Off-Site Issue 19 July/August 2020

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ISSUE 19 JUL/AUG 2020

WORK HARD, PLAY HARD!

WORK HARD, PLAY HARD!

EXTREME FISHING THREE KINGS

WIN A PAIR OF

OAKLEY SUNGLA SSES

PG 17

TRADIE PROFILE

ETHAN ROOTS

ALSO INSIDE

BACKCOUNTRY ADDICTION

BOYS WILL BE BOYS

Our yards are in your backyard.

ITM isn’t a big corporate. We’re a group of 94 independently owned and operated stores in towns around New Zealand.

So when you shop at ITM, you’re not just buying building supplies. You’re also helping to support your local community; your local rugby club, those school fundraisers, and the families who work with us.

Keep it in the community, and we all get back on our feet sooner.

ITM. Locals Supporting Locals.

WORK HARD, PLAY HARD! WORK HARD, PLAY HARD!

WELCOME TO ISSUE NINETEEN OF RHEEM OFF-SITE

CONTENTS 04 EXTREME FISHING – THREE KINGS 08 BACK COUNTRY ADDICTION 12 RHEEM – BACK TO BUSINESS 14 LOCKDOWN BBQ 17 WIN WITH OAKLEY 18 TRADIE PROFILE – ETHAN ROOTS 20 BOYS WILL BE BOYS

The observant among you may have noticed there is an extra month’s gap between this and the last issue of off-Site magazine – but I’m sure you’ll understand the reason. No one was immune to the far-reaching effects of Covid-19, which is something that becomes very clear in this issue!

Nick Jones is first up, walking us through one of NZ’s most famous and challenging fishing destinations: the Three Kings Islands. Moving further south, Steve Dickinson takes us through the ins and outs of backcountry skiing next – a timely contribution as we head into the ski season.

Competition BBQ is a sport on the rise, but with lockdown preventing any meetups, Kerren Packer reports on how the BBQing community got creative, and even offers up one of his own recipes. For this issue’s Tradie Profile, I caught up with former chippy and now Crusader Ethan Roots to chat about his journey to the red shirt. Last but certainly not least, Ant Niterl rounds out the issue with a typically hilarious yarn about his last hunting trip before lockdown, appropriately named “Boys will be Boys”.

Enjoy, and as always, get in touch if you have any stories of your own to share. You can contact us on Instagram @offsitemagazine – where you’ll also find plenty of giveaways and fishing reports – or flick me an email at ethan@nzfishingnews.co.nz.

ETHAN NEVILLE

Rheem off-Site is published bi-monthly by NZ Fishing Media Ltd. Offices are located at 177B Marua Road, Ellerslie, Auckland, Ph (09) 579 4060.

THE BOSS Grant Blair QS Grant Dixon PROJECT MANAGER Ethan Neville ARCHITECT Ricky Harris CONSTRUCTION MANAGER Leah Foxcroft HAMMER HAND (Advertising) Dean Andrew 021 862 579 sales@nzfishingnews.co.nz EDITORIAL ENQUIRIES Ethan Neville 021 176 1366 ethan@nzfishingnews.co.nz Advertising within this publication is subject to NZ Fishing Media Ltd’s standard advertising terms and conditions, a copy of which is available by emailing grant@nzfishingnews.co.nz or by calling (09) 579 4060

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Saltwater

EXTREME FISHING

By Nick Jones

DESTINATION THE THREE KINGS ISLANDS

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Hooked-up at the Three Kings.

If you’re after a PB fish, lock a trip to the Three Kings into your calendar now.

This issue, Nick Jones discusses everything you need to know about this iconic destination.

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fter spending time fishing their home waters, most keen anglers get the itch to chase larger fish in more remote locations. And in New Zealand, the fish don’t get much bigger, nor the location more remote, than the Three Kings Islands. Located 30nm to the northwest of Cape Reinga, the archipelago was given its European name by Abel Tasman who anchored here in search of fresh water. The series of rocky islands and outcrops are so rugged that the two ‘anchorages’ are merely indentations along the steep, boulder-laden shoreline, and are still exposed to a myriad of oceanic swells and currents. A few hardy souls lived on the islands in preEuropean times. Anecdotally they

were genuine giants – no doubt thriving on a diet rich in Omega 3!

