The Need For Speed

This morning we went on a quick bus tour around Christchurch. Our driver Robin is a fountain of knowledge when it comes to anything to do with New Zealand. We toured specifically through the main streets of Christchurch and witnessed the devastation of the 2011 earthquake. The city is continuing to rebuild over 5 years on and have a long way to go before the structural remnants of the buildings damaged by the earthquake have disappeared. Unfortunately, the loss of life on that day will forever be a reminder of how destructive natural disasters can be. We stopped in at The Container Mall in the heart of the city and did a little bit of shopping. The boys (and girls!) ate their way through the mall sampling large portions from most of the vendors.

Then…the need for speed (because we didn’t get enough on the mountain!) arose. Blow karts and drift karts! Billy ‘the kid’ Dennis looked like she was born on a drift kart as she slid around the course. Her terrified scream trailed off into excited laughter at each and every turn. Rory and Sanjeevan looked like grandpas driving Miss Daisy to begin with but a faulty battery was the cause of Rory’s initial slow style. We are still unsure of the cause of Sanjeevan’s sluggish pace around the track. Eleanor cemented the “Feet up” award she won last night by drifting so hard the kart landed on her ankle. She ‘hobbled’ away with a mighty bruise to be proud of. 

Izzy must have had too much thrill seeking on her snow board during our tour. It seemed that the blow karts weren’t up to her adrenalin pumping standards and she was seen falling asleep as she was hooning around the course. Romy managed to topple her kart completely over and was left dangling in the middle of the track (that will teach her for cutting corners!).

A few sad students tonight as we come to the end of our tour. We still have one more thing planned in the morning before we head to the airport. We don’t want this trip to end…

Quote of the day

As he was overtaking Miss McGregor on the blow karts…

Joey- See ya Grandma!

Summer Run in Spring

Our last day on the mountain today. We made the most of the spring conditions enjoying skiing in the sunshine! A day well spent attaining our own personal goals whatever that may have been; getting down Highway 72 without falling; attempting the summit; landing a 360 off a jump. Tayler was stoked to finally nail her toe side turns. Today was the day to achieve what we each had set out to achieve on the mountain.

The afternoon meant it was time for the annual Summer Run. We got changed into our shorts and t-shirts and braved the possibility of snow burn for the traditional last run of the tour. Snowballs were thrown, stacks were had and screams were heard as we headed down Broadway one final time. Well, it was meant to be one final time but Mr Melchiori got excited and decided to do the Summer Run 2 more times!

Trivia night tonight with the fancy dress theme of “S”. Superheros, school teachers, sharks, Sids and Sanjeevans were seen walking into town! New Zealand themed general knowledge was tested culminating in the music round where teams had to perform one New Zealand song. Choreography was creative and all teams were highly entertaining. Congratulations go to Eleanor, Tayler, Sid, Laura, Adi and Maison for winning the competition. 

Students were also given awards tonight some included:

Heel side down Broadway – Belinda

Deadeye Dooley - Izzy

Codral “Soldier On” – Tom L

Kamikaze – Peter

Best Boy Skier - Luke

Best Girl Skier - Laura

Best Boy Boarder - Finn

Best Girl Boarder – Cara

Quote of the day

When asked about his costume for trivia…

Maison – I’m Saucy Sid!

Pow Pow!

Some weary bodies this morning and everyone was slow to get going as Romy hid Mario's snowboard and we had to wait for him to find it! Once we got to the mountain we forgot about our aches and enjoyed the beauty that Mt Hutt has to offer. First runs were epic as we made first tracks through the fresh snow that had fallen overnight. Jasmine was sighted carving up the bowl. That's one girl with zero fear! A beautiful morning with really fun conditions.

Lessons saw everyone improve yet again. Tash, Eleanor and Nicola pushed through pain to nail turns down Highway 72. Joey has never been more scared in his life as he launched himself off a black run and ripped the back of his pants in the process. The beginner skiers braved Broadway and made it to the bottom unscathed. Sid 'the witch doctor' Roche used his magical powers to catch a snowball and throw it straight back at Ruby and we’re now true believers in his voodoo magic! Chris has been taking some hard knocks but keeps impressing us as he gets back up, tightens his bindings and charges down the mountain again and again.

Conditions weren't as good this afternoon so many opted for a hot chocolate in the cafeteria to rest their tired bodies. 

Tonight is the annual Methven Table Tennis Open. Players are currently warming up for Round 1. Favourites going into the Championship are Wouter and Sid. Good luck to all contestants - play hard or go home!

Last day on the mountain tomorrow everyone keep your fingers crossed for snow overnight!

Quote of the day

Cara: I found my triceps!

Spring in Methven

A fantastic day up the mountain today. It is quite magical going from an overcast day down in Methven and then slowly driving up through cloud until you get to a point in which the fluffy cloud is below you and the sun is shining above you. Mt Hutt put on a beautiful show for us today. With our first experience of snow falling, although very brief it was enough for us to see the beauty in fresh snow falling from the sky.

Finn has been pushing through sickness to ensure he makes the most out of his trip. You wouldn’t realise he is sick because he is like an energizer-bunny on a continuous circuit going up the lifts, carving down the slopes and lining up for the lift again. His time in the terrain park today proved eventful with a lot of time spent soaring off jumps!

Tom Wright and Jarrod were tearing up the mountain so hard today that they broke the bindings on their snowboards. Luckily it was a quick fix and they were back out ready to rip it up again in the afternoon.

