Overview

RAIDERS OF THE LAST ARC

Welcome to the 20th anniversary of the ARC Adventure Race.

At the beginning of the 21st Century we ran our first ARC Adventure Race, “Journey into the Unknown”, and it really has been a journey into the unknown. Along that journey we have had a lot of fun, got to explore some beautiful country, met some amazing people and made a lot of friends.

To celebrate our 20th year of running the ARC Adventure Race we are introducing the new format of adventure racing called the “Adventure Rogaine”.  The race will be based from the site of our proposed new Outdoor Camp close to Coromandel Town and will involve a series stages, including trekking, mountain biking and kayaking or an alternative water- based activity. Each stage will be a rogaine in it’s own right with a time limit and a number of point scoring checkpoints. There will also be the famous ARC Mystery activities including the “Temple of Doom” for which you will need a whip and a wetsuit. 

The team with the highest number of points wins.  

Some of the advantages of this format are that it makes for a lot of strategic decision making throughout the event and the fact that most teams will finish within a few minutes of each other in the respective races. 

We are delighted that Marquita Gelderman and Rob Garden will be helping us with the design of this years’ race. 

We are also very excited to announce the 8 Hour Cure Kids Challenge, which is open to teams who would like to raise funds towards this very worthwhile cause. 

This will likely be our last crusade, but we do intend to hand over the ARC mantel to some caring hands and hope that the event will run for another twenty years.  

So please do come and join us and help us celebrate this special milestone.  

ARC FORMAT

The ARC courses are made up of a larger number of stages designed to keep both the teams and support crews interested and focused on each stage. They are also designed to make teams think very carefully about the routes that they take. Each year we try and add a new innovation or two into the format and this year will be no exception.

Taking part in the next ARC Adventure Race will be a great opportunity to escape from the shackles of everyday life for a weekend and experience something very special. 

You will get the chance to explore the oceans, rivers, coastlines, forests, bush and some of the hidden secrets of the Coromandel Peninsula, with some of your best friends. What could be better?

Some teams will be out to win. To outpace and outfox their rivals with cunning navigation choices and sound race strategies. Other teams will be out to have a great adventure and get themselves around the course.  The ARC is designed to satisfy and meet both of these different, but equally compelling, objectives.

DISCIPLINES

The races will include the following disciplines:

  • Hill, Bush and River running / Trekking / Mountain Biking
  • Navigation
  • Rope work 
  • Mystery Activities (high adrenaline factor)
  • Sea kayaking - ARC Long Option
  • Other Water activities

SPECIAL PRIZE

Teams that complete one of our special mystery activities will go into the draw for a year’s exclusive use of Lach Greys amazing Insomniac Double Kayaks.

COMMUNITY BASED

The ARC is a community based event and is put together by local Coromandel people and a large number of local volunteers. The course travels over a large tract of land which includes and administered by DOC, local Iwi land and a number of private landowners, all of whom have kindly given us permission to use their land.

The net proceeds from this race go into the Spirit of Coromandel Trust which has been established to encourage and support local people, particularly youngsters into sporting and outdoor activities and to put something back into the land that we use for the enjoyment of future generations.