Style: ski fast but probably like to turn a bit more than your average “freerider” out there. Prefer round, finished turns. Jumps occasionally but nothing too big these days.

Skis tested: 185 Line Mr. Pollard’s Opus mounted with 11/12 Marker Dukes on the recommended line. Boots: Dalbello Il moros w/ stiff (black) tongue

Skis I have liked erlier: Armada JJ 185cm, Atomic Bent Chetler 183cm (tele), 06 Völkl Gotama 190cm (the recommended FR line mount was just a tad too back to my taste), original Völkl G4 (198cm) back in the day, old Salomon CR lab 180cm for park (has lots of “pop”), K2 Extremes 179cm for all mountain use

Conditions skied: A week in Engelberg, Switzerland – two snowstorms in a week, pretty much perfect powder conditions. In addition to that some skiing on local mole hill (Southern Finland), some 300ft of vert: groomers and soft moguls.

The skis

Line and Eric Pollard have put a lot of thought and testing to these skis. It has said that this is the result of thirteen year of innovation and product testing from Pollard and Line’s team. The interesting thing here is that they actually narrowed this model for year 2011-2012 and also made effective edge longer and rocker parts more subtle. While everyone is going to wider and wider skis and exaggerated rocker constructions, the point here was that not the everyday you ski is powder and effective egde is what counts on those not so ideal days. I alway believed on the “one ski quiver” idea too…in a way that I believe that it is better to learn ski well on one pair of skis you are used to, in comparison to swap skis on every possible occasion. Also, living in flatlands the trips gets much easier when you don’t have to drag multiple pair of skis along when travelling.

See Line’s own product video (below) for more details about the construction:

Groomed slopes

The Opus carves really well. The sidecut is good for our small hills. Even with skis this big you can work the skis and get some nice GS (and even smaller) round turn. On hard slopes edge hold was surprisingly good. And the skis felt more stable than e.g. Armada JJs. Nice snap out of turns…you can lay trenches where there is that brief airborne moment between the turns, which is a very cool feeling in my book. I guess torsional rigidity is something Line engineers have thought properly? At times you end up looking at your feet and wonder how can a 118mm middle ski work so well on the groomers. 10/10 points here for versatility (for such a wide ski).

Moguls/chopped up crud

On the moguls I definitely felt the longer effective edge than the previous “fun shapes” I’ve tested. Worked much better than expected. I’ve skied my Bent Chetlers a lot lately (teles) on similar conditions (chopped up snow starting to form harder bumbs), and it is sketchy at best. In the moguls I felt that the Opus works better the faster you go.These are still “big” skis in that matter, slow speed and short turns just don’t work so well, handling gets a bit forced and clumsy. 7 out of 10 points on moguls and really chopped up crud.

The centered stance feels weird at first (on the flats, on the lift etc.) but once you start carving at speed I was not noticing any problems. At slow speed, shorter turns and in the moguls I felt like I have to adapt just a bit – from powering the tips to a slightly more neutral stance. Not sure if this is due technique problems though…too much tele skiing (lately) and you get just confused what is the proper way to turn after all, heh.

Powder and Off-piste

As said, at first the centered stance required a bit of adjusting. I feel that these skis need quite active style in powder, not just plowing lazily through but using the “pop” of the skis and driving them. I guess on the flatter parts Opus would be easier to ski the bindings mounted just a tad (1-2cm) back. The upcoming 192cm version would also help here, I guess I am on the border of the 185cm and 192cm models. For the flatter, open wide powder skiing the latter version would probably work even better.

On the steeper runs (e.g. the upper part of the “Laub” route in Engelberg) the centered stance gives the promised “neutral and surfy” feel. Friend was skiing (more radically “powder” shaped) Armada ARGs and on couple of occasions I felt like I could throw my skis almost as well sideways and “schmear” my turns as he did.

We tried some smaller drops (maybe 3-5m) and the long tail and rocker is really nice for landing stuff. My skiing was “rusty” for not being on the slopes that much (an early season injury) and I surprised myself stomping stuff easily. Too bad the trip was only one week, I guess with some more miles, it would have been nice to try some slightly bigger drops/jumps too. Natural terrain threesixties and all around trickery would be so suited for these skis – if you just got the required skills!

