Weekly News Report 24-1-2022

• Two Bays Trail Run, Vic
• Hares & Hounds, Qld
• Australia Day Ultra, WA
• Upcoming Events

Two Bays Trail Run

The always-anticipated Two Bays Trail Run was held along the Mornington Peninsula in Vic on 16 January, 2022. On offer were two distances for runners – a 28km and the 56km ultra, and this year the event doubled as AURA’s Australian Short Course Championships (which is open to both AURA members and non-members alike) in the 56km, and 218 runners crossed the finishing line.

For 2022, 1^st Male winner at the 56km Two Bays Trail Run, AURA’s very own Matthew Whitaker of Richmond, Vic received the Championship title after his finish time of 4:09:38. It was Whitaker’s third year running the event, and he was thrilled with the relatively cool weather presented on the day. According to an online recap via a Two Bays Trail Run’s Facebook group, Whitaker said, “My favourite part of the race every year is kilometres 16-20, where we overlap with the 28km runners; the support is always amazing and those kilometres just fly by.

“Looking at my Strava segments today, I ran the 3km climb back up to Arthur’s Seat quicker than the previous two years, but it definitely didn’t feel like that; I knew at the top that I was going to have a rough last 25km on the course, and thoughts of a course record or PB went out the window.

“However, I also knew that if I could avoid a complete blow-up, I could hopefully hang on for the win.”

To round off the podium for the men, 2^nd Male went to Joseph Dorph (4:30:36) and 3^rd went to Nick Montgomery (4:32:14), both are non-AURA members but secured their spots respectively in the Championships.

For the women’s 56km event and Championship results, 1^st Female was won by Narelle Crozier (4:38:27) whilst 2^ndFemale was proudly taken out by AURA’s Simone Brick who hails from Beaumaris, Vic. She crossed the finish line in a speedy 4:44:10.

Third Female went to Christy Lambert (5:26:30).

Brick, also in an online recap of her event, said it was a brilliant day for her with the usual ups and downs of an ultra ‘chucked in’, and that ‘I got to spend the first half step-for-step chatting along with Crozier, feeling great and very thankful for her upbeat company.

“I was incredibly happy to get to the finish not having had the perfect day, but having a damn good one and having learned lots again. Third go at this ultra distance thing, and today was the best I have felt in all ways bar one for any race of this length in time or distance, so I am one happy runner.”

Congratulations to all our AURA members who took on the 56km event, including Thomas Dade (4:49:13), Marcus Cugino (5:12:01), Aaron Dower (5:18:18), Sarah Jayamaha (5:56:16), Stuart Hughes (5:56:30), Mak Sawa (6:05:39), Mathew Schubert (6:17:19), Simon Neale (6:17:29), Greg Wilson (6:20:35), Jonathan Cooper (6:47:18) and Jody Daff (7:52:31).

For a full list of results click here.

Hares & Hounds

Hosted by AAA Racing & Coaching, Hares & Hounds was held on 16 January in Beerburrum, Qld and is the first event of the year on the local calendar, known for bringing a hot introduction to the new year running calendar. There was, unfortunately, a last minute decrease in participation numbers due to COVID positives and close contacts, but the race did go ahead. The Hares event offered a 50km solo (start time 3am, with 32 runners crossing the finish line) whilst Hounds was a 50km team relay (if you are an AURA member and were part of a team, please email kate.dzienis@aura.asn.au as individuals’ names are not listed, therefore counter-checking entrants to AURA’s membership database is difficult to do). There was also a Lone Wolves event with a 50km solo (start time 430am) and then a 25km and 10km.

Podium finishers for the Hares men’s event were 1^st Male Thomas Brimelow (4:32:37), 2^nd Male Robert Egan (4:39:43) and 3^rd Male Michael Lindeback (4:59:35). For the women, we saw 1^st Female Nicole Jules (5:57:07), 2^nd Female Lauren Forcey (6:32:26) and 3^rd Female Rebecca Dalton (6:35:56).

Congratulations to all our AURA members who raced in the Hares event including Craig Dodd from Enoggera, Qld who finished in 6:48:28. 

There were three runners in the Lone Wolves 50km, with top spots to AURA members Kevin Muller from Wodonga, Vic who took 1^st Male in 5:04:58 and Chris Murphy from Strathdickie, Qld who claimed 2^nd Male in 5:38:07. David Eadie got 3^rd Male (6:27:22).

For a full list of results, click here.

Australia Day Ultra

The annual Australia Day Ultra was held yesterday, 23 January, in Australind, WA in hot conditions following a week-long heatwave in the surrounding Perth regions. For ultra runners, there was a distance for everyone, including a 100km, 75km and 50km plus a 25km and 6km.

A lot of runners were hit by the heat this year, so we saw three runners (out of 14 starters) cross the finish line in the 100km – for the women, AURA’s Margaret Hadley from Henley Brook took 1^st Female after a tough battle in the sun, completing the distance in 9:52:47. Second female was Katie Seghini (10:47:49).

Michael Coughlan was the only male to complete the 100km, in 13:55:18. It was really trying out there, so kudos to our AURA members who gave it a red-hot crack – literally; Wayne Spies, Jason Kell, Mick Francis and Joshua Kuhn.

In the 75km the race had two finishers out of five starters, all male – 1^st Male to Stan Fiddyment (9:57:34) and 2^nd Male to Andrew Sollitt (10:22:27).

In the 50km, AURA’s very own Daniel Chidlow from Safety Bay, WA secured 1^st Male with a time of 3:55:13, whilst AURA member David Murphy from Floreat, WA came in just a few seconds short with an amazing 3:55:53 to take 3^rdmale. Craig Weller took 3^rd Male (4:07:19).

For the women, Casey Edlington took 1^st Female (4:34:09), Natasha Simpkins took 2^nd Female (6:05:31) and Ann Clarke took 3^rd (6:09:41).

Well done to all our AURA members in the 50km event, including Bob Colligan (5:11:33), Alexis Oosterhoff (5:57:37), Mark Caldwell (6:30:51), John Fisher (6:53:45) and Michael Gibbon (7:03:54).

Click here for a full list of results.

Upcoming Events

With the current pandemic still hitting states all across the country, it’s advised to keep an eye on events’ FB pages or websites if you have entered a race; alternatively, race directors will always communicate with their participants and volunteers on the next course of action.

The Sandman 50 is ready to be kicked off on 29 January from the Old Dunsborough Boat Ramp in WA and offers a 50km trail race.

The first weekend of February sees a trifecta of events with the Cradle Mountain Run due for 5 February in Cradle Mountain, Tas with an 80km race and the City Run in Bonython Park, SA with a 60km event is due to 6 February.

The Dorrigo Rainforest Run offers a beautiful race in the Dorrigo Mountain, NSW and is due to be held on 6 February.

For Our Members

We love making mention of AURA members when they achieve incredible results at other races across the country and around the world, so if you or someone you know is an AURA member and they’ve had an amazing event that isn’t AURA-listed, email kate.dzienis@aura.asn.au and keep us in the loop!

We also want your race reports and story ideas for our monthly Ultramag digital magazine. Without your tips and leads, there wouldn’t be an Ultramag, so please consider contributing at least once in the new year where you get a chance to share your ultra running experiences with other members! Send all stories and photos to ultramag@aura.asn.au to get in for the next edition.

Pictured: Two Bays Trail Run 56km podium finishers, who also each won the AURA Australian Short Course Championships. Photographs – Two Bays Trail Run/Supplied.