ROTORUA2016 TARGA

This year’s Targa Rotorua has sections that include some fantastic roads, and, with everything from tight and twisty to open and fast, the stage is set for yet another fabulous weekend of competitive motor racing

Aspecial thanks goes out to all the community groups that get behind this event every year: a staggering 1500 local people support Targa, with everyone from officials to block marshals supplying their time on behalf of their local community group, which, in turn, receives funding from Targa Rotorua. Once again, we would like to acknowledge the support of our event partners, both financial and via services that keep the wheels turning.

This year, we have returned to the traditional format of the Targa New Zealand rally series, by reintroducing the two-day format at Targa Bambina in March — which was very well received — plus the two-day format for Targa Rotorua, solely based around the Rotorua district, and the condensing Targa New Zealand — which has been moved forward from Labour weekend to the middle of October — to a four-day format. The main reason for this was the need to ensure we minimize the impact on the communities we travel through, but also to reduce the time away from work for the competitors and the huge number of volunteers required to put on such a large event. The new format sees more competition days on weekends rather than weekdays, so it also minimizes the disruption to school bases and rural post.

After expanding the Targa Rotorua event to a three-day format for the last two years, the general feedback from competitors was they missed the hospitality that Rotorua provided and the easy laid-back nature of staying in the same location for multiple nights. So, we are very happy to be hosted by the Rydges Hotel as the hub for this event from Friday to Monday. Entertainment for the children will be provided by our charity, Kids in Cars, and we take this opportunity to invite your kids to come and enjoy the various activities provided by Kids in Cars around the hotel. From face painting to bouncy castles, there will be something to entertain them.

We have selected a good mix of roads for this event, from tight and twisty to open and following, so there are special stages to suit the wide variety of vehicles entered, and that is the appeal of Targa events, the broad range of cars — so make some time over the weekend and pop down to visit the service park. Full event details are outlined following.

Managing director Targa New Zealand