Westport Sea to Summit

Neady83

Peterx wrote: »

Completely off topic but a €1 tourist tax on every bednight in Westport would fund a new built path from the carpark.

You would need mountain access and permission from the landowners but a very very nice alpine style path could be properly built into the mountain.

The path on Diamond Hill is a very good template for what can be done with a little thought - Ok a lot of effort and thought but it is possible.

A masters student gets their thesis on mapping and planning the path, an entrepreneurial local landowner gets a new access point and builds a nice coffee shop, a team of local builders get employment, the original path gets less use, it's a winner (if I do say so myself )

Good point Peter but I remember reading that work is ongoing to try to identify a sensitive way to maintain and manage the path on Croagh Patrick but it's more difficult that you would think: http://www.mountaineering.ie/_files/Elfyn%20Jones%20Croagh%20Patrick%20Report%20-%20May%202013.pdf

I was interested to read that it's not just recreational runners/climbers that need to be taken into account because the mountain has a historical and cultural background and pilgrims were on Croagh Patrick long before trail runners

'The religious status of the mountain also has an influence on the nature of works that may be acceptable on this mountain. The annual pilgrimage on Reek Sunday sees an estimated 30,000 individuals ascending the mountain in one day. Many of these individuals see this as a purely religious pilgrimage and regard the challenge of ascending a worn and difficult path as part of the pilgrimage and would not want to see the challenge reduced by overengineered
path works. This pilgrimage is one of Ireland’s most significant cultural events
and is reputed to date back at least 1500 years and is one of the most extraordinary surviving pilgrimages in Western Europe'

AdpRo

Would anyone happen to have a strava link to the supreme route from last year please?

RegisteredMice

AdpRo wrote: »

Would anyone happen to have a strava link to the supreme route from last year please?

+1 for this please..

stampydmonkey

https://www.strava.com/activities/216798039

Supernintento Chalmers

Anyone use a second pair of runners for the Croagh Patrick stage?
I.e. leave a pair by their bike space before the race?

woody1

dont think your allowed to leave them there, you definitely cant leave them behind you when you get back on your bike.. il have to check a race briefing from before ..
debating having a pair on the bike, either in bottle cages or on the tri-bars- this year and wearing the bike shoes for the first time..

Supernintento Chalmers

woody1 wrote: »

dont think your allowed to leave them there, you definitely cant leave them behind you when you get back on your bike.. il have to check a race briefing from before ..
debating having a pair on the bike, either in bottle cages or on the tri-bars- this year and wearing the bike shoes for the first time..

Thanks. I'm debating the same thing.
Might go the dual bottle cage behind saddle route.

Zzippy

I changed shoes last year, the bike leg is long enough and hilly enough that bike shoes make a difference. Saw some guys with runners stuck in their handlebars somehow, including the winner. I was slow enough that a backpack wasn't going to slow me down much more...

stampydmonkey

Zzippy wrote: »

I changed shoes last year, the bike leg is long enough and hilly enough that bike shoes make a difference. Saw some guys with