Crazy Extreme Activities at Velocity Valley Rotorua – Day 286, Part 1

Today we are experiencing four extreme adventures in one and relaxing in the Polynesian Spa.

This morning we are arriving at Velocity Valley which is 10-15 minutes drive from Rotorua city centre for a day that starts on a high.

Velocity Valley is like an extreme theme park with loads of different really adventurous adrenaline activities to do and the first thing we’re trying out is something called the Shweeb.

Ok so Shweeb might be the most ridiculous name ever but it’s a really fun concept. it’s basically an upside-down bike inside a capsule on a rail where you can give it all into an amazing one on one racing.

After a really quick safety briefing we are told that basically we are going to be like biking but sitting down and laying down and it’s just a really weird feeling all in all but it’s really cool because the whole capsule is transparent we can watch each other and race each other it’s really fun and team every single time we do a loop is like boosting us with giving us the time and telling us that the other one is literally just right behind it’s a full on competition cos you know Laura and I we are pretty competitive.

We get to do about three laps of the Shweeb and with each lap we get more and more momentum which means we’re getting faster and faster and the monorail sort of goes up and down giving us more momentum as well and on the outside of our capsules we have a camera which is filming the entire thing and taking loads of photos which is really cool.

After Robin has demonstrated that he is the ultimate Shweeber cos he got the best time we are moving onto our second activity at Velocity Valley which is the Freefall Xtreme.

Before we experience this activity for ourselves though one of the team from Velocity Valley is giving us a sneak peak at the thing that powers Freefall Xtreme which is a twin turbo Detroit diesel V12 powering at 200km/h.

What the hell is Freefall Xtreme you may ask well Freefall Xtreme is basically skydiving without having to jump out of a perfectly good plane.

After a really quick briefing we are being told how to stand above this massive turbine and then we head outside.

Then the team is gonna be handling us and helping us find the perfect position when basically skydiving without really skydiving. it’s a really cool feeling when you feel completely weightless you feel like flying right above those guys they helping us put ourselves in really fun positions and actually experiment a little bit with the wind. It’s a great way to practice your skydiving skills if you need to.

Man that is absolutely epic it is so cool. Fuck I loved every second of it. If you didn’t catch my drift I really did have fun then it’s Laura’s turn and because Laura is much lighter than I am the team is really having fun. they are pushing here in every kind of position and she actually does some tricks that I didn’t do at all it’s so much fun to watch here actually flying above those guys.

And when her turn is finished I realise she got a free haircut.

How was that Laura?

Awesome. My face.

You’re haircut is absolutely amazing.

How does it look?

After that insane experience we are totally ready to try something else at Velocity Valley so the next thing we’re gonna be trying is a thing called the Swoop which is pretty much like a giant swing.

Robin and I are put into some really unusual harnesses where we’re lying down on our bellies and we kind of look like a couple of beached whales being taken off the beach. We are then raised about 140ft over Velocity Valley and released into the air.

Woah, that is the most extreme swing I have ever done and you can reach speeds of about 130km/h apparently if you are heavy enough. For Robin and I we probably don’t reach those speeds but it really feels like it.

There was even a second right at the beginning of the swing where we did a little bit of a freefall before swooping and getting loads of momentum to get that speed.

But for our next activity we are remaining at ground level as we hop into the jet boat.

As soon as we board on the boat we meet Brendon which is going to be our pilot today yes he’s a pilot he’s not a captain he’s not a driver he’s a pilot and he has a background in racing. He’s going to be driving this 450 horse power v8 engine that goes from 0 to 100km/h in a matter of seconds.

As soon as he steps on the peddle the boat roar and goes at a super fast speed around this tiny lake. this whole course has been especially designed for a tiny jet boat it’s super maneuverable and we get some really sharp turns giving us some extreme g-force.

It’s really interesting at that speed that we actually have the sensation of gliding even flying above the water we don’t really feel like we are on the water. It’s very very weird and it’s really something to try because it goes super fast.

Because we’re doing multiple loops around this little lake we get to actually know the track a little better so sometimes we get to expect the turn but even when it’s a turn that we know is about to happen it still straps us so far back on our seats I really don’ t know how Brendon is successfully handling that boat at this speed with such a finesse. And it’s after our last 360 degree spin that we are managing to make it back alive in one piece onto the docking station.

That is really the best way to end a day at Velocity Valley but now I think that Laura and I have some well deserved pampering to do.

Next time on New Zealand’s Biggest Gap Year Day 286 part 2 we are heading to the Polynesian Spa. This famous hot pools right in the centre of Rotorua is famous for its mineral and geothermal waters so join us next time and subscribe so you don’t miss any of our awesome episodes of New Zealand’s Biggest Gap Year.

As we are rising Robin is just saying in my ear like oh my god that’s high, aw that’s high, oh that’s higher than I thought, ooo it’s pretty high isn’t it, aw it’s high. So we’ve established we are pretty high above the adventure park right now.