The Wicklow Round is a long-distance hill running challenge in the Wicklow Mountains in Ireland.[1] The route follows a prescribed 100-kilometre circuit of 26 mountains, which must be completed in a fixed order, that total over 6,000 metres (20,000 ft) of elevation; there is some flexibility on route-choices between peaks.[2] Rounds completed outside of a cut-off time of 24-hours are not generally recorded.[1][3] Irish ultra-runner Joe Lalor is credited with the creation of the Round.[4][5]
| Wicklow Round | |
|---|---|
 Lugnaquilla, highest peak on the Round at 925 metres (3,035 ft); highest mountain in Leinster. | |
| Length | 100 kilometres (62 mi) depending on actual route |
| Location | Wicklow Mountains, Ireland |
| Established | 2008 |
| Trailheads | Fetherbed Track Junction |
| Use | Hiking, Fell running |
| Elevation change | circa 6,000 metres (19,685 ft) depending on actual route |
| Highest point | Lugnaquilla at 925 metres (3,035 ft) |
| Lowest point | Drumgroff at 50 metres (164 ft) |
| Season | All year round |
| Hazards | sinkholes amongst heather |
| Surface | bogland, moorland, sheep paths, roads |
| Website | IMRA |
The first person to complete the Round was Moire O’Sullivan, in a time of 22:58:30 on 29 May 2008; O'Sullivan went on to write a book about her experience on the Round called Mud, Sweat, and Tears.[6][7][8] Eoin Keith set a new record of 17:53:45 on 30 May 2009, which stood for nine years until it was beaten by U.S. runner, and Appalachian Trail record holder, Joe McConaughy, in a time of 17:09:44 on 6 May 2018.[2][9] Several other runners have set records for the fastest Round.[1][4] Between April and May 2019, the men's record was broken across three consecutive attempts, by Paddy O'Leary, Shane Lynch and Gavin Byrne. These attempts were featured in the short documentary film, "Coming Home - Ag Teacht Abhaile".
As of July 2019[update], the record is 15:04:30, set by Irish IAU Trail World Championships contestant, Gavin Byrne on 18 May 2019.[10]
Route
edit
The 26 mountains of the Wicklow Round must be completed in the order as outlined below, as well as the check-point in the forest of Drumgoff.[11]
| Sequence | Goal (peak or check-point) |
|---|---|
| Start | Military Road – Featherbed Track junction |
| 1 | Kippure |
| 2 | Carrigvore |
| 3 | Gravale |
| 4 | Duff Hill |
| 5 | Mullaghcleevaun East Top |
| 6 | Mullaghcleevaun |
| 7 | Moanbane |
| 8 | Silsean |
| 9 | Oakwood |
| 10 | Table Mountain |
| 11 | Camenabologue |
| 12 | Lugnaquilla |
| 13 | Corrigasleggaun |
| 14 | Carrawaystick Mountain |
| Check-point | Drumgoff |
| 15 | Mullacor |
| 16 | Derrybawn |
| 17 | Camaderry |
| 18 | Tonelagee |
| 19 | Scarr |
| 20 | Knocknacloghoge |
| 21 | Luggala |
| 22 | Djouce |
| 23 | War Hill |
| 24 | Tonduff (also called Tonduff North) |
| 25 | Prince William's Seat |
| 26 | Knocknagun |
| End | Military Road – Featherbed Track junction |
Completions
edit
The Irish Mountain Running Association (IMRA) record the following sub-24 hour completions of the Wicklow Round:[11]
| Name | Date | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Moire O Sullivan | 29 May 2009 | 22:58:30[9][6][10] |
| Eoin Keith | 30 May 2009 | 17:53:45[2][9][10][4] |
| Paul Mahon | 5 June 2009 | 19:39:25 |
| Paul Nolan | 5 June 2009 | 19:39:25 |
| Jason Reid | 5 June 2009 | 19:39:25 |
| Adrian Tucker | 25 June 2009 | 22:18:45 |
| Greg Byrne | 2 June 2012 | 20:56:00 |
| Billy Reed | 2 June 2012 | 20:56:00 |
| Finbar McGurren | 2 June 2012 | 20:56:00 |
| Richard Nunan | 8 June 2013 | 21:57:02 |
| Jeff Fitzsimons | 8 June 2013 | 21:57:02 |
| Zoran Skrba | 8 June 2013 | 21:57:02 |
| Gareth Little | 9 June 2013 | 23:39:36 |
| Laurence Colleran | 30 May 2015 | 20:45:00 |
| Liam Vines | 30 May 2015 | 20:45:00 |
| Paul Morrissey | 14 June 2015 | 23:47:32 |
| Andreas Kusch | 14 June 2015 | 23:47:32 |
| Pol O'Murchu | 21 June 2015 | 23:25:03 |
| Mike Jordan | 4 July 2015 | 23:21:00 |
| Sam Scriven | 4 July 2015 | 23:21:00 |
| Brian O'Meara | 4 July 2015 | 23:21:00 |
| Kevin Shannon | 4 August 2015 | 21:59:36 |
| Mark Shannon | 4 August 2015 | 21:59:36 |
| Paul O'Callaghan | 28 May 2016 | 21:25:00 |
| Adrian Hennessy | 6 June 2016 | 19:36:00 |
