Denmark -> Lowlands. At the end of post three I was leaving Denmark on the shuttle bus and heading out late Friday afternoon , the shuttle was 6pm so I would have arrived back on the bibbulmun  track around 6:35pm.  I had just had a shower, foot work , thanks Kath, and decent tukka (pumpkin soup to die for! ) at the Denmark aid station. I was ready for the final eighty kilometre push to the finish and  one last night on the trails.  It didn’t start that well as on the shuttle I realised my iphone was down to less than 10% power. I had visually checked it at Denmark and it looked to have enough juice to get me to Lowlands but as soon as I checked it on the bus the battery indicator turned red. Normally this wouldn’t be a problem as I had a power bank (part of the compulsory gear) but I had left my charging cable with Mark, rookie error.  Luckily there were other runners on the bus and I was able to borrow a cable, I then held back and waited for my iphone to charge enough to get me to Lowlands so I could return the cable and not risk taking it to lowlands aid station  and forgetting to return it.

I wasn’t running that well to Lowlands and it is quite a long section which although not too testing,  from a terrain front,  is a long time on your feet,  remember this is your third night with very  little sleep and eventually fatigue comes calling.  Similar to last year I started well enough but when I was a few kilometers out of the aid station the hallucinations kicked in  and I also started to stumble on the trails, I was running on empty. I was so glad to finally get to the road and then the aid station but was not ready to move on. I needed food and rest and luckily the aid station provided both. The food was incredible, I seem to have typed that a lot but it just seemed to get better as you moved through the event ? At Lowlands I had the best burrito and a delicious chicken and pasts soup, it was so good. Mark set up my chair and I grabbed a few blankets and instantly fell into a deep sleep with orders to wake up in an hour, Mark’s idea not mine.

Lowlands -> Shelly Beach. While I was away in the land of Nod my mate Bradley Halls came into the aid station, he had meant to be in the 6pm shuttle with me but decided to sleep instead.  When I woke he was ready to go and company would be a God send on another long section into Shelly’s aid station,  Brad is tall and has long legs and he had adopted a policy of power hiking which turned out was quicker than I was running (stumbling?)  We hiked to Shelly’s at a good pace and even passed a few runners who were running and walking.  This seemed to spur Bradley on as he realised he was knocking on the door of a top twenty finish , for the 100 miler.

At Shelley’s we had a full house , albeit for the photo below they all left me, and we enjoyed the best location, ( you are down at the beach car park and the waves feel like they’re just outside the tent)  incredible food and the best volunteers (Renee Bennet and her crew won an award at the pub on Sunday evening for being just that!)  I love Shelly’s because really if you get here the job is done. There’s a short hop to Cosy Corner and then one more aid station after that, Shazza’s , before the finish. You’ve also got through the long stretch’s from Denmark to Lowland and Lowlands to Shelly’s. Mission accomplished.  The last two years I’ve hit Shelly’s in the early hours, just right for some food and a good power nap. Last year I think I had a few hours but this year ‘competitive‘ Bradley was keen to kick on , as were the other runners and I had twenty minutes at best, not happy Jan !

Shelly’s -> Cosy Corner Bradley left ahead of me and I took my time, said my goodbyes and started too chase everybody down. I was feeling so good after my twenty minute power nap and I knew the sun rise was only a few hours away.  Astrid from @ourphotostories caught me in full flight chasing down Bradley with a few runners just behind me.

As soon as the sun rose Bradley and I started to get excited. Cosy Corner aid station was close and we both knew it was a matter of when,  not if , we would  finish. Bradley was still getting excited about rising up the finishers list for the 100 miler but I had no runners to chase and also no runners close to me, although that’s what I thought ?  It was overcast on Saturday which were good running conditions compared to the previous few years when we have been barbecued, moving the event from February to April was proving to be a good idea.

We came into Cosy Corner in good time and I had one final change of clothes but couldn’t justify any food as I was still full from Shelly’s. A quick cup of sweet tea and were were away chasing a 100 miler runner who was just ahead of us.  There is a few kilometres of sand before the final push to Shazza’s aid station. Bradley was on a mission and we passed the 100 miler runner ahead of us , Bradley leading with me struggling to hang on, he was a man on a mission.

Cosy Corner -> Shazza’s The sand to the car park at the end of the beach is great for running bar the last few kilometres where it got a tad soft.  There use to be an aid station here, Muttons, but Shaun had decided it was too close to Cosy Corner so removed it, bless him.  Once we hot the trails Bradley continued his charge up the finishers list and we passed another couple of runners, with my good mate Tex pacing them. They tried to tag onto us but Bradley was in no mood to take any passengers and they were ejected out the back quickly.

Leaving Cosy Corner you have one final stretch to the last aid station which is good for running and spectacular scenary , with wind turbines and steep cliffs over looking stunning beaches and massive waves.  This is the first time we had clouds and drizzle, not the blue sky and soaring temperatures we are used to.  You can count down the wind turbines as the aid station is a few kilometres past the last one.  This year there was a detour due to the boardwalk being repaired which I wasn’t that bothered about as the boardwalk is never ending. At the detour point Bradley stopped to empty some sand from his shoe and I took this opportunity to check my whatsApp group to see what was happening out with the event.  Imagine my surprise when I saw a post from Mark mentioning Charles was running well and running me down.  I was slightly surprised as I thought Charles was a long way back but the thought of being caught so close to the finish did not sit well with me, seeing I did the same thing to Charles’s brother,  Trevor, a few years back.  Without stopping to explain to Bradley I sprinted off and ran the three kiloemetre loop, on road and crushed limestone, at close to 5min/k pace, which at this stage in the event was sprinting.  I collapsed into the last aid station and eagerly asked Mark how close behind Charles was, must to Mark’s surprise . Apparently he had felt sorry for Charles as all the posts were about my journey and had posted trying to give Charles some kudos and grab him some attention. He was infact nowhere near me !

