Spring

02 September 2018 -

August typically brings the deepest snow base of the season and the longer days draw the sun bunnies out on the slopes. School holidays are over but there are still lots of ski holiday makers about, the north hemisphere ski teams arrive for their annual pre-season training, the FIS, inter-field races and Winter Classic kick off and the, now annual, Audi Quattro Winter Games.

The Winter Games attract world class competitors from across the globe, many in New Zealand for their pre-season training, including World Champions and Olympic medalists. The opening ceremony is being held in Wanaka this year following what should be a spectacular Big Air qualifying event – featuring our own Olympic medallist, Zoi Sadowski Synnott.

There’ll be plenty of opportunity to catch the high adrenalin action of the alpine ski racing (Coronet Peak), freestyle (Cardrona) and freeski (Remarkables) of the world’s best competing on our snowy doorstep, as well as the more graceful but no less challenging cross country events at the Snow Farm.

If you have never witnessed a live action free-ski event, such as often seen on social media sites, this is a great opportunity to do so. Its genuinely exciting, with a slight air of uneasiness - like that felt in a good, edge-of-your-seat thriller and brought about by the very apparent risk to life and limb. New Zealand has some of the world’s best free-skiers, possibly because in less accepting societies these people are in asylums. Get along to the Remarkables for a look.

Oh, and August also brings an excuse for us to post pictures of our gorgeous lambies.