SATURDAY 25TH JANUARY 2014Bigger,BetterBike RideFor the first time in about seven years, there will be one summer Around the Mountaincycle ride in Taranaki. Events Taranaki spokesman, Selwyn Brown, said it just madegood sense to combine the two events, which would give a better result to all parties.“People in recent years were becomingconfused about which event to go to andin some cases would decide just not tobother coming to Taranaki at all.”By combining the two events, Brownsees the new format having the potentialto begin to grow to at least 2000 cyclists.“This will be great for the TaranakiVelodrome Committee who stand toprosper as numbers increase. Theywill receive funding from the event forongoing maintenance and running costsof the Taranaki Cycle Park at Bell Block.”Other beneficiaries are the TaranakiKids Sports trust, which donates fundingreceived from the event to local kidsto realise their sporting dreams, andCanTeen.“New sponsor Tenix is a wonderfuladdition to the stable of fantasticsponsors supporting <strong>this</strong> event,” saysBrown. “Tenix is a leading deliverypartner to owners of gas, electicity,water, wastewater, heavy industrial andresource infrastructure across Australia,New Zealand and the Pacific.“Tenix are delighted to support<strong>this</strong> long-standing event and will beencouraging over five hundred Taranaki,national & international employees, aswell as our clients to enter the event,”says Jacob Bonisch, Tenix ExecutiveGeneral M anager.Timed for Saturday, 25th January 2014,training for the 150km ride, starts nowfor most entrants.An elite men’s race for registerednational riders with new naming rightssponsor AWE has been reintroduced,which should produce some excitingracing, with entrants expected to comefrom all over the country.The bulk of entrants however will beeveryday people who want to tick off <strong>this</strong>iconic event from their ‘bucket list’ orbetter their time from previous years.Solo entries, relay teams and thePihms sponsored two-person relay,offer riders of every level a chance toparticipate.A new section has been added, calledthe ECL Accumulator, where one riderstarts the race and collects anotherrider from his or her team, at each relaytransition.“It’s a great way for cyclists of varyingabilities to take part,” says Brown, “and isa perfect option for businesses who wantto do some team building.”Every entrant gets a great starter pack,along with a food and drink voucher touse at the completion of the ride. A liveband entertains all afternoon leading upto Prize Giving.The prizes at <strong>this</strong> event have alwaysbeen an attraction, and <strong>this</strong> year thereare two trips for two, to Bali, thanks toSingapore Airlines and Boutique MondoTravel.There’s also a scooter from EnergyHonda, a new Trek bike, a SamsungGalaxy S4, a weekend escape to Picton,a 50” Panasonic plasma televsion, Bollesunglasses and a season ski pass at MtRuapehu to be won.INTRODUCING THE NEWAccumulatorTaranaki Velodrome TrustENTER www.eventstaranaki.co.nz
ENTER YOUR TEAMAND TAKE UP THEFUN CHALLENGE!ENTER www.eventstaranaki.co.nzGet Ready for the TaranakiSteelformers Around theMountain RelayIt’s time to get your team organisedfor the annual Taranaki SteelformersAround the Mountain Relay.Being held over the 8th and9th of November, Events Taranakispokesperson, Selwyn Brown, isexpecting a field of over 2000 walkersand runners.“Already entries are well up on thesame time last year,” says Selwyn.Comprising teams of between 10and up to 16 members completing the152km course, there are 21 legs between3 and 11km. You must have a minimumof 10 team members with a maximumof 16. The event will start from theTSB Stadium on Friday night andwill culminate with a prize-giving onSaturday November 9th 2013 at 6.30pm.There are several prizes up for grabs,including trophies to the first BusinessHouse and non-Business House teamsin the Walker, Composite and Runnerscategory.There’s a special prize for the BestDressed Team and also for the bestthemed team, and we’ve seen somepretty awesome efforts over the years,”says Selwyn.At the time of writing, there werealready eleven solo entries inThe Central Roofing 100 mile soloevent. There’s a $1000 prize to the firstmale and female home (conditionsapply). With previous runnerscompleting the course in 15 or 16 hours,these competitors are amazing, reckonsSelwyn.An inter-secondary school trophy isalso up for grabs, sponsored by SportTaranaki.“It’s a fantastic team buildingevent,” says Selwyn, of the Around theMountain Relay.There are over $50,000 worth of spotprizes on offer too – like the trip fortwo to Tahiti staying at the fabulousInterContinental, courtesy of BoutiqueMondo Travel and Events Taranaki.There are also cameras, a stand-uppaddleboard, Saucony shoes, socks andother prizes up for grabs as well.Spectators should start gatheringat the TSB Stadium around 11.15amon Saturday to watch the first runnersteam cross the finish line, with otherteams and solo runners expected overthe line from lunchtime until the closeofftime of 6pm.The first 50 teams to enter <strong>this</strong> year’sAround the Mountain Relay, are in thedraw for a team banquet at India Today.All New Plymouth team members mustsign the Team board at The Frontrunnerto be eligible.See the Events Taranaki website fordetails – www.eventstaranaki.co.nzSo get together your workmates,team-mates or just mates, and getyour entry in – and outfit sorted.Entries close 4th Nov.On Saturday 8th February2014 the WELLS NewPlymouth Half will bebased at New Plymouth’sPort Taranaki and willembrace the Harbour, SurfHighway 45 and our worldfamous Coastal Walkway.“It’s an honest course,” says organizer,Selwyn Brown. “It’s more testing thanthe Tauranga course, which is flat andis a bit of a draft-fest.”A business house challenge in therelay section will see local firms puttingtheir best athletes forward.This is the fourth year for the eventand Selwyn has instigated several lesschallenging options for people wantingto take part, but not up to doing theHalf Ironman course of a 2km swim,90km bike ride and 21km run.The ECL Sprint category willencompass a 750m swim, 20km bikeride and 5km run, and is open to soloparticipants and teams.GJ Gardner are sponsoring the newSchool Splash N Dash category, whichcomprises a 100m swim parallel to theshore and 1.5km run for 8-10 year olds,and a 200m swim with 1.5km run for11-15 year olds. Schools get points foreach entry.The Frontrunner Half Marathonwill be run on the same day, startingjust after the first waves of swimmershave started. Runners and walkers willcomplete three laps of the 7km lap HalfIronman circuit via Bayly Rd, WhiteleySt, Hine St and the Coastal Walkway.This will give spectators at the beachthe chance to see athletes regularlythroughout the event.There is also a 7km run/walk option,which is just one lap of the course.The big screen will be operating atthe start/finish line, capturing the alldayaction, so bring the family down tothe beach and be part of a fantastic day.This summer, Events Taranaki areholding a 6 race series of Splash NDash races through the summerstarting on Wednesday 27th Novand finishing on 26th February.The solo Splash N Dash distance is500m swim + 2km run, or you can optfor the longer distance of a 1km swimwith 4km run.There is also a Business HouseChallenge with merit points on offerand points for Business House entrantsparticipating in each event.The school Splash n Dash is also anew feature with 8 - 10yr olds and11 - 15yr olds doing a 100 metre and200 metre swim and a 1.5km run.Information about the series will beposted on www.eventstaranaki.co.nzat the end of September.There are also plans to hold astand-up paddleboard race on thesame nights.The dates for these races are: 27 Nov,11 Dec, 8 Jan, 29 Jan, 12 Feb, 26 Feb.Premium Events in a Region Like No Otherwww.eventstaranaki.co.nzENTER www.eventstaranaki.co.nz
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