First time snowboarding experience

[damian 0]

I thought I would write about my first time for the benefit of other newbie types like me.

 

I went to Hakuba47 on Sunday and had quite a bit of fun. It was the first time I had a slide on snow in 12 years. I am now quite confident in saying that ones very first run on a snowboard is a lot harder than the very first time on skis. I jumped on the gondola (also a first, very cool device!), got to the top, walked around a bit thinking “ok, what now”. I was on my own and as mentioned, was my first real board experience so I sat and watched a few boarders to get an idea of what to do. I got bored sitting so I strapped the board on, stood up, slide 10 meters and fell over. I then proceeded to do this al the way down what I estimated to be a 3km run. At one stage I strayed onto an advanced run and had to walk down that bit until I came to the easy trail again. By the time I reached the bottom I was in a little pain and decided that wrist guards are a must. I did this run all day and by the end I could go for quite a while doing lots of heel-toe turns. Sometimes I got quite a rhythm up and felt confident at my turning to avoid people etc and my ability to do a big skid stop. I enjoyed them .. sending out a big spray of snow. However I couldn't maintain the flow and rhythm for to long without a big edge catch and slam. Also, sometimes the muscles would fatigue and although the brain was thinking turn, the body didn't come to the party.

 

A few thoughts I had during the day:

 

- big piles of powder look great on the side of the trail but if you fall over the bank on the downhill side of the trail it is a prick to get out. I went over the edge of the trail several times and had a really hard time dragging myself back up.

- These beginner trails are nice and gentle, but the are narrow. My two biggest fears were getting run over after I crashed and going over the edge on the drop off side (described above)

- Boarding onto a flat stretch or into powder with no speed is a pain on a snowboard. I learnt to avoid doing that.

- Given that my first day riding was on such a narrow trail I was forced to learn how to get onto an edge and turn , then almost immediately onto the other edge and turn back the other way

- It seems that a board allows you to do a lot more things than skis. There are big lumps and faces of snow that you could take advantage of in ways I couldn't do when I skied. I was really excited by this. One part of the run had a big embankment for about 100 meters. On my front side you could build up some speed, then do a bit of a "bottom turn' (surfing parlance), turn off the top of the face, bottom turn again, off the top etc etc.

- I found that being able to ride backwards was helpful. I did this by accident the first time as I was attempting to stop but my board went sideways, then swung around into a fakie position. I found quite a few times where switching stance and than back again got me out of trouble and made continuing a ride after a near crash al lot easier. I must admit that doing this was just inviting an edge catch, so I didn't make a habit of it.

- a board doesn't appear to turn by will-power alone. A lot of times I decided to turn but it didn't happen and a crash usually resulted. I was getting really sick of this stop-start/fallover crap so I became determined to make the board turn. I think that was the first time I enjoyed the buzz of committing to a turn that you didn't think you could do. I found that if you trust the board and really lay into a turn you will easily make it (at the moderate speeds that I was going). If I crashed it was my fault, not the board. There were a few sections of the run that had a steeper section ending in a hair-pin turn. The sensation of taking the inside through one of these corners was cool, a little like riding a motor bike and laying into a turn.

- Don't try a jump on your first day, that was a mistake, I didn't expect to go that "high' (all of 3 feet in the air).

- When everything is going well, that edge catch is out to get you and when both feet are attached to the board there wasn't anything I knew to do to recover, so an edge catch nearly always resulted in a slam. I became so hateful of the edge catch that I decided that every time I even began to initiate an edge, I would do so with the attitude of “do it right or your gunna die”. This really helped the confidence as I could avoid a lot of edge catches that were a result of pussy footing around. Having said that, I could just be cruising on the flat of the board taking a breather and for reasons unknown to me an edge would decide that it was time for you to be slammed into the snow. I almost felt more confident with a little speed and continuous edge to edge turns as this is when the flow set in and if an edge was in the snow, it was because I was using it. But once the concentration broke, SLAM!

- I had read about heel lift and found it to be a bothersome reality by the end of the day.

- I think next time I go boarding I will try and relax the muscles more. I found that I was really tensing up and that pretty much lead to a slam.

- Don't wear to many layers. I was dripping in sweat after the first run.

- I took Ocean11's advice and rode with a clench fist, although I only remembered to do so after a few sharp pains in the wrist. I now have very sore knuckles, but once I started clenching, I stopped hurting the wrist.