9/10 points for powder

10/10 points for playful skiing in the natural terrain

Line Mr Pollard’s Opus 185cm – Conclusions

All in all, Opus is FUN. Trying Pollard style slashes on banks/windlips will make you smile, if you are in to that kind of stuff at all! The tight sidecut might have it downsides when really hauling ass and/or breakable crud (don’t know – haven’t skied that stuff yet) but on the other hand, the design of these skis make you try stuff you probably wouldn’t try with some 30+m radius big mountain chargers…

To sum it up: go see a few Nimbus Independent flicks and think if this kind of skiing is what you appreciate / seek for? If you like more the so-called freeski comp style skiing (aggressive, straightforward, “charging”), these sticks probably arent’ for you. If your style is more playful, you seek for fun little features to play all the time and like skis with lots of “pop” and neutral, surfy feel – then I can only recommend the Opus! For bigger guys I guess the 192cm is going to rule – and that is one ski I’d like to test as soon as possible.

At least there’s that.

The wind has picked up again, and I zip up my open pocket to keep the remainder of my igniters dry. I place the stick of bamboo with two shots taped to it in the snow below me and pull off the rubber nipple at the end of the fuse. Next I place the igniter over the open end. When using explosives to control avalanches, we must follow a precise protocol. These regulations have become routine to me, and my hands perform the duties without much mental input. I just traversed onto this slope and now I must light the fuse and ski to the far side of the path before it goes off. This is tricky business and I am completely focused on the task.

After several weeks of sun and high-pressure the snow has finally returned. Last night’s snowfall has tested the strength of the bonds underneath, and I worry that today might not be a good day to place a large shot by hand. After all, I’m here because I’m expecting to see avalanches. And now I’ve traversed out onto the biggest slidepath on this route. I consider this briefly as my hands pull the string on the igniter.

I pull it off to inspect the fuse. In windy conditions it can be hard to know if the fuse is lit. The igniter itself smokes, but I watch for a second longer, just to be sure. The fuse sputters loudly and more smoke pours out the end.

Ignition

Grabbing my ski poles in the self-arrest position I leave the shot and ski towards the other edge of the bowl, where a shallow cornice separates this slidepath from the next one. Getting caught in an avalanche would be bad enough, but sliding down with a light bomb nearby would be even worse. I’m careful not to disturb the snow too much, willing my body to float across the deep snow to safety.

When I reach the other side, I propel myself over the cornice and back onto the ridge; I look up to see my partner still watching me. We both nod and back ourselves further towards the trees, turning our faces away from the explosive and into the wind. I tuck my chin into the collar of my parka, plug my ears and open my mouth.

The explosive concussion can rupture your eardrums if you’re too close and your mouth is closed. I taped the shot to a stick of bamboo so the explosion happened in the air, not I’m up here today doing avalanche control in order to open this roped-off terrain. We bomb the snow before dropping the gates, hoping to mitigate the avalanche hazard by causing the slides to happen now before the first skier drops in.

My breath echoes in my ears and I wait for the shot to go off. I’m sure it was lit; but it seems longer than the 90-second length of the fuse. I glance at my watch, removing one finger and quickly replace it under my hood. A few more seconds.

A muffled call comes over the radio. Dispatch wants to know when Southback will open. The hard part of my route—the hike up the King—is over, but I’ve only just thrown my first shot. I have eleven more to go.

The shot goes off, pressing a little on my sternum like a thumping finger. I turn toward the slope and slide my skis towards the edge to watch the powder cloud hit the trees below. Impressive results. I shouldn’t let my mind go to there, but it isn’t easy. I had just traversed across that slope, my skis cutting into the snow and weakening the slab.

Today is going to be a busy day. Guests have already started lining up at the chairlift at the bottom of this run, ready to hike out as soon as we drop the ropes. Much of the West has suffered a poor start to the ski season, and guests are ready for fresh snow.

Tightening the straps on my backpack I head towards our next shot and watch my partner ski down to me. We will need to work efficiently along the ridge, dropping shots in all the suspect zones before traversing two more times across the slopes below. Soon, just before the crowds arrive, we will finish our route with a glorious run to the bottom. The snow is sparkling now and patches of blue have opened in the sky. It’s going to be a good day.

We have great conditions if you’re a ski racer, or have narrow-waisted skis or just love the groomers. And for this time of year, by all accounts it’s still pretty good.

But we need more snow.

And yet I know I shouldn’t complain. Most ski areas across the States are begging for snow of any kind. Their fingers are crossed for snowmaking temperatures, dreaming of the hard crystalline manmade snow to cover over the rocks and turn the slopes white again. At Crystal have a great base of Mother Nature’s finest. The groomers are fast and the rocks are covered.

So what am I complaining about?

Well, the lack of skiers, for one thing. Reduced guests mean reduced staff, so when the conditions are less than optimal layoffs aren’t too far behind.

Maybe it’s the new ski technology, but ski visits seem to have changed in the past few years. It used to be that regardless of the snow conditions, sunny days were gold. In the winter in Seattle, a day without clouds and mist should be celebrated. Lately, the city has been suffering under low fog while the mountains have enjoyed the inversion with sun and warm temps. So where are all the skiers and riders?

