State La Grande Swim, Akaroa
After a successful first event in Akaroa last season, we are heading back for another installment in 2013!
La Grande Swim is the fourth race in the hugely successful State New Zealand Ocean Swim Series. For the second time we are heading to picturesque Akaroa, the quaint French community 75km from city centre.
All swimmers of Christchurch are welcomed and encouraged to come over to enjoy a relaxing day or weekend of swimming.
Choose to take part in one of four achievable swim distances on the day including the 200m State OceanKids, ‘Give It A Go’ 300m swim, ‘Step It Up 1000m swim or the more challenging ‘I’m Going Long’ 2.8km swim around the Bay.
The State La Grande swim is Christchurch’s largest open water swimming event so why not come and be part of something special.
Every entrant receives a swim cap and goody pack with their entry.
Visit www.oceanswim.co.nz to find out how to prepare for your swim, learn more about the event and to enter today.
Registration Details
Registration details for the forthcoming season will be confirmed at a later date.
We do now offer a pre-paid courier service that will courier your pack including your cap and timing chip to you the week leading up to the event. You can book and pay for this service when entering online or purchase from the ocean swim store.
All entrants will receive:
- A timing chip which is loaned to you for the event
- A swim cap that you must wear or the duration of the event
- A gift from principal sponsor State insurance (item TBC - it is being chosen at the moment)
- A personalised certificate that you can download and print at no charge from the results page
- Other sponsor goodies
Important dates
| 5:00PM | Friday 28 December 2012 | Online Early-bird pricing finishes |
| 11:59PM | Friday 15 February 2013 |
$10 late entry fee applies |
| 8:00PM | Wednesday 20 February 2013 |
Online and postal entries close |
Entry confirmation
Details of entry confirmation for the forth coming season will be confirmed at a later date.
Race day transport
A charter bus will be available for participants travelling from Christchurch to Akaroa. Details of this service will be available at a later date.
Visiting Akaroa or Christchurch for this Event?
To find helpful information for your stay, visit www.christchurchnz.com 
phone +64 3 379 9629 or visit www.akaroa.com
email akaroa@christchurchnz.com or phone +64 3 304 8600
Official Charity – Surf Life Saving NZ
Surf Life Saving NZ provide an essential service on New Zealand’s beaches and at the State NZ Ocean Swim Series. They keep all of us safe on the beach and in the water which is why they are the official charity of the State NZ Ocean Swim Series.
Please give generously to Surf Life Saving NZ. All donations will receive a free gift. You can donate when you enter or through the Ocean Swim Store. You can also donate on event day.
- Donations of $5 and $10 will receive a Surf Life Saving NZ 100 Year Centenary key ring
- Donations of $20 will receive a Surf Life Saving NZ toy IRB boat
- Donations of $40 will receive a Surf Life Saving NZ Teddy Bear
- Donations of $90 will receive a Surf Life Saving NZ Centenary book
All gifts will be handed at your event registration or couriered if you have pre-booked the courier service.
Cut off times
The cut off times for the State La Grande are:
- 'I'm Going Long' 2.8km - 1.45 hours from your wave/group start
- 'Step It Up' 1000m - 40 minutes from your group start
- 'Give It Go' 300m - 13 minutes
Event Details
Saturday 23 February 2013
'I'm Going Long' 2.8km - 1.15pm
'Step It Up' 1000m - 3.15pm
'Give It A Go' 300m - 4.05pm
State OceanKids 200m - 4.25pm
Entrant Event Day Information
Coming Soon
Safety Information
View detailed safety information for all events.
Maps & Course descriptions
'Step It Up' 1000m course map
'Give It A Go' 300m course map
State OceanKids 200m course map
'I'm Going Long' 2.8km Course Map
Following the compulsory safety briefing at Akaroa Recreation Grounds (Jubilee Park), Swimmers will walk a short 300m to the swim start on Akaroa’s main beach. We ask that swimmers are in their swimwear ready to swim and please leave their belongings in the bag tent at Jubilee Park as there is no bag truck service available.
The ‘I’m Going Long’ swim is a 2.8km swim which starts in French Bay and Finishes in Children’s Bay, Akaroa. The 2.8km swim course will start 2 hours after low tide at 11.00AM.
Swimmers will enter the water in your assigned wave/ group order and then swim 1.4km in a straight line out to the Northern side of the French Bay. On this first 1.4km stretch of the swim course there will be 3 large orange marker buoys. Swimmers will need to keep all of these buoys to their right. The 3rd buoy from the main beach is the turnaround buoy. Upon reaching this turnaround buoy, swimmers will then need to swim the final 1.4km directly toward the Akaroa Rec Grounds, again keeping all orange marker buoys to their right. As swimmers approach the finish they will need to carefully make their way out of the water and follow event barriers to the finish line. The inflatable finish line is situated on the Rec Grounds. This is where swimmers’ times will be recorded and the race will finish. Please note that in the run to the finish line swimmers will cross an access road. This will be manned by traffic marshals stopping any traffic, but all swimmers will need to exercise extreme caution when crossing this road and watch for any vehicles.