Puzzling World Junior Challenge Wanaka

Join hundreds of budding triathletes, from Years 1 to 6 in the Puzzling World Junior Challenge Wanaka. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never raced triathlon before. The Junior Challenge event provides a fun and safe opportunity for all children to challenge and compete individually against their peers in a fun and safe environment.

Swim through Lake Wanaka, bike along the Wanaka lake front and run over the Wanaka Challenge bridge, onto the red carpet and through the Challenge Wanaka finish! You will feel like a real champion as you cross the finish line and are awarded a medal, a T-shirt and more prizes from Puzzling World.

The top girl and boy competitors in each age group will be presented with medals at prize-giving and be given the opportunity to be the balloon kids for the Challenge Wanaka lead pro male and female athletes on the Saturday. Prize giving for everyone will be at 4:00pm on Friday the 19th February in the official Challenge Wanaka finish arena.

We hope you will come along for a day of action packed fun and the opportunity to give triathlon a go!

 Year group categories will be allocated based on the child’s current school year as of the 1^st of January 2021.

• All local Wanaka Primary and Holy Family children will register online through their school. Information will be provided in the school newsletter.
• Hawea Flat school will be given a code and can register through the Challenge Wanaka entry system.
• All other junior competitors (not from local schools) can register through the Challenge Wanaka entry system.

Picking up your registration race pack

All local school children (Wanaka Primary, Take Kerara and Holy Family students) will be given their race packs at their local school by their teachers on the Tuesday or Wednesday of race week.

All other junior competitors who do not attend local schools or anyone from Tarras, Makarora or local home school kids; can pick up their registration packs from the Junior Challenge desk, located in the main Challenge Wanaka marquee on Pembroke Park during race week from Wednesday the 12th of February between the times of 9am and 5pm.  Registration packs can also be picked up on the morning of the event from the registration area (as indicated on the course map).

Race Packs

Race packs will include:

• A race number, in the form of a wrist band. Non local students will receive 2 wrist bands. One for their mum or dad to pick up kids at the finish line
• A bike number (kindly donated by Print it Wanaka) that can be mounted between the handlebars of each child’s bike
• A timing device to go on your ankle 
• A Junior Challenge T-shirt
• A numbered helmet sticker
• A swim cap
• A race number tattoo
• Instructions on what to do with all of your race pack contents
• Brief last minute instructions for race day
• A race map

On Race Day

Last minute race pack pick up – Friday 14 Feb 2019

7.00am-7.45am

Last minute Race pack pick up will be located in Pembroke Park, in close proximity to the main bike transition area. Please refer to the map for further detail.  Once registered and children have picked up their race packs, children will need to make their way to their bike transition and rack their bikes in numbered order (by 8.45am). The bike transition area will be separated into year groups.  Please note the race briefing times below. Children will need to be in attendance at their respective race briefings, which will be located at the Challenge Wanaka swim start location. This will be the starting area for all events. 

Bike Drop Off – Race Day 14th February 

7.00am-8.45am
The designated bike racking time for the Junior Challenge is between between 7am and 8.45am on the morning of race day. The main transition area where bikes are to be racked is in the centre of Pembroke park. Please refer to the map for further detail. Rack your bike in numbered order in your designated YEAR group. We suggest you label your race gear bag (if you have one) with your race number and hang this on the handlebars. If everything is clearly labelled we can ensure that your gear will remain with your bike up until your race. There will be marshals (in orange vests) inside the transition area to support children to locate their bikes and prepare for the bike or run leg of the course.
There will also be designated parking and turnaround areas for parents dropping off bikes in Pembroke Park. 

Race briefing & event start time

Race briefing is compulsory for all children and will take place 5 minutes before each age category starts. We will be operating wave starts, with boys going in the first waves, then girls going in the second waves. Listen for announcements as wave starts will start immediately after the last competitor of the previous wave has entered the bike are transition (approximately 2-5 minutes after the previous wave start).

Age Category	Race Briefing	Race Start
Year 1	9.25am	9.30am
Year 2	9.55am	10.00am
Year 3	10.25am	10.30am
Year 4	11.10am	11.15am
Year 5	12.10pm	12.15pm
Year 6	1.10pm	1.15pm

PRIZE GIVING

There will be a prize giving where the top three individuals for each age group will be announced and award a trophy for first and medals for 2nd and 3rd place getters. The prize giving will take place in the Challenge Wanaka finish area at 4:00pm for all age groups.