sky marathon 42km
7 am Sunday March 30, 2025
Where: Mount Buffalo Chalet, Gorge Day visitor Area
Distance: 42.4 km
Elevation: 1,542m Ascent+ 2,554m Descent-
Cut off: 11 hours
Prizes: (Overall)
First Place: $500.00
Second Place: $300.00
Third Place: $150.00
The top three finishers in each event will also receive free of charge entry to the following year's event.
Course Description
Starting at the Mount Buffalo Chalet, athletes will cover 9km up the top of the Mount Buffalo Plateau on a mix of dirt road, dreamy singletrail and 1.3km of road. Experience Lake Catani, The Monolith trail and the Underground River Track.
Descend down the epic Big Walk, 10k trail descending 1000m, to Eurobin Picnic Ground. Watch out for the technical trail at Mackey's Lookout and try not to trip when marvelling at the views.
Grind over Keatings Ridge, Up and Down 6km with 310m+-. This dirt road brings you through a serene forest of the beautiful Mount Buffalo National Park.
Traverse the 3km of road in the Buckland Valley. Be sure to enjoy the faster running and see your crew along Harris Lane.
Now comes the crux of the race, the Dingo Ridge climb to Clearspot! From the Right Turn onto Dingo Ridge Road to the Clearspot Aid Station you'll climb 757m+ over 6.29km. The climb is a beast, and situated at this stage of the race it can really hurt. Also, it can get very hot, so make sure you carry extra water from the Buckland Aid Station.
From the Spectacular views of Clearspot it's all downhill to the finish!! The race now has a fast finish for those who saved their legs. The descent off Clearspot to Bakers Gully is steep in sections, but is broken up nicely into different gradients, and is 4.7km with 661m-.
From the bottom there is 2.2km to go, scooting around some local single tracks and dirt roads, before hitting the tarmac down Ballroom court with 640m to go! Cross Coronation Avenue with CARE, bomb down the grassy slope, where you will see the long awaited finish line at the Pavillion in Pioneer Park!
The Course
SingleTrack Events have partnered up with friends of trail CAPRA to equip you with the cleanest, easiest to follow maps you’ll ever come across.
It is a mandatory inclusion for all participants to have both the CAPRA app AND the relevant Buffalo Stampede maps on the mobile phone they will be using during their event.
Grab your mobile phone and scan the QR Code below to get started.
FAQs
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Race Entry
GST and registration platform fees
Professional on-course sports photography available for purchase
Special 10th Year Edition T-Shirt
Coveted Finishers Medallion
Fully marked course
Expert event medical support
On-course nutrition and refreshments
Professional event timing
Live real-time results via on-course checkpoints
Post-event celebration beer!
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- Mount Buffalo Chalet: 9.6km, 273m+-
- Eurobin: 10.2km, 83m+, 1100m-
- Buckland Valley: 8.1km, 325m+, 351m-
- Clearspot: 7.6km, 800m+, 88m-
- FINISH: 6.9km, 77m+, 761m-
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- START Mount Buffalo Chalet: 7:00 am
- Mount Buffalo Chalet: 9:00 am
- Eurobin: 11:30 am
- Buckland Valley: 1:30 pm
- Clearspot: 4:00 pm
- FINISH: 6:00 pm
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Mount Buffalo Rd, Mount Buffalo VIC 3740 (Google Maps)
We encourage runners to book a shuttle from Pioneer Park to the Start (shuttle booking closed as of March 11!). If you do not have a crew who can drop you off, then this will be your best option aside from organising a carpool.
There is limited parking at the Chalet for the Marathon Start. It will be first come first served. After this it will be a drop off ONLY. Please do not drive only yourself up there from Bright and plan to leave your car, since you may not find parking. If you plan to have your crew drive you up, be prepared for them to just drop you off and drive back down the mountain.
Shuttle Times: Runners will have to meet at the Shuttle Pick Up point in Pioneer Park at 5:10 am for a 5:20 am rolling departure.
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There are many places over the course where spectators and crew can see their runners. Please refer to the interactive CAPRA Map to find the best places to see them. All Aid Stations are easily accessible in 2WD as well as all roads on Mount Buffalo. If you want to drive to Clearspot to spectate or crew, please follow the CAPRA map route to the summit as it can be confusing to find your way.
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Waterproof jacket and hood
Thermal long shirt and Thermal long pants (Bad weather, Notified by text and CAPRA app 12pm Friday)
Beanie or buff
Full fingered gloves
1.5 litre fluid minimum (2L if Hot, Notified by text and CAPRA app 12pm Friday)
Snake bandage
Mobile phone
CAPRA mobile app with course map
Space blanket
Collapsible cup for aid stations (recommended)
The 42km Sky Marathon is a UTMB® World Series Qualifier Event.
All runners who complete the course gain qualifier points for their UTMB® Index.
Runners with a valid UTMB® Index will have privileged access to register for a UTMB® World Series Event or UTMB® World Series Major and will use their UTMB® Index to validate their entry into the UTMB® World Series Finals lottery.
The 42km Sky Marathon is a registered with the International Trail Running Association (ITRA).
All runners who complete the course will gain qualifier points for their ITRA Performance Index.