| John Ryan Preston | 19 June 2016 | 21:06:00 |
| Liam Vines | 11 December 2016 | 22:56:00 |
| Karina Jonina | 6 May 2017 | 22:37:43[4] |
| Joseph McConaughy | 6 May 2018 | 17:09:44[2][9] |
| Paul Keville | 23 June 2018 | 22:59:00 |
| Warren Swords | 22 July 2018 | 23:13:45 |
| Brian Kitson | 22 July 1028 | 23:13:45 |
| Paul O'Callaghan | 21 December 2018 | 23:38:00 |
| Paddy O'Leary | 13 April 2019 | 16:27:20[1][10][4] |
| Shane Lynch | 21 April 2019 | 16:23:32[1][10] |
| Gavin Byrne | 18 May 2019 | 15:04:30[10] |
| John Murray | 2 June 2019 | 22:05:23 |
| John Murray | 3 August 2019 | 23:41:08 |
| Daniela Lubiscakova | 24 July 2020 | 23:14:26 |
| Philip O'Connell | 24 July 2020 | 23:14:26 |
Books & Films
edit- Moire O'Sullivan (July 2011). Mud, Sweat and Tears: An Irish Woman's Journey of Self-Discovery Paperback. ISBN 978-0615505152.
- Dooster Film (July 2019). Coming Home - Ag Teacht Abhaile. Award-winning documentary film.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d e Ian O'Riordan (22 April 2019). "Shane Lynch breaks The Wicklow Round record". Irish Times. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ a b c d Aaron Rogan (9 May 2018). "Peak performance: record-holder helps young pretender conquer toughest race". The Times. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ Moire O'Sullivan (July 2011). Mud, Sweat and Tears: An Irish Woman's Journey of Self-Discovery Paperback. ISBN 978-0615505152.
- ^ a b c d e Lindie Naughton (15 April 2019). "Paddy O'Leary smashes Wicklow Round record – weekend round-up". Fast Running. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ "Outsider Awards 2018: Most Devoted Individual". December 2018. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
Joe Lalor (65) has given a lifetime of service to Ireland's trail running community. The secretary of IMRA for six years, the creator of the Wicklow Way Relay, the Wicklow Way Round and the Nav Challenge Series, active volunteer and fundraiser for Mountain Meitheal, Joe deserves a huge round of applause!
{{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires|magazine=(help) - ^ a b "Running is a luxury few can do". Irish Times. 9 July 2019. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ "Mountain runner's new book". Irish Independent. 26 October 2011. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ Ellen Barr (10 April 2018). "Derry's Moire talks 'Bump, Bike and Baby' in new 'warts and all' book". Derry Journal. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ a b c d "Watch: Joe McConaughy Smash Eoin Keith's Wicklow Round Record". Outsider Magazine. 10 June 2018. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ a b c d e f Robbie Britton (4 June 2019). "Good lines on the Wicklow Round – Gavin Byrne interview". Fast Running. Retrieved 16 July 2019.
- ^ a b "THE IMRA WICKLOW ROUND". The Irish Mountain Running Association (IMRA). Retrieved 16 July 2019.
External links
edit- Official Site: Irish Mountain Running Association: The IMRA Wicklow Round
- Account of the first-ever successful official Round on the old route, 2007 (Tony Kiernan and Gary Moralee): The Wicklow Round
- Account of the first-ever successful official Round on the current route, 2009 (Moire O'Sullivan): Running over Mountains and around the World: Wicklow Round Route
- Book about the first-ever successful official Round on the current route, 2009 (Moire O'Sullivan): Mud, Sweat, and Tears - an Irish Woman’s Journey of Self-Discovery
- Account of successful official Round on the current route, 2012 (Finbar McGurren): Get No Sleep Adventure Racing: Wicklow Round 2012 – Report
- Video of successful official Round on the current route, 2013 (Richard Nunan, Zoran Skrba and Jeff Fitzsimons): Vimeo: Wicklow Round 2013
- Account of successful official Round on the current route, 2013 (Gareth Little): summit2summit: Wicklow Round Success – Summer 2013
- Video of unsuccessful official Round on the current route, 2014: YouTube: Wicklow Round June 2014: Director's Cut
- Account of successful unofficial Round on the current route, 2016: Carnethy Hill Running Club: Wicklow Round
- Documentary film about Paddy O'Leary's Round on the current route, 2019: Coming Home - Ag Teacht Abhaile