Introduction
To start this event review I wish to step back 50 years and look at where running events like the Maleny Run Fest were conceived. While it is debatable what was the single event that caused the running boom that came out of the 1970's, it is without question that it spawned an amazing movement that continues to grow in strength to this day. I will leave the conjecture of runnings’ origin to other authors, but let me simply state that the boom started just as I was tasting the ‘endorphin gateway drug’ which would eventually lead me to the start line of the Maleny Run Fest - Mountain View ½ Marathon in 2019.
When you look at the Maleny Run Fest you can see it is a ‘fun run’ in every definition of the phrase. The growth of the ‘fun run’ grew on the back of events in the 1970’s, where Frank Shorter was winning the Olympic marathon gold at Munich and Kathrine Switzer was upsetting the establishment by being the first female to finish the most premier running event on the planet, the Boston Marathon. Books such as the seminal works by George Sheehan “Running and Being” and Jim Fix’s “The Complete Book of Running” added fuel to the fire and gave people the impetus to get up and join this new ‘cult’. With this revolution, running events sprung up around the countryside. But these events reflected the nature of the uprising rather than a corporate manifesto of the ‘for profit’ eventing that would come later.
The people that came to running were fuelled by the desire to reach the endorphin fuelled nirvana that George Sheehan wrote about. The events that these running hippies organized were consequently ‘need’ and ‘community’ based. The Terry Fox run and countless runs which seemed to focus on the cure to illness were indicative of the organizing committees of the time. As these events grew in popularity, greed ensued and for profit organizations found a way to make money from the running movement. Smaller successful events were swallowed up by larger organizations as the almighty dollar lured the once idealistic running hippies to think of their future financial security and sell up.
During the late 70’s and early 80’s I remember attending some of these community running events as a young runner. At the time I was disappointed with the organization. I was young and like many young people I wanted more than I got. I wanted the big city events surrounded by thousands of people. So in effect I was the clientele that was fuelling the corporate giants to grow and buy up the smaller events and turn these fun runs into multi day festival events. Events that had everything from under pant runs to marathons that took you five minutes to simply reach the start line after the gun went off.
While I reminisce back to a time that was simpler, a time that I wish I had embraced more, I unfortunately cannot turn back time nor would I want to lose the big ticket running festivals that inspire thousands of people to get off their couches and get fit. The point of this long introduction to the Maleny Run Fest is to reintroduce the community run events and give you, the reader, a perspective of what was and hopefully engender some support for these smaller events and breath new life into the lifeblood of our sport.
As will be seen in this review, there are many positives and just as many negatives to small running events such as this one. But it is my point in writing this review to get you to travel with a different view when it comes to these events. It is also my goal of getting you to look backwards so we as a sport and society can move forward. There is a place for major festival events and there is a place for amazing little races like this that come together around a beautiful course to raise money and awareness for charity organizations and the benefits of ‘running and being’ as wrote the great George Sheehan.
Event overview
Maleny Run Fest is run by the Lions Club of Maleny Blackall Range. For those wondering what the Lions Club represents, it is best summarized by their founder Melvin Jone who told members of his local business club in 1917 that they should reach beyond business issues and address the betterment of their communities and the world. So it is with these overarching words of community betterment that the Lions Club of Maleny have come together since 2011 to better the world through their combined business acumen and organize a running event. All proceeds of the event assist the Lions Childhood Cancer Research Foundation and other local community projects.
The event is well organized, as you would expect from a group of like minded business people, but the core of the committee is not populated with hard core runners. This brings with it some limitations that need to be mentioned now so that your expectations as an experienced runner are held in check. While the following comments may come across as slightly negative my views should not in any way detract from the overall feel of the event and your desires to attend the event in 2020 and beyond. I would go so far as to say that the quirks and features make this event an even more desirable event to enter.
