Rebus Club
The Taupō Moana Rebus club celebrated its 20th birthday on July 21. Fifty-seven members came together for lunch at Sorrento in Taupō where an enjoyable time was had by all and with the usual banter between members. It was significant that two of our Foundation Members (both still active in the club) were there to blow out the candles and cut the birthday cake.
At our meeting on July 26 we had two quality speakers. Roger Smitherman spoke on the cyclone in Apia Harbour in 1889. The harbour was full of ships, including nine warships, three German, three American and three British. Could this have been a precursor of Wwr in the Pacific?
HMS Calliope manage to steer out of the harbour only managing I knot, but did manage to get out to sea and ride out the cyclone. All the other vessels in the harbour foundered and many lives were lost. Nature had the last say and probably prevented war in the Pacific.
Our second speaker was Mike Dunstall from Contact Energy talking on the geothermal future. What we are seeing now is the beginning of an era in this geothermal region.
The new Te Tauhara station, on Broadlands Rd, was started in 2021 to be completed in 2023. There will be low emissions and surface piping will be painted green. Much local content is going into this project, all good for Taupo’s economy as maximum use of local resources has been a policy of the company. Mike advised the company is running at 85 per cent renewable energy and the intent is to reduce reliance on other fuels as each development is undertaken.
Both talks were enlightening and interesting.
If you are interested in joining Rebus and having fun and friendship, hearing interesting speakers and participating in regular outings contact taupomoanarebus@xtra.co.nz and arrange to attend a meeting as a guest to see if it’s for you.