“I got engaged in Elaine Bay in the Marlborough Sounds; it’s very exciting next steps.”
“Going to Stewart Island, we taught there from 1977 to about 1981 and we saw all our ex-students at the 150year reunion at Halfmoon Bay School.”
“My son coming home (on 8 December) from Australia, we haven’t seen him for nearly a year, it’s a long time between hugs for a mum.”
“My three-month trip to Italy, spent it with family and friends, it was a beautiful holiday.”
$95k
Reporter
More than 100 blockages occurred in Nelson’s wastewater network in 2024 and have cost ratepayers close to $100,000 to clear.
Wet wipes, paper towels, fat, roots, and gravel were behind the 106 blockages which have been recorded as of 16 December.
Of these, 39 blockages can be traced back to private homes, while a further 24 caused by fat and gravel are partially associated with private homes.
Additionally, the Nelson Sewerage Regional Business Unit (NRSBU), which has its own wastewater network and serves Nelson’s Stoke and Tāhunanui as well as Tas-
man’s Richmond, Brightwater, Wakefield, and Māpua, experienced five pump station blockages during the year.
Two blockages occurred at each of the Songer Street and Wakatū pump stations, while the fifth was at the Nelson Airport pump station.
Each of those five blockages were due to flushed wet wipes or items of clothing.
“Luckily, we didn’t experience any significant wastewater overflows this year due to blockages,” says Alec Louverdis, Nelson City Council’s group manager infrastructure.
“However, blockages are a common cause of overflows if they coincide with wet weather, which can cause
damage to surrounding residential properties and our environment.”
He adds that clearing the blockages comes at a “significant cost” to ratepayers.
Clearing the council’s blockages cost $92,000 while another $3,200 was spent clearing the NRSBU’s pump station blockages.
“These costs can easily be avoided if residents remember the three Ps – only pee, poo, and toilet paper down the loo,” Alec says.
The council’s gravity wastewater network can be affected by the accumulation of fat, gravel, and ragged wet wipes and paper towels which can block the network.
The NRSBU’s pressurised pipelines are unaffected by
fatbergs, but instead the fat can cause wet wipes to clump together, increasing the chance of pump blockages. Animal entrails have also caused issues with pump blockages in the past.
Neighbouring Tasman District Council also has widespread challenges with blockages across its own wastewater network.
Elected members grew increasingly irritated with the blockages, one of which caused a wastewater overflow in Motueka in September, prompting councillors to consider a wet wipe “rebellion”.
MAX FRETHEY Local Democracy Reporter
A new jetski will be helping to keep Nelsonians safe on the water this summer.
The jetski is “more nimble” than the existing harbourmaster boat, Haumoana, and doesn’t have its limitations of needing two crew members, or being unable to get into shallow areas.
“We get lots of small jobs around the harbour, so it really frees one of us up,” says Nelson harbourmaster Stuart Whitehouse.
“When we’re on the water, we see a change of behaviour, so it’s always good to have that presence.”
The jetski is already being put to good use.
Two weeks ago, it was used to help a man out of the water after his boat capsized, and on one of its first patrols, Stuart came across two young boys on kayaks who were being carried away from Haulashore Island by the outgoing tide.
“The more time we spend on the water when incidents do happen… the better the outcome,” he says.
“We’ve seen that time and time again.”
The craft didn’t cost ratepayers and was bought for about $25,000 using funds received after the harbourmaster was involved in a past transfer of an offshore oil and gas rig.
Though the jetski has been named Jet1, Stuart says there’s no plan of getting a Jet2.
Like all users of small watercraft under 6 metres, other jetski users this summer should be wearing a lifejacket and have two waterproof forms of communication on
their person.
Before getting on the water, residents should also check the weather, tides, and shipping information which can all be found on the Nelson City Council website on the Harbours webpage under the Environment heading.
“It’s quite classic in Tasman Bay… from being a flat, calm environment in the morning, it goes to being pretty hazardous for small craft,” Stuart says.
“Watch out for that and plan your trip. Not just the start, but what time you’re planning on coming back.”
He was “always open” for people to call the harbourmaster office to discuss their trip and the sea conditions.
Stuart adds that there has been a trend over the last couple of years with people on paddleboards being caught out by the wind at
Tāhunanui Beach.
“If there’s anything with an S in the forecast, any southerly, then just be aware. Stay really close to shore, and don’t venture out too far.”
Stuarts urges boaties to look out for each other as well, especially after a recent incident where someone set off two smoke flares and no one came to help.
“If you notice something out of the ordinary, check in with each other while you’re out there,” he says.
“The best help you’ll have is your neighbour.”
If you needed aid and didn’t have any way of communicating, waving both arms above your head was an internationally recognised distress signal.
If you were in “grave
and imminent danger” call police on 111.
Deputy harbourmaster Peter Carmichael says that because a rescue operation can involve more than a dozen respondents, several boats, and sometimes even a helicopter, it’s essential for people to carry the two methods of communication to avoid false alarms.
