The 12th annual event has attracted nearly 3334 competitors, which is down slightly on last year, and will start at various times in and around Glendhu Bay in Wanaka this morning.
The race will be for cyclists, runners and triathletes and will traverse the Motatapu, Soho and Glencoe Stations. The event snakes through high country terrain accessible to the public only one day a year.
Though the vast majority of the competitors are in the event to just compete and are racing against themselves, mountain bikers Kate Fluker, of Queenstown, and Anton Cooper, of Christchurch, will be out to win their categories.
Fluker holds the women's course record of 2hr 8min 31sec. Gunning for Olympic selection this year, she is keen to beat her own record and is aiming for sub-two hours. It is back to where it all started for Fluker, who took up the sport just five years ago with the Motatapu her first race.
Fifth-time Motatapu entrant Cooper beat the junior course record in 2011 with a time of 1:48.43. After taking a break from Motatapu last year because he was racing overseas, he wants to beat Dirk Peters' overall course record of 1:47.53, set in 2013.
Rotorua's Olly Shaw (24) overcame a hip injury and battled the harsh conditions to come second in last year's triathlon behind Wanaka's Dougal Allen. This year he is feeling pretty good and is confident of winning.
‘‘I'm confident in where I am with my training for the Motatapu and looking to take the first-place spot. You never know how others are going to go or what the course conditions will be like, but I am feeling good,'' said Shaw.
There are several categories in the Motatapu event, so there is something for everyone.
The triathlon involves a 2km swim in Lake Wanaka before a 47km bike and a 15km run to end up in Arrowtown.
The ultra run involves covering 51km of rugged country with 2790m of climbing.
The off-road marathon starts at Motatapu Station and will finish in Arrowtown. The marathon does not have a loop start as in previous years, with runners going straight up the road and through the Motatapu Valley all the way to Arrowtown.
The most popular event is the mountain bike. It covers 47km with more than 1200m of climbing.
A new Miners Trail course has been unveiled this year featuring New Chums Gully and all its mining history - competitors now get to run/walk the old water races that fed the gold mines. The Miners Trail will start at 8.30am and is raced in and around Arrowtown.
Competitors this year come from as far away as Sweden, Denmark, Czech Republic, the United States, the UK and Singapore, as well as Australia, Auckland, Wellington and Canterbury. Closer to home, there are competitors from Arrowtown, Cromwell, Alexandra, Wanaka and Queenstown.
All the money raised will go to the Queenstown Trails Trust, which helps develop and maintain trails around the Queenstown-Lakes area.
