Tarawera Ultra-Trail by UTMB T102
20 weeks of race-specific training for women

Tarawera T102 is fast, flowing and highly runnable. That is exactly what makes it demanding. Across 102km and approximately 2,300m of climbing, the course gives you plenty of opportunities to keep running. The challenge is developing the aerobic durability, strength and pacing discipline to stay controlled early so that running is still available to you late.

This 20-week Her Trails program prepares you specifically for the journey from Kawerau to Rotorua, while also supporting the bigger picture of an overseas ultra: fuelling, strength, night running, gear, race-week logistics and arriving ready to race.

When a course lets you run, pacing becomes the real challenge

Tarawera is highly runnable compared with many mountainous 100km races. The challenge is not simply surviving steep terrain. It is staying efficient across hours of rolling trail, forestry roads, native forest and open runnable sections without spending too much energy too early.

That means the training needs to develop more than distance. You need aerobic durability, pacing control, strength that holds under fatigue, confidence with fuelling and the ability to keep making good decisions deep into the race.

Six training pillars built specifically for T102

Preparing for an overseas ultra

Racing overseas adds another layer to preparation. Travel, unfamiliar routines, race-week logistics, gear organisation and simply settling into a different environment can all add load before you even reach the start line.

The program helps you prepare these systems ahead of time so race week can feel calmer, simpler and more familiar.

Is this program right for you?

T102 is a serious ultra-distance undertaking, and this 20-week program assumes you are already running consistently and have enough training history to begin building toward 100km.

You do not need to already be a 100km runner. A good starting point is being comfortable running regularly across the week, having experience with longer endurance sessions and being ready to progressively increase your training load over the 20 weeks.

• Consistent running across the week
• Some experience with longer endurance sessions
• Capacity to progressively build training volume over 20 weeks
• Willingness to practise race fuelling, gear and trail skills
• Readiness to make recovery and strength part of the training process
• Medical or allied-health guidance if returning from significant injury or illness

Everything you need to build toward T102

Train toward Tarawera together

Tarawera is the first Her Trails pinnacle community race of 2027. That means this build is not only about following a program. It is an opportunity to train alongside other women preparing for the same event, share the build and arrive in Rotorua as part of the broader Her Trails community.

Become a Her Trails member

Training for Tarawera does not have to happen in isolation. For $220 per quarter, Her Trails All-In membership gives you access to the T102 program alongside our broader training ecosystem, strength libraries, education and community.

If Tarawera is one part of a bigger year of running, adventure and progression, All-In gives you the flexibility to keep training with Her Trails beyond race day.