“It’s an expensive exercise for us to respond to a potential emergency…
“We’re happy to go, we will always go. But people need to remember that if they were to be able to communicate appropriately by having those right tools on board, they would probably save a lot of heartache.”
The Project Jonah Marine Mammal Medic Course at NMIT and Tāhunanui Beach breached 45 new wetsuit-poised locals ready to assist in stranded whale and dolphin rescue earlier this month. Nelson-based general manager of the organisation Daren Grover says the course is annually spouted in the region and it was important following a recent lo-
cal mass stranding. For five days starting from 2 December, Project Jonah and other community groups and volunteers responded to a stranding of 37 long-finned pilot whales at Farewell Spit.
Fourteen of them were successfully returned to the ocean, the remainder had succumbed over several restrandings.
“It was a fabulous response from people, they really did step up, and some people came down for
two or even three days,” he says.
“Coming down in the middle of the week to help save lives when everybody’s got responsibilities, it’s quite incredible.
“Golden Bay in particular has quite a unique geography, it’s a very shallow bay in parts, so when whales come into that shallow area, they’re unaware of the tide dropping around them, and that can simply be one reason that they get caught out.”
SARA HOLLYMAN
Dave Roberts still remembers his first time on a motorcycle, or perhaps its the photograph proudly sitting in his home that serves as the reminder of the moment almost seven decades ago. It was the beginning of a life-long love that now sees him with a single garage stacked with eight of his own bikes, but he says it’s not a hard decision choosing which one to ride each week.
Dave will have a few of them on display at the Classic Bike show on Saturday 4 and Sunday 5
January. His bikes will join between 50 and 70 others, along with what rolls in to the car park during the show at Jubilee Park. “When you look at the what’s in the car park when the show’s on, well, supposedly all the flashy stuff and the club bikes are inside, but what’s outside is another display altogether.”
The Nelson Classic and Vintage Motorcycle Club was founded 42 years ago, and Dave reckons the show has been running almost as long. The Classic Bike show is on Saturday, 4 Jan, 9am – 6pm and Sunday, 5 Jan, 9am – 4pm.
A big thank you to all who have joined us in celebrating 55 years of fuelling Nelson. Sharing these special events with you over the past five weeks has been amazing! We wish you a happy, safe, and relaxing holiday season. Thank you for your continued support — here’s to many more years together!
It’s the small touches at Cable Bay Holiday Park that make it such a special place to visit this summer, according to owners Bert Wilkinson and Matt Sutton.
A resident campground hen, fresh flowers in the bathrooms, and painted Christmas rocks on the picnic tables greet guests when they arrive at the North Nelson destination.
Bert and Matt are now in the midst of their third summer running the holiday park and they are completely booked out until 10 January.
“The longer-stay guests are mostly Kiwis, we get a lot from Wellington and Christchurch,” Bert says.
“At the moment we’re getting a lot of foreign one-night drive-ins, it can be very unpredictable.”
Originally from Richmond, the couple used to stay at the campground regularly and sometimes helped to look after the place for the previous owners, Jo and Ni-
gel Hunter, when they needed a break.
“Now here we are, living the dream,” Bert says.
Matt has a background as a builder while Bert worked in the mental health field for 15 years.
“The wheel was turning when we took over, we just keep it going,”
Bert says.
“We’ve done little things like to improve it – new cookers in the kitchen, new lighting and stuff like that.”
The most recent addition to the holiday park is an AED machine in conjunction with Cable Bay Cafe, which was installed last month.
“It’s for anyone in the bay or camp to use,” Matt says.
“It’s a nice thing to be able to give back to the community and it can get very busy here, so it’s good to have one.”
They have also set up a fully furnished pop-up tent to hire this summer as an alternative to the three popular cabins on the property.
Bert and Matt have received nothing but glowing feedback from guests.
“It’s just simple little things, you know, keeping the grass mowed and putting a bunch of flowers in the bathroom,” Bert says.
Permanent resident Henrietta the hen is always there to greet the guests and join in with the 4.30pm cheese and crackers.
“She’s been part of the park for years,” Bert says.
“She’s Henrietta here, sometimes she goes over to the cafe – they call her Sage – and then David over the road calls her Lucky.”
They say the full reopening of Cable Bay Rd in June has made a huge difference to business.
The council fixed three major slips this year that were caused by the August 2022 weather event.
“We hadn’t been in business for that long, so we didn’t know
how it would affect us until it reopened,” Bert says.
“Then, that night, all of a sudden there were all these people coming in.”
Bert says camping is an affordable holiday option for families and they have not increased their fees in three years.
They are now looking at getting in a food truck, and also have a real fruit ice cream coming to the bay to cater for the busy summer months.
“The whole causeway can be full of cars on both sides, there is just no room on that beach in peak season.”
Bert says their point of difference is their size.
“People like not having a lot of people around.
“We have got got reasonable-sized sites so you’re not on top of one another. People wake up to the
sound of bird song, maybe the farm dog barking and the rooster – but no one seems to mind about that.”
And the fishing and walking tracks are pretty good too, they reckon.