My first trips to the Three Kings were as a deckhand on the famous charter boat Pursuit. I had a ball simply witnessing the scenery and fishing action, but I’ve been lucky enough to return to the islands a few times since as an angler on our own boat. I’m far from an expert on the area but can give you a rundown on how to get there, what species to target and some general fishing options.

The best option for those wishing to fish the Three Kings is to book a trip on one of the liveaboard charter boats that work the area between summer and the end of autumn every year. These boats comfortably cater for around six anglers, with the standard trip being five

days long. Most trips start from Mangonui or Whangaroa harbours, where the boat is loaded up in the evening and anglers are expected to catch fresh mackerel for livebait on the first night while berthed at the wharf. The boat will depart in the morning, taking one of two paths; either head up the coast and make a beeline for the Three Kings, where you will arrive late in the evening, or do some afternoon kingfish or snapper fishing and stay the night on the northern coast at either North Cape, Tom Bowling Bay or Spirits Bay. There is a fair amount of ‘downtime’ during the transit, but the journey includes some of the best gamefishing areas on the northeast coast and the lures are always out the back.

Your other option is a private

Left: What fishing the Three Kings is all about – a mega kingfish for George Kittow (Photo: Finn Henderson).

Right: Fish life is abundant around the islands.

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George Bourke with a Three Kings blue marlin.

Big hapuku and bass are still reasonably common around the Three Kings Islands.

A solid yellowfin tuna caught trolling between North Cape and the Three Kings Islands.

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boat. Being a long way from the nearest port and without cell phone coverage, I’d recommend being very well prepared and having a large enough boat to handle the conditions. Even with a good high-pressure system forecast, it’s not unusual to experience 20-knot winds, strong currents and big swells from multiple directions.

Make sure to log your trip and check-in twice a day with Far North Radio – Annette and the crew run a brilliant service for both commercial and recreational vessels in the area.

Once at the islands, it’s likely you’ll

The writer with a trophy trevally that fell for a soft-bait cast into the whitewater.

stay in Northwest Bay or Southeast Bay on the main island for the night – dependent on wind and swell conditions. Depending on the bait supply, you’ll either head straight out to the fishing grounds or throw out some berley close to the islands to catch fresh livebait in the form of koheru and small trevally. Big arrow squid can be caught overnight at the anchorages. Skewer-type squid jigs with a freshly impaled dead mackerel are far more effective than your standard egi jigs. The task of catching bait is often interrupted by big kingfish cruising through the

clear water underneath! Given the clarity of water and abundance of fish life, diving is superb around the islands but not for the faint-hearted, with raging currents and big sharks present.

Most boats head away from the islands each day to fish the famous and productive King and Middlesex Banks. Situated where the South Pacific Ocean and Tasman Sea converge, these banks are surrounded by a range of deep trenches and seamounts.

The result is huge upwellings and strong currents that hold an

The Three Kings is a special place, so I must warn you – once you’ve been, all you’ll want to do is go straight back for more.

abundance of baitfish and squid, in turn attracting striped marlin, blue marlin, yellowfin tuna, swordfish, huge kingfish, hapuku, bass and bluenose. Even black marlin, big eye tuna and bluefin tuna show up frequently enough to be considered a realistic prospect on the right day.

Trolling lures over the banks and livebaiting at likely spots with koheru or skipjack tuna produce many marlin and big tuna each season, while dropping livebaits, jigs or ‘puka rigs over the countless reefs and rises typically produce big kingfish, hapuku and bass. Kingfish around 30-40kg and bass over 50kg are not uncommon, so it pays to fish heavy gear to avoid heartbreak!

Another option is to spend time prospecting around the shoreline of the islands themselves. Huge hump-headed trevally are easily spotted and can be targeted with soft-baits or cut-baits. Slow-trolling or drift fishing with livebaits can see some great kingie action with fish averaging around the 15-20kg mark – and bigger fish are often lost in the shallow terrain. As a bonus, it’s not unusual to bycatch a big hapuku close to the cliffs.

