Frankston to Portsea 55km Run 55km/34 miles
Sunday 12th April 2026
| 1. | Morgan Lane | 4:14:50 |
| 2. | Shunnai Zhao | 4:33:54 |
| 3. | Bryan Lim | 4:35:49 |
| 4. | Chris Pittock | 5:08:15 |
| 5. | Sharon Li [F] | 5:22:50 |
| 6. | Jonathan Ennis-King | 5:35:25 |
| 7. | Jody Daff [F] | 5:44:59 |
| 8. | David Talamelli | 5:51:14 |
| 9. | Lei Wu | 6:16:32 |
| 10. | Shelley Deluca [F] | 6:18:50 |
| 11. | Hui Harvey [F] | 6:23:46 |
| 12. | Bob Jiang | 6:41:15 |
| 13. | Yee-Vien Ng [F] | 6:41:56 |
| 14. | Daniel Bull | 6:48:54 |
| 15. | Frank Palermo | 7:12:55 |
| 16. | Debbie Jessop [F] | 7:32:55 |
| 17. | David Froude | 7:41:00 |
| 18. | Jessica Ward [F] | 8:08:40 |
Tracy Feiner [F] 42km
Dave Cripps 39km
Glenn Thomas 36km
Report by Kevin Cassidy
Rolling into our regular “car park” meeting place just prior to 6am,
the dire weather forecast was coming to fruition in the most forthright of manners. Sadly, unknown at this point was that conditions would intensify.
Six early starters hit the road to Portsea at indiscriminate intervals around 6am aware that their entire journey would be hampered substantially by gale force headwinds. Glancing out over Port Phillip Bay, the waves were angrily crashing in.
As the clock ticked on to our official 7am start time, 15 individuals toed the line outside The Deck nightclub, an “interesting” establishment to say the least. The traditional “finishers chocolate” tantalisingly awaited at Portsea.
I must own up to being a cheapskate by settling on Mini Mars Bars purchased a week earlier in a somewhat absorbing exercise at my local supermarket. The young guy at the checkout was clearly new to the job and had inadvertently shut down the terminal. An old bearded guy with curly grey hair gave the young fellow a pained and joyless squint then launched into a hell of a disturbance. A supervisor soon sorted things in as convivial a manner as possible. I really felt for the kid. A life lesson on human behaviour, no doubt.
After the obligatory photo and mumbling the word “GO”, jumping into my ute to escape the wind and biting cold was a welcome joy.
Having secured a bank loan during the week to fill my petrol tank, the run was underway.
As I motored down the highway, Morgan Lane had rapidly established a healthy lead ahead of Shunnai Zhao. Bryan Lim was also to the fore while Chris Pittock and Tracy Feiner had linked up and were travelling both speedily and comfortably, Tracy being the lead woman from the outset.
Driving on to Mornington approximately 12km in, I caught up with some of our early starters. Daniel Bull, Jessica Ward and Debbie Jessop were progressing well as the first of numerous rain periods set in.
Sharon Li, David Talamelli and the ever consistent Jody Daff and Jonathan Ennis-King were next through. Soon after, on the opposite side of the highway, a silver Holden Commodore launched into a series of wheelies and burnouts. Glancing at the intellectual genius behind the wheel, he was everything you’d expect. Mullet haircut, an abundance of body piercings and an eclectic array of facial tattoos. He wouldn’t have looked out of place in a museum display. Presumably he’s earned a lifetime membership at Centrelink.
Embarking on a quick spin back towards Frankston, I found Lei Wu, Bob Jiang, Yee-Vien Ng and the ever enthusiastic Frank Palermo battling the conditions with a determined focus and purpose.
The freeway roundabout at 21km was my next port of call to guarantee everyone undertook the correct turn. I caught up with Rohan Day in his unique and eye catching vintage Holden station wagon. Rohan is an invaluable contributor who turns out every year dishing up drinks and offering assistance on route as needed.
Wandering on to Dromana through 30km, I made a flying dash through the precipitation to a beachside toilet block which clearly hadn’t seen a cleaner since the Eureka uprising. I was in and out as swiftly as humanly possible. Walking back to my ute amongst a rare break in the rain, a tall haggered looking man outside the shopping centre clutching a takeaway coffee and wearing an unfortunate straw hat asked me what was happening.
“They’re running to Portsea”, I snorted.
