What is the Scooter Safari?
1 Day.
185KM.
200 Scooters.
Join us on Saturday 28th June 2025 for the challenge.
The Capital 2 Country Scooter Safari is an endurance ride on motorized 50cc Scooters going from Wellington City, along State Highway 2, over the 555-metre peak of the Remutaka Ranges and through the beautiful rolling Wairarapa countryside.
You’ll ride 185kms to help create a future with less cancer with the Cancer Society.
Planned pitstops along the route will provide refreshments and an opportunity to catch up with other participants and friends.
It's not for the faint-hearted.
It's a 1-day Road-trip to Raise Money for Cancer Patients
Your Road-Trip Route
The route starts alongside the beautiful Wellington waterfront, Oriental Parade, before turning right onto Wakefield Street and heading North along the Quays passing by the iconic Beehive and ‘Cake Tin’ Sky Stadium.
At Ngauranga, we then head north to cover the 555-metre peak of Remutaka Range, and on to Featherston.
From there we head right out to the Coast along Western Lake Rd and then turn left onto East West Road towards Martinborough and the beautiful vineyards.
Register
This is a tribute challenge for people going through cancer treatment.
Grab a scooter and SIGN UP to ride on Saturday 28th June 2025.
Places are limited to 200 scooters.
Rev Up
Rev those engines and spread the word.
You're fundraising to create a future with LESS cancer in it.
The money you raise will support cancer patients as they go through treatment.
Ride
This road-trip ride is the fun part.
Don't get us wrong, it's going to be a challenge (on that city scooter) but it'll be fun!
Dress up, decorate your scooters, and join us at the starting line!
Event Logistics: What You Need To Know
Starting times.
Please arrive no later than 7:15am to register and hear the briefing from the organisers. All riders must be present at registration, you cannot join the ride after this point.
Support vehicles for a safe ride.
For rider safety, we have arranged a sign-written pilot vehicle to always travel ahead of the scooters to warn oncoming traffic. We will also provide a tail-end-Charlie (recovery truck) with a trailer to collect you if you breakdown. This vehicle will also be equipped with extra petrol, cell phones and a first-aid kit in case of emergency. A fully equipped paramedic will also travel with the group on the day.
Food & drink on route.
Your food and drink for the day has been arranged and pre-paid with your registration fee - there will also be coffee carts available for additional cash payments.
- Wellington (Start): There will be coffee and food available for cash purchases.
- Stop 1 - Morning Tea: Morning tea is covered in your registration fee. Please bring cash for coffee or additional food.
- Stop 2 - Lunch: Lunch is covered in your registration fee.
- Stop 3 - Martinborough (refuel only)
- Finish - Masterton
- Dinner - Details of the evening function tbc.
Rider gear & equipment.
Due to the nature of the Remutaka Ranges, it should be expected that we will get four seasons in one day -including wind, rain and possibly sleet/snow. We therefore insist that riders bring a full change of warm clothes and plenty of wind and waterproof gear. If you get too cold, please pull over and get the attention of the recovery vehicle. There is no prize for getting hypothermia!
- Participants are responsible for their scooter and all equipment they use in the Capital2Country Scooter Safari and for arranging any insurance to cover loss or damage to scooters and equipment.
- They must ensure that all scooters have a current WOF and registration, and equipment is in good condition, safe and serviceable.
- While we encourage you to dress-up for the event, please consider ways to incorporate high visibility clothing into your riding garments to make you more visible to other road users. Please also ensure that your costumes and decorations do not hinder your vision, restrict your ability to manoeuvre safely, and do not affect the safety of other participants or traffic.
- It is strongly recommended that all entrants have their scooter serviced and helmet checked out by a scooter retailer prior to the event.
First aid & Medical.
We will have an Event Medic travelling with us, along with several medics on motorbikes and in the support vehicles.
Medical kits will be available in the Pilot and Recovery Vehicle and with the organised support vehicles. If an accident happens, all riders (other than those able to assist) are to continue on to the next stop and await further instruction from the organisers.
- In the event that you sustain an injury or illness whilst participating in the scooter ride, by registering, you authorise the appointed medical personnel to perform and administer such emergency medical attention as they think is necessary.
- They have the right to remove participants from the course based on medical grounds.
On the day supporters.
We would love for people to line the roads and cheer-on the riders - so tell your friends and family to come out and show their support on the day. The spectacle of 200 excited scooter riders passing by will be quite entertaining! They can view the map on our website, so they'll know where we'll be at roughly what time. Please ask your supporters to find a safe spot along the road rather than coming to the scheduled stops as we have limited parking at each and need all the parking spaces available for rider support crews.
Arrival at the Finish – Masterton.
