Nisei Ski Club

NSC: How long have you been skiing? How did you start?

In my senior year at college, my roommates got me to try skiing.  They showed me how to snowplow for a few minutes and then left.  I spent much of that afternoon on the bunny slopes trying to get up while little kids whizzed past spraying snow all over me.

NSC: How did you hear of NSC? What convinced you to join?

I broke my leg in 2003 when my 9 year old ski bindings didn’t release. I bought new shaped skis for safety, but they were so much more fun to ski on, I started looking for a way to ski more often.  I reviewed websites of every ski club in the Bay Area and picked NSC which seemed to have the best program.  Not having a 4WD and wanting to meet more people to ski with, bus trips were perfect for me. Read the rest of this entry »

A few months ago, I met Jennifer Kaneda through a common friend. The three of us started talking about skiing over lunch and Jenni mentioned the Nisei Ski Club (NSC) and their weekend trips. What got my attention was the fact that the bus leaves at 6:30pm on Friday night. Unlike the other clubs who leaves at 4AM on Saturday morning. And by the way, I love my sleep. Read the rest of this entry »

This trip began with a threat of stormy weather.  The Bay Area was under a constant media blitz of potential blizzard, or at least snow on every mound of earth if not down to sea level.  As it was, the blizzard in the Bay Area was a bust.  But the storm did materialize for NSC’s bus trip Friday night.

The bus was filled with happy NSC skiers, guests and our contingent from the Monterey Ski Club.  A wonderful dinner of ground beef and peas over rice and real homemade mango pudding for dessert provided by Karen was enjoyed by all.  Unfortunately the bus’ DVD player would not cooperate, so the long bus ride was without the added entertainment.  Read the rest of this entry »

1. 3M and GOODYEAR (The new company will be called MMM Good.)

2. HONEYWELL, IMASCO and HOME OIL (The new company will be called Honey, I’m Home.)

3. DENISON MINES, ALLIANCE and METAL MINING (The new company will be called Mine, All Mine.)

4. ZIPPO MFG., AUDI, DOFASCO and DAKOTA MINING (The new company will be called Zip Audi Do-Da.)

5. W.R.GRACE CO., FULLER BRUSH CO., MARY KAY COSMETICS, and HALE BUSINESS SYSTEMS (The new company will be called Hale, Mary, Fuller, Grace.)

6. POLYGRAM RECORDS, WARNER BROS. and KEEBLER (The new company will be called Poly-Warner-Cracker.)

7. KNOT’S BERRY FARM & THE NAT. ORGANIZATION FOR WOMEN (The new company will be called Knot Now.)

1. The Von Trapps established The Trapp Family Lodge in 1950 with 27 rooms at Stowe, VT.

2. Eastern Boilerplate refers to a crust of ice on top of snow which frequently occurs at the low elevations on many Eastern US ski slopes.

3. The first American resort to stage a winter Olympics was Lake Placid, NY.

4. Ullr is the Norse god of Winter.

5. Vertical gate combinations on a race course are referred to as flushes.

6. Sonny Bono ran into a tree at Heavenly Valley.

Picture by Monterey Ski and Social Club.

Photos by Bob Kikuchi

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Pictures by Bill Lee.   Click on individual pictures to see full-sized image.

Everybody’s favorite volunteer activity is coming sooner than you think.  We need lots of folks to procure, cook and prepare our famous Chinese chicken salad and lots more to sell and otherwise put on the biggest NSC moneymaker of the year.  We will meet Sat. AM May 30 at the Mtn. View Buddhist Church (575 N Shoreline Blvd.) and Sun all day at the SJ Buddhist Church lot (640 N 5th St.)  Come and renew old friendships while you help your club. Contact Alice Horio at vicepresident@niseiskiclub.org for details and to sign up for a shift on either or both days.

50 NSC members just returned from our weeklong trip to Keystone, CO.  We hit the best snow in 14 years according to the locals.  Even during the trip, members were already asking where we’re going next year.  This year was a La Niña year, which according to the experts stacked storms in the Pacific and pound the Northwest and Northern Rockies this winter.  Talking to people on the lift chair, there wasn’t enough snow in Taos or Telluride, but plenty at Vail and Keystone.  According to weather reports, La Niña will be over by this summer.

