The kunanyi Trail Series put on four trail running events each year on the mountain or in the foothills. They swap out races from the growing catalogue or sometimes we get a new route. Last weekend we got lucky with a brand new course called Rialannah. This one is starting to stray into the foothills, basing itself in the suburb of Mount Nelson. I got the opportunity to run it in some wet wintery conditions and was caught off guard by how fast and fun it was.

In todays post I will discuss the my race experience or if you would rather watch it then check out the vlog below ⬇️.

📹 Watch the Vlog ⬇️

🗺️The Course

The course starts and finishes at the Mt Nelson footy oval. It comprises of two loops. The first loop passes through the Bicentenial Park skirting past the Signal Station. This loop provides some epic views. Then there is a second loop around Hobart College on the cross country track.

Coming into this race I didn’t get a chance to recce run the course, so on race day it was mostly new to me. I had done a lot of running around the Signal Station in the past but rarely deviated from the main paths. I am learning that the foothills and reserves around Hobart are riddled with trails. If you take the paths less travelled and you are guaranteed an adventure. I am trying to run and learn every trail on the mountain and it’s foothills. It’s a fun goal to chase, there’s a future blog post in the works about this long term mission.

I mistakenly thought the name Rialannah was the aboriginal word for Mt Nelson. I have since learnt it is a word meaning ‘air’, ‘wind’ or ‘squall’ and has links to the Mt Nelson area with a street given the name.

🎯Race Goals

To be honest I didn’t give this event much mental energy. I only looked at the course map the night before. Since it’s a first time event I didn’t set any time goals.

My main goal was to prove to myself that I hadn’t lost all my fitness after my prolonged sickness (see related post). I vaguely wanted to get a podium position but that all depends on how many weapons show up on race day.

🏁Race Day

Race morning was gloomy and drizzly. I arrived early to grab my bib and go for a warm up jog. On my warm up I followed the first section of the course to get a feel for it. I was immediately made aware of the technicality in store. It was a lot rougher than I anticipated. When I turned around to run back I found myself about 20 metres off the course. This made me realise that getting lost was a genuine risk. So I rushed back to my car and pomptly learned how to get routes from Strava onto my watch. Turns out it takes a bit of a process which I had to learn under some pressure not to miss the race start.

With the route finally loaded I made my way back to the start with a few minutes to spare. Despite my limited expectations I still felt some start line jitters. But that may have been the two coffees and a caffeine gel that I’d already imbibed. 300mg caffeine will do that to you.

I knew it would be a fast field with David Bailey, Alex Hunt and Tom Murton standing alongside me. From the beginning the pace was immensely rapid. I dropped straight into 4th position behind Alex. Then we hit the technical trails which were nicely lubricated by all the recent rain. My eyes were watering with my contact lenses making my vision blurry. Somehow I was able to stay on track without any falls. It’s like the body develops a form of echolocation that allows the feet the find their place.

Soon it was me and Alex running together, a familiar situation. We were in the same positions at the end of Tolosa Half. I love this new course, it is technical but still conducive with fast running. We move along at a stupid pace and it’s exhilarating.

I love chasing and if there is someone in front of me I will always try to hang on. So I stuck with Alex, we both mentioned how the situation felt familiar. On the climb out of the first loop he offered to let me pass but I decided to stay behind. I was already running close to my limit early on and didn’t want to burn all of my matches so early in the race.

Alex would build a gap on the downhills and I would close it on the climbs. It seemed like I was a stronger climber on this particular day. Just after closing the first loop I had to stop to tie my laces. Then shortly after I dropped my little camera. Both of these instances were making me fall further behind. As we approached the school loop the rain became heavier.

I kept my eye on Alex while running the school loop. The only screen I had showing on my watch all race was the course map. So I followed Alex and looked at my map to see the loop gradually closing. Near the end of the loop there was a long consistent climb. I caught up to Alex mid way through the climb and decided to push on and make my move. I held a consistently hard effort all the way to the top hoping to build a much needed gap. At the top I probably had 30 metres up my sleeve.

I burned up so much effort pushing up that hill and now had to continue onwards at a fast pace to hold my position. I worried that I had burned up all of my energy on the climb. But the excitement of racing was taking over and I was able to find motivation from within. I almost lost my gap at the road crossing having to wait for cars. The final push to the finish was back on fire trails that we had ran earlier.

I completely forgot about the large hill we had ran down that I had to run back up. It was a soul crushing climb after so much exertion. I caved in and resorted to a fast power hike, the effort was too much for me to handle. At the top I took off as fast as I could which felt like the slowest plod with such heavy legs. I stopped looking back and ran as hard as I could. Once I reached the oval, the finish was in sight and I put my head down, didn’t look back and went for it.

🎖️Results

I finished in 3rd with Alex coming through shortly after. We shook hands and thanked each other for such a fun race. I love having the opportunity to race someone with a similar fitness level. It is a great way of getting the best performance out.

I had a chat with Dave Bailey and Tom Murton. They had a sprint finish with Tom nabbing Dave. Sounds like things were heated out the front with the both changing places all race. I was happy with my result. I proved to myself that I still have decent fitness in the bank and I earned myself a little wooden trophy. Overall it was a great morning of running!

🎯 Goal Scorecard

Process Goals		Performance Goals
Prove to myself that I have maintained some fitness	✅	Get on the podium	✅
Resurrection from my sickness era	✅
Film the journey with the little camera	✅

⚙️Gear

For such a short event I go fast and light leaving the running vest at home. I can fit everything I need in my trusty Naked running band. I opted to smash a caffeine gel on the startline and just carry some water to swish in my mouth if I needed it and could manage it.

• 🎒Naked Running band
• 💧1x 200ml flask of water
• 😋1 x Precision caffeine gel before starting
• 👟 Nnormal Tomir
• 👕 Salomon shirt, Decathlon shorts, Kmart undies, Injini socks, Fractel hat
• 📹 Insta360 Go3s
• ⌚ Garmin Forerunner 955
• 💓 HR Strap: Coros HRM Strap (read my review)

Wrapping Up

The Rialannah course was a a fun time and a brilliant addition to the kunanyi Trail Series. It proved that even on a soggy winter’s day, a fast, technical, and completely new route is the perfect recipe for a fantastic race. I walked away with a podium spot, a renewed confidence in my fitness, and an even deeper appreciation for the endless trail network hidden in our own backyard. A huge thanks to the organisers and volunteers for another great event.

The series concludes with Knockers. I will be there to see it out but it is 5 days before a 100 mile race. So I will be doing my best to restrain myself. Hopefully I can treat it like a nice little jog rather than a race but that’s easier said than done.

Thanks for watching and reading!

📸Photo Credits

• I am unsure of the specific photographers for each individual photo
• These are all of the event photographers on the days Instagram handles (let me know if I’ve missed anyone)
  • @robert.groom
  • @venture2gether.photography