- Get ready for next day muscle pain that is akin to that encountered after your first day back in the gym. My thighs (inner) hurt the most. I also have tender elbows and knees and toes (when ever I tensed my body I seemed to curl my toes up and this hurt)

 

Other aspects of the day where also interesting. Firstly, Hakuba really isn't a day trip from Tokyo by train. It took me about 45 minutes to get on the Shinkansen after leaving home, the 2 hours to Nagano, then about 40 minutes to Hakuba. All this in reverse after a day of bruises was not a welcome challenge.

 

I had some difficulty getting from Nagano to Hakuba. I hit Nagano at 9am and found the bus stand and waited until 9.20am and got on the bus that said Hakuba. I asked the driver if the bus went to Hakuba47, he said no (plus a lot of other Japanese). This didn't seem right so I asked again and he said to take a taxi. At the end of the day I had pretty much worked out what he told me. For some stupid, stupid reason I got off the bus and it departed. I walked looking for another bus stand and was a little confused. I then asked in the bus info booth where I was told to take the bus from stand #3, should have got the 9.20, the next one was at 10.40am. Stuff that for cricket! 10.40am departure and a 40 minute bus trip! I had been up since 5am and I wanted to hit the snow. So I caught a taxi from Nagano to Hakuba and was on the snow a little after 10am and still in shock at the expense of the trip. At the end of the day I sought out the bus stand, found it and stood there. Hmmmm, no buses? Could the driver in the morning have told me I could take the bus to Hakuba VILLAGE, but would have to then get a taxi from there to Hakuba47 (a short trip). I had waited 1 hour for a bus and decided to start walking (not easy after the beating I had taken that day). I walked tenderly for a few km's watching all these lucky buggers drive by on there way home in a nice warm car. In the middle of no where a taxi passed me so I stopped it and asked him to take me to the bus stop in Hakuba Village. I would never have found it by walking, and besides my overloaded backpack was not such a welcome burden at that time of day, nor was my board. He was very nice and helped me read the bus timetable. It came as no surprise that the next bus back to Nagano was over an hour away. It was getting dark, I was stuffed and this taxi driver had 3 kids to feed, so I told him I would pay yen10,000, no more and he agreed. Those two taxis were the most expensive taxis I have ever caught. I have NEVER wasted so much money in my life. I am still in shock at the expense. I really need to get better at Japanese, it will save me a fortune. Although even if I was fluent I still reckon my sheer stupidity would get the better of me.

 

Come December, I am going every weekend, although hopefully to places a little easier to reach.

[miteyak 0]

Two words for you... car rental!

 

Cheaper and easier than your experience I reckon!

[NoFakie 45]

Nice essay

 

11 out of 10 for effort there deebee. You don't do things by halves, do you!

 

It's sometimes hard to remember once you wise up, but it can be difficult to get around in English if you're not on the gaijin/tourist trail. It can be pretty bad even in the cities. My folks came over last month, and to change money in front of Nagoya Station, we had to walk into a building marked "みずほ銀行" (Japanese text) with no English and then past three signs written in Japanese only and up the elevator to the foreign exchange desk that was finally marked in English in tiny text that you could read from, oh, two yards in front of it. The staff there then struggled with the English required to cash travellers cheques. This is right in front of Nagoya Station at a brand new bank. Pathetic!

[Ocean11 0]

Yeah, but NoFakie, who are you to say they've got it wrong?! I mean, they must know what they're doing, right, they've been doing it for years?!? What, are you a banker or something??!

 

Such arrogance...

 

Great post deebee. I'm not sure that I recommended actually riding with clenched fists, just getting 'em closed when you fall. Did you have any probs skating, and getting on and off lifts? And what did you do for a board in the end? Also, bending your knees a lot can help with preventing edge catching and put you in a better position to recover before you actually wipe out.

[damian 0]

Banks are bad enough in my native country, so banks in Japan are, for me, a first class nightmare.

 

Ocean - I decided to leave my fists clenched at all times so as to avaoid even having to think about it when I was falling.

 

Skating isnt all that a natural act, I suppose it will take some getting used to. Having an unstrapped foot on the board was ok, but the actual pushing sort of twists my knee a fair bit. I caught a chair lift 3 times (big ques on them) and managed to get off each time without a fall. But one time I didnt get off the seat fast enough and had a little drop to reach the snow (6 inches or so).

 

As for the board, I did business with powwers and bought the burton custom, it seemd to do the job, but then I wouldn't really know either way. I certainly had a fantastic day and at this stage that is good enough for me.

 

I was also amazed and the number of snowboarders, particularly female. I was also amazed at the skill level of some of the guys on skis.