Banff was brought up by members as possible destination, but due to the fluctuating Canadian exchange rate travel agencies are reluctant to lock in prices.  When we went to Whistler last year, Joel had problems locking in a price.  We could book the trip, but the price wasn’t guaranteed.   Just like how airlines can add a fuel surcharge if the price of jet fuel goes up, travel agencies wanted the right to increase the price if the US dollar dropped against the Canadian dollar.  A bit outrageous.

I’m thinking of three options: Mammoth, Sun Valley, or Jackson Hole.

FWSA is also going to Jackson Hole in 2012 on the last week of January.  So, if we go to Jackson Hole, we may join the FWSA trip.

If you have a destination suggestion, please contact me:  president@niseiskiclub.org

I’ve added a new page on the website listing all the past weeklong trips: NSC Presidents and Weeklong Trips

Click on each image to see the full size image:

Mozart at top of Dercum Mountain

Cat Dancer at top of North Peak

Spill Way at top of North Peak

Snow Fort at top of Dercum Mountain

Top of Outback looking down the North Bowl side

If you have pictures or links to your photo album you want to share with others who went on the Keystone trip, send them to me at president@niseiskiclub.org and I’ll post them on the website.

Many Asians consider the upcoming New Year’s holiday (according to the lunar calendar) to be the most important in the year.  We on the NSC board therefore wish all members and friends (Oriental or not) a most happy and prosperous New Year of the hare (except in Vietnam, where it is the year of the cat).

For some who may not know much about this holiday, I compiled a few interesting (at least to me) facts.  Some implementations (which may vary from place to place in the Far East).  Please help me if I say anything wrong! Read the rest of this entry »

1. The Von Trapp family of “Sound of Music” fame established a ski hotel in the US.  Which resort?

2. Eastern Boilerplate describes what condition?

3. Which was the first N. American resort to stage a Winter Olympics?

4. What, or who is Ullr?

5. What are vertical gate combinations in a ski race called?

6. At what ski resort did Sonny Bono run into a tree?

Answer to Last Month’s Puzzle:

With 2 candles, devise a way to determine when 3/4 hour has passed within a few seconds.

1. Light both ends of candle #1 and just one end of candle #2 (as close together as possible).  Assume that holding the candle sideways doesn’t change the rate of burn.)

2. When candle #1 is all burned out (after 1/2 hour), light the other end of candle #2.

3. When candle #2 burns out (after 15 mins more), it will be 3/4 hour from the beginning.

Pictures by Bill Lee

Answer to last month’s puzzle:

Replace all the Xs with digits to make this division valid.  It’s easier than you think. Read the rest of this entry »

About a dozen members and friends enjoyed a day at the newly-re-opened Oakland Museum on this Sunday.  It was a “free” day so we got there an hour early just to make sure.  I normally avoid “free” days since they are typically very crowded but even though the line was about 200ft. long by opening, Read the rest of this entry »

Festival presented by our friends at SnowBomb.  Tickets get you 3 free lift tickets and other free stuff.   50% off General Admission for NSC members.

SF Fort Mason, Nov 6 + 7, 2010:

http://sfskiandsnowboardfestival.eventbrite.com/?discount=SkiResorts

Santa Clara Convention Center, Nov 13 + 14, 2010:

http://siliconvalleyskiandsnowboardfestival.eventbrite.com/?discount=SkiResorts

In the absence of a message from the president this month, I thought I’d give you all a bit of my history from me.

I started skiing back in high school in Connecticut around 1953. We mostly drove N to Vermont, but it was pretty icy, cold and rocky so I can’t explain why I continued the sport under those circumstances. After moving to California, I joined NSC in 1966 – the year Hi Fujii was president. I was also a member of Chi Ski during part of that time so I could ski most weekends with one club or the other. I was on the NSC board from about 1970 until I dropped out after getting married in 1972. I continued skiing (on and off) after that, including trips to Canada and a half dozen areas in Europe. Read the rest of this entry »

To date, 4 people voiced interest in such an event, and while waiting for more, the available dates in
June were all taken. I will continue to monitor the bayareacurling.com website for new dates and post
them on our website. The latest times seem to be at Oakland Ice vs. Fremont.or San Jose Sharks Ice. Read the rest of this entry »

Answers to last month’s puzzle:  The census taker:  Write out all possible combinations that add to 13. Out of the 8 total possible age combinations, there are only 2 that when multiplied equal 36. When the lady said her eldest was upstairs Read the rest of this entry »

Ataxophobia: Fear of untidiness/disorder
Athazagoraphobia: Being forgotten/alone
Aulophobia: Fear of flutes Read the rest of this entry »