I don't think they teach you how to get out of this situation at ski school.
“Floundering in the Pow”
Just to set the record straight, I am by no means a good snowboarder. I can get down pretty much anything a resort has to offer but please don’t mock my lack of style. One of the memorable days last season was the first day Happo One opened up their lifts. It had been snowing non-stop for 36 hours & there would have been over a meter of fresh on the ground. At this early stage we didn’t have any guests at the White Horse so I went out with all of the staff for a bit of R&R. A few of the crew had done seasons in Australia & New Zealand so I was expecting some quality skiing & riding to be on show. Ascending on the Alpen Quad we were on the 5 & 6 chairs looking at a perfect palette of fresh pow. As we rose to the Virgin Café the cloud cleared to display the Japanese Alps in their full splendor. We dash around the side of the lift hut like little kids at school play time. Strap in, push off & so the season begins. Every turn is a face shot. You can’t hoot or you will end up with a gob full. The hoots are coming from the lift, from friendly strangers acknowledging your massive rooster tails. I get to the bottom covered in Hakuba white gold. I wait and catch my breath looking up to see where the others are. No sign of them so up the lift again. I didn’t see anyone for the next 6 runs. Finally I get to the bottom to find half the group there. They were all exhausted as I, but I was surprised to hear that they had actually only completed the one run. The rest of the time they were digging, pushing, falling, drowning and basically floundering in the deep dry powder snow. The rest of them were still up there somewhere trying to just get down the mountain. I do remember a time when I struggled in the same conditions however this time I walked away with a cheeky smirk – “welcome to Hakuba kids.”
Tony Anderson
Hakuba Blog 