I first ran the 6 inch trail ultramarathon as a ‘fat ass’ (no entry fee and totally self supported albeit I think there was one aid station?) in 2009. Bar one year, 2019, when it was cancelled due to extreme temperatures’ and fire risk, I have ran it every year since.  It has morphed from a family weekend away with young kids to a boys weekend due to all the kids growing up and totally not interested in spending time with parents in small Australia towns.  Undeterred we’ve embraced the new format and all the boys look forward to the weekend when we all become eighteen year old versions of ourselves without the alcohol.

If you read all the posts on this event you know it’s all about the traditions and we make a big effort to continue them. First is the photo leaving Perth and then a photo outside the Truckers Lounge at the Baldivis service station. The last two years we also ventured into the truckers lounge for another photo.  Luckily the lounge has always been empty.

Next is the top of Goldmine Hill photo, tick.

We then scurry to the Forrest Centre in Dwellingup where we book one of the family rooms before a excursion and then dinner. The excursion does change on a yearly basis albeit this year we all went to the Scarpe Pool and had a great time so that may be added to the tradition list for future years. The water was actually quite warm and laying on the hot rocks afterwards was invigorating. Its not often I post images of elderly men topless on my blog so I will apologise in advance if anybody is offended.  (Apparently you need to do  that these days ? )

The night before there is a talk at the Forrest Centre and a last chance for a bib pickup before the morning of the event.  I’ve been on the panel a few times over the years but this year I was going along as a member of the audience until Michael Carroll decided to message Dave he was running late. Always happy to talk about all things running Dave added me to the panel as a stop gap.  In the end Michael turned up so the four of us talked about all things running. In the end it was a pretty good panel with Michael  grabbing second, Milan fourth, Petra eighth and ninth for me, four of the top nine.

Right after very little sleep , another tradition when you share a room with three other people, we set off to the start line at Goldmine Hill for the 4:30am start.  As this event is a Perth summer you need to start as soon as the sun peaks it’s head over the horizon, or in this years case a few minutes prior. (Hence the darker than usual start line photo.)  Luckily this year we were blessed with perfect conditions , the days prior to the event we’d seen very hot temperatures but , similar to last year, we got lucky with a dip in temperatures for the Sunday of the race.  Not sure how Dave, the Race Director, does it? Another bonus was the local Council had graded the biggest hill of the event, the infamous Escalator,  (You know the hill is bad when it gets its own nickname!) It is normally heavily rutted due to four wheel drive damage and unrunable, sometimes only just walkable.  This year it retained its steepness but the surface was a lot more forgiving and most runners ran the downhill section, albeit gingerly.

Right, to the race itself. I had set myself a goal of finishing around the four hours twenty minutes,  after a four hour thirty five minute finish the previous year. I was in better form with a lot more racing under my belt in 2024.  The only worry was a four hour thirty five minute Sandman 50k four weeks prior after a 100 miler two weeks before that. Had my legs recovered ? In the weeks prior I had ran 10k a day but no more and rather than do a double day went to my local gym and did a Pilates Reformer session and some weights. Would this help or hinder my endurance running ? There really was only one way to find out of  course.

As with all races within our local Yelo group there was banter, I assume this is the norm for any group of people doing any sport together, be that running, tennis or non contact tiddly-winks?  This year Adam, Andy and I were all thinking around the four hours twenty minutes while Mark was aiming for his first sub four finish ,  after a good Sydney marathon , and training block, confidence was high. Scotty was just wanting to enjoy it without blowing out too much and Bartsy just wanted to finish, and anything sub six hours would be a bonus. We all had our goals but there was also the added bonus of a ‘ bum tap; if you went past anybody. Rob was doing the half so did not partake in the ‘full marathon’ banter, this also resulted in his exclusion from a number of photos.

Goldmine Hill  starts the 6 inch ultra and it is a seriously nasty piece of work. Long and steep when you are not even warmed up is not a good combination for a hill.  I’ve said it many times this hill has ruined many a good runners race even before it’s started. You need to start slow and build into it, do not go out too fast and blow up in the first three kilometres.  After fourteen previous events I know this hill very well now and have raced it, walked it and jogged it over the years. This year I was going for the jog option but went out quicker than planned trying to keep Mark in view.  I also had Andy for company initially but never saw Adam after the start.  Scotty and Bartsy took it very easy and dominated the back of the pack, mainly walking, I wouldn’t see either of these two again on the course.

Once I got halfway up Goldmine Hill I decided to try and keep Mark and the sub four bus in view, so picked up the pace ignoring all the alarm bells in my head. My Hoka Mach 2x road shoes felt good and the nylon plate was giving me a little bounce , even though they were well past their sell by date carrying over 500 kilometres in them. I didn’t consider the 6 inch worthy of a new pair as it wasn’t really an A race as such. I was more worried about the shoes letting me down but bar one stumble they performed very well.

