2024 details are not available yet, but here are details for 2022.
Saturday 13 August 2022
Venue/Race HQ
The Wind Needle (Zephyrometer), Corner Cobham Drive and Evans Bay Parade, Wellington.
The races
There are three distinct events, open to both registered and social members of clubs: the Walker’s Turkey Trot; the Children’s Needle Relay, and the Needle Relay. Each event starts on the footpath by the wind needle and runners and walkers remain on the footpath at all times and no headphones or earphones can be worn while competing.
Timetable
10.30am Walker’s Turkey Trot
5km walk for all ages.
Walk north on the footpath beside Evans Bay Parade for 2.5km, turning around at the city end of Weka Bay. Walkers estimate their time with the winners being those closest to the estimated time. No watches or phones are allowed. Enter on the day.
12.00pm Children’s Needle Relay
10-13 years of age — boys, girls or mixed teams
4 runners per team, each running the same 1.6km lap.
1.6km lap: Run south to east on the footpath along Cobham Drive for 0.8km, turning at the positioned marshal.
1.00pm Needle Relay
- Junior Women U20
- Junior Men U20
- Senior Women
- Senior Men
- Masters Women 35+
- Masters Men 35+
- Masters Women 50+
- Masters Men 50+
- Masters Men 60+
- Composite/Mixed (can be mixed ages, genders, and clubs)
5 runners per team, running a mix of 5km and 3km laps that total 21km. The 10 age grades run together, making for a compact and competitive day of racing.
Laps 1, 3, and 5 (5km): Run north on the footpath beside Evans Bay Parade for 2.5km, turning around at the city end of Weka Bay.
Runners stay on the footpath and run around the outside of Cog Park, NOT on the limestone path through the park.
Laps 2 and 4 (3km): Run east on the footpath beside Cobham Drive for 1.5km. The turnaround is about 200m past the main airport roundabout.
- Age grades as at 31 December 2021, except Masters where age is as at 13 August 2021.
- All competitors, apart from those in the Children’s Relay, must be at least 14 years of age on race day.
- Prizegiving will be held after each event, with medals awarded to the first team in each grade.
Maps
Entry information
- Walker’s Turkey Trot: enter with Geoff Henry on the day at Race HQ.
- Team relay entries must be submitted online by club officials.
- Entries close on Thursday 11 August at 11.59pm. There will be no late entries.
- Information required for team entry is: club; grade; team name (for example A, B, C); club bib number; runner name for each leg; individual age grade of each runner.
- Team Changes: If there are any team and running order changes after the submission of the team entry online, those alterations must be made to the printed team sheet which will be given out with the timing baton on race day. Amended printed team sheets must be returned to Daryl Bloomfield by the end of race day at the start/finish.
- Runners competing out of grade (for example, an M35 competing in a SM team) will only be eligible for age-grade records if their age-grade has been specified on the team information sheet. In the Children’s Relay, gender must be specified on the team information sheet for runners to be eligible for the boy’s and girl’s lap records.
Batons
- Each relay team is allocated a specific baton which must be collected from the tent at Race HQ from one hour before the race start (the baton number will be independent from the bib number).
- Batons are fitted with timing chips and must only be used by the team it has been assigned to.
- Batons must be returned at the end of the relay in the bins provided near the start/finish area. Athletics
Wellington will charge clubs for unreturned batons.
Race rules and other information
The relay is organised by the Wellington Harrier Athletic Club Inc. and is held under Athletics New Zealand rules.
All competitors compete at their own risk. Team captains must attend a race briefing at the start/finish
area 15 minutes before the start of the race, and are responsible for ensuring all team members
understand the race rules and procedures.
(a) RACE HQ: On the grass by the Wind Needle
There is limited parking available in the marina carpark by the Wind Needle. Participants and spectators
are encouraged to carpool and to park in and around Kilbirnie. Toilets are available but there is no water
or shelter (there is limited space for club tents on the grass area) so come prepared.
First aid will be provided by Wellington Free Ambulance, stationed in the marina car park.
(b) SAFETY
Competitors must run on the footpath at ALL times, staying left as much as possible. Footpaths are
open to the public so competitors must be courteous to other users. Do not step onto either the cycleway or the road under any circumstances, including if passing another runner or members of the public.
Competitors and spectators must follow all instructions from the Race Referee, Race Marshals, Police Officers and Council Officers at all times. Marshals will be posted at any points along the course where cars enter and exit, and runners must stop if directed by marshals to do so.
(c) UNIFORM
Runners must wear club uniform, with the allocated race bib worn clearly on the front of their singlet.
(d) BATON AND CHANGEOVER
All team members must run with their team’s allocated baton in their hand for the duration of their lap,
before passing to the next runner within the allocated changeover zone. Next lap runners must enter the
changeover area via the designated waiting pen, and only enter the changeover area once they see
their incoming runner. There are two pens for the 21km relay: the city side is for runners on laps 2 and 4
and the airport side is for runners on laps 3 and 5.
