HELI SKI SUMMER NEW ZEALAND

About the New Zealand Heliski trip Summer 2007

Warren Smith

This summer, after an amazing 6 weeks of camps in Saas-Fee, Warren Smith headed to Wanaka, New Zealand, for the first ever Warren Smith Ski Academy - Heliski Camps.  Warren took a group of 8 skiers down to tackle the terrain and peaks of the Harris Mountains.

They lucked out as on the day they arrived it dumped and most of the peaks got a good 50cm's of fresh.  After an intro day of technical coaching, Warren teamed up with the guides at Harris Mountain Heliski and the heli lifts kicked off on the second day of the camps.  In just 5 heli ski days Warren and his clients clocked up over 45 heli lifts each. 

What was crazy for the crew was that each lift was only costing them approximately £33.  By the 3rd day of heli skiing they all reckoned they had covered the cost of their flights down to NZ from the UK as it was so cheap in comparison to heli skiing in Europe.  The skiers from the UK changed their skiing way beyond their expectations.

Brett Stone

Three of the group had never heli skied and never skied off piste before! Having heard about the heli skiing set up with the Warren Smith Ski Academy in the winter, they decided to give it a go. On the first day there were a few tumbles, but within no time at all the whole group were easily skiing the powder with their new technical knowlege and fat skis.

Alyn Morgan

Alyn Morgan who normally skis with Warren in Verbier said, “I couldn't believe the trip went the way it did. I totally got it this time with my off piste skiing. With the volume of drops and practice in the freeride terrain, for the first time I really felt I got the knack of cranking up the bigger freeride GS turns.  I've already booked my flight for next September”.

Warren himself said, “In 19 year of coaching and freeskiing, this is by far the best trip ski camp I have run.  It's not just the fact that the terrain was awesome and the price was so low, but it was also the general vibe living in Wanaka. Such a cool town, somewhere I could imagine living”.

The Academy were based at the Edgewater hotel which is situated on the lakeside of the stunning Lake Wanaka. The viewsfrom the hotel are breathtaking. Edgewater is a 4* hotel with an award winning restaurant, Sargoods. Accompanied by the hotels great selection of local wines, it was hard for the group to leave thge conforts of the hotel; especially after an enjoyably exhausting days heliskiing.

The view from the Edgewater Terrace

However, the nightlife in Wanaka is worth leaving the cosiness of the hotel for. With plenty of bars and coffee shops, there is something for everyone. There are endless good restaurants in town and the level of cuisine is exceptional. Wanaka is still not overrun with tourists and has managed not to allow itself to become as commercial as Queenstown.

Cardrona Ski Village

The ski fields of Tremblecon, Cardrona and Snowpark are very accessible from Wanaka. If you feel like a day off skiing, there are endless amounts of adventure activities, walks and sightseeing to do in the area. The Academy took part in a variety of activities outside skiing, from wine tasting to horse trekking the Lord of the Rings film location.

On another day they took small 4 seater aeroplanes and travelled almost 1 hour in the air over the mountains and valleys towards the ocean where they landed at the famous Milford Sound. Here they got on a boat for a 2 hour trip of the most incredible scenery. Dolphins, seals and penguins were spotted on the trip.

The stunning Milford Sound

The plane journey on the way back was just as awe inspiring as it had been on the way there. Flying close to mountains such as one of New Zealands highest Mt Aspiring. It was great to get another perspective on Lake Wanaka, Edgewater and the Rippon vineyard too!

All in all it was a throuougly enjoyable trip, with the entire group already booking for next year! Warren already runs a Heli Ski operation in Verbier in the winter through his Academy and with the Wanaka venue becoming a new regular part of the Academy program.

Warren on mountain Video Analysis with Mike Bancroft & Bret Stone

The Wanaka Crew

it looks like the team at the Academy and the clients who can afford it will be freeskiing with massive grins for the next few years. As for carbon footprints, the Academy boys might have to start tip toeing!

 

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Below is a guide to the skier level system we go by at the Warren Smith Ski Academy. Please use this to find your level, and you will be taken on an applicable route.

Group + Skier Levels

Skiers ability levels range from basic intermediate skiers wishing to get off the typical intermediate plateau to skiers taking their instructors exams and performance training for competition (alpine racing or freeride). To easily identify the levels of skiers and groups running on an Academy week you can use the following system:

Group 1 Basic Intermediate

This group consists of skiers who are trying to make basic parallel turns but use a small snowplough wedge in between the turns to help turn initiation. Skiers in this group can generally get down blue runs but struggle on Reds. This is this group have usually never skied moguls, steeps or freeride terrain.

Group 2 Intermediate

This group consists of skiers who can make basic parallel turns but lack the strength and confidence in the turn to make it consistent. These skiers can usually get down blue and red runs. On red runs however there technique suffers and the body weight moves over the back of the skis making the steering more difficult. These skiers have usually attempted moguls, steeps and a bit of off-piste skiing but with no success.

Group 3 Advanced Intermediate

This group consists of skiers who can make parallel turns with confidence on blues and reds. When they attempt black runs or steeper gradients they lose their technique and the body weight drops back. Skiers in this group can generally get down moguls, steeps and freeride terrain but with a weak or/and confidence lacking technique.

Group 4 Advanced

This group consists of skiers who can ski with confidence on Blues, Reds and Black runs. They can carve effectively from turn to turn on nicely groomed snow but are not so consistent when the snow is icy or un-groomed. Skiers in this group can get down steeps, moguls and freeride terrain with confidence and a semi consistent technique but loose control approximately 30% of the time. Skiers at this level want to develop performance towards skiing 40 degrees slopes with good technique and direct (zip) line moguls.

Group 5 Expert / Instructor

This group consists of skiers who can ski all terrains comfortably but want to be able to ski higher speeds through greater dynamics, ski steeper fall line moguls with a greater range of absorption and extension, make higher speed GS freeride turns in powder and variable snow conditions and generally master a solid technique. Skiers in this group would cover the basics of race training, steep couloirs, instructor exam technical requirements, freeride performance and higher speeds.

Group 6 Athlete / Performer

This group consists of skiers wishing to compete or who already compete in freeskiing competitions, Alpine Racing competition or freestyle skiing disciplines such as moguls, half pipe, big air, slope style or rails. In this group you will also find skiers who are training for there BASI 1 technical exam and Euro Speed Test.

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