THE RIPPER IS BACK!

Hello Girls and Guys, Well lets hope you all had a great summer and got lots of time out doors there playing with your favourite toys, be they mountain bikes, kayaks, surf boards, climbing gear...well the list is endless isn't it!

Unfortunately perhaps, Summer isn't endless, but now we get to look forward to playing in the snow and even though I've been ski touring in the French Alps recently I for one am still amped for more!

I'm told there has been some glorious weather recently I also here that if you happened to be in the central North Island last month you might have seen beautiful Mt Ruapehu gleaming white from a fresh dump snow!

All this brings me to the point of reminding you that the Ruapehu Ripper Ski Mountaineering Challenge will again be held this winter at Turoa. Since you all have either participated or expressed interest over the last two events I would like to up date you on this season's coming developments.

Firstly, there will be a brand new course for the Ripper this season, bringing new terrain and dynamics with the biggest change being a long and linear course to better suit all gear set ups. Over all the course should be roughly similar to last season with approximately 1400m of vertical climb over a distance of 10 – 12km.

Secondly and even more excitingly, is the introduction for this season of a teams category so you can work together and enjoy the race with mutual support from your team mate. Based on what I have seen in France this season racing as part of a team is lot of fun and excitement.Of course, the solo category will remain for those who enjoy the individual challenge!

THE PIERRA MENTA: A SPECTACULAR RACE

The four days of that Classic European ski mountaineering event, the 24th Pierra Menta, gave me a eye opening and inspirational look at the possibilities of the competitive side of the sport.(SPECTATORS SKINNING UP ON SATURDAY)


Over four days from the 12th of March, based in the tiny and rustic villages of Areches-Beaufort, France, I watched likely the best athletes the world has to offer in our dynamic sport.

As a relative new comer to competitive ski mountaineering I was over whelmed by the sheer size and details of this event, however the stamina and speed of the racers was nothing short of brilliant, and from a recreational point of view left me gasping at the possibilities for New Zealand in the future.

Heavy snow fall and high avalanche danger over the proceeding days left the course much altered, but most days still saw upto 2000m of vertical gain.





Across all these days the Italians seemed to dominate both the female and male teams, with the French chasing hard and commanding much of the front of the field right to the end.

Ultimately the Italian teams took firsts in both male and female, with French and Swiss teams making up the following second or third placings.

1 7 ITA _SH BRUNOD Denis / REICHEGGER Manfred 10:18:23
1 8 ITA _SH EYDALLIN Matteo / TRENTO Denis 10:18:23
3 1 FRA _SH PERRIER Florent / BUFFET Yannick 10:24:10 00:05:47

1 200 ITA _SF MARTINELLI Francesca / PEDRANZINI Roberta 12:39:10
2 201 SUI _SF MAGNENAT Gabrielle / PONT COMBE Severine 13:19:36 00:40:26
3 206 FRA _SF LATHURAZ Véronique / ROUX Laetitia 13:30:27 00:51:17

There where many other nationalitys racing along with the traditional favourites, including national and regional teams from Poland, Spain, Chech Republic, Andorra, the Uk and USA. The last two making it extra fun for me to cheer on.

Being a part of this event as one of a vast number of spectators was fantastic. The atmosphere was tremendous and the racers genuinely seemed to be spurred on by the presence of supporters clinging on to ridge tops on the boot packs and gathering in huge numbers at transitions to cheer on all the teams.

After Grant Guise and Jane Harpers efforts in attending this totally demanding race in previous years, I don't believe I would be alone in thinking it would be wonderful for Kiwis to be seen more often in this outstanding event taking place as it does in a truly beautiful alpine setting.

Awesome Day for the 2008 Deuter Ruapehu Ripper

UPDATE: THANKS TO THE ONGOING SUPPORT OF OUR SPONSORS AND KEEN EMAILS FROM PREVIOUS COMPETITORS THE RIPPER WILL BE BACK FOR 2009! LOOK FORWARD TO SEEING YOU ALL THERE. HAVE A GREAT SUMMER!

Race day 2008

After encountering intense snowfall, strong winds and high avalanche conditions during set up, Saturday the 20th of September tuned out perfectly for the second Ruapehu Ripper Ski Mountaineering challenge.


A small field of competitors crossed the start line and took on the longest ever ski mountaineering event to be held in NZ. Everyone who took part enjoyed it and the snow and sun made it a great day out.
The fastest competitors finished in just under two hours with the finial competitor finishing just after 3 hours. All in all a pretty good display by all.

The prize giving was a cause of glee for the competitors with everyone taking away great prizes from Deuter, Leki and Voile, from Marvelox NZ, Buffs from Buff Headwear and Guide Books from the New Zealand Alpine Club.

The race was very rewarding to all in many ways and I would like to thank our sponsors for supporting this event.
These Include:

Marvelox NZ, Turoa Ski Area, New Zealand Alpine Club, Buff Headwear, Protector Safety, Wilderness magazine, Climber Magazine.

We will look at running the event again next season. The future of the Ripper however will rest on YOU taking part. To do justice to our sponsors and make the event not only viable but to increase the fun, we would hope to see a turn out of over 30 participants next season.

Thanks to our brave and hardly souls who took part this year, enjoy your prizes and please spread the word.

SOME EMAILS FROM THE RIPPER 2008

"Craig,

Just a note to all the Ruapehu Ripper team to say a big thank you for
a great weekend. Had a good time, and will definitely be back again
next year. Thanks particularly to the guys who went out and set the
course in what I believe was nasty weather, to the marshals who sat
around waiting for us all, and of course the sponsors.

I've included some more relevant photos that i took along the way (as
if i really had time or energy to stop!) if you want to augment any
others that were taken.

Once again, thanks to all involved. Fantastic fun; can't wait for next year...

Cheers, Scott"




"Hi Craig,

Thank you for organizing the great Deuter Ruapehu Ripper. I thoroughly enjoyed the race despite my slippery skins. It would be great to learn about the Italian light skis, bindings & shoes. I hope you will organize the race again last year. I have told all of my mountaineering friends and they are all keen.

Again, thanks for the great event. Keep the good work going."
martin.knoche

"Hi Craig

Cheers again for organising the race on Saturday. I was pretty rooted afterwards! Had to have a little rest and all…

And the prizes were amazing! That alone should be enough to get people along! Thanks to your sponsors if you are speaking to them.

I was supposed to do a 2hr bike ride this morning but my legs were so dead I cut it short. Obviously touring is very good for the fitness."
murray.arthur