Weekly News Report 24-10-2023

Kate Dzienis • October 24, 2023

kunanyi Cascade, Tas
Heysen 105, SA
Member Updates
Upcoming Events

We are always on the hunt for your stories and reports, so with us getting started on the next edition of Ultramag, send in your incredible tales to ultramag@aura.asn.au And remember, it doesn’t have to be about an AURA-listed event specifically! You just have to be an AURA member for the 2023 year.

Also too, if you’ve run in a non-AURA listed event anywhere on home soil or internationally, we’d love to include your race results and experience in our Member Updates, so please do reach out to us via email to Kate Dzienis at kate.dzienis@aura.asn.au

If any corrections need to be made in any of the results listed below, please alert Kate again via email.

KUNANYI CASCADE

The kunanyi Trail Series Cascade Slide (11km) and Cascade 4.0 was held last weekend on 21 October in South Hobart, Tas and was the final of four events in the series. The two distances start at the historic Cascade Brewery and saw runners hit the gentle uphill of Cascade Track through to open woodlands and rainforest gullies.

In the Women’s Cascade Slide, top spots were awarded to Jess Collins, Mikayla Ireland and Rachel Allen whilst in the Men’s Cascade Slide winners were named David Bailey, Mark Hinder and Tom Carr.

Podium finishers in the Women’s Cascade 4.0 were Jess McDonald, Whitney Williams and Courtney Plapp whilst in the Men’s Cascade 4.0 it was Nick Beeton, Christopher Hildrew and Bruce Lapham finishing in the top three spots.

HEYSEN 105

The Heysen 105 was held weekend of 21-22 October in Victor Harbour, SA and offered an array of distances for runners, including a 115km, 70km and 50km for ultra athletes. Along the Heysen Trail, Ultra Series took over the event in 2020 and this year was the Heysen 105’s 12^th year.

In the Women’s 115km, podium finishes were awarded to Skye Whitcher (13:46:13), Beth Newman (14:32:52) and Sharnee Armstrong (15:12:27). In the Men’s 115km, top spots went to David Williams (11:13:39), Jarrad Allen (11:41:21) and AURA’s very own Nick Muxlow from Royston park, SA who crossed the finish line to claim 3^rd Male in a time of 11:46:50.

Congratulations to our members who raced in the 115km, including Briony Weckert from Clarence Park, SA (15:30:41), Peter Goss from Adelaide, SA (18:54:41) and Pete Sinfield from Tugun, Qld (20:06:54).

In the Women’s 70km, winner was named Aude Juino (8:20:35). AURA’s Jennifer Ritossa from Myrtle Park, SA secured 2^nd Female with a total time of 8:39:23 and AURA member Amanda Meggison from Uraidla took home 3^rd Female after finishing in 8:43:34.

In the Men’s 70km, top spots went to Isaac Fishlock (6:48:22 – who also set a new course record by nearly 30 minutes), Rob Wood (7:39:16) and Ryan Wheeler (7:40:27).

Podium finishers of the Women’s 50km were Sarah Melville (5:32:31), Bek Gratton (5:45:47) and Toni Gracia (5:52:00) whilst in the Men’s 50km it was Leif Christensen (4:48:12), Nigel Maycock (5:26:29) and Johan Botha (5:30:46).

Congratulations to all our members who ran in the 50km, including Dawn Parks from Marden, SA (10:27:07), Joel Williams from Adelaide, SA (8:12:47), Tamas Lorincz from Windsor Gardens, SA (8:25:17) and Rob Wallis from Gaawler South, SA (11:24:00).

For the full list of results, click through here.

MEMBER UPDATES

Big Dog’s Backyard Ultra Individual World Championships is currently still underway in Tennessee, USA having kicked off on Saturday, 21 October. Seven Aussies have been on the ground, representing the green and gold against an elite field of backyard ultra runners – and four out of those seven are AURA members: Phil Gore from WA (AURA), Rob Parsons from WA (AURA), Ben Nicholls from the ACT (AURA), Tim Kacprzak from Vic (AURA), Ryan Crawford, Aaron Young and James Blanton.

