Whangaehu River raft race marks 15 years since damaging flood

The weather was fine, the water was clear and warm, and 10 crews had a great outing on the Whangaehu River for a commemorative raft race.

Saturday, February 16 marked 15 years to the day since the 2004 flood that hit the region, causing major damage in many communities including Whangaehu.

Spokeswoman Rachel Cvitanovich said the Whangaehu community marked the anniversary with a Beach vs Valley Shield race on the river, involving 10 rafts and many spectators.

"It was quite a competitive finish but the rest of us just cruised on down the river," Cvitanovich said.

"It was nice to be on the river again for many people. The water was clear and warm. We had lots of fun and there were lots of family spectators at the start and finish. We ended with a barbecue and prizegiving at the local hall. There was a nice community feel at the hall which was great because we're trying to restore the hall."

The hard-fought competition for the shield was won by Nick Cvitanovich and Liam Connors for the Beach, with Valley crews putting in a great effort to take out second, third and fourth places, Cvitanovich said.

The race, starting from the beach side of the Whangaehu Bridge, was about 5km and took crews between 45 and 90 minutes.

"We really want to thank Marton Farm Source store for providing the barbecue and we also had really good help from Ruapehu-Whanganui Rural Support Trust, Wanganui Vet Services, Farmlands, ANZ and Rabobank for spot prizes," Cvitanovich said.

There were lots of spectators on hand to watch crews getting their rafts into the river.

Chilling out was the order of the day for some competitors.