This is crazy!

welcome to niseko, welcome to Gentem Stick land. Taro Tamai is not only a snowboard legend, Taro-san is also a snowboard shaper. he shapes the kind of snowboards that is very close to surfing in the mountains. i’m riding one and it feels so natural under my feet.

i have no idea how snowboards work. i just leave it up to the experts. this board supposedly suits me best, so this board is what i’ve been riding every day. i love it!

one day of full fun in the mountains cost 3900 yen or $34.

yesterday was THE DAY! everybody told me the conditions were a perfect 10 out of 10. the best day this year and i couldn’t have been happier hearing that. chest high powder everywhere. it was like surfing a big wave and it felt so good throwing big powder sprays! they say i’m lucky, and this time i think i really am. we were one of the first guys to snowboard down this mountain. grown men screaming down the hill in excitement!

Tokura-san rips. i can’t believe he is 66 years old! omg, he’s super healthy and super young hearted that sometimes i feel like we’re the same age. surf in the summer, snow in the winter. what an awesome lifestyle. and what a great inspiration.

we have 3 guides guiding us around. the best in niseko. the best courses we go, and the best snow we get. i’m a firm believer that if you have a great guide, you will have a great experience.

my roommate Kenjiro-san carving up the powder.

it was only my 3rd run and Osamu-san asked me “Kirby, are you ready for the trees?” i said “yeah, let’s go!” it felt so good weaving in and out of the trees. pure nature and pure adrenaline.

this was our last drop. my legs were tired, my body aching, but there was no other way down the mountain. off the course and off the rocker. vertical drop into the biggest snow valley.

Tokura-san always takes the best track so i just follow him.

going full speed down the mountain holding the camera in my hand. then taking a big wipe out. head over heals three times as i finally stop. it’s like wiping out at waimea bay. a feeling i love so much.
big party tonight and i’m back on the road tomorrow. destination unknown. have a wonderful day.

this huge storm off japan produced all the snow we’ve been getting in hokkaido. it also produced some huge waves heading to the north shore of hawaii now. tomorrow should be 25′ in the evening so please be careful.

it’s good to have friends around the world. this trip started off as a bare necessity backpacking trip. i came with nothing but now i have everything. here is Osamu-san fitting my big feet with snowboard shoes. then Tokura-san let me use some snow wear, and now i’m fully equipped.

it’s hard to believe a backpacker can travel to niseko and get set up with all the best of the best of gear. i have the best circle of friends in this world. i love it!

last nights snowboarding with the lights was amazing. super cold going up the mountain but super warm coming down. the blood was flowing and my adrenaline was at an all time high.

woke up early and got the snowboarders dream. powder of the powder. Tokura-san carving up the mountain. and Tokura-san is actually the person who introduced me to snowboarding 23 years ago.

Kenjiro-san from fukuoka rips. first time i met him was on a boat in the middle of indonesia 8 years ago. now we are here in hokkaido snowboarding. the awesome surfers circle.

like i said, i have the best equipment any snowboarder would dream of. that makes it super easy for me to carve up the mountain. it’s been a very long time but everything is coming back pretty fast. i felt like i was surfing the biggest and most glassy wave in the world. looking from the top of the mountain down steep unridden slopes is amazing. it’s like taking off at waimea bay! i’m not as good as the guys i’m with, but if they go, i go. Tokura-san always tells me to “go slowly.” but i don’t know what slowly is. full speed is my life and full speed is what i love to do best.

i have a very long way back to tokyo. 715 minutes to be exact. 12 hours of trains and trains. one part of me is wanting to go back on train because i have my free pass. but another part of me is wanting to catch a 1.5 hour flight back too. my wallet is saying train. but my sore body is saying airplane. tough decision to make. actually, not that tough. haha.