“Hey Jenny [presumably his wife]” he yelled in astonishment,
“Guess what these guys are doing?”
Jenny paused momentarily from chewing on a pie the size of a bus wheel then let out a very long “WOW”
Rolling further down the course, I came upon the early starting Shelley Deluca powering along formidably.
Despite the grey weather, it was difficult not to reflect upon the changes to the strip of coastline on route to Portsea. The kaleidoscopic colour and array of pastels has drawn such a diverse demographic along this rather beguiling road.
The proliferation of cafes where the cakes cost $20 and you get called “Darrrrrling” and the explosion of pilates studios amongst the ever burgeoning shopping strips lays cause for a substantial sense of bemusement. I think I’ve digressed a tad here!
With Morgan dominant at the front, I made haste down the water logged road towards Portsea.
Shunnai and Bryan were trading places for second and third while on the not so positive side, Tracey, Dave and Matt Thomas had all called it a day at various points. Such is the nature of the game. They’ll leap back on the horse in the not to distant future, no doubt.
Passing the 42km mark at the Rye Pier, I decided upon a brief visit to the Southern Peninsula Masters Athletic Club. Having just completed their 6km event, they were huddled under a nearby rotunda. Approaching the wet but chatty group discussing their mornings accomplishments, I was met by the unmistakable sound of Joanna Maidment’s cowbell, a sound most of the runners would get to hear [tolerate] as she proceeded to motor along the highway offering “encouragement”.
Requiring a boost of energy inducing sustenance on route to the finish, I made the less than taxing decision to indulge in a supermarket visit in Sorrento where the checkout queue was excruciatingly slow but the young girl at the register was both helpful and polite. She even handled my old fashioned cash transaction seamlessly and with a smile. I was mightily impressed.
I pointed my ute toward the finish at the national park entrance and awaited Morgan’s arrival as the wind howled and the drizzling rain persisted. Waiting here is usually a source of entertainment viewing car loads of wierd and wonderful tourists entering the park but the weather ensured a distinct lack of arrivals. Other than a ratty haired woman in a bright red jacket driving a dark Volkswagon Beetle with two grizzling kids on board and speakers so loud you could hear Led Zepplin screaming in the distance, the wait was dismayingly uneventful.
Morgan Lane stormed through Portsea, an area of residential exclusivity, to win by a large margin in 4:14:50. Shunnai and Bryan then crossed the line in quick succession.
Chris Pittock arrived in a shade over five hours followed by Sharon Li, first woman in 5:22:50.
Next home in his eighth finish was Jonathan Ennis-King.
Second woman in 5:44:59 was the incomparable Jody Daff. Jody is now a six time finisher and moves onto the “Most Prolific Runners” list.
Shelley Deluca ran a brilliant race to snare third.
The irrepressable Frank Palermo knocked out his eleventh finish then made the commonsense decision to abandon any plan to run back to Frankston having battled through the atrocious weather.
David Froude had us all amused by careering past the finish heading for the point five kilometres further down the track. If that appears vastly crazy, this was actually the final day of his seven day run around the entirety of Port Phillip Bay!
Early starters and first timers, Jessica Ward and Debbie Jessop both finished strongly and appeared thrilled with their efforts.
Every 2026 runner is deserving of a shout out for wrestling with the worst weather I’ve experienced in my 37 year involvement.
As has been the custom in recent years, medals for all place getters were provided courtesy of the Casey Cardinia Masters Athletics Club while an appreciative mention goes to Sharon Li who so generously presented me with a $100 Coles Myer card to, in her words, buy some quality chocolates next year.
Prior to packing up, a chilly and damp Chris Pittock provided much mirth by stripping naked in the men’s toilets then drying/warming himself with a variety of fancy and none to dignified maneuvers under the electric hand dryer!
Not to be outdone, the cowbell girl herself, Joanna figured that leaning on a timber bollard while holding her two small dogs would be a smart idea. The rotted bollard soon gave way sending her crashing head first into the front of my parked ute! Attention seeking at its finest.
Journeying home, I dropped Jessica Ward at a Rosebud property then called my bank for another loan to fill my tank.
A service station visit had me waiting to pay behind a detestably cranky woman with an amplified voice giving the young girl behind the counter a mouthful over the price of fuel as if it were the poor girls fault! Scarily, she has the right to vote and has probably bred!
If driving is affordable in 2027, we return for the 56th year on April 11th.