Sometime last January, we got a muffled call from Jared saying a serious storm cycle was lining up in Japan. Service was spotty — as it should be deep in Myoko — but the message came through: the Arc’teryx crew was assembled, Perly was behind the lens, and Tadashi Fuse had clocked out of his day job to step right back into his natural role, leading the charge at home.
Months later, deep in the layout of Paper Doors (an article born from this exact trip), Robin Van Gyn put words to what we already knew during one of the many phone calls that brought Issue EIGHT to life: Tadashi didn’t just show up. He stepped in as the kind of tour guide you can’t hire, only earn, opening doors most people don’t even know exist. Decades in this terrain unlock abandoned-building pillow hits in Tengendai, quiet moments in temples atop Tengendai Ropeway, once-in-a-lifetime lines on Myoko’s volcano crater, and bridge wallrides that will probably never be touched by a snowboard again.
All of which is to say, it was genuinely sick to see Tadashi put the Arc’teryx crew on — and have them meet the moment. An experience you can't stumble into... only invited.
Featuring: Elena Hight, Jared Elston, Joe Lax, Robin Van Gyn, Sean Miskiman, Severin Van Der Meer, Spencer O’Brien, Tadashi Fuse, and Victor Daviet
Directed by: Alex Craig
Additional Filming: Alex Craig Julien Petry Shin Campos
Photographery by: Julien Petry
