Special trail envoy, Roger Hanney, takes a look back at how Ultra Trail Australia came to be the biggest trail running outing in the Southern Hemisphere and the second biggest on the planet. IMAGES: Kamil Sustiak Most sane people would run a mile at the thought of racing 100 kilometres on foot. But that distance is the main event at a multiday trail running festival in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney, across the third weekend of May. Ultra-Trail Australia began in 2008…
Perth’s Justin Scarvaci bolted onto the home straight to win the Margaret River Ultra Marathon on Saturday, recording a new course record time of 7:46.26 despite howling winds and whipping sand. “It was a hard course, really brutal. There were strong headwinds. The sand section was horrible but I got through it OK. I just tried to stay focused on making ground on some of the relay runners. I was running in their footsteps in the sand and trying to…
Newcastle shone in the morning sun for the inaugural Coastal Ascent trail run on Sunday 28 April 2019. More than 800 runners took on either 25km or 11km of bushland, sand, single track and stairs enjoying spectacular views of Newcastle. Luke Babic (North Lambton) 1:47:13 and Ingrid Cleland (Charlestown) 2:07:28 won the 25km event. Sean Kelleher (Mayfield) 50:25 and Geordie Boyn (Cooks Hill) 1:04:44 took out the 11km event. “The scenery was stunning – coming down onto Dudley Beach, I…
It’s been a few years Shona! Last we saw of you in the spotlight you were caning ultra races – everything from Surf Coast Century to Ultra Trail Australia – but you lowered the profile for a while there. What was your hiatus all about and did you keep the miles up? Okay, the truth? A few things went on. I went through a pretty stressful separation in 2015. I tried to race my way through it as ultra running…
Runners bolt out of the gate to enter Surf Coast Century 2019 Runners were bursting at the seams this week when online entries opened for Surf Coast Century 2019. Total registrations after 24 hours were in excess of 170—more than double the same period in 2018. “I got so excited I forgot to use the code…can’t wait!” said Libby Nuttal on Facebook after she entered. The 8th edition of the Surf Coast Century will start and finish in Anglesea on…
Everyone loves a new ultra but when it comes aligned with a cause that seeks to protect our wilderness, the announcement resonates all the more deeply within the trail community. So we welcome the news that the Bob Brown Foundation will host a new 70km ultra-marathon event, the takayna Ultra, in Tasmania’s stunning north west. The event will take trail-runners across a wild and remote region; over grass plains through coastal eucalypt forests, and along open beaches, dunes and impressive rocky shorelines along the rugged wild coastline of…
You want ultra? Well, you got it up Nerang way with a new 500 kms trail race to be held in the Nerang National Park in September 2019. It follows the 200 miler (Australia’s first 200 miler) held there in September 2018. Race Organiser, Ian Cornelius, a veteran of 4 x 330 kms stage races, a contestant in the 1994 World 1,000 mile championships, and director of Gold Coast Ultras, believes that “This will be the longest and perhaps most extreme trail race ever…
Ash Watson and Deb Nicholl have been crowned champions of the Surf Coast Century 100km Ultra Marathon while Roger Lay and Rachel Tucker have taken the titles in the 50km race over the weekend at Anglesea, Victoria. The seventh edition of the race saw over 1,100 competitors from across Australia and overseas journey 50km and 100km across a spectacular off-road course along the beaches, 4WD tracks and hinterland trails of Anglesea, Torquay and Aireys Inlet. Despite conditions that saw multiple…
Written by David Lipman In just it’s second year, the Montreux trail festival is QUICKLY gaining the momentum of a flying European descending from Rochers-de-Naye (1600m descent over 10km to the finish line that all races in the festival have in common). Billed as the Vaud Alps experience tour, it does not disappoint! Race directors Diego Pazos (Swiss Ultra Trail Runner of the year 2015) and Cédric Agassis and their team have put in a lot of work to create…
