WHAT IS ON FOR THE SUMMER SEASON
The Summer Track and Field season runs from October 2026 to the end of March 2027. There are a wide range of events ACA Club Night, ACA Club Night Coaching Sessions, ACA Fast & Furious Race Summer Series, McKinnon Shield Series, Auckland Track and Field Championships, National Track and Field Championships and the NZ Track and Field Series. Also school events. Please refer to the Auckland event calendar.
ACA CLUB NIGHTS
ACA runs club nights on Wednesdays, 6:00pm - 7.30pm at Mt Smart Track, Arena 2 from Wednesday 7th October 2026 to Wednesday 16th December 2026 then returning 13th January 2027 until Wednesday 24th March 2027. Please see our 2026.27 Club Night Schedule for details and for results see here.
Club members and visiting Club/Schools/individual athletes over the age of 12 years are welcome to take part in the Wednesday ACA Club Nights. Athletes do not have to pre-register for track events up to 1500m on club nights - just turn up at the start-line of the race to be included. Athletes running 3000m and above need to put their names down at the registration table at the start/finish line prior to the race so that lap scoring can be arranged.
Club Night track races are generally held with electronic timing & wind gauge results. This gives athletes an electronic time for their race, however the results do not appear on the Athletics Auckland, Athletics NZ or World Athletics rankings as the requisite WA regulations for qualifying performances are not met. Field events on club nights are subject to their being sufficient volunteers present to help run the events.
For more information ACA Club Night & ACA Club Night Coaching Sessions.
CLUB-NIGHT COACHING SESSIONS
This is a new feature at ACA Club Nights to help athletes build their skills or learn new disciplines with Athletics NZ Accredited and Community Coaches. On the first Wednesday night of each month the Club will hold free group coaching sessions for selected disciplines in track and field events, run by a variety of specialist coaches.
These coaching sessions are open to all athletes G14 – Masters (minimum age 12 years as at 30/12/26) attending the ACA Club Night, whether or not they are a registered member of the Club. So come along – and bring any friends who are interested in getting involved. You don’t need to pre-book for these free sessions, just turn up at the appointed time. This is a great opportunity for athletes at all levels to acquire new skills or refine existing techniques under the guidance of experienced Athletics NZ Accredited coaches. The timing of the scheduled Club Night Track & Field programme on the first Wednesday of each month may be adjusted to accommodate the needs of the various coaching groups.
If you would like coaching for any particular discipline which is not currently on the list (e.g. pole Vault) you can request a session for the event be put on at a future club night.
For more information ACA Club Night & ACA Club Night Coaching Sessions.
ACA FAST & FURIOUS SUMMER SERIES
The ACA FAST & FURIOUS SUMMER SERIES includes FOUR Race Nights between 8pm and 9.30pm at Mt Smart Arena 2. For more information ACA FAST & FURIOUS SUMMER SERIES
THE MCKINNON SHIELD
Athletics Auckland run a series of meets throughout the summer called the McKinnon Shield. They also run Auckland Championships and have an excellent calendar of most events happening in the region. Please see Athletics Auckland calendar for details.
The McKinnon Shield series is Athletics Auckland’s summer track & field competition. Events are generally held on Saturdays or Sundays throughout the season, most often at the Herb Towers Track, Mt Smart Arena #2. Due to circumstances outside Athletics Auckland’s control, sometimes the dates of meets may alter over the course of the season, so keep an eye on updates to the AAI Calendar.
The McKinnon Shield events are open to all registered club athletes in Grades U14 (minimum age 12 years as at Dec 31st in the year of competition) to Masters. Seeded events help you compete with people of similar ability regardless of age or grade. Every race, jump, and throw earns Club points in the McKinnon competition. Points are awarded using age/gender-based performance measures to ensure fairness. After three rounds of competition the clubs are divided into two competitions: The Premier Division, where clubs compete for the McKinnon Shield, and the Cup Division, in which teams compete for the McKinnon Cup.
Every ACA club athlete who takes part in McKinnon Shield meets earns points for ACA, so all Club members are encouraged to regularly enter and compete in the series.
The programme schedule for each McKinnon meet and the entry link can be found on the Athletics Auckland website Calendar of event. Information and Competition rules can also be found on the AAI website under the dropdown menus “Get Involved” “Senior Track & Field” or click the link: https://athleticsauckland.co.nz/get-involved/senior-track-and-field/
Entry to McKinnon Shield events must be made in advance. Entry and payment is made via the Athletics Auckland website. https://athleticsauckland.co.nz/competition/events/
Event information will also be in the ACA Newsletter.
Auckland Club Athletes’ entry fee is $13.00 (covering all events entered). No late entries are accepted or taken on the day, and any alteration to events entered (e.g. changing grades) is at the discretion of the Meeting Manager.
Entries close at 11.59pm on the Wednesday prior to the event.
Important Note: Athletes must report to the check-in desk for McKinnon Shield events to confirm their entry at least one hour prior to the scheduled start of their event. Alterations to the programme are sometimes made after entries close, right up to the day of competition, so always check the schedule of events on the AAI website on the morning of the competition, to make sure that your event time has not changed.
NZ TRACK & FIELD EVENTS
Athletics New Zealand are responsible for all national events. These are hosted all over the country for the different age grades, and events. Please see the Athletics NZ Event Calendar for details.