Snowlines: Great logo – pity about the clothes

By COLIN MOORE

The speedy rebranding of the merged Whakapapa and Turoa skifields under the Mt Ruapehu banner has drawn praise for the new logo, but reviews are mixed for the new ski-school uniform.

The logo is the letter R cleverly stylised like a ski or board track in the snow. It looks smart embroidered on a wide range of ski clothing on sale at the mountain's retail stores.

Traditionally, ski-school uniforms are bright, distinctive beacons at any winter resort, the wearer easily identified from front or rear as a member of the elite teaching group.

The Mt Ruapehu uniform is smart and fashionable but the colour is a fairly nondescript gun-metal grey that is hard to pick out in a crowd. Apparently the original design from the human resources gurus included some burnt orange on the shoulders, but sufficient cloth wasn't available. Yet the uniform needs something to make it stand out from the crowd. A huge logo in a bright colour on the jacket back would look pretty cool.

Reaction to the new uniform is divided. Ask your partner on the T-bar or chairlift and the response is either that the uniform has a touch of class or it is boring.

One thing everyone seems in agreement on is satisfaction in noting that Ruapehu Alpine Lifts has sourced its entire staff wardrobe from New Zealand outdoor equipment icon Macpac.

The Christchurch company was the only manufacturer who could guarantee delivery in time for the season.

* Turangi, the northern gateway town to the Mt Ruapehu skifields, is getting some rebranding too.

As the first stage of a drive to create new economic wealth in the Turangi-Tongariro area, the Taupo District Council has rolled out two new brands and images for the southern end of Lake Taupo.

The first is "Turangi Adventure Central" which is intended to promote the adventure opportunities in the area.

The branding of Turangi as an adventure centre follows extensive marketing research last year with visitors to the town.

The second brand is "Southern Lake Taupo nothing comes close".

Duncan Robertson, creative director of River Communications, the brand designers, says the Southern Lake Taupo brand will enable the region to more effectively promote all its natural destinations under one umbrella.

"Southern Lake Taupo lets us include all the area's fantastic outdoor attractions; Tongariro World Heritage National Park of course, but also New Zealand's best one-day walk - the Tongariro crossing, its largest ski area, its best trout-fishing river, the wilderness of the Kaimanawa Ranges, Tokaanu's thermal pools, plus half of Lake Taupo itself," says Robertson.

"At the heart of Southern Lake Taupo is Turangi, and you don't come to Turangi for the opera or the ballet.

"You come here because you love the outdoors and the adventure that goes with it hiking, walking, fishing, skiing, mountain biking, rafting, kayaking, all those kinds of things.

"Adventure Central promotes Turangi as the gateway to those adventures for the whole of the Central North Island."

Hopefully, the rebranding and the tourism drive that goes with it will finally see the former Tongariro power project construction town achieve the promise that has been languishing for decades.

Turangi, with its proximity to the mountains and its famed trout fishing, should have developed as a classy resort town in a domino effect from ever-burgeoning Taupo. The Ministry of Works designers created a well-laid-out town with street plantings that in spring and autumn are delightfully colourful. The town centre has been given an imaginative makeover with covered walkways, mosaic paving and enticing seating. Sadly, Turangi has remained mostly a "welfare town", with high unemployment and burglary rates.

This year the town, which is the headquarters for the prosperous Ngati Tuwharetoa iwi and has been traditionally known as the country's trout-fishing capital, is an integral part of a major Mt Ruapehu region tourist promotion in New Zealand and Australia. And out-of-towners are again showing faith in the area by buying and building holiday homes.

They still come cheap. Last year a two-bedroom weatherboard bungalow and garage on a large section - a former Ministry of Works cottage - sold for $30,000. It now sports a cute yellow paint job and is the holiday base for its owners' adventures in the central North Island.

Turangi, protected by Mt Pihanga, has its own micro-climate that is considerably warmer than exposed Taupo at the other end of the lake. On days when bad weather closes the Mt Ruapehu skifields, the many alternative activities available in Turangi can often be enjoyed in fine and sunny weather.

Links:


Ruapehu NZ

Lake Taupo

Sporting Life - Turangi

* colinmoore@xtra.co.nz.