Stickbaiting for kings is an exciting prospect around the points and reefs, although generally less productive than livebaiting.

The Three Kings is a special place, so I must warn you – once you’ve been, all you’ll want to do is go straight back for more.

A striped marlin in the spread on the King Bank.

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BACKCOUNTRY

ADDICTION

Backcountry skiing is a romantic prospect for adventurers.

Trekking across an isolated mountain, gliding through fresh snow, breaking new ground; does it get much better?

But despite the obvious attracion, this is one activity that should not be undertaken lightly...

By Steve Dickinson

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or some, going backcountry skiing or snowboarding means hiking deep into the wilderness to make turns where no one else has been. To others, it’s riding an out-of-bounds slope at a ski resort. Regardless of whether you hike, snowmobile, cat-track, skin, ride a lift or take a helicopter to get there, any time you’re outside of the restricted boundaries of a resort, you’re in the backcountry.

If you think you are ready to give backcountry a go – don’t. Well, at least not until you have had some real training with experienced guides. Here are some steps to get underway with backcountry.

Take a backcountry skiing or snowboarding course Backcountry skiing and snowboarding require several new skills, like using touring bindings, skinning uphill, managing terrain, reading the weather and planning.

In a backcountry touring course, you’ll learn the right way to do these things from trained and experienced professionals, rather than stumbling through them on your own or with a mate.

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Be avalanche-aware Avalanches pose a genuine danger to backcountry travellers.

During an average year in New Zealand, there will be 37 reported avalanche involvements, which will result in 24 people being caught in avalanches, one of whom will die.

If you want to ski or snowboard in the backcountry, you must enrol in avalanche safety training taught by a qualified professional.

Work on your ski-fitness You don’t need to be a top athlete to go backcountry skiing or snowboarding but climbing uphill in fresh snow can be tricky, so it’s worth assessing your skiing ability

and fitness level before heading out.

Skiing ability: It’s generally recommended that you can confidently ski or ride the blue (intermediate) runs at a ski field – at the very least – before taking on the backcountry.

Fitness level: If you’re reasonably fit, you can most likely enjoy a moderate backcountry tour. As you aspire to take on bigger trips and spend long days out touring, you will need to ramp up your fitness level.

Get geared up To maximise your fun out there, you’ll want to get outfitted with backcountry-specific gear – and it’s essential you obtain the required avalanche safety equipment.

The

Gear Avalanche safety equipment

Before you set foot in the backcountry, you and everyone else in your group must carry several safety items, and know how to use them.

Avalanche transceiver: A transceiver emits a signal that rescuers can pick up with their transceivers. The receiving transceivers interpret and turn the signal into a visual and audio display, which helps a great deal when searching for missing adventurers.

Avalanche shovel: A snow shovel is essential for testing snow conditions and digging out victims. Don’t use any old shovel; get one specifically designed for backcountry travel from a reputable outfitter.

Avalanche probe: This collapsible pole is used to probe for a buried

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victim during the pinpoint phase of the search.

Though not one of the three necessary items, avalanche airbag packs are becoming increasingly popular. These packs have an airbag which is typically deployed by manually pulling a ripcord. The airbag inflates and can help you rise to the top of an avalanche debris field.

Backcountry ski and snowboard equipment There is a wide range of backcountry equipment available.

Before buying, think about where you like to ski or snowboard and what type of terrain you prefer.

This will help you determine the balance of weight and performance which will work for you.

For instance, skiers who want to cover lots of ground and climb to high elevations prefer lighter setups, and are happy to sacrifice performance in deep snow.

Skiers who prioritise deep, fresh snow typically prefer wider skis and will accept the added weight.

Backcountry skis: All downhill skis that can be mounted with backcountry bindings and taken out on tour are fine, but backcountryspecific skis are usually lighter than downhill skis, making uphill travel easier.

