Race Around Ireland starts this Sunday 12th Sept at 8pm, Navan, Co. Meath

jeffontour

Currently lying down for 1st time since 7 Tuesday morning. Riders doing savage work in tough conditions. Reckon we will hit Bundoran round 330.

Chips Lovell

According to Twitter, race leader Bernd Paul received a 15minute time penalty for consistently failing to report to race HQ at an intermediate checkpoint.

Beasty

el tonto wrote: »

According to Twitter, race leader Bernd Paul received a 15minute time penalty for consistently failing to report to race HQ at an intermediate checkpoint.

I think penalties ramp up - the next offence gets something like 30 mins

Let's hope team Renegade live up to their name. Will our banhammers work in the real world?

Seriously though, it would be a shame if anyone loses any places because of time penalties, but as always, the rules are there to be observed.

alfalad

Silly question i'm sure but how do they know that lads are not taking short cuts/lifts etc?

shaungil

marshalls enroute. honour system. Last year some solos sent a crew to follow other solos.

Would be v difficult to cheat anyway as you could pass them on the road , you never are quite sure where anyone else is. Terribly cynical you are;)

alfalad

shaungil wrote: »

marshalls enroute. honour system. Last year some solos sent a crew to follow other solos.

Would be v difficult to cheat anyway as you could pass them on the road , you never are quite sure where anyone else is. Terribly cynical you are;)

Not cynical just curious, thought if everyone had a garmin with HR/Cadence monitor it would be a hand way of checking.

smithslist

More updates today from official blog...some good reading and insight

http://twojournosandabikerace.wordpress.com/

rash

Some pics of Valerio Zamboni (104) at the top of Short Mountain outside Tralee @ 2030

ednwireland

what happened to Ratschob he's dnf on the time sheets
(yes i know that means he's retired just wondering why)

serendip

rash wrote: »

Some pics of Valerio Zamboni (104) at the top of Short Mountain outside Tralee @ 2030

That chap looks on spectacular form!

Beasty

ednwireland wrote: »

what happened to Ratschob he's dnf on the time sheets
(yes i know that means he's retired just wondering why)

Facebook Page is reporting "medical reasons"

A big shame to have got well past half-way, and then have to pull out.

billy.fish

Through. :mad:

The day i act like a grammar Nazi is a bad one....

Beasty

From Facebook

Team Tora Tora Tora had a bad mishap this morning when they drove under a barrier without taking the bikes off the roof rack first..... The barrier took two bikes off for them.

RobFowl

Beasty wrote: »

From Facebook

Was HungryCol driving ??

alfalad

Any ideas on the expected finish time/day of the winner and the 4 man teams?

Beasty

In the solos Paul Bernd has probably less than 300km to go, and I guess it depends on whether he needs more sleep. His overall average speed is 20kph, which suggests he could finish some time overnight

Wheels of destiny in the 2-man have only 200km to go, so could finish some time later on this evening

For the 4-man teams, it looks like total times will be 70 hrs+, which would be from around 6pm tomorrow

TomMc

alfalad wrote: »

Any ideas on the expected finish time/day of the winner and the 4 man teams?

8pm in Navan on Friday evening would be 72 hours and a steady 30kph from start to finish. IMHO, anything under this time would be a major achievement.

alfalad

Some race by Paul Bernd. Savage stuff!

billy.fish

TomMc wrote: »

8pm in Navan on Friday evening would be 72 hours and a steady 30kph from start to finish. IMHO, anything under this time would be a major achievement.

Winning time 64 hours last year IIRC our boys home shortly after.

Beasty

billy.fish wrote: »

Winning time 64 hours last year IIRC our boys home shortly after.

67hrs 27mins was the fastest (No prior Experiance), with second (An Post Team Connaught) in 68hrs 38mins (both 4-man teams)

3rd 4-man team was just over 76 and a half hours, with Swords in 77hrs or so (they were down to 3 men for the vast majority of it)

TomMc

billy.fish wrote: »

Winning time 64 hours last year IIRC our boys home shortly after.

Under 70 hours is an amazing time. Having spent some time with the guys for much of yesterday, anything under 70 hours (to my uninitiated cycling mind:D) seems unrealistic altogether. Maybe the elements have been more of a factor this year, coupled with the odd navigation screw up.