 

As for snow quality... I have seen less qty and quality mid season in Australia. I was perfectly happy with what was available, I would have just prefered a little more space, that is width of run and more downhill fall-line rather than a widing 'road' traversing the slope down to the gondola station. I found a great uncrowded wide run and was very happy, but very quickly found out that it was quite short and ended at the chairlift queue (which took 15 minutes of waiting). Given it was my first day I thought that I would stick to runsa that gave me more time on the run and less in the queue/on the lift.

[Ocean11 0]

Hakuba47 isn't a great resort in my opinion, precisely because it's just a bunch of roads. A nice wide swathe is more enjoyable for learning, and 47 doesn't have much of that. Well, that was my impression after only one visit anyway.

 

I often find it easier to skate with my left foot shoving on the toe edge rather than the heel edge - there's less twisting involved. Give it a try.

 

Riding up and down banks and sidewalls is a blast, as is trying to jump them. Running into somebody else's crusty tracks on an sidewall can also lead to some interesting disasters...

 

In a couple of weeks, there should be more places open, and you can see more variety.

[mogski 0]

deebee sounds like you need a lift. And not the kind on the resort.

 

I am thinking of going to Hakuba this Saturday should there be some cold weather and afew snow falls between now and then.

 

I am not sure if my girlfriend is coming or not and will know later on in the week otherwise if I am going to be alone I would enjoy the company if you don't mind the early start.

[Markie 0]

Yes, deebee, do take him up on that offer. It's not a good idea for Mogski to be doing it alone if his gal cancels out when he's got that injury. You would be doing each other a favour.

[damian 0]

A very good offer, I am very keen, but I dont know if I will be able to leave my girlfriend at home 2 weekends in a row (considering she is leaving the country in 2 weeks!)

[mogski 0]

Stay home! I don't wanna be the cause of anyone elses mess. Have enough trouble cleaning up my own when they poke up their ugly heads.

 

Yes, you should stay at home rest your wrists and whatever else that aches(from the sounds of it you don't have much else left that doesn't ache) and get ready for more snow!

[damian 0]

"women! cant live with 'em,.... um... pass the beer nuts".

[Will Lee 0]

Deebee, pain runs through my body just hearing the amount of yen you had to cough up just to go to Hakuba47 on a November weekend. Ouch! You`re situated in Tokyo, right? Take the advice from a stingy, stingy bastard..TAKE THEM OVERNIGHT SKI BUSES!!! I do this all the time. Many companies offer tours at very reasonal price and you can choose from LOTS of ski areas. You can pick up a brochure from any travel agency in a major train station. Hope this will help. Best of luck to you on your next outing.

[Raury 0]

deebee, good to hear that, despite the pain and the transport, that you seemed to enjoy your first time out on a board.

 

I find that trying to slide with the board flat tends to lead me into stacks, I prefer to keep an edge as often as possible.

 

Hope you enjoy the rest of the season.

[damian 0]

Thanks all for the encouragement.

 

SnoboYaro - I have picked up a few of these guides form the local station and reckon I will certainly do a fair few. It may take a while to get there but a) it is night time so so what, it is almost door to door, c) as you say it is cheaper.

 

All I have to do now is finish decoding the Japanese peint.

 

(By the way, WHY OH WHY are so many magazines given a big English tittle like "BOARD AND SKI 2003 PACKAGES" and then every singe other word besides "Table of Contents" are in Japanese).

 

Raury - I discovered that life was easier on an edge as well, but this rotten lane I had to ride was so narrow in parts that I couldn't stay on one edge for long.

[miteyak 0]

Deebee, tune your edges! There's an article from the chairman from last year on it. Wanna take a degree or two off yer edges, it'll make yer board a lot less 'twitchy' and promote forgiveness.

[NoFakie 45]

Package trips sound like a good idea for deebs but I don't suppose any of them are running yet. Top marks for trying to do it yourself in the meantime.

 

I saw the 47 shuttle out near Nagano the other day, so I presume they're running now. If you give the resort a ring they'll tell you the times. It's free btw.

 

As for the crowds and the lift queues, I don't suppose it can be helped this time. Nowhere else half-decent is open and it was a Sunday. There are two lifts where you say you queued, but they've only managed to get one going so far, which just makes that spot a bottleneck. Normally both of those lifts are going at the weekend. When that's the case, you can use the short, but wider runs you mentioned. To tell the truth, I wouldn't recommend any beginners on boards use the narrow "forest" course you went on because it's too flat and crosses the main course twice, which can be pretty hairy. There's an even flatter "forest" course at Happo, so it's not just a 47 problem.

