Mission Briefing
- The Objective: 155 students housed in 35 tents with a Camping fit-out, Sunday to Thursday, in the middle of peak school camp season.
- The Partner: Bigfoot Adventures Limited, the camp management company that coordinates the camp and acts as the link between us and the school.
- The Track Record: Our fourth deployment with Bigfoot Adventures.
- The Squeeze: Six deployments across the week, including two midweek: the school camp and Underground, a corporate festival in Christchurch with 23 tents.
- The Weekends Either Side: A festival the weekend before with 35 bell tents and 34 pyramid tents, and another event the weekend after [CONFIRM: number of tents].
- The Conditions: Torrential rain.
Peak Season: All Hands on Deck
We usually work weekend events, and the midweeks are for rest, recovery and getting the fleet ready to go again. In peak season that rhythm doesn't always hold. Recently we had a school camp running Sunday to Thursday for 155 students at the same time as a midweek corporate festival in Christchurch, with festivals and events on the weekends either side.
Working With Bigfoot Adventures
Bigfoot Adventures Limited is the camp management company behind the camp. They coordinate everything and sit between us and the school, so we work with them while they work with the school. This was our fourth deployment with Bigfoot, so the drill is well rehearsed. [ADD: link to the Bigfoot Adventures website and a line from them, if you'd like to include one]
The Objective: 155 Students, 35 Tents
The camp ran from Sunday to Thursday, with 155 students sleeping in 35 tents in a Camping fit-out. Camping is our simple, budget-friendly option, with foam mattresses and a base sheet, and it is a straightforward way to give a large group a proper roof over their heads.
Stretched Supply Lines
While the school camp was underway, Underground, a corporate festival in Christchurch with 23 tents, was running midweek at the same time. The weekend before, we had a festival with 35 bell tents and 34 pyramid tents, and while that festival was on we also had an event in Ohukuri. The weekend after, we had another event of 21 tents.
That made six deployments across the week, two of them midweek. In places it meant packing a site down and pitching somewhere else on the same day to make sure the tents were ready in time.
Hostile Weather: Torrential Rain
Then the rain arrived. It was torrential, and we still pulled it off for the school camp. The Heavens opened and our deployment was swift but effective. The team was cold and drenched through, which only made them work more efficiently than ever!
The Debrief: What the School Said
The school came back with a glowing review and photos of the student. It was the 4 iteration of the camp, and so the camp new they loved the tents as a feature school camp option. This time they scaled up. Still a 5 night hire, still 155 users was no small feat - peak season.
The Takeaway
School camps don't have to mean dorm rooms. Tents give a large group a real camping experience, and peak season is when the fleet and the crew get stretched. The lesson is the same as always: plan early, communicate clearly and be ready to adapt when the weather and the calendar don't cooperate.
Planning a school camp, an outdoor education trip or extra capacity for your venue? See our school camps page or get in touch to plan your own deployment.
Mission: Accomplished.
Leave a comment