Shazz’s aid station -> The finish. 

All that was left to do at Shazza’s aid station was don a wig and toast the event with an Emu Bitter, as it tradition. As always the beer still tastes bad and I only have a few sips knowing I still got over nine kilometres to go. I decided to carry on alone and use the time left to reflect on my fifth finish and what the event meant to me, I was also chasing the clock as Mark had promised money to our good friend Tina Ingraham’s MND charity dependent on my finish time, no pressure.

I managed to push the pace on the last section and ran past a 100 miler close to the finish , Warwick Crapper joined me for the last kilometre, another tradition and we both enjoyed a ‘shoey’, before I dropped to the ground for a few press ups and then just lay there , content.

Eventually I arose from the ground , put on some clothes and dragged out my reclining chair to enjoy the ambience of the finish and cheer on runners crossing the line. Watching the emotion of these finishers is inspiring and trust me some of them have done it hard, real hard. The scale of ‘hardness’ grows on the hour and don’t forget this is Saturday early afternoon, we have another twenty four hours plus of finishing time ahead and a whole lot of ‘hard’.

Shaun suggested we all chip in for Pizza and before long a whole heap of Domino’s pizzas turned up. Yet again these tasted like the best Pizza’s I have ever eaten albeit Mark just said they were Domino’s and as such pretty crap. This proves my point that you need to run a long time to really enjoy food, but when you do it is so worth it, a sort of ‘only an ultra runners understands’.?

Eventually we had to leave the finish area to get a shower and some well earned sleep. We met up with the Bosweld’s , Charles and Trevor, and their beautiful partners, and the incredible Jen Millum, for dinner that night at the Earl of Spencer, we are creatures of habit and we know the food is good and the portions large. Craig Jeffrey joined us for a great evening full of tall stories from the event, tales of losing phones and general great conversation among good friends, all over great food.  The night was cut short mainly due to sleep depravation and we scuttled off to the accommodation and a really good nights sleep, the first for many days.

Sunday is spent eating at a local cafe which does the best full English breakfast , good coffee before heading back to the finish line to see some real dead-set legends finish, these guys are really doing it hard with a capital H , David Goggins would be proud.  While I was asleep the previous evening these runners were battling through night number four and all the fatigue that comes with it.  They were probably racing sweepers and cut-off times so sleep would have been a luxury they could ill afford at this late stage f the game, ‘zombie runner’ state activated. ! Of course the bonus is a massive crowd to see you finish which makes it all worthwhile, I suppose?

Shaun puts on a great show at the presentations with every runner that finishes getting their own trophy , be it a mini-thong for the 100 milers or a full size thong (for one or two finishes)  or boot (for three and four finishers) for the 200 milers. Shaun knows each finisher and gives a small speech for each one, not sure if he can continue to do this as the vent grows but at the moment it’s just a special place to be, surround by the ‘Ultra Series tribe’, and that’s the point I suppose.

One last photo showing Mark and I with our traditional pint of Guinness as the Earl of Spencer before we tuck into a Guinness and Beef pie, and that’s us signing off for 2025.  Will we go again ? Of course we will and 2026 is already booked in for both of us, after all what else is there ? 

Follow me on

or follow me on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/runbkrun/

Big shout out to fisiocrem , this product is just incredible for tired and aching legs. I use it daily and have noticed a vast improvement in recovery.

Bix hydration is just ace, a product brought to life by Vlad Ixel a professional ultra runner who knows a thing or two about hydration. ( https://www.bixvitamins.com/ )  The best thing about Bix is it tastes good with many different flavours and you never get sick of drinking it, this is a big plus as Maurten and Tailwind (both great products)  can be difficult to digest later in the event.  From the website :-

As an Australian elite multiple trail running champion, with wins in over 40 ultra-marathon races across Asia, recovery from training and races has always been my top priority. 

In searching for a solid recovery and hydration supplement, I recognized that critical vitamins and minerals – both in diversity and quantity – were missing from almost all supplements on the market. I had the feeling that in an effort to maximize their bottom-lines, companies in the hydration space, failed to deliver a product that could meaningfully assist athlete performance. 

In order to address this, I began the development of a hydration product. After two and a half years of development alongside a leading German sports scientist, BIX Recovery, an advanced, high-quality recovery drink was born. 

BIX boosts 12 active ingredients scientifically balanced to replace lost electrolytes and assist in immune function. It’s designed with quality vitamins and minerals, in quantities that work! 

BIX is a recovery solution for everyone, that will get you to the top of your game!

What can I say about HumanTecar,  ( https://athleticus.com.au/ ) it looks great, smells great and is awesome for recovery or even pre-run/workout. Read about the science behind it first and then try the products. The compression bandages are just magical after a long event. Put these on and the next day you are recovered, I have used them on a number of occasions and they never fail to astound me albeit the family poke fun at me as I look like a ‘mummy and smell funny’ !

Fractel ( https://fractel.com.au/ ) have your performance headgear covered. I love the colours and the functionality of these hats, I guarantee there is one model you’ll fall in love with.

Shokz headphones, let you keep in touch with the world around while losing yourself in quality tunes or podcasts. ( https://shokz.com.au/ )

T8 running apparel is the best you can get, second to none. Designed for the ultra humid Hong Kong conditions the owners live in.  It is light and does away with any chaffing worries. T8 is the name given to the highest typhoon warning in Honk Kong,  storms and typhoons with gusts exceeding 180kph, which explains the branding. ( https://t8.run/)

Follow me on

or follow me on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/runbkrun/