Organisers of the world's largest haka - planned for dawn on January 1 - have recruited more than half the 2000 Aucklanders they are hoping will turn up to chant and slap their way into the new millennium.
Ngati Whatua haka tutors have so far trained more than 1000 peopleto perform the specially written haka powhiri (greeting) that will welcome the iwi's waka Mahuhu ashore during the Day One dawn ceremony at Okahu Bay.
Children from the Grey Lynn Kindercare Learning Centre are the latest to master the haka's words and actions with the help of trainer Paul Davis.
Mr Davis,whose mother Esther wrote the haka, said a cross-section of Aucklanders, including immigrant groups and children, had signed up for lessons.
Because the haka was a powhiri, women were able to participate in what was usually a male-only activity.
The Auckland City Council-sponsored Day One event, beginning at 4.30 am, will include performances from Dame Malvina Major, cultural groups and choirs before the waka is welcomed into the bay at daybreak.
And the good news for any procrastinators who decide at the last minute to take part: a final training session will be held on New Year's Day just before the 6.06 am performance.
