Southern Lakes Ultra

Dream team on the trail

All smiles out here from Barry - running alongside (just out of frame) his wife and fellow SLU legend, . This pair are proof that the best adventures are shared ones - tackling the miles together, pushing each other on, and clearly having a ball doing it.

Couples who trail run together... 😉 Love having this dream team out on our course...and they are back in 2027.

The unsung hero of every Southern Lakes Ultra course 🚩

While everyone's watching the leaders, this is the job that really keeps the race honest - our course clearer, quietly following the very last athlete home, plucking every single red flag from the trail as they go.

No flag left behind. No trace left. Just a course that appears exactly when you need it - and disappears just as cleanly once you're through.

This is the kind of behind-the-scenes commitment that makes SLU what it is. 🙌

7 days. Mountains, alpine lakes, glacier-fed valleys - trails you'd normally have to fly to Europe for, right here in the Adventure Capital of the World.

Southern Lakes Ultra 2027 draws runners from around the world for the final chapter of SLU as it is - a journey through some of the most scenic, world class trails in the world.

Isobel Tait (Peak Endurance Coaching) is on board as our Australian ambassador for 2027. Isobel's running a group coaching plan for anyone training for SLU - so if you've been eyeing a multi-day or fastpacking race but want real support getting race-ready, this is it.

Spots are capped by design, and 2027 is the last time you'll get to experience Southern Lakes Ultra exactly as it's been built.
📍 Queenstown, New Zealand
📅 Feb 2027
🔗 southernlakesultra.com

Mikki and Barry. What a duo.

Their first multi-day, side by side and both walked away with podium finishes in the supported men's and women's fields. Not a bad way to start.

And now? They're already locked in for 2027 this time going unsupported. Because apparently one podium wasn't enough of a challenge.

Massive respect to you both. Can't wait to watch round two.

Lakeside, mountains ahead, another day of racing behind them.

This is where the real conversations happen, replaying today's stage, strategising tomorrow's, sharing the moments that only people who've run the same trail together can understand.

Friendships built here aren't the fleeting kind. They're forged step by step, story by story, sitting on a beach like this one.

The bonds made at SLU last long after the finish line.

Introducing: the SLU Hedge & Bush Laundromat.

No dryer, no washing machine, no pegs required. Just find yourself a sturdy shrub, fling your sweat-soaked kit at it, and let Mother Nature do the rest.

Socks? Check. Sports bra? Check. Race bib still attached for reasons unknown? Check.

Five-star reviews all round: "Great airflow, questionable smell, would recommend to a friend who's out of clean un**es."

This is what athletes call "laundry day" on day 5 of a multi-day.

Not a bad medical room, honestly.

Multi-day running means patching yourself up on the go - a bit of tape here, a bandage there, and someone always on hand who's dealt with it before. "I've never had this happen, what do I do?" gets answered by whoever's sitting closest, every single time.

No white walls, no fluorescent lights. Just a wooden deck, mountains for miles, and runners looking after runners.

Leopard print knee tape included, of course.

Crystal clear lake. Snow-capped mountains. Freezing natural ice bath right there.

And here they are - scattered across the rocks like fallen soldiers, eyes closed, not one of them looking at the view.

"Too hot," they said. "Need to cool off," they said.

Then proceeded to lie motionless on a beach with their own personal glacier-fed plunge pool five metres away.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is multi-day running. The scenery becomes optional. Horizontal becomes the only goal.

10/10 form. 0/10 effort to actually use the ice bath.

The thorn between the roses.

Kim, living his absolute happiest life right now, arms up, stage complete, flanked by two gorgeous ladies holding him aloft. Honestly, can't blame him one bit.

This is what a stage finish looks like when you've earned it. High fives, high spirits, and the best kind of company out here in the mountains.

Philip. The man behind the lens.

Big camera, small camera, a drone, a phone, all running at once, somehow. He even managed to film himself filming himself. Total chaos, total genius.

Up a mountain, tucked in a valley, hiding behind a tree, Philip turned up everywhere, capturing everything, so that every one of us could relive this week for years to come.

Thousands and thousands of photos, hours of edits, and memories none of us will ever forget.

Thank you, Philip.