“The walkway is fully open again, that’s a real drawcard for people, and the fishing is another drawcard. People have been coming in small boats and the marine reserve is just around the corner,” Bert says.
“The fishing is just great, literally five minutes out in your boat and you’re there,” Matt adds. Although there are some long days for the pair – sometimes they are working 18 hours a day in the summer – they say it’s all worth it.
“It’s the best thing we ever did, our children and grandchildren come out and enjoy it as well.”
KATE RUSSELL
When thinking of mistletoe, one usually imagines the kind you kiss someone under at Christmas time – but two rangers at the Brook Waimārama Sanctuary are bringing back a different species native to New Zealand.
Rangers Henry Hart and Chelsea Haley have been working hard to restore korukoru scarlet mistletoe, Peraxilla colensoi, back into the area. The process has been long – but worth it – according to the pair, from seed collection to germination to the emergence of leaves. Henry says scarlet mistletoe is a parasitic plant largely lost from our forests – mainly due to possums.
“Being a possum-free sanctuary with abundant beech forest, this species is an ideal reintroduction.”
Scarlet mistletoe flowers are red and orange and the buds of their “explosive” flowers require assistance from native birds, like tūī and bellbirds, and even native bees, to open. Unlocking the twist-top of the flower helps them get the nectar, while also allowing the flower to fertilise.
Scarlet mistletoe grows a small golden fruit, which is eaten by
birds. The seeds are then excreted, allowing the plant to spread to new locations – but for them to develop, they must land on a branch of a host tree.
Chelsea says it was on a trip to Lake Rotoiti when they saw a large scarlet mistletoe in flower and decided to explore the idea of reintroducing the species back into the sanctuary.
“That was the inspiration for the project,” she says.
After much planning and ringing around to find seed sources, they ended up collecting around 400 of them in Dovedale and Riwaka. The propagation process involved “smushing” the sticky seed onto a branch of a silver beech, which Henry and Chelsea spent many hours doing in April last year.
“This must be done as soon as possible after collection, meaning we often spent our day collecting and then sowing the seeds that evening. The success rate for propagating this species is low, as many things can go wrong.” They had some long days and were still working at 10pm some nights.
Henry says that, thankfully, most
of the plants are now showing signs of establishment and they hope one day it will be self-sustaining within the sanctuary. Their aim is to collect more seeds this year, especially Alepis flavida (yellow mistletoe) and Tupeia antarctica (white mistletoe). If anyone has the plants on their property email henry.hart@ brooksanctuary.org.nz
A Summer Movies al Fresco screening at the Tāhuna Beach Holiday Park in 2023. Photo: Nick Davidsen.
From Tākaka to Victory Square, seven iconic movies will be doing the rounds at our favourite parks this summer.
The popular Summer Movies al Fresco kicks off on 3 January and finishes on 1 March.
There will be 15 screenings across eight locations, including the Tāhuna Beach Holiday Park, Fairfield Park, Junction Green in Tākaka, Washbourn Gardens, Isel Park, Decks Reserve in Motueka, Victory Square, and Brightwater’s Village Green.
This season’s movies are The Castle, The Secret Garden, Stop Making Sense, The Three Musketeers, Back to the Future, Love Me Tender, and Monsters Inc. Summer Movies al Fresco began in 2002 and has become a tradition for many Nelsonians.
Organiser Antony Hodgson says select-
ing each season’s movies isn’t always an easy task.
“My daughter has always helped me pick the movies, but it’s mostly my take on all the past years. People make suggestions, too.”
Over the last few years, Anthony says there has been a shift to showing movies that “might bring in people that wouldn’t usually come to one”.
“We’ve made the effort to widen the appeal… to tempt people out of their houses and into the parks.”
Community connection is another important factor, and this year they will be bringing Monsters Inc. to Victory in conjunction with the Victory Community Centre’s ‘Lark in the Park’ event on 28 February.
The Brightwater screening of the same movie on 1 March at the Village Green will also serve as a community fundraiser.
It was a five-day food fight of sorts with Nelson College students and staff pitting their wits to stock up “one of the biggest” Nelson Community Food Bank donations. 98 boxes and bags bursting with food items and a few cleaning products were garnered by the college’s staff, its preparatory school, its 20 homerooms, and around 40 participating local
businesses between 2 and 6 December. The fruitful cause was principled by the college’s counselling department and its head
Heledd Davis says the collections became a “fierce” competition with a “phenomenal” response.
“Staff bought groceries to tip the scales in their house’s favour because there was a tally on each of the boxes,” she says.
“Each class had a student leader, and they would rally the troops
and distribute flyers and posters within their own homeroom.
“They also competed with one another to make the greatest contribution to the drive by going grocery shopping so they could beat the other houses, and, in the end, the boarding staff won.”
Heledd says the competition was also an opportunity to serve up food for thought in the way of the Mental Health Foundation’s Five Ways to Wellbeing which are
Connect, Be Active, Keep Learning, Give and Take Notice.
“Especially with our year nines and tens, when the seniors leave, it can be a little disjointing for them,” she says.
