Hoping to be flash in the pan
Three members of a Queenstown family competing in next month's world gold-panning champs in Spain hope to replicate the success they've enjoyed at national gold-panning champs.
Three-time national champ Amelia Gatward-Ferguson, her dad David, a two-time winner, and mum Amanda, a one-time winner, are part of the 'Black Pans' New Zealand team also comprising Cromwell's Odette Hopgood and Terry Davis.
The Gatward-Ferguson family have also competed at worlds in the United States in 2016, in Scotland in 2017 and in Czech Republic last year.
"We've yet to show our true potential at the worlds," David says.
He explains they got into the sport as gold-panning tours feature in their business, Nomad Safaris.
The sport involves sifting buckets of dirt to find gold flecks in as quick a time as possible, with time penalties imposed for every fleck missed.
During the champs in Navelgas, Spain, from August 3 till 9, the New Zealand contingent will also be encouraging fellow competitors to attend the worlds in Cromwell in late September/early October next year.
Davis says they're hoping for 400 to 500 entrants.
It'll be a great event for the Central Lakes area, he adds.
"These are keen people, a lot of them got really excited when it was announced it was going to be in NZ.
"A lot of them are from northern Europe, and those guys are rolling in money."
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