Waiting for powder.

With fat skis and fatter snowboards, all everyone wants these days is deep snow and face shots. While I love fresh snow as much as the next girl, I also enjoy sunny groomer days. I’ll admit it; I like to ski fast.

Granted not when others are around, and not when I’m wearing my ski patrol uniform (that is unless I can confirm rule #1). Put me on an open slope with fresh corduroy and watch me rip. There’s nothing quite as thrilling as letting your skis hook up, riding that edge across the slope, and feeling the crisp, cold air fill your lungs.

Last week I rode the gondola up early for First Tracks breakfast at the Summit House Restaurant. Even with the beautiful sunrise and deeply grooved corduroy, the place was pretty quiet. So after a delicious meal of house-made granola and wild mushroom frittata, I took a run to the other side of the mountain, where I was stationed for the day. Middle Ferks Run, a steep groomer, hadn’t been touched. I reveled in the long radius turns, the early morning light and the sound of fresh corduroy collapsing beneath my skis. It would be a good day.

With everyone waiting for snow deep enough to plow through with their new 110cm-underfoot-reverse-camber-powder-only-skis, the slopes are free for those with a bigger quiver. I was surprised. The slopes remained free of crowds and we ski patrollers worried about our hours. No customers means no hours, and with the make-it-or-break-it holiday weeks arriving soon, we all said a little silent prayer for a change in conditions.

And now we look again at the approaching weather prediction with fingers crossed and hearts tight. If it doesn’t snow this week, well, I don’t want to think about that. We still have plenty of snow, that’s not the problem. It’s the perception of conditions that keep the crowds away.

So do us working folks a favor, find a little joy on the slopes before the holiday crowds arrive. You never know. You just might like it.

I think every skier/snowboarder should try surfing at least once in their life. The old saying “snow is only frozen water” just holds so well. Even though the elements differ (ocean&water vs. mountains&snow) the feeling of riding the wave reminds so much powder that it makes you laugh! And the good thing in surfing is once you score perfect conditions there is “powder” to be had in a very continuous manner. The waves just keep coming in perfect sets! Ok, in reality it is not often that easy: there are huge crowds in the line-up, currents, tides, waves closing out, scary reefs, sea urchins and millions of other details that might get you worried. But those things kind of make the whole experience even more appealing – surfing is probably one of the hardest sports to master?

I am a total newbie (“kook” in surf lingo) but here are few pictures from our trip, and couple of words/tips about the spots we surfed. Most of the riders in the pics are local, unknown rippers. For more info check also the linked spot descriptions from Wannasurf.com.

Fuerteventura is a good place to surf if you know what you are doing. Canary Islands in general have the reputation of being the “Hawaii of the Atlantic”. In Fuerteventura this holds especially well. In wintertime powerful north-western swells break into shallow reefs quite near to the shore, often in beautiful crystal clear waters.

For a beginner surfer the above mentioned fact is not necessarily that comforting. Swell size can be large and reefs and rocky points are not that easily approached if you have only surfed couple of mellow beach breaks in your life. The east cost of Island offers better options for less experienced wave riders but are certainly more inconsistent. (It requires couple of days of right NE winds for waves to start breaking or really huge N-NW swell wrapping around the Island’s northernmost tip)

El Cotillo

When we arrived to the Island (Corralejo, in the northernmost part of the Island) the nearby east coast beaches appeared almost flat. We spent one day just swimming and sunbathing there though. I tried some Stand-Up paddle boarding in the mini waves too. Fun experience and what a killer work out!

Anyway we wanted to surf “for real” and got some advice to go check “El Cotillo” beach break on the western shore. So, we rented a car (recommended while on the Island if you want to find the waves) and hit the road…

Wow. I have to say that on the first day on the spot, I didn’t even consider going to the water. Almost a “shore break”, overhead, fast barreling wave, lots of power.The wave breaks so fast that I guess on some days you can describe it the so called “close-out” (meaning the whole wave break at once all the way through the whole beach, making it impossible to surf properly).

Well, it was still very enjoyable to watch this amazing scenery and the “show” of local, talented and experienced surfers. Guys, and a few girls too, were pulling short tubing rides, super fast turns & cut-backs, “lipslides” and even a couple of small airs. Below you find a couple of pictures I managed to shoot.

The East Coast of Fuerteventura

From the village of Corralejo there is a short drive (or long walk) to the beautiful dune beaches. Flag Beach is the first one on the way south. You recognize this beach from the surf school building and the flag poles next to it. Flag beach is only said to be good for SUP and kite/windsurfing. I guess if there is really big winter NW swell wrapping around the northern part of the Island, you might score decent waves even here?

