ROAD
NBS Nelson Striders Half Marathon & 10km
Sun, 13/01/2013 January 15th 2012This unique event was inspired by the Nelson Striders running group who made international press when out for their Sunday morning run up the Maitai Valley in August 1994. What started as a peaceful jog ended up with the group scrambling up a bank to avoid the agitated wild boar. Caretaker Trevor Ruffell came to the rescue and had to drown the pig with his bare hands in the Maitai River.
Runners now compete to win the prestigous Trevor Ruffell Tusk Trophy (aka The Boar's Jaws) by being closest to their estimate over the 21.1km distance up the Maitai Valley. Over the past 12 years winners have all been within 10 seconds of their estimate, with Stu Cottam guessing his exact time in 1998.
JOGGERS HAIL HERO WHO DROWNED WILD BOAR
Nelson Evening Mail (Wednesday August 10, 1994) - Kirsty Fyfe
Crocodile Dundee eat your heart out .... a Nelson man became a true hero on Sunday when he saved a group of joggers being chased by a frenzied boar.
Maitai Dam caretaker Trevor Ruffell downplayed his courageous feat when contacted by the Mail this morning, but admitted he drowned the 54kg boar in the Maitai River with his bare hands.
The escapade began when seven members of the Nelson Striders Club were enjoying an early morning jog through the Maitai Valley and spied a wild boar on the opposite side of the river.
When the tusked boar saw them it swam the river and gave chase.
Mr Ruffell couldn't quite believe what he saw when he arrived on the scene in his utility with his sheepdog on the back.
'I saw all these joggers waving at me and thought they wanted a lift, but then saw this frenzied boar and realised they were in big trouble.'
After ramming the pig with his ute's bull bar, he grabbed his .22 rifle - but not before his dog had bailed the pig up. 'The dog chased him down to the river where I shot him between the eyes, but he didn't flinch.'
The boar then ripped the dog through the shoulder with its tusks and tried to charge up the opposite side of the bank. 'So I grabbed him by the tail and the back leg and drowned him in the river. He was pretty tired by then.'
Mr Ruffell said it happened so fast he did not even think about his actions before lending a hand.
Joggers Marie Lenting and Averil West said the incident was exciting rather than terrifying and made their adrenalin pump. 'We just couldn't believe a boar would actually swim a river to chase us. The experience was so unreal because it was close to town ... I knew how it felt to be a clown in a bullfight,' Mrs West said.
Mrs Lenting said it had given them 'an awesome buzz' and forced the joggers into a sprint after the boar got within a couple of metres of them. 'We had to climb up a steep bank and cling to the sides while the caretaker chased the boar for us.'
The incident will go down in Nelson Striders' history, as the boar's jaw will be mounted as a trophy for the club's race up the Maitai Valley.
Trevor Russell Trophy Honours Year Difference
Year Difference
Tim Cross 1994 8 seconds
Steve Clementson 1996 5 seconds
Mike Parris 1997 4 seconds
Stu Cottam 1998 EXACT
Sonia O'Regan 1999 2 seconds
Gretchen Rasch 2000 2 seconds
Janine Eady 2001 4 seconds
Helena Franklin & Kim Leighton 2002 6 seconds
Graham Staples 2003 3 seconds
Lucy Thompson 2004 6 seconds
Judy Crowe 2005 9 seconds
Andrew Ricciardi 2006 1 second
David Walsh-Kemmis 2007 1 second
Pete Campbell 2008 4 seconds
Martin Meads 2009 2 seconds
Raymond Janssen 2010 5 seconds
Stu Cottam 2011 7 seconds
NO WATCHES, HANDICAP START,GUESS YOUR TIME
Start/Finish
Branford Park, Maitai Valley, Nelson
Course
Out and back 21.1km or 10km course along Nelson's charming Maitai Valley Road
Please note: Half Marathon Course has been adjusted to a part double out & back to accommodate current cable/pipe laying above Smiths Ford. Instead of a straight out and back, it is up to Smiths Ford with a turnaround and back to the Golf Course, where another drink station awaits before heading back up the valley to Smiths Ford again before returning to the finish.
