Nisei Ski Club

by Tina Woo

The ski season is almost over (except for Squaw, Alpine and Mammoth) and it’s time to put away the equipment until next year.  

SAVE $5!  How?  By renewing your Nisei Ski Club membership.  The annual membership dues are discounted to $25 until end May. Beginning June 1, the membership fees will increase to $30. Sign up and learn about the fun activities taking place this summer, balance of the year and the week-long trip to Whistler in February 2020.

Here are some testimonials from members about their membership experience:

Having been a member of Nisei Ski Club for over 25 years, I’ve served on the board as membership chair and other positions, and enjoyed volunteering and organizing events.  Because of this club, I’ve been able to participate in river rafting, kayaking, deep sea fishing, hiking, horse racing, ballroom dancing,  learning to play bocce ball, in addition to skiing.  

Greg Wong

I first skied with Nisei Ski Club around 1974, when I took a trip to Aspen with the group. After that trip, I “unjoined” for 25 years while I raised three children who were on the Squaw Valley Freestyle team. I have been with Nisei for the past 20 years, serving as Trip Director and Board member at various times. I’ve also led some bike trips, recently across the Bay Bridge to Treasure Island. On May 19, I will be teaching dance lessons at the post season social. Please come and join me. 

Sandy Kiyomura

I joined NSC in order to go on a ski trip with my friend Sandy to Aspen. That was three years ago, and I’ve been on trips to Vail and Big Sky since then. I hope to go on many more with NSC, in addition to the trips offered by Far West and Bay Area Association Ski Clubs. I find the members warm and welcoming, besides being tons of fun to ski with.

Judy Bracken

So, please send in your membership forms.  Join the club and have fun. This marks the 61^st anniversary of the club. 

2019 Lange RS 120 Ski Boots

Size: 25.5 (men’s 8-8.5 shoe size) Advanced to Expert, high performance/race Used approximately 10 days, excellent condition

Retail: $700  Asking $250

Sold by Randy Hirai. If interested contact Karen at tripdirector@niseiskiclub.org

It’s no April Fool’s joke–your monthly newsletter is ready for your reading enjoyment. Here are your selections:

President’s Message by Armand Gutierrez

Hakuba Ski Trip by Kathy Fang

Ready, Get Set, DANCE! by Sandy Kiyomura

Mark Your Calendars contributed by Tina Woo

Unique Ski Lodging contributed by Dan Lew

by Armand Gutierrez

April is here and that means the end of another great ski season. Due to all the snowfall, several resorts have extended their season, but most will be closing by the end of April. Mammoth and Squaw Valley will stay open a little longer; with Squaw once again offer skiing on the 4^thof July. 

2019 FWSA Ski Week to Hakuba Valley, Japan My first trip to Japan for skiing and touring was an opportunity that will forever be in my memory banks. Of the ten ski resorts available, I had selected four to ski based on their conditions (number of lifts/runs, snow depth, and weather). Happo-One and Goryu/47 were the two largest and Tsugeike came in third. Although Tsugeike wasn’t the largest, it offered the best powder skiing while we, “we” meaning other NSCrs, were there. Goryu/47 is actually two resorts: Goryu and 47, and you can ski either resort with the interconnected lifts.  See Kathy Fang’s article below for more about the trip.

Toward the end of the ski week there was a farewell dinner and entertainment provided by the local Taiko drummers. For those that have never seen Taiko drummers this was probably the highlight of the week. 

April NSC Weekend Ski Trip Karen Soo, our trip director, has organized a carpool effort for a weekend of skiing at Tahoe on April 13-14. If you’re interested in going then contact Karen at tripdirector@niseiskiclub.org

Board Nominations & Elections  Well, it’s that time again for holding our board nominations and elections for the 2019-2020 season, and an email for making your nominations for the board has already been sent out. As you know, volunteers run this club, and without them this club would cease to exist, and it’s been in existence for 60 years! You are encouraged to take this opportunity to nominate an individual for one, or more, of the board positions. All individuals that accept the nomination(s) will go through an election process in May, and final results will be announced at the annual June picnic. Ask any of the current board members and I’m sure they will tell you that by volunteering they get back more than they ever gave. By volunteering you will experience social benefits as well as provide a greater sense of self-worth, trust, and lots of fun. Many of you have served on the board in the past, and your efforts were greatly appreciated and perhaps you would like to join the board again. For those that have never served. then perhaps now is the time to consider a board position and provide new ideas and useful experiences.

Whistler/Blackcomb Ski Week 2020 Next year’s ski week NSC will be going to Whistler/Blackcomb, Canada. Our last visit to Whistler/Blackcomb was in 2010, so it’s time for a return trip. Last year Sports America offered the Ikon and Epic Passes at a discount for any member that signed up for Big Sky, and the Ikon Pass was good for five days of skiing at Big Sky.

For 2019-20 Whistler/Blackcomb will be on the Epic Pass, and is also good for Northstar, Heavenly Valley, and Kirkwood. Here is what you need to know about the Ikon and Epic Passes for the Whistler/Blackcomb trip: 

*Purchase the Ikon Base Pass (Squaw/Alpine) from Sports America and receive a $30 discount on the Whistler/Blackcomb trip. However, the Ikon Pass cannot be used at Whistler/Blackcomb. Go to this link to purchase: www.sportsamerica.com/ikon-nisei

*Purchase the Epic Local Pass (Northstar, Heavenly, Kirkwood) and receive a $30 discount on the Whistler/Blackcomb trip. The Epic Pass can be used at Whistler/Blackcomb for up to ten days. Go to this link to purchase: www.sportsamerica.com/epic-nisei

*Purchase the Epic Local Pass before April 14^thand get ten buddy passes and the lowest rate for the pass.

