Waimea Weekly
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Wednesday 9 March 2016
Off to live dream
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Volunteer Fire Fighters Awareness Page 18-20
More police possible for Richmond Simon Bloomberg
TAKE OFF: Swimmers head off for the start of the Weet-Bix TRYathlon on Sunday. Insert: Cameron Nicholls, 10, shifts into overdrive as he reaches the finish line during the TRYathlon at Tahunanui Sportsfield on Sunday. Photos: Jessie Johnston.
Kids give TRYathlon a crack Jessie Johnston Proud families cheered from the sidelines as local kids swam, biked and ran their way around Tahunanui during this year’s Nelson Sanitarium Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon on Sunday. While a number of records were made during this series of the event, Nelson didn’t quite surpass its 1800 participant record from last year, settling instead for an impressive 1715 entries from children aged between 7 to 15 years. The event encourages children of
all fitness levels to get active in a fun, friendly environment where everyone is a winner for giving the triathlon a go. Depending on their ages, the course featured a 50 to 200 metre swim, a four to eight kilometre bike ride and a one and a half kilometre run, before participants passed over the finish line. Black Sticks women’s hockey team captain Anita Punt, Breakers foundation player Dillon Boucher and former Silver Fern and the most capped international player of all time Irene van Dyk, were all there
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to congratulate the kids on finishing the triathlon and present them with their medals. Richmond’s Cameron Nicholls, 10, was amongst those participating on the day, his first time as a TRYathlete was back when he was seven. The fun and fitness that the triathlon offers has seen him come back to the event four years in a row, with rugby and cricket all part of his training. As a series, the Weet-Bix Kids TRYathlon is the world’s largest sporting event for children.
Fears that Richmond could be the biggest loser in a reshuffle of police staffing levels appear to be unfounded, with Nelson Bays Area Commander Inspector Mat Arnold-Kelly hinting this week that staff numbers at the Richmond station could in fact be boosted. Nelson Bays police are presently reviewing the area’s policing resources and last week an email went out to members of the Richmond Neighbourhood Support group expressing concern about the changes. The email suggested that some police based at the Richmond station could to be centralised to Nelson “leaving us more vulnerable here in Richmond or Waimea”. The email stated that “not having police stationed here is a detriment to our community, especially as it is a fastgrowing community.”
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We need the police in Richmond to stay in touch with the community. - Marty Price.
Richmond Community Patrol coordinator Mike Gill had also heard the rumours that included the possibility that the Richmond community constable would be based in Nelson. If that happened, Mike says it would reduce the patrol group’s effectiveness and result in escalating crime in the town. However, Mat told the Waimea Weekly on Monday that “at this stage there is a possibility” that more staff will be based in Richmond under the review of police
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