PLANES. TRAINS. & AUTOMOBILES.

Getting from Tokyo to Hokkaido, I soon learned is no easy feat. It reminded me of that John Candy flick. First it was a quick cab ride from Ishino's house in Shirokane to Hiroshi's house in Shibuya. But with my 90 pound snowboard bag, it made the trip considerably more difficult. From there it was a 30 minute drive to Haneda Airport. Had some pretty damn good lunch at the airport and then boarded our flight on ANA to Sapporo. The flight is about an hour and a half. After landing and getting our bags, it's a 2 hour train ride to Otaru...I suppose the closest thing to a "city" Hokkaido has. After getting off the relatively small train, it was another one and a half hour cab ride to the Prince Hotel. 4 of us jam packed into the cab! It was rough. In the cab was myself, Hiroshi, Fraser Cooke from Nike and Astuyo who heads up Burton Japan.
Fortunately, its been well worth it. The conditions are great, fresh snow, temperate enjoyable weather. After the runs, we kill time by taking each other's money in Machiavelli and over-the-air Mario Cart on Nintendo DS. The hotel also features its very own natural hot spring, which is simply amazing. "Onsen" is supposedly very good for your health and you definitely feel the effects immediately after. The food has also been amazing; from the fresh milk & cheeses, varied odd snacks and amazing sushi. To top it off, when you roll with these cats; it's gadgets and cool shit galore. All this limited edition shit is everywhere. It's almost as if a page from Freshness exploded. 3 more days to enjoy here...I'll report back soon.

HF Tip: Take a photo of where you parked your car at the airport. This way, you don't have to worry about remembering it while you're on vacation. Scenes from the 8 hour commute up north.

Cool Shit #1: Check out this Burton boot fashioned after the adidas shelltoe. It looks sick on the slopes. Fraser was using these.

Snack-a-licious: (left-right) Hot, Hotter, Hottest and "Death". (Hence, the devil on the packaging.

Onsen: We chilled in the hot springs at night. It's indescribable how good it is.

Equally good is the sushi. Kids in the US: When you go to a Japanese restaurant, this is what tuna is supposed to look like!

Cool Shit #2: Nike ID x Tiffany & Co. dog tags. These were given as gifts to people who helped out with the 255 ID Space in NYC. Floral AF1 pattern on one side and the employee ID # on the other. This one belongs to Fraser. I think he sweeps the sidewalk out front every Tuesday and 3rd Sunday.

Speaking of...behold: Nike's Global Brand Energy Leader. Fer real. It is...lol...

Gaming central in Hokkaido: Mario Cart (wireless) on Nintendo DS, the hotel game room.

We managed to actually get some riding in as well. Conditions are amazing.