Queenstown Nov 2

Nov 2 Queenstown Xtreem….

Awoke, oddly enough, to alarm sirens. Long, increasing pitch and volume, repeated. Odd. No tornado, no avalanche, no tsunami. So, we went back to sleep. I mean, tried.

No go. Sun streaming in, Denise had found a combo deal. The famous “Canyon Swing” plus the famous “Shotover jet boat” ride. Allright! Going to be a fun day.

We booked the deal from the campsite’s phone. We were locked in….even if we didn’t show they’d still charge the card.

Walking down the stairs to reach the downtown area, Denise noticed an oddly-named bar….



Actually, that’s Buffalo CLUB. Not chub.

Got to the canyon swing’s door front…



We signed a waiver and got weighed. Other victims also began to trickle in, ended up being 8 of us. Us, two Irish teachers, a Korean couple, and an Australian couple (of who only the woman was going to swing…husband there for support/photos).

Met Doug, who packed us into a van and drove us out over the Shotover canyon, where we walked down to the platform cantilevered over a steep precipice. (Denise: I don’t even remember walking that 400 meters, that was how nervous I was!) Stepping into harnesses, the three guys running the equipment set us up, helping us decide how we wanted to jump off a cliff, being comedians and having some fun, but under it all was a quiet and practiced professionalism, so I was pretty confident with them, even as they made a show of “dropping” the carabiner/etc.

Despite the sign…



I was to be first. (Denise: Of course!!!) Asking the guys, they recommended the “pin drop” as being the most exhilarating as you accelerate quickly, and you’re looking at the ground, as well as having to physically hop sideways off the platform to start. O.K.

I hopped. Acceleration!

I was used to some freefall, mountain bikes and snowboards give you a transient rush as you go weightless off jumps, but this…. Wow! The platform is higher than the swing’s central pivot, so you fall about 100 feet in freefall, accelerating all the way, before the ropes start to pull , still gaining speed, in a huge arc under the cable. You hit about 85mph. Like the guys said, a bungie slows you as you fall, you lose speed on the way down. The swing actually accelerates you, turning your drop into tangential motion, you really feel the falling faster and faster sensation.

That’s a lot of freefall. I let out an involuntary, “Holy F…!!” on the way down. Wow. It really feels like falling off a cliff (As I imagine). No jerk, no yank, the swing just arcs you through the canyon, still 30-60 feet from the water. You arc a few times, seeing the canyon walls, the river, happy to be alive, the adrenalin rush leaving a calm happiness, then the cable comes down and they winch you back up, ready for another. Second jumps are cheap at $40.00.… You bet I wanted to go again.

Denise was up next.

Yes, I was up next.

So of course Bob had to go first…he survived and was all smiles by the time he got back up to the platform. I was happy to see him alive but my nerves were high and my palms were cold and clammy. I am sure if I was back at Swedish Medical center and had an EKG monitor on I would hear the crowd around me say “SVT get ready to Cardiovert!”.

My turn, uggggghhhhh! Looking back at it now - I can’t remember the first jump very well my adrenaline was pumpin (Yes, I went twice too! ) What do I remember from that first jump? The guys clipping me in, all the while joking & teasing, showing me bad things like frayed safety rope and more, then pushing me out over the canyon telling me that I am only hanging by this little piece of rope. They took my picture then got me into position. I decided to go all the way, might as well do the 5/5 shit your pants scary ,“Gimp goes to Hollywood” . So my position ? Hang upsidedown with my legs crossed over the rope above me and my hands over my head so when released I will plummet head first to my deeeeeaaaath. Yep. Watch the short video Bob took to see how long they suspend me looking down over the canyon. The buggers. Also listen for the guys - they actually ask me “Tell me when you are ready” but before I can answer…..aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!





(The video gives a good view of just how far and far down you go, watch the ropes and how long it takes to reappear from behind the wall…)

As I was let go I felt a whoosh and the canyon was rushing towards me. At this point I wasn’t scared anymore for I felt very safe in the harness & the guys abilities. The canyon was beautiful as I swung a few times and sat up to look around. WOW. The water rushing right below was the green-blue of glacial runoff. At the top all smiles!!! The swing was awesome and I would totally do it again….oh yeah I did.