I lost sight of Mark and Andrew after Goldmine but kept up the pace and was running 19th at the first aid station and feeling pretty good. The first half is harder than the second in this event so as I quickly refilled my water bottle at aid station one I made up my mind to roll the dice for the second half. I break the race (something I recommend everyone does for all races, smaller achievable goals rather than the complete start and then finish race goal ) down into start to aid station one, about 23km , and then a 15k section to the top of the Escalator Hill before a 9k run to the finish.  I was confident in my ability to hold a reasonable pace even if I blew after aid station one so moved through the gears and started to push the heart rate up.

I bumped into my old friend Stephen Stockwell just before aid station one after first recognising his running style before recognising him. Stephen and I go back decades but I’ve not seem him race since the Perth half in  2020, I hardly recognised him with a full beard.  He mentioned his daughter was a good way ahead so I set off to catch her, at the time Kathryn probably had ten minutes on me. The half runners start at the bottom of the Conveyor Belt hill and they had started about five minutes before I arrived so I was faced with the back markers initially and then, as I moved through the field, faster runners.  This made seeing, catching and passing full marathon runners difficult as all the bibs were different colours (Dave was reusing bibs from previous years?)

Between the first aid station and the escalator was probably my quickest splits. There’s about two kilometres from aid station one to the bottom of the Conveyor Belt hill which is a good climb taking you to the highest part of the course. It’s very runnable if you have something left in the legs and I did. The best bit is after you summit there is a glorious few kilometres of quality downhill to recover.   I was now passing the half runners and this kept you on  your toes and also gave you a lift as my pace was so much quicker than theirs. I continued to pass runners right up to the top of the escalator, really feeling good. I even managed to pass a few full marathon runners and I was closing in on a top 10 finish (I was 19th at halfway) . The good thing about the escalator is it’s an out and back loop so you get to see your competition on the way in , and on the way out. Of course this works both ways but I was feeling good enough not to worry about runners behind me.

As I scaled the Escalator I bumped into Mark near the top , just after Rob sped past on his way to the bottom at a good pace, Mark didn’t look great and was well behind his sub four hour finish pace.  This was noted as I continued to the top where I found Andy playing with his Shokz headphones, again I had not seen either of these guys since the start and now I had two bunnies to chase, which is what I do.  I rushed through the aid station , just filling up my water bottle and downing a Bix Gu, I had runners to catch ! I was pumped chasing Mark and Andy, I would have expected both to beat me quite easily when I started, now it was a different story and a couple of good ass-tapping’s  ( if you run past a Yelo runner you are obliged to tap their ass, just to let them know you are the better runner, it’s all fair in love and war.) were there for the taking and I would move heaven and earth now, this is why you race!

The final stage of the 6 inch is a about nine kilometres with one nasty hill about the forty kilometre mark, this one is a kicker and if you’re not prepared, coming so close after the Escalator, can derail you and leave you stumbling to the finish. With experience I know this bad boy is coming and caught Andy walking halfway up the hill (it really should have a name ?) , a quick ‘ass-tap’  and a few words of encouragement and I was on my way, I now had Mark well and truly in my sights. I caught him just before the 42km mark which is a nice right hand turn with a lovely downhill section, this is one of the final markers where I can really start to think about the finish.  There is a final aid station around the 43km mark but I never stop here , just cruise past, this then leads to some really good single track where with about 500 metres to go I passed Rob, another ass-tapping, my cup was full !

After passing Rob , with the finish line in sight , I sprinted to cross the line with the biggest smile on my face, just over four hours and five minutes, a time I thought beyond me and my fastest finish time since 2018. This one was special, managing to sneaking past Andy, Mark and even Rob was just out of my  wildest dreams and finishing with such a good negative split and a top ten finish, I was ninth, was like a dream. Incredible, just incredible, typing this post I’m still smiling like a Cheshire Cat who just won the best smiler competition.  All there was to do now was wait for the other runners and get a good finish photo, it is a tradition.  The Yelo crew did very well. Andy grabbed 14th overall in 4:13, a massive PB by about forty minutes plus, Adam snagged 19th in 4:21 and Mark finished off the top 20 in 4:28.  Four runners in the top twenty, not too shabby.

All that was left to do was get the ‘head in the esky’ photo, a long standing tradition and the boys at the finish line before the final shot of the boys in the finishers shirts. All long standing traditions.

So that’s a wrap for the 6 inch trail ultra 2024 and the racing year. It has been a beauty with nine ultra marathons and two marathons. There have been many highlights but most importantly I’m as excited about 2025 as I have even been about any running year ahead of me. My times and distances are still slowing or decreasing , of course they are, I’ll be 58 in February  but the first thing I think of when I wake up is my daily run and what it will entail and normally the last thing at night I’ll start to contemplate tomorrows run. The fire is still burning and I still love what I do and,  as I always say,  that’s the point.

I can’t wait for 6 inch 2025 and I hope to write a post detailing the event with all the photos and traditions that that will entail, after all, as I ask many times, what else is there ?

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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/)

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