(e) REPLACEMENT
If a runner cannot complete their lap, they can be replaced by another member of the team. Any
replacement must be notified to officials at Race HQ. Any notified replacements will result in a 7-minute
penalty, while unnotified replacements will result in team disqualification.
(f) OTHER RULES
No runner may run more than one lap for any A &/or B team across all grades and races.
There is to be no pacing of runners as defined in Athletics NZ Road Relay regulations, and no
headphones or earphones worn while competing.
(g) PROTESTS AND APPEALS
IAAF Competition Rules 146 covers protests and appeals. Any protest must be made to the Race
Referee within 30 minutes of the finish of the race. Any appeal must be made to the Race Director.
(h) PENALTIES (added to the runner’s time and the team’s overall time)
- Running on the road or on the cycleway = 2 minutes
- Second infringement of running on the road for a team (including by the same runner) = Disqualification
- Pacing = 2 minutes
- Wearing headphones or earphones = 2 minutes
- Changing baton outside change zone (added to incoming runner’s time) = 1 minute
- Notified replacement = 7 minutes
- Unnotified replacement = Disqualification
(i) RACE RECORDS
Children’s 6.4km relay: 1.6km lap, for both boys and girls, and team total. A boy or a girl is only eligible for a lap record if the runner’s gender is specified on the team information sheet.
21km relay: 3km lap, 5km lap and team total for each of the 10 grades. A runner competing for a team in another grade (for example, a W35 competing in SW team) is only eligible for the age-grade lap record if the runner’s age grade is specified on the team information sheet.
| 3km | 5km | Team | |
| Senior women | 2023, Emma Perron, Wellington Scottish, 0:10:41 | 2023, Sarah Drought, Wellington Harrier Athletic Club, 0:16:54 | 2021, Wellington Harrier Athletic Club, 1:16:15 |
| Senior men | 2020, Nathan Tse, Wellington Harrier Athletic Club, 0:09:02 | 2020, Hamish Carson, Wellington Scottish, 0:14:23 | 2023, Wellington Harriers, 1:05:27 |
| Women under 20 | 2020, Amy McHardy, Olympic Harrier and Athletic Club Inc, 0:10:47 | 2020, Caitlin Bassett, Wellington Harrier Athletic Club, 0:18:55 | 2021, Olympic Harriers, 1:19:34 |
| Men under 20 | 2023, Callum Wos, Trentham United, 0:09:39 | 2020, Thomas Strawbridge, Trentham United, 0:15:27 | 2023, Trentham United, 1:09:14 |
| Masters women 35+ | 2020, Katie Jenkins, Olympic Harrier and Athletic Club Inc, 0:11:46 | 2020, Ingrid Cree, Olympic Harrier and Athletic Club Inc, 0:18:10 | 2023, Wellington Scottish, 1:22:30 |
| Masters men 35+ | 2020, Andrew Wharton, Wellington Scottish, 0:09:36 | 2021, Hiro Tanimoto, Wellington Scottish, 0:15:24 | 2021, Wellington Scottish, 1:08:52 |
| Masters women 50+ | 2020, Vickie Humphries, Wellington Harrier Athletic Club, 0:12:28 | 2020, Heather Walker, Wellington Scottish, 0:19:29 | 2020, Wellington Scottish, 1:31:26 |
| Masters men 50+ | 2021, Peter Stevens Wellington Scottish, 0:10:17 | 2020, Grant McLean, Wellington Scottish, 0:16:31 | 202, Wellington Scottish, 1:14:53 |
| Masters women 60+ | 2020, Bev Hodge, Wellington Scottish, 0:15:31 | 2021, Michele Allison, Wellington Scottish, 0:21:55 | |
| Masters men 60+ | 2020, Chris Speakman, Olympic Harrier and Athletic Club Inc, 0:11:41 | 2020, Mark Anderson, Olympic Harrier and Athletic Club Inc, 0:19:34 | 2021, Wellington Harriers, 1:31:58 |
| Masters women 70+ | |||
| Masters men 70+ | 2021, Brian Hayes, Wellington Harrier Athletic Club, 0:13:21 | 2020, Brian Hayes, Wellington Harrier Athletic Club, 0:22:51 | |
| Children Individual | Boys | Girls | |
| 2021, Ollie Harland, Olympic Harriers, 5:22 | 2020, Eva Green, Hutt Valley Harriers, 0:05:26 | ||
| Children Teams | Boys | Girls | Mixed |
| 2021, Olympic Harriers, 0:22:44 | 2020, Hutt Valley Harriers, 0:23:53 | 2021, Trentham United, 0:23:42 |
(j) COVID-19
There are no mandatory public health requirements at the current orange traffic light setting. If the traffic
light setting changes, we will adopt that setting’s requirements.
Thank you for supporting this event. We look forward to seeing you all on race day.
Paul Hewitson – Race Director
Email: kiwiquaker@xtra.co.nz Phone: 027 324 2465
Wellington Scottish Athletics Club 