NEPTUNE - The middle and high school students were hoping for a cushier ride on this year's ski trip and they were willing to work for it.

They sold candy and snacks at sports games. They worked with local restaurants like Bruno's Pizza and Bubbakoo's Burrito to host fundraiser nights.

But 33 students and seven adults showed up at Neptune Middle School early Saturday morning for the long-awaited ski trip only to find the charter bus they had worked to pay for had not.

The lack of transportation meant Saturday's ski trip to the Jack Frost Mountains was canceled.

"They were distraught. For at least eight of them, it was their first time to go skiing," said Mike Hyland, one of the advisers of Neptune Middle School Ski and Snowboarding Club.

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Hyland said he got a voicemail on his phone at 5:18 a.m. from US Coachways, the charter bus company, saying their bus was having mechanical issues.

Check out the video at the top of the page for a first hand view of the ride down one of Vail's signature ski slopes.

When he called back, the representative told him they were looking for a replacement bus — as well as a replacement driver.

Hyland called US Coachways at least twice more for updates about the bus. No luck.

By 6:20 a.m., as students were starting to arrive for the trip, hope was lost. Hyland said the representative told him they still had not found a bus or driver.

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Even if they found a bus right then, he estimated it would take about an hour to an hour and a half for the bus to get from Staten Island to Neptune.

Plus, Hyland said he had no way to open the school, leaving kids waiting in below freezing temperatures.

Joseph Heap, chief marketing officer for US Coachways, said a sick driver was a reason for the delay. He said he was unaware of any mechanical issue with the bus.

The driver called in sick at 1:30 a.m. and the company began looking for a replacement, Heap said. A representative called Hyland at 5 a.m. to let the school group know about the issue, Heap said.

US Coachways was still trying to look for a driver, but understood when the group decided to cancel, he said. Heap said he had spoken to US Coachways management, who was offering to provide a free bus for a replacement trip.

"Our clients are extremely important to us obviously. We always want to try to do the right thing," Heap said.

Hyland said he had not heard from US Coachways about the free bus offer but was glad one had been made.

The ski club is self-supported, Hyland said. That means the students have to either host fundraisers or pay out of pocket for the costs of trips.

But they opted to raise the money for a charter bus after an uncomfortable three-hour ride on school buses last year, he said. The charter bus cost about $50 of the $135 cost for the trip, he said.

Several parents who planned to go on the trip did decide to drive over themselves once they realized the charter bus was canceled. Hyland said ski resort, Jack Frost Big Boulder, honored the group rate for those who did drive themselves after hearing about the ski club's predicament.

Parent Katie Denberg was one of the parents waiting outside the school with her son, Zachary, Saturday morning.

Ultimately, Zachary did get to go when one of his friend's parents, who had been planning to go skiing with the kids that day, decided she would drive them.

Denberg said that while she was glad her son was able to go, she was saddened by the dozens more students whose plans were dashed that day.

Her son and his friends had met up the night before to plan all of the details of their trip — what they were going to buy for lunch at the resort, whether they were going to ski, snowboard or both. She imagined other students had done the same.

"This had been a big deal for a long time," she said. "There was just so much excitement and with that excitement even more heartbreak."

Denberg said offering the free bus trip was "the right thing to do," but wasn't ready to fully absolve US Coachways.

"This is a big company. How do you not have enough employees to run a company this size?" she said.

Susanne Cervenka: @scervenka; 732-643-4229; scervenka@gannettnj.com