Wanaka based Harris Mountains Heli Ski guide Whitney Thurlow has been hard at work in his role as chief guide for Aspiring Guides, all summer long down here in New Zealand. He’s looking forward to a trip to Peru in May where he’ll be exploring the mountains and kite surfing.
Whitney climbing and guiding on Mount Aspiring, Wanaka
The team here at Harris Mountains Heli-Ski would like to send out a huge congratulations to Shelly Gotlieb, New Zealand’s top female snowboarder, who took 2nd place last week in the Slopestyle finals of the 2010 Burton NZ Open at Cardrona Alpine Resort. Go girl! Each winter season Shelly steps up and pushes herself and the sport, a real inspiration for all girls who love to ride.
To see all the action from the Burton NZ Open Slopestyle finals, check out this report from Robett Hollis and the team at NZsnowboard.com – and look out for the interview with Shelly G.
Last winter season SnowSports NZ awarded Shelly ‘New Zealand Snowboarder of the Year 08/09′ – an outstanding achievement which prompted us to reward Shelly with a day of heliboarding with us during the 2009 winter season. Here’s a few snaps from that day… which just so happened to be an epic day of blue skies, deep powder and high fives!
Photos: Sarah Mulholland
A perfect bluebird day and a sweet view to start the day from Aspiring Airstrip in the Matukituki valley, Wanaka.
The day’s crew led by guide Jef Desbecker… first drop, amped and ready for action! And yep, that’s Mount Aspiring in the background.
Shelly sends it!
Flying up for more, lap after lap of powder goodness… checking out our lines on the way.
Touching down in a snowy valley for lunch… yeah!
Shelly was buzzing all day, super stoked! Life doesn’t get better!
Fresh lines in the North Buchanans range all day long.
A little stop to take in that epic view of the Southern Alps!
Shelly and Jef… and some well earned beers at the end of the day.
Ladies, don’t miss out on our awesome event next week – the Harris Mountains Heli-Ski Girls Day Out taking place on Wednesday 25 August. Whether you are a hardcore chick who rips, or an intermediate / first time heli skier or snowboarder – this event is the perfect opportunity to come together for a heli day with like-minded ladies. You’ll be skiing / riding powder in specific small groups with girls of a similar ability, led by our team of all women guides – Anna, Karen and Katie. For more details, scroll down to our special Blog post. It’s only a few days away and places are limited so give our friendly team a call on 03 442 6722 if you would like to book.
Ideally you are a strong intermediate skier/boarder or better, with a sense of adventure. Harris Mountains Heliski (HMH) has exclusive access to extensive terrain in Queenstown, Wanaka and Mount Cook. Easy rolling terrain for powder first timers, wide open bowls, challenging chutes and steep valleys for the more experienced.
Harris Mountains Heli-Ski
The Station, Cnr Shotover & Camp Sts
P.O. Box 634, Queenstown
Phone: +64 3 442 6722
Fax: +64 3 441 2983
Email: hmh@heliski.co.nz
