Park And Pipe Developments At Cardrona

27 March 2006

Park And Pipe Developments At Cardrona

Freestyle skiers and snowboarders will enjoy a number of improvements at Cardrona Alpine Resorts pipe and terrain parks in 2006. Already home to New Zealand’s longest terrain park and one of the biggest pipe parks, Cardrona has invested substantially in improving its freestyle facilities to meet the demand of the growing professional international market who come to New Zealand to train.

A new addition to the ever-evolving Heavy Metal Terrain Park is a three-metre wall ride for intermediate and advanced riders. Terrain park novices get their own park with entry-level features on MacDougalls, designed to introduce first timers and ski school classes to the world of freestyle.

Cardrona has invested in a new Kassborhrer Winch Cat for that will work on jump landings, getting them steeper and bigger as well as spend some time in Cardrona’s four half pipes. All will benefit from the Cardrona Cutter, a revolutionary new halfpipe shaper developed by Park and Pipe Manager, John Melville. Its massive 5.7m elliptical blade will provide a smoother transition with riders noticing a higher quality finish on the walls as well as an improvement in the size and shape of the pipes.

Melville, who has just returned from building the terrain and pipe park for the FIS Junior World Snowboarding Championships in South Korea, said he will be putting a lot of focus into the development of Cardrona’s half pipes this year.

“It’s vital our pipes meeting the demands of the high-level international riders and skiers who come to Wanaka each winter,” he said. “New Zealand has built up a good reputation as an excellent training ground during the Northern Hemisphere summer and we need to continue to meet those expectations.”

Cardrona Alpine Resort’s 2006 season is scheduled to run from 23 June to 8 October. For further information, visit www.cardrona.com.

ENDS

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