Weekend On The Slopes
I went to Hakuba-Iwata (白馬岩岳) for the weekend snowboarding. It was my first time and the experience was such a blast. I've taken a number of photos and divide todays's entry into two parts: Day 1 and Day 2.
Day 1
Took off at 12:00 AM on my buddy, Takeshi's electric blue Honda Fit.
Here is Takeshi filling up the tank.
The whole trip to Hakuba-Iwata is aobut 3.5 hours but since we were up since 7 AM Friday, we had to stop over for a little nap.
Me, buried under a blanket in the front seat.
Sunrise and we're still an hour away...
Finally arrived at Esquina, our roosting ground for the night. This place is interesting, all the guests walk around the halls barefooted. Shoes are not allowed inside and no slippers provided either. Other than that , the service is great , room's clean and comfortable (i love tatami mats) and there's a public bath too.
The slope. Weather not too good, foggy and low visibility.
Me in my bright yellow Salomon ski jacket and my rented Volki board.
Takeshi's been snowboarding for more than ten years.
Since this is my first, I found myself falling all over the place and in every direction imaginable. I think I must have fallen like a million times from the peak to the foot of the slope. On one decent, I accelerated too fast, lost control and hit myself in the jaw with my knee when I fell.. Ouch! Hurt big time!
Luckily I did managed to learn to get from point A to B on the board and also to switch directions zigzagging down the slope. It wasn't graceful but hey I finished the course. I do need help with my form and technique so I decided to take lessons the next day.
Day 2
Energised by a good night's sleep and a hefty mixed Japanese (rice, natto and miso soup) and western (ham and egg) breakfast, I was ready for another take at the slopes.
A change for the better. Sunday was so different from the previous day..
It felt great getting through this segment. I managed to decend without hitting my face or butt in the snow. As they say in Japan 'YATTA!!!'
A breathtaking view from the slope. I took this mid way down the slope while resting my knees.
A view from the gondola (the ski lift, cable car).
Taking a ride on the lift is quite an experience in itself. Up 30~40 feet, board on one foot and no harness. I couldn't help but hold on to the bars with both hands.
Had lunch at the peak where the SkyArk is located. It's basically a mess hall. It has a very university cafeteria feel. Oh the university days...
After lunch, my 2-hour private snowboarding lesson starts.
There are basic 3 ways you can slide with a snow board:
The first is to have the board in line with the slope, This slides down the fastest and is actually what I did when I got too fast for my own good and hurt my jaw.
The second which I learned on day 1 is to have the heels press against the snow, this way you move down the slope with your back towards the slope. By far the easiest as all you have to do is lean back and put your weight on your heels to control decent and direction.
The third I learned on day 2, through my instructor, which is the exact opposite of the second. Instead of putting your weight on the heels, you put it on the toes and balls of your feet (this is the spot on your feet where your toes joins the rest of the feet). The decent is done with your body towards the slope. Took me several tries to get it right. Changing directions requires adjusting your weight from one foot to the other.
Combining the 3 above, one can create a symphony of movements across the slope in style. I managed to learn just one move and that's the curve, shifting from back towards slope (#2) to body towards slope (#3) while doing S-shaped curves. I felt so high doing it over and over. It was a very productive afternoon.
And of course I have my intructor to thank for all these.
Another thing I've learned is that like all other things, panicking doesn't help.
Me and Imai-san（今井さん）, my instructor for the day. Imai-san is a B-level snowboarder which is just one level below the top-level of A. Under B are levels 1-5.
Me in action. The red vest I'm wearing tells other skiers and snowboarders to stay clear of the novice :-)
Left Iwata with a headache from the cold air blowing in my head, an aching body from all the falls and an extreme experience to remember.
A pic of our rides, on the road and on the slopes.
Another shot of the view on Sunday.
Always wanted to take a shot like this.
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