Mountain Rescue on Mt Difficulty: How a PLB and Teamwork Saved a Life in NZ’s Toughest Off-Road Marathon

What happened?

Once a year, in the highlands of Central Otago, in the depths of Winter, a legendary Mountain race is held. The Mount Difficulty Challenge lives up to its name. It is one of the few off-road mountain marathons in the world that are so steep that competitors need to crawl on their hands and feet to ascend the climbing section. Not for the faint-hearted, the race director never minces words at the pre-race briefing the night before. “If you get lost, you will probably die”. 

Having been a competitor in the past, the race organizers asked me if I could serve as sweeper or ‘tail-end-charlie’ for the 2025 race. Heading out the door that morning, I threw together the compulsory race kit plus my extra big first aid kit (assembled by my nurse wife), and the trusty little rescueme PLB that always accompanied me on adventures.

The race began smoothly as I walked at the rear, chatting with marshals and collecting race markers. I followed the last competitor through the early stages of the course. When the infamous climb started, I smiled to myself. It felt surprisingly relaxed not having the pressure of competing this year.

Then my phone rang. It was the race director. A solo female competitor had taken a bad fall on the ridgeline at the top of the climb. She had phoned for help, but now her phone battery was almost dead. She was cold and in pain with a suspected broken leg, and due to her isolated location, could only be reached on foot. I was ready to drop everything and rush up the mountain until I found her.

The sun was out on the rocky outcrops, but the terrain in the shade hadn’t climbed above freezing and remained frozen solid. Skidding around a rock massif at the top of the ascent 15 minutes later, I found Georgia. She was lying flat against an angled rock, wrapped in a space blanket, and alone.

After a quick assessment and some pain medication, it was clear that she was stable but very cold. She was at risk of hypothermia. I covered her with spare layers, informed the race director, and got a call from NZ rescue in Wellington.

Where was I? Could I be more specific? Did I have a PLB? Yes? Then activate it! So out came my little yellow companion. Up went the aerial,  and for the first time ever, instead of the test button, I hit the red one. The strobe light started flashing. We were going to be ok. “Ok, the helicopter with a paramedic is starting up and will be with you in about 30 minutes.” Just like my heart rate started to decrease. Help was on its way.

I relayed the information to Georgia, who was now very uncomfortable and shivering uncontrollably. She couldn’t be moved in that terrain. I said to her, ‘When the helicopter arrives, they’re going to winch you out, take you to a nice warm hospital in Queenstown, and everything’s going to be OK.‘

I did what I could to minimise her heat loss, and we kept talking to keep her spirits up. About half an hour later, the sweet sound of rotors came over the horizon. I briefly left Georgia’s side to climb to the top of the rocks and give the helicopter crew a wave so they would know they were at the right place. A paramedic dropped down to us, checked Georgia over, and within a few minutes strapped her in and began winching her to safety (see photo.) (The race director advised me a few days later that Georgia was doing well.)

I put all my now available layers back on and slowly made my way off the ridge line and down to the waiting support vehicle in the foothills. Full marks to the NZ rescue coordination centre, the Otago Rescue Helicopter Trust, and one very small but invaluable Ocean Signal rescueME PLB!

Words of wisdom

If you are on the fence about taking your PLB for an easy day trip, just take it. It weighs almost nothing, and things do go wrong when you wouldn’t expect them to. Think of how devastating it would be if you hadn’t taken it but suddenly needed it! Not just for yourself, but if you found someone else in trouble.

Thank you note to the Ocean Signal team

Hi team. I’ve been carrying around a little rescueme PLB1 without incident on every adventure since 2013 (replaced the first one in 2019). It was a great relief to the Wellington Emergency Coordination Centre when they heard that the race volunteer (me) who had located the casualty on a rocky outcrop somewhere on a sparse Mount difficulty ridgeline had a PLB with them. I hit the button and 30 minutes later we heard the chopper. The fast rescue made all the difference in what was freezing winter conditions in the Central Otago mountains. Thanks for creating such an awesome product.