Getting ready for NZ ski instructor exams.
Here's the week six update from our NZ ski instructor course...
PRE-EXAM WEEK
There's not much to be said about the days we went up to the ski-field this week, as it was all much of the same: Jason cracking the whip over our skiing technique and focusing a lot of time on our wedge demo turns. The critical analysis of our skiing, along with a lot of repetition, got to be quite intense.
Quizzes on the progression and other technical things we needed to know took place in the van rides up and sometimes at dinner. Little did we know this would all be paramount to our great success in the exams.
All in all, the week was work, work and more work. However, Jason watched closely to squeeze the maximum progress and relented when we started to drop from our peak. Over the course of the week as ours demos were consolidating we began to do more free-skiing, or at least skiing over more terrain with Jason guiding us. Over the course of each day Jason would randomly pop out a strong wedge turn and a good run of our personal skiing test with only one or two practice runs and by the last couple of days there were no practice runs. This seemed to work well, with most of us starting to pull off turns that Jason approved would pass the exam.
Friday night after a hard days work on the slopes, we all felt like we needed to relax and let off the tension that had been building up over the week. We all decided it would be cheaper to buy bottles of spirits than spend our money drinking at the bar. In the end we settled on two bottles of Mount Gay rum and a bottle of Johnny Red. The evening started off with a drinking game called Circle of Death a close relation to the game played in Australia called Kings Cup. As the bottles content diminished certain members of the NONSTOP crew experienced intimate encounters, one with a girl one with a wall. After leaving a (for privacy reasons mike did not want us to use his name but we felt that the omitting his name would compromise the integrity of this blog) Mike-shaped hole In the wall, he decided it was time do dispel the contents of his stomach not just in the mens bathroom but also in the womens, both times managing to avoid sinks and toilets in favour of the floor. With the night drawing to a early end for Mike, he barely managed to navigate the car park to get back to his room, he emerged the next morning covered in various cuts and bruises.
Saturday started in much the same way Friday ended, on our way to Methvens big air competition the New Zealand roads proved too much for Mike's weak stomach to handle, forcing us to pull over and watch him deposit his breakfast over the 100% pure New Zealand country side. Arriving at competition we spent some time observing the skiers and snowboards performing their tricks before being out done by three motor-cross riders pulling some insane moves. The event got better towards the end of the night where the after-party took over the town with a popular New Zealand band the Black Seeds playing inside a massive tent filled with smoke. With Mike not feeling well for obvious reasons he lasted all but five minutes at the competition, with Jason our brave leader following soon after taking himself, Zoe and Mike back to Springfield. Three of the crew decided to stick it out and find their own way home but this would prove more of a challenge than expected given the sheer size of the after-party, after unsuccessfully looking for the other two members of the crew Andrew decided to call it a night and left to their own devices hoping they would survive the cold night. As it turned out they emerged from the dance floor at the end of the Black Seeds to find they had been abandoned, they finally managed to find some familiar faces who were staying at a house in Methven, with the occupants of the house already asleep they sheepishly decided to find a place to sleep. With minimal floor space available Jamie decided to sleep in a curled up in a door way and James in a spare chair hugging a cushion for warmth. Both Jamie and James hitched a ride the following morning in a camper-van back to Springer's, arriving with a cheerful laugh and stories to tell after what they considered a “Damn Good Night”.
On Sunday most of the crew felt rough after the previous night, and what better way to cure a hangover then Pig Racing and Chicken Jousting. After spray painting each pig a number, Babe came in first followed closely by wilbur and porky bringing home third place. With the pig racing over we moved on to chicken jousting, but was it cancelled. Apparently the RSPCA is a bit sensitive when it comes to riding around on pigs and using chicken-tipped lances to jousting tournoment. In the end that drew sunday to a close and everyone was left to relax and recover for the exam.
