Mukamuka Munter & Dunedin's Latest Miler
“All 100 milers suck, so it may as well suck at the start.”
Your weekly fix of NZ trail running news
We’re here for you like your primary school friend who could forge your Mum’s handwriting perfectly
Here's what’s in the drop bag this week:
Mukamuka & Mega Munter Results🏆
Crush the Cargill’s “BIG” announcement🤯
Preview: The Great Naseby Water Race 🏃♀️🏃♂️
Mountain Skag Pic of the Month/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.
Mukamuka Munter 32K Results
Sunday morning,134 Wilderness seekers took on the Mukamuka Munter on the South Coast of Wainui’a’nowhere.
A record field was rewarded with excellent winter conditions.
A great view of the south, some mysterious clag, and enough rain to make things interesting
Women’s Podium
🥇 Deborah Lynch - 3:15:46
🥈 Susannah Lynch - 3:34:56
🥉 Rachel Shackleton - 3:37:15
Deborah Lynch went back-to-back, claiming her 2nd successive Mukamuka Munter title😎.
She put 20 minutes on her sister Susannah, the 2nd best Lynch of the day. You could say … she was the biggest Munter by a long shot.
The battle for 2nd & 3rd was a lot closer, with 2-time podium placer Rachel Shackleton finishing just over 2 minutes back from Susannah.
Men’s Podium
🥇 David Haunschmidt - 2:43:20
🥈 Thomas Callan - 2:47:10
🥉 Trev Sheppard - 2:57:00
I present to you 2 pieces of evidence.
One is factual.
The other is false.
You decide which is which.
Evidence A
Evidence B
Smashing a Dan Jones crown by 40 seconds while “taking it easy” with a hamstring strain🤣?
I’m scared to think what the Flying Doctor might do if he turns up to a race fresh.
Thomas Callan raced hard but didn’t do enough snowboarding last week to be able to catch Haunschmidt. A great time nonetheless. In other years, he would have got all the marbles.
Trev Shepphard rounded out the podium and comfortably broke the 3-hour mark, which means he’s officially a baller.
WE BREAK AWAY FROM OUR SCHEDULED READING
Crush the Cargill have been in touch through the week about a new 100-mile race in Dunedin which apparently will be the toughest, cheapest 100-mile race the world has ever seen.
They wanted to know if I could spread the word.
Bradley: ”As long as this isn’t a thinly veiled disguise to spout on about that little speedbump Mt.Cargill, everyone’s over that now.”
CTC: “No, this is a NEW 100-mile race.”
So here is Crush the Cargill’s BIG ANNOUNCEMENT
Crush the Cargill 100 Miler
The World’s Toughest, Cheapest 100 Miler
Obviously, Dunedin is NZs trail running mecca, and Mt Cargill is the most sacred shrine, and so it only seems fitting for Mt Cargill to be the site of the World’s Toughest, Cheapest Miler.
Are you up for a WILD adventure?
In the CtC 100 Miler, you get to start 12 hours before the 24-hour challenge suckers, which means you get 36 hours to enjoy the glorious ecstasy of Mt Cargill.
In that time, if you do 19 laps, you would have achieved what has previously been impossible… completion of a 100-mile race in NZ in December.
Starting at 10 pm means you get the first night out of the way quickly… only 7 hours and 4 minutes until dawn. That sucks, but as Andrew Glennie stoically pointed out,
“All 100 milers suck, so it may as well suck at the start.”
19 laps are exactly 161km with 10830m of vert – more vert than Northburn, UTMB, Hardrock, and other stuff, so it’s tough.
Entry is free (although a koha for the Valley Project would be awesome), so it’s really cheap.
So cheap that if you finish, you have to pay $10 for your buckle.
Not only is it the toughest, cheapest 100 Miler in the world, but your entry fee is also fully refundable even if we go bust. In that case, please still consider a koha for the Valley Project.
Apparently, Courtney is interested.
Check out the highly informative, entertaining, and cheap website for more info.
https://crushthecargill.wordpress.com/
Things that have been said…
“It’s like the Great Naseby Water Race, but vertical.”
“It’s a multi-day celebration of trail and mountain running.”
“a spectacular route through incredible terrain and an epic adventure to remember.”
Thanks for that … so, the same race, but you get to be there for longer? … gotcha.
Here is a preview of the finisher’s buckle they sent through.
Hmm🤔, still trying to decide if it intentionally says ‘MILF’ at the bottom🤣.
Mega Munter Results
With a large amount of snowfall (by Wellington standards) on the high point of the Mega course, there was some doubt whether the race would be on the ‘A’ course.
Luckily, the heroic course director stepped up to the plate and remarked the route on Saturday.
This is no Fusion Events, Valley Ultra D course circus!
Men’s Podium
🥇 Tom Hadley - 6:04:00
🥈 Samuel Hansby - 6:05:29
🥉 Stephen Molineux - 6:20:40
This one was a banger. The course record holder, NZ representative, and current Mr.Wainui, Sam Hansby, was the favourite heading in.
Unfortunately for Sam, Tom Hadley (yes, THAT Tom Hadley)left his ice axe and climbing boots at home and took up the challenge.
Sam had the early lead heading through the 20 km mark at the river.
However, Tom reeled Sam in, and they battled it out over the next 20 km. Tom managed to pull away to win by a minute and a half.