Backcountry ski bindings: The defining feature of backcountry

New Zealand has some of the best backcountry terrain in the world, and some of it is easier to reach than others

bindings is the ability to move your heels up and down so you can tour up the mountain. The majority of backcountry skiers use alpine touring bindings, which allow you to lock your heels down at the top of the hill so you can ski back down making parallel turns as you would while downhill skiing.

Skins: Skins are like pieces of material that temporarily stick to the bottom of your skis to provide traction for going uphill. When you get to the top, you take them off your skis or board and then ski or ride back down. They are essential if you don’t want to carry your skis or snowboard on your backpack.

Some skins are made to fit specific ski models, while others are long rectangular strips sold in different widths which will need to be trimmed to fit. Once again, it’s about getting good advice.

Backcountry skiing opens a vast amount of terrain. New Zealand has some of the best backcountry terrain in the world, and some of it is easier to reach than others – but the rewards are well worth it.

Once you’ve done it once, you’ll be addicted!

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BACK TO ‘BUSINESS’ Lockdown was a tough period for everyone, but for hunters – who knew they were missing some of the best hunting of the year – it was just that little bit more frustrating.

It’s no surprise then that John Bebbington from Rheem

of the fading sunlight. It was the two newbies, however,

was halfway to Taihape the first day of Level 2. His

who nailed their first chances, and two deer were in the

destination: a private farm in Ngamatea famous for its

bag before an hour had passed! Dave, on the other

hunting and fishing.

hand, with all of that extra pressure on his shoulders,

With two plumbers and a customer in tow, Dave, Richard and Richard (one of the Richards was quickly

took three shots to get on the board – something the others didn’t let him forget.

renamed “Rich”), John arrived at Ngamatea in high

The next day John joined the crew, and despite the

spirits – even after an administration error had meant

unfavourable conditions, they had similar success –

their guide, Glen, had beaten them to the hut by a full

Dave even managed to redeem himself by shooting a

day. Only three hunters were able to join Glen at one

deer from long-range. For John, it’s the whole experience

time, so John let the rest of the crew take the first shift

which makes trips like these unforgettable; from the drive

of the weekend. The two Richards had never shot guns

down through to the celebratory toast, there’s something

before, let alone aimed them at deer, so the pressure

distinctly Kiwi about heading onto a farm to shoot your

was on Dave, the experienced hunter, to make the most

next meal. Here’s hoping for more adventures soon!

Left: Richard Skilton was first off the mark Middle: A Sika Stag gets into view Right: Setting out from camp on a chilly May morning

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TRACKING KIWI For kiwi conservation groups across the country, lockdown Level 2 arrived just in the nick of time. As some of you may know, many kiwi in NZ have transmitters attached to their legs to help researchers monitor their location – but they only have enough battery life to last about 12 months. With a number of transmitters due to be changed during lockdown, it was a race against time to find and replace their batteries.

Despite being fitted with transmitters, kiwi are not the easiest of birds to find.

As the transmitter’s battery fades so do the tell-tale beeps that let you know when you are getting close. Tracking them is only half the battle – they have the tendency to sleep in some pretty tricky locations – such as blackberry thickets and down deep burrows. The kiwi to the left – found asleep in a hollow log – was one of our success stories and now has a brand new transmitter for the coming year.

To help us keep track of kiwi please visit www.kiwisforkiwi.org/donate Photo credit: Grabb for image excellence.

PROUDLY SUPPORTED BY ®

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Slow-cook BBQ

Image Hanson and Daughters 14

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Photo: Hanson and Daughters

LOCKDOWN BBQ Kerren Packer

One activity that didn’t stop during lockdown was low ‘n’ slow BBQ. Kerren Packer reports on how the BBQing community connected during Level 4, and even shares his very own recipe: Kezza’s Lockdown Chicken Nibbles with a Tequila Twist.

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uring lockdown, my ‘bubble’ (not sure if my partner Jeannie will like her new nickname, but we will see if it sticks) and I participated in the first (and hopefully last) Great COVID Cook-Off – an online BBQ competition.

The format focused on presentation, captured through photos and video, rather than taste.

While the concept initially caused some confusion among the purists, it soon became apparent that it was all about fun, banter, motivation, inspiration and social distancing community get-togethers.

