Ironman New Zealand Photos

2011 | 2010 | 2009 | 2008 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 |

» 2012

With the help of The Patter, CFANZ developed the Charity Team Challenge for 2012 Ironman athletes. The campaign was headed by Ironman superstars such as ten- time winner Cameron Brown, rising star Terenzo Bozzone and NZ Ironman legends Tony and Vera Jackson. Athletes could either do their own FundraiseOnLine page or become a team member with the totals combined to find the winning team.

Taupo is the CF Office second home and it feels like going to a family reunion as sponsors such as TIMEX, Mighty River Power, Bonita, Avanti and many of the Race Officials are so welcoming. Everyone hoped that the weather would improve, but sadly according to the news reports there was going to be a “weather bomb” descend on the shores of Lake Taupo at 7am on Saturday, you guessed it, the exact time the starting cannon of Ironman was scheduled to go off.

On Friday the Race Manager announced it was not possible to hold the Ironman race the next morning as it was simply a matter of safety for all those involved. But hats off to Event Managers, Jane and Janette and hundreds of volunteers, who quickly turned the situation around and promised everyone a fabulous half Ironman on Sunday. When we woke on Sunday morning, the skies were calm and clear. The cannon sounded and 1500 athletes lunged into the lake to start their 1.6km swim followed by a 90km bike ride and 21km run.

The CF volunteers cranked up the bbq early and started turning out bacon butties.

At the beginning of race day our fundraising total was around $90K but with the success of the bbq (we sold out of all goods for the very first time!) the total was climbing.

The day went very quickly with the Elite athletes coming down the finishing chute in less than four hours! It was intense and exciting as the field was condensed which meant a continual flow of people crossing the finish line.

By the end of the day our fundraising was almost complete, only the signed Ironman flag left to go under the hammer at the Awards Dinner that night. In a heart stopping display of generosity, a small group of American friends pooled together to bid $6,000 to buy the flag. There were tears of joy and hugs all round, this now put our total at $101,000! AMAZING! Tony and Vera Jackson and their team members raised the most money and took home the trophy.

If you know someone entering Ironman in 2013 please encourage them to become part of the CF Team by raising money for us, by each person doing one small thing, it makes a BIG difference to the CF community. Funds raised at Ironman go into our Breath4CF fund to provide every person in NZ with CF access to exercise, so everyone’s a winner!

» 2011

Well, no photos this year the weather was atrocious and the cameras stayed securely covered.

Instead this year you get a short article written by Julie Clemett, CFANZ Administrator about her Ironman Initiation.

Ironman Initiation

Well! Don’t be misled to think I did Ironman, THAT was reserved for the elite few who most of us think are a bit eccentric. I was there to assist with the CFANZ’s Breath4CF fundraising. As the official charity of Ironman, Breath4CF has a huge presence during this event. Stories from previous years’ events float around our office, so I knew a little of what I was in for.

Wednesday, Thursday and Friday were spent preparing for Race Day, meeting athletes that had been fundraising for Breath4CF, getting the Ironman flag signed by all athletes and manning the Creation Station marquee, where signs could be made to support your favourite athlete.

Race day dawned very wet, as forecasted, but it didn’t seem to worry the wetsuit-clad athletes as they lined up for the swim-start. A blast of cannon fire and they were away. A great splashing mass, soon out of sight in the gloomy wet dawn.

The morning lightened in time to see the torrential rain start, and we confidently stand in the tent thinking “Yep! We’ve got a dry place”. Wrong. With each bout of torrential rain we got a river through the tent, but with a bit of maneuvering we got everything above water level. It was a good time to change into shorts and jandals, it really was good weather for ducks.

It was time to light the barbeque and attract the few customers lingering around. Bacon butties on a cold wet morning, Mmmm!

As more people gathered under the awnings along the Tongariro Street we began our round of bucket shaking. The hardy people out there were also very generous and we would return to the marquee with a good ‘catch’ each time. The chocolate fish definitely helped.

Business for the barbeque was slow and steady with venison burgers being the star item. By 7pm when the elite athletes had finished. We couldn’t lure the few hardy bystanders into purchasing a sausage, drink, pen or a hat. Not for lack of trying! So we decided to pack it in for the day. Then I got a chorus of “this is the earliest ever we have finished on Race Day…” but I don’t think anyone was too disappointed to be going home to have a chance to dry out.

Sunday dawned no better than Race Day, but we were out early to do a bit of cleanup, and preparation for returning home.

The Awards ceremony will shine as a highlight, if only for the excitement of having the flag auctioned off. It was combined with Cameron Brown’s race singlet, and the bids rose to an unprecedented $5000. WOW!

Overall, we had a great response, with fundraising well up on the previous year. I look forward to next year, as I have yet to participate in the ‘Midnight Party’ as we all wait for the athletes to finish.

A big THANK YOU to all the volunteers who had came from across NZ to help us out during Ironman Week. It was great time and I hope to catch up with you all next year.

Wishing you better weather next time.

» 2010

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» 2009

Ironman New Zealand 2009
Well we did it again! Our goal of $100,000 was well and truly breached in an amazing weekend that saw us raise over $135,000!

What a weekend it was with many very special moments for our athletes and their CF buddies.

Our winners of the Highest Fundraiser prizes are as follows:

1st place Peter Tinholt from Tauranga with over $18,000 - well done Peter!

He wins a VIP trip for 2 to watch Kona Ironman World Champs in Hawaii in October.

2nd place Peter Cowan from Auckland with over $15,000 - well done Peter!

He wins an Avanti Bike.

3rd place Rob Wright of Ontario - Canada with over $6,000

He wins a Blue Seventy Wetsuit - superb effort!!

We hope to see many athletes back again in 2010. Thank you to all the CF buddies and our key sponsorship partners for making this happen:

The Patter
ASB Bank
Avanti
Bonita
Blue Seventy Wetsuits
Endurance Sport Travel
Ironman International

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» 2008

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» 2007

We Did It !
The sun shone, the wind stayed away - a perfect day for the competitors and for Breath4CF! Ironman New Zealand 2007 was a HUGE success, raising $127,000 for the Breath4CF Physical Activity Fund.

Cameron Brown and Jo Lawn both put in very gutsy efforts, with Cameron battling a stomach bug to come home first and Jo beating Erin Baker's previous record of 4 Ironman wins.

Our sincere thanks to all of our sponsors:

ASB
Air NZ
Bonita
Avanti
Blue Seventy
BOC Gases

and of course to all of our amazing volunteers who helped us to ensure success on race day.

Our highest praise, however, goes to the 82 athletes who chose to make this race about someone other than themselves and raised a fantastic amount of money from friends and families during their lead up to the race.

We thank you and praise you for your efforts.