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Mangawhai featured on the winning dias at the Waka Ama National Sprint Championships held on Lake Karāpiro last month.
Thousands of paddlers, representing 73 clubs from Kaitaia to Dunedin, competed over seven days, with a chance to qualify for the World Waka Ama Sprint Championships in Hawaii at stake.
Experienced Mangawhai paddler Lance (Bush) Richards walked away with a Gold Medal in the 75-year-old class. Bush has been competing in waka ama and outrigging competitions for 30 years, both in New Zealand and overseas.
The club’s women’s team, Mangawhai Rush, sponsored by Rush Coffee, also did well, missing a place in the finals of the 500-metre sprint by just one slot.
Team member Mandy White said this was the team’s first time at the competition and they were “pretty pleased” with the result.
The team competed in the 500-metre sprint and the turns race, a three kilometre race that involves three turns.
“The calibre of the paddlers was huge and the turns race was a lot more technical than we’d expected,” White says.
“It was a great experience, though and we are super-keen to have another go next year. The atmosphere was amazing, and teams were made up of all cultures, ages and ability.
“Racing a waka involves everybody working together and when it happens, it’s an amazing feeling.”
The Mangawhai team members were White, Birgit Meister, Ingrid Kaptein, Joanne Tischik, Anthoinet Top and Sharee Lum. The women have been paddling together for about three months, and trained three or four times a week in the run up to the Karāpiro competition.
The next big event on the club’s calendar is the three-day Takapuna Cup, starting on February 17.
The club will field a women’s team in the 42km changeover race around Rangitoto and Rakino Islands, as well as mixed and masters entries.
White says the club is in good heart, with an enthusiastic membership that paddles several times a week.
“Waka ama has a really good team environment, is great for fitness, and gives people a chance to get out on the water.”
Anyone interested is welcome to ‘have a go’ on Saturday mornings from about 8am onwards. The club meets by the black container on the estuary, at the end of Mangawhai Heads Road.
