The 4^th annual Piha Rogaine, this year sponsored by Shoe Science, was held on Saturday 11^th June 2005. With a field of 370 people making up 133 teams this was the largest rogaine held in New Zealand (excluding the World Rogaine Champs, held down in the Christchurch area in 2000, which had 415 people entered from around the world).

The 6-hour event started at 10am and included about a third of the total number of competitors. Competitors were able to collect their maps and start planning from 9am.

Piha is on the west coast of Auckland in the bush-clad Waitakere Ranges. The Piha area offers great terrain for a rogaine. With vast networks of walking tracks (ranging from nice wide tracks to very indistinct trails) and plenty of hills - using the planning time to plan a good route is crucial. Some new indistinct tracks were marked on the race map as corrections, with many competitors not having been on these before. The tracks were very muddy due to consistent rain leading up to the event, but race day was filled with sun and blue sky.

As the two favourites handed in their intentions maps it looked like it would be close racing. Both had a similar course marked out but were doing the loop in a different direction. Pre race banter had the orienteering combo of Brent Edwards and Neil Kerrison (Auckland) as favourites. Both Edwards and Kerrison are in the New Zealand Orienteering team going to the World Champs in Japan during August. It wasn't to be their day however, as they were beaten to overall course honours by Team “Train Drunk, Race Sober” made up of Stuart Lynch and Wayne Oxenham. These two are members of the “Team Subaru” adventure racing team, who have won the last three 24 hour adventure races they have entered. Lynch and Oxenham executed a fine route choice collecting all but 6 checkpoints (1520 points), to finish two minutes early, with a lead of 40 points above the second placegetters Team “Totally Random” (Dave Crofts & Mauritis Van Den Berg). Mixed open team “Subaru Adventure Mixed” (Wayne Hodgetts and Sonia Clark finished in third 10 points behind Totally Random. The orienteering duo scored the most points overall (10 more than Lynch/Oxenham) but suffering from a slightly hung over team member, finished 7 minutes late and therefore incurring a 70-point penalty to put them into 4^th overall.

The winning womens open team of Debbie Chambers and Anne Lowerson (Sportzhub/GOT) ended up 5^th overall 140 points behind the overall 6-hour winners. There closest competition came from Team “Chook, Chicken and Clucky” (Di Michels, Katrina Buxton and Sadie Parker-Wynyard) who finished 27 minutes before the 6-hour deadline but scored 300 less points that Sportzhub/GOT.

In the 3-hour event pre-race favourites were beaten by 60 points. The all women team of Tania Robinson and Rachel Smith (also orienteers in the World Orienteering Champs team) ended up second behind the mens veteran team of Phil White and Geoff Parkin (Pro 4 Nutrition) who scored 860 points. Finishing with just over a minute to spare Pro 4 Nutrition planned a very solid route, which fell just 660 points short of the 6-hour winners, despite having half the time. Third overall was the mens veteran team of Guy Cory-Wright, Malcolm Law and Peter Swanson (Fast Forward) with 730 points.

All teams made it back in one piece to enjoy the post event meal and prize giving. The highlight of the prize giving was the screening of RaceReviewer on the big screen. RaceReviewer showed the routes taken by the top three teams for both the 3-hour and 6-hour on an aerial photo or the race map. The animated dots making their way around the course caused quite a stir are the teams zig zagged around the course, showing just how far these top teams can go in the time allowed. RaceReviewer will be available on the event website with all of the teams routes included so you can see how different teams routes compared to one another. In the future RaceReviewer will allow those of you who couldn't come to the event to have a go at planning a route by using the map on RaceReviewer and comparing your made up course to the winners routes. RaceReviewer in 3D is also in development.

The next event is in 3 weeks time at Cascades, which is at the northern end of the Waitakere ranges. Track conditions will be much firmer than Piha (not as much mud we promise!) and the scenery of the Cascades is beautiful with large kauris, dams and waterfalls.

Thank to our sponsors:

• SHOE SCIENCE, personalised service from a trained staff member who knows what they are talking about. www.shoescience.co.nz
• LEPPIN SPORT, for sports nutrition. www.leppinsport.com
• INVIEW, specialising in Merino wool garments for the outdoors, cycling and multisports. www.inview.co.nz
• WILD TURKEY BOURBON, mmmmmmmmmmmm treat yourself after a hard day in the hills!
• CADBURY MORO - the yummiest way to 'get more go'
• AUCKLAND REGIONAL COUNCIL, provider of beautiful environments!