Powder, Beaches, Dead Fish, Fire in the Desert, More Tussock, More Pow, and Tsunamis

For the last several weeks, I've been traipsing the globe in search of a new golf caddy, and sadly, the search goes on. In lieu of more verbosity, here's my lame attempt at a photo essay of my last month and a half.

August 13th - Temple Basin - Powder Day #4, 2005 Southern Hemisphere Winter
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(last three photos by James McPhail)

August 23rd - Ten days, four planes, and two hemispheres later, I was almost ready to touch down at HOME!!! (Lana`i City, Hawai`i)
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A few short hours later, and I was in the water at double secret dive spot location X with da boys, poking us some small kine grinds jus' li'dat.
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And then it was time to see a man about a horse.

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After that, I headed east, and ended up in this weird place full of dust devils, naked dirty hippies, and Joan Baez-type music. August 29th, 2005 - Black Rock City, NV - Don't even try to figure out what this is an image of. Suffice it to say, if you've ever been there, you'll know. If you haven't, don't bother trying - it just looks cool.
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This, despite being a terrible shot, was one of my favorite art installations. In the true nature of the event, it mimicked that horrible video arcade game "Dance, Dance, Revolution" where you have to actually "dance" along with a video on touch-pads underfoot. Being BRC, this game had a twist - participants had to wear asbestos suits, and were immersed in a propane flamethrower when they fucked up the dance steps. Sadly, they wouldn't let me try it 'cause I was wearing sandals.
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Our camp's bar, somewhat well stocked.
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Nate heading out into the sunset
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Yarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!
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And, seriously, a fucking NINJA, who silently climbed on top of this insane-o sculpture made of revolving 4-ton granite slabs. I can't make this stuff up folks.
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Some fire bullshit we walked past but kept going by. Yawn - B-o-r-i-n-g.

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Then we went to a screening of Sin City. Nice, eh?
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I'd had just about enough of the United States, so I figured it was time to come back "home" to New Zealand and schralp the shit out of some of the huge, epic dumps I'd been hearing about out on the playa.

Accompanied by a writer friend of mine, we set out to experience all that was the epic New Zealand winter of 2005.

First we stopped in Greymouth on the west coast for a surf:
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Check out all this FUCKING SNOW!
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Treble Cone's new Saddle Quad, which actually has some killer terrain, but not this week.
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Susan, rinsing the tussock out 666-style.
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There was snowlerblading......
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And monoskiing....
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And then we said the hell with it, we're going to the North Island, since there's a huge storm coming that is "GOING TO DROP A METER OF SNOW"
- Erik Seowitz, professional meteorologist
(Well, time for a career change buddy, 'cause you were RIGHT.
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15 foot fat to flat = blood. Core.
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Ruapehu is pretty amazing. It's quite active, havinnglast gone off in 1996, sending some lahars to within meters of the ski lifts. They had a freeskiing comp the day we were there, with some pretty impressive terrain too.

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And there were some pretty good waves, too.

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September 21st - Whakapapa, Ruapehu Volcano, North Island, Aotearoa. On the left: me. On the right, me (in 40 years).
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And then, the day before yesterday, it was all over. Susan flew back to the US of A, and I stepped out of my ski boots for the last (?) time this "winter" and stepped back into my scientist shoes and went up the coasst for a few days to meet some government folks about a pesky 20m tsunami problem they may or may not have in their idyllic town.


Scenic Kaikoura, pre-wave. Let's hope there's no post-wave pics anytime soon.
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Nice, Grant, you jet-setting freak. Start filling sandbags. We have a bit of a flooding problem in the US right now....

Rock On Sissy.

:yourock: :yourock: :yourock: :yourock: :yourock:

Is that Susan dropping that leetle cliff? Titties nice pictures man. No Skate-ball pics?

:nonono2:

cool shit

Lane Meyer for President.
That is all.

Very nice lifebloggage, Mr. Meyer. Thanks for the tussock props....Next time hopefully we can ski tussock together, in the sunset, eating Kea. :)

goddamn yer a globetrottin muthafukkr mr burning meyer
nice stokage
I didn't get the tsunami threat thingy, how do they know it'd be 20m?

Treble Cone's new Saddle Quad, which actually has some killer terrain, but not this week.
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Susan, rinsing the tussock out 666-style.
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I've heard great things about Treble Cone, but my only experience at TC, early September 2001, looked a lot like this. At least Wanaka's a fun little place to kill some time. Nice global TR.

Hell yeah! Nice TR Grant! Rough life jetsetting, surfing, hanging out with ripper chicks...in the short time that I have known you and the things that I have seen, I beginning to realize that you are the man and do cool shit!

That shot of Treble Cone reminded me of driving up to Crystal mid-season last year.

Check yosef fo you wreck yosef GS- Lane's hot blooded (check it and see). But he's also stone cold. Watched him dash some poor girl's friggin best move like a christmas snowglobe.

Do you do more than dance?

Nice TR, That kind of snow is what keeps me from making the trek to ski in NZ.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by lemon boy

Check yosef fo you wreck yosef GS- Lane's hot blooded (check it and see). But he's also stone cold. Watched him dash some poor girl's friggin best move like a christmas snowglobe.

Do you do more than dance?

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What can I say, I'm deathly afraid of women. Patricularly those weaaring sweatbands. I would have fucking slaughtered it if I hadn't been at the bar buying your sorry ass a beer. Apparently, timing is everything, and I uh, I got....nothing. (That night anyway).

yeah, but the steelers still lost this past weekend.

LM- I still bust up laughing every time I think about it. My old lady thought that it was very cute and she's pulling for you underdogman!

Great stuff Lane! :cool:

The TR is like a magical journey through sight and sound. :yourock: