The three brothers, Katsuyuki, Kenji, and Naoto Kono, were born and raised in Nozawa Onsen Village. Their paths have sometimes been the same, sometimes different, and sometimes intersecting, but the three have been involved in skiing for over 30 years and continue to ski from Nozawa Onsen.
The only time the three have gone on a ski trip together was in 2006, to New Zealand. Their first ski trip in about 20 years took them to the "Hokkaido Powder Belt," located in the center of Hokkaido and offering some of the world's best powder snow.
While picking up on conversations from the brothers as they traveled around freely in a camper van, we get a glimpse of the fun and excitement of skiing.
Profile of the Kono Brothers
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Naoto Kono,
born in 1988. He has experience in freestyle skiing based on his advanced skiing skills. He is now a pro-level snowboarder. He has a unique style that combines horizontal snowboarding with vertical skiing. He supports various events in the winter and works in agriculture in the summer. He is known as Nao-san, and is also known by his family. Instagram @naossan
Katsuyuki Kono,
born in 1981. The only one of his siblings to travel alone to Austria and compete in alpine skiing across Europe with a view to becoming a world champion. After returning to Japan, he competed in ski cross while also working in video production. He currently runs his family's inn, Shirakaba, and is involved in a wide range of businesses, including the restaurant Shichiryobei Coffee and rentals. Instagram @katzukono
Kenji Kono,
born in 1983. He was immersed in alpine skiing from a young age and competed worldwide for 12 years as a World Cup ski cross athlete. He has also competed in the X-Games twice. Operates accommodation and restaurants in Nozawa Onsen. Instagram @kono_kenji
First ski trip in 19 years
Editorial Department : There aren't many opportunities for the three of you to go skiing together, are there?
Naoto Kono (hereinafter referred to as Naoto) : We did go to the nearby mountains (in Nozawa Onsen) for filming, but I think I went to Hokkaido with Katsu a few times.
Katsuyuki Kono (hereinafter referred to as Katsu) : You went.
Kono Kenji (hereinafter referred to as Kenji) : It's been 19 years since my last ski trip.
Katsu : It was when I went to New Zealand for a shoot. It was for MCV. I submitted a proposal to Snow Park and Card Loaner, and they gave me a lift ticket, and I was able to ski freely.
(Note) MCV is a ski unit that was mainly made up of the Kono Brothers and the Ueno Brothers, and was responsible for filming and video production.
Kenji : And the treble cone too?
Nao-san : The Card Loner Open came out. Cross and Pipe.
Kenji : Was it out?
Nao-san : That was the only tournament I've ever participated in. It was my first time overseas, and even though I couldn't speak English, Kenji told me to exchange money in Hong Kong, where we were transiting. I thought, "I can't speak English," haha.
Kenji : Daisuke (Sasaki Daisuke) and Sugimura (photographer Sugimura Wataru) were always with us. I was really into half-pipes at the time, so I went to the snow park to do that.
Nao-san : I went all the way to New Zealand and only did half-pipe skiing...
・・・
The three traveled on a Hoshino Resorts campervan plan, which allowed them to move freely for five days and four nights. While sleeping in the vehicle, they could use some of the facilities at Hoshino Resorts Tomamu and OMO7 Asahikawa by Hoshino Resorts, and breakfast, bathing facilities, and parking were included. This
was perfect for adapting to the weather. Renting with the maximum number of four people provided good value for money.
The places we visited this time were Hoshino Resort Tomamu, OMO7 Asahikawa as our base, Nayoro Piyashiri Ski Resort, Santa Present Park, Kamui Ski Links, and the BC area in Kamifurano.
Nayoro is located in the northern part of the "Hokkaido Powder Belt," but the low temperatures are a feature of Hokkaido's inland climate. Temperatures can drop to minus 20 to 30 degrees Celsius or lower, so the snow is dry powder as light as a bird's feather. Accumulated snow tends to dry out, losing moisture, so even with little snowfall, good conditions can be created. As a result, there are always great spots lurking somewhere.
If I hadn't continued skiing, I wouldn't be over 40 and traveling with the three of us.
At Tomamu, try the "Mt. Karifuri CAT Tour." A snowmobile is waiting in a field about a 20-minute drive from the ski resort, and after donning safety gear, you board. The comfortable, heated cabin can accommodate up to 12 people, and you can enjoy 4-6 runs over the course of a half-day.
