COACH’S CORNER – FOOTCARE FOR ULTRA RUNNERS (BLISTERS)

Kate Dzienis • July 30, 2019

Coach’s Corner is a feature for AURA members, where qualified trained professionals provide you with advice and tips on improving and enhancing your ultra running performance.

Contributed by Glen Smetherham, Consistent Running Online Run Coaching head coach Glen Smetherham is a Level 2 Advanced Recreational Running Coach accredited with Athletic Australia. With a focus on how the individual is responding to training, coach and athlete working together is the best way to achieve running goals. Glen is always working on finding the best methods and training practices to help athletes achieve their running goals. He has completed over 25 ultra marathons from 48kms up to 350kms, as well as many other endurance events.

FOOTCARE FOR ULTRA RUNNERS – BLISTERS

Feet are pretty important to ultramarathon runners.

One 2011 study with 500 respondents amongst the 701 runners competing in the 2009 Western States Endurance Run and the Vermont 100 Endurance race found that among all runners, blisters (17.3%) were the third highest reason for dropping from the race.

Nausea and/or vomiting were the highest at 23% and muscle pain came second with 20.1%.

All were three ahead of exhaustion.

Even amongst the finishers, 40.1% reported problems with blisters whilst another study in 2014 reported 76% of participants in a four-stage multi-day race complained of blisters. The highest predictive marker for reduced blister incidence was previous ultramarathon race experience.

With these statistics, it’s surprising how many times you will hear ‘I don’t get blisters’ before an ultramarathon though. Generally, the longer the race, the higher the chance you will suffer from them.

Even if you haven’t suffered in the past, it’s worth knowing the basic mechanism of blister formation and have a plan for prevention or treatment.

Blisters in their most basic form occur due to increased heat stress between the surface of the skin and the rest of the body. They occur more readily if conditions are warm and moist, such as inside a shoe after running long distances.

Prevention of foot blisters starts with choosing correctly fitted shoes. For longer ultras some runners could benefit from changing to larger shoes at some stage during a race due to an increase in foot volume. If starting with a larger size though, it’s important to make sure this doesn’t result in any excess movement within the shoe and using a technique such as lace locking can help (there are plenty of videos online to show you how).

The next step is to make sure that you have comfortable and clean socks that not only fit well, but manage the moisture well.

Frequent sock changes may very well be helpful for some runners. The goal is to make sure that the outer layer of skin (epidermis) doesn’t shear against the lower layers of the epidermis or the dermis. If there is high friction and the socks grip skin, there is a higher chance of blisters.

One particular option to prevent this is to lubricate the skin so the sock slides easier over the surface. Another option is to wear two pairs of socks, but it’s important the socks don’t grip each other and move as one. Applying tape, padding or moleskin to trouble spots can be very helpful but again, there should be low friction between the outer layer of the tape and the sock.

A common mistake made is using rigid sports tape, because with the rough surface gripping the sock, and the other side stuck to the skin, it’s quite often a recipe for blisters rather than prevention. So a better option would be to use kinesio tape (or something similar) as it has a much smoother outer layer.

The number one thing you can do to prevent becoming like one of the 17.3% mentioned in the first study is to act quickly as soon as you notice any hotspots or get any debris in your shoes. Stopping to deal with any problems before they get worse may cost you a couple of minutes at the time, but it could possibly save your race.

If you’re lucky and the hotspot hasn’t progressed to a blister, then either a quick reapplication of tape/lubricant, a change of socks, clearing out shoes or another preventative method may be all that is needed.

If a small blister has developed, then it’s best to keep it intact and cover with a protective dressing. In some cases, where it seems inevitable that the blister will pop, you may choose to drain it and then apply a dressing, rather than needing to stop again shortly down the trail. An antiseptic and sterile dry dressing should be applied and then as previously mentioned options to prevent further problems.

If you suffer from frequent blisters occurring in the same location, the best option I have found to prevent them is to use a product called Engo Patches. They are a durable patch which sticks to the inside of your shoe and drastically cuts down friction levels. For more information on Engo Patches, and some more detailed advice on how to avoid and treat blisters, check out the website blisterprevention.com.au.

Glen Smetherham, Head Coach
Consistent Running Online Run Coaching

Get in touch with Glen Smetherham by clicking on the logo above, or visiting his socials

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AUTRA News Report 19-02-2025

By Kate Dzienis • February 19, 2025

The latest in race results, covering Cradle Mountain Run, City Run, Oscars 100 Hut 2 Hut and Yaberoo Trail Ultra.

