Page 20 - QARANC Vol 15 No 1 2017

18 QARANC THE GAZETTE
achieved a magnificent 2nd with Cpl Carr, Cpl Downing and Cpl Jolly once again highly competitive and I even managed a 4th place to my amazement – again another set of fantastic results. Next on the event calendar is Seniors freestyle which is conducted in the Park. This is basically a skate park made out of snow sections ranging from massive jumps, rainbows, boxes, kickers and pipes – allsorts! This event is not for the faint of heart, as you have to have near perfect board control to land your jumps and get over the rainbow in one piece. Our competing ninjas were Lt Hain and SSgt Martinez who both were able to complete clear runs through the course and managed to gain some quite impressive air during it too. Their efforts didn’t go unrewarded either as they achieved 5th and 6th respectively. As novices, they get to compete in a slope style competition, which is still not easy and tests their skills and board control as they are asked to perform what they can across the main piste. This competition involves heading down the slope while completing various tricks and skills and when you consider that, only a week ago, people were struggling to just stand on a board let alone pull off some tricks it is a testament to how far we have all come. In this event placings were Cpl Downing 1st, Cpl Smith 2nd, myself 4th, Cpl Carr 7th and Cpl Jolly 8th again another fantastic set of results if not a little unexpected considering the tricks and skills that were on show by our competitors.
Now the final event of the whole competition is a relative newcomer to the regular events, being held only for the second time this year, which is an orienteering event around the mountain. This is where your entire team or those that are still able to board travel around the mountain to specific points to get photos at lift beginnings or ends which are then sent to verify that you have completed the route; there are also a set of bonus photos with a Christmas theme to help gain some extra points. In this event, DMG North had an absolute flyer getting around the whole mountain 35 minutes before
the next team made it to the finish line; an incredible effort by all involved. We all had our creative hats on for the bonus photos coming up, with some amazing ideas and having the foresight to bring up some props to add to the photos and really make them unique. However, an extremely dubious umpiring decision ruled our efforts as invalid as they simply didn’t believe we did what did in the time achieved. No time to argue though as we had a bus to pack. We all knew the truth though and sometimes officials do get it wrong.
To round up an absolutely fantastic week, team DMG North went out for supper to celebrate a hard but highly rewarding and successful two-week winter sports exercise. There wasn’t only that to celebrate but also the final two weeks in the Army for Lt Col Penny having served 37 years. It’s not a bad way to say goodbye and as a leaving gift the team first recited a poem before dishing out some gifts. A special thank- you has to go to our Team Captain, SSgt Martinez, without whom there probably wouldn’t have been any DMG North representation at this year’s competition and more would have been the pity. Her determination and perseverance along with some well-made contacts over the years has made going on Snowbuck a fantastic experience. Even if you have never even considered snowboarding, it is something that I would highly recommend. It is a great two weeks with your colleagues and you develop, push yourself and learn a new skill all in the space of two weeks. It is also something that you can use in the future whenever you want to just hit the slopes. Two weeks in the fresh mountain air with daily vigorous exercise that is highly additive should be on everyone’s bucket list; throw in some spectacular scenery and good friends and the great recipe for Snowbuck is complete. I expect the list of volunteers for Snowbuck 17 will easily fill a 9-seater van, if not two!
Sgt Benyon QARANC