Old high school mates ride together again to raise funds for Cancer Society
Two long-time friends who always wanted to enter the Coast to Coast have finally made that journey – but sitting down the whole way.
North Cantabrians Douglas Moody and Gary Cassidy joined more than 240 other scooter riders on Saturday for this year's Tranz Alpine Scooter Safari, raising funds for the Cancer Society.
The pair have been friends since starting Kaiapoi High School together as 3rd formers in 1980 – 42 years ago.
Moody, based in Loburn, and Cassidy, based in Rangiora, said they were keen to help support the Cancer Society’s work in the region.
“Growing up together, we had always wanted to enter the Coast to Coast as a team,” Moody said.
“Little did we know, eventually we would fulfil that dream albeit sitting down.”
Moody said the trip - which began in Canterbury and traversed the Southern Alps to end in Hokitika - went well, despite the weather.
"Of the six safaris I have taken part in, this was probably the most difficult in terms of weather over the course of the day. We had it all from challenging winds, rain, cold temperatures, and snow on the ground.
"Had we been scheduled to ride the day earlier, we likely wouldn’t have gotten through."
He hoped to raise $2500 towards the overall goal of raising $350,000 this year.
Donations can still be made to scootersafari.org.nz...
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Some Choice News!
DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.
Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.
For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.
Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?
We hope this brings a smile!
Poll: Canterbury is thriving on paper... but are you seeing evidence of Canterbury's improving economy?
As reported in the Press, Reserve Bank Governor Anna Breman recently gave a shout-out to our region, calling Canterbury a "stand-out" for how we recover from tough times. With tech firms growing and exporters investing, the business side of things is looking bright!
👉 But we know that "business growth" doesn't always mean the weekly shop gets any cheaper. While the city expands, many families feel like they’re just trying to keep their heads above water.
We want to know: With the business buzz of 2026, do you feel like things are finally looking up for your household, or does it still feel like a climb?
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22.2% Yes
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50% No
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27.8% In some areas ...
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