried (on course) at least 10 times now.

 

trying to breath under the powder is not easy.

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