An Emotional Farewell
Posted on September 14, 2011 at 2:30 am

Wow……I think that might have been the quickest ten weeks of my life! After what seems like just a short holiday on the other side of the World all of the 2011 trainees have completed ten weeks of intense training and have left New Zealand with a highly respected instructor qualification. Perhaps more importantly they’ve experienced one of the best times of their lives, made friends for life and are all far better skiers and snowboarders. Some of the guys even managed to throw in a spot of Sky diving and bungy jumping for good measure!

Harry probably telling Caitlin (Sluggy) the story about his 15th Birthday...

All the trainees have added great value to the course this year and I’m happy to call them all ‘mates’. But as with all good things, Peak Leaders NZ 2011 has to come to an end and the guys have to move on to the next chapter of their lives. But not before a good old fashioned knees up and awards ceremony…..in which all of the trainees made the most of the free Champagne and Jagerbombs. So I guess you’re wondering who won which award this year? Well……have a look below:

Coming to a resort near you....!

Most improved Skier – Chris ‘Swan Dawg’ Starr

Most promising Ski instructor – Dave Wright

Best Freestyle Skier – Paddy Bartram

Most improved Snowboarder – Erik Prenzlin

Most promising Snowboard instructor – Alice Brookes

Best Freestyle Snowboarder – Jordy ‘level 3 carver’ Wilkes

Ultimate Lad Award – Neil Patterson

Most ridiculous goggle tan – Nora Balbi

Friendliest trainee – Caitlin ‘the Slug’ Donaghy

Most loved-up trainee – Ellen Michie

Storyteller Award – Harry Lonergan

Hard to believe some of the trainees went for a paddle in this.....burrrrrrrrrrr!

The last few weeks
Posted on September 5, 2011 at 9:29 am

Life for our traineee instructors down in Queenstown hasn’t showed any signs of slowing down. Over the last couple of weeks they’ve all been training really hard in an effort to get their skiing and snowboarding to level 2 standard. A select few trainees have also spent a few days finishing-off their ILM assessments up on the slopes of Coronet and the Remarkables. If that wasn’t enough; a couple of the more dedicated trainees have even found the time to gain a one-day First Aid qualification through St Johns……a qualification that is definitely worth its weight in gold.

Paddy and Sluggy.....level 2 trainees, ILM guru's and First Aid experts.

At the end of last week the skiers in the group began their eight-day NZSIA level 2 examination and so far all of the guys and girls are fairly confident and happy with the feedack that they have been getting. The snow and weather have been perfect over the last few days so hopefully conditions stay tip-top for the rest of the week, this will definitely make a big difference to the pass rate. On the other hand the snowboarders began their shorter SBINZ level 2 examination today and similarly to the skiers they all seem to be fairly confident and happy.

In other news; Chris ‘Swan-Dog’ Starr re-sat his level 1 examination last week and got great scores for all aspects of his skiing and instructing. We’re all really happy for him and have seen massive improvements in his skiing over the past few weeks. Oh and if you didn’t already know; the World Cup has finally arrived in NZ and Queenstown is lucky to have a few teams training in the local area. Although England arrive down here on 14 September the trainees have already spotted a number of the Ireland team piling on the calories at Queenstown’s legendary Fergburger.

NZSIA examination in full swing

Life doesn’t get any better than this!
Posted on August 22, 2011 at 10:44 am

It isn’t very often that I receive emails from worried parents concerned about the amount of snow falling in a ski resort……but then again this has been a week full of exceptions. New Zealand’s most recent snowstorm affected the whole country and became a focus for the Worlds media who couldn’t quite believe their eyes.  We couldn’t believe our luck!!

At the beginning of the week Queenstown was still sat on the edge of a low-pressure weather system; meaning the trainees had to ski in windy and cloudy weather conditions, with great snow. As the bad weather subsided throughout the week the trainees were treated to some of the best snow conditions Kiwi’s have seen in years, ideal for level 2 training.  To put this in perspective; for the past week it has been possible to ski right to the valley floor from the top of Coronet Peak, this wasn’t possible at any point last winter.

Harry........not enjoying himself at all.

There have been some serious improvements made to the trainees skiing and snowboarding over the past couple of weeks, one particular trainee known to the other trainees as Swany hated skiing in powder two weeks ago and now he can’t get enough of the stuff. This leads me seamlessly to the end of the week which culminated in one of the highlights of the course, a day that none of the trainees will ever forget……….Heli Skiing!

Harry, Dave, Paddy and Nora hitching a ride.

Although Heli Skiing isn’t included in the cost of the 10 week course Peak Leaders have a great relationship with Harris Mountain Heli Skiing, the third largest operator in the World, who offer our trainees the opportunity to take advantage of some of the cheapest and best Heli Skiing on the planet, at a highly discounted rate. This year the trainees were driven just west of Wanaka to the foot of the North Harris Mountains, 10km past Treble Cone, our kit was unloaded and in groups of five we were shuttled up the mountain with a guide. Needless to say the whole day was incredible; light fluffy knee-deep powder, fun terrain, scenic helicopter rides and absolute solitude…….lunch wasn’t half bad either!! Life doesn’t get much better than that epic day of shredding, unless you finish it off with a cold beer in the Cadrona hotel.

Paddy shredding the gnar!

Dave, making it look easy.

Not a bad spot for lunch.

Jordi........absolute punter!

Absolute bliss

Sneaky beer at the legendary Cardrona Hotel on the way home..