The event is run out of the Maleny Showgrounds which is situated at 13 Maleny Stanley River Road. It is a perfect location to host a running event as parking is ample and there are plenty of amenities to host a large throng of runners and supporters. One of the quirks of the location is the people that call the Showgrounds their home in a collection of caravans and motorhomes. As I was doing my warm up around the vastness of the venue I ran across a few residents making their way to the public showers dressed in an assortment pyjamas styles. Certainly a sobering moment for both the residents and myself as we possibly questioned our respective paths in arriving at this location on this morning.
Next, the nature of the organizing committee tends towards older business people and also retirees. As such, they don’t have the same experience of putting on running events that a sports focused group would have. This means that there are some nuances that you will need to get your head around. Starting with the web page you will notice a slightly ‘agricultural’ design to the page. The font is awkward and the overall design is slightly 10 years ago. But having said this it is perfectly functional and it is very easy to navigate your way around the page and find out the main details to enter and find your results.
Speaking of finding your results don’t expect a speedy same day service with your results. There is no electronic timing, only people with clipboards at key locations around the course. If you look at the results from previous events you will see a mismatch of results especially in 2017 which is simply a word document with the starters names in alphabetical order.
Course and crowd control is done by the amazing orange army, the SES. And while being incredibly brave and tireless workers in the face of emergencies, their work on course marshalling is a little on the ‘interesting’ side. I understand that their focus is keeping the runners safe, but I was a little perplexed when they were stopping runners to allow cars to go pass. I actually saw this happening up ahead at one point and ran onto the road and around the outside of the check point so they didn’t arrest my laboured progress.
Finally, the drink stations brought a smile to my face. While I am deeply appreciative of the work that the volunteers did in keeping the runners well hydrated, I felt like I was running into a serviced bar. I felt the very real sensation that I needed to order a drink then consume it on premise and place my cup in the single bin before advancing on my way. To the volunteer that I accidentally splashed as I grabbed the cup as I tried to speed past, and the poor gentleman that had to bend down and pick up my cup that missed the bin as I threw it away, I am deeply apologetic.
Course overview
I will review the course as it happened for me on the day of the event in 2019.
As stated in the event overview section, the event starts and finishes at the Maleny Showground main event show ring. The ½ marathoners were let off first, as 64 runners made their way across the dewy grass onto the gravel service road and out onto the concrete footpath. This initial 500 meters is flat and the small size of the field and the relaxed nature of the event meant that there is not a mad flurry of over enthusiastic runners elbowing their way toward the front of the race to claim glory. In the 2019 event there were some high quality runners and the winner completed the course in 1:14, which is impressive considering the 380 meters of elevation across this very lumpy yet picturesque course. My time of 1:48 in comparison does not do the amount of pain I suffered through this race any justice at all.
This pain starts pretty soon into the race with a climb of 20 meters just as you make the first dog leg into the suburban streets away from the Showgrounds. While 20 meters does not sound like much, it is actually close to a 10 storey building over 500 meters of horizontal ground. This pinches hard, but the effects will be felt 10 fold later on in the race. Having such a big climb so soon in the race has the effect of stinging you when you are at your freshest. It takes the wind out of your sails and unfortunately you never really recover from the slap across the face that it gives you. The undulation of the course never really lets you get into any rhythm and if I had my time again I would have taken this first hill much more conservatively so I had gas left in my tank for the rest of the challenging course.
If I was the summarize the course it would be by looking at the elevation splits for each the of kilometres run. The first two kilometres present you 30 metres of climbing followed by a series of kilometres of descending then climbing again. The race finishes with you coming back down the hill that you started from but your legs and lungs are so fatigued from the constant up and down dance that you have just covered that you are unable to take advantage of the benefits of the downhill roll to the finish. In fact I ran faster up the first two kilometres than I did coming down the last two kilometres as I finished. A word to the wise pace yourself for this race and do some hill repeats when you are training for this event. The breathtaking views only delay the onset of pain for so long.
Summary
I would say the Maleny Run Fest is more of an experience than a race. It is a step back in time to the 70’s and 80’s where events were a gathering of runners with the purpose of coming together to run a beautiful course and have their entry fee go towards a good cause rather than the pockets of corporate identities. I hope this race never changes because the running communities needs it more than the Maleny Run Fest needs us.