Glendalough, moonlight? It’s autumn in Ireland!
The beautiful Glendalough
Mountain running tends to take a hiatus during the Irish autumn and hill runners find themselves turning to the frenetic cross-country scene for their off-road fix. The trend set by several new races being organised continues unabated, however, and this fall promises to be different.
Debra are at it again arranging another mountain half-marathon, this one their toughest yet by all accounts:
This is not for the faint hearted as our Glencree Mountain Race route has TWICE the height gain! The route starts tough; the first 4km sees a steep climb of 380 metres to the summit of Maulin, a ridge run then descends towards Powerscourt Waterfall where we pick up the Wicklow Way and head north. It’s not long before we are into the next and final big climb; 520 metres over 8km to Prince Williams Seat. The remainder of the route takes you across open mountain to the finish point in the beautiful village of Glencree. Fantastic views and hard mountain running are guaranteed.
Full route details at Debra. Race takes place on the 3rd of October.
Meanwhile the closest man to a professional off-road race organiser in Ireland, Paul Mahon, has been approached by Fighting Blindness to stage an event in support of fund-raising and the “Glendalough Trail” should prove immensely popular offering runners 15km of scenic forest-land around perhaps Ireland’s most famous outdoor tourist attraction. Race takes place on the 30th of October and full details can be found on the race website.
Not to be outdone, the Glen of Imaal Mountain Rescue team are hoping to raise funds for their new head-quarter at Trooperstown in Wicklow and are staging the “Moonlight Challenge” on the 20th of November.
The event is open both to runners and walkers but the organiser’s encourage experienced hill-runners to complete the course as a three-man relay race; but for those who wouldn’t get out of bed for less than the races 26km from Crone Wood to the new rescue base site at Trooperstown Wood, running single remains an option. The race will start at 6pm about an hour and a half after sunset.
Full details at Wicklow Mountain Rescue.
First, though, IMRA and Basecamp are staging a Wednesday hill run at Tibradden this Wednesday to raise funds for the Bubblegum Club. The route is a simpler version of this year’s Tibradden Leinster League race featuring a straight out-and-back course rather than the loop around Fairy Castle.
Full details at IMRA
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Immedia Design Aug 18, 11:42 AM
Maulin is a tough haul – we’ve ran Glencree and the Wicklow Way a couple of years ago – and it is stunning but tough – especially in a constant downpour like we had.