The Australian woman went next, she decided on the “cutaway”. Suspended in a chair, the guys slowly and agonizingly cut the rope above you. Not too scary, because you can’t actually see down. She got to keep the rope as a memento.



The Irish girls went next, then the Korean couple. Of us all, only us and the teachers wanted to go again.

My second jump. Talking to the guys as I watched the others jump, they realized I’d done some mountaineering, and suggested going backwards as the next toughest.

Asking if I wanted to clip myself in, I stupidly agreed. The carabiners are doubled as a safety, their gates held by a quarter-turn spring latch I’d never seen before. Add to that my shaky hands and the chatter from the guys, and it took a bit to get ready.

They said it was a bit like abseiling(rappelling) if you’d left the rope too short. Funny. I set at the top, back to the gap. One hand on the rope, one in the air, I sprung backwards. Same thing. The “too much freefall!!” response kicked in and I again got that rush as I pivoted out over the river. Also in the back of my head was a little gremlin asking if I was sure I’d clipped in properly. Wow.. The rush was exhilarating!! Winching me back, I wanted immediately to go again… addictive personality, I know.


Denise’s second jump: The chair. Ok so it may be just us, but this next video is very funny. For my second jump I decided to do the chair. All that means is they seat belt you into a garden chair, you sit in it with your back to the canyon, and just lean back. Hasn’t everyone done that in a chair? As a kid my mom used to say “Denise you’re going to fall over someday and crack your head open.” Well that is exactly what this jump is based on. They guys got me situated in the chair and leaned me back for a photo then said “alright then just lean on back” I took several deep breaths, you know like they teach in Lamaze class, I leaned back and…………

Ok so I don’t want to spoil the whole thing cus the video is pretty good. Turn up the volume a bit and hear me curse them through my laughter. They teased me to the very end, even after I jumped….Those boys were F**KERS!













The two Irish girls went again, Sheena again balking at the gate and needing coaxing, even more than the last time, while Marie simply went for it.

We walked back to the video center, where we bought Denise’s jumps on cd. Back to the van, Doug drove back to town, stopping to let us out at the Shotover jet dock.

Three jetboats were running, they had twin supercharged engines running elevated jet drives, putting about 500 horsepower into pushing the tiny boats through the gray-green water. The pilot said they only needed about 5-7 inches of water to run, despite weighing 3 tons…empty.

We waited for our turn…




It looked like the boats were pivoting near the front, we decided a back seat would be entertaining. It was.

Yep, they don’t need much water…



The pilot checking to see if his passenger is ok while heading toward a wall at 40mph…



More pics…




And an undercover (video not allowed) video of the end of the run…



Impressive driving, and capabilities. Longer run than I thought it would be too, probably 15-20 minutes up and down the river. Left happy.

Caught the free shuttle back to town, ate at a little table in the sunshine at a small outdoor café. The waiter? From B.C., Canada. We chatted a bit about work visas, traveling, and when he learned what we did, said there’s been an accident about a month ago, a boat hit a sandbar and flipped, seriously hurting the passengers. Glad we didn’t decide to eat there first.

The place had a nice German beer imported, I finished a full stein with dinner, as we’d purposefully eaten only a light breakfast.

We ambled back towards our campsite, I stopped in at Vertigo Bikes to see if they were running a helibike tour in the am. Nope. I was the only one interested that day, they needed 3 to make the chopper feasible. I left my name, telling them I’d return tomorrow to check if anyone else had signed up. Sounded good, a flight up to one of the surrounding mountaintops, then a 4-6 hour downhill run on one of their downhill specific bicycles, protective gear included. $350.

It was, however, the end of the weekend, so I didn’t have much faith in there being two more like-minded riders on a Monday morning.

Back to the campsite, took further advantage of the wireless service and posted up a few more updates for you to enjoy as the stars and crescent moon appeared over the elevated horizon of the mountainside behind the town.

Goodnight.