Next in our 2017 Race Preview is Ijen Trailrunning, an event that deservedly got rave reviews for its second edition last May. The 70k race to the Blue Fire of Ijen volcano in East Java witnessed a grand sprint for victory between Arief Wismoyono and Yohanis Hiareij - almost unheard of in the trail world after a 70k race -, as well as a majestic run by Singapore-based Norwegian Ann-Mari Lillejord in the women's. But what made people like the event even more was the quality of the technical organisation and the well-balanced trail course with appropriate cut off time. The climb to the Ijen crater is the highlight, but there are plenty of runnable sections in this race.

Egon Trails, the outdoor company based in Surabaya and main organiser of Ijen Trailrunning, has announced that in 2017 a new 100k will be introduced to the event alongside the existing races over 70km, 42km, and 21km. Other than Ijen, the new longest distance will also feature another climb. Race venue is set to remain Bondowoso, with Surabaya as main international gateway on Java, but Bali as an attractive alternative. As with many trail races in breathtaking venues, getting there and away does require some time but at least you have 9 months left to plan.

Asia Trail Master championship points will be scored on the 100, 70 and 42k distances, and the 100 and 70 also qualify for the Grandmaster Quest.

Stay tuned in the next weeks as more technical details of the 100k become available.

Please check the race report of the 2016 event.

Preliminary 2017 Asia Trail Master calendar

* more races will be added in due course

22/01/17 - Indonesia - Tahura Trail
29/01/17 - Philippines - Rizal Mountain Run
17-18/02/17 - Thailand - UT Unseen Koh Chang - SUPERTRAIL
25-26/02/17 - Brunei - Beach Bunch Trail Challenge
04-05/03/17 - Philippines - Cordillera Mountain Ultra
23/04/17 - South Korea - Korea 50k
24/04/17 - Nepal - Ultra-Trail Nepal - Run for Recovery
07/05/17 - Kazakhstan - Tengri Ultra Trail
13-14/05/17 - Malaysia - Eco 100 - SUPERTRAIL
20-21/05/17 - Indonesia - Ijen Trailrunning

2017 Preview - Ijen Trail running