If you have any questions about either of the passes then drop me a line at president@niseiskiclub.org

by Kathy Fang

I don’t regret being tempted by Sandy Kiyomura last June to go on a ski trip to Japan organized by the Far West Ski Association (FWSA) in March 2019.    Recently I vowed to explore the slopes beyond the Tahoe resorts I have enjoyed for my 17 years of skiing.  With Sandy’s urging, I decided to get started by going to Japan!

Sandy and I opted to go for two of the three weeks being offered on this trip, spending our first week at the Niseko resorts in Hokkaido with about 40 other skiers, and the second at the Hakuba Valley resort in Nagano with 70 travelers. With such large groups, there was a bit of waiting around, but  thanks to the careful planning by Debbie Stewart and Wanda Ross of FWSA, the travel arrangements went quite smoothly.

Niseko is a town on Japan’s northern Hokkaido Island, near the dormant volcano of Mt. Yotei. Niseko Ski Resort is comprised of four interlinked ski resorts—Grand Hirafu, Hanazono, Niseko Village and An’nupri.  They were part of the Winter Olympics in 1972. We found people from Australia and Europe flocking there. The views from each of the four peaks were amazing! 

Hakuba Valley Ski Resort, the host of 1998 Winter Olympics, is the largest ski resort in Japan.  It consists of ten resorts in Nagono Prefecture.  For this second week, we stayed in the classic Hotel Tokyu, with large rooms, beautiful mountain views, a convenient location, and delicious French inspired cuisine.

Near Hakuba Valley, we went to visit a Snow Monkey (Japanese macaque) Preserve in Nagano.  Snow monkeys are the most northern living nonhuman primates. Legend says that many years ago, snow monkeys discovered that soaking in the hot springs was quite enjoyable, especially in winter.  To prevent them from coming to the human hot springs, the locals built special hot spring spas for snow monkeys and then lured them there with food. Thus, these monkeys would happily stay in the reservation areas and enjoy their own spas.  The snow monkeys, minding their own spa experiences, paid little attention to us.

It is said that Japan has the best powder in the world.  When we arrived in Niseko and Hakuba in early March of this year, the weather and snow conditions were very much like those in Squaw this year—a lot of snow but warm, moist, and icy sometimes—“spring ski” conditions.  Sandy and I met and skied with people from Nisei and other clubs from many spots all over California and other western states. The sportsmanship and camaraderie on the slopes with other members in the group made this ski trip fun and memorable.

Like many of you, learning the history, meeting the locals, experiencing their day-to-day life and culture are important parts of our travels.  Since the economic downturn in the 1990’s, Japan has had a hard time recovering. Due to the national low birth rate, we observed many men and women well beyond middle age working in the service industries.  As a recovery method, Japan has focused on increasing tourism, which has doubled in the last five years.

Travel in Japan nowadays is relatively easy and comfortable.  Everywhere we went, things were neat, clean, nice and orderly. Trains and buses are always on time. Food is healthy and delicious. Plates are presented like flower arrangements.   Japanese people are courteous and helpful.   Surprisingly, travel in Japan is so much less costly than my first visit there fifteen years ago!

Overall, I had a wonderful time during my first ski trip to Japan with FWSA.  Next year, FWSA goes to Davos, Switzerland and Portugal! Maybe you’ll be there?

by Sandy Kiyomura

Would you like to learn something new? Dancing has been shown to improve one’s physical, mental and social well-being. This is something you can do for the rest of your life (even if you can’t ski anymore).  If you already know how to dance, please come and share your skills.

On Sunday, May 19, Nisei ski club will be hosting it’s first Tea Dance and Social at the Cupertino Senior Center from 2-5 PM. We call it a Tea Dance because it’s in the afternoon. “But what if I can’t dance? I have two left feet.” Not to worry, there is someone with two right feet. I will teach you in three easy lessons. Want to learn the swing, cha cha, Rumba, night club two step? Put in your requests.  

No Nisei event would be complete without food. Come and share your culinary talents. Feel free to bring “finger food” to share. The club will provide serving plates and utensils. If you can’t cook, non-alcoholic drinks are welcome. 

You and your guests can make requests to me at skiyomura@gmail.com

See you on the dance floor!

The first Japantown Immersive, held last May, supported businesses, artists, and residents of our iconic neighborhood and provided a rollicking good time for the 1000+ people who attended.

You won’t want to miss the return of this interactive street event. Japantown Immersive 2019 will take place from 4:30-8:30 PM on April 6. Just like last year, it will be FREE. For more about this event, visit the website at Japantown Immersive 2019.

Another event of note is the Cupertino Cherry Blossom Festival, held April 27-28, 2019. This wonderful community event, featuring artists, food vendors and performances honors one of Cupertino’s oldest sister city relationships with Toyokawa, Japan. It is held from 10 am-5 pm and admission is free.

contributed by Dan Lew

Looking for a very unique ski lodging experience? Dan Lew found this interesting, albeit expensive (330 €uros / night), ski lodging at La Plagne, France. La Plagne is a huge ski resort  that is part of the Paradiski area that includes La Plagne, Les Arcs and Peissy Vallandry. La Plagne alone has 95 lifts! Talk about an interesting time!

Inside the snow cat:

Here is the monthly news for March. You will find the articles below by scrolling down or by clicking on the links:

President’s Message, by Armand Gutierrez

End of Season Social, by Tina Woo

Best Skiing Experience Ever!, by Margaret Wong

Year of the Boar

Skiing at 70