“It was a matter of what can we do to increase our wellness, mental health and our sense of community and sense of belonging.”
Nelson Community Food Bank manager Neville Hadfield says the “very impressive” haul was
“one of the biggest” ever donated. “We’re very appreciative of what the college has done, it was a massive amount of products,” he says.
Neville says while the college’s total would be hard to break down into how many food parcels it would equate to, he says around 12,500 people benefitted this year with around 3700 parcels made up from donations to the Food Bank.
Aidan, Madison and Ella Mytton
Charlie Reeves, 14, Tai Reeves, 11, Hayley Voice and Jaxon Reeves, 12
Max Devon and Olivia Hall
Sapphire and Lara Hamill
Trent Matika, Shannon Hewitt and Poto Heke
Chey Habib, Sarah Board, Claire Reichert and Sarah Milligan
Gordon Preece and Megan Gunn
Ian Bolton, Chey Habib, Patrick Connor and Andrew Board
Max Frethey, Sara Hollyman, Michelle Fryer and Kylie Owens
Neil Smith and Kate Russell
Anton Bentley has adapted Mozart’s ‘The Magic Flute’into a slapstick comedy. Photo: Supplied.
Following in the footsteps of Stephen Fry, Sir Kenneth Branagh and Ingmar Bergman is exciting, but a little nerve-racking says Piece of Work Productions director Anton Bentley.
Building on the success of sell-out shows the last two summers at Fairfield House with the comedic parodies ‘The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged)’ and ‘The Servant of Two Masters’, this year Anton has turned his hand to playwriting. He has just completed adapting one of the most successful operas of all time, Mozart’s ‘The Magic Flute’, into a slapstick comedy he describes as “a play with lively tunes”.
“The Magic Flute has fabulous characters and so much comedy”, he says, “but reimagining as a play meant I
could bring all the hilarity plus a bit of a quirky twist to a new generation of audiences.”
Composed by Mozart, it first premiered in Vienna in 1791, just two months before his death. An audience favourite, Mozart attended nearly every performance before a brief illness and his untimely death at the age of 35. One theory at the time, was that he was killed by Masons after revealing Masonic secrets in The Magic Flute.
Anton says he first heard the opera while studying drama at university and loved how fun and lively it was. Then, when he was studying opera in Australia, he had the opportunity to perform arias from it in a concert at the New South Wales Conservatorium of Music. “The songs were always very character-driven and so much fun.” The opera was adapted for
the screen in 1975 by Ingmar Bergman and again in 2006 by Stephen Fry and Sir Kenneth Branagh, and now Anton says he’s adapted the play and songs for a modern audience without losing the fun. “It’s definitely not an opera or even a musical, but I didn’t want to lose the songs altogether as the tunes are fabulous and the songs lively, but I wanted to give it a more modern, comedic retelling.”
This is Anton’s fifth play this year having directed and produced The Servant of Two Masters, Medea, The Trial, and Vinegar Tom, winning a number of awards along the way including best director, best ensemble and audience favourite at the 2024 Nelson Fringe Festival.
Audience favourite, physical comedy actor Myles Smalley (The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (abridged), The Servant of
Two Masters) is back again for his third summer theatre performance taking on the role of Papageno, the bumbling bird catcher who, along with Prince Tamino and the feisty Pamina, face trials, temptations, and the formidable Queen of the Night. Joining Myles are Rhiannon Taylor (She Kills Monsters, Go West), Joelle Noar (The Addams Family) and Max Choma (Urinetown).
“I’m delighted to have such a strong cast of talented actors,” says Anton. “The play is incredibly physical, requires great comedic timing, and on top of that, all of the actors are taking on multiple roles.”
You can catch The Magic Flute in the Fairfield House Courtyard, 9 to 18 January (no show 13th) at 6.30pm. Tickets available from events.humanitix.com/themagic-flute.
The 30th Nelson Jazz Summer Festival is coming to Nelson and Richmond next week.
The event will open on Friday, 3 January with the Nelson Jazz Club Big Band, which is a traditional favourite, at 3pm at Founders Heritage Park, followed by the Tessa Q Jazz set, the West Coast Blues Band and Boogie Train –The Reunion.
There will be food carts and Founders Cafe will be open.
Tickets are $20 and under 16 are free. On Saturday, 4 January, a variety of venues will host gigs – including the Brazilian Social Club at the 1903 Square in Nelson and Dixie Swing Band at The Honest Lawyer. Two Thumbs will also host Rinholio, Ampersand are playing at Kismet Cocktail and Whisky Bar, and at Bamboo Tiger Jazz Cocktail Bar Jane and Francis will perform.
Sunday, 5 January, is the closing
of the festival at Washbourn Gardens with a family picnic. The Nelson Jazz Club Big Band starts off the afternoon with traditional jazz tunes.
The music starts to sizzle with the next band, Colette Jansen Trio and Colette’s dulcet sounds.
We Three ramps up the pace with lead Trudi Wilson.
