I’m Erin Robertson, the Gold Coast coach behind PLAY HARD RUN COACHING.

I have a deep connection with ultra trail running: the spirit of the characters at the start line, the immersion in nature, the terrain beneath our feet, the elements to be overcome, the whisper of the forest, the crisp dawn air, the solitude of a headlamp glow in the night, the elation and relief of a finish chute.

I empower runners to discover adventures, reach their potential, find finish lines, and experience the transformative nature of trail and ultra running.

Credentials

  • UESCA Certified Ultra Running Coach (American qualification)

    (Developed by Jason Koop, coach to some of the best ultra trail runners in the world)

  • Athletics Australia Level 3 Performance Coach - Trail and Ultra Running

  • Bachelor of Psychological Science (Griffith University)

  • Athletics Australia Level 1 Youth Coach

  • Former Altra RED Team athlete

  • Twenty Years running and racing experience from 5k to 183k on road, track and trails.

  • I completed my first ultra distance trail event in 2005. Since then I’ve done a bunch of races including:

    • Butter 183k (1st)

    • Noosa Ultra 50k (7th, 4:50), 80k (1st, 9:11), and 100k (3rd, 10:58)

    • Tarawera Ultra 100k

    • Scenic Rim Ultra 86k (1st) and 103k (1st)

    • BVRT 50 mile/84k (1st, 7:41)

    • South East Queensland Trail Series (2nd)

    • Resolution Run 12k (2nd)

    • Kokoda Challenge 96k (three times)

    • Ultra Trail Australia 50k (17th)

Ultra trail running
Ultra trail coach
Ultra trail running coach

Coaching Approach

My methods draw on research in exercise science and endurance sports. I update my professional knowledge with the latest findings, allowing my training protocols to evolve and reflect new insights into trail and ultra running performance. Each program is scientifically grounded and tailored to your individual circumstances and goals, incorporating the fundamental principles of training proven to enhance running capability and durability:

  1. Overload and recovery

  2. Progression

  3. Individuality

  4. Specificity

  5. Systemic Approach

An effective training program is just one part of the equation. To perform at your best you must also successfully navigate nutrition, hydration, gear, environmental conditions, foot health, and mental resilience. I blend science-based education with real-world experience to support you to reach your potential, prepare for your specific event, and create strategies to get you across a finish line.

Whatever your goals—to go fast or long, build confidence on the trails, improve strength and endurance, crush a personal record, or tackle your first ultra—PLAY HARD RUN COACHING can help you get there.

Inspiration

While ultra trail running appears foremost a challenge between human and environment, it is more so a challenge between you and yourself.

“The distance runner is mysteriously reconciling the separations of body and mind, of pain and pleasure, of the conscious and unconscious……He has found a way to make the ordinary extraordinary; the commonplace unique; the everyday eternal.” (George Sheehan, Running & Being: The Total Experience)

I ran my first 100k (104.84k, 3885m elevation) in 12h 21m, solo and unsupported, on the 6.7k Goat Loop in Nerang State Forest. The words of novelist Haruki Murakami come to mind when I consider the effect this run had on me:

“I don’t know what general significance running sixty-two miles by yourself has, but… you’d expect it to afford you a special sort of self-awareness. It should add a few new elements to your inventory in understanding who you are. And as a result, your view of your life, its colours and shape, should be transformed. More or less, for better or for worse, this happened to me, and I was transformed.” (Haruki Murakami, What I talk about when I talk about running)