Mountain man Stephen Molineux backed up his great Wuu2K result and laid down an impressive run to take 3rd, a 34-minute improvement on last year in much more demanding conditions.
Women’s Podium
🥇 Kelly Davenport - 7:40:15
🥈 Tōrea Scott-Fyfe - 8:12:29
🥉 Kirin Fahey - 8:13:30
It was a day for back-to-back winners. Like Deb Lynch, Kelly Davenport made it 2/2 by defending her Mega Munter title. Not quite the blistering 7:14 of last year, but there were approximately 50 more cubic tonnes of mud.
Tōrea (yes, THAT Tōrea) and Kirin Fahey had a great battle for 2nd and 3rd. They ran through the 33 km mark neck and neck.
With 10 km to go, Tōrea had eeked out 2-3 minutes. But Kirin wasn’t giving up the chase that easy. Just over 8 hours, 47 km, 2.2K of vert later - I witnessed Kirin Fahey smash through the Catchpool car park only 30-40 seconds back from Torea.
It was awesome to see 2 competitors still going at it so deep into the race.
The Great Trailrunning NZ Cookie Giveaway
Congratulations to:
Debbi Bamfield
Nikki Helyar
Recovery cookies coming your way.
Email through your details, and the Trailrunning NZ Cookie division will get right on to that for you.
Upcoming Events
The Great Naseby Water Race
Wednesday-Sunday, 23rd-27th of August
This week I talked to Jill Wolff, who organizers The Great Naseby Water Race, which starts next Wednesday.
Now, I have to admit. I was a bit naive as a North Island-bound resident as to what Naseby was all about.
Jill gave me a great background on the event and what it’s all about.
Take it away Jill.
“This is the second year of running it after taking over from Jamie and Aileen, who started the event in 2007 with 12 entries.”
“When Jamie and Aileen decided they'd done their time, they approached me to take the race over.”
“Much as I could have done that, I saw more benefit in it becoming a Naseby "community" fundraiser, so a trust that I'm part of became the new owner.”
“The Naseby Development Charitable Trust is a fundraising trust with the main purpose of maintaining the Ernslaw One Recreational Area trails.”
“So the Great Naseby Water Race ticked many boxes for us. A great fundraiser, it's held in the Ernslaw One Recreational area, a local community fundraiser, and we're keeping the event and funds local.”
“We see it as an iconic event in that it's the only time you can actually stay in the Ernslaw One forest, and also because it's a 10km figure 8 loop, you're never more than 5km from your support crew, food, rest, and lots of encouragement.”
“The start/finish is also at the cross-section of the course, so the area is set up for everyone to come and stay in their campers, caravans, tents, and gazebos, creating a real "tent village" atmosphere.”
“We've tried to build on this by making sure that every entry gets a welcome on Facebook, usually with a little bit of running history. Although we only use first names and locations, the running community usually works out who it is, and some fun banter and encouragement starts.”
“That's why we think the Great Naseby Water Race is pretty special.”
“As mentioned, all profit from the race (which is volunteer run) goes back into maintaining the tracks and working toward improving the biking and running opportunities/experience within the forest.”
“The 200-mile race has only been added in the last few years, and we did wonder whether it would be a goer, and given it means the event now starts on Wednesday morning, there was a question on the viability.“
“But once you start getting people entering for this distance, there's no way you want to pull the pin on it. These guys and gals are something else.”
“I still can't get my head around it, but I love the passion they have and the incredible support crews that get these runners through.”
“We spent many hours with support crews and runners around the heater last year, laughing, discussing, and sympathizing with the many situations that arose during the race.”
“And that's just one of the distances we offer. This year we extended the 100km timeline to make it really achievable for anyone concerned about their ability to finish in time.”
“We'll continue to push that because, for many, doing an ultra event is a lifetime ambition, so this is one time the clock isn't going to stop them from achieving.“
“We've also had an amazing response to our 50km distance this year. It starts and finishes on Saturday and is a pretty cool introduction to ultra running.”
“And there's always the chance of having to run in the snow. Last year we were pretty close, with a bit of snow still lying in some areas.”
“We've got a great local community who happily put their hand up to help during the event, so we're very fortunate with volunteers. By Saturday, there's definitely a need for additional helpers to help the sleep-depraved volunteers.”
“To sum it up, The Great Naseby Water Race participants and supporters make everyone feel like family, so if you're thinking of stepping up and trying an ultra, this is a pretty special one to try. And you've got the added bonus of not having to carry anything with you on the run, cos you're only 5km from support at any time.”
Thanks for that, Jill. It sounds like a fantastic race and cause to support.
Entries are still open.
Click here for more details.
Mountain skag Of July
Ali Wilson takes out #Mountain Skag July.
When she’s not winning races, she’s winning free kit!
Mountain Skag Pic Of The Week
This week's #Mountain Skag is from Pakistani Sherpa Jub Bryant.
Baskochi meadows, Ainabad Valley. Somewhere under here is an old village that got destroyed after a landslide blocked the river.
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. You could look ALMOST as cool as Steve.
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 - There was some action on last week’s Segment Throwdown. Stephen Molineux & Allira Hanczakowski went on a midday bombing raid and got the downhill crowns👑. Sarah Mackey also grabbed the Local Legend 💪 —more on this next week.
Whoop whoop! You just made my very Monday-ee Monday sooo much better!!