The Great COVID Cook-Off was the brainchild of award-winning BBQ’er Derrick Paull. He assembled a panel of highly respected BBQ judges and

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scheduled the competition to run over the four Sundays during the lock-down period. Chicken was up first, followed by burgers, pork ribs and then finally beef – “the king of bbq”.

Being a successful BBQ’er is mostly about preparation, patience and having a vision of how the end game will look when presented to friends and family, or in this case, a judging panel and an internet full of food critics – no pressure! Each week an average of 37 teams made up of newbies and pros uploaded their photos and videos of their dishes, beginning an anxious wait to hear the results.

Later that evening, a notification would come through that “Derrick Paull is live” and the audience of

1) The “ooze” factor rated highly with the judges and gained Jeannie third place in the burger section. 2) One of the criteria for the ribs section was “bite thru”. Competitors had to show a clean single bite to the bone 3) Finally, beef – the “king of BBQ!” Judges looked for tenderness, smoke ring, bark and overall presentation.

The calibre of entries was off the scale.

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KEZZA’S

LOCKDOWN

CHICKEN NIBBLES

WITH A

TEQUILA TWIST

Preparation time

90 mins

Skill level

Newbie

INGREDIENTS: Meat:

• 1kg chicken wings/nibbles

Glaze: • 1 cup BBQ sauce (Rum & Que Meat Juice) • 1/4 cup red wine • 1 shot of tequila • 1 tbsp BBQ chicken rub (Rum & Que Soft Coq) • 1 tbsp dark soy sauce • 2 tbsp maple syrup • 1 tbsp brown sugar • ½ tsp apple cider vinegar • Pinch garlic salt • 4 drops of red food colouring • Hot sauce to preference Method: • Preheat BBQ with coal briquettes to 121°C • Arrange chicken nibbles evenly and indirectly* on the grill for 1 hour • Turn chicken nibbles at 30 mins *Indirect – not directly on top of heat source/coals/flame. Google for options for your specific BBQ. Glaze:

• Combine and stir all ingredients in a saucepan.

• Gently reduce over a low simmer, stirring often, until sugars caramelise and stick to the stirrer.

• Set aside.

The end game:

• Check the chicken is cooked well to the bone and remove chicken from the grill.

• Increase BBQ temperature to 148°C • Liberally coat chicken with glaze and place in an oven tray.

• Return oven tray to BBQ for 1015mins or until glaze is set.

• S erve with a tequila slammer (18+ only) and shout-out “arriba, andale! Damn this is good chicken.”

over 10,000 viewers would scramble to the nearest online device to see the results live and hear the judges’ comments.

After the salutations and platitudes were out of the way, the podium countdown began in earnest. Just hearing the names being read out and knowing there is a nationwide community of likeminded people ‘out there’ sharing their love of low ‘n’ slow BBQ really did help get us through some interesting times.

We uploaded two dishes from our bubble and we managed two top ten placings, including an honourable third in the burger category for Jeannie. While the accolades and prizes were greatly appreciated, the smoky BBQ’d treats, inspiration and comradery were the real tasty soul food!

It was a thoroughly enjoyable and exciting event, breaking up the series of “groundhog days” during lockdown – a big thanks to Derrick, supporters, judges and competitors!

Let’s hope we never meet under these circumstances again – we would much prefer to participate in person with you at a future Jack Daniels National BBQ Comp!

Kezza’s chiken nibbles with a tequila twist.

These lamb ribs weren’t elligible for the comp, but still tasted great anyway!

The first protein was chicken – this humble chicken nibble with a twist of tequila platter earned the writer ninth place.

THE GREAT COVID COOK-OFF RESULTS

The

Winners

First place each round: Chicken: 1st Clint Lindsey (Image 3) Burger: 1st Matt Pickersgill (Image 1) Ribs: 1st Forbes Taylor (Image 2) Beef: 1st Shaun Branson (Image 4) Overall Grand Champions (Accumulative points over four cooks) 1st: Matt Pickersgill 2nd: Forbes Taylor 3rd: Shaun Branson 4th: Clint Lindsay 5th: Matthew Melville Sponsors: SpiceCraft NZ, NZ BBQ Supplies, Barbecue Bay of Islands (BBQ BOI), Cooking Thermometers NZ (GrillEye), Jack Daniels Rum & Que, BBQ War, Texas Pete’s BBQ Restaurant Hamilton

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Tim

bbles twist.

