snowboarding in ryuoo

we came to the snow park early around 5am, everything was still close at that point. i could hear no other soul moving except us and those who got off the bus. and it was snowing at this point, my faux fur jacket couldn't handle all of this coldness around me. but i was most concerned on how wet of a mayhem this whole ordeal would bring. upon initial settling down of nerves, we finally headed to the hotel where we stayed for free at a holding room. getting more sleep was a priority at that point, closed our eyes until around 8am for breakfast.

ryuoo snow park (nagano, japan)

february 8th, what an unforgettable day. hours past by so quick, the snow park slowly came to life. the piled up snow from earlier were now bulldozed away to make room for paths. that short rest we had came with a complimentary instant cup noodles, that was enough to heat up my cold system. just look at how happy @appleeatingapple was after that hot cup, managing to be energetic amidst that cold backdrop.

after long minutes of checking and trying on gears, we are finally headed to the slopes. this large group was surely a headache to the resort's rental staff, and each of us had different needs. some needed the complete gear, others just needed the boots and the boards, and others even opted for skii. i had to change my boots, the initial one wouldn't tighten as much as i liked specially when i bended forward. we had a couple of beginners in this group as well, we were a large rowdy bunch. can you spot @appleeatingapple , @ohlnwwlknat , @thinkeringbart , and @wittyzell above?

the first disaster

for snowboard, the feet placement can actually be adjusted; thus, the term "regular" for left leading foot, and "goofy" for right leading ones. lead foot just means that it is the foot in front when you slide down the slopes. the board i got was a "regular" as intended, but the right foot placement was at a weird angle where i find it difficult to control. four of us had this concern, but the staff instead of changing the foot binding angles inside the shop directed us to change it ourselves using a screwdriver near the ski lifts. probably because of how many we were, the staff clearly wanted us out of the rental shop as fast as possible. this was really a let down.

here we are wasting some more precious time adjusting the angles. the first two boards had one tight screw each, forcing that would clearly ruin the screw heads. mine and one other had better luck, i readjusted that right foot angle by 20 degrees clockwise. when our other friends had already slid down twice on this initial path, this group of four just finished readjusting.

we finally rode the very first lift, saw how crowded the initial area was, and decided to proceed riding the next lift. a very crowded area filled with beginners would be a disaster to navigate, we thought. we were once beginners and we knew from experience how many times we fell and accidentally bumped others because we couldn't control the board. as a not so beginner, we wanted some peaceful slopes, at least.

we found two other friends after boarding the 2nd lift, it was around 11:30 at that point. the gondola has just reached the boarding point by then, so we all decided to get on and have lunch at the restaurant near the peak. we left after some time, leaving the others who came after. the initial plan was to ride a lift to the peak and descend from there. the snow proved to be a difficult foe, we couldn't see a thing and the lift was even stopped. we went down via gondola instead, and spent the afternoon from a lower elevation.

the second disaster awaits

it must have been after one cycle when i realized that my goggles were getting misty. i even told my friends about it and asked for advice. while going down the slopes at one point, i had to take off my googles and relied on my normal glasses. but i was afraid for my glasses to break the whole time, i couldn't concentrate.

the second time, i asked my friend to keep my glasses in his bag. he was a skilled snowboarder, my glasses will be safe under his care. but my goggles kept getting worse. it was so misty and i could no longer see anything. i removed them at some point but the snow was getting stronger and my naked eyes could not help but close. my snowboarding got worse and i stumbled here and there.

i was on the verge of giving up, and decided to have a simple and safer front facing slide. even that could not save me, my board caught ice and i stumbled frontward and hit my back slightly with my board. that was it, i said to myself. it was just not my day! my back was not hurt but my pride was crushed. i reached the lift boarding area after a very slow and careful ride. my friends told me that some went inside the cafe to rest. i needed that rest too.

inside, i found people gathering in front of the heater holding up their goggles. i guess i wasn't alone in this struggle, and i followed what they did. that proved to be helpful, my goggles dried up. i immediately wore them and swore not to take them off until the end of the day.

that was a game changer! i knew from the beginning that goggles will begin to fog up the moment you take them off and yet i took them off a couple of times that day. that was a very wrong decision, one that i learned the hard way. with a clearer goggles this time, this snowboard experience has started to feel very enjoyable.

the conclusion

time was my foe. after three or four more rounds, we decided to end the day. continued sliding to the bottom of the mountain and returned our gear 10 minutes before schedule. this we also learned the hard way the last time when we returned the gear late and paid extra fee. this snowboard hobby of mine is a continuous learning experience. an enjoyable life is one where we continuously learn new thing, i suppose. this life must be enjoyable then.

with the very heavy snow, it was so hard to take videos. luckily a friend volunteered to take one for us at the very last ride down this snow park. this was how crowded the lower areas of the mountain were. but i guess i still could say, we conquered ryuoo snow park!

as always, AMPING KANUNAY!

ps:

i was surprised at how high my heart rate was for this activity. that is just crazy!

and look at that route i took. i wonder how many times i went up and down that one area.

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

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