Rafter Cairns eyes world hat-trick

Masterton's Anne Cairns is aiming for a hat-trick when she represents New Zealand at the 2011 Rafting World Championships on the Pacuare River in Costa Rica from October 4 to 11.

Cairns was part of Kiwi line-ups that won the world titles on the Zambesi River in 2001 and in the Czech Republic in 2003, the latter being her most recent appearance for New Zealand in rafting competitions.

The 2011 men's and women's champions will be decided at the end of the competition in which points will be accumulated in four events: time trial, head to head sprints, raft slalom and downriver.

Twenty-five nations are taking part and they will be hosted at a purpose-built eco village, built to have the least possible impact on the environment.

It does mean, though, that competitors will be forced to hike through the jungle to get to the river, a situation which Cairns admits could test her dislike of snakes and big spiders.

Another challenge is likely to be the weather - temperatures are expected to be hot and humid and heavy rainfall is likely to raise the already high river levels at times, making for "bigger, pushier" water.

The New Zealand women's team have an excellent record at the championships, their victories in 2001 and 2003 were followed by a second in Ecuador in 2005 and third in Korea in 2007. They did not enter a team in 2009.

Cairns says those results have helped steel the resolve of the current line-up to bring home some silverware.

But she admitted it would be a tough challenge with the Czech Republic, Slovakia, United States, Canada and Britain all having every reason to fancy their prospects of placing in the top three.

"There are a lot of teams who are pretty sharp and there should be some good battles going on, especially in the head-to-head races where there's sure to be a bit of push and shove."

Cairns has trained in the past two months around Rotorua, on the Tarawera River at Kawerau, on the Rangitaiki near Murpara and also on the Kaituna. She has also carried on with her normal kayak training regime to stay fit, a regime which includes two or three gym sessions a week and 8 to 10 paddle sessions.

She said her return to rafting after racing successfully on the international and national flatwater sprint kayaking circuit since 2005 was prompted to some degree by Canoe New Zealand not trying to qualify a women's kayaking team for the 2012 London Olympics.

She still has some involvement in that domain - she was team manager for the New Zealand junior squad at their world championships in Germany in July, but says her own kayaking career is "pretty much done".

Instead, Cairns has turned her attention to rafting and waka ama and she is a member of the Haeata Sports Club women's waka ama crew, which are the premier long distance racing crew in the country, having won the national title last year and the prestigious Takapuna Cup this year.