Issue link: https://bluemagazine.uberflip.com/i/25040
I had seen the ski dome briefly in lara Lee's 1992 documentary Synthetic Pleasures and had heard , . �.' ,''\' about it from various pro snowboarders in the States, but I was dying to experience indoor snowboarding myself. It seemed like the perfect metaphor for the absurd mass of contradictions that modern life increasingly offers: 'controlled adventure: 'artificial nature: 'fat-free potato chips: the list goes on. I wanted to see where we're going with our unmitigated drive to push technology and reject nature. What kind of people could merge seemingly opposing concepts like "indoor" and "ski area?" I figured I was going to SSAWS to glimpse America's future. THE DREAMS HAVE COME TRUE RIGHT HERE AT '" \'" SPRING. SUMMER. AUTUMN. WINTER. SNOW. AS YOU CAN TELL IN ITS NAME. THIS MEGA-DOME ENABLES YOU TO ENJOY SKIING AND SNOWBOARDING ALWAYS ON THE IDEAL CONDITION. REGARDLESS THE SEASON. The approach was impressive and dramatic. Rather than climbing up through snowy forests to reach the hill, we cruised down the freeway over suburban industrial wasteland, which my friend Taskashi mentioned is actually landfill, built out from Tokyo harbor. The building emerged from the smog like a giant Transformer: an escalator that became an insect. As we walked through sliding automatic doors into what looked exactly like an airport, we passed many yellow-sweatered women who smiled and bowed. A comforting woman's voice with a welcoming Japanese accent emanated from strategically placed speakers. a steady stream of audio. I looked around for William Gibson's sci-fi characters. Many of the meticulously disheveled snowboarders wearing wraparound sunglasses fit the bill. They were probably robots. ADDITION TO ITS SPACIOUSNESS, THE MOST ADVANCED FACILITIES AS LL AS OUR UNIQUE SYSTEM AND SERVICE WELCOME YOU. ENJOY THE W STYLE OF WINTER SPORTS AT SSA "IS. Although we had to wait in four snake-like lines (one to enter the park. one to rent clothes, one to rent equipment, and one to enter the mountain room) the process proved incredibly fast due to the two computer chips I wore: one to tally fees incurred by rentals and food and another to measure the time spent on the "mountain." Then, wearing rented long underwear and holding a tiny freestyle snowboard, I waited in yet another line for the chairlift. It was cold in the ski resort. It smelled like air conditioning and the acoustics rivaled those of Madison Square Garden during a Knicks game. The audio loop went on in my head: C WE RECREATE MOTHER NATURE IN THE HEART OF THE CITY? ARE THERE ANY SKI SLOPES WHERE WE CAN SKI ALL YEAR AROUND? We snowboarded for half an hour. The more difficult of the two runs was so flat that the only option for a thrill was to wait in line for the small, lopsided kicker at the bottom. This is where all the kids wearing sunglasses hung out with perfected affectation. I wanted to ask them what the hell was going on, but they were posing too hard to talk to me. DDITION TO ITS SPACIOUSNESS. THE MOST ADVANCED FACILITIES AS WELL AS OUR UNIQUE TEM AND SERVICE ELCO E YOU. ENJOY THE EW STYLE OF WINTER SPORTS AT SSAWS. We spent the rest of the morning eating very well-replicated resort hamburgers (artificial adventure makes you hungry). Back out in the parking lot, I was relieved that it was over. I wish I could say that I was surprised by how fun it was, that those kids inside knew something we didn't and they were better prepared for the future. Instead, I couldn't get away from the idea that I spent over $100 to go snowboarding at the gym. After I returned to New York, I heard that an indoor ski resort is planned for Southern California. I guess I had glimpsed the future of America. -Susanna Howe