Summer Challenge

Nathan Fa’avae, the 6-time Adventure Racing World Champion and founder of the sell out Spring Challenge event has designed a brand new event for adventurous women.

The new venture is for women wishing to challenge themselves, expand perceptions, learn new skills or simply just have a rollicking good time!

Where the Spring Challenge has river rafting as the water activity, the Summer Challenge will have kayaking. The kayaks and equipment will be provided, they are the most superior 3-person inflatable kayaks on the market, self bailing, stable, lightweight and decked out with three comfortable seats. Paddles and personal flotation devices will be supplied.

The inaugural Summer Challenge will be held in Nelson, it has to be really, it is after all the centre of New Zealand and the countries sunniest city. Nelson boasts not just the climate of envy, but it has every right to brag about the outdoor adventure opportunities on the doorstep.

Jodie and Nathan Fa’avae are both born and bred in the adventure centre and super stoked to be running the first event in their home region.

The Summer Challenge is a result of the high demand for places in the Spring Challenge.
Nathan explains “the Spring Challenge in Cromwell sold out in a few minutes, 12-months before the event, with 450-teams. The waiting list then grew to epic proportions, more than doubling the size of the event, had we been able to accept all the teams, we’d have almost 1000-teams I’d say.

We looked at multiple ways to accept more teams, as we did in Geraldine where we took 600-teams, but for many reasons we couldn’t find an attractive solution. It was Jodie who tabled the idea of a whole new event, but we wanted something that would compliment Spring Challenge, something equivalent”.

The energetic couple put their heads together. With their first business venture being an award-winning sea kayaking company in the Abel Tasman National Park, they decided to design an event that included another of their passions and skill sets.

Jodie says “With the Spring Challenge and the Absolute Wilderness Adventure Race, we need to annually find new venues with rafting stages to build the races around. We didn’t want to have another event that competed for the same environments, especially when there is so many locations that offer excellent Adventure Race courses. What is very exciting for us is that the Summer Challenge will open up a whole spectrum of possibilities, ocean, lakes, estuaries, lagoons, even some rivers will be ideal for the Summer Challenge”.

They say the event will cater for beginners through to experienced teams just as Spring Challenge does. For those that missed out or are on the waiting list, this is their chance to sign up and train for an authentic and achievable adventure.

Nathan adds “the more we worked and tweaked this concept, the more into it we got. The final product will be an excellent option or alternative for those wishing to receive the benefits of completing a Spring Challenge, it will be a refreshing change for the seasoned women who have done multiple events. Starting in Nelson, we have 5-awesome unique locations lined up to take the Summer Challenge to”.

The teams participating can expect some fun kayaking, world class mountain biking, scenic hiking and orienteering navigation. The 3 & 6-hour teams will get to experience the heart of the Nelson region on a rewarding route, for the 9-hour teams a grand adventure is guaranteed.

Set for March 20th-22nd, the Summer Challenge will land in a time of year that is renown for hot and dry temperatures with long daylight hours. Because active people are generally fit as they exit summer, the event is sure to be enjoyable and successful for the teams, a superb weekend away in popular summer time destinations. One thing for sure is that adventure racers live a dynamic lifestyle, be part of the action.