Hangin' out for Ironmaori in Napier on Saturday

Heather Te Au Skipworth at Ironmaori in 2018. Photo / File

Napier's 12th Ironmaori triathlons are set to roll at the weekend on Saturday after what race director and founder Heather Te Au Skipworth says was a decision as hard to make as it would have been to cancel.

Just as for event organisers trying to keep on track since the Covid-19 crisis emerged about nine months ago, Ironmaori organisers have had constant uncertainty as to whether they could.

Ultimately, it has pulled its annual November Ironmaori Quarter and the regular December Ironmaori Half into one day, with the first of about 1100 competitors entering the swim at 6.15am, on a rectangular open-sea course off Ahuriri's Hardinge Rd foreshore.

The children's and kaumātau events which would have been held on Friday are not being held this year.

Ironmaori was first held in 2009 based on Pandora Pond which was ruled out by concerns for pollution in the waterway, concerns recurring again amid the outfall of the Napier flood almost four weeks ago.

The East Pier reserve and Ahuriri were successfully trialled last year, and is likely to become the permanent base, Skipworth said.

The half comprises a 2km swim, a 90km out-and-back cycling leg south from Hardinge Rd to Breakwater Rd, Marine Parade and State Highway 51 (formerly SH2)) to Clive, the Tukituki valley and Te Awanga, and a 21km run comprises 6 laps of a course on the Ahuriri and inner harbour waterfront.

The cycle course was also successfully trialled last year and on Saturday one lane of Marine Parade and a section of SH51 will be closed to other traffic between the intersections of Ellison St and Waitangi Rd at Awatoto during the cycling stage. The closures are signposted and a detour will be directed through Waitangi Rd and Te Awa Ave.

Skipworth, awarded the Queen's Service Medal in 2014 in recognition of her efforts in establishing the event as major contributor to health and wellbeing, and now in a third term elected to the Hawke's Bay District Health Board, said she felt "blessed" that the event could still go ahead with its "1100 stars".

"I think that with so many other events cancelled people are just hanging out to compete," she said. "It's the atmosphere, the camaraderie, and just the chance to have a chin-wag with everybody."

The Covid-19 situation had meant there would be few, if any, competitors travelling from overseas, and the complexion of Napier's accommodation industry has been shaken by the impacts of the multiple crises of the pandemic, housing shortages and the Napier flood.

But she hadn't heard of anyone who had had accommodation books cancelled, although Napier urban marae Pukemokimoki is being used for some visitors.

Competitors in the usually capacity-entry event had had the options of transferring their entries to next year.

The first arrivals from out-of-town were expected in Napier on Thursday, with all starting the countdown and compounding of bicycles from 4pm on Friday.