Last weekend a team consisting of four Year 11 students: Sophie Matehaere, Kate Pyper, Ella Hou and Aimee Twist competed in the Hillary 6-hour Adventure Challenge in Christchurch. We were in a combined team with four students from Otago Boys'. It was the first time any of our team members had competed in an adventure race at this level.

This is a rogaine style challenge where you need to visit as many checkpoints as you can, and get back to the finish in time. Strategic planning and timekeeping were essential skills for the race. Our event consisted of three stages:

Stage 1 - 5 km run with 8 compulsory checkpoints.

Stage 2 - 25 km bike with 19 checkpoints and one mystery activity.

Stage 3 - 10 km run with 24 checkpoints and one mystery activity.

There are time cuts for each stage, and 30 penalty points deducted for every minute you are late. Fortunately for our team, we managed to get back before the cut off times.

An example of one of the mystery challenges was where we had to get 15 marbles into a bucket using a telescopic tube that was split into three sections. The team had to stand behind a marked line and get the marbles into a small bucket two metres away. We did well in this activity scoring 50 points.

This was a learning opportunity for our whole team and in reflection, we had some laughs and lots of fun throughout the race. We were competing against very experience teams, including the 2020 National Hillary Challenge Champions! The rogaine experience has fuelled our energy and desire for next year …. we will be back fitter, stronger and with more knowledge and skills.

We would like to thank Miss Young and Miss Ward who took time away from their busy schedules to provide us with this opportunity, and for supporting us along this journey. Ms Boomer and Mrs Matthews also made huge contributions towards our preparation.