ADVENTURE WAIROA

Adventure Wairoa Inc. was established in 2015 as a result of a collective aim to bring together a number of sporting codes under one umbrella. Rather than create a completely new entity, new life was breathed into the former Wairoa Rowing Club – a hundred-year-old establishment that had suffered from falling membership but still had extensive facilities that could form a solid base for a number of codes.

A new name, committee and a new constitution resulted in Adventure Wairoa Inc. – a sporting home for rowing, waka ama, multisport, transport, road cycling and mountain biking. Although still in its infancy, the club has been working hard to establish runs on the board. Waka ama is going from strength to strength, with around 120 members taking advantage of the coaching skills of International competitor Christina Stockman. As numbers grow, there is a need for new waka. The plan is to add a 6-berth waka to the fold, followed by a 2-berth.

The new waka will enable our paddlers to improve their skills to a point where they can compete at any level of competition. In terms of mountain-biking, Adventure Wairoa Inc. collaborated with the Whangawehi Catchment Management Group to run a free ride through forestry and private land during March this year. The event attracted around 120 riders from around the North Island and was an unquestionable success. This served as an example of how Adventure Wairoa can work collectively to promote not only the sport, but also conservation. The next challenge for the mountain biking arm of Adventure Wairoa is to create a mountain bike park in the district. This is a major undertaking, but planning is already well underway to turn the concept into a reality, providing a place for the sport to grow in our community. The different codes of Adventure Wairoa are all important, and we expect the spotlight will move around as time goes on. There are regular road cyclists amongst our members, who compete at various events such as the Lake Taupo Cycle Challenge and Tour of the Bays. Adventure Wairoa Inc. also lays claim to Ironman Hall of Famer, Rod Kirwan. As our facilities improve, and new training equipment becomes available, more people will be attracted to Adventure Wairoa Inc. This can only be good for the club and our community.

adventurewairoainc@gmail.com | www.sporty.co.nz/adventurewairoa