From Flag Beach, just a kilometer or so to the south is the spot called Los Hoteles, which should be ideal for longboards and/or beginners (still some rocks on the bottom though). This spot didn’t break properly during our trip.

After beating ourselves pretty good in El Cotillo for a few days we scored nice, mushy wind swell waves in a beach called “Playa del Morro” (or “Moro“, you saw both spellings). Probably nothing special for an experienced surfer but for us this was a really fun experience. After the tubing or almost closing out waves in Cotillo, I was really stoked to get some clean drop-ins and much longer rides, even some turns,  and generally feeling much more relaxed in the water. The wave breaks in a rock reef but it is just so deep (about 180cm or around six feet) that it should worry no-one. After the reef the ride itself is  above some sand bottom all the way to the beach. Nice and relatively safe. If you look for more challenge, I guess the point break “El Burro” just to the north of Morro Beach is better option.

Below is a few pictures from Play del Morro. You notice the huge difference in wave shape compared to the above ones!

The North Shore reef breaks

Traveling with family (and friends’ family), it was quite impossible to go exploring the reef breaks. You know, kids like beaches. Barren rocky shores, not that much. The north shore of the Island also lives up to its name – it is definitely not the optimal place for a newbie anyway. However I got few good tips from the locals for the easier reefs/points.

Rocky Point just outside of Corralejo might be ok in some conditions even for relatively inexperienced riders. Boots are recommended though! “Hierro” might be another option but we heard mixed opinions about that. Again, bring boots and respect the locals and local conditions. I guess if you want to really learn, one day you  have to check your first real reef or point break anyway? In this trip this didn’t happen to me but I hope maybe some day in the near future…

If you do sports you are going to have injuries

Every dedicate outdoor enthusiast (skier, surfer, snowboarder, mountainbiker, climber etc…) will face injuries at some point or many points in their active career. Some may even be very serious ones. You won’t be able to avoid it – it’s a fact. Dislocated shoulders, bent knees, “skier’s thumb”, concussions, muscle/ligament tears, frost bites…you name it, they’re out there just waiting for you. The legendary Laird Hamilton, quoted above, is as good an example as any – this guy has suffered dozens of seriously gnarly crashes and miraculously has recovered from all injuries sustained.

I’ve been lucky with sports accidents so far. One broken ankle, a semi-serious neck “whiplash” from an MTB accident, numerous muscle tears,  dodgy right patella (from my mogul skiing days), and many good bruises (again from bike stuff)…a pretty benign list if you were to be making comparisons with a pro athlete.

My injury list may also be somewhat less detailed than others due to my nature: I’ve always considered myself to be relatively risk averse when it comes to action sports, or at least to be calculated or analytical in my approach. All and all I’ve always tried to avoid the  most “extreme” stuff. Instead, I kind of like to focus more on the skill side of the sports. You know, pulling that technical move with your bike on the trails, nailing that grab on your 360, fine tuning your tele turn…For me it has never been about the stuff like “wow, did you hear we skied [insert gnarly route's name here]?” but more about the stoke how some turns feel and how somehow (or myself) stomped that floaty cliff jump with a nice move or something similar. No wonder I like things like Nimbus Independent – stuff that’s more about the flow and feel, not just the “difficult level” or pure craziness of the lines, jumps, moves and so on.

Oh the modern day rush to achieve things “right here, right now”

Having said all this, I still need to take care of my physical level to achieve all the things that I like to do, and those that I dream of. As life trundles on and annoyingly I seem to be getting older, I’m increasingly aware that I have to stay in the best possible shape that I can to enable me to continue to play in the outdoors. In the last few years I guess I have become kind of a training freak. I’ve been trying to pack it all in – a family with two young children (and lots of lost sleep), building a business, and trying to keep up with my younger/fitter/those with more free time friends. And I still want to do new stuff – this year I’ve really got into surfing and have managed to surf about 15 times this year – two trips abroad and even one trip here in Finland.  Let’s just say that one involved a furious onshore storm, a 6mm wet suit, gloves and boots, and absolutely zero clean rides……not the best!

The physical and mental demands of trying to juggle all of this has probably been a bit too much for my body and mind. Last week I realized that my right arm had become really sore and it seemed that I had some kind of RSI in my right bicep. Eventually the whole arm began to swell, and I started to get seriously concerned about it.

A doctor friend sent me for an ultra sound scan at a local hospital. It turns out I’ve got venous thrombosis near my left clavicle. Damn. I’ve always been terrified of one day really doing myself some damage – tearing a knee, shoulder, ankle, having a head trauma or even a broken back…but something to do with internal diseases? Hell no (not at this age, again….. hell no!)