Entry
Entry to the 2012 event is now open. Click on the ENTRY signpost to the right of the screen for more info.
Registration
Please arrive at least 30 mins prior to your scheduled start time to pick up your race number.
Registration is at Branford Park (beginning of the Maitai Valley).
A Registration Certificate will be emailed to all entrants during the week prior to the event.
Start Times
Half Marathon start times are staggered according to your estimated time as follows:
8.00am = 2.30hrs plus
8.15am = 2.01 - 2.29 hrs
8.35am = 1.46 - 2.00 hrs
8.55am = 1.26 - 1.45 hrs
9.15am = Under 1.26 hrs
9.30am = All 10km Run and Walk Entrants
If you are not sure of your estimate, measure a 1km distance then time how long it takes you to cover this distance at your normal race speed and then multiply by 21.
Water Stations
There are five drink stations in total for the half marathon, and two for the 10km.
Half Marathon Water Station #1: Golf Course
Half Marathon Water Station #2: Smiths Ford
Half Marathon Water Station #3: Golf Course
Half Marathon Water Station #4: Smiths Ford
Half Marathon Water Station #5: Golf Course
10km Water Station #1: Golf Course (up)
10km Water Station #2: Golf Course (back)
Post Race Function
Wakatu Hotel, approx 1pm
Prizes & Prizegiving
Trevor Ruffell Tusk Trophy (the Boar's Jaws) for Closest Finisher to Estimate in Half Marathon event.
Top 10 closest to estimate - Half Marathon
Top 10 closest to estimate - 10km
PLUS - Spot Prizes
Safety
Please note that for safety reasons use of ipod, mp3 player, Walkman or similar is not permitted.
More Information
Please contact Averil West on (03) 548 3655 or 021 303 160, Fax (03) 548 3641
Email: nelsonstriders@clear.net.nz
Online Entry to the 2012 event has now closed
We will accept late manual entries tomorrow morning, however, please arrive at least 45 minutes prior to your scheduled start time to allow sufficient processing time.
Download entry formhe Maitai Valley is located a couple of kilometres from central city of Nelson.
The start and finish is located from Branford Park, which is at the start of the Maitai Valley (off Nile Street).
2012 Participant List
Please note that this list is not complete and will be updated again before event day
Half Marathon
| 8.00am Start | |||
| Liam | Butler | M | Nelson |
| Judy | Campbell | F | Nelson |
| Joy | Crump | F | Marlborough |
| Annette | Denton | F | Nelson |
| Judy | Harper | F | Nelson |
| Graham | Harper | M | Nelson |
| Amanda | Hodson | F | Christchurch |
| Lois | Hutchinson | F | Nelson |
| Megan | Inwood | F | Nelson |
| John | Llewellin | M | Nelson |
| Carol | Lowrie | F | Nelson |
| Paul | Murphy | M | Nelson |
| Bebe | Onslow-Bartlett | F | Nelson |
| Lyn | Smith | F | Nelson |
| Denise | Tombs | F | Nelson |
| Clare | Weyers | F | Motueka |
| 8.15am Start | |||
| Grahame | Andrews | M | Nelson |
| Charlotte | Bonny | F | Tasman |
| Bevan | Cook | M | Motueka |
| Paula | Creighton | F | Motueka |
| Ros | D'Agnilli | F | Nelson |
| Roger | Denton | M | Nelson |
| Donald | Gunn | M | Motueka |
| Sally-Anne | Jones | F | Nelson |