A late minute change in line up to what was advertised is the Riwaka High Rollers consisting of the
multi-instrumentalist Craig Denham, with guitarist Nathan Torvik and friends who will provide a range of musical stylings from Latin, World, Blues to Jazz.
The evening wouldn’t be complete without Sun City Soul.
There will be food and drink carts available.
The festival is supported by both concils,
Pub Charity, The Lion Foundation, Nelson City Arts Council Community Scheme, Network Tasman Trust, and FreshChoice Nelson. Tickets for the Founders Heritage Park and Washbourn Gardens events are available from Humanitix.
Hon Dr Nick Smith
There is no better place to be than Nelson over summer. The combination of gorgeous weather, stunning beaches and rivers, mountainous and coastal National Parks, biking and walking trails and community events means there’s something for everyone.
I have a bet with Marlborough Mayor Nadine Taylor on whose region is the sunshine capital with a bottle of one’s best wine at stake. Nelson has topped the sunshine hours nationally for 12 of the past 24 years. Blenheim is ahead of us by a few hours in the tally so far this year. I’m hopeful we may sneak past by 1 January. Either way, it confirms the great climate across the top of the South Island.
The menu of summer events is the best. The New Year’s Eve Countdown in Upper Trafalgar Street has a brilliant lineup of entertainment from 6pm until midnight. On 1 January, the Lions Summer Fair will be on at the Tāhunanui Sportsfield. The Black Caps take on Sri Lanka at Saxton Oval on 2 January and on 3 January, it’s the start of the Jazz Summer Festival at Founders Heritage Park.
There are summer movies al fresco from 3 January until 1 March across the region. Art Group Nelson has an exhibition in Queens Gardens on 11 January. The Teddy Bears’ Picnic in Isel Park on 12 January is also an event to mark Council’s 150 years. Tāhuna Summer Sounds is on 17 January followed by the Kite Festival at Neale Park on 18 and 19 January.
The Blues on the Point Festival is on at the Honest Lawyer on 1 February with Pipes in the Park at Fairfield House on 2 February. Waitangi Day commemorations at Whakatū Marae on 6 February are being led this year by Ngāti Rārua.
My absolute favourite for summer is the NZ Sotherby’s International Realty Nelson Opera in the Park event on 15 February. Led by Artistic Director Pete Rainey, it marks its 20th anniversary with a wonderful lineup of classical and contemporary performers backed by the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra.
My thanks to the many Nelsonians working hard to help our city buzz over summer. Let’s get out and enjoy everything on offer.
Nick Smith MAYOR OF NELSON
William Bloodworth is no stranger to putting himself through pain to help others. As a career fire fighter at Nelson Station, he throws himself into tricky situations daily, but stepping forward to be on the Kiwi Firefighter Calendar was a different kind of discomfort for him. William shares with Nelson Weekly why he put his hand up to be the next Mr. May.
Movember is all about raising funds for men’s mental health, as well as prostate and testicular cancer. It hits close to home for me, especially since I’ve lost some great mates in the brigade to both cancer and suicide.
When Movember started, I joined in with a laughable attempt at growing a ginger moustache—one that only shows up at a certain angle under perfect lighting.
I asked friends and family to donate to this “spectacle,” and to my surprise, they did! But eventually, I wanted to do more, so I started running a marathon every year.
This turned into ‘The Amazing Chafe’, where firefighters (and their friends/ families) would run from Rabbit Island to Sunday Hole. This year, we had runners from the Wakefield brigade all the way to the Blenheim brigade joining in on the fun.
Also, this year I decided to go a step further for the cause. I threw myself way out of my comfort zone and got involved in the new ‘Kiwi Firefighter Calendar’. The moment I said yes, I had a mini panic attack. What on earth had I gotten myself into?! I was seriously
(only my wife knew).
A few days before the shoot, I got a spray tan—every ginger’s dream, right? (I definitely had a moment of panic about it going wrong, haha!) I even booked ‘leave’ from work to avoid the awkward questions about my sudden mid-winter bronze glow.
The shoot was a blast. A lot of the guys in it were people I used to work with back in Auckland and one thing we all have in common is we’re career firefighters - definitely not models. Trying to keep a straight face while your mates are joking around in the background? Pure gold.
Once the calendar dropped, I got some serious stick from my colleagues (and rightly so).
The most common comment has been, “Oh, I didn’t recognise you with your shirt on!”
worried about embarrassing myself or letting the team down. So, I joined a gym ‘BFT’. The team was super supportive and kept everything hush-hush
But all jokes aside, the calendar’s a fun way to support a really important cause. They’re $20 each. You can grab one online at kiwifirefighterscalendar. co.nz, or pick one up at Ruby’s Café or Raglan Roast—just scan the QR code to pay. All profit goes to Movember.
The Nelson Intermediate School basketball team called on the community to help them raise money to attend the 2024 South Island Primary Tournament in April. This call was answered, and the team won their grade. From left is Bawi Lian Thang, Felix Laird, Mason Kerdemelidis, Cesar Mosquera Bellaizac, Brigham Samuela, Bawi Tha Thawng Zaathang, Jose Mosquera Bellaizac, Te Amorangi Rewha-Kokiri-Dunn, and Keeley Redwood. Absent: Charlie Heathfield. Photo: Kate Russell.
