Competition / Carnivals

Carnivals are great fun! They are a chance to pit your skills against athletes in the same age group from a number of other Canterbury clubs in a range of beach, water, team and individual events. They also allow the children to experience conditions at different beaches and to meet up with friends in other clubs. We strongly recommend Juniors try at least one carnival in the season. Junior members must be in the U8-U14 categories to compete in carnivals. 

There is no cost to families for children entering local, regional or national carnivals as entry fees are covered by the Club. For carnivals outside of the Christchurch area, travel, food and accommodation costs are met by the family, although fundraising events throughout the season allow us to keep these costs to be kept to a minimum. 

When traveling out of town for carnivals, we try and stay together as a team, either camping or in large shared accommodation. This is a great experience for the children and lots of fun for the adults as well.

Compulsory uniform for carnivals is: YELLOW hi-vis vest, club beanie, wetsuit, plain black or Taylors Mistake togs

Junior members of Taylors Mistake Surf Life Saving Club will participate in the following carnivals in the 2024/25 season:

Interclub carnivals:

The season starts with two interclub ‘have a go’ carnivals, one in December and one in January. A range of different events including beach flags, beach sprints, board races, run-wade-run / run-swim-run races, diamond events, tube rescue and various team events may be offered with the emphasis on participation and fun. These are a great introduction to the competitive side of surf lifesaving.

Canterbury Championships and Southern Region Junior Championships:

These carnivals attract a large number of competitors from clubs all over South Island. A wide range of events are contested over two days, and there may be heats and semifinals to qualify for depending on the number of participants. Athletes compete for individual medals as well as trophies awarded to the club with the highest number of points.

Twilight Series:

During February, there is a local ‘Twilight Series’ held at Taylors Mistake. These Tuesday evening competitions are designed to provide additional training and racing experience for U11 to U14 athletes who are traveling up to Mt Maunganui for the Junior Festival of Surf. They are attended by a number of Canterbury surf life saving clubs. 

Oceans ’25 / Junior Festival of Surf

This is the Big One – A national carnival for junior surf competitors aged 10-14 years (U11, U12, U13, U14). Please register your interest with the Junior Surf Co-ordinators early in the season if you wish your child to be considered for this event. Athletes attending this event will be expected to:

• have had local carnival experience earlier in the season
• have competed and performed well in both Southern Regional Championships and Canterbury Championships
• have shown a high level of commitment to training throughout the season
• get on well with other members of the Taylors Mistake team

More details for each event will be sent out nearer the time.

How can parents help at carnivals?

At carnivals, parent help is essential for ensuring that the day runs smoothly for the whole team. Some of the ways you can help are:

• Loading and unloading all the boards on and off the trailer
• Putting the club tent up on the beach (used as a meeting point, for storing gear and as a place to rest and refuel between events)
• Acting as age group manager for a small number of children – this involves ensuring the children are in the right place for their event at the right time, with the gear that they need, and making sure that they drink and eat enough during the day. This role is often a team effort among parents and is a great opportunity to get to know other families whilst watching your children participate!
• Helping to run an ‘arena’ where certain events take place. Taylors Mistake SLSC usually runs a water arena for the younger age groups. This requires at least 1 ‘official’ to oversee marshaling, a starter, a results taker and at least 2-3 people in the water as ‘buoys’. All parents are asked to bring their own wetsuit and be prepared to take a turn in the water if needed.

Shout out for officials: We always need more parents trained as ‘officials’ who can help oversee events at carnivals – please get in touch if you are interested in attending this short course run by SLSNZ.

As you can appreciate, carnival days are busy but a lot of fun and there are only a small number of them each season. So once again, please step up and help out – the day runs more smoothly for everyone if we all pitch in together. And don’t panic! We will brief parents about what help is needed on the day.