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SOCIALLY UN-DISTANCED AT THE ELEPHANT TRAIL RACE

Kate Dzienis • July 31, 2020

Contributed by Jeremy Rankin, AURA Member

Elephant Trail Race, Cairncross State Forest (NSW), 17-19 July 2020

“Just checking on how refunds work if the race gets cancelled?”

I suspect race directors Mathew & Kerry took plenty of such queries when Elephant Trail Race entries hit the radar in late April. It is unfortunately part of the routine for a race director now, it seems, in a tough 2020.

For me, Buffalo Stampede had been cancelled and UTA postponed, so I was eager to get an event on the board. With my 47th birthday falling on the Saturday of race weekend, it seemed like the stars were aligning for this to be the year for a trip up to the stunning mid-north coast.

I broke the news to my coach Joe Ward at Manly Beach Running Club, that my second tilt at the 100 mile distance was locked in. The first had resulted in a DNF at the GNW ultras last September, which left me physically depleted but with a bunch of lessons to take to the next one.

At this stage we were about 9 weeks out from race day. Joe immediately added a key ingredient into my schedule – the easy 90-minute HR Zone 2 session. This quickly became a favourite; I’d aim for 3 runs per week on the same out and back road loop from home up through Hornsby Heights. I tried different hours of the day to get used to different conditions. It was an ideal session to throw on a good running podcast for inspiration (which I don’t tend to do on a trail run or harder session). I became accustomed to my “I could do this all day” pace.

Race weekend

Having not been to the area pre-race, I sought out the most-discussed aspects of the course from other runners. The big elevation gain and loss (around 1,450m of each) within 27K. The steep, rugged climbs up Mt Cairncross. The 1.5K rocky creek bed. And the end-of-the-earth section known as Death Valley.

I’d be tackling all the above on each of the 6 laps of the miler event …

Over the weekend, there was a great mix of distances from 13K to 200K, all using the same trails. The 200K and 100M runners started at 8pm on the Friday night with 2 anti-clockwise loops. I managed to complete these in around 10 hours – just before sunrise. I had spent a bit of time with other runners on loop 1, which was handy given it was my “reccy” loop. On loop 2, I was more relaxed; running and hiking at my own rhythm. As much as I love running with a group, there is a unique sense of solitude wandering through the forest at night, by yourself with the light crunching of your runners on the loose gravel.

Loops 3 & 4 required a switch to the clockwise direction. I had made it through to sunrise; an enchanting period as light starts to filter through the trees and the first bird sounds welcome the new day. The Saturday morning also saw the start of the 100K and 50K races, so it was refreshing to have some mates and strangers pass by to exchange “coo-eee’s” and other well wishes for our respective journeys.

As the loops went by, my legs were holding up remarkably well. The conservative running plan (with plenty of hiking) and constant refuelling meant that the Start/Finish area was purely about topping up the Tailwind, water and energy bars and then back onto the next loop. No thoughts about using the checkpoint chair; this being a massive improvement over my deterioration at GNW by the 80K mark.

By loop 4 we were continually crossing paths with runners in all directions at various stages of their own races. I bumped into RD Mathew at the top of Death Valley and tried to convince him that this section actually got easier each loop. To explain – it is the north-west side of Mt Cairncross on private property that never gets used except on ETR race day! With the aim of creating enough accumulated elevation for UTMB points, it’s 800 mtrs down at about 30-35% gradient (and then straight back up); and you are clambering over loose shale for most of it. But after a couple of loops you start to know what to look for, focussing on the stable rocks rather than the loose ones. Mathew was not convinced; I don’t think he wanted to hear any positive stories about Death Valley!

With 4 loops done, it was time to change directions again to anticlockwise for the final 2. And Joe would be jumping in to pace me for these through the second night. Head torch back on, lots of chatter, still lots of hiking. A couple of moments where the cold almost got to me and a few yawns or sleepy vision; but generally felt good.

By the 5th loop there were big gaps both in front of and behind me. So the usual rendezvous with other runners on the out and back section of Death Valley didn’t arise. I remained conservative with the knowledge that a single stumble could induce a cramp that would ruin the last couple of hours. We made it down the last descent of Mt Cairncross with about 34 hours on the clock, and the message came through that the first two milers had crossed the line together. I set my target of 35.5 hours and got into a (relatively) hasty jog. It turned out to be an unexpected run session with Joe, some tips on the short down hills, leg speed, etc. And by now we had the 25K and 13K races starting, so more fresh faces to say hello and exchange well wishes.

The finish line arrived at 35hr 21min. The job was done.

Post-script and what’s next?

Mathew & Kerry and their team of helpers deserve a medal. Certainly one for their resumes to have put a successful event on with the restrictions and hoops to jump through.

Joe did in fact receive a medal for his 14 hours of guiding me through the second night on course. No doubt his slowest 50K ever! But given what he went out and achieved a week later in Canberra, I will convince myself that it was more helpful than not! (Well done champ).

As a challenge, this ticked many boxes. Covering the distance was one thing, however I feel most satisfied and confident from getting through two nights and 35+ hours of time on feet. But I know the next event of this nature will now be about more than just finishing; and the run-hike balance will change up.

Anyway, I heard a whisper than they haven’t had a 200K finisher at ETR within the 41 hour time limit yet. Just sayin’…

Pictured: Joe Ward and Jeremy Rankin at the 2020 ETC. Photograph – Supplied.

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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.