Urban Indoor Snowboard Slope Opens in Fukuoka
An all-season indoor snowboarding facility opened in Fukuoka City in western Japan November 12. Dubbed "Big Air Fukuoka," the facility is the first model of the "NKK Urban Snowboard Slope" and is already attracting hordes of after-work and weekend/ holiday snowboarding enthusiasts. The snowboarding facility was built at Bayside Place along Fukuoka's Hakata Pier. It was constructed by Sun Pier Hakata K.K., a third-sector developer, and is operated by Nihon Trade K.K. The steel-framed three-story structure, with a total floor space of 3,630m2 , contains a slope measuring 60m long by 30m wide. The slope incorporates quarter-pipe and one-make jump platforms and has a maximum gradient of 13 degrees. The slope was designed and built by NKK to offer beginners as well as advanced users the best snowboarding conditions throughout the year. Using NKK's unique snowmaking and snow melting systems fresh powder snow is generated every day, while unclean snow is thawed away naturally. The artificial snow is produced, using air and water alone, by spraying compressed air and a mist of water into the atmosphere, which is kept at a constant -5°C while making snow. The water droplets freeze rapidly by the time they hit the slope, becoming fine-particle, natural-like snow. NKK has accumulated extensive ice and snow engineering know-how through its long experience building Antarctic icebreaking ships. This experience has been successfully demonstrated in the company's latest snowboard slope project.
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