As it turned out, operating on the thrombosis itself was actually not such a big deal. The whole operation took about an hour – modern medicine really can do wonders. However, I now have to eat so called “blood thinning” pills for about three months, just to make sure that the symptoms doesn’t recur. And most significantly, I can’t do any ‘dangerous’ sports for at least three months. This is because the medicine makes my system more vulnerable to bleeding, bruises, even internal bleeding or serious head trauma.  I think I can go skiing with my daughters, teach them at a slow pace but no jumps, serious off-piste skiing, climbing/bouldering, mountain biking or any other activity where there is a high risk of crashes/bruises.

Noone seems to have any idea why this has happened. The doctors were very tentative to make any speculations before the lab test results. It could be genes, body structure and/or maybe other external factors – well, paddling in very cold water with a thick wet suit probably didn’t really help…but it is not by any means the only explanatory factor. Stress, dehydration and (very) tight/stuck muscles in the shoulder area might also be contributory factors (so  to all of you skiers, climbers, bikers etc. out there – remember to stretch, seriously!) The irony of all of this is that despite possible genetic factors in my blood or structural problems, all other factors were more than fine (blood pressure, hemoglobin, pulse, cholesterol etc.)

The effect of all of this might somehow restrict my future activities (e.g. long flights might need special care) or might not do any harm at all. The biggest effect of all is that it has stopped me in my tracks and made me think. I’ve questioned just exactly what the hell I was rushing around all over the place for. A start-up business, one small kid that doesn’t sleep and this weird burn to e.g. learn how to surf as quickly as possible. Looking back it’s clear that I was all over the shop, putting far too much pressure on myself and I don’t really know why. So easy with the benefit of hindsight to see that I just needed to chill and give myself some time. Ah hindsight – useful but inherently useless as it doesn’t really change anything right now.

Stay positive dude!

I consider myself to be a relatively sensitive guy and I definitely tend to freak out when contemplating issues like “thinning blood” or “an increased risk of internal bleeding”. But I’m not really freaking out too much. And I’ve at least managed to pull out vaccinating myself everyday (with Klexane medine, first help for thrombosis). I also tend to have this (probably quite naive) theory of using the negative energy and turning it into something more positive. For example, you’re hungover and pissed off…clean the house or do something that you’ve been meaning to do for ages and somehow the negative energy goes away.

The same goes with this freak illness/injury – I’m trying to turn the whole situation into a possibility rather than a hindrance. I mean, now I will have more time to spend with the kids and teach them skiing (it’s fine for me to do easy blue run skiing) or go to do mellow cross country skiing for a change. I am also willing to try things I’ve never done: yoga, pilates or other kinds of core training activities. Long walks (on the beach, heh heh heh) might not be so bad either. I might even (gasp!!) try that “nordic walking” thing. It’s time to enjoy family and friends and take life at a calmer pace. By immersing myself in the small and simple things in life I hope to learn some big and significant lessons and am determined to move forward from this in a positive way. Still bloody annoying though……

Lindsey Caroline Vonn (1984) is an American alpine ski racer with the U.S. Ski Team. She has won three consecutive overall World Cup and downhill championships (2008, 2009, 2010), the first American woman and third woman ever to accomplish this. Vonn won the gold medal in downhill at the 2010 Winter Olympics, the first ever in the event for an American woman. Vonn also won three consecutive World Cup season titles in Super G (the first American woman to do so), and two consecutive titles in the combined.

Vonn is one of five women to have won World Cup races in all five disciplines of alpine skiing – Downhill, Super G, Giant slalom, Slalom, and Super combined – and, as of October 2011, has won 42 races in her career. With her Olympic gold and bronze medals, two World Championship gold medals in 2009 (plus three silver medals in 2007 / 2011), and three overall World Cup titles, Vonn has become the most successful American skier in ski racing history.

Lindsey started skiing at age two. They say that her father Alan Kildow, who had been a national junior skiing champion before a knee injury at 18, “pushed” her very hard. Her hobbies include cycling, tennis and reading.

Oh, and did you know that Lindsey Vonn has a number of merits such as making #59 on Maxim’s Hot 100 list?

Now what’s the point?

Even though the climate here in nordic countries is not perfect for skiing, I still recommend skiing and traveling in Finland, Sweden, Norway and Iceland. Winter nights above the Polar Circle can be prettty awesome as the northern lights light up the skies.

An aurora is a natural light display in the sky particularly in the high latitude regions, caused by the collision of energetic charged particles with atoms in the high altitude atmosphere.

