Getting Started: Getting Into Trail Running Ultras

Toying with the idea of participating in your first trail-running ultra? Two years ago, Wild Earth Ambassador Michael Kelly decided to have a crack, and hasn’t looked back since. Here are a few of the lessons he’s learnt along the way.

“Why the hell am I here?”

These are the words I was muttering to myself while hunched over vomiting, 48km into my first 100km ultra. It was 32°C, no one was around, and I was slogging up the Bluff in the Sunshine Coast hinterland. The taste of Maurten gels was making an unwelcome return. Right then and there, I knew this was something I’d never do again.

But that’s what we all tell ourselves, right?

The thought of running 100km had never really crossed my mind, although I’d run a few road marathons. Then I bumped into Simon from Run QLD at the Gold Coast Marathon Expo.

“Hey Mickus,” he asked, “ever thought about running a trail race?”

“Not really.”

“Are you interested?”

“Sure. How far?”

“21km, 50km or 100km.”

“Perfect. I’ll do the 100km. When is it?”

“You’ve got ten weeks.”

Wonderful, I thought.

Which brings me to my first point.

THERE’S NEVER A BETTER TIME

I’m not telling you to do something you’re completely unprepared for, but I am telling you to do something that scares you.

Set a goal that feels like it might be genuinely unattainable. Analysis paralysis will kill your growth. You’ll sit around for five years thinking about these races, never doing them, all while wondering what could have been. There will never be a better time to start than now.

That said, be prepared. Set yourself up for a win. Get a coach and actually stick to the plan. Have someone who keeps you accountable. Since that race in 2024, I’ve run a few more 50km races, with one top-10% finish. And if you know me, you know I’m definitely not the fastest runner; calling myself a mid-packer would be generous. But I genuinely believe having a solid coach and committing to the program has helped beyond words.

EAT FOOD

Obvious, right? It’s what everyone tells you to do. And yet, holy moly, I wouldn’t have thrown up my guts if I’d actually listened. Train with the food you plan to eat on race day.

And remember, everyone’s different. Some people can smash a steak after running 120km, others survive purely on gels. Figure out what works for you, practise it on your long runs, and you’ll gain a massive advantage.

THINGS WILL GO WRONG

It’s bound to happen. You’re out in the wild, often on your own for hours at a time. Something will go wrong. Sixteen kilometres into the 100km, I rolled my ankle bombing down a hill (well, at least I felt like it). I lay there for fifteen minutes in excruciating pain. This is it, I thought. Race over. How embarrassing.

A rolled ankle is just one thing on a long list of things that can, and will, go wrong. But if you can, safely that is, get yourself to the next aid station. Re-evaluate. Ask yourself: Can I keep moving a little further? More often than not, the answer is yes. Push through what you can. You won’t regret it.

BANK THE WINS, AND BUILD ON THEM

During my first ultra on that October 2024 day, somewhere amid the mental battles, the chundering, and the physical pain, something clicked. Completing something I once thought was utterly ridiculous gave me a sense of accomplishment I still struggle to put into words.

Finishing that first ultra—along with the ultras I’ve done since—has given me the confidence to start prepping for my first hundred miler: the Kosci100 in November 2026. Talk about something that feels scary. I know to some people this mightn’t sound extreme.

But to me, it almost feels impossible, which takes me back to my first point. Do things that genuinely challenge you. Whether it’s your first 5km parkrun or a 200 miler, we’re all on the same journey. And that’s what I’ve come to love about the trail-running community, and hopefully what you will love about it too: It’s less about distances and race results, and more about getting outside and getting among it.

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