Organisers of the annual Placemakers Southern Scooter Challenge say it was the best one yet, raising more than $60,000 for the Grace Street Project.
Co-organiser Tash Clay said changing the route from Teretonga to Te Anau with new stops along the way and the community spirit all made it an event to be remembered.
More than 150 scooters and riders travelled through Riverton and then onto Orepuki with some morning tea from the locals.
Then it was off to Tuatapere for lunch provided by the Rapid Relief Team, and along the coastal route to Blackmount and a refuel before tackling the hill.
Tash said she was surprised nobody had to get off their 50cc scooters and push them, before making their way around to Te Anau via Manapouri.
“When we arrived at Te Anau, we did a lap around the town and made it known we had made it into town. We then finished and had the prize giving event at the Te Anau Club.”
She said it was hard to pinpoint one key moment - “it was the whole feeling of the day, “everybody getting together, the atmosphere is amazing.”
She said the communities that got involved at every stop and the support from them was incredible.
“It is great to be part of such a giving and caring wider community.”
Of course there were a few scooters that didn’t quite make it, and although a couple were for mechanical issues, the majority were flat tyres.
Now in its 9th year, the scooter challenge covered a total of 194km and the pace is set by Traffic Management Services - slow and steady wins the race.
Already the fundraiser has raised over half a million dollars for its chosen charities, since first beginning back in 2010.
Tash has been involved with every one, and the original idea for the event came from the Christchurch-based Trans Alpine Scooter Challenge.
The Grace Street Project is a community-led initiative aimed at addressing some of the key challenges faced by South Invercargill.
With some of the highest deprivation communities and rates of youth exclusion and disadvantage in New Zealand, this project aims to provide a multi-purpose community building to help bridge the gap and provide opportunities for growth, learning and social connection.