- Scooters – when you arrive, feel free to park up and relax with fellow riders. Subject to time restrictions and the last rider, we would love to get a group photo.
- Parking - plenty of parking is available for support vehicles and trailers at Masterton. The organisers cannot be responsible for safety of your scooters overnight. We suggest you arrange padlocks or covered storage.
Return to Wellington.
- The organisers have made no arrangements to get you and your scooter back to Wellington.
A small group of die-hard scooter riders will be riding their bikes home on Sunday morning. If you choose to do so, this is entirely at your own risk and not deemed part of the Capital2Country Scooter Safari event. Please remember to check your fuel tank has the range to reach the fuel stops along the way.
Parking at the starting line.
We'll have plenty of parking space at the Wellington starting line. It'd be great to see a good show of supporters to cheer you on - so spread the word. Otherwise, they might like to park up along Oriental Parade on Wellington's waterfront to see you pass by.
Your support crew.
- Each individual participant or team must have a support crew with a vehicle and trailer suitable for transporting the scooter in the case of mechanical breakdown, rider injury, or if the weather becomes unrideable at any point. Your support vehicle is there to provide cover, and if needed, transport you and your bike onto the next stop or back to Wellington in the event of cancellation and for your safe return on the Saturday or Sunday.
- We encourage you to buddy-up with a couple of riders to keep the number of support vehicles on the road down as we are limited with space at some of the stops. You can generally get 3-4 scooters per trailer. Our Facebook group is a wonderful place to start if you're looking for other riders to pair-up with.
- All scooter fuel must be provided by the participant in an appropriate and legal fuel container to be transported by your support crew.
- Absolutely no smoking or cell phone use in proximity when refuelling scooters.
- To avoid a backlog of traffic, support vehicles must travel well in front of the pilot-vehicle at the legal speed limit.
- 5-minutes prior to departure at each stop, you will hear a blast from an air horn - this will be the support vehicles cue to hit the road.
- Support crew vehicles must not follow or directly lead their scooter during the event.
- When arriving at each stop, please look out for the cones, signage and marshals directing you where to park.
- Police will strictly enforce all event and road rules.
- Please ensure you also communicate the following hazards your support crews might encounter while assisting on the Capital2Country Scooter Safari. These include:
- Shingle roads – please keep your vehicle speed down and be aware of pedestrians and scooters.
- Road works – please keep to the temporary speeds.
- Alcohol - do not drink and drive.
- In the event of a fire, extinguish it if possible, raise the alarm, and call emergency services.
- The weather is very unpredictable – come prepared for hot/cold, wet/dry and wind.
Food for your support crew.
Your support crew and friends and family joining you on the day can also receive the same catering throughout the day and are welcome to attend the evening dinner and prize giving. You will need to include your support crew with your registration or advise us at least one week prior to the event date.
Petrol.
You will need to have a full tank at the start line. From there, you will be required to carry an extra tank of gas in your support vehicle (or on your bike). There are several designated refuel stops along the way. Our recommendation is to carry 10+ litres per scooter.
Please be sure to test your scooters range prior to the event to ensure you won't run out - the longest stretch is almost 1.5 hours so you may like to carry a small top-up supply on your scooter, or arrange for your support crew to stop and wait for you between the official stops (for the first and second leg, there are several gas stations on SH2 should you need to top up). All scooter fuel transported must be contained in appropriate and legal fuel containers.
Withdrawals during event.
- If you sign in at the Wellington start line, you are deemed to have entered the event.
- If you subsequently do not participate you must advise the Safety Officer that you are a 'Did Not Start'.
- If you start but have to withdraw from the event for whatever reason, you must notify the Safety Officer that you have withdrawn.
- If you withdraw from the event and do not notify the Safety Officer, event organisers may initiate a search operation to locate you, and you will be liable for all costs.
Donations.
- If you receive a donation on the day or require a tax receipt for a donation over $5, please approach the event organisers in the branded Cancer Society vehicle.
Cut-off times.
- Last finishing time Masterton 4:30pm (8 hours after the Wellington start time). The Event Organisers reserve the right to alter the cut-off times for safety or other reasons.
Event cancellation.
- We will ride in pretty much any weather condition providing the road remains open (so be prepared!), however if the event organisers feel that the weather is extreme, and may put riders at risk, the ride may be cancelled prior to leaving Wellington. Should this happen, the organisers will email and or SMS all registered riders with the event cancellation and announce it on our website home page. We will endeavour to give as much notice as possible. Please note that any registration fees paid, and donations are non-refundable in the event of a cancellation or change in route as many of the event costs will still be incurred.
If the weather becomes nasty while on the road, the event will be put on hold until the weather clears. This is where your support vehicles come into play. If necessary, you will need to load the bikes on your support trailer and travel by car to the next stop (or shelter until the weather improves).