In northern latitudes, the effect is known as the aurora borealis (or the northern lights). Auroras seen near the magnetic pole may be high overhead, but from farther away, they illuminate the northern horizon as a greenish glow or sometimes a faint red, as if the Sun were rising from an unusual direction.

I lived my first 20 years above the Polar Circle, and I’ve seen pretty amazing northern lights. I believe this is one good reason to travel and ski in nordic coutries. Check the videos below and get yourself over here!

Northern lights in Finland.

Northern lights in Norway.

Northern lights in Iceland.

One more. Pretty awesome, right?

So, what is powsurfing? Well, it’s like surfing on snow. No, it’s not snowboarding as powdersurf board has now bindings. It’s more like a surfboard.

Guys over at Grassroots Powdersurf Company took the two things that they love to do most (skateboarding and snowboarding in fresh pow) and combined them into one.  The Powdersurf board was born.

“We build our boards with progression in mind and our shapes and style of build reflect this.  We believe that there is so much more to powsurfing than simply taking the bindings off of an old snowboard.  This is why our boards are designed from the ground up to be ridden without bindings”, is said in Powsurf website.

Powdersurf boards are designed to be used only in powder snow.  They are not recommended for groomers or hardpack snow, which sounds pretty obvious. Just think about crashing and losing your board in a crowded slope. Not good… So, powdersurf board is clearly a backcountry tool .

They claim that you don’t need bindings to hold your feet to the board. Surfers have been riding without bindings for centuries, but why not powdersurfing with straps like big wave surfers? Riding big mountains with straps could be easier, but I guess it’s the philosophy of bindingless powdersurf boards saying “no no” to straps. Anyhow, it looks really cool.

It’s funny to see that we are actually going back in time with powdersurf board. I find certain similarities between powsurfing and “snurfing” (or riding snurfer or what ever it’s called), which was the early version of snowboard. At least both are bindingless. You think the same?

He he.. Look at these “outrageous hotdoggers”

Man, snowboarding has come a long way since those days…

All in all powsurfing looks really cool! These guys are soon releasing “The Powsurfing Chronicles”, an upcoming series of short films about Powdersurfing. No bindings, no handles, no ropes or gimmicks. Simply the purest mix of skateboarding, surfing, and snowboarding on earth. Yeah, I’m interested!

Photo by Powsurf.com

November storms are notoriously vigorous in the Pacific Northwest. Often warm, wet and windy in the lowlands, these same systems bring copious amounts of snow to the mountains. Crystal opened on Friday in the hopes that the forecasted 12″ of snow would come true. Just a few days ago, Green Valley, the mainstay of the upper portion of the ski area, was blanketed in a scant 11″ of snow. Grass poked through the snow and rocks hid under the unconsolidated base. The mountain announced a tentative opening anyway, hoping that the weather service was right.

Thursday morning, my husband and I woke at 4am to get in a snowcat and explore the mountain, hoping we would find enough snow. It had rained at the base the previous night, and we worried the predicted storm had come in too warm. Sometimes that’s the way it is. Operating a ski area is like farming. We are tied to the weather, and we watch the forecast models with a keenness bordering on obsession. Luckily, a few hundred feet of elevation up from the base, the rain had turned to snow. We quickly accessed the conditions—enough to open Green Valley for Friday and hopefully the rest of the mountain by Saturday.

Saturday it snowed very hard, and we were able to get most of the mountain open, all but our coveted expert chair, High Campbell. At closing time, as my husband likes to say, it was “snowing ten-year-olds.” We picked up nine inches of snow in just two hours. It snowed so hard the visibility dropped to almost nothing. I took a photo of the Campbell Lodge at sweep.

By Sunday morning, we had doubled our snowpack and we woke to pristine blue skies. The skiers must have thought the snow was played out, because we didn’t have much of a crowd. These are rare days in the ski world–a foot of fresh snow, sunny skies and few lift lines on a weekend. It also makes my job that much more glorious. I threw a few bombs in the morning, but the new snow was light and unconsolidated—perfect for face shots and not slabby enough to cause avalanches.

We were even able to open High Campbell for a short while, just enough to get skier compaction in the starting zones. The best way to stabilize a slope is not explosives, but rather ski tracks. I took a few runs off of High Campbell myself, and while I found a rock or two, it was well worth it. The new snow felt more like Rocky Mountain fluff than Cascade concrete, and I almost forgot where I was.

I smiled when I heard the patrol director over the radio, “We’re going for an opening on 6.” Patrollers refer to High Campbell Chair simply as “6″ and hearing the magic words “going for an opening” made me smile. I watched skiers and riders whoop and holler as they got face shots and found vast fields of pristine snow under blue-sky conditions. It doesn’t get much better than that.