Isha had a trip down the mountain in the medic sled after falling awkwardly on her thumb during her lesson. A trip to the Medical Centre and then an x-ray in town tonight has given her the all clear to hit the mountain tomorrow. Thumbs-up to that!

It was Laura’s birthday today; we helped her celebrate all day, but especially tonight over dinner and cake! She was treated like a Dancing Queen with a tiara and all! Rory even made himself into a party hat man much to Laura’s enjoyment. Happy Birthday Laura! We hope you had a truly memorable day!

Quote of the day

Isha: I think I’ve broken my thumb!

Down Day?

Our first stop of the day was the highly anticipated Jet Boat experience. We sped through the spectacular Waimakariri River canyon that runs through the foothills of the Southern Alps. Some sharp turns close to rock faces, 360 degree turns and some very cold water meant for a fun way to see some of the region’s most beautiful scenery.

Lunch at Sheffield Pies saw students tasting a selection of gourmet pies and tasty sweet treats. Mason couldn’t get enough and powered back to the shop numerous times – he is an eating machine! We have had several comments from people whilst we have been in New Zealand about how fantastic our students are. The ladies at Sheffield Pies commended our students on their manners and overall demeanour. News travels fast around Methven and surrounding towns and we often meet people who say “I’ve heard your students are really good kids”. The 2016 tour group are upholding this standard our previous tours have set and are continuing to do our school community proud!

Next stop of the day was Adrenalin Forest – an aerial obstacle course in the trees. The course pushed the student’s concentration and fitness levels as well as tested some fears as we soared at least 20m in the air. It was great to hear the excited screams of our students echoing through the forest and seeing them rocketing past on flying foxes and climbing through spider webs. Peter ‘Pan’ Tsoi managed to fly through the trees as if he were in Neverland and seemed to be in his element! Wouter managed to smash through 4 levels of the course – our very own TGS Tarzan. Amy and Eleanor managed to push through the pain of battered and bruised shins to continue completing the course – some tough cookies with some enviable willpower.

A night out to the movies tonight where we had the cinema to ourselves and watched The Secret Life of Pets. Bernard had us all well fed with his never ending bag full of biscuits.

For what was meant to be a ‘down day’ we sure did jam-pack a lot in. We are making the most of every day here in New Zealand. Bring on tomorrow…

Quote of the day

Finding a pine cone on the ground…

Tash – Look! I found Akon!

Battered, Bruised and ‘Fully Sic’

Low visibility on the mountain today meant that the ‘Snow Bunnies’ had to be careful down the runs. The fog was thick and it was very hard to see in front of you, particularly later in the afternoon. Luckily for us everyone skied to the conditions and there were no major injuries.

Snowball fights were the theme of the day and it is fair to say the teachers were popular targets. We were highly outnumbered during surprise ambush attacks in which the students played dirty and attacked when the opposition were down (Joey!). Everyone spent time perfecting their snowball making technique with some managing to turn perfectly beautiful soft snow into rock hard projectiles.

Adi managed to smash his ‘S-turns’ early in the morning and was keen to take his new found skills to some harder slopes. Su and Ruby made an awesome snowman– carrot for a nose and all! Jasmine accidentally attempted to ski across exposed rock using her back as the skis – not a smart move but she miraculously came out unscathed.

Our lessons were valuable yet again. Due to the conditions the skiers spent time perfecting their technique. Sid managed to ski backwards (on purpose and with great control) whilst Jaime chased him on a snowboard with a snowball in hand! The boarders were attempting ‘fully sic’ tricks like ollies, tail grabs and 180s today. Some were more successful than others with Cara winning sharpest turn in her snowboarding group.

A few sore heads and bodies after today. However, we all scrubbed-up before heading out to dinner at a restaurant in town!

Well-fed and ready for bed. I wonder what tomorrow will have in store for us….

Quote of the day

Whilst looking for a piece of paper in his pocket he pulls out a cookie…

Mario – No, that’s not it, that’s my cookie stash!

Deep Heat

The view from the mountain this morning.
Photo Credit: Mt Hutt

Another day up the mountain today. We were carving it up from 8am. Some braved first runs on the green and blue trails. Some played it safe and did some ‘warming up’ on the ‘Magic Carpet’. Either way, our ‘Snow Bunnies’ were trying to put into practice everything we learnt yesterday. Our lessons proved to be very beneficial with everyone improving so much with the 2 hours of coaching from the Mt Hutt Snow School. Tash made excellent progress in her lesson today and is now carving up the ‘Magic Carpet’ and ready to tackle ‘Highway 72’ tomorrow! The smile plastered on her face at the end of the lesson was priceless.

Lunch brought an opportunity for storytelling of what had transpired during the morning. ‘One-upping’ was the theme of the conversation as we shared our BBQ lunch – everyone had a story they wanted to share. A snowboard instructor being ‘taken-out’ by a rogue skier (not from TGS!). Mr Wood collecting Joey, getting into a tangle of limbs and boards and landing on top of him. Amy proudly showing everyone her snow burn. Wouter exclaiming he had the biggest stack of the tour (a bit too early to call?)!

Some very weary bodies tonight! The smell of deep heat wafting through our accommodation brings a sting to your nostrils and water to your eyes. A quiet night in watching a ‘rom-com’ tonight – the girls are ‘cooing’ and ‘awwing’ over the romance that blooms as the date between the leading couple concludes. The boys are cooing over the car he drove her to the date in!  

We are in safe hands with our bus driver Robin!

Quote of the day

When we were organising a pie order for lunch later in the tour.

Eleanor: When is this for?

Mr Melchiori: It’s a surprise!

Maison: Oh! Will you leave it on our pillow?!