New Zealand Zorbing
Going Zorbing
by Dan Perry
by Dan Perry
Imagine being placed inside a huge plastic ball and then rolling down a hill. It may sound like something out of a horror movie, but it isn't. horror People pay good money to do it every single day. Known as zorbing, this crazy sport(or form of entertainment) originated in New Zealand, the home of so many adventurouspursuits.
I first tried my hand at zorbing about five years ago, when I was on holiday in Queenstown. It was the latest craze in town and most of those taking part were the fitness geeks and daredevil students. However, when I returned this year I discovered that it has become a major attraction and just about everyone is game for it now. I watched grannies and grandpas being strapped in, as well as their young grandchildren. Zorbing is big business now.
Let's go through the basics. The big ball (known as a sphere) actually consists of two balls, one inside the other. It made of very flexible plastic, much like a stronger version of a beach ball. The outer ball usually measures three metres across, while the inner ball is around two metres. You slide into the inner ball through a small opening and you are held in place by straps. Then the ball is set off down a gentle slope. As you get more experienced, the steeper the slope.
When I first tried it, there was only one way to do it - alone in the sphere - but now there are many different ways to try it out. First, you can get rid of the straps, leaving you free to fly around inside the ball, tossed by the rolling motion. Then you can try it with a bucket or two of water poured into the ball, so that you slide around inside. And, finally, the really fun way is to try it is to get two or three friends to join you in the sphere...without straps, of course.
On my most recent visit, I took my two sons along. They are the "video game generation", who don't believe that anything in the real world can match the cyber universe. But New Zealand, which is described in its publicity campaigns as "100% pure", took their breaths away. In this wonderworld where Lord of the Rings was filmed, they discovered that there is certainly a life away from a Playstation keyboard. During the visit I could see the country anew through their eyes.
It is stunningly beautiful: dare I say, the most spectacular country in the world. The spellbinding landscape ranges from picture-postcard pastures, crystal-clear rivers, rainforests and shimmering lakes to thermal wonderlands, soaring peaks, glaciers and fjords. To be sure, it has everything an adventurous visitor could dream of. My younger son, Darryl, summed it up when we arrived in Queenstown: "Geez, dad, this is truly awesome!" And this was coming from an 11 year-old that can barely rouse himself to go to a football match or answer the door when his friends come visiting.
But its not only the landscape that makes New Zealand one of the fastest-growing tourism destinations on the globe. The people are friendly, forthright and pioneering. There are only four million of them, but they have invented many of the craziest adventure sports around. Guess where bungee jumping comes from? Yes, you've got it.
Queenstown has established itself as the adventure sport capital of the world. Besides the obligatory bungee jumping, from bridges, cliffs and buildings, there is a vast array of adrenaline-pumping attractions. You can walk on a glacier, ski on an active volcano, abseil into a canyon and paraglide off a high mountain. If that's not enough, try shooting white water rapids, riding a rocket plane or river surfing.
My sons insisted we do some river surfing. Wearing a helmet and a wetsuit, you cling onto a flotation board as you surf down the rapids. When they wanted to follow this with "black water rafting", I put my foot down. With this you ride an inflatable tube through an underground cave filled with black water.As you travel the underground river, you weave, jump and float your way through a labyrinth of dark tunnels. As I suffer from mild claustrophobia, this was definitely not for me!
I went snow skiing one day, but my sons opted to go jetboating, which they said was great fun. You board a jet-propelled boat and shoot down river gorges and canyons at an amazing speed. The ride ends with a heart-stopping 360-degree spin. "It's just like being in a video game," was Justin's verdict.
On the final day, I took them sky surfing, which is also known as "fly-by-wire". It’s the closest you can come to actually flying a plane. You are strapped into a single-seater aircraft that soars about at the end of an overhead cable system. Queenstown's million-dollar fly-by-wire installation is located in a canyon, making it even more spectacular. The plane has been clocked at 171kph (106mph), making it the world's fastest ride.
When our week’s holiday ended, I could see the difference in the boys. Tanned and fit after their outdoor adventures, they looked so much healthier than the video freaks they are at home. Internet connectivity was available at our hotel, the Rydges Lakeland Resort Queenstown, but I noticed they had spent less and less time at their keyboards as the holiday went on. For once, the real world had scored a knockout over anything the cyberworld could offer.
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