The ceremony saw dignitaries, community members and business people gather in the Cashmere Forest with the sparkling new village as a backdrop, surrounded by the Port Hills. Local iwi blessed the site with Mayor Lianne Dalziel cutting the ribbon to announce the park officially open. Riders ranging in age from 7 years of age to 50 then adorned the trails giving a flavor of things to come once the doors are open.
Christchurch Mayor Lianne Dalziel is excited for what the opening of the Christchurch Adventure Park will do for the region. “In Christchurch we have always prided ourselves as having a great location– bordered by the coastline and the Canterbury Plains, close to the Port Hills and in sight of the mountains. We are the international gateway to the South Island.
“This Park takes our city to another level as this is the only purpose-built park of its kind in the world. It’s going to be open 365 days a year and is the largest mountain bike park in the Southern Hemisphere - right here in this beautiful forest, only 17 minutes bike ride from the city or a 15 minute drive to the airport” Mayor Dalziel says.
She paid tribute to Fiona Sutton and the Select Evolution team. “It was only nine months ago when we turned the first sod.”
The $24 million development is a unique and innovative public-private funded initiative. It sees a partnership between the New Zealand Government, Christchurch City Council’s Development Christchurch Ltd, private investors from New Zealand and overseas coming together to support this initiative.
“This vindicates the decision of Council to set up a development company, so that we can do things in a new and innovative way,” she said
The Christchurch Adventure Park sits on 900 acres of forested land known as the Cashmere Forest. Stage One of the development will house kilometers of mountain bike routes, 2km of zip lines through the forest, sightseeing, rock climbing a café bar seating up to 180 people as well as a 4 seater high speed chair lift that will be able to transport up to 1200 adventure seekers per hour.
Select Evolution, the mastermind behind the Adventure Park, is delighted to realize many years of hard work. “The idea was originally conceived prior to the earthquakes. We looked at many sites around the world but this one stood out. It is a truly special place and I can’t wait to see the look on people’s faces when they ride the chair, take their first ride down the trail or experience the zipline or just to come and have a drink in the café nestled in the forest. That’s what building an adventure park is all about, the people." Select Evolution Chair, Fiona Sutton says.
The Christchurch Adventure Park is the largest mountain bike park in the Southern Hemisphere and will be the world’s first bike park to operate 365 days a year. The purpose built high-speed chair lift for carrying bikes and people to the top of the mountain is the longest in New Zealand at 1.8km long. While the four legged, dual zip line tour will see adventure seekers flying 180m above the forest floor.
The Christchurch Adventure Park has opened its doors initially to their Stoke Pass Holders, 1500 individuals who bought early bird tickets. The Park will open its doors to the general public today.
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