Ross Lawrence - Snow man

He tried farming and the freezing works before the lure of ‘good fun’ landed Ross Lawrence his dream job as a liftie at Whakapapa in 1984.

Ross was immediately “hooked”, that job opening doors in what became a successful 40-year career in the ski industry.

He may have started out working in jeans and a heavy PVC parka, PVC pants if it was snowing, but Ross quickly worked his way up through the ranks, ski area management becoming his passion. He resigned as Remarkables Ski Area manager early last year after 17 years and “a brilliant career”.

Born in Ingelwood, Taranaki, Ross’s dad was a Forest Service nurseryman, the family living in Woodville before moving to Havelock North.

A creative kid in music and art that was curtailed back then in favour of “something more practical”, so Ross, loving the outdoors, opted for farming, summer jobs at the Whakatu Freezing Works in Hastings – “a real eye opener,” he grins.

A stint for a cropping contractor preceded a Diploma in Agriculture at Massey, also an education of sorts. The young farmers’ sons straight from school were “diabolical but fun”. “They took a goat into the Fitzherbert Pub and tried to give it a few beers.”

Ross – that much more mature at 20 or 21, had had to complete a year’s farmwork first – at Mokaha, near Taupo, and on a 2832.7ha Lands and Survey block, Te Rangi Station, but loved the parties at uni.

It was time to get serious, so an uncle invited him south to Centre Bush, near Winton, in 1983 to go share farming. “I went to the bank at 23 to find out interest rates were 24%.” He worked for his uncle for a year before his brother suggested he be a liftie at Whakapapa.

“That was my introduction to the industry, and it was so much fun in such a unique environment.”

In the 1985 season he worked for cash in a restaurant kitchen and Pasta Bar in Steamboat Springs, skiing 120 days. “I really got hooked.” He later did a liftie exchange to Heavenly Valley.

Ross stayed 10 years at Whakapapa, moving up the ranks as T-Bars replaced rope tows and platters, living up the mountain working on summer development and cooking for snow groomer crews in winter.

They opened summer chairlift rides to Knoll Ridge Café and Ross instigated and led guided walks up to the crater at the top of Mount Ruapehu. “I was the first guide, doing over 400 trips up there. We’d slide delighted customers 200m at a time on snow down the glacier.”

He joined RARO – Ruapehu Alpine Rescue Organisation, in demand for some of the notorious mountain’s most daring rescues. Ross led the desperate 1990 search for 13 young Army training personnel trapped in a blizzard. Six died. “It was a complete white out. When Police let us go up in a groomer we ended up going round in a circle.” Miraculously, Ross spotted “some black dots where there were no rocks”. They managed to get seven out alive. “They’d built a snow cave and were in it. They should’ve stayed put but the tunnel was getting longer so they went out into the snowstorm trying to make a nearby hut.” It was one of NZ’s worst alpine tragedies and Ross featured in a documentary about it.

He and wife Pam, who he’d met at Whakapapa, married at Chateau Tongariro in 1991.

A week out from Pam delivering their second child Ross started work at Rainbow Valley, Marlborough, where the year-round sandflies and wasps were unbearable.

Two seasons later they moved to Methven where Ross was Mount Hutt assistant manager for 10 years overseeing big growth before Sir John Davies suggested Coronet Peak manager Duncan Smith invite him south.

The kids were in high school then and it was “like prizing them out of concrete” but six months in they were sold, Ross says.

He’s always led by example – first to arrive usually around 5.30am and last to leave near 6pm.

His charismatic personality made him a perfect social media presenter, happy to do whatever it took to entice punters up the hill.

Ross oversaw the evolving of huge Terrain Park development and snowmaking investment, the new base lodge opening in 2015. “That brought us into the realm of a ski area destination.”

Road sealing and the Sugar Bowl high speed chair followed, Ross enjoying some overseas research trips to the US, Italy and Austria.

He made some unique advancements in biodiversity trying to leave The Remarkables land they’d developed better than it was before. “That was my passion.” Every seed was harvested to propagate, even biddy-bids, using a hand-held Dustbuster.

Now doing “odd jobs” he and Pam are enjoying time with a new grandchild in Auckland.

Ross is “over the moon” about being made a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit in the recent King’s Birthday Honours.

“It’s certainly unexpected. I loved my job and put my heart and soul into it, but I really appreciate the recognition. It’s definitely humbling.”