GOOD company and good conditions for running were the order of the day for the annual Tamborine Mountain Relays and Marathon held across the Australia Day weekend.
The festivities actually started on Friday night this year with a cross-country event held as part of the return of Little Athletics.
The kids tackled a course that had a little bit of everything – track, trail, grass, bridge crossings and jungle runs.
It set the tone for a fun weekend!
Sunday saw the serious business with 50 teams and 21 individuals conquering the marathon distance in the various methods – solo or as teams of two, three or six people, all running the revamped seven kilometre loop that saw a reverse direction to last year.
The marathon started at 5am and saw Dean Wicks and Jay Lovett battle it out for the first two laps, run together for a couple more and then it was game on for the last few laps, with Wicks emerging the victor in three hours 33 minutes, just 10 minutes ahead of Lovett.
For the ladies, Sheree Rowling was first home in four hours 12 minutes in a dominant victory.
The Relay teams got underway at 6am, with the misty conditions lingering and ensuring for some fast times early.
Visiting teams led the way with the Double R’s the first team home in three hours and 49 seconds; impressive given they were a two-person team.
Ashgrove Rangers were well represented on the day and their A-Team led home the six-person event whilst the Redland Bay Homers teams led a clean sweep of the three-person event, which no doubt has led to some serious banter with just over three minutes separating their three teams on the podium.
The event returns in 2027, to be staged on Sunday January 24.
With major sponsor Tamborine Mountain Physiotherapy and new event organiser Steve Jackson from Trail Trips and Events, already committing, the event looks set for a bright future.
More photos available at https://tamborinemountainnews.pixieset.com/2025tamborinemountainrelaysandmarathon/