How these guys can cycle round the clock, sometimes with only 30 minutes sleep (despite 3 - 4 hour gaps between time stations/stages) before getting in the saddle again, borders on super human.

billy.fish

Beasty wrote: »

67hrs 27mins was the fastest (No prior Experiance), with second (An Post Team Connaught) in 68hrs 38mins (both 4-man teams)

3rd 4-man team was just over 76 and a half hours, with Swords in 77hrs or so (they were down to 3 men for the vast majority of it)

Where did i loose 4 hours from then....TBH at that point most of the race became a blur.

And we werent even in the main crew. Ah memories *goes off to cry in the corner*

shaungil

Last year we arrived into Tralee about the same time as the lads and finished in 77 odd hours I think so 1.00 in morning. Course slighly changed and different conditions though so hard to know. We also really struggled last two TS's.

Be suprised if last years time beaten as conditions much harder this year.

Beasty

Another facebook quote:

"Atlanta are still debating what type of animal tried to knock Fintan
off the bike last night. Could have been badger, mink or they think it
might have been a really fast sheep!!!"

Looks like the hallucinations are setting in:)

Beasty

Wheels of Destiny are expected to be first back to Navan at around 2am. That would be around 100 hours or so for a 2 man team

Looks like Bernd Paul will be the next one in to win the solo race

Good luck to you all

paddymacsporran

Saw Bernd Paul on the Shay Elliot and in Laragh.

Incredible! He looked fresh, steady and was riding strong at the top of the Shay Elliot and he was in good spirits in Laragh too.

Beasty

paddymacsporran wrote: »

Saw Bernd Paul on the Shay Elliot and in Laragh.

Are you sure that wasn't one of the Wheels of Destiny team? Bernd Paul is only shown as leaving Drinagh in Wexford less than 2 and a half hours ago.

The tax man

Beasty wrote: »

Are you sure that wasn't one of the Wheels of Destiny team? Bernd Paul is only shown as leaving Drinagh in Wexford less than 2 and a half hours ago.

3 hour old Facebook entry has him gone through Aughrim? Has to be one of WoD riders. If not what the hell is going on with the timing sheet?

Hermy

Wheels of Destiny finished at 02:56.
102hr 1min. Avg speed 20.6km/h.
Fantastic stuff - well done.

silvo

Amazing stuff from John and Murt, and their Wheels of Destiny team!

paddymacsporran

Beasty wrote: »

Are you sure that wasn't one of the Wheels of Destiny team? Bernd Paul is only shown as leaving Drinagh in Wexford less than 2 and a half hours ago.

Facebook had Bernd Paul as leaving Aughrim about 8pm, the rider I saw was in Laragh just after 9:30 so the timing seemed right to me....!!!

Beasty

paddymacsporran wrote: »

Facebook had Bernd Paul as leaving Aughrim about 8pm, the rider I saw was in Laragh just after 9:30 so the timing seemed right to me....!!!

I guess it's very easy for roadside reporters to mix up the riders - some of the facebook entries are coming in from the general public

A few quotes from the overnight Facebook entries:

Some bad news sadly Wyatt Wendels has pulled out he faught to the bitter end well done Wyatt for your great efford and hopfully we'll see you next year .

team 202 has been put on rabbit watch after killing a poor rabbit .neill some man for one man is your crew not feeding you .

Just been speaking to Ian Campbell's crew chief and she has requested that "All coffee shops on the race route are to be told to BAR that man! This is a serious race and cappucinos and carrot cake have no place in Ultra Marathons" So if you know any, let them know

paddymacsporran

Yep, I've looked at the photos on FB and the guy I saw was wearing what looked loke Wheels of Destiny kit right enough.

He looked strong as on the Shay Elliot anyway!

Beasty

Paul Bernd has just passed through Trim - about 10km to go!!

alfalad

Beasty wrote: »

Paul Bernd has just passed through Trim - about 10km to go!!

Thats a nice flat road with a good surface too, nice end to the trip!

ROK ON

Renegade #1
Boards #2 at 3h44m
RPM #3 at 5h15m
Teams ToraToraTora, Maccs Poynts and Atlanta are around 12-17hours behind Renegade.

squigo

Solo rider Donnacha Cutriss just came up St patricks hill at 2.00pm.

Going well

Beasty

Paul Bernd in at 13.42 - that's 2,160km in under 113 hours, averaging over 19kph - a phenomenal performance, particularly given the conditions in the first few days

Congratulations!

dapope

squigo wrote: »

Solo rider Donnacha Cutriss just came up St patricks hill at 2.00pm.

Going well

Delighted to hear Donnacha is going well.

Thanks for the update squigo!

