Top female adventure racers ready for Rotorua

New Zealand's most successful all-female adventure race - the Torpedo 7 Spring Challenge takes place in Rotorua on Saturday. Photo/Supplied.

New Zealand's most successful all-female adventure race - the Torpedo 7 Spring Challenge - will be held in the North Island for the first time in its 10-year history when it takes place in Rotorua on Saturday.

Four-time world champion adventure racer and event director, Nathan Fa'avae, said the originally South Island-only event could no longer keep up with demand.

Participant numbers have grown from 327 in 2007 to 1350 in 2015 as more Kiwi women and girls looked to challenge themselves in the sport of adventure racing.

"I think it's because more women discover adventure racing as a rewarding, achievable and fun way to challenge themselves," Fa'avae said.

"Rotorua was chosen because of the adventure opportunities on offer - the forests, lakes, rivers and trail networks, and accessibility to wilderness areas."

The exact location of the race course is kept secret until tomorrow so local participants will not have an advantage over those travelling from outside the region.

Along with first-timers, the event has attracted some of the country's best adventure racers including Debbie Chambers, captain of New Zealand's most experienced all women's adventure racing team, Girls on Top.

The Torpedo 7 Spring Challenge sees teams of three navigate a three, six or nine-hour course completing cycling, rafting, and hiking sections while orienteering themselves through checkpoints.

Participants in the premier nine-hour race will cover more than 75km of New Zealand's remote wilderness and it is expected teams may take up to 18 hours to complete the course.

Favourites over the long course are team Rebel Warriors, which includes local Nic Leary, after they finished third at the Spring Challenge South island event two weeks ago.

A team that could push them will be Expedio Girls On Top, an experienced adventure racing team which includes Rotorua's Rachel Smith.

And another to watch will be former New Zealand triathlon representative Sam Warriner racing in team Sweaty7chicks with Emma Mackie and Liana Costello.

Fa'avae said the race courses had been designed to cater to all levels of ability.

"Our experienced team works hard to ensure that the courses will be achievable but challenging enough that participants feel a genuine sense of achievement when they cross the finish line," he said.

"Teams complete each section together, working as a single cohesive unit, which is one of the more rewarding, and most challenging, aspects of the event."

The event has so far attracted 483 entries with many participants who missed out on the South Island Challenge last month in Golden Bay, making the trip north to compete in Rotorua.

The course route will be announced tomorrow at 5pm on www.springchallenge.co.nz.

Torpedo 7 Spring Challenge
Rotorua, Saturday, October 8, course location to be announced.

Premier 9-hour race: 10-15km rafting, 45-55km biking, 20-30km hiking (start 6.30am)

6-hour race: 10-15km rafting, 25-35km biking, 8-12km hiking (start 9am)

3-hour race: 10-15km rafting, 15-20km biking, 4-5km hiking (start 12pm)

Race divisions:

School: (15 to 18-year-olds) 3-hour only

Junior: (combined age less than 60-years) 6-hour only

Open: (combined age 61-119-years)

Veteran: (combined age 120 or more years)

SuperVet: (combined age 150 or more years) 6-hour only