The iconic Blackall bell is now silent after a fantastic 2018 event but boy did it get a work out!
We had record registrations this year, with nearly 500 entrants hitting the trails on what turned out to be a perfect day for our fifth event.
Three course records were also broken as runners from across Australia and even overseas took part in the most beautiful and challenging ultramarathon course traversing the Blackall Range.
Whether it was reaching a time goal, running with friends or hiking from start to finish – each person headed into the bush with a purpose.
The first runner to ring the Blackall bell this year was the awesome Ben Duffus from Brisbane who leapt down the red carpet and gave it a thorough clanging (he also broke the 50km course record).
Ben crossed the 50km finish at about 11am Saturday and from then the Blackall bell continued to ring through the QCCC hall until the final entrants emerged from the night forest early Sunday.
This year’s 100km winner was a surgeon from Brisbane, Yun Phua (pictured above), who had unfinished business on course. He ran the inaugural Blackall 100 back in 2014 when it was held in November and unfortunately had to pull out due to heat.
Yun came back this year to make up for his DNF and in the process set a new course record for the 100km based on the original course (the Blackall 100 course was modified the last three years due to landslips, fire and flood).
Another fantastic story came from the female 100km winner Alana Vought who backed up her win at Coastal High 50 to claim the women’s Blackall title while accidentally running an extra 3km (and with a broken hand).
Blackall100 also hosted the Australian Long Course Championships so congratulations go to the AURA (Australian Ultra Runners Association) members who placed.
Of course, every runner is a winner in our books and every one of you should be proud of your achievements.
Events like Blackall100 bring us together as a trail running community – whether it’s the camaraderie on course, the selfless help of volunteers or the wonderful support of friends and family.
Uncle Al summed it up the night before race day when he said “Blackall is not just an event; it’s a sharing”.
We run on the land that Indigenous tribes once roamed and as ultrarunners we appreciate the privilege of sharing these wild spaces.
Whether we go alone or with friends, ultrarunners also share an experience – the emotional highs and lows, the pain the euphoria. We all know how it feels.
And we share a drive to keep going, to take that next step, to reach the finish – and ring that bell!
Special mention must go this year to the inaugural 500 Club. These runners signed up for their first Blackall 100 back in 2014 and have completed the 100km event every year since.
When they crossed the line this year, David Elms, Chris Jacobson, Meagan Brown, Sammy Brown, Stuart Grills and Andy Speakman had clocked up 500km of Blackall miles.
We also had many runners doing their fifth 50km or fifth straight Blackall event, having been with us since the start.
And of course we cannot forget our first group of Kippas – Will, Noah P, Dante, Declan and Noah S – a group of teen protégé runners who tackled a 22km course.
The Kippas were chuffed to be running alongside ultrarunners and according to Noah, one of the highlights of his day was receiving high fives from the 100km entrants on course.
There are so many people to thank:
*The amazing running groups Girls Run This Town, Brisbane Trail Runners, Noosa Ultra Trail Runners and SunCo RunCO and Lisa, Sue and Tracey, for enthusiastically operating the checkpoints and keeping runners fueled and hydrated.
*Sunshine Coast First Aid Volunteers for looking after the health and wellbeing of everyone on course.
*The fantastic staff at QCCC Mapleton.
*The wonderful Ann Raftery and Brendon for coordinating the smorgasbord of food for the checkpoints.
*All the helpers at the start/finish area, the road crossings and our sweepers who ensured the trail was squeaky clean and that no runner was left behind.
Thank you also to all our sponsors:
*Major Event Sponsor – Sunshine Coast Council and Visit Sunshine Coast https://www.visitsunshinecoast.com/
*Sascha and Jason at The Athlete’s Foot Maroochydore, Kawana and Caloundra https://www.facebook.com/theathletesfootmaroochydore/
*Jason and Rachel at Infinit https://www.infinitnutrition.com.au/
*The North Face https://thenorthface.com.au/
*Red Bull https://www.redbull.com/au-en/
*Squirrel’s Nut Butter https://squirrelsnutbutter.com/
Finally, we would like to say a special thank you to our enthusiastic and supportive wives, Megan Standring and Adele Jackson, who throw all their energies into helping organise this major race.
It takes a year of planning and hard work to get Blackall100 off the ground and we would not be able to do it without the tireless devotion of these two ladies.
Thank you to everyone for being a part of the adventure and bring on 2019!
Cheers!
Brett Standring & Gavin Jackson
**Don’t forget, Blackall100 is a qualifying event for Western States Endurance Run (and carries 4 ITRA points).
Three Blackall course records were broken this year.
50km Men– Ben Duffus 4:19:36
50km Women– Angela Speight 4:47:41
100km Men – Yun Phua 9:57:21
100km Men 100km Women
1st Yun Phua 9:57:21 CR 1st Alana Vought 11:21:07
2nd Daniel Williams 10:25:34 2nd Charmaine Thompson 12:10:12
3rd equal Troy Lethlean Kyle Weise 11:10:28 3rd Amanda Meggison
50km Men 50km Women
1st Ben Duffus 4:19:36 CR 1st Angela Speight 4:57:41 CR
2nd Jared Medhurst 4:29:54 2nd Kate Child 5:23:05
3rd Mark Windsor 4:40:33 3rd Hayley Teale 5:39:57
Full results here http://www.racetecresults.com/Results.aspx?CId=7&RId=678&EId=1
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