Beasty

dapope wrote: »

Delighted to hear Donnacha is going well.

Looks like he may be the last one to get through it in the time allowed

Not sure what's happened to the Underdogs - there has been no update since around 7 am when they went through the last checkpoint before the end ahead of Paul Bernd. (Maybe they're taking it easy to give themselves an easier target to beat next year;))

dapope

Beasty wrote: »

Looks like he may be the last one to get through it in the time allowed

Fingers crossed. I really hope he does it.

squigo

Beasty wrote: »

Looks like he may be the last one to get through it in the time allowed

Not sure what's happened to the Underdogs - there has been no update since around 7 am when they went through the last checkpoint before the end ahead of Paul Bernd. (Maybe they're taking it easy to give themselves an easier target to beat next year;))

Was the time extended by 12 hours due to bad weather?

penexpers

squigo wrote: »

Was the time extended by 12 hours due to bad weather?

It was, but only for solo's and 2 person teams.

Beasty

penexpers wrote: »

It was, but only for solo's and 2 person teams.

They now have 144 hours to complete it

The time on the website for Donnacha is very confusing - it's shown at 100 hours, when I think it should be 110! That makes his average speed 14.7kph rather than the 16.1kph shown on the website

It would take 147 hours or so to complete at 14.7 kph, so it does look touch and go for him - probably down to how much time he needs to take off to sleep

The next rider, Leslie Holton, is averaging 13.2kph, and at this speed it would take her 158 hours, well outside the limit unfortunately. There is another slower rider, Ian Campbell, who won't make it in the time. Having got this far though, I hope they all go on to at least get round the course

Beasty

Renegade have won the 4-person race, finishing in Navan at 9.33 - a total time of 73hr 33min, and average speed of 28.6kph

Congratulations on a great performance guys - you must have been good to beat that Boards Team;)

EDIT - average speed is actually 29.4kph - the website seems to be cutting the distance off at 2,100km, when, based on the individual stage lengths, it's seems to be 2,160km

Beasty

Cadbury's won the 8-man, finishing in 84hr 35m, with Youghal runners up in 88hr 18m

Ian Campbell has pulled out of ths solo race

One 4-man team (Atlanta) remains out on the Road, but should be finishing soon

That leaves 3 solos out on the road. Valerio Zamboni is on the last leg, and should make it within the allotted time. Donncha Cuttris may be touch and go to make it, but Leslie Holton would have to do 440km in 10 hours, so will not make the cut-off

Beasty

Congratulations to 100Suns - I only found out last night you are one of the Renegades - fantastic performance, and great to see a boardsie in the winning team:)

Beasty

Leslie Holton abandoned at 9pm, but the great news is Donncha Cuttriss came over the finishing line just over half an hour ago to complete the race with 31 minutes to spare within the 144 hour time limit.

From Facebook:

Busted hip,hamstring ready to snap,swollen eyes,saddle versus balls confontation,feet swollen into his shoes ,severe chest pains,blockage in windpipe and he wouldnt give up,this fellas unreal,glad i was part of it .needs to change his nickname from "capperman" to "THE TERMINATOR"

Another fantastic performance, particularly given the injuries he suffered early in the race

Hermy

Beasty wrote: »

Leslie Holton abandoned at 9pm, but the great news is Donncha Cuttriss came over the finishing line just over half an hour ago to complete the race with 31 minutes to spare within the 144 hour time limit.

From Facebook:


Another fantastic performance, particularly given the injuries he suffered early in the race

That's savage stuff. Thanks for posting.

100Suns

On behalf of all of the Renegade riders and crew a huge thank you is due to the organizers including Emmet, Alan, Lorraine, Simon and all of the bodies back at base manning the phones and progress boards 24 hours per day for the duration. And to the marshals for keeping us company! The scale of the undertaking is gargantuan and massive credit is due to them. The detail and accuracy in the route book is staggering and Emmet cannot be praised highly enough for it.
Chatting to them back at base someone commented that mile for mile it is the toughest race in the world. Not having done RAAM I can't comment but they have and they know what they are talking about. This event deserves to go from strength to strength attracting large numbers of participants based on the quality of the organization and the challenge of the course. However, it's future isn't guaranteed given the vagaries of sports sponsorship at the moment. With increased interest and participation in cycling one would hope that sponsors would see the value in being involved. Hopefully Boards can do it's bit too to plant the event in the cycling public's consciousness as an epic event at the pinnacle of endurance cycling.
Thanks again to everyone involved in the RAI.