The Ultrasphere Is Getting Spicy. Aidstation 31.

Kia ora…

Kia ora e te whānau. It’s always a party in the Blue Mountains. From the out-of-this-world scenery, to the amazing people, to the exceptional country that carries you, the Blue Mountains have it all.

Kia ora e te whānau. This week, Ali Pottinger speaks with Hanny Allston for a special addition to the Aidstation Podcast. Hanny is a returning champion to DCR who was with us for episode 121, all the way back in December 2020. Back then we said Hanny is based in Tasmania and is a high performance coach, owner of Find Your Feet Outdoors, former junior and senior world champion orienteer - elite trail runner and now the author of Finding My Feet, Hanny’s memoir which delves into a lot of topics including body image, mental health, and bullying, which we don’t often talk about in the trail running space, but we definitely should. This conversation focuses on the multitude of identities we have in our lives, and how we can be pigeon-holed into specific ones, and they, in turn, can define what people perceive of us, but not the whole us. Heads up. This conversation deals with topics around perinatal mental health. Ali and Hanny are powerful women, and this is a worthwhile listen for anyone with a running Mum in their lives, or indeed, any Mum in their lives. That means most of us. Mum’s rule. Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running

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Episode Links

Finding My Feet: My Story

Trail Running Guidebook

Hanny Allston Facebook

Hanny Allston Instagram

Find Your Feet Tours

Sign up to the DCR AidStation newsletter

The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!

Dirt Church Radio on Instagram

Dirt Church Radio on Facebook

Further Faster New Zealand

Enjoy!

Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

DCR IN THE WILD

Matt and Ali will be at Ultra Trail Australia from 15-18th of May Come check out the live shows on Thursday and Friday at 1300!!!

Our mates at Squadrun have come up with a special four-week training trial for listeners of DCR. Now as you’ll know from listening to DCR over the years, Squadrun is the baby of Kerry Suter and Ali Pottinger, and they have coached thousands of runners to success at a bunch of events we love and cherish and if you’ve been to any trail races on either side of the Tasman you’ll have seen the Squadrun colours being represented strongly. So, if you want to give it a crack, here’s the link.

Did you miss out on episodes of the Dirt Church Radio podcast? Listen on your favourite app. There are more than 300 episodes.

Check us out on YouTube!

ESSAY

Multidudes

If 2024 was about a singularity of purpose, then 2025 has been about multitudes.

There is a quote attributed to Mark Twain which is along the lines of “History never repeats, but it very often rhymes”. I believe that old Clemens himself did not say those words, but it is as elegant a summation as I’ve ever seen of the concept that themes repeat themselves through your life, with the only common denominator ultimately being you. I’m starting to think, however, that this may apply to differing identities we hold, as well as our lives as a whole.

One of the greatest privileges about Dirt Church Radio of the last six and a bit years is getting to be with people through a multitude of their experiences. Myself, Eugene, and now Ali and AMcD will worm our way into people’s brains in specific contexts, and our identities to that person will be cemented to that moment.

An exceptionally awkward example of this was when a very charismatic woman told me upon meeting that “I fall asleep to your voice”. In hindsight, it is clear that A) she was being an egg, and B) had I been able to, I would have thrown myself out of the 2nd floor window I was by. But this is the thing, in her mind, she associated me with her chronic insomnia, and that was how she knew me, rambling sleepy-time dude.

This week’s guest, Hanny Allston, is neither a rambly sleepy-time dude nor a dude. What she is is many things to many things to many different people. To us on DCR, the first time she spoke to us in 2020, Hanny was a two-time orienteering world champion, author, elite trail runner, coach, and business owner. As with most of us, Hanny is also many other things- a partner, daughter, mother, friend, and other multitudes. I’d asked Ali when she spoke to Allston if there was anything that she had said that stuck in Ali’s mind that I could use for a title for the episode, and Ali said words to the effect that Hanny had moved past wanting to be known as “Hanny the athlete” and to be with a simpler ( and yet at the same time containing multitudes of meaning) “just Hanny”.

