June 27, 2024
The seventh annual Wondai Country Running Festival attracted a hardy bunch of keen athletes at the weekend eager to test themselves along the South Burnett Rail Trail.
Organising committee member Cr Ros Heit said the number of pre-race registrations was the highest yet, but the cold weather on the actual weekend did cause a few last-minute no-shows.
However, the organising committee was happy with the weekend festival, and there had also been lots of positive comments on Facebook.
The running festival consists of shorter, fun events on Saturday morning; longer trail runs through McEuen Forest on Saturday afternoon; and four big events on Sunday, including a full-length marathon.
The cold weather on Sunday morning created a new hazard for the runners taking part in the marathon … a frosty and slippery Tingoora Railway bridge, but everyone negotiated the track safely.
And the conditions must not have been too bad, as the first runner home in the half-marathon, Stephen Butcher, set a new race record.
As many of the visiting competitors camped nearby, the organising committee also organised a dinner on Saturday night at Wondai Memorial Hall, which was also well-attended.
- External link: Full Race Results
Related articles:
- Hot Competition On Rail Trail (2023)
- Runners Enjoy A Country Welcome (2022)
- Warm Wondai Welcome For Runners (2021)
- Runners Rush To Wondai (2020)
- Wondai Festival A Runaway Success (2019)
- Wondai Sets A Cracking Pace (2018)
- Country Festival Off To A Great Start (2017)
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Dash For Cash
The CROW-FM Dash For Cash was the first of the Wondai Country Running Festival events to hit the Rail Trail after the regular Saturday morning parkrun.
There were three age categories – with prizes for males and females – run on a 1km course from the bridge over the creek.
The prize money was presented to the winners by Sonia McMahon and Lee McGregor from CROW-FM.
 Melissa Ballin |
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Results
- Under 18s Men – 1. Alex Farmilo 3:08; 2. Lenny Dew 3:17; 3. Chris Dew 3:55
- 18-40 Men – 1. Cameron Dew (Mr Incredible) 3:39; 2. Matt McCauley (Santa) 3:44; 3. Lukas Rodman 3:46
- 18-40 Women – Equal 1. Melissa Ballin and Logan Le Roux 6:41
- Over 40 Men – 1. Robert Cordle 3:03; 2. Scott Perry 3:20; Craig Kapernick 3:47
- Over 40 Women – 1. Heidi Grodecki 4:11; 2. Christine Ferdinands 5:15; Equal 3. Jenny Arnold and Diane Coloretti (the pink flamingos) 8:13
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Family Fun Run
The 2km Hansen Kitchens Family Fun Run on Saturday morning is always one of the most popular events at the Wondai Country Running Festival.
This race is put on especially for South Burnett fun runners as well as the family members of the more serious runners who will be taking part in the longer events on Saturday afternoon and Sunday morning.
The weather was perfect this year … not too cold by starting time but definitely not too warm, either.
The Family Fun Run is untimed but that doesn’t really matter as all the competitors win a prize!
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All Abilities
Everyone is a winner in the South Burnett CTC All Abilities race, which is also very popular on Saturday morning.
Competitors and carers tackle the 1km course along the South Burnett Rail Trail.
Wheelchairs are welcome, but no motorised vehicles are allowed.
Cowbells and clapping greeted each of the runners as they passed across the finishing line.
This event is also untimed but all the entrants receive a wooden Wondai Country Running Festival medallion.
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Forest Trail Runs
The competitions became harder on Saturday afternoon with the running of the two Bega PCA Forest Trail Runs through the nearby McEuen State Forest.
The across-country races were held across two distances: 11.1km and 21.1km.
11.1km Results:
- Men – 1. Clive Gross 43:22; 2. Matt McNamara 46:14; 3. Stephen O’Connor 47:25
- Women – 1. Brigitte Grofski 54:49; 2. Kealey Harland 54:55; 3. Trineane Patch 55:19
21.1km Results:
- Men – 1. Robert Cordle 1:31:04; 2. Jeremy Patch 1:32:38; 3. Shane Price 1:35:05
- Women – 1. Romy Wolstencroft 1:45:48; 2. Courtney Gardiner 1:49:27; 3. Veronika Jordaan 2:11:55
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Sunday Events
Sunday’s events tested the most serious runners who had registered for the weekend’s races.
It was an early – and icy – start for the Ken Mills Marathon, Bendigo Bank Half-Marathon, Parkside 10km run and, a new event for this year, the Bowy Active 5km run.
All these races, which had separate starting times, were run along the Rail Trail.
Marathon Results:
- Men – 1. Tobias Chappill 2:55:41; 2. James Maxwell 3:01:38; 3. Simon Phillips 3:16:45
- Women – 1. Tracy Hills 4:08:39; 2. Veronika Jordaan 4:15:12; 3. Jo Collins 4:37:41
Half-Marathon Results:
- Men – 1. Stephen Butcher 1:16:14 record; 2. Avishek Singh 1:16:27; 3. Robert Cordle 1:16:31
- Women – 1. Heidi Grodecki 1:39:32; 2. Fiona Pobar 1:43:44; 3. Deb Thorley 1:48:32
10km Results:
- Men – 1. Matt McNamara 37:32; 2. Paul Carter 37:48; 3. Scott Perry 40:27
- Women – 1. Lisa Dineen 41:27; 2. Kealey Harland 44:04; 3. Nicole Mulholland 44:42
5km Results:
- Men – 1. Zac Farmilo 17:23; 2. Noah Gunders 18:05; 3. Alex Farmilo 18:14
- Women – 1. Hannah O’Connor 22:20; 2. Chloe Turner 22:56; 3. Chelsea O’Connor 24:28
[Photos by Past Tense Photography]
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Saturday Night’s Dinner
On Saturday night, competitors, friends and race sponsors gathered at Wondai Town Hall to enjoy a buffet dinner prepared by JC Catering.
The dinner numbers were capped at 170, which was enough to comfortably fill the hall on a chilly evening.
The fact that is a “country” running festival was emphasised by the pumpkins on every table …
Live entertainment was provided by Kingaroy’s Steve Peterson.
A special treat was mulled wine, served in souvenir glasses to take home and keep.