See Life Differently

Send in a shot of you, your copy of Rheem off-Site and why you need a new pair of Oakley’s for your adventures in the great outdoors!

Include a caption of who, what, when and where the picture was taken. You could win one of two Oakley Polarised Caliber Sunglasses valued at $299 per pair. The winners will have their photos published in our next issue of Rheem off-Site.

Bevan Treymane joined by Mike Moffat in Abraham’s Bay, Stewart Island with their seven point white stag.

Bruce White

Tim Evans

Jurie Denysschen

Post a pic at https://www.facebook.com/offsitenz/ or https://www.offsitenz.co.nz/

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Tradie Profile

ETHAN ROOTS Ethan Roots is a Crusader, former jiujitsu national champion, tradie and top bloke. Ethan Neville reached out to him in isolation to learn a bit more about his time on the tools and his journey to the red shirt.

He might not have played first fifteen at college, but that didn’t stop Ethan pursuing club rugby when he left school.

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E

than Roots has squeezed a lot into 22 years. Earlier this year, on the fringe of the impending COVID-19 induced lockdown, he made his Super Rugby debut for the Crusaders. While this is a substantial achievement in itself, not many have risen through the ranks so fast. He only made his provincial debut last year for North Harbour, and – even more surprisingly – only got back into rugby in his last year of school.

The reason: he was busy training for another sport.

At fifteen, he and his brother headed down to a local jiu-jitsu gym for a few casual classes. For those who aren’t familiar with jiu-jitsu, it’s a martial art – and now a combat sport – which involves a lot of grappling

and submission holds (as opposed to striking). If you’ve ever watched UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship), then you will have seen aspects of jiu-jitsu in action.

“We fell in love with it me and my brother, and ended up doing it for three years,” Ethan tells me.

“We started doing it just casually, maybe once or twice a week, and then started getting into it three of four days a week. The next thing you know you’re doing it every day of the week, morning and night.”

At sixteen, he had his first cage fight, and his opponent – and many of his future opponents – probably wished he hadn’t. It became pretty clear that once Ethan sets his mind on something, little can stand in his way – and it, of course, helps that he

weighs 110kg and stands at 1.88m tall (I’d probably hesitate before getting in his way as well). He ended up winning the Men’s Heavyweight Maori National BJJ Champions Title (No-Gi, under 95kg), the Heavyweight NZG No-Gi Nationals Men’s title and the gold medal in Melbourne at the Pan Pacific BJJ Championship for his age group.

Before turning 18, however, his time in the cage came to an abrupt halt.

The mistake was unfortunate, if a little ill-advised, but enough for the door to the jiu-jitsu world to be closed.

“My whole world came crashing down… I was literally spending six or seven hours of the day training jiu-jitsu on top of school. But that pushed me into rugby and I’m

Ethan fightready and entering the cage.

The proud family after Ethan’s Crusaders debut.

After only one season with North Harbour, Ethan got the attention of the Crusaders coaching staff.

thankful for that.”

With Ethan’s talent, size and focus now given to rugby, playing representative footy appeared more like a “when” than an “if”. The Rosmini College second fifteen was his starting place, and while missing out on first-team game-time, he enjoyed it enough to pursue club rugby after school.

Before he got paid to play rugby, however, he needed a job, and that came in the form of building – and he wasted no time getting started.

“I wanted to leave at year 13 but my mum wouldn’t let me… So, the day after my last exam I was on a building site – I think it was a Thursday.”

The next three years would be spent building and doing

concrete foundation work. He started his apprenticeship, before quite rightly getting distracted by rugby commitments. However, he’s definitely not ruling out a return to the building site.

