Turoa Weather Forecasting Team

The Team

Mark Lolesi, Field Operations Manager, Turoa Ski Area

Mark has worked at Turoa off and on since 1992, doing 6 seasons in total on road crew between 1992 and 2003.

When he came to work at Ruapehu in 1992 he'd never touched snow before but he obviously enjoyed the experience as he stuck around for four seasons before returning to Auckland where he grew up. In 2004 he moved to a lift supervisor position and since 2007 has been Field Operations Manager.

In his current role Mark is responsible for making calls each morning as to whether the ski area will open and which lifts will run. Being up with the play on the forecast is therefore extremely important. He consults with 3-4 different forecasts around 3-4 times every day.

Chris Emmett, Safety Services Manager, Turoa Ski Area

Chris started working for Turoa as a lift operator back in 1990 and has been in his present role as Safety Services Manager since 1999.

Chris enjoys working in the ski industry and uses the constant challenges that Mt Ruapehu throws at him to heep himself motivated. He's originally a Tauranga boy but Ohakune is now his home and he maintains that it is also the most central town in NZ to all the good surfing spots.

Weather has a huge influence on the daily decisions Chris has to make in his role. He's known around the office to always have a strong opinion on what the weather is going to do so his predictions are now being put to the test!