Hop to it – sack races were a crowd favourite.
Whether on two legs or four, many a competitor put their best foot or hoof forward during the Coast Sports Day at the weekend.
Hot to chop – timbersports in action. Photo Kim Waihere
Held at the Marokopa Reserve, the event attracted a crowd of approximately 300 people.
“The weather was overcast for the start of the day but it turned out to be very hot later on. It was a very successful day,” organiser Debbie Hastie said.
For more than 100 years, Coast Sport has hosted sporting stars and have-a-go heroes alike with contests including timbersports and equestrian events and athletics as well as fun day events for children including an egg toss, sack races and egg-and-spoon races.
“It’s good old fashioned country fun for all the family,” Hastie said. “It brings people from the community together and starts off the New Year on a happy note.”
Other traditional favourites involved guessing the height of a bamboo pole, hitting a golf ball into a drum, or hitting nails into a block of wood with as few swings as possible.
Coast sport day. Photo: Kim Waihere
The 2026 edition saw an expanded equestrian programme.
“This year, we’ve added barrel racing, bending and peg and barrel to appeal to riders.”
All three of these disciplines test the agility of horses and riders as they weave around various obstacles.
Once again, a crowd favourite was the King, Queen, Prince and Princess of the Hill races, Hastie said.
“They start off at the reserve and then they climb up to the top of a hill, which is more than 300 metres high – it’s a massive climb – and then they race back down again.”
Entry on the day was by gold coin koha and Coast Sport again served as an important fundraiser for Kinohaku School, which managed the food and beverage supply.
Originally run from 1906 as an axemen’s carnival, which was then cancelled during the First World War, the first official event was held in 2020. Since then, it has run annually with the exception of 2022 when it was cancelled due to uncertainty surrounding the Covid pandemic.
Winning runs – for young ones show their speed. Photo: Kim Waihere
Hop to it – sack races were a crowd favourite. Photo Kim Waihere
