Slopes and Surf
A father and son find adventure and companionship in Japan’s great outdoors.
Fourteen-year-old Mathis Weber feels like he was born on skis. At just 4, his father, Christophe, introduced him to the mountains and the wonders of the slopes. Those early family adventures began in the French Alps, where Christophe grew up and learned to ski from 4 years old. His passion for the sport has continued unabated.
As the family moved around with Christophe’s job, father and son expanded their outdoor exploits to include water. The younger Weber first picked up windsurfing in Singapore. He recalls standing on a windsurfer on windless days as a 6-year-old while his father furiously paddled his canoe that was attached to the board.
When Christophe’s hectic work schedule allows, the Club Members make the most of Japan’s rugged mountain ranges and innumerable beaches. In winter, the peaks, just a 90-minute bullet train ride away, beckon.
In the warmer months, the Webers head to the Kanto coast with their boards and sails.
One of their most recent winter excursions involved Japan’s highest mountain. “We hiked for about six hours, [and] we enjoyed every second of it when we were going down,” says Mathis of their descent of Mount Fuji on skis.
The iconic active volcano’s proximity to the capital made it a one-night trip. “We got to the bottom, took off our skis, walked five minutes to the car and drove home,” says Mathis.
Mathis was 11 when the family arrived in Japan, a good age to start backcountry skiing, according to his father. Since pushing through waist-deep powder snow (just like windsurfing) requires a degree of stamina and strength, Christophe mentored his son in off-piste techniques and the joys of backcountry trails.
The regular excursions in the great outdoors, including camping out on snowy slopes, have helped father and son forge a strong bond. “I feel like I’m really tight with my dad compared to other friends,” says Mathis. “We are really able to communicate with each other, understand each other.”
During the winter months, Mathis and his dad have a routine. They check the weather during the week, and, if the conditions look promising, they pack their gear and send it ahead to their destination. Mathis then heads straight to the bullet train station at the end of the school week and travels north into Japan’s snow country.
Over the years, the affable teenager has also learned about the potential dangers of skiing in the ungroomed wilds. “We wait for each other. We always take our time. If the time is not right, we just go back,” says Mathis. “We usually take two tablets of chocolate as our reward.”
Asked if he is proud of his son’s intrepid spirit, Christophe, 50, says that he’s most happy that Mathis is doing well in school. Come September, the youngster heads off on his next adventure: Andover boarding school in Massachusetts.
Words: Julian Littler