Final 2024 Points Competition Results

By Alexis Oosterhoff • January 30, 2025

Results for the 2024 AUTRA Points Competition have been finalised, and are available on our Points Competition page. Full details of the top 10 (as shared on Facebook during January) are detailed below, and results for all participating AUTRA members can be found in the documents at the above link. It was a real battle throughout the year between our top two finishers, Phil Gore & Kevin "BK" Matthews, with both giving it their it their all at events, and through contributions to the community - volunteering at multiple events, and submitting articles to our monthly newsletter, Ultramag. They finished within 2km of total distance for the year (Phil on 1203.087km, and Kevin on 1205.510km), and it was only Phil's final volunteering effort on 6 Inch Trail Marathon in December that gave him the that very narrow victory. As you'd be aware from previous communications, this marks the end of the Points Competition. With trail running (of all distances) now incorporated into AU T RA's constitution, and after careful consideration of the costs of the competition payouts in it's current form, the committee felt it was time for it's retirement. This marks my seventh and final year of delivering the points competition to membership (2018-2024), after taking on the role from Cheryl Symons. It has brought me great joy in doing so, and I feel like I've had an opportunity to get to know so many of our members through seeing their race (and volunteering) performances over the years! I'm continuing in my role as the AUS/NZL statistician for DUV (from whom we shared the data for the points comp), and you can expect to continue to find your ultra-race result on their site. 1st Place - Phil Gore (WA) - 86 points Phil's achievements this year have included a massive 265.653km (and 2nd place) at the IAU 24h Asia & Oceania Championships, wins at the Red Dirt Backyard Ultra (33 laps), the Australian leg of Big Dog's Backyard World Team Championship (96 laps), and the Soochow/Taipei 24h Ultramarathon (270.826km). He also knocked out an easy (!) 72km at the Light Horse Ultra 24h in between supporting his amazing wife Gemma. Those two 24h wins netted Phil new Oceania 24h Open Male records, IAU Level 1 qualifiers, and pushed him to the top of Australia's 24h trophy board (with only the great Yiannis Kouros having run further). Phil topped-up his points by contributing one article to Ultramag, worked as an Event Director at Herdy's Frontyard Ultra, and volunteered at a further five events through the year. He finished on 86 points. 2nd Place - Kevin Matthews (WA) - 84 points Finishing in 2nd place in the AUTRA 2024 Points Competition is WA's Kevin Matthews. He monstered his way through the year with finishes at Australia Day Ultra 100km, Delirious WEST 200mi, 24 laps at Herdy's Frontyard Ultra, 190km at Light Horse Ultra 24h, 23 laps at Birdy's Backyard Ultra, and also completed Feral Pig 100 miler, Sandman 50km and Six Inch 47km. And to top things off, he contributed five articles to Ultramag, and volunteered at five events. BK ran 1205km in Ultramarathon races this year, all of them AUTRA-listed, and surpassed 100 marathon finishes (including 51 Ultramarathons!) Kevin finished the year on 84 points, a massive 34 points ahead of our 3rd place finisher Sue Robertson. 3rd Place - Sue Robertson (WA) - 50 points Finishing in 3rd place in the AUTRA 2024 Points Competition is WA's Sue Robertson. Sue completed the Ultra Series 100 miler trilogy of Delirious WEST, Irrational SOUTH and Unreasonable EAST, and rounded out her year with the Sandman 50km and Six Inch 47km races. She received 30 points from the racing at AUTRA-listed events, and was awarded a further 20 points by volunteering across eight events and contributing two articles to Ultramag, for a total of 50 points for the year. Thank you Sue! 4th Place - Margie Hadley (WA) - 47 points Finishing in 4th place in the AUTRA 2024 Points Competition is WA's Margie Hadley . She was the top-female finisher at both the No Time to Die Frontyard Ultra & Wild Dog Backyard Ultra, 2nd at Birdy's Backyard Ultra, ran 182km at the Australian 24h Track Invitational and placed 3rd at Coast to Kosci. Margie received 47 points in the competition 5th Place - Melissa Robertson (NSW) - 44 points Finishing in 5th place in the AUTRA 2024 Points Competition is NSW's Melissa Robertson. Melissa took out 1st place at Irrational SOUTH 200 miler, 2nd place at Lakes Trail Festival 100km, 1st place at Hume & Hovell 100 miler, 3rd place at Rumble in the Jungle and 6th place at Ultra-Trail Kosciuszko 100 miler! She also volunteered at the GNW 50km event, receiving 44 points in the competition! 6th Place - Aaron Young (WA) - 42 points Finishing in 6th place in the AUTRA 2024 Points Competition is WA's Aaron Young . Aaron finished in 1st place at each of the Ultra Series "Triple Crown" of 200 milers (Delirious WEST, Irrational SOUTH and Unreasonable EAST), 55 laps at Big Dog's Backyard World Team Championship, and rounded his year out with Feral Pig 100 miler. Aaron receives 42 points, just nudging ahead of Maree Connor (who also finished on 42 points) on a count-back 7th Place - Maree Connor (NSW) - 42 points Finishing in 7th place in the AUTRA 2024 Points Competition is NSW's Maree Connor. Maree had an outstanding year, achieving 2nd place with 221km (and an IAU Level 1 qualifier) at the IAU 24th Asian and Oceania Championships, 1st place at the Lakes Trail Festival 100km, 1st place with 67km at the Southern Sydney 6h race, and 1st place with 116km at the Narrabeen Allnighter 12h. Maree also competed at Spartathlon race this year (for which she contributed an article to the September Ultramag on her experience), receiving 42 points in the competition. 8th Place - Darren Linney (SA) - 41 points Finishing in 8th place in the AUTRA 2024 Points Competition is SA's Darren Linney . Darren completed 34 laps at No Time to Die BYU, 199km at the Adelaide 24h race, and 814km at the Australian 6 Day race, for a total of 1241km raced and 41 points . 9th Place - Tristan Cameron (WA) - 40 points Finishing in 9th place in the AUTRA 2024 Points Competition is WA's Tristan Cameron. Tristan completed the Ultra Series Triple Crown of 200 mile races (Delirious WEST, Irrational SOUTH and Unreasonable EAST), along with Feral Pig 100 miler, for a total of 1154km raced and 40 points. 10th Place - Jen Millum (WA) - 39 points Finishing in 10th place in the AUTRA 2024 Points Competition is WA's Jen Millum . Jen finished 1st at all three of the Ultra Series Trilogy of 100 milers (Delirious WEST, Irrational SOUTH and Unreasonable EAST), and was 2nd female with 35 laps at the Wild Dog Backyard Ultra. With a volunteer stint at the Yaberoo Trail Ultra, Jen finished the year with 39 points in the competition. To view the complete list of members who secured points in 2024 click here and then follow through to Points Summary under the 2024 tab. All winners have already been contacted, with cash prizes distributed for 1st - 7th places, and AUTRA Store vouchers sent for 8th, 9th & 10th.