Bandung Explorer Ace Arief Wismoyono, the 2015 Asia Trail Master champion, is back on top of the standings with a convincing victory in last Sunday's Coast To Coast Night Trail Ultra at Depok Beach in Yogyakarta, Central Java, Indonesia. In a very wet and therefore slippery and muddy race, he outpaced a strong Yohanis Hiareij and Belgian Gaspard Dessy. After three races in 2017, Wismoyono has 25 ATM championship points more than Dessy, and definitely looks ready to challenge again for the championship title this year. It was Arief Wismoyono 's fourth career ATM race victory after MRU 2015, MesaStila Peaks Challenge 2015 and Ijen Trailrunning 2016. 

In the women's race, Ruth Theresia once again proved she is one of the up and coming running talents in Indonesia. Theresia finished seventh overall and first woman by a clear margin. The 26-year-old Compressport Athlete collects her first 500 points of the season, and will be back in action in two weeks at the Beach Bunch Trail Challenge in Brunei. Mila Mirlani was a good second in CTC, ahead of Lily Suryani and Grandmaster Ina Budiyarni. Suryani collected another 425 points on top of the 300 scored in Tahura Trail in January, and is therefore the new points leader in the Asia Trail Master ranking for women this year.

The Coast To Coast Night Trail Ultra started at 9 pm and was run mainly at night time. The 70k Grandmaster distance was tougher than expected despite relatively modest elevation gain numbers (2300hm). Several climbs were very steep, and descents inside the rainforest very technical in places. Running pace was affected for most starters, and this led to a high DNF rate. Only 35 participants out of 95 starters on the 70k made it back to Depok Beach inside the cut off limit of 16 hours.

Full results and images are to follow.

It's already the third racing weekend in the 2017 Asia Trail Master Championship Series and the second in Indonesia. All eyes are set on the Coast To Coast Night Trail Ultra in Central Java's cultural heritage city of Yogyakarta, where we are likely to end the weekend with new points leaders in the ATM championship ranking. After their great runs in Bandung last month, Gaspard Dessy (third) and Arief Wismoyono (fourth) will be competing with each other again in the hills behind Depok Beach, and Lily Suryani (fourth) can hop ahead of Tahira Najmunisaa and Diorella Cerujano in the women's. 

On the menu is a 70 km trail course with quite a bit of up and down for 2300 hm of elevation gain in total. Important as well is that the majority of the race will take place in the dark as the start of the 70 k will be given at 9 p.m. Organised by Trail Runners Yogyakarta, Coast To Coast has a very experienced team that will ensure everyone will enjoy a great time. The battle for the race victory will certainly involve the abovementioned Arief Wismoyono and Gaspard Dessy, but also Yohanis Hiareij will find a course that suits him very well. 

In the women's race it will be important to see the performance of Lily Suryani, and especially how she fares vis-a-vis Ruth Theresia, who has been in excellent form since the second part of last year. Theresia is also scheduled to run in Brunei at the end of the month and could be a contender for this year's championship title. Also in Yogyakarta, though, are Grandmaster Ina Budiyarni and Mila Marlina. 

As always, you can follow the action this weekend via our dedicated social media channels. 

COMPRESSPORT runner Ruth Theresia begins her 2017 Asia Trail Master campaign in Yogyakarta, but Lily Suryani could claim the top spot in the female ranking this weekend. 

Belgium's Gaspard Dessy was a surprise 3rd in Tahura Trail last month and could put himself on top of the ATM championship ranking this weekend

The course map of the 70k race

Fantastic news just before the end of the year: the popular Coast To Coast Night Trail Ultra in Yogyakarta is joining the 2017 Asia Trail Master series as an official points race on 11/12 February! The third edition of Coast To Coast, organised by Trail Runners Yogyakarta, is expanding with a 70 km distance that will be the second Indonesian race for runners to score points for the Asia Trail Master championship next season. In addition, the 70 km also qualifies as a distance for the Grandmaster Quest, of course. The event takes place at Pantai Depok with start and finish on the beach. The race starts on Saturday night at 10 p.m. and has a cut off time of 15 hours. The race organisation and direction is in the hands of experienced runners Dzaki Wardana and Roostian Gamanada. Please note that the event also offers 50 km and 25 km race distances, but only the 70 km is valid for the Asia Trail Master championship. 

As can be seen from the race profile below, this is a predominantly runable course. Yet, there is an elevation gain of 2380 metres to overcome, so one will require some extra power in the legs to complete the distance. 

After the start at  Depok Beach, participants will run to the hills and forest around. Towards the end one will also run through the Parangkusumo Desert. Along the route runners will pass by several tourist places, such as also the Parangtritis beach and the Japan cave. Every runner who finishes the race within the cut-off time will get a Finisher T-shirt and a Finisher Medal.  In addition, there will also be a traditional lunch on the beach. Transport to the race venue and accommodation during the event is also very easy. International runners or local runners from other places in Indonesia just need to fly or rail into Yogyakarta, itself a major tourist draw - not in the least because of nearby Borobudur. 

Registration is open on the event website. You can also stay up to date via our own cover page on this website.