Bryon Powell- Transcendent Trails- The Ultra Gobi 400. Dirt Church Radio 325

Kia ora e te whānau. Bryon Powell is a legend. The founder of iRunFar, an Ultramarathon runner and returning Dirt Church Radio Champion. In this week’s episode of DCR, Bryon speaks with Ali and Andrew about the lessons he learnt and the stories he shared in what felt like a lifetime in three days.

Kia ora e te whānau. Anyone with a passing relationship with Dirt Church Radio will know that Ultra Trail Australia has wormed it’s way firmly into our hearts as one of the must-do events on the planet. That love was deepened when Ali P jumped on board as a co-host in 2024. This week, Matt has the pleasure to speak to Ali and Kerry, the brawn and brawn behind Squadrun, about this year's event being one of the three global majors and what to expect both in terms of the courses themselves, with the inclusion of what will be a very challenging 100-mile event. In addition to these course previews, Ali and Kerry bring the executive functioning of a well-stocked spreadsheet to the party of who to watch out for in each distance, whilst Matt impulsively wants what the heart wants. We can’t wait to see you all at the start and finish lines in a couple of weeks, and until then, we hope this will help fill the UTA-shaped gap. Dirt Church Radio - Best Enjoyed Running

Kia ora e te whānau. Jean Beaumont is a legend in Aotearoa ultramarathon circles that you’ve probably heard of, or maybe thought you did, because Jean keeps to herself. It’s taken years to get her to come on DCR, and we’re so glad she did. Eight Northburn 100 finishes, and six wins from those eight, on top of masses of other feats of endurance that would…

Kia ora e te whānau. This week, we’re all back in the same country (for the time being) and thought we would switch it up on this week’s AidStation with a Lightning Round of questions that are, to be frank, all over the place. From mental strategies for ultramarathons to Andrew’s neighbour, who may be the incredible hulk, through to the best races for newbies, specificity, the pros and cons of modern fuelling, Ali’s twenties, to how much you’d pay to poop in a bucket, It’s all on this week in the Aidstation. Dirt Church Radio- Best Enjoyed Running

Go home Tasmania, you’re drunk- photo credit: Kunyanyi Mountain Run

Kia ora e te whānau. Lutruwita/Tasmania is legend. A hard place with warm people nestled off the east coast of Australia. Our legend, Ali Pottinger, was lucky enough to travel to Nipaluna/Hobart to participate in this year’s Kunyanayi Mountain Run. Whilst she was there Ali did what all good podcasters do, which was get some great content, from the race director Lincoln, to hearty participants taking on this incredible challenge, We’d always wanted to go to Hobart to go to MONA and ride singlespeeds, but this race is now firmly on the top of our list. Dirt Church Radio - Best Enjoyed Running

Kunyanyi Mountain Run

Phil Rossiter on Dirt Church Radio

Sign up to the DCR AidStation newsletter

Dirt Church Merch!

The Squadrun 4-Week Training Trial for DCR Listeners!

Dirt Church Radio on Instagram

Dirt Church Radio on Facebook

Further Faster New Zealand

Enjoy!

Music by Andrew McDowall, Digicake

DCR IN THE WILD

Matt and Ali will be at Ultra Trail Australia from 15-18th of May

Our mates at Squadrun have come up with a special four week training trial for listeners of DCR. Now as you’ll know from listening to DCR over the years, Squadrun is the baby of Kerry Suter and Ali Pottinger, and they have coached thousands of runners to success at a bunch of events we love and cherish and if you’ve been to any trail races on either side of the Tasman you’ll have seen the squadrun colours being represented strongly. So, if you want to give it a crack, here’s the link.

Missed out on episodes of the Dirt Church Radio podcast? Listen on your favourite app. There are more than 300 episodes.

Check us out on YouTube!