| Janelle | McBrearty | F | Nelson |
| Ross | Mitchell | M | Nelson |
| Linda | Sillery | F | Ngatimoti |
| Carol | Singleton | F | Nelson |
| Stephen | Stout | M | Motueka |
| Cilla | Voit | F | FINLAND |
| Mark | Voit | M | FINLAND |
| 8.35am Start | |||
| Martin | Bonny | M | Tasman |
| Vicki | Bryson | F | Nelson |
| Mark | Cargin | M | Christchurch |
| Tessa | Finnigan | F | Wellington |
| Martin | Finnimore | M | Porirua |
| Cathy | Finnimore | F | Porirua |
| Chris | Fitchett | M | Nelson |
| Anna | Hood | F | Auckland |
| Joeline | Jones | F | Motueka |
| Paul | Meeson | M | Nelson |
| Alana | Newlands | F | Richmond |
| Robbie | Newlands | M | Richmond |
| Rob | Rix | M | Motueka |
| Jeff | Schultz | M | Nelson |
| Kilmeny | Stephens | F | Nelson |
| Petra | Wheatley | F | Wellington |
| 8.55am Start | |||
| Phil | Barnes | M | Nelson |
| Andre | Bonny | M | Greymouth |
| Pete | Campbell | M | Nelson |
| Norman | Carrington | M | Ngatimoti |
| Stu | Cottam | M | Nelson |
| Ian | Courtenay | M | Upper Moutere |
| Robyn | Deane | F | Nelson |
| Alastair | Dickson | M | Nelson |
| Kate | Fitzgerald | F | Nelson |
| Elizabeth | Fulton | F | Nelson |
| Renee | Hires | F | Nelson |
| Simon | Jones | M | Motueka |
| Scott | Kearney | M | Nelson |
| Andy | Leonard | M | Nelson |
| Wayne | Lloyd | M | Nelson |
| Martin | Meads | M | Nelson |
| Michael | Murphy | M | Nelson |
| Hugh | Neill | M | Nelson |
| Bruce | Patrick | M | Motueka |
| James | Parsons | M | Nelson |
| Andrew | Petheram | M | Nelson |
| Margreet | Petheram | F | Nelson |
| Colette | Read | F | Nelson |
| Matt | Reid | M | Upper Moutere |
| Barry | Rowe | M | Nelson |
| Graeme | Sellars | M | Nelson |
| Klaartje | Van Schie | F | Nelson |
| 9.15am Start | |||
| Abe | Kazuhiro | M | Nelson |
| Alan | Bryson | M | Nelson |
| Simon | Leaning | M | Nelson |
| Jason | Sweney | M | Hokitika |
10km
| 9.30am Start | |||
| Lee | Baker | M | AUSTRALIA |
| Pam | Barker | F | Nelson |
| Amber | Bonny | F | Greymouth |
| Denis | Chambers | M | Nelson |
| Lynette | Chambers | F | Nelson |
| Yolande | Cherepak | F | CANADA |
| Alastair | Christian | M | Motueka |
| Rosie | Costley | F | Nelson |
| Chris | Coughlan | F | Nelson |
| Kayla | Crimp-Palmer | F | Nelson |
| Hamish | Crook | M | Nelson |
| Sarah | Denmead | F | Nelson |
| Mary | Eggers | F | Nelson |
| Wayne | Eggers | M | Nelson |
| Iona | Fitchett | F | Nelson |
| Rowena | Forsyth | F | Wellington |
| Catherine | Foster | F | Nelson |
| Ann | Haswell | F | Ruby Bay |
| Mieke | Holtrop | F | Blenheim |
| Barbara | Kreft | F | Nelson |
| Fay | Lloyd | F | Nelson |
| Todd | Marwick | M | Nelson |
| Tanya | McMurtrie | F | Nelson |
| Sue | Mitchell | F | Nelson |
| Lara | Newlands | F | Nelson |
| Kelly | Newlands | F | Nelson |
| Sheryl | Newlands | F | Nelson |
| Alysia | Simkin | F | Nelson |
| Ashleigh | Spratt | F | Lower Moutere |
| Richard | Wells | M | Nelson |
| Jeanette | Wilson | F | Nelson |
| Jim | Young | M | Upper Moutere |
| Jim | Youngman | M | Nelson |
2012 provisional results
2012 Boar's Jaw Difference Results
Previous Results