Another crazy week..
Posted on August 15, 2011 at 9:29 am

It’s been pretty hectic out here for all of the trainees over the past few days. Firstly, 90% of the trainees passed their NZSIA/SBINZ level 1 exams, a great achievement which was unmatched by any other trainee instructor groups in Queenstown. So as you can imagine there were big celebrations on Saturday night!

The Remarkables from Lake Wakatipu

A few of the trainees managed to ski on the weekend but most were a little too hung-over or needed a rest from skiing and snowboarding for a couple of days. Training commenced again on Monday with a day of freestyle coaching for both skiers and snowboarders up in the Remarkables Snowboard Park. Unfortunately the wind was a little strong for hitting the bigger jumps but Paddy Bartram spent the day showing-off is skills on the rails and the snowboarders got a master class in spinning from their trainer Karl Dunham who is the head SBINZ freestyle examiner.

After a day of freestyle skiing and snowboarding the trainees resumed regular training at Coronet Peak. The training has now changed from a focus on the level 1 curriculum to the level 2 curriculum; which means more high-end skiing/riding and fewer slow speed demonstrations on the beginner slope. At the end of the week the trainees were given a two-hour lecture on avalanche awareness, snow conditions and back country safety. This lectured was then followed on Sunday with a day up at the Remarkables with two experienced mountain guides who showed the trainees; how to use an avalanche transceiver and probe; how to dig and study a snow pit; and how to effectively study snow conditions. All of the trainees felt that they’d learnt something very valuable over the course of the day.

The Snowboarders digging for a hidden transceiver

Although the week was very busy with training and studying half of the trainees managed a daytrip to neighbouring Cardrona on Saturday to watch the Burton New Zealand Open Halfpipe finals. The action was incredible with numerous household names competing to win the first major event on the 2012 TTR calendar.  Americans Danny Davis, Kelly Clarke and Louie Vito were definite crowd favourites but all of the trainees were in awe of a 13 year-old Japanese rider that spent the day going bigger and throwing more technical tricks than 99% of the finalists.

Danny Davis at the NZ Open

22ft of icy halfpipe wall....and a snowboarder staring at it from 10ft up!

Since Sunday afternoon the snow hasn’t stopped falling with one of the biggest storms in decades enveloping the whole of New Zealand. There’s even snow falling as far North as Auckland, where snow hasn’t fallen for over 70 years. At present there’s almost a foot of snow down in Queenstown, which is unheard of, and up to 50cm of fresh snow up on the mountains. With such great snow conditions forecasted for the week the vast majority of trainees have decided to sign-up for a day of Heli-Skiing this coming Saturday. Expect some awesome photos in the next blog!!!!!!!!!!

Who's your mate?

Busy Down Under
Posted on August 4, 2011 at 10:50 am

Things have really been heating-up down in Queenstown since the last blog. Great weather and snow conditions have given the trainees excellent training conditions for the past couple of weeks and the last few days have seen all of the trainees put their newly honed skills to the test during their level 1 examination.

Not only are all of the trainees well rehearsed in the teaching progressions for beginner skiers and snowboarders they’re also far more confident skiers and snowboarders. Perhaps the biggest surprise is the way in which they’ve all ‘come out of their shells’; those individuals that I thought didn’t necessarily have the self-confidence and enthusiasm to be instructors have undoubtedly proven me wrong.

Paddy's got a mean snow plough!

Other than skiing, snowboarding and exams the trainees have been getting to grips with their ILM assessments, checking-out the serene bliss of Glenorchy and trying their luck at Pub Golf. The inaugural Peak Leaders NZ Open Championship was a close-run game with ten competitors battling for the top spot. This years championship was a far closer game than in previous years with the talented Nezza P taking top honours.  Well done Nezza!

The Snowboarders finding a few minutes to chill

Next weeks timetable is looking fairly hectic with the skiers and snowboarders hitting the Remarkables snowboard park on Monday for some freestyle coaching, followed by three days normal training and finally an introduction to Avalanche Safety and Off-Piste skiing on the weekend.

Teachers Pet in the blue jacket..

New Zealand – Week 1
Posted on July 19, 2011 at 1:18 pm

All these mountains were green two weeks ago!

A week into the course and the trainees have witnessed the surrounding landscape transfomed into a winter wonderland thanks to one of the most severe winter storms that Queenstown has experienced in years. Brown hills and valleys have been replaced by snowy peaks and icy rivers; and perhaps more importantly Coronet Peak and the Remarkables now resemble proper ski resorts with off-piste skiing and snowboard parks.

Since their arrival a week ago the trainees have begun their intense training schedule with NZSIA trainers Todd and Karl. Todd and Karl are the best in the business with more than 40 seasons of instructing experience; both are highly experienced trainers who have worked for Peak Leaders for a number of years and have had consistently great pass rates at level 1 and 2. So to get everybody settled and get their confidence back the past week has been focused on making the most of the great snow conditions and helping the trainees to get their skiing/snowboarding legs back. Nevertheless both the skiers and snowboarders have already made big changes to their technique and with everybody match-fit and confident next weeks training will be focused on introducing everybody to the level 1 syllabus.

In other news; the trainees quickly got to grips with Queenstown’s vibrant nightlife and the infamous FergBurger. If you’ve never been to Queenstown then try and imagine 140 licensed premises crammed into 2oo square meters, it’s pretty easy to let your hair down at the end of a busy week of training. Over the next few weeks expect to see pictures of the trainees hanging off the end of a 134m bungee and heli-skiing in some of Southern New Zealand’s most remote mountains……..and needless to say excelling in their training.

Tom

There's even snow in the valley!