Six months after Routeburn Classic organiser, Queenstowner Evan McWhirter, won a new 10-year Department of Conservation concession, the event’s been sold.
Ultimate Event Productions Ltd — a company associated with Sir John Davies’ company, Trojan Holdings, which also owns the Coast to Coast — has officially acquired the iconic event, run since 2001 by McWhirter’s Good Times Events.
McWhirter had to go through an expression of interest process with Doc in 2021 due to an apparent new interpretation of the Mount Aspiring National Park management plan.
While he was given a one-year extension to run the 32km trail run last year, the event was canned due to Covid restrictions.
He says he’s ‘‘thrilled’’ Ultimate Event has taken over the reins and is confident the company will ‘‘continue to build on the success of the event and take it to new heights’’.
The Classic, held on the Routeburn Track, is held every April — weather permitting — with entrants restricted to 350 annually, though under the new Doc concession, that can increase to 400.
This year’s Classic’s scheduled to run on April 29.
Ultimate Event Productions director Noel Saxon says they’re excited to add the Routeburn Classic to their events portfolio, and given associated company Ultimate Hikes has been running guided walks on the track for several years, it’s a great symmetry.
