Mayo’s Adventure racers do the Double

By Paul Mahon race director
The second annual Achill Roar event was held recently on Co Mayo and the event attracted a record number of participants with over 700 taking part on the day.

The main event of the day was the expert race which involved swimming or kayaking on Keel Lough, a 15km run incorporating over 600m of hill climbing up the Might Minaun mountain and then a 45km bike ride on a testing route along the world famous Atlantic Drive. On the day the battle up front went to form, with Mayo’s Padraig Marrey confirming his current good form with an impressive win 4 minutes clear of Dublin’s Niall Somers and local Castlebar man Tomas O Dowd 3rd . In the ladies section the Gaelforce form was again confirmed when Westport based Derval Devaney came home 7 minutes clear of Emma Donlon and Louth’s Laura O Driscoll in third.

The sports option was held over a route of approximately half the expert’s race. In this event there was a good standard in evidence with the winner Patrick Healy who has recently completed Ironman Germany in 9:39, coming home 2 minutes clear of young Dean Gillespie and Paul Dunne with only two second separating them. One of the many international participants tasting success when Australian Nicole Nicolls took a narrow win by only 24 seconds from Sinead Hearty with Tara Reale a further 2 minutes behind in the ladies section.
With some heavy showers during the morning and strong winds throughout the day the conditions were testing but this only added to the challenge of the event which received universal thumbs up from the competitors both for the scenery, level of professional organisation and the post event party.

Next up and final race of the National Adventure Race Points Series is the WAR (Wicklow Adventure Race) on Saturday 25th September. The Glendalough event held in April was a sell out success and this Glenmalure event offers a route of ~60km with some testing cycling including climbs up Shay Elliott and Slieve Mann and some great off-road hill run/ hike sections taking in the summits of Kirrikee and Croghanmoire .
There is a sports section to the event over a route of approx 30km in total
Further details at www.wicklowadventurerace.com

The season closer will take place in Westport on Saturday November 13 with the inaugural ‘Westport Sea2Summit (S2S) Adventure Race’! As the last Adventure Race in the country for 2010, sports and adventure race enthusiasts of all fitness levels are invited to participate in the ultimate sporting challenge centred around the majestic setting of Croagh Patrick and bustling town of Westport, the adventure capital of Ireland. Catering for beginner, intermediate and advanced athletes the event is being organised by the Westport Plaza & Castlecourt Hotels. See www.westportsea2summit.ie