rivettingKateTaylor

A taste for adventure… Takapau was blown away last week by someone who already has a chapter in NZ’s history books – and he’s not finished yet!

Perhaps not as global as Sir Edmund Hillary, pictured below, with the object of attention for rivettingkate this week – Jamie Fitzgerald.

Sorry Jamie, you’re not an object… but you know what I mean!

So who is Jamie Fitzgerald?

He is one of the two adventurers in the TV One series First Crossings, which is about to start its second series.

In 2007, Jamie was the first Kiwi to reach the South Pole unsupported on foot with fellow adventurer Kevin Biggar (52 days… I took a picture from his presentation (off the big screen, like the one of Sir Ed) of his body before and after the 52-day expedition – he lost 30kg thanks to dragging a 160kg sled over rough ice complete with torn hamstrings for the second half of the 1200km journey!

Jamie also holds the world record for rowing across the Atlantic Ocean in a row-boat and is a double NZ representative in rowing and surf lifesaving.

His campaign “The Big Walk” saw hundreds of young kiwis have adventurous, learning-based experiences throughout New Zealand.   
I didn’t know this until I googled him, but he also managed the training for 7000 Rugby World Cup 2011 volunteers.

He was in little old Takapau to speak at a fundraising event for Takapau School on Friday night. He spent the afternoon with children  from the school though. Lachlan thought he was just the bees-knees – especially when Jamie chose him to go up the front and put his jacket on.

Jamie calls for volunteers

‘

Lachlan puts on the jacket

and the gloves

then Rebecca pretends to be the wind while Lachlan tries to do up the zip before he gets frostbite (10 seconds!)

The school had a few surprises for him – firstly singing him the Split Enz song Six Months in a Leaky Boat (helped by Jack)

then doing a spot of Jump Jam – in particular Boogie Wonderland from the penguin extravaganza Happy Feet!

From there, Jamie went on to speak to a packed Waipawa Municipal Theatre.

Here are some pictures from his presentation and the auction to follow. Remember they have been shrunk in quality so you don’t have trouble loading them on NZ’s famous rural broadband….

that’s a signed Hawke’s Bay Magpies rugby jersey – one of the many fantastic items up for auction on the night. Black.. White… All right. C’mon the Bay! Whoops, not a rugby blog…

If you ever get the chance to hear Jamie speak please jump at the chance. It’s one of those life-changing moments.

Thank you to the school PTA and Sarah von D in particular for bringing him here and to Rotary for hosting its annual dinner on our behalf. The auction after Jamie’s talk raised more than $16,000 towards a new school bus 🙂 plus profits from ticket sales.

We shall be watching the second series of First Crossings with personal interest now we have met the man.

Thank you Jamie. We wish you luck in your future endeavours – of which I am sure there will be many!