Editorial Department : If you didn't have the common hobby of skiing, would you all go on a trip together at this age?
Nao-san : I'll go anywhere as long as I can drink Sapporo Classic. I'll leave the skating to you two.
Katsu : I don't think I'll go.
Kenji : When I was in New Zealand, I only did skiing and was very stoic.
Nao-san : Every day, I would ski from morning until night, then go back to the inn, eat, sleep, and ski some more. I think I was able to do it because I was in my early twenties.
Kenji : I'm not that into it right now, and besides skating I also like to go out to town to eat and drink. It's also fun to explore places I've never been to before.
Katsu : I also started snowboarding.
Nao-san : It would be fun to go snowboarding together!
Kenji : I can't keep up, haha.
(Note) Katsuyuki Kono and Naoto are skilled enough to film themselves snowboarding.
・・・
After enjoying their first visit to Tomamu, the three head north to Asahikawa. Their base in Asahikawa is OMO7 Asahikawa by Hoshino Resorts.
Like at Tomamu, they'll be staying in a camper van, but they'll also have breakfast and can relax in the lobby. They also have access to the famous Sauna Plateau. They also have a drying room where you can wax your skis and warm up wet or cold boots and skis.
After arriving, we start with a toast and a strategy meeting. While toasting with Mountain City Pub's original craft draft beer, we discuss the weather for the next few days and the conditions at the surrounding ski resorts. At times like this, the live camera at the ski resort in the building, which allows us to see the ski resort conditions in real time, is very useful. So, where should we go from tomorrow?
Is there a secret to continuing skiing for a long time?
Editorial Department : What's the secret to continuing skiing for a long time?
Nao-san : Since I started surfing, I feel like I understand a little bit more what it feels like for people who travel to distant surfing fields.
Kenji : What do you mean?
Nao-san : I go surfing from Nozawa to the Pacific Ocean quite often in the summer, and it's great to see friends, and I realized that this is what it feels like to meet up with locals and surf. It takes hours to travel to the field, but I didn't think it was that hard. It's actually surprisingly close.
Kenji : If you find a place you like and keep going there, you'll have more opportunities to make friends with the locals. What about Katsu?
Katsu : It's better to go on trips during the season. It's important to go somewhere different from where you usually go. And training. It takes a lot of preparation to ski, haha. Lately I've been breaking down so easily. Kenji, you've been going to places other than Nozawa quite a bit.
Kenji : We go to various ski resorts and mountains every year to test ride Vector in Hokkaido, Hakuba, etc.
Editorial Department : Do you ever get bored of skiing at Nozawa Onsen after nearly 40 years?
Kenji : I never get bored of it.
Nao-san : I never get bored. Or rather, the garden. So I don't feel like it's really fun or boring or anything like that.
Kenji : I have quite a few.
Katsu : I do both snowboarding and skiing, so it's fun because I can enjoy each sport in different situations. I also work as a racing coach, so I learn a lot from watching other people's skiing.
Editorial Department : Even if you continue skiing at the same ski resort and get older, is there always something to learn?
Katsu : Yes, yes. When I'm with children, I wonder if I can actually do what I've told them. If I can't, then it's because there's something wrong with the way I'm communicating, and I need to use words that are reproducible. Also, sometimes they can't do it because they don't have the physical ability, so physical ability is important.
Nao-san : My physical condition is improving. So even if I go out drinking, I still wake up early in the morning.
Kenji : That will come after your unlucky year, haha. It will be taken away the moment the festival (Dosojin Festival on January 15th) is over.
Nao-san : Well, I don't really compare myself to my past self. It's not about what I could do in the past, it's about what I can do now. That's fine.
Kenji : Skiing has always been fun. I make skis, but I'm still crazy about it. The quality of the snow and the conditions don't matter. Of course, it's good to ski on good snow, but to put it bluntly, white snow is good enough.
Nao-san : That's what Green (closing) Taguchi said.
Katsu : It's Persona (a documentary movie by Ebis Films), Persona.
・・・
Thoughts on Nozawa Onsen during the trip
Nao-san : When I was in the lower grades of elementary school, I was in a mogul acrobatic troupe. My name was (Ueno) Osamu.
Kenji : When I was in elementary school, Toru Mori suddenly did a 360 on the slopes and I was like, "That's so amazing!"