Only the third day of the season, and we already enjoyed a bluebird powder day. This is why I love my job. The mountains are capricious and the weather is fickle. Sometimes we get lucky. Very lucky.

There is a lot powder and tree skiing in this movie. Featuring JT Holmes, Robb Gaffney, Jason Mack and Aaron McGovern, this film captures the true spirit of skiing. For more about this movie check skiing-blog.com. Watch the movie below the image.

Supported by long-time partner Swatch, the Freeride World Tour enters its fifth season solidifying its position at the very top of competitive Freeriding. Alongside Chamonix Mont-Blanc will be Austria’s best kept big mountain secret, Fieberbrunn and a new Scandinavian stop – the tour will descend upon Røldal in Norway for the first time.

The world’s best Freeskiers and Snowboarders will then meet for the season finale on the legendary Bec des Rosses in Verbier which continues to stand alone as the world’s biggest and most prestigious Freeride competition. Competitive Freeriding has evolved rapidly over the last four seasons with the pros spinning, cliff-jumping and stomping with an ever increasing intensity. We’re expecting to see further progression in 2012 as the experienced big mountain riders compete against a new wave of young talent.

The men’s skiing line-up will feature big mountain specialist and two-time World Champion Aurelien Ducroz, the furiously fast and fluid Reine Barkered, Zermatt’s favourite son Samuel Anthamatten and the ebullient Henrik Windtsedt. The rapidly advancing female skiers will again be pushing the limits with reigning World Champion Janette Hargin battling it out with USA’s Angel Collinson and kiwi Janina Kuzma.

Rider Xavier de la Rue. Copyright © freerideworldtour.com.

Riders Aurelien Ducroz, Jérémy Prevost, Samuel Anthamatten. Photo by J. Bernard. Copyright © freerideworldtour.com.

Photo by J. Bernard. Copyright © freerideworldtour.com.

Xavier de le Rue, widely recognised as the world’s best all-round snowboarder, will no doubt be “charging down the Alps” to win back his title, although Austrian stalwarts Mitch Toelderer and Flo Orley as well as exciting newcomer Christian Schnabel might have a few things to say about that. Swiss rider Anne-Flore Marxer impressed everyone in her rookie season taking the World title at the first attempt but will face stiff competition from Germany’s Aline Bock and a field of contenders from both sides of the Atlantic.

The Freeride World Tour welcomes Swatch as its main sponsor partner alongside a growing array of ski industry partners – Scott, Dakine, Marker, Powderhorn, Kask, Snowpulse and Teko.

Rider Henrik Windstedt. Photo by C. Margot. Copyright © freerideworldtour.com.

Rider Gennady Khryachkov. Photo by D. Carlier. Copyright © freerideworldtour.com.

Photo by J. Bernardt. Copyright © freerideworldtour.com.

“This fifth season promises many things. The riders’ performance improves every year and we’ll undoubtedly see the bar raised even further in 2012. We have a first-ever Norwegian tour-stop, where we’ll be working closely with a very experienced group of local organisers and we will be launching an Expo and Test at three tour stops – Chamonix Mont-Blanc, Fieberbrunn and Verbier. We will continue to actively support the 30+ qualifier events around the world and encourage the next generation of riders with three Juniors stops. I’m also absolutely delighted to see Swatch alongside us as well as so many ski industry partners.” says Freeride World Tour founder and organiser, Nicolas Hale-Woods.

Freeride World Tour 2012 schedule

Freeride World Tour, Chamonix Mont-Blanc 2012 by Swatch

• Dates: 21- 27 January; Location: Chamonix (FRA)
• Disciplines: Men’s and Women’s Ski and Snowboard

Freeride World Tour, Røldal 2012 by Swatch

• Dates: 25 February – 01 March; Location: Røldal (NOR)
• Disciplines: Men’s and Women’s Ski and Snowboard

Freeride World Tour, Fieberbrunn 2012 by Swatch

• Dates: 09 -15 March; Location: Fieberbrunn (AUT)
• Disciplines: Men’s Ski and Snowboard

Freeride World Tour, Verbier 2012 by Swatch

• Dates: 24 March – 01 April; Location: Verbier (SUI)
• Disciplines: Men’s and Women’s Ski and Snowboard

Freeride World Tour stops in Rosa Khutor-Sochi (Rus) and North America are to be confirmed.

For more check out Freeride World Tour website.

Rider Adrien Coirier. Photo by M. Weiler. Copyright © freerideworldtour.com.

Rider Mitch Toelderer. Photo by C. Margot. Copyright © freerideworldtour.com.

Rider Sebastian Hannemann. Photo by J. Bernard. Copyright © freerideworldtour.com.

