Rotorua Daily Post
  • Rotorua Daily Post home
  • Latest news
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Sport
  • Video
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Residential property listings
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
  • Rural
  • Sport

Locations

  • Tauranga
  • Te Puke
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō & Tūrangi

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales

Weather

  • Rotorua
  • Tauranga
  • Whakatāne
  • Tokoroa
  • Taupō

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Rotorua Daily Post

Covid 19 coronavirus: Rotorua dad gets creative with lockdown boredom busters

David Beck
By David Beck
Multimedia sports journalist·Rotorua Daily Post·
29 Mar, 2020 08:06 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Wakeboarding on the front lawn.
digibanner

Kiwis are well known for their ingenuity - and a Rotorua dad has plenty of it.

Now, with New Zealand at alert level four and in a nationwide Covid-19 lockdown, parents have been forced to think well outside the square to keep their children entertained.

Rotorua dad, Philip Macfarlane, has taken that to the next level with a real demonstration of Kiwi ingenuity.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Most weekends, Macfarlane, his wife Jae-Marie and their children Tane, 11, Rena, 8, and Arie, 5, can be found on a lake, whizzing around on wake boards.

While that isn't an option for them at present, it hasn't stopped this thrill-seeking family finding a solution.

READ MORE:
• Covid 19 coronavirus: More than 1000 deaths in US, amid incomplete reporting
• Covid 19: DJ in the clear after Wellington wedding coronavirus cluster
• Covid 19 coronavirus: Countdown gives priority to over 70s and 'vulnerable customers'
• Covid 19 coronavirus: Campervans set up in Auckland, Christchurch for Kiwi travellers to self-isolate

Macfarlane moved his digger on to the front lawn and attached one of the wakeboarding ropes and handles to it. To the delight of the children they are able to hold on as he spins the digger and slide in circles around the lawn.

"It sort of rocked their world, it's something different," he said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
NeedToKnow3
NeedToKnow3

"They've actually done a lot of the planning themselves, they came up with the idea. We put a bit of water down because it wouldn't slide very well at first and away we went. They originally talked about going down the road behind a vehicle but that wasn't going to happen. They got their mum out there as well, she had a go," Macfarlane said.

"Arie couldn't do the wakeboarding so she unclipped a swing from out back. The boys attached that to the digger bucket for her and we swung her round on that. She wanted to be involved so she got creative herself."

Phillip Macfarlane (left) operates his homemade wake boarding simulator for his son Rena, 8. Photo / Stephen Parker
Phillip Macfarlane (left) operates his homemade wake boarding simulator for his son Rena, 8. Photo / Stephen Parker

He has also set up a half-pipe attached to a trailer for the kids to ride up on and jump with their scooters. He said thinking outside the square to keep them busy was crucial during the lockdown and having something to look forward to keep them motivated during their at-home learning time in the morning.

"It's super important and a lot of these activities they're brainstorming and keeping active - they drew this one up before we did it so we got them planning and designing. I did bring a digger home initially to build some BMX jumps so they've been designing that as well.

Discover more

Teddy bear hunts keep families entertained

26 Mar 11:11 PM

Free pizza delivered to Rotorua's frontline workers

25 Mar 10:14 PM

Giving to others in an uncertain time

31 Mar 01:02 AM

Are the forests open? Stick to open spaces

27 Mar 02:53 AM

"My wife, their mum, is a school teacher and she has them doing work in the morning. It's pretty well structured, their day is planned out and they do have the free time like you would at school. Part of that schoolwork is planning an activity for that day."

Rotorua's Phillip Macfarlane constructed a ramp for his children to ride scooters on during the lockdown. Photo / Supplied
Rotorua's Phillip Macfarlane constructed a ramp for his children to ride scooters on during the lockdown. Photo / Supplied

Macfarlane said his children were an active bunch and it was lucky they got along well during isolation.

"They know they can't go out and play or go to their mate's house - we think it's fairly important for them to have something to look forward to. They do get along well, they're three good mates which helps - they have their moments but they're really good, it's awesome.

"The BMX jumps is the next job and there's talk of them starting on the woodshed roof, coming off that on to a dirt jump and a series of dirt jumps after that. It's a possibility, we've got four weeks."

His oldest son Tane said he felt lucky to be able to do the activities his dad was providing.

"It's very fun, it's pretty sad that you can't leave the house but we can have the privileges of wakeboarding round with the digger and making jumps with the trailer."

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

He said he and his siblings loved being active.

"We're still thinking of other stuff we can do. I like stuff like that cause it's good fitness but you don't have to go for a walk or anything, it's fun."

• Covid19.govt.nz: The Government's official Covid-19 advisory website

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Rotorua Daily Post

Popular Waikato walkway fully reopens after major upgrade

02 Jul 05:00 AM
Rotorua Daily Post

Wet, wet, wet: Rain warning for BoP as more tropical weather looms

01 Jul 11:38 PM
Rotorua Daily Post

Road reopens after person hit by truck

01 Jul 11:24 PM

There’s more to Hawai‘i than beaches and buffets – here’s how to see it differently

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Rotorua Daily Post

Popular Waikato walkway fully reopens after major upgrade

Popular Waikato walkway fully reopens after major upgrade

02 Jul 05:00 AM

The reopening comes seven months behind the original schedule.

Wet, wet, wet: Rain warning for BoP as more tropical weather looms

Wet, wet, wet: Rain warning for BoP as more tropical weather looms

01 Jul 11:38 PM
Road reopens after person hit by truck

Road reopens after person hit by truck

01 Jul 11:24 PM
Why an outspoken leader is resigning and returning to Rotorua

Why an outspoken leader is resigning and returning to Rotorua

01 Jul 10:00 PM
From early mornings to easy living
sponsored

From early mornings to easy living

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Rotorua Daily Post e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Rotorua Daily Post
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP