the ultimate snowboard experience: March 9 2024

i think i can safely say that this is the last of the snowboard trip for this season. and for a final trip, it was very memorable. welcome back to akakura onsen ski park!

we alighted the overnight bus at 7 in the morning greeted by a heavy snowfall. we have been here two weeks ago and yet the scenery is quite different from what i have experienced (here and here for the overnight 2 day experience). everything was covered in snow, even the roads were all white. and yet it seemed that i was a local, i could perfectly remember where shops and stores were at. i could have taken more pictures but my hands were freezing and my stomach is starting to get hungry.

we tried to take shelter at the same hotel we stayed at the last time. sadly, our charms did not work this time. having no reservations, we really could not blame them. we could not even stay for a warm drink, the restaurant is still closed. we headed straight to the rental shop. i said hello to my board this time around. she was pretty! luckily, the shop owner offered that we could keep our things inside. we immediately dressed and readied ourselves for the arduous activity ahead.

there were less people this time around. the peak snowboard season is over i guess. we also would not have booked this trip if not for the snow weather forecast. the forecast was correct indeed. and the snow was very powdery fine. we immediately went down the same route we had the last time and the snow was very thick. we were one of the few who made the first marks and tracks of this virgin snow. it was unexpectedly difficult to move on virgin snow, our boards were filled with mountains of snow as we went down the slopes making it extremely difficult to maneuver. i was disappointed at first but that has quickly dissipated when more people came down and made tracks. the trail soon stabilized and finally passable. we could finally practice and apply what we have done in the previous trips.

this time, i came a bit ready. i attached knee guards to have more courage in getting down the lift. when before, i only carried my board while riding the lift, this time around i attached the board to one foot as how they should be. upon getting down, people just balance on the board and slide down some short distance away from the lift area. that is the normal way. of course it is not as easy as that. when it was my turn to get off, i called on to the heavens and tried to balance as i slid down. i failed. i did not fall flat, but i was awkward as hell. second try, still the same. i don't know when it started but something must have clicked sometime after, it must have been because i knew that my knees were protected and i must have submitted to the idea that it wont hurt as much when i do fall but i finally did it. still not perfect but i finally got the hang of it.

we even tried a higher trail, a more steep one. with the new found courage, i went down the slope and did the "S" turns we have been practicing. it was not perfect but something i am proud of. i am more scared when people are around, i do not want to hit them and get into an accident. i would rather fall when i get uncomfortably close to other people. this will be my assignment for the next year.

by 3pm, we hurried down the slope and dressed back to the normal wear before getting on our bus at 4pm. the day is over and the snowboard season as finally ended. time to enjoy a calorie heavy meal at an indian restaurant in shinjuku to end it all.

the workout assessment:

my fitbit had no "snowboarding" as an activity type so i resorted to using "outdoor workout". look at that distance! i could no longer remember how many times we went up and down the slopes but it must have been a lot. and that calories burned! it is so much more than the other activities i do. around an hour was actually spent at eating lunch.

and here is the gps track. that straight line in the middle was the chair lift. we usually take the left part of the map when going down the slope. after lunch time, we took the right side of the map when we went down once. it was one hell of an experience. we got stuck in the snow, we could no longer move the snowboard. we decided to take them off and walked knee deep in snow for minutes. that burned my lunch food away in minutes. it was such an awful horrible experience that we never went back at that right side.

and this is how my heart went. some of that must be from my fear of heights while on the chair lift specially when it suddenly stops causing the chair to swing frantically. not for the faint of hearts.

it was a very satisfying trip indeed and a very memorable one. boxes were ticked for sure but there are still more to learn and more to confront.

as always, stay safe and remember to smile at your little achievements.
AMPING KANUNAY ug PAHIYOM PANAGSA!

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^{all content is by yours truly unless otherwise specified}

^{all photos are taken with a galaxy s23 ultra}

This report was published via Actifit app (Android | iOS). Check out the original version here on actifit.io

09/03/2024

19714

Skiing, Snowshoeing

Height 168.0 cm		Weight 72.8 kg		Body Fat %
Waist cm		Thighs cm		Chest cm