Firstly my thanks to Ian and Ben and all the crew at Niseko Powder Connection (www.niseko-hirafu.com) for looking after my friends and me.

K2- Many of the women skiing in Niseko this year (including my sister) fell in love with the K2 Phat Luv skis. I was hoping to find another pair of K2 Axis XPs but only the shortest sizes were available in most brands of skis. Surprising when younger generations of Japanese skiers and boarders are not short. How about some longer skis being available in Japan?

Evacuating the 6C triple chair after a power failure. The bamboo pole looks very impressive.

JAL: Thanks for the exit-row seats to carry my 190cm long body but no thanks for the excess baggage I was charged leaving Sydney. There appears to be a real lack of consistency with excess baggage. Some get charged while others don't, regardless of whether the plane is half full or half empty. There is nothing worse than being hit for an unexpected bill at the airport and I defy anyone to go skiing for a month and stay under 20kg including all their boots and skis and warm winter clothing.

With so many Australians and New Zealanders now skiing and boarding in Japan you would think the airlines would show their appreciation for the increasing volume of passenger movements by offering the same weight dispensation on sporting equipment that airlines offer when travelling to North America.

May be some of JAL's competition might like to offer free ski and board weight allowances and pick up on the passenger flow. I'll personally help promote any airline that won't punish me for excess baggage.

Yes, we did have a couple of boarders with us ... Chris and Kylie ...

My final word is one of disappointment ...
Last year I bought new skis and bindings from Takiguchi Sports in Kutchan. They mounted the bindings (Fritschi Freeride) for me. When skiing back in Australia I noticed the left binding developed some movement where the bar locks down into the heel piece. This occurred after less than 1 months skiing (99% with the heel locked down). Ski shop technicians in Australia found that the left binding had severe grooves worn in the plastic parts where the bar comes in contact with the heel piece of the binding. Without getting any repairs done in Australia I returned to Takiguchi Sports in Kutchan with the skis and bindings but they would not replace either the worn parts or entire binding under warranty. Personally I am not at all satisfied with this and have never had a warranty issue with any other brand of ski binding. These are my first set of Fritschi bindings and may be my last. They still have 1-2mm of lift in the heel of the left binding.

Enough complaining ...

Till the 2004 season in Thredbo,
Richard

The final word goes to Paul - about to receive a massive face shot