After some unusually cold weather, finally a great day for racing. An excellent turn-out with 22 teams hitting the water. Surprisingly, there were no novice teams this time. This leaves the novice trophy up for grabs, so go on, rustle up your work mates and friends.
Thanks again to Hawaiki Nui Waka Ama for hosting this event.
Click here to download the results for Race 1.
The next race coming up is the Matariki Harbour Challenge on 23 June. Find out more here.
Kia ora tatou
Great to see our region’s top secondary schools talent going head to head at this year’s regional sprint champs. Awesome to see teams lift the standard of racing as well.
A big thanks to all volunteers, sponsors, clubs and schools for their help to make the day happen.
Results are available for download here.
Photos and more will be uploaded to Hoe Tonga’s Facebook Page
And this was it for 2017. Last year’s event was our biggest yet, but 2017 topped it again, with close to 130 races and about 500 paddlers! We need more lanes…
A massive thank you to all officials, helpers and supporters that made this event possible. More than ever before, many of them pulled big hours to make this event happen. In the week leading up to the event, and despite water quality being better than ever before, the lake experienced excessive weed growth, likely due to the very warm weather over many weeks. Many helpers spend days clearing the lake!
Here a list of key officials and helpers:
There are many more, even if not specifically listed above!
Results
Click here to download the full results.
Photos are yet to come. In the next few days please check Hoe Tonga’s facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Hoetonga/
Club trophies
The Club Excellence Award changed hands for the first time in 5 years, this year it was won by Otaki Waka Hoe, with Porirua Canoe Kayak Club in second, and Toa Waka Ama in third.
For the James Hapeta Club Spirit Award, Hoe Tonga implemented a revised approach for selecting a winner. Up to five points were awarded in each of four categories: (1) Ratio of club volunteers vs club entries, as at one week out from the event; (2) whether a club had complete team rosters at the deadlines and/or had late changes to their roster; (3) whether teams were wearing correct uniforms; and (4) attitude, who is going the extra mile over the two race days. The latter two categories were judged by all the key volunteers at the various official stations. Congratulations to Hikoikoi Waka Club for taking out this year’s club spirit award. Hawaikinui Waka Ama Club and Wairarapa Waka Ama Canoe Club were a very close second and third.
What a great day in Whanganui, with lots of sun and little wind. Our final race of the Series was well attended, with 21 teams battling it out on the Whanganui River. A big thank you to Te Ringa Miti Tai Heke hosting this final event.
Photos and videos will be shared on facebook as soon as they become available. If you took any on the day, please feel free to post it on our site.
Click here to download the results for Race 4, and the overall series (3 pages).
The category team winners with most points were as follows:
We also presented a new annual club trophy: “He Taonga Kotahitanga”. This trophy is awarded to the club from the Hoe Tonga region that accumulates the most points, based on its best three teams. It was very close, only two points separated first from second. This year He Taonga Kotahitanga was awarded to Porirua Canoe Kayak Club. Congratulations.
Another good turn out today, with 11 teams competing on the short course, and 10 teams on the long course.
Some challenging conditions out there today, with a cool 20-25knot Southerly whipping up the course. Going to and from Titahi Bay made it more challenging for the junior and novice teams, but far more interesting than just slogging it out in the tidal flats. Coming back from Titahi Bay, there were some nice little runners to practice those surfing skills.
Click here to download today’s results (2nd correction was made on 10 Sep).
Teams from Otaikokako and Otaki are in the top positions for the most points in their divisions (senior, novice, junior) but it’s not quite decided yet.
Some videos and photos will be posted on the hoe tonga facebook page. A big thank you again to our sponsors: Naomi Brookings from One Agency, Compass Health, and Tai Paddles, and the numerous volunteers making the day possible, including but not limited to the support boat drivers, canoe checkers, registration desk officials, finish and startline officials, and cake bakers.
See you at the final event in Whanganui in three weeks time.
Here the results for race 2 of the series, hosted by Porirua Canoe Kayak Club. A big thank you to PCKC for organising a great event, again with a massive 26 team entries.
Click here to download the results (corrected 15 August).
If you have photos from the event, please post them to the Hoe Tonga facebook page.
The next event is scheduled for 2 September, at Ngati Toa Domain.
A big thank you to Hikoikoi Waka Club for a fantastic event on Wellington Harbour on 8 July. With 37 teams, this was the biggest long distance event in Wellington since the last Long Distance Nationals were held in our region in 2012.
Please click here to download the results. Photos and videos are available on the Hoe Tonga facebook page.
And this was it for 2016. A few “firsts” at this event:
A big thank you to Trust House and the Copthorne Hotel in Masterton for housing some of our key officials.
And of course a big thank you to all officials, volunteers and supporters that made this event possible. Many of them pulled big hours to make this event happen, some of this started over 9 months ago. To name but a few:
Results and photos
We had live results on the day (still online) but if you missed it, click here to download a file showing all results. You can also replay some of the races at http://www.yacht-bot.com/races/11795 (unfortunately only the first 3 hours of Saturday’s racing as some trackers were not properly charged prior to the event).
Photos are now available. Please check Hoe Tonga’s facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/Hoetonga/
Finally, the Club Excellence Award was again won by Porirua Canoe Kayak Club (112 points), the fourth year in a row albeit with Otaki Waka Hoe very close behind this time (93 points)! The James Hapeta Club Spirit Award was awarded to Wairarapa Waka Ama Canoe Club. Congratulations.
Unfortunately we ran out of time to do a prize giving on Saturday following the W6 and W12 races. Ribbons for the place getters will be posted to each club as soon as possible.
What a great finish to the Series, with 20 teams in attendance. Te Ringa Miti Tai Heke Waka Ama Club hosted this event, and did a fantastic job.
Weather conditions were excellent, albeit with strong winds. The river provided an excellent race venue, with some challenges for steerers to find a good line to avoid the wind and current.
A big thank you to our sponsors of various spot prizes for the Series: The Sprig&Fern Tavern in Petone, Takeaway@Churton, and Tai Paddles. Spot prizes included two new paddles!
Two trophies were given out:
These trophies will be up for grabs again next year.
Click here to download the results for Race 3 of the series.
Photos and videos are available on Hoe Tonga’s Facebook page.
Racing can be replayed:
Click here to download the results from today’s race.
The entries for the final in Whanganui (Race 3) are already open, a panui will be posted in the next few days.
