Shotover Jet drivers "thrilled and proud" with career-highlight Royal trip

The two Shotover Jet drivers chosen to drive the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the rest of the Royal party today (April 13) said they were thrilled to have been part of the big day and described it as “a career highlight”.

Shotover Jet operations manager Wayne Paton, 43, and head boat driver Nick Simpson, 39, were handpicked for the role thanks to their dedication to jet boating, extensive industry knowledge and the sheer number of hours spent on the water with passengers.

Wayne, originally from Christchurch, and Nick from mid-Canterbury, have worked for Shotover Jet for 13 and ten years respectively.

While both admitted to being “a few butterflies” on the day, Wayne took the wheel of the boat containing the Duke and Duchess, while Nick followed close behind with other members of the Royal party.

“When we step in that boat we’re responsible for everyone on board, but we know what we’re doing out there,” said Wayne.

“I’ve done over 10,000 trips and I’m in charge of all driver training and assessments, so while these are obviously the most high-profile people we’ve ever had on board, at the end of the day they’re customers looking for an amazing adrenalin experience and we treated them just like that.”

Wayne said he talked to the Duke and Duchess and others on the boat about how jet boating was invented by a New Zealander, the river’s gold history and pointed out landmarks such as Coronet Peak along the way.

“Yes there were some nerves but I feel safer driving the boat than I do driving my car home, because it’s what we do as a job.”

He said he’d been surprised by sight of thousands of people lining the Shotover River en route. It’s the most I’ve ever seen.

“The Duke was “right into the trip. He even asked me a couple of times to go closer to the canyon walls,” he said.

“They had a blast, so that’s my job well done.”

Nick, who has driven nearly 13,000 trips on the Shotover River, said the day had started as every other one did, with the drivers and mechanics going over each boat in painstaking detail.

“Maintenance is second-to-none in our world, and that’s why Shotover Jet is so proactive in our maintenance programmes and driver training.

“Yes, we operate in an amazing and fun environment, but its safety first and fun second, that can’t be emphasised enough.

“We’ve got 100% trust in our boats and as far as being on the river, as drivers it’s our ‘happy place’.

“Out of all the VIPs we’ve taken down the river over the years, it would be hard to top taking these young members of the Royal family.”

About Shotover Jet

The multi tourism award-winning attraction is owned and operated by Ngāi Tahu Tourism, and is respected as one of New Zealand’s leading tourism innovators.

Shotover Jet has thrilled over three million people since 1970 when tourism operators started using jet boats powered by a revolutionary water jet system invented by legendary New Zealander Sir William (Bill) Hamilton.

From the moment the accelerator hits the floor, the adrenaline hits the roof as passengers speed in mere centimetres of water along the famous Shotover River and deep into the spectacular Shotover River Canyons.

It’s an amazing white water ride, as the Shotover Canyon walls tower over passengers and the boat’s expert driver puts the ‘Big Red’ jet boat through its paces and skilfully whips it past rocky outcrops, skims around crags and boulders, and speeds through the dramatic and narrow canyons.

Rock faces blur and water sprays into myriads of white water crystals with every turn as passengers speed in their state-of-the-art ‘Big Red’ jet boat at up to 85kph over water as shallow as 10cm.

For more information about Shotover Jet, ‘The World’s Most Exciting Jet Boat Ride’ visit www.shotoverjet.com


SHOTOVER JET ‘Royal’ Fast Facts 2014

• The original Māori name for the Shotover River was ‘Kimi-ākau’  meaning “searching for the coast” – perhaps a reference to it being used as a trail to the West Coast to find pounamu (greenstone)
• The first European name for the river was ‘The Tummel’ – named by Scottish explorers Cameron and MacDonald after a river in Scotland
• The river was named Shotover by William Rees, the first European to settle on the shores of Lake Wakatipu in 1860. He named it after his business partner George Gammie's English estate, Shotover Park in Oxfordshire
• Shotover Jet has been operating since 1970 and has thrilled over three million people
• Boats carry 14 passengers and one driver
• Shotover Jet operates 364 days a year (weather permitting) – every day except Christmas Day
• It is known as ‘The World’s Most Exciting Jet Boat Ride’
• The Shotover River was the richest gold-bearing river in New Zealand following the Otago Gold Rush in the 1860s
• The spectacular Shotover River Canyons were carved out over thousands of years by crystal-clear fast-flowing water that comes straight from the Southern Alps
• The river is 60 km long and the Shotover Jet trip covers return trips on a 7km stretch from the Oxenbridge Tunnel to Tucker Beach
• Premier tourism operator Ngāi Tahu Tourism took 100% ownership of Shotover Jet in 2004
• The distinctive Edith Cavell Bridge, under which the jet boats travel, was named after famed British nurse Edith Cavell, executed by the Nazis after admitting to harbouring Allied soldiers. The 100th anniversary of her death is next year (2015)
• Winters are sometimes so cold the river can freeze over – in July 1991 and June 1992 it froze from bank to bank, temporarily bringing trips to a halt
• After heavy rainfall in the Southern Alps the water can flow at up to 150 cumecs (cubic metre per second) – again temporarily bringing trips to a halt. Average flow over the last two months has been 10 cumecs
• The jet boats’ innovative propulsion system, the Hamilton Waterjet, was designed over 50 years ago by legendary Kiwi inventor Sir William (Bill) Hamilton
• Shotover Jet’s boat interiors are based on a single-piece carbon fibre ‘fifth generation’ prototype mould that contains 14 built-in passenger seats
• The famous ‘Big Red’ boats travel at speeds of up to 85kmh (53mph) in as little as 10cm of water
• Boats are specifically designed to handle the Shotover River Canyons and each generates up to a 660 horse power from two 5.8 litre Mercruiser V8 engines
• Each of the two Hamilton jet units expels 350 litres of water per second to power the boats
• Shotover Jet offers Queenstown’s only full 360-degree spins and more. Will you get wet? Very likely – it’s all part of the fun
• Highly-trained professional drivers know the boats and river like the back of their hand -- each undergoes a minimum of 120 hours rigorous training (over double the industry requirement) before carrying their first passenger
• Shotover Jet maintenance programmes are based on the aviation sector’s ‘reliability-centred maintenance’ (RCM) philosophy
• Shotover Jet is an iconic ‘must do’ attraction, receiving many awards and accolades and widely regarded as a world leader in commercial jet boating
• The Queen visited Shotover Jet in 1990 but unlike her more adventurous grandson she did not take a boat trip
• Some of the other people who have enjoyed Shotover Jet through the years:

            o Prime Minister John Key
            o Actress Brooke Shields
            o Singer Kenny Rogers
            o Former Formula 1 World Champion Damon Hill
            o Actor Hugh Jackman
            o Opera singer Kiri Te Kanawa
            o Sir Ian McKellen
            o Sir Peter Jackson
            o Actor Ryan Reynolds
            o Singer Alanis Morissette


CAPTION:  Shotover Jet boat drivers Wayne Paton and Nick Simpson were "thrilled" take out their Royal passengers today (Sunday April 13).