After weeks of unstable weather, the weather gods appear to be onside for a madcap charity running race in Queenstown’s CBD this Saturday.
The Bayleys Brecon St Grunt will have $3000 up for grabs in what its organiser promises will be a "unique spectacle barely seen in New Zealand".
Head-to-head elimination races up and down the two flights of the Brecon St steps — one step at a time — will be held in the ampitheatre-like hospo hotspot.
It’s the brainchild of Mountain Scene chief news hound Philip ‘Scoop’ Chandler, who’s hoping it’ll "breathe some life into the beleaguered CBD" while also recapturing some of the zany vibe of the Winter Festivals of old.
The event was originally supposed to run in 2022, but had to be knocked on the head at the last minute because of Covid crowd restrictions, Scoop says.
He’s been "bowled over" by fantastic support from the business community — there’ll be substantial raffle prizes for spectators and spot prizes for competitors — along with generous donations already made to two key charities.
All proceeds, including fundraising on the day, will be split between local neurodiversity charity Pivotal Point and Hato Hone St John.
Open to anyone 18 and over, the winners of each category — female, male and mixed community or business teams of three — pocket $1000 cash on the day, thanks to local realtor Bayleys.
There’ll be a maximum of 32 entries in each individual category and 16 in the teams category.
Following registrations on the day, from noon, racing will start at 12.40pm.
It’ll be wrapped up by 4pm, in time for the NPC rugby final.
If the weather doesn’t come to the party, a reserve day’s scheduled for Sunday.
- Entries — $25 for individuals and $50 for teams — are available on Eventfinda