EXPERIENCE THE
It’s been a year since Nelson’s first legal graffiti wall opened at the Nelson Environment Centre. Several artists have painted art on the wall and centre chief executive Anton Drazevic encouraged more graffiti artists both local and from further afield to come and leave their mark. The wall advertised as a safe, secure place for artists to express themselves, but there is one caveat – you need to supply your own paint. Photo: Max Frethey.
The perennial problem of weeds growing on roundabouts administered by the New Zealand Transport Agency almost came to loggerheads in October. Nelson Mayor Nick Smith and city councillor Mel Courtney had been tempted to trim the weeds themselves after weeks of apparent inaction by NZTA. Due funding constraints, maintenance of the roundabouts is only scheduled once a year. However, safety concerns caused by low visibility prompted the agency to trim the tall weeds ahead of schedule. Photo: Max Frethey.
RICHMOND SHOWGROUNDS
JANUARY 10 & 12
It’s been a huge year for globe-trotting rugby coach Andrew Goodman as his Irish bonds just keep growing stronger.
Trading a Dublin winter for a month back home in the warmth of Nelson, Andrew took time to reflect on his rise from club to international ranks this season.
When Joe Schmidt took a punt on the seasoned provincial player and brought him to Leinster, ‘Goody’ couldn’t have imagined 12 years on he would now hold down one of the most prized roles in world rugby.
The hugely successful Irish club gave the former Tasman Mako captain his first taste of European rugby and then, this year provided its now assistant coach with the launch pad into a similar role in the Ireland Rugby set up.
“An amazing opportunity but it was hard to leave such a great club,” says Andrew.
Rather than throw their new backs coach in the deep end against the All Blacks last month, the Irish management took Andrew to South Africa for two tests in June.
“It was great to be able to observe how they operated in the lead up to those matches,” recalls the
42-year-old, who also had the advantage of being around so many familiar faces. Basically half the squad was from his club side.
It was still a tough introduction, with the All Blacks beating Ireland 23-13 and then remarkably the homeside won its matches against Argentina and Australia by the same narrow scoreline23-19. There were personal links and catch-ups for ‘Goody’ in all three games. He coached under Scott Robertson at the Crusaders before moving back to Ireland where he replaced Felipe Contepomi as backs coach at Leinster.
“Felipe provided a great handover for me there,” enthuses Andrew.
And of course, the Wallabies are under Joe Schmidt, who got the Irish ball rolling for him in the first place.
His appointment is until the 2027 Rugby World Cup, which gives him plenty of time to be involved in further developing the second-ranked side in the world.
He’s relishing having a backline playing behind such a combative forward pack.
Another positive is not facing the upheaval of having to move house again.
“My wife Nina and our three children have had to shift around a lot, but now we can stay in Dub-
James and fellow Irish Kiwi back players Bundee Aki and Jamison Gibson-Park are all over 30, but Andrew observes there seems to be greater longevity in the game these days.
“The players look after themselves better and there is plenty of support. Injuries forced me to retire at 33 but going to 35 is more common these days.”
He points to All Black lock Sam Whitelock who was 35 at last year’s world cup and halfback Aaron Smith who was just a month younger.
Andrew has become accustomed to coaching success in his stints with Tasman, the Crusaders and Leinster. So is he eventually eyeing an international head coaching role?
“I love being an assistant coach as you are out on the field and without the extra duties of a head coach. So I haven’t felt the need to scratch that itch yet.”
lin.”
The Goodman home is only about 20 minutes away from Aviva Stadium, except when traffic heavy. I suggest to Andrew he could run there, but he quips he does a lot of cycling, a throwback to his Nelson days.
That segues to his ongoing links with Irish wing James Lowe, like
Andrew, a Nelson College product.
“We first met when I was a physed teacher and James was 13. It’s great to have him here. The Irish fans love him,” declares Andrew, who coached and played with James at the Tasman Mako before they both wound up together again at Leinster and now Ireland.
But he’s expecting extra responsibilities next year as Ireland Coach Andy Farrell will take the British & Irish Lions to Australia. For now, Andrew is enjoying his break back home with his family. “We will be camping at Mārahau and looking for cockles. Something I have been doing pretty much since I was born.”
It promises to be a cricketing bonanza in Nelson early next month with five matches in as many days Before then, the fun starts with a multicultural festival at Pūtangitangi Greenmeadows in Stoke on New Year’s Day. There will be six-a-side 12 over matches for the public from midday to 5pm.
The pace will pick up the next day with the Blackcaps facing Sri Lanka in the third T20 international at Saxton Oval.
The attention will then swing to domestic cricket with a meet the CD Stags and CD Hinds opportunity at Victory Square at 3.30pm on 3 January
The men’s and women’s sides will then feature in a double header against Wellington the next day with the Hinds first up and keen to avenge their narrow in the Dream 11 Super Smash final last season.