[bobby12 0]

Yeah I was there with a friend who was very rusty, and she had a nightmare. It woul dhave been ok if Goryu was open cos there are lots of great wide non-steep slopes there, but 47 sucks totally for a beginner.

 

you can get a bus from shinjuku to hakuba now - www.alpico.co.jp

[Ocean11 0]

Flat forest courses seem to be a feature of J resorts. There's a big one at the top of Ryuo, and actually the Uenotairo 'course' at Nozawa is a vast, barely sloping run. Wipe out on them, and you might as well just take your board off.

[damian 0]

 Quote:

Originally posted by NoFakie:


I saw the 47 shuttle out near Nagano the other day, so I presume they're running now. If you give the resort a ring they'll tell you the times. It's free btw.

Dont tell me that now! Actually, at Hakuba47 I saw about 8 mini busses with big Hakuba47 logos on them and about 3 feet of snow on the roof. They looked like just the number I was after, but alas they were not in action at the time.

That twin double chair would have been great, but as you say with only one going it was a pretty big blob of people attempting to get on. And yes, crossing the red course is a little hairy. I timed it well most times but crashed right in the middle once. I would attempt to pass behind the downhill guy, assuming that he had right of way. But a lot of the time they would see me coming at right angles to them and slow down, which resulted a a few near misses. Had they just maintained their line and speed they would have been fine.

I may have to look into this edge tuning bizo. After they have been made more forgiving is it ok to turn them back into less forgiving edges at a later date?

[sam_casper 0]

VERY IMPRESSED! DEEBEE.....

 

how did u manage ur first day boarding NOT falling of a lift!??!?!?!?

 

just how did u do it???

 

i found it easier to fall off them than work out how to get off with ease!!

 

skating sucks ass!! im goofy but right handed so.... i dont have a stronger leg but my knees were KILLER! after a day boarding with all the lifts in australia u have to skate alot! which i found hurts... its not natural and my twisted knees were aching....!!

 

Deebs hows ur tail bone? or ur knees?

 

hey also all, on a gondala (cable car thingi) do you have to take ur board of all together??

 

mmm if so that sounds like my idea of luxuary!!!!!!

 

woooohoooo!! i cant wait!!!! sooo jelous i wanna be over ther enow!

man!!!

 

well deeb's well done.... welcome to the boarding world! hahe....

 

also good to hear theres other chick boarders on the mountains not just behind the computer screens!! they are real! im not going to be the only unco chick out there!!

 

SICK!

[damian 0]

hi sam,

 

I reckon I was lucky with the lifts. I only rode the chair a few times and could have easily stacked, it just happened that I didn't... this time. I am not looking forward to my first go on a T-bar, I think that will be hard work. The gondola is great! I was using an 8 man capsule and everyone has there board off while they are in the line, then you just get into the slow moving bubble with your board, the door shuts and the you re-connect to the main cable and the thing takes off. The one I was using was about 1.5km long and didn't take long at all to get to the top.

 

The monkey stump (tail bone) didn't seem to take that much of a beating. It really isn't tender at all, but my knees are so perhaps I feel forwards more than backwards.

 

I had a great time and really want to go again soon to build on the experiences from the first time.

 

If this is your first time in snow outside of Oz, I reckon you will have a ball in Niseko.

[BagOfCrisps 24]

A nice read, brings me back to my first time.

[sam_casper 0]

yeah thats what reckon, cause the snow down under is hard! i mean its not very forgiving when you fall i had 2 stacks on my tail..... it hurt HEAPS! but my knees got most of the bruises....

 

i gahter the snow in japan is nice and soft hey!!

 

one of my stacks on my tail was off a T bar....

 

believe me avoid them at all costs! u really dont wanna go on them! they SUCK BUT!

[mogski 0]

The unique and comfortable design covers the hip, tailbone, buttocks, and side hip with a full ½ inch of high density closed cell foam.

 

Just a thought. US$50 from most online stores and they will send to Japan.

[NoFakie 45]

I think flat forest course are a relic of designing for skiers with poles, not boarders for whom very low speed means low stability and increased likelihood of catching an edge.

 

It's just been on the local news but they've just got permission to build an ukai (read "flat forest") course through some protected woodland at Okushiga. They're building it to cut down on the number of accidents at narrow parts of the existing courses. Anyone out there with "boarders are dangerous" beliefs should note that snowboarding is banned at Okushiga. These are all skier-on-skier accidents....