Bocce, beer and banter. That’s the intoxicating new blend putting smiles on people’s faces this winter at Hi-Wire Brewing’s RAD Beer Garden in Asheville, North Carolina.

The Asheville Bocce Club has launched a winter league at the brewery, with the help of two portable bocce ball courts from Packaworld.

Hi-Wire Brewing Co-Founder Chris Frosaker says the new inflatable courts are being used in the indoor area at Hi-Wire’s newest location, which functions as a distribution centre and features a large beer garden constructed from up-cycled shipping containers.

“While the beer garden is great in summer, the venue is also ideal for a winter indoor bocce league due to its sheer size – 28,000 square feet,” Chris says. “There is a lot of space to spread out and do something unique.”

Portable bocce ball courts are from Packaworld are helping to pump up bocce participation in one of the world’s windiest cities.

Special Olympics Wellington has purchased two Competition Packabocce courts to help grow bocce in New Zealand’s capital and to ensure players can train in all weather.

Bert Warda, the head bocce coach at Special Olympics Wellington, says the high-quality inflatable courts are helping athletes maximise training sessions for future competition.

“It’s fantastic to be able to take them indoors or outdoors depending on the conditions, and the timing is perfect as our region’s bocce players prepare for the Special Olympics National Summer Games in Hamilton in December 2022.”

Packaworld has launched a campaign to bring Visually Impaired Rugby to Paralympic Games. 

Run with the support of UK Charity The Change Foundation, the campaign aims to raise the profile of the sport and further its case to be played at the Paralympic Games in future.

“Rugby is a way of life where we are based in New Zealand,” says Packaworld Chief Executive Peter Roberts.

“We’d love to see pathways created for our rugby-mad visually impaired athletes to compete at the highest level globally. If we can get a full scrum of supporters packed down behind us, there’s no telling where the sport can go.”

A New Zealand business with a reputation for world-first innovations is continuing to make sport accessible to all with the official launch of Packaline – temporary indoor line markings designed for use in leisure and recreation centres.

Designed by Wellington’s Packaworld International, Packaline allows leisure facility managers and sports coordinators to mark temporary courts of play without damage to expensive flooring.

Packaworld Chief Executive Peter Roberts said the lines were originally designed for the Paralympic sport of boccia, which is played by athletes in wheelchairs. 

“Our lines are specially designed to sit on top of the floor, allowing them to be rolled out and rolled up as needed," Mr Roberts said.