“I’d definitely go back on the tools after my footy career is done because I loved it. I thought it was good for the body and good for the soul. And I really enjoyed being on site and having banter with the lads and getting stuck into some hard work as well.”

And what about his quick rugby ascension? After spending a couple of years playing Under 21s when he left school, he made his debut for the mighty Green and Blacks (the East Coast Bays prem’s team) in 2018. He played a vital role in the

Ethan competing at the 2014 Pan Pacific Jiu Jitsu Championship.

Before professional rugby, Ethan spent most of his time on the tools.

team that were runners up, and was a standout in the 2019 comp which the boys won. He played so well, in fact, that North Harbour came knocking. He was selected in the 2019 Harbour squad and quickly became a regular starter in the loose forwards.

The rest you know already. The next call he received was from the Crusaders, and his flights were booked soon after. For Ethan, it was an “unbelievable” experience – as it would be for most of us. Unlike most of the team who had played age group representative rugby together, he had been dropped into a professional environment at 22, and was now packing down next to some of the biggest names in world rugby.

“It was a cool feeling to be bombed into that pretty exclusive group of people who’ve played for the Crusaders… But it’s been a super cool experience. I love it down here… and happy to call it home.”

The Crusaders coaching staff and playing group lived up to their reputation. In Ethan’s words, it’s an “unreal environment… you feel at home almost instantly.”

Being in Christchurch has also allowed him to get into hunting, something he does regularly with his mates down there. Like most Kiwi blokes, he’s also partial to wetting a line and makes sure to lock in a fishing trip when he’s in Auckland. At the time of the interview, however, he was like the rest of us: stuck indoors in Level 4 lockdown.

While he’s made sure to stay on top of his strength and conditioning, he’s also picked up some new hobbies which might come as a surprise.

“Puzzles, but I’ve hit the wall with a couple of them. I’ve also picked up reading for the first time ever.”

And what about the future?

While he’s already cracked Super Rugby, Ethan is working hard to achieve even more in rugby, and I wouldn’t bet against him.

“I definitely don’t want to be stagnant… I want to keep progressing forward and to set some big targets and knock those targets down. It’s a process, so for me, it’s about just focusing on the next goal, the next target, the next objective to take those steps up the mountain to reach the summit.” off-Sitenz

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Hunting

WILL BOYS BE BOYS With lockdown around the corner, Ant Niterl and a few mates decided to make the most of their last unrestricted weekend.

It went as expected: banter, the odd brew and a fair bit of time spent searching the hills for dinner...

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e are living in weird times. The earth has been humbled by an invisible enemy and everything we knew to be the norm quickly changed. Our direction of life for the next while was up in the air, so a bunch of us lads thought we would go to our therapeutic place and enjoy being among New Zealand’s flora and fauna. Of course, we’d also be attempting to harvest some red gold in the form of venison, and would no doubt find the time for a few tall yarns along the way.

So, a group of ten burly blokes from different walks of life filled

“What?

That piece of s*** over there? The boys lost it in fits of tears.”

up our utes and ventured south of Hamilton to a private block of land run by a good rooster called J-man. A hut erected by J-man and his old man many moons ago sits at the bottom of their property among the lush, mossy forest which kisses the pristine running water of the Whakamaru Reserve. Simply beautiful. Later that evening under the stars, J-man was telling us with nostalgic tears in his eyes how at the age of 14 he helped his old man build the hut. That’s when I piped up, pointed at the hut and said, “What?

That piece of s*** over there?” The boys lost it in fits of tears. Anyway...

The writer enjoying a well-earnt beer.

®

WE WANT YOU! Late afternoon the next day, we threw a couple of guns over the shoulders, made sure everyone was aware of the safety protocols and marched for the hills till we found a nice clearing we could observe from around 200 yards out. The problem with so many guys in one group is that there’s bound to be a couple of idiots who don’t take hunting seriously. The odds of us taking home no tucker was high, but morale was good and that is all that mattered in the current climate. After a short while, woodland creatures started coming out of the shrubbery for a graze. The boys were offered up

the chance to take a few fallow deer that were basking in the big yellow rays, ignorant to the hungry primal eyes watching them in the clearing.

Rossy and Reubs were behind the butts of the guns first as they had never been hunting before, and they were pumped to get an opportunity.

Unfortunately, the arousal levels were high and both lads made a meal of their shots, giving the fallows another lease on life, which everyone found bloody amusing.

After the shots echoed through the valley, we saw more movement to our left. A couple of porkers ran out into the open giving Bobby the

Above: A hut erected “many moons ago”

by J-man and his old man provided more than enough comfort for the weekend.

Below: Spinning yarns around the fire is an essential part of the trip (spot the familiar face in the middle).

RHEEM OFF-SITE IS ALL ABOUT FEATURING SOME OF THE INTERESTING OUTDOOR STORIES THAT TRADIES HAVE TO TELL – YOUR STORIES! Send us your best hunting, fishing, diving and outdoors images as well - we have a pair of top Oakley sunglasses to be given away each month for the best image.

Tradies, Rheem off-Site is YOUR magazine. Please share your experiences and adventures with us. You don't have to be a Pulitzer prize-winning writer that is our job!

D! D, PLAY HAR !

WORK HAR , PL AY HARD

WORK HARD

ISSUE 18 2020 APR/MAY TRADIE

PROFILE

PARIS TERNENTJAMES

H HOW TO CATC KINGFISH

TO CLIMBING HT NEW HEIG S

ALSO INSIDE

RIDING THE GHOST

WIN A PAIR OF

Y OAKLEES SUNGLASS

| RHEEM –

S N OF BEAST | THE SEASO IN TOWN ARE BACK THE BOYS

PG 19

TALK TO US SO WE CAN SHARE YOUR STORIES WITH OTHERS. Ethan Neville 021 176 1366 ethan@nzfishingnews.co.nz off-Sitenz

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The owners of Huntech kept the fires roaring.

Some of the boys took some time out to wet their lines.

Nothing better than being rewarded for an early start!

opportunity to stand and deliver some lead into the Pied Piper of the drove of pigs. Bobby dropped him nicely, and we were stoked to have something to chuck on the spit at camp.

Back at camp headquarters, a few gents got a fire lesson from the owners of Huntech who joined the trip that night. The fire was hissing in the homemade pit, and the crew started to unwind. With the pig gutted, skinned and appropriately stuck onto a branch for the fire rotisserie, the boys set up for an

evening of fabricated yarns and taking the mickey out of each other. I sat there for a second as I rotated the small trotter and thought to myself, “How bloody good is this? No wifi, Red Bands stuck to my hooves, a roaring fire, a pig we have harvested crackling away, surrounded by good buggers and away from the rat race of life. Hakuna Matata. The simple life is the best life.” After deleting the pig at pace and lubricating our throats with Waikato’s finest muddy water – Waikato Draught – the boys finally hit the hay after a good shift.

Three satisfied hunters. The trip was just what the guys needed before heading back home to spend four weeks in lockdown.

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Rheem off-Site

The Bang Brothers Let the shrapnel fly and we watched as both deer keeled over in the Grass.

The next morning, we were up at sparrow’s fart to chase some early morning roars we heard on the way back to camp the night before – we were hopeful of bagging ourselves a stag. We split off into groups and marched into the darkness to be in position for first light. It was around 8:00 am when we got our first opportunity. A yearling and a hind were having a graze behind some shrubs. Rossy and Caneo were on the guns and both had shots at the pair of red skins. The bang brothers let the shrapnel fly and we watched as both deer keeled over in the grass.

Stoked! Rossy had his first deer and was buzzing, while our hunting skip Caneo smiled like the Cheshire Cat at the result.

We dressed the deers and the boys sweated out the beers from the night before with a huge carry out of the bush. We got to camp satisfied and salivating. Some boys had a rinse Wim Hof-style in the river, others attacked the eggs and bacon in the hut and some of the other lazy buggers flicked a line in the river at a few trout, to no avail. With the day coming to an end, we were off to settle into our own bubbles for the next five weeks, but it was enough of a taste to leave us gagging for more.

Till next time.

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