Three Little Letters Part III

Re-thinking the DNF (AGAIN)

Years ago I wrote an article for Kiwi Trail Runner named “Three Little Letters”. The thesis of this article was essentially - If the pressure at trail running events ( more top athletes, social media presence, and “professionalism” in the sport) increased, would this increase or decrease the likelihood that an athlete* would complete an event that they lined up on.

My conclusion at the time: “Sort of?” *with a shrug*.

There are a couple paragraphs from the article stand out and are worth further exploring, but I’d like to focus on this one, which was the final paragraph of the article-

So I would say to you, dear reader, push on. Unless you are physically unable to, or face the prospect of lasting harm, push on. Balance in running is everything, both from a psychological and physical perspective. Being taken to the edge of what you can cope with is where we grow and progress. That sense of freedom and self-reliance is a major draw for those of us who seek to test ourselves. This process can be uncomfortable, distressing, and at times painful. However, as Haruki Murakami said, emotional hurt is the price we pay for independence.

If I could travel back in time and push past me down a flight of stairs for the pretension and naivety of this paragraph, I would. Quoting Murakami? what a prick.

Argon self-critique aside, the reason that I’m thinking about DNF and our evolving relationship with it is my own experience at Tarawera this year and my mate Tom’s experience at the Faultline Ultra last year.

Tom had been looking forward to the race for months, had enlisted the help of a coach, and had trained his nono off in preparation. This was not the farthest he’d run by a long shot, and whilst the Wellington hills are brutal, I was sure he would get it done.

Kia ora e te whānau. We get the band back together after ages for this week’s AidStation Podcast. Fresh from Kunyani, Northburn 100, and kicking about at Riverhead Relaps, Ali, Andrew, and Matt discuss their love of the Grassroots event and the challenges and opportunities for amazing experiences that lie within. This week, we've got some bonus audio that Matt recorded at the Relaps Backyard. First, you hear from RD Shaun Collins about the event's history, changes, triumphs, challenges, and where the backyard goes. We’ll speak to Helen Waterworth and Chris Newsome from His&Hers events regarding their brand new ultramarathon, the Northland 100, taking place in Whangarei in July. You’ll hear from returning champion Meg Collins about her new backyard PB and the puzzle of running whilst studying medicine. Finally, Matt speaks to Alex MacDonald, an 18-year-old woman making a name for herself commentating in what has largely been a very middle-aged and male profession. Dirt Church Radio - Best Enjoyed Running

Northland 100 Ultramarathon

DCR IN THE WILD

Matt and Ali will be at Ultra Trail Australia from 15-18th of May

Our mates at Squadrun have come up with a special four week training trial for listeners of DCR. Now as you’ll know from listening to DCR over the years, Squadrun is the baby of Kerry Suter and Ali Pottinger, and they have coached thousands of runners to success at a bunch of events we love and cherish and if you’ve been to any trail races on either side of the Tasman you’ll have seen the squadrun colours being represented strongly. So, if you want to give it a crack, here’s the link.

Missed out on episodes of the Dirt Church Radio podcast? Listen on your favourite app. There are more than 300 episodes.

Check us out on YouTube!

This week, what with all the talk of grassroots racing, we thought we’d rip back into the archives to give you Matt’s insights into running a registered-not-for-profit race for 10 years

The Revolution Probably Won’t Be Televised.

Lessons from 10 years of DIY Race Directing Hallertau Riverhead Rampage

Being a Race Director is like being a parent. You will never be more tired, feel more broke, and run less. The pay-off of seeing people push themselves past what they think is possible is one of indescribable satisfaction and fulfilment. Putting on your own race is a cool thing to do, and is relatively simple (not easy). Here are a few lessons I’ve learnt over the last 10 years.

