Crux

Merciless Rigamarole

Chad Sayers and I boarded the regional train for Tokyo after a fantastic week of skiing in Seki Onsen and Myōkō in the Nagano Prefecture.
“Taking the train is a great way to get around Honshu, Japan’s main island—it’s cheaper than a car, and faster most of the time, too. Chad Sayers and I boarded the regional train for Tokyo after a fantastic week of skiing in Seki Onsen and Myōkō in the Nagano Prefecture.” Photo: Mattias Fredriksson
Words: Lily Krass Ritter

Sweat poured down my back as I clutched my 60-pound ski bag in a frantic bear hug. Our subway stop was next. But between me and the doors to Tokyo Station stood at least a dozen people, all carefully avoiding eye contact.

I looked up at Max, who had strategically scored a place next to the exit. He nodded toward the doors and mouthed “we’re next.” I shrugged, unsure how I’d be able to extricate myself from the subway car. I kicked myself for bringing two pairs of skis. We had decided to ski all day at Happo One in Hakuba before departing for Tokyo—now we were hitting Shinjuku right at 6 p.m., peak rush hour.