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We are excited to announce that the South Island Secondary Schools Adventure Racing Champs (SISSARC) will be hosted alongside the 3, 6 & 12 hr events at Kaikoura Adventure Race on Saturday 11th April 2026.
We feel privileged to continue the work of Bill Godsall, founder of this hugely successful competition.
Following the 2021 event we sought feedback on course lengths and difficulty for the school’s event. To make the event more accessible to younger students we decided to split the championships from 2022 onwards into three race categories:
- Year 7&8 ‘Junior’ 3 Hour Championship Event
- Year 9&10 ‘Intermediate’ 6 Hour Championship Event
- Year 11-13 ‘Senior’ 12 Hour Championship Event
The SISSARC championship events are open to teams of 4 members made up of either Male, Female or Mixed. To be eligible for the championship all team members must be enrolled at the same school, and be in the eligible school year listed above, or lower.
The SISSARC will include mountain biking, trekking, navigation, and a mystery activity. A support crew is required for all school teams.
This year only the 12 Hr School teams will be live tracked as part of their entry fee. Teams in the 3 & 6 Hr who would like to be live tracked can hire trackers through Trackme NZ 0800 776 869 for $110 + gst , please contact david@trackme.life before 1st March 2026. There will be no cell phone coverage on this years course.
The SISSARC events are sanctioned events with NZ Sport, we ask that teams read & follow SSNZ eligibility guidelines.
School Sport New Zealand – Eligibility & Regulations (schoolsportnz.org.nz)
Each Eligible School team must fill in this form:
School Sport NZ Team Roster and Principal Attestation form
Link to 2026 Safety Management system:
OPEN ELIGIBILITY YOUTH EVENT
In addition to the South Island Secondary School Adventure Racing Championships there are open eligibility youth events. All youth teams are eligible and ranked, including teams made up of 2, 3 or 4 members; and composite teams made up of multiple schools/youth. Open eligibility youth teams follow the school timetable/start times, same as the SISSARC teams. This event is NOT sanctioned by School Sport NZ
No principal permission slip required for this event
Results for the open-eligibility youth event will be published separately from the SISSARC results.
For the open-eligibility youth event there is no restriction on the enrolment year for the 3, 6 and 12 hour courses.
School/youth teams must have all team members enrolled at Primary (yr 7 & 8), High School (yr 9-13) or correspondence school.
For younger school/youth teams in the three hour that require an adult shadow there now is an option on our event plus entry system to enter this category, these teams will be competing in their own category, but they will follow the school timetable and start with the school teams.
Entries NOW opeN
SCHOOL RACE TIMETABLE
All Race Registrations and Briefings to be held at Kaikoura Memorial Centre, 32 Esplanade Kaikōura 7300
The 3, 6 & 12 hour teams do not require a support crew but there will be a transition area where parents can assist & be present. 4WD vehicles are recommended this year & due to limited parking we ask if teams try to fit in one vehicle, a maximum of 2 vehicles per team. Strictly No Dogs please.
This year only the 24 hr & 12 hr School teams will be live tracked as part of their entry fee. Teams who would like to be live tracked can hire trackers through Trackme NZ 0800 776 869 for $110 + gst , please contact david@trackme.life before 15th March 2026.
Friday, 10th April 2026
- 3.00 pm – 6.00 pm – 3, 6 & 12 Race Registration
- Team Changes/Payments/Race Waiver.
- Map Handout
- 6.00 pm – 6.30 pm – 3 Hr Race Briefing
- Race Briefing
- 3 Hour teams can also register and get maps during this time
- 6.45 pm – 7.15 pm – 6 Hr Race Briefing
- Race Briefing
- 6 Hour teams can also register and get maps during this time
- 7:30pm – 8:00pm -12 Hr briefing
- Race Briefing
- Tracker hand out
- 12 Hour teams can also register and get maps during this time
Saturday, 11th April 2026
- 5.00am – 12 Hr School Race Start
- 10.00 am – 6 Hr School Race Start
- 11.00 am – 3 Hr School Race Start
SUNDAY 12th April 2026
- 10:30am – Prize Giving Ceremony at Kaikoura Rugby Club Takahanga Domain 42 Esplanade Kaikōura
ENTER – Entries open 1st July 2025
Withdrawals – Teams who wish to withdraw from the race must notify the race organisers by emailing kaikouraadventure@gmail.com. Teams withdrawing by the 20th of March will be refunded 70% entry fee. Withdrawals from 20th March until April 1st will be refunded 20% of entry fee. There will be no refunds for withdrawals received on or after April 2nd. Transfers to the following year may be possible at the organiser’s discretion and will be subject to a $25 transfer fee.
Cancellation – If the event is cancelled due to circumstances outside of the organisers control, entries will be deferred to a future race date. There will be no refunds given.
Registration will be held in the Kaikoura Memorial Hall. To streamline registration, please complete all paperwork prior to arrival.
