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Mysteries of the Orient

Japanese powder and Korean bowling
maelle-ricker

By Maëlle Ricker

Konichiwa! The national snowboard team spent the last two weeks in the Orient.

The first week was fantastic, as Japan always is. Korea, however, was not everyone’s favourite stop of the year. We did well there but the music killed us.

This segment of the World Cup circuit only had halfpipe and race events, so the snowboard cross team stayed in North America to compete on the NorAm tour.

Our trip had a rocky start but did not lack for style. All 15 of us got upgraded into business class at the Vancouver airport for our flight to Osaka. Talk about luck! The plane was a few hours late taking off though, so we didn’t make the connection in Osaka for Sapporo. This didn’t cause any major problems. The first training session wasn’t until the following day anyway.

The overnight stay in Osaka was amazing. Our group split into two and I ended up spending the night with most of our race team. Jasey-Jay, Alexa Loo, Constance Boisvert, and I checked into the hotel and immediately went out for a midnight stroll. We had a great walk through a quaint park out to Osaka’s seaside.

After taking in some fresh ocean air, the four of us headed to the train station for a snack and a quick break dancing show. It was the perfect end to a first night at my second favourite stop on the FIS tour.

Sapporo is the primary city on Japan’s northern island of Hokkaido. The streets bustled with smiling people most of the day. We had the opportunity to stay right in the heart of it all.

Our hotel had just been remodelled. The rooms were tiny but full of perks, such as high speed internet. Staying downtown is a great way to take in the culture of a country so different than Canada. Trips like this one really remind me just how fortunate I am.

The downfall to downtown living was the commute to the hill. Every morning and afternoon required a 45-minute bus ride in and out of town. I read, chatted with friends, and took in some of the scenery.

Snow was the main attraction outside the bus. I think Japan stole all of Whistler’s white stuff this year. They seemed to have more than enough to go around!

Crispin took advantage of the wonderful snow conditions. He arrived directly from Italy and had a couple of amazing freeriding days before the rest of us got into town. I’d be lying through my teeth if I told you I wasn’t jealous!

The opening ceremonies banquet was marvelous. We drank a bit of sake and ate like kings and queens. Jasey was once again selected as an honoured guest who helped smash open the big wooden sake barrel.

The race went off without a hitch. Mr. Anderson once again made it into the top five. Unfortunately the rest of the team missed finals.

The halfpipe was another story. All the girls got on the seven o’clock bus and headed out of town into a massive snowstorm. We knew the moment we stepped outside the event would be cancelled.

After sitting around the base lodge at Makomanai Resort for a couple of hours the officials made the cancellation official. The good news was that there would be two halfpipe competitions the following week in Korea.

Korea was hilarious. I chuckled to myself at all the gimmicks Sungwoo Resort had to offer. The whole place reminded me of a Club Med-type vacation with weird added features. The best gimmicks were the air pressure hoses at the hotel entrance. We used them to blow all of the excess snow off our boards and boots. The next best thing was the music that played over loud speakers all day, everyday.

There was no way you could hear yourself think until it stopped at 10 o’clock. On Saturday the party continued until one in the morning. I was shocked at the amount of Koreans snowplowing through the night.

We had much more entertainment inside than out. The bowling alley was the Canadian team’s hang out. Every night after dinner some of us would play a game or two. Brad Martin took the highest score of the week, but Hugo Lemay was, without question, the most stylish bowler in the alley. He dazzled with his fancy footwork and innovative bowling technique. I had sore abs from laughing so much.

The halfpipe event drew a huge crowd. Mercedes was the star of the show.

She took home two third place results with breathtaking backside 540s on her first hit. Crispin also showed game. He took second in the first finals and 10 th in the second event. Brad and Hugo placed forth and seventh respectively.

I was very impressed with the level of riding considering the pipe was shaped with a chainsaw. The groomer that usually shaped the pipe wasn’t up to snuff. Luckily the pipe was so icy that it didn’t need much grooming from night to night.

Another long trip home, another day off to repack, and another flight tomorrow. Yippee!