Dozens of skiers and boarders queued excitedly for the first runs of the season, none more so than Cougar (8), Tim and Tallulah Bryant (6), of Queenstown, who had been waiting there since 5.45am.
Tim, who worked as Coronet Peak race and events department head for eight years, said he had tried to scoop the coveted first-on-the-mountain position for four years.
He and his children, along with Australian teen Rebecca O'Reilly (16), were stoked to be the first people on the lift.
Soon, as hundreds upon hundreds of skiers and snowboarders flocked to the mountain, turning the available slopes into bustling fields of colour, 50 entrants in the Speight's dog derby readied themselves for their big day.
Each entrant picked up their pooch to ride the Meadows Express chairlift before running down the Big Easy ski trail, faithful hound in tow, with Thomas Kugler, of Queenstown, the first of the "townies" to cross the line with his Border collie cross, Piva.
The remaining 28 "country" entrants tried to whistle their dogs back up the hill around a marker, prompting a cacophony of whistling, barking, shouting and, in some cases, indifference on the part of the dogs.
Reigning champion from 2010 Troy Macdonald, of Athol, took home the title once more, successfully whistling his heading dog, Max, through the winning flags amid the mayhem.
Later, the good old-fashioned fun continued in Queenstown's Earnslaw Park, where more than 30 people and their dogs took part in the Speight's dog barking contest. Beating the rest of a very loud bunch was Manson, a huntaway owned by John Broughton from Ohai.
The festivities continued with the Alpine Health and Fitness ladies fashion challenge, where a bevy of ladies revealed their hard-earned transformation.
Today, teams will fight it out dodge ball style in the Speight's summit dodgeball championship at Earnslaw Park at noon, followed by the American Honey Coronet concert featuring the bands Mercury Crowe and Mile High on the deck at Coronet Peak at 1pm.
Finally, this weekend features Mountain Mayhem at Coronet Peak, the NZ cyclocross championship at Jardine Park, the Southern Stampede v Botany Swarm ice hockey match, the Stoneleigh jazz night at Skyline, the Quiksilver BoxZilla challenge for freestyle skiers and snowboarders at The Remarkables and The Life of Pinot, with Peter Thornley, at the Wakatipu Grill at the Hilton Hotel.
