Labour Weekend 2009
The closing weekend for 2009 was one to remember. We had record crowds for late October with more than 130 people present on Saturday and 80 or so on Sunday. We were the only ski area open in the South Island so had plenty of visitors.
The weather was brilliantly fine for Saturday, Sunday and most of Monday. The 20+ cm of fresh snow that fell on the Friday made for somewhat interesting skiing on Saturday. The catch phrase was “you’ve got to commit” and those that did have plenty of fun and a few unplanned rolls in the snow. Indeed fun was had by everyone, including those soaking in the sun on Palmer Lodge deck sipping on a beer and getting in their quota of R & R and vitamin D.
The weekend ended with the inaugural, impromptu “Thigh Burner” event. Twenty people undertook 30 minutes of non-stop skiing/boarding on the Main Tow. It was a chance to measure end -of-season fitness and get rid of a bit of competitive energy before the season finished. It was all in the name of measuring the loadings for the tow (or so we were told..)! Competition started off semi-fiercely but quickly became light-hearted after a full day of skiing and heavy snow! Top scorers made nine laps. For three participants it brought back memories of competing in the Mountain Smoker, a highly popular 2-hour endurance race on the Main Tow held through the 1980’s and 1990’s.
24 October 2009 - Claire Newell