Tongariro race for ANZAC weekend

Waimarino Bulletin, Volume 6, Issue 236, 22 March 1988, Page 16

Tongariro race for ANZAC weekend

The Tongariro Classic, a two-day multisport event which the organisers hope will become the North Island's premier event, is to be held at A n z a c weekend. There will be a limit of 250 two-person teams for the cycling, canoeing and running event on April 24 and 25. Event m a n a g e r Richard Balm, a 26-year-old conservation officer at Ohakune, says the organisers are expecting about 800 visitors for the weekend. Healthy sponsorship has been arranged with the Great Outdoors Company taking the lead and providing about $8000 worth of prizes including tents, clothing and backpacks. The company is also offering a 15 per cent discount on gear purchased by competitors. Various spot prizes have been donated by local sponsors. These include holiday accommodation at the Chateau Tongariro and Discovery Lodge, clothing, book vouchers and a canoeing clinic at the Outdoor Pursuits Centre. A major weekend at-

traction for competitors and support teams wiU be a variety of social activities and clinics based at Turangi. The programme includes buffet meals, large-screcn video sessions, a banquet with dancing and live music, a bike shop, a massage tent and portable spa and a special fun minitriathlon for support crews. There will be four workshop sessions: canoeing led by Bernie Fletcher, 15 times the national kayaking champion and among the first 10 competitors to complete this year's Coast to Coast event; cycling led by Olympic cycling coach Ron Cheatley of Wanganui; multisport overview led by Wellington's Arthur Klapp, president of the NZ Multisport Association; nutrition and physiology led by Rob Locke of the Life Foundation. The Turangi Holiday Park's 191 cabins have been pre-booked by the organisers and a discount arranged for the benefit of participants and support teams. It will be the second Tongariro Classic following the 1986 inaugural event and a break last year. The course was de-

signed by Turangi-based mountaineer Graeme Dingle and Wanganui City recreation adviser Rex Hendry, a former Turangi resident and Outdoor Pursuits Centre instructor who is the race director this year. Event m a n a g e r Richard Balm, a keen multisport athlete himself, says the course follows the same format as before with fabulous views of Lake Taupo and the central plateau mountains adding an extra thrill for competitors.

Entry is only b y two-person teams although there will b e open, women, mixed, veteran (over 40) and family c 1 a s s e s . Marathon teams must complete the whole course within 30 seconds of each other and combination teams can compete in alternate sections. The winning teams in 1986 were Neville Palmer and Brian Sanders with a time of 7 hours 54 seconds in the marathon section and Bernie Fletcher and . Terry Newlands with a time of 6 hours and 5 8 seconds in the combination section.

Says Balm: "We want the Classic to become a major event with its own unique style. It's a bit more low key and not as competitive as some of the major events, but we'd like it to be regarded as the North Island's premier multisport event." Day One consists of a 44km bike ride from Turangi to the Chateau, a 28km run across the Tongariro National Park to the Desert Road, an 18km cycle along the Desert Road, a 2.2km run to the Blue Pool on the Tongariro River and a 9km paddle on the Tongariro River with whitewater included to the finish line at Turangi's Island Pool. Day Two is made up of an 18km bike ride from Turangi to the Kuratau Spit, an 11km canoe paddle across Lake Taupo to Motuoapa and a 9km run from there to Turangi. Entry forms are available by writing to: Tongariro Classic, P0 Box 235, Ohakune. Although entries close on April 1, late entries will be received up to the day of the event but only until there is a capacity field. INQUIRIES: Richard Balm Event Manager Tongariro Classic PO Box 235 Ohakune Ph (0658) 58-578 a/h 59-043