Areas of Interest
Latest News
Return to the Forbidden Planet
Showing 22nd-25th May at Ryder Hall
Al students should have already chosen an option for UP which starts Period 5 Thursday 22nd March.
Congratulations to Julian Weir on setting 6 new records at swimming sports today. Amazing!
Hillary Challenge
Hillary Challenge is the premier Secondary School Adventure Racing event held annually at OPC, Tongariro. Teams from throughout NZ qualify through regional weekend events to win one of the coveted twelve team placements for the five day final in May each year. This competition started in 2002 and the combined NPBH/GH teams have won seven years, with three 2nd places.
Both physical and mental endurance are a vital part of any winning team with training being a yearlong commitment. Skills you require to compete include: rock climbing, navigation, tramping, kayaking, mountain biking, cross country running, plus strength in teamwork and problem solving.
Training takes place throughout the year.
www.opc.org.nz/events.php
Hillary Challenge - 2011
The week of May 16 to 20 saw the 11th annual Hillary Challenge take place at the Sir Edmund Hillary Outdoor Pursuits Centre of NZ. The event sponsored by Genesis Energy puts the top adventure racing schools in the country together in a 5 day endurance event, arguably the toughest secondary school event in the country. The New Plymouth boys’ and Girls’ High team of Emily Roughan, Edward Lawley, Billy Rodenburg, Jordelle Simkin, Darren Alexander, Liam Paterson, Hayley Duckett, and Hannah Sturmer arrived keen to reclaim the title that we had won 6 of the last 9 years.
Monday and Tuesday were the initiative Challenges. Over the 2 days the 12 teams that had made the event (there was a qualifying event earlier in the year) rotated around 12 one hour problem solving challenges. These ranged from challenges on low and high ropes courses to communication activities to diffusing ‘bombs’ with codes discovered using avalanche transceivers. All tested teamwork and a wide variety of skills and teams were assessed on task completion as well as the problem solving process that they went through. On Monday night teams had to perform a 5 minute skit on the plight of an endangered species.
Two examples; In Turangi the teams were given 40 close up photos of objects and signs within the urban area. They then had to split up and run throughout the area to find and plot the location of as many of these photos as possible. Observation and navigation skills were vital. In a later activity students had to build a raft to paddle across the Tongariro river to retrieve cookers and tin cans to construct a water distillation kit. Points were scored on the amount of water distilled in the time.
At the end of the two days the scores were released and we were excited to be in the lead by a narrow margin over Opunake High School.
Days 3 and 4 were the rogaine – a trek through the Tongariro mountains picking up as many checkpoints as possible. The teams were dropped off in the snow at scoria flat on the Whakapapa ski field road. Maps were issued, routes planned, and the teams departed. They had about 8 hours of travel on the Wednesday and 10 on the Thursday to the finish with a night out camping in between. This section of the challenge saw the Taranaki teams dominate with NPGHS/NPBHS scoring the top score of 1500 points with Opunake about 1300, and the next school in the 900’s.
Finishing the rogaine the teams camped out again, knowing that the final day would have a challenging adventure race in store for them. And we were not disappointed. A 6 km paddle on lake Taupo was followed by a gruelling 12 km and 400m climb and descent over past the Tokaanu power station and down to lake Rotoaira. Here we set up a solid lead with an 84 minute run compared to most schools’ taking over 120 minutes. The team then transitioned to mountain bikes for a 26 km ride on gravel road and tracks to OPC. Final time was 255 minutes, 15 minutes ahead of Trident High School, 25 ahead of Opunake, and 45 ahead of most other schools. It was an awesome effort by the team.
At the prize giving the team were rewarded for their efforts. It was a convincing 300 point win over second place getters Opunake High School with third place getter Cambridge High School another 500 points back. Months of training and preparation had paid off.
Any students interested in adventure racing should contact Hr Hewlett (NPBHS) or Mr Paterson (NPGHS).