5 January is a chance for fans to catch their breath and then it is back to Saxton Oval the following day for another double header, this time against Northern Districts.
Nelson Cricket Association general manager Jake Inwood confirms with so much to choose from, special pricing deals are being offered for the domestic games.
Rather than pay $20 for an adult ticket for one day, $30 will gain admission for two. There will also be reduced junior and family passes.
To buy tickets head to cdcricket.flicket.co.nz/events
Being encouraged to take to the water to help grieve his wife’s passing has led to Glenn Hardinge becoming one of Nelson’s most passionate and competitive waka ama padders.
The former rafting and kayak guide from Central Otago moved to Ruby Bay 10 years ago at his wife Marlene’s suggestion.
“She wanted a change after more than 30 years down there,” recalls Glenn, as he prepares for his daily early morning paddle off Tāhunanui.
Tragically, soon after their shift, Marlene was diagnosed with colon cancer and despite going into remission after six month’s treatment in Tokyo, she succumbed to the disease.
“It came back with a vengeance. She was gone within three weeks and I was grief stricken,” says Glenn. Then a dear friend, top waka ama paddler Kereama Payne, came by and urged him to get out on the water.
“I came under his wing, began paddling with a six-man team and used it as holistic healing for my grief out on the ocean. Later he came back again, dropped a single waka on my lawn and said bro you are going to paddle this
Club racer Glenn
every day,” remembers Glenn.
“I took Marlene’s ashes in the waka out to Ruby Bay, dropped them, and I return there every anniversary of her death.”
Eventually Glenn’s old competitive spirit resurfaced and he decided to jump in a single waka.
“There were plenty of local outrigger canoe races and I was doing OK. I just loved it. I was always an individual. I am a bit of an introvert,” enthuses Glenn. He went on to win as a ruddered
OCI Golden Master at national age grade level for his Maitahi Outrigger Canoe Club which is based in the Nelson Marina. Though to be honest, Tāhunanui is really his domain.
“I live nearby and can be in the water within minutes. I like to be here by 5.30am and have the clubbies ready to go by 6am or 6.30am before the beach gets too busy,” says Glenn, who describes himself as a volunteer - although he’s clearly more a trainer and
motivator.
“I try to encourage everyone to get up early and embrace the day. I would love to see more young people take up the sport,” declares the black belt, who used to run his own judo dojo club in Arrowtown.
“I had a few fights, but I preferred teaching the martial arts.”
The 62-year-old is still very competitive on the water though, confirms Motueka Waka Ama Club president, Callum Sebualala, as
he heads out for a regular early morning paddle with Glenn.
“He’s inspiring. He’s a personal trainer and lives what he wants to do, training all the time. We are both Melanesian motivators,” exclaims Callum, who is Fijian-Irish.
Which takes us to Glenn’s surname. Hardinge isn’t a typo.
“My forefathers came here by boat from Torres Strait (off the top northern tip of Australia). They were Malaysian-Irish,” explains Glenn, who went to NMIT and graduated with a sports science degree.
“Age is just a number. I don’t believe in growing old. Just keep going,” he vows.
The qualified waka steerer is gearing up to return to national and maybe international waters in Rarotonga and Brazil. He will skip the sprint nationals at Lake Karapiro next month. There have also been approaches to jump back in a six-man waka. “I have had three offers already and I am ready for that now. I have come out the other end. They say there are nine processes of grief, and I think I have done them all. I am loving Nelson now,” concludes Glenn, before slinging his single waka on his shoulder and striding down the beach.
Nelson has had an Olympic star in its midst this month and it was hard to miss 1.96m Hamish Kerr.
The 28-year-old high jumper is a regular visitor to the region this time of year and made sure the dates aligned with The Spectacle festival of running.
“My squad has come up here for the past four or so years for a training camp. We love it here. The Athletics Nelson Club is awesome and the track is great. It is warm here and never as windy as Christchurch,” enthuses the Paris Olympic gold medalist.
As well as hoping his Olympic teammate Sam Tanner would make a successful return in the elite mile, Hamish admits he was cheering on Stuey McSweyn as well.
“Stuey Mac from Tassie is a good mate of mine.”
Hamish loved the concept of The Spectacle, bringing the event to the city centre and wants to be more involved next year.
“We have been talking about
Olympic high jump champion Hamish Kerr was a keen spectator at The Spectacle in Nelson on 14 January.
it and it is something we would love to do, showcasing high jump as well in the town square,” proposes Hamish, who plans to return to domestic competition next month before heading to the World Indoor Track and Field Championships in China at the end of March.
“Just three months away, don’t remind me,” he grins. Spectacle co-founder Julian Matthews confirms he has spoken to Hamish about a future role in the event.
“It wasn’t going to work this
year, but we can grow the festival and add so many different things,” says Julian, who was buzzing after the huge turnout for the three-day event.
“We managed to pull it off. I don’t know of any other event in the world that has both trail running and road racing.
Being that close to the action can’t help but inspire you. We want people to be engaged in running. It’s a healthy way to live.”
