THE very mention of those pre-nuptial events commonly known as stag and hen parties conjures up hedonistic images of drunken chaos, strippers and naked men tied to lamp posts.

For years now, the sacrament of marriage has been preceded by another, altogether less Christian ritual, as soon-to-be spouses are subjected to garish dressing up and general humiliation by their so-called friends.

But in recent times, stag and hen nights have evolved into something rather more

sophisticated.

No longer content with having too much to drink down the local, the events have become weekends in Dublin, Amsterdam or, if you've got money to burn, Tenerife.

But the stress and strain of organising ten, 20, or more people to actually get there and back can be equal only to the wedding day itself.

That is where Rawdon-based business Ice Cube steps in. And not only is it stepping in, it is offering a whole new take on the theme.

Because business partners Lorraine Elstone and Karen Procter are convinced there is an alternative to the usual debauchery of a stag or hen night - and it centres around the rather foreign concepts of health and fitness.

"We can get people into fitness," says Lorraine, who throughout the interview is fairly bursting with enthusiasm. "When you're fit, you look good and you feel good.

"Hopefully we're going to get that across and let people know that there's more to life than just going down the pub and drinking, and there's more to hen and stag dos."

It sounds great, particularly when you're looking at Karen and Lorraine, both of whom are great adverts for healthy living.

You can easily understand why the idea is so appealing to them. In fact, just a couple of moments with Lorraine and Karen is enough to induce a severe case of self-loathing.

Their tanned flat stomachs, proudly displayed beneath very cropped tops bearing their

business name Ice Cube, are testimony to many hours spent in the gym. Although that's not the full extent of their energetic lives.

"Lots of people around here know us already because we go out running and cycling together all the time. We'll be out round the shops and people will stop us and say they've seen us together - the fitness twins!" laughs Lorraine.

Such a high profile isn't hard to imagine. Both women look quite similar, with long blonde hair and lithe figures, and their self-promotion through the t-shirts is a good way of advertising the developing business.

Lorraine, a 25-year-old personal assistant and Karen, a 30-something fitness instructor, met through the gym and what is obviously a solid working

relationship was formed from there.

Unsurprisingly, they say their best business ideas are thought up when they're exercising. Lorraine says: "We come up with tons and tons of ideas when we go out running or cycling, it seems to get our brains going."

Continuing this line of conversation - as they often do for each other - Karen adds: "And because we do a lot of sport, it gives us the energy to form this business and to take the strains and stresses off the shoulders of our

customers.

"We're quite willing to tackle anything. If people have their own ideas and they want a certain package, they can come to us and we will do all the work to make sure it's in place for them."

They hope packages for health spas and beauty treatments will appeal to both young and older women, while for the men, golfing weekends are poised to be popular getaways.

Karen is keen to stress they are not only offering stag or hen nights out. "We'll do just normal weekends away for groups of

people who want to do something different - be it rock climbing,

skiing or canoeing. It doesn't

necessarily have to be a wedding party," she says.

But their emphasis does remain on the more active types of

pursuits. Lorraine explains they have a 'double mission'. "We want to try and get people to be more active and enjoy themselves like we do - that's why we're so

energetic.

"More and more people can be like that and really, as well as providing good weekends away, we're just trying to persuade them to get fit and reap the benefits. Like us - it's such a buzz!" she adds excitedly.

Sitting with them both, looking and listening to such vigour and enthusiasm, it's easy to be

convinced.

But I can't help but wonder if people are ready to give up their frenzied drunken reels in nightclubs in favour of backpacking in the Scottish Highlands.

Lorraine is quick to point out that Ice Cube is happy to provide parties with trips to nightclubs, although 'perhaps after a day relaxing in a health spa or going to the beauticians', she muses.

And they will book coaches and check out clubs in advance to travel to Manchester, Newcastle or London to savour some of the prime hotspots around the

country.

But the ethos remains very healthy. Because Karen and Lorraine feel that they reap such rewards from their own lifestyles, they find it difficult to imagine that others won't be seduced by it as well.

And it is certainly what helps to drive them on. Not content with such small beginnings they are looking to build an empire from Karen's house in Greenacre Park Mews.

"One or the other of us will probably give up work to run the business full time and then we'll look to doing entire wedding packages - the cars, flowers, photographer and that sort of thing. It's going to be big, massive," says Lorraine.

Such conviction is admirable. And if both apply themselves with equal discipline as they do to pounding the pavements of Aireborough, quite realistic.

The only thing that remains is to convert an entire generation for whom stag and hen 'dos' depend wholly on the quality and quantity of alcohol on offer.

No mean feat but as bored 20-somethings continue to search for something new, you wouldn't bet against their chances.

l For more information about Ice Cube's party arrangements, contact Karen or Lorraine on (0113) 2508383.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.