Riverhead Forest was considered a poor second to the Waitakere Ranges when I first moved here. A working pine forest with no epic views to speak of and clay that is baked hard in summer and slippery as all-get-out in winter. Despite tonnes of amazing trails, there was no organised trail network to speak of, save for the stellar work done by the Waitemata Motorcycle Club. Total Sport had long made Riverhead one of the stops on its winter Xterra series, but that was always run from Barlow Road, and only flirted with the trails on the east side of the forest which was closer to Riverhead.

At the time, putting on an event was far from my mind. There were family obligations, work, and trails to run- as it’s far more fun running in an event than running an event. My life carried on for a few years with the thought that “gee, it would be good to put on an event that showed how epic the forest was”, but at the end of the day, it felt all a bit too much hard work.

Certainly not the 412, but another little-race-that-could, the Northburn 100.

This all changed in late 2013 when our friend Amy, decided that Riverhead School’s lack of gymnasium equipment was something that needed addressing.

One thing led to another and Amy spoke to Rebecca, who approached me with her usual mix of enthusiasm and surety in the justness of her cause “Matt R, we should put on a half marathon in the forest to raise money for Amy’s balance beam”. I suggested that this was nothing that we would have the time or energy for, and honestly darling, who would come? I closed off my well-reasoned argument with a definitive, yet empathic “No”. A couple of weeks later we started planning what would be the first Hallertau Riverhead Rampage.

Kia ora e te whānau. Originally from Western Australia, growing up surfing and playing footie, Michael Dunstan has turned his hands to many things, including music, photography, and trail running. Turns out Michael is pretty (very) good at this whole trail running thing and has won the inaugural GPT100 mile race, Third place at Ultra Trail Snowdonia in Wales a win at the 2023 Hounslow Classic Marathon. Now based in Katoomba NSW, Michael is working hard at some lofty goals for 2025. This is a beautiful conversation, which covers a variety of topics and is guaranteed stoke inducing. It won't help if you don’t like snakes or thunderstorms, but apart from the Ophidiphobics amongst us, this will be a dead-set winner. Dirt Church Radio - Best Enjoyed Running

DCR IN THE WILD

Ali will be heading to the Kunanyi Moutain Run in Tasmania 28-30th March

Matt and Ali will be at Ultra Trail Australia from 15-18th of May

Our mates at Squadrun have come up with a special four week training trial for listeners of DCR. Now as you’ll know from listening to DCR over the years, Squadrun is the baby of Kerry Suter and Ali Pottinger, and they have coached thousands of runners to success at a bunch of events we love and cherish and if you’ve been to any trail races on either side of the Tasman you’ll have seen the squadrun colours being represented strongly. So, if you want to give it a crack, here’s the link.

Missed out on episodes of the Dirt Church Radio podcast? Listen on your favourite app. There are more than 300 episodes.

Check us out on YouTube!

Essay

FEEL THE BURN(OUT)

For a little country with a population that hovers around 5 million, our trail race schedule is rammed. It seems like these days there are literally more races than you can shake a stick at. Despite the majority of trail race participants running conventional distances, the ultramarathon has taken root as the go-to aspirational distance for many of us. Often heard at race expos is the self-conscious caveat of “I’m ONLY doing x” by athletes with the temerity to run anything less than the marque distance. We’ve become a culture of completionists, striving for that next medal in the set. A strength of anyone who completes endurance events is stackability, I wonder if we’ve gone too far down the rabbit hole in terms of seeking out the next race, the next big distance, that next thing to focus on.

Mike D doing other stuff rather than running stuff

As a consequence of our desire to compete and complete every event that comes our way our race calendars get rammed and our run-down and oversubscribed selves become a fertile wonderland for burnout and ennui to take hold. It would seem that we’ve stepped away from the natural rhythm of activity and ease and if we are consistently chasing goals we lose sight of the value of the process. If we can avoid burnout the better we function, the smarter we train and the more we gain.

The irony of having a job working in mental health is that I’m not burned out after 25 years. I have had periods of burnout, and have some coping strategies to address this. The annoying thing for me currently is I think I’ve crossed the Rubicon from “off-season” to “burnt out” in regards to my running.