(Note) Toru Mori was from Nozawa Onsen. He was a member of the All Japan Freestyle Ski Moguls team. He was a candidate to represent Japan in the moguls at the Nagano Winter Olympics, but was diagnosed with stomach cancer in September 1997. After a long battle with the disease, he passed away in 1998 at the young age of 25.
Katsu : Toru, you did alpine skiing, but before you knew it you were doing moguls. You might be from a different generation. You were about 10 years older than me? No, you're not.
Kenji : Probably about 6 or 7 years older.
Nao-san : When I was little, my older brothers weren't at home, so in the spring I'd go into the stream with the mogul skiers, make bumps, and jump in the park. There were a lot of really good skiers.
I liked skiing, but I hated alpine skiing. I really hated practicing. It wasn't fun at all.
Kenji and Katsu : (laughing)
Katsu : I said (I don't like it) about three times, lol.
・・・
Kenji : Surfers go to their local beaches. Until now, there hasn't been much of that kind of atmosphere in Nozawa.
Nao-san : That's right, the local guys seem to be really cool.
Kenji : I think that if the older guys in Nozawa, like us, don't ski a lot, the next generation and the younger generation won't come forward. There's an atmosphere that says, "Skiing looks fun and is great."
Nao-san : There are a lot of surfers like that. Like local heroes.
Kenji : In our time, it was normal to quit skiing completely once the competition was over. No one really decided that, it was just the way things were. If we changed that, it would be a lot more interesting. That's why I keep skiing.
Editorial Department : It would be great if the current generation of athletes involved in the sport could do the same.
Kenji : In sports, you're going to lose eventually, so try to have that tolerance while you're still active. I think that will make it easier to continue after you quit. It's easy to get the impression that you quit because you lost, but that doesn't really matter. Everyone loses eventually.
Editorial Department : We want students to know that it's not just about winning or losing, but that it can be fun and interesting. Many students quit after they finish school.
Nao-san : That's true. There are a lot.
Kenji : People start to get better at skiing around the time they reach college... I feel like I got better at skiing after I started ski cross after graduating. I think... it's had a positive effect.
Katsu : I also feel like I've gotten better at skiing since I started snowboarding. Is it like skiing on the flat surface? Before that, I was only skiing on the edges, and it felt like skiing on the flat surface was impossible. I relied too much on the edges, haha.
・・・
Kenji : It's been a while since we last skied together, and I realized that we've all gotten better at skiing than we were before.
Katsu : No, it was fun. I'm glad I was able to ski calmly and safely. It was a close call, though. I've come to understand how to enjoy traveling, both skiing and other activities.
Nao-san : Even now, I still like skiing on the slopes more than on the mountains.
Katsu : Santa's night game was fun.
Editorial Department : During the night game, he immediately said he wanted to go home. "Two runs is enough, let's go home, let's go home."
Katsu : Hahahaha. It's good to go home when you feel like you have just a little bit left. That leads to the next step. If you give it your all then you'll be satisfied. If you ski down with just one more run left, you'll definitely mess up.
Kenji : I still slide around quite aggressively.
・・・
In the mid-2000s, the ski unit "MCV" was formed by the three Kono brothers and the three Ueno brothers from Nozawa Onsen, who were involved in filming and film production. Through videos and events, they advocated free and fun skiing, from park to big mountain, based on the techniques they had cultivated since childhood in alpine racing.
The three Kono brothers, all of whom have jobs, families, and positions of responsibility, escaped their everyday lives for a moment to spend quality time in a single car, enjoying skiing in various locations. This camper trip was a reminiscence of the days they spent nearly 20 years ago.
A ski trip is great no matter how old you are.
This winter, why not take a trip to a snowy mountain?
Photo: Takahiro Nakanishi
Information
Hoshino Resorts Tomamu
〒079-2204 Nakatomamu, Shimukappu Village, Yufutsu District, Hokkaido
URL: https://www.snowtomamu.jp
SNS: Instagram | Facebook | X
OMO7 Asahikawa (Omo) by Hoshino Resorts
6-jo-dori 9-chome Migi 1, Asahikawa City, Hokkaido 070-0036
URL: https://omo-hotels.com/asahikawa/
SNS: Instagram | X
the campervan plan for Hokkaido's powder belt
: https://japan-crc.com/hoshino-hpb-campingcar/jp/
Karifuridake CAT Tour
Details: https://www.snowtomamu.jp/winter/ski/ski-slope/cat/