It got wild in the west for True Grit WA.
The Eaton family and their stunning Linga Longa Estate have played host to True Grit and our wonderful group of maniacs, the Gritters, for the past 4 years. For 2025 the course, the estate, and the conditions were all in perfect order.
We descended into the south-east region of Western Australia for our event held on the 11th & 12th of October. With over 3,000 participants, and a projected 2,000 spectators, for the weekend – we certainly had our hands full.
The participants took on the amazing 5km and super challenging 10km courses. With most of the feedback given focusing on the infamous Heartbreak Hill. Some of you love it, some of you hate it but most of you seem to love to hate it.
In such picturesque conditions, it was little wonder that camping was sold-out for both Friday and Saturday nights. With all the campers coming together to enjoy icy cold beer from our event partners, Beerfarm, the brilliant food of the Linga Longa Cafe and the awesome live music from Blackwood Rising.
We always like to shout-out some of our Gritters who put in a massive effort and in WA we were lucky to have an amazing bunch. During this event we were lucky to have 2 x 72 year old and a 75 year old who came to complete the 10km course. But we were incredibly lucky to have Tina come to smash the 10km course with her team. Tina came, saw and conquered the course – at 78 years of age!
Many of our Gritters came from all around Western Australia to take on the challenge, but we are so incredibly grateful to have our mad Gritters show up from all around the country and the world. At True Grit WA, we saw Gritters arrive from Sydney, Brisbane, ACT, Victoria, and Darwin. With some of our international guests arriving from Auckland, South Africa, and Estonia.
Another group of legends are our wonderful volunteers. Without them we really cannot have an event. Our volunteers really make the event the massive success it is. In the rain and the mud, they increased the encouragement, they increased the positive vibes, and they are a massive reason why the event was such a success.
Epic Performances in the Elite Races
The competition in WA seems to be getting stronger and stronger every year. In 2024, we didn’t see any competitors complete the course in under 1 hour. This year was a very different story with our top 5 men all completing the full 10km course in less than an hour. The standout performance being reigning champ Sam Shepherd completing the course in 55min.
Our women’s Elite athletes were also throwing down some cracking performances. With our Top 3 all finishing the course faster than 2024’s winning pace.
(Note to self: Next year the course must be much harder!!!!)
Women’s Elite Winners:
🥇 Savannah Olsthoorn – 1h 9m 9s
🥈 Janet Smith – 1h 13m 24s
🥉 Sasha Burdakova – 1h 15m 34s
Men’s Elite Winners:
🥇 Sam Shepherd – 55m 50s
🥈 Dan Corrin – 56m 16s
🥉 Jaymon McQuade – 56m 28s
Our podium finishers were awarded with prize packs donated by our amazing sponsors and partners.
Linga Long Estate + Blackwood River = Epic Beauty and Tough Terrain
Without the invaluable support of Tourism WA and Linga Longa Estate our event would not have been as successful as it was. The Blackwood River Valley region is picturesque with some much to offer. It is only a short 2.5hr drive from Perth and 1.5hr drive from Margaret River – the region offers hiking & cycling trailers, MTB tracks, beautiful wedding venues, wineries, great accommodation and so much more. We encourage you all to come and check out this magnificent region.
Huge Thanks to Our Partners
True Grit wouldn’t be possible without the support of some amazing partners and locals who helped bring it all together:
It was amazing to have our friends from Beerfarm join us to not only provide icy cold cans of Summer Ale and Lager as finisher drinks to our Gritters, but to keep those beautiful beers flowing in the Bar during the weekend.
It was also amazing to have representatives from our charity partners The Black Dog Institute and Invictus Australia on hand to run the course and raise awareness for their wonderful and imperative organisations.
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The True Grit 2025 train is rumbling down the track, with Victoria next on our list and our last stop for 2025. VIC is looking to be another huge event for us in November.
But don’t worry NSW, we haven’t forgotten you. We are back in 2026, and we are going big – offering 5km, 10km and 15km courses!
Are you ready to take the muddy plunge and see what you are made of at a True Grit in 2025?
Head to our event page and see you at the start line! 💪
