Flight to NGO was actually a Triple-7-200. Older aircraft, but a lot nicer (and cleaner) than the retired 747SUD’s and old 767-300’s that JAL usually uses on the Hawaii runs. Not sure why it was upsized from the usual 767 – maybe marathon season? Most people had whole rows to themselves, which actually worked out better than getting upgraded to business class, since I could fold up the armrests and lay flat out across the three seats.
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At HNL. Glad it’s breezy and cool for a change. Maybe I actually won’t be stinky by the time I reach Sapporo. No – the trains will be sauna-hot.
(0)The JMA forecast is usually pretty spot-on. Derek says they have some crazy supercomputer that yields far better results than whatever the NOAA uses. I fly out to Sapporo via Nagoya tomorrow and will be in Niseko on Friday. It should be smack dab in the middle of five days of snow. If all goes according to the forecast, there will be a day-and-a-half of new base and several more continuing days of snowfall in store. Will I finally be able to ride Niseko on something other than Krunk? Just so long as the winds stay moderate, I may actually luck out… finally.
Stay safe out there, tis the season for craziness on the road. On Kal hwy edge of Hawaii Kai, a mangled roadbike under a cement truck! I think no fatality as only one lane closed. Two more accidents on H1. And misc weirdness, roadie with clip less Crocs?
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Finally pulled the broken CV shaft from the rally FX. Well now, 100 hp by current autostandards is no huge supercar figure, but 100 horses is still 100 horses. It seems it’s still enough to shear an axle shaft apart. There might have been some kind of flaw in the metal. Actually the right hub seems to have all kinda of problems. Thats the side I blew the shock and strut top mount bottoming it out. When I went to take the half shaft out, I discovered the main hub axle nut was loose again, and in fact had sheered the safety tabs on the cap. The bottom ball joint also required barely a push on wrench to loosen and after I took off the castle nut for the steering arm, I put the extractor on the joint and as I tightened it with my fingers to line it up, the joint popped loose. Nuts! I pulled the hub assembly and I’m going to take it to Ken to replace the bearings. I’m going to also order the ball joint. New, not reman, Empi CV shafts are on order but it’ll take close to 2 months.
Oh, and while were on the subject of the rally FX, I’d like to give a shout out to Pacific Paradise Towing. Used them twice now and really like them. It’s a small family run service, dude is really cool. They cover island wide, in addition to standard truck (nice & aircon) they also have a flatbed if needed. They take credit cards. Their number if you ever need a tow is 677-8850.
Image upload currently broken – Ok, I’m not a big fan of flavored malt beverages, but my mind has been broadened by having Hoegarten as one of my faves. I was heding quite a bit on this season but finally decided to take a chance. Pours a cloudy medium dark rose, fairly strong head. Cranberry aroma and tang is strong. Mouth feel is pretty syrupy, strong carbonation clears some of that. But that sour, it just doesn’t do it for me. This is going to be a chore finishing this sixer. 1 out of 4 berry monkeys. Note that I did finish drinking the bottle though.
CBS film production trucks at the HMC West loading dock. Expect a hospital sequence on HI5-0 in several weeks. Only a couple of box trucks and a flatbed with a lighting generator – no craft service, catering, or dressing room trailers – so it’s probably just a second-unit shoot.
(0)Scion iQ just passed on King Street. Small. Orange. First one I’ve seen here. Already saw one in Onomichi in September.
(0)Now at SLC airport waiting for flight to Denver. Of course the forecast is for 2-4″ of snow throughout today and more tonight. Is there a way to have your trip end on a certain day but magically not end that day? It seems every snowboard trip ends leaving the final day as its dumping snow!
Summarizing his trip, considering the earlyness, the snow was pretty decent. Sure we added some more good battle scars to our boards, and Derek went full pro and destroyed his board ripping about a foot of his edge off and leaving a couple inches of it somewhere on the hill. Learned a bit more on which slopes to hit. Discovered a couple more decent food choices & revisited some favorites. Spent more than a couple hours at outdoor stores REI and Cabellas. Did donuts with a fullsize SUV. Made our own fun on the side of he road after the sticker shock at Snowbird.
Bodies are tired & bruised. Equipment is likewise bruised with a tear in my pants, numerous new scratches & dings in my board and Derek’s pretty much destroyed. But all in all a good trip. Will post up details later!