Port Stephens shines with "Miles of Smiles" at the Inaugural Tomaree Trail Run Festival

Port Stephens shines with “Miles of Smiles” as Alexander & Daniel take line honours at the Inaugural Tomaree Trail Run Festival and Kay & Flett claim Dirt Master & Dirt Mistress Titles

PORT STEPHENS | As over 400 athletes and 1000 visitors from across Australia descended on Port Stephens last weekend, day two of the ‘Off Road’ extravaganza saw Port Stephens turn on a spectacular day and a course that included “Miles of Smiles” at the Inaugural Tomaree Trail Run Festival.

2017 saw the launch of the TreX Cross Triathlon Series in Port Stephens coupled with the all new Tomaree Trail Run Festival which included a half marathon, 11.5k and 6k course’s which both challenged and delighted runners from across Australia.



At the end of the day it was local, Alexander James from Salamander Bay and representing the local trail running group Tomaree Trotterswho took out line honours for the males in a blistering time of 1:26:23. While Amy Danielfrom Emu Plains in NSW representingUpcoaching took the win for the females in a time of 1:53:01.

Simon Lazenby, Race Director from In2Adventure, the national event team who brought the festival to Port Stephens made special mention of the remarkable times clocked by these young runners on what was a technically challenging and diverse course,

“These times really reflect the talent of these runners as this was not a course for those who weren’t up for a challenge” he remarked.

The course which took runners into some of the most awe inspiring coastal terrain found anywhere in the world and included the beauty of Tomaree National Park, which at this time of year was abundant with wild flowers; the challenge of a climb across Samurai Dunes; and the stunning beauty of Port Stephens Coastal Trails rewarded runners with views and vistas that, just for a while helped to quiet the sound of legs challenged by the rocky, sandy, rough and challenging off road trails.



The run finished with a rocky climb around the Fingal Bay headland before a beach run along spectacular Fingal Bay to a raucous welcome from the crowd who had gathered on the Fingal Bay foreshore to welcome runners at the finish line.

The event also saw the launch of the Port Stephens Dirt Master & Dirt Mistress Titles where brave souls chose to tackle the TreX Standard Course on Saturday including a 1500m swim, 30km XC MTB and 10k Trail Run and then back up on Sunday to take on the Tomaree Trail Run Half Marathon.

At the conclusion of the weekend seven athletes completed the challenge to take home the title of Dirt Master or Dirt Mistress and it was Sorcha Flett from Black Forest in South Australiawith a cumulative time of 5:57:14 taking out the Dirt Mistress Port Stephens title and Luke Kay from Dickson in the ACT in a time of 4:35:45 taking out the Dirt Master title.

Newly crowned Dirt Master & Dirt Mistress Title Holders include:

Luke JohnstonRedlynch, QldTony WilliamsMouth Victoria, NSW
Simon NendickNorth Lakes, QldStuart LowrieFingal Bay, NSW
Nathan ArcherFern Bay, NSW

The feedback from those who took part has been overwhelming and the “Miles of Smiles” seen out on the trails around Port Stephens this weekend truly reflected that sentiment. But the question on everyone’s lips was, will the event be back again next year?

“If we have a say in it this will become a regular annual event.” Event Director Robyn Lazenby told us.
“The community in Port Stephens have been overwhelmingly welcoming and the assistance provided by local groups such as the Fingal Bay Surf Lifesaving Club, the Tomaree Trotters and Park Run has really added to the success of the event. As well as the support of local businesses such as the Fingal Bay Holiday Park, Port Stephens 4WD, Murrays Brewery, Quad Bike King and Capture Imaging Photography have really made this event a special experience for us and our team as well as competitors who travelled from wide and far from across Australia.

We cannot thank everyone enough and would truly welcome the opportunity to continue to grow this event into the future.” She concluded

The national TreX series and MultiSport Festivals continues on their national tour with round 3, TreX Redlands, hosted at Queensland’s mountain biking heaven, Karingal Scout Camp at Mount Cotton on Brisbane’s south side before heading onto Bendigo in November with the launch of the Bendigo Trail Run Festival.

For more information about how you can be a part of Australia’s ultimate off-road triathlon and multisport festivals visit the website at www.in2adventure.com.au