As of Tuesday, 24 October 2pm WST: Tim Kacprzak turned back on Loop 61; Ben Nicholls timed out on Loop 51; Ryan Crawford did not start Loop 31.

Team Australia at Big Dogs 2023 (Photograph – Timothy Walsh)

UPCOMING EVENTS

Old Mates Backyard Ultra will be held from 27-30 October in Upper Barron, Qld.

Bondi to Manly Ultra will be held on 28 October in Bondi, NSW and the Great North Walk Ultras in Patonga, NSW will be from 28-29 October.

Looking ahead, November will also be a busy month with the Feral Pig Ultra from 4-5 November) in Mundaring, WA; the Great Southern Stage Run from 16-18 November in WA; Hysterical Carnage Backyard Ultra from 17-19 November in Loxton, SA; GSER from 17-19 November in Harrietville, Vic; and the Stromlo Running Festival from 18-19 November in Stromlo, ACT.

Pictured: Nick Muxlow on the 115km course at the 2023 Heysen 105. Photograph – Sebastian Silva Lopez.

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AUTRA Race Report 23-3-2026

By Kate Dzienis • March 23, 2026

Herdy's Frontyard Ultra, WA Gold Coast Backyard Ultra, Qld I'm Still Standing Sydney, NSW Trail Run Australia - Tathra, NSW Sri Chinmoy 48hr Track Ultra (Australian 48hr Track Championships, ACT Washpool World Heritage Trails, NSW Tamworth Trailblazer, NSW Upcoming Events WEEKLY NEWS REPORT FOR 23-3-2026 As always, we're continuously on the hunt for your stories and reports, so get those race reports and photographs in to ultramag@autra.asn.au with the following information: Word document, single spaced Include the name of the event, the date and the location anywhere in the report (just a bullet point at the top is great) Please attach photographs to the email – do not put images in the body of your Word doc. You’ll just get me emailing you back asking for the photos sent in the correct way! As many photos as possible. With our new website, it’s now easier than ever to include a nice gallery in each race report No PDFs please And remember, it doesn’t have to be about an AUTRA-listed event specifically! You just have to be an AUTRA member for the 2026 year. Also too, if you’ve run in a non-AUTRA listed event anywhere on home soil or internationally, we’d love to include your race results and experience in our Member Updates, so please do reach out to us via email to kate.dzienis@autra.asn.au If any corrections need to be made in any of the results listed below, please alert me via email.

2026 AGM Notice (15 April 2026)

By Dave Martin • March 14, 2026

AUTRA’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) will be held on Wednesday 15 April 2026

AUTRA statement regarding Snowies Trail Run Festival

March 12, 2026

AUTRA has been in direct contact with the organisers of the Snowies Trail Run Festival, In2Adventure, regarding a recent situation involving an athlete and the event’s in‑person safety briefing requirements. In2Adventure has confirmed that the situation was discussed directly with the athlete at the time. From In2Adventure’s account, and for the purpose of clarifying the public record, AUTRA notes the following points: At no stage was the athlete prevented from breastfeeding at the event. The organiser states that the following options were offered to enable the athlete to participate while still meeting safety requirements: a quiet and private space where she could breastfeed while still being present at the briefing; the option to receive the required briefing at the 30 km start line after the start; and the option to change her registration to the 21 km event, where the briefing is conducted on the start line. At no stage prior to event registration on Saturday night did the athlete contact the organiser to advise of her situation or request alternative arrangements, which limited what could be put in place at the time. Face‑to‑face safety briefings have always been a requirement for In2Adventure events due to the remote and higher‑risk nature of the trails. AUTRA was aware that in‑person briefings were used and had not raised concerns about that general approach. The organiser has indicated that this requirement is driven by safety, duty‑of‑care and insurance obligations, and follows previous experience where remote or online briefings resulted in athletes starting events without critical safety information. The organiser maintains that the event was not conducted in a manner that was intended to be non‑inclusive, inflexible or discriminatory, and that decisions made on the day were based solely on safety requirements that apply equally to all participants. AUTRA’s aim in issuing this statement is solely to clarify the context and ensure that the public record reflects the information provided to us by the organiser.