Principal
KAKU
Principal of SnowWind. Teaches from your very first lesson to advanced technique; lessons start with why a movement works, then build it step by step.
- JSBA B
- JSBA D Examiner
- Tech Test 2
- CSIA 1 · Ski
- Specialties
- Beginner · Advanced technique · Structured coaching
- Teaching languages
- Mandarin · English
- Articles
- 17
- Links
- threads.com/@kakukazui
Articles by KAKU
17 SnowWind Journal articles signed by KAKU.
Carving Lab
Whole series (12) →- Part 1 What Is Carving on a Snowboard? A Thin Track Doesn't Mean You're Carving KAKU's test is the slide angle between board and direction of travel, not track width, and you can carve in rough snow. How carving differs from skidding.
- Part 2 Toeside Carving on a Snowboard: Lock Your Ankle, Don't Kneel Into the Boot Tongue A low knee doesn't mean the edge is up. In KAKU's view, kneeling into the tongue dumps force into tongue and shin; a locked ankle lets the body drive the edge.
- Part 3 Heelside carve stalling or chattering on a snowboard? First check where you are looking Heelside trouble often means your eyes turned late or didn't stay on the turn. KAKU: shoulders, torso and weight follow your gaze. 西西 adds hips and highback.
- Part 9 What are the fundamentals of snowboard carving? Five elements, and stepping back a level first Stuck carving? KAKU: step back a level. Five elements: pressure, edging, rotation, lean, angulation. Low stance hinges on angulation; touching snow is a result.
- Part 10 Snowboard carving like squatting on a toilet? How open hips and angulation work together Sitting back, butt out? Often, KAKU says, open hips and angulation aren't working together: hips steer, angulation stabilises; hips first. With 西西's drill.
- Part 11 Do you need to learn duck stance first for snowboard carving? Duck vs forward stance trade-offs KAKU's view: duck and forward stance don't rank, and neither has to come first. What each does well, what it costs, and whether JSBA exams set an angle.
- Part 12 How do you choose a carving snowboard? Why our principal says go straight to a top-end board Linking turns and eyeing a carving board? KAKU: beginners don't need one; later, judge stiffness, sidecut radius, effective edge; if serious, buy top-end once.
Choosing an Instructor
Whole series (5) →- Part 1 How to choose a ski or snowboard instructor: certifications, riding videos and the pre-lesson conversation Principal KAKU's three steps (certification system and level, riding videos against official demos, teaching logic) plus two things to watch on lesson day.
- Part 2 What do JSBA certifications prove? Reading the three tracks on an instructor's profile The Badge Test, Tech Test and instructor qualifications prove three different things. On an instructor's profile, first work out which track you're reading.
- Part 4 JSBA vs CASI: what's the difference? Snowboard instructor systems compared What do JSBA, CASI, AASI and SBINZ each emphasise? KAKU reads their instructor exams as carving, all-mountain and freestyle. A personal view, no ranking.
- Part 5 Can a Level 1 instructor teach you well? How principal KAKU trains new instructors Flying to Hokkaido and getting a Level 1 instructor? KAKU: they can teach beginners well if properly mentored. To learn carving, find someone who can teach it.
Snowboarding: Your First Week
Whole series (6) →- Part 3 Stuck Halfway Through a Snowboard Turn? Check for a Fake Weight Shift First Head reach and hip push are fake weight shifts. KAKU says a real one is your whole body matching the slope and following the board. Plus a 30-second self-check.
- Part 5 What to Learn After Linking Turns on a Snowboard? Carving, Ground Tricks and Park Aren't Ranked KAKU on what comes after linked turns: carving, ground tricks and park don't rank, why KAKU thinks most people start with carving, and what to do when stuck.
- Part 6 Snowboard Instructor Says Never Open Your Shoulders: Is That Right? Opening the Shoulders and Counter-Rotation Told not to open your shoulders or that counter-rotation is wrong, then told to open up? KAKU: you didn't learn it wrong. Only what fits; systems set limits.
Your First Ski Trip to Hokkaido
Whole series (3) →- Part 3 Snowboard or ski for your first time? KAKU's five answers Ski first? Which is harder, riskier, where people get hurt, what each does best. KAKU answers from teaching; injury notes are not medical statistics.
- Part 4 Japan ski resort safety rules: runaway boards, riding the lift, and stopping when you hit someone Stay with your board while strapping in or out, learn to ride the lift with it on, and stop if you hit someone. KAKU on what the instructors saw in 2025–26.
SnowWind is a JSBA-certified snowboard school (certified at Asarigawa Onsen).