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Friday 29 July 2022
Tata hosts waka ama races
The women’s crew from Onetahua Waka Ama Club paddle home in Sunday morning’s race. Photo: Jo Richards. JO RICHARDS
Waka ama crews from across Te Tauihi o te Waka (the Top of the South) gathered at Tata beach on Sunday morning for the latest round of racing in the Winter Series competition. Joining hosts Onetahua Waka Ama Club (OWAC) were two Nelson-based clubs – Maitahi and Te Tai o Aorere (TTOA), plus one from Motueka. By 8.30am an impressive multi-coloured fleet of outrigger canoes (OCs) were lined up on the gently sloping beach. The sleek vessels, which combine modern materials with traditional design, included singleseaters (OC1), doubles (OC2) and six-person (OC6) craft. After an official welcome and briefing, racing got underway with OC1s and OC2s padding the 5km course which took boats out to and around Tata Islands, then across Ligar Bay towards Abel Tasman Memorial where they rounded a marker buoy before heading back to the beach. The rangatahi meanwhile set off at the same time but tackled a shorter 2.5km route in their OC6s. Keeping a close eye on crews and craft Chris Ray and Mark Sparks from Pōhara Boat Club
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piloted the support boat around the course, making sure that everyone completed their races safely. The glassy sea, slight swell and light winds created ideal conditions for waka racing and the narrow hulls sliced through the water at a surprising speed. The home rangatahi crew, expertly steered by Eric Lander, produced an excellent performance to beat favourites Motueka back to the beach with some impressive paddling. In the single-seaters, Motueka’s Callum O’Leary paddling his Tahitian V1 rudderless racer, left the rest of the field treading water as he stormed into a commanding lead which only got bigger as the kilometres ticked over. ”It must be the porridge,” said Callum, who is competing at the NZ national competition in October. “And a lot of training.” From then on, it was all teamwork rather than individual prowess; the subsequent three races – men/women, mixed gender, and mixed club – all featured OC6 vessels competing over the same 5km course. As the morning wore on, clubs accumulated points towards the day’s total. In the first three races 1000, 500, and 250 points were awarded
to the boat that finished first, second and third respectively, while in the mixed club race, all paddlers in the same boat received 200, 100 and 50 points for first second and third placings. After the last crew had returned to the beach at the end of the final race, each club’s points were tallied. Motueka’s impressive total reflected their dominant performance; not only had they won the men’s OC1, but also finished first in both the men’s and women’s OC6, and secured second place in the mixed OC6. In distant second place overall was Te Tai o Aorere, closely followed by Maitahi and Onetahua. Winter Waka Challenge race series. Tata beach Sunday 24 July. Selected results: OC6 Rangatahi: 1st, Onetahua; 2nd, Motueka 1; 3rd, Motueka 2. OC1 Men: 1st, Motueka; 2nd, TTOA; 3rd, Motueka. OC6 Men: 1st, Motueka; 2nd, TTOA; 3rd, Onetahua. OC6 Women: 1st, Motueka; 2nd, Maitahi; 3rd, Onetahua. OC6 Mixed: 1st, TTOA; 2nd, Motueka; 3rd, Onetahua. Total points: Motueka 7550; TTOA 3000; Maitahi 2950; Onetahua 2350. More photos on page 12
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JO RICHARDS
Two decades after the Government launched Heartland Services to give rural communities better access to its services, those overseeing its delivery in Golden Bay say it needs re-invigorating. “ There is increasing pressure on community, social and government services in rural areas,” says Cait Tomlinson, general manager of Golden Bay Workcentre Trust, the organisation tasked with providing the services. The initiative was designed as a“one-stop shop” to facilitate access to government and non-governmental organisation (NGO) services, as well as managing referrals to other agencies providing support with budgeting guidance, counselling, and legal advice. Cait explains that, in order to ensure access, services need to be “present and engaged in the community”, but many have effectively withdrawn and the trend is continuing. “Increased centralisation and digitisation of government services has meant that agencies have relinquished their commitments to being present in the regions,” says Cait. “As a result, almost all Heartlands providers report a marked reduction of government agencies visiting their sites to deliver services.” A similar pattern has been noted for NGOs, for whom Golden Bay’s isolation – the very issue that Heartlands is supposed to address – makes it difficult for them to attend and provide on-the-ground presence. Organisations that have withdrawn on-site provision from Heartlands include Alzheimer’s NZ, Women’s Refuge, Life Unlimited Hearing, and ACC. Not all offer an online alternative. However, some losses, attributed to Covid disruption, are now being reversed. “Community Law pulled out at the end of 2020,” says Cait. “But I have been building a positive relationship with the managing solicitor in Nelson, Trevor Irwin, who has committed to weekly attendance once their organisational restrictions due to Covid have relaxed.” Another vital service is also making a return to the Bay. “Habit Health are just starting to come back again.” Not all withdrawals can be blamed on the pandemic. “IRD started pulling out before Covid,” says Cait. “They cited a lack of numbers, but at the same time they pulled print advertising from the [GB] Weekly… Continued on page 3
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