Sixty minutes earlier we had stepped through the rope barrier without any trouble from the ski patrol and had headed up the ridge towards Mount Tengu, a 1.30 hour hike above Hakuba Goryu ski resort in the Japanese Alps. Out of the safety of the ski hill we had snow-shoed along the mountain ridge at about 2,200m above sea level. 30m from the summit ridge, Matt our guide stopped in his snowshoe tracks, “err guys, I’ve just seen a lightning flash”. We were exposed, very exposed: Six snowboarders all in a group carrying our snowboards vertically attached to our backs. Six ripe sweaty lightning conductors. The air suddenly felt electric. The soft billowing clouds now contained danger. The decision was now made much easier, we had to get off the ridge fast and down to safety. We all quickly dropped the 50m down off the ridge into a stand of tall solid Japanese birch trees. “ spread out a bit more” I said “its much better we don’t all stand in one big clump”. Feeling a bit less exposed, we all rapidly started to make the transition from climbing to sliding downhill. We weren’t out of the dangerzone yet as the issue now was that we were at the top of a wide eastern facing gully. 3 days before this gully was alive with avalanches and laden with large pockets of unstable wind blown snow (wind slab). Our objective, a long beautiful tree lined north facing ridge offered us our best safest and least avalanche prone descent. but that was now out of the question, the risk of a lightning strike felt greater than being caught in an avalanche.

Calmly and swiftly we all strapped on our boards, packed away our walking poles and snow shoes and looked down the gully. 800 meters of elevation, this 25 to 40 degree gully was nearly 2km long. Just 12 months ago three young Kiwi skiers jumped into this couloir. It slid and two were killed. They carried no avalanche transceivers and no self rescue equipment.

Craig (the kiwi joint owner of the Morino skiers lodge) led us off, boarding smoothly into the gully before coming to a stop on a small ‘island of safety’ ridge about 100m down and out of the main slide path route. He signalled to me to follow. I dropped in listening and feeling the snow under my powder board. the wind-slab was evident but it seemed well bonded to the layers below. This was difficult mountain boarding, wind scoured hard packed snow with pockets of slab and powder in places, and steep too. Turning quickly sent plumes of powder high over my head obscuring my vision momentarily. Great fun, but I decided to back off a bit as this was not the day to push too far, much safer to see and feel the hill, enjoy it, and get off without incident. For the next hour we leapfrogged our way down the gully, stopping in safe spots before moving quickly through the numerous terrain traps (spots in the gully with no escape from potential avalanche burial). this is the best of Japanese back-country skiing: steep, complex, fun and the full 5km journey finishes conveniently at the one and only bar in the region with Belgian beer.

The Hakuba valley lies 60km to the north west of Nagano city, the home of the 1998 winter Olympics. the residue of the games still lies dotted around the mountains: large white elephant ski jumps, and empty stadiums and fading signs. the local officials seem proud of the legacy, sighting them as great adverts for Japanese skiing and ignoring the cost and the bills still to be paid. They just could not get their heads around the fact that for us powder hunters they signified nothing more than a tedious distraction from the real deal: powder.

In Europe, the pursuit of powder can be ridiculously frustrating as is the unpredictable nature of the weather systems. In japan however The storms blast in from the China Sea, dumping up to a meter at a time. As is the case in the pacific north west this wet snow sticks well and with temperatures that are generally cold but not extreme, great off-piste conditions are the norm.This is the reason to come to Japan. The tree skiing and off-piste back-country skiing is as good as anywhere in the world.

Even for the dedicated, it’s not all-plain skiing. Many resorts have rules that are restrictive and incomprehensible. A lot of the best terrain is out of bounds and the ski patrollers will take your pass if you are caught ducking ropes and barriers. The stories of the Japanese not skiing in the trees are true however it is not an issue of the trees being sacred, they don’t do it because it’s not allowed. The off-piste problem is getting worse and the resorts are going to have to find a way of either coming to terms with the motivations of the Western visitor or ban them completely.

Of course the best way to avoid running the gauntlet in the resorts is to hike into the back country where you are on your own. The mountains are both beautiful and complex and provide fantastic back country skiing in the winter and good spring ski touring from April to the end of May. for the first couple of days at least you should definitely use a local mountain guide. There are plenty of small, local Japanese guiding operations but you needn’t look further than the Hakuba Based Evergreen Guides company, run by UIAGMA certified Canadian Dave Enright. In my opinion, they offer the best guiding service in Japan employing a number of International Mountain guides and aspirants.

So if you’re after something totally unique, are open to new experiences and cultures, and are committed to riding some of the best snow in the world, then get to japan. it’s one big beautiful, challenging, fun and deep adventure.