He hopes The Spectacle will return next year.
“We will have to look at the invoices to come in after this.
I hope businesses can see the benefit of this,” concludes Julian. The sport’s governing body, Athletics New Zealand, certainly can.
“These are the sort of opportunities athletics needs to take.
This is the first partnership where Athletics New Zealand has provided support and assistance to an independent promotion,” says chief executive Cam Mitchell.
“These guys put on an amazing event. It was great to see Nelson get behind it.”
The 2025 Top South Media unofficial Sports Awards are a celebration of the moments and people that made the past 12 months another exciting year of local sport. From the sometimes overlooked to the sensational individuals, Stephen Stuart looks back on the moments that made sport in Nelson Tasman so special. And boy, what a year it was.
When a teenaged Chelsea Gurr walked up the hill to referee a Nelson College vs Shirley Boy’s rugby match more than 20 years ago, little did she know where the sport would take her.
Chelsea was a student at Nelson College for Girls and followed her father into whistleblowing.
“A huge crowd appeared out of nowhere that day at Nelson College,” recalls Chelsea.
year as Assistant Referee Chelsea Gillespie.
Mind you it was a bit bigger, try more than 41,000 people, when she was running the sidelines for the England-Black Ferns clash at Twickenham earlier this
Chelsea moved from Christchurch to the historic Scottish Borders town of Jedburgh in 2016 with her Scottish husband Darren who had played on the international sevens circuit. She left behind a New Zealand refereeing career which had promised so much but appeared to have stalled. The Scottish Rugby Union probably couldn’t believe its luck when the mother-of-two decided to make a comeback and she was fast tracked in to the Women’s Six Nations tournament this year.
Robbie Stuart was laughing all the way to the bank after his latest horse Sideshow Bruce rocked punters at Motukarara, in Canterbury, three months ago.
The Wakefield hobby trainer only came by the horse after another of his select team was injured.
Sideshow Bruce didn’t have much to trial against at Richmond Park before he headed south to make his debut.
The big 3-year-old did plenty of work in the race and still won easily at odds of almost 100-1.
The veteran horseman wasn’t surprised and quipped “when they are paying that much you don’t have to put a lot on”. While Sideshow Bruce was an unlucky
But
were
Supporter of the year –Kahurangi crew get local backing
When the Tasman Mako decided to rest its front-line players against Otago, and freshen them for “storm week”, Tasman Trophy Champions Kahurangi came to the rescue.
The club provided six players including its captain Joshua Te Hira. It was too good of an opportunity to miss for his hard-core local supporters. So even though Tito Elisara is a Riwaka
Club man, he volunteered to be the designated driver from Nelson to Dunedin.
“We left at 3am on Saturday and despite a stop in Christchurch to pick up a passenger, we made it with two hours to spare,” said Tito. Reserve hooker Joshua finally got on with 18 minutes to play and, while a brave Mako side eventually lost, Tito reckoned the trip was worth it.
People were saying that surely couldn’t be former British television star Noel Edmonds at the Nelson Half at Saxton Field last month.
But the tv crew close by, was the giveaway as it followed a young English runner in a River Haven top who had arrived to work on Noel’s upcoming documentary.
It couldn’t have been scripted better as Max Barnett ran away with the 10km race.
So I asked a sprightly Noel if he had an athletics background too.
The then 75-year-old laughed and said
obviously not.
“I can still walk properly unlike most of the older runners here!” he exclaimed.
Māpua engineering apprentice Brad Gale built himself a dirt bike and promptly claimed the King of the Hill title at the Mount Heslington Road venue in Brightwater. But it wasn’t an easy ride on his 2.7-metre-long and 1100 horsepower contraption.
“There wasn’t enough traction for my first run up the hill, so we did some welding work on the chain on the back wheel,” says Brad, who had some of his Motueka engineering work mates on-hand to support him. The changes worked but no sooner had the rangy 20-year-old powered across the finish line than his gearbox blew up.
So the $1500 prize money came in handy.
Long-time table tennis coach John Jary doesn’t usually go to social occasions, as he has lost 70 per cent of his hearing.
But his daughter Carolyn talked him into buying new shoes, trousers and a shirt to attend this month’s Sport Tasman awards where the 87-year-old was honoured for his contribution to table tennis.
“I have been involved for more than 50 years. My late wife Pauline and I were devoted to it,” says the retired Richmond builder.
“I used to travel back from building sites around the region, in an old truck, to coach at weekend events. It was probably a bit over the top,” reflects John.
“JJ” is certain it was that construction work that affected his hearing.
“I used to cut corrugated iron with skill saws. It was so noisy.”
But it hasn’t stopped him being a mainstay of local table tennis.
“I have put in up to 600 hours this year. I work with kids on Mondays and Fridays
at Saxton. But don’t call me a coach. I prefer trainer because I don’t like to coax the players, young or old,” declares John.
Table Tennis Nelson president Anna King confirms “ JJ” is a real character.
“He is old school and great to have around,” enthuses Anna.
And he plans to carry on training next year, providing the body holds up.
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