Press Releases for three different events have just arrived: The Southern Traverse, The Trust Power Adventure Quest and the Moa Hunt.
Moa Hunt
There are three categories this year:
Pro/Elite Moa (guys and girls, gun start, Bike NZ registered)
Moa Madness (for the enduro MTB freaks its twice round)
Mini Moa is using a 21km course with not so much climbing and perfect for the rider just getting into the sport. This has the same individual categories as the longer event accept there are no options for teams or tandems.
ADVENTURE RACING PROMOTED THROUGH 24 HOURS OF SOUTHERN TRAVERSE
Two high profile New Zealand adventure industry companies - Fairydown and Southern Traverse Ltd - are proactively working to encourage the growth of adventure racing in New Zealand, by creating new initiatives in this year's Fairydown 24 Hours of Southern Traverse, in Queenstown on November 15-16.
Southern Traverse Race Director Geoff Hunt says the aim of both Fairydown and Southern Traverse is to make adventure racing more accessible for a wider group of people and contribute to the expansion of the sport.
To achieve this there will be an incentive for younger athletes to enter the 24 Hours of Southern Traverse in November, as well as a separate relay style adventure challenge within the main event, to attract the "weekend warriors."
"Adventure racing is an exciting sport and one of the things we want to do, is ensure that younger people are able to compete with some of the older, professional athletes who can act as mentors and role models," says Hunt.
For this reason the 24 Hours of Southern Traverse will offer 10 complimentary entries to Under 23 adventure racing teams.
The Fairydown Southern Traverse at Hanmer Springs in April this year attracted the Under 23 Onemultisport.com team which included talented young racers Dougal Allan, Mike Walker, Mattie Graham and Emmah Ussher.
"The team made a real impression and signalled they will be among the podium finishers in the future," says Hunt. "These are the sort of young athletes we need to see competing regularly."
The Under 23 teams will be four members, with at least one woman athlete, or two member teams.
"We certainly expect to see quite a few young people put their hands up and get the opportunity for free entry into this challenging race."
"But we are also keen to encourage other people to have a fun, adventure race experience. We are targeting people who compete in triathlons, multisport and short adventure races and those who like to participate in teams," says Hunt.
The eight hour adventure challenge will include kayaking, mountain biking and run/trekking and will be held after the start of the main 24 hour event.
"The new race should appeal to people who currently compete in events like our Peak to Peak, and who are keen to try a new format. It allows a group of friends who like the relay format to get together, and complete an individual leg each and at the same time get a taste of adventure racing. This race doesn't need a support crew which is also a plus."
The Fairydown 24 Hours of Southern Traverse will be held for the third time this year and the secret course will cover 100kms of Wakatipu backcountry. The race kicks off at midnight on November 15 and disciplines involve trekking, including navigation, mountain biking and kayaking. The event is open to teams of four, which is the main category, and two person teams with everyone on the team completing each discipline.
"The course is very exciting this year and is designed not only to test teams, but also to allow them to have fun and enjoy the fantastic scenery," says Hunt. "They will need support crews and the fastest team should finish the course in 15 hours and the slowest in 24 hours."
The hills of the Central Wakatipu Basin combined with the Shotover River flats will be the focus of the 2008 TrustPower Adventure Quest on October 4, which is expected to attract the traditional strong field including families, orienteering experts and teams training for the Fairydown 24 Hours of Southern Traverse.
Race Director Geoff Hunt says entries are now open for the Quest, which is a mini sporting adventure requiring teamwork, clue solving and orienteering and is divided into two divisions.
"The serious division caters for the more dedicated and accomplished multisport athletes while the social division is for all comers, people who are keen to give the treasure hunt style race a go. The emphasis for this category is on participation and fun rather than serious competition."
The race will start at the Old Shotover Bridge and will follow an innovative course trekking around the local countryside and cycling along the Shotover River.
"We can guarantee that people will visit areas they did not previously know existed," says Hunt. "We have tried to make the course interesting, creating new experiences for competitors at all levels. The scenery is also fantastic."
The TrustPower Adventure Quest traditionally attracts a mixture of women, men and young people over the age of 15 from throughout the Wakatipu, Otago, Southland and Canterbury.
"We find people really enjoy this event because it is not too demanding and it is a fun team event. People can compete with their friends and families and the clue solving is always an exciting challenge."
