A Forgotten Power Rises In The East
"At first, no one dared to mention the name … but news has spread..."
Your weekly fix of NZ trail running news
It’s short and snappy this week - just like your old 3rd form Geography teacher
Here's what’s in the drop bag this week:
A Forgotten Power Rises In The East🧟
Worst Run Ever🤢
Things You May Have Missed📁
Preview: UTMB🏃♀️🏃
Mountain Skag Pic of the Week⛰️
Note: Due to the length, some email browsers will hide some of the content - make sure you click ‘view entire email’ or click through to substack.
A Forgotten Power Rises In The East
I have heard murmurings on the winds coming from the East. There is great unrest in the endurance athletes of Hawkes Bay.
For too long, the Hawkes Bay Marathon has dominated the event calendar.
Many a trail runner has subjected themselves to this pavement bashing, dreaming of something better, dreaming of something that once was.
At first, no one dared to mention the name😨 … but news has spread … The Kaweka Challenge … once feared as the hardest mountain marathon in NZ … each day that passes, its powers grow… Can this once great ruler of endurance athletes’ souls be close to a return?
At this stage, it could just be vicious rumors.
But if it were to return, it would be a must-do event, especially for North Island dwellers.
Ted Sapsford (with lots of support) started it in 1990 as a 2-day overnight event before “ultra running” was even a thing in New Zealand.
In its heyday, it would attract between 300-400 entrants. 5 courses were on offer as well as a mountain bike duathlon. The biggest test was the mountain marathon -42km, 3k vert, awww yeah💪.
Unfortunately, entries began to drop off for whatever reason, and it all became a bit too hard, with the last Kaweka Challenge taking place in 2011.
I went down a Kawekas rabbit hole🐇🕳️ and found myself on Alastair Mcdowell’s blog. Easter 2012, a young Alastair Mcdowell, Kristian Day, and Ben Duggan ran the course anyway.
There is some ultra high-def footage on youtube below.
It looks like a fantastic place for a race🤤. Fingers crossed, the rumors come true.
Did you take part in the Kaweka Challenge? Share your experience in the comments!
Worst Run Ever
This week’s Worst Run Ever is a reminder to be careful when nature calls😲.
“I was out for my usual Sunday medium to long, slow to slowest run🐢. I had only been running for 10 minutes, but I left home in a rush and forgot to take a slash🟡.
There wasn’t great cover🌲 so I worked my way down the bank a little. That’s when the rock I stood on slid out from under me. Down the bank I went, hitting rocks and branches along the way.
It felt like it went on forever. When I finally came to a stop, I was covered in mud and scratched to buggery.
I tried to stand up, but everything was fuzzy😵. That's when I realized what had happened.
My glasses👓 had fallen off, and I had landed on them. They were completely smashed.
I couldn't see anything without them. I was stuck down the side of this bank, unable to move with the fear of potentially falling down further.
I sat there for what felt like hours, waiting to hear someone coming past that I could call for help.
Finally, a couple of dudes out walking their dog🐕 came past and I managed to grab their attention. They helped me up the bank and walked me back to my car.
It was the Worst Run Ever, but I learned a valuable lesson -GET LASER EYE SURGERY YOU CHEAP BASTARD.”
Aaron S
Keep the stories coming in! Send them to trailrunningnz@gmail.com
They can be short or long. Funny😂 or sad😭. You can own it, or it can be made anonymous. They can even have a happy ending.
Things You May Have Missed
Pathogen responsible for Kauri dieback found in the Kaimai Ranges causing track closures
The Goat turns 20 next year, entries are open, and there still appears to be some left.
Upcoming Events
UTMB Trail Festival
Mon, 28 Aug 2023 – Sun, 3 Sept
The NZ event calendar is having a bit of a breather, so I thought I would look toward UTMB Festival, which is a little over 1 month away.
There is no doubt that UTMB(Ultra Trail Mont Blanc) has taken over the international trail running scene.
Races I have never heard of are suddenly dishing out UTMB stones all over the show. All roads races lead to Rome Chamonix.
Western States has the history, and Hardrock has its vibe - But you can’t go past UTMB for being the most competitive mountain trail races in the world.
Strangely, UTMB feels like it is what the World Trail & Mountain Running Championships want to be.
It draws the best of the best to one location for a week-long celebration of trail running. A podium spot here is career-defining.
Kiwis have done well over the years at UTMB. Some of our past results:
Ruth Croft: OCC 2019🥇, OCC 2018🥇, CCC 2015🥇
Scotty Hawker: UTMB 2019🥉, CCC 2021🥈
Caitlin Fielder: CCC 2022 18th, OCC 2021🥉, OCC 2019 6th
Nancy Jiang: CCC 2022 22nd, OCC 2019 8th, OCC 2018 5th
(Apologies if I’ve missed any)
This Years Hopefuls
Below is who I’ve got down racing this year using the top-ranked racer section on the website and Word on the street.
UTMB - Ruth Croft, Katie Wright, Scotty Hawker, Danny Jones, Scott Bougen, Louis Schindler, Cam Kerr
CCC - Nancy Jiang, Brooke Thomas, Sean McWilliams
OCC - Caitlin Fielder, David Haunschmidt
But I know quite a few have got in through the lottery, and there is no overall list published.
If you’re heading to Chamonix(or your mate is), post in the comments or reply to this email so I can assemble a complete list of Kiwis to follow before the event.
With so many top Kiwis in the field, it’s going to be a great week of streaming and dot-watching.
Can Ruth Croft continue her golden streak at UTMB?
Will Caitlin Fielder get back on the podium?
Is Scotty Hawker back to his best?
Is Danny Jones going to be recovered in time?
Will the flying Dr. Haunscmidt meet his match?
Will Scooby and the gang solve the mystery?
Only time will tell, but I’m excited to see the Kiwis take on the world’s best💪.
#Mountain Skag Pics Of The Week
This week's #Mountain Skag is from Stephen Bates, aka @run_fraggle_run, from last week’s Wuu2K.
Sunrise✅
Endless ridges in the distance✅
Friends to share it with✅
Tag @trailrunning.nz and use #mountainskag on Instagram or email trailrunningnz@gmail.com to enter.
Every entry goes into the monthly draw to win a Mountain Skag T-Shirt or hat.
We will be back next week with more trail-running news, yarns, and glory.
It takes hours to write this newsletter but only 8 seconds to forward it to a friend.
PS - If you’re keen to see the Kaweka Challenge come back to life, and want to get involved, reply to this email, and I’ll send off some smoke signals to Hawkes Bay.
I ran this several times around the ‘turn of the century’ and into the early 2000’s. An absolute classic of a mountainous monstrous beast & something of an inspiration for many skaggy missions (and a certain event) since. Would be great to see it back on the calendar.
Oh wow to see the Kaweka Challenge back on the agenda would be fabulous. That's where it all began for me back in the distant mists of time ie the 1990s. Back in the days when Kepler sounded like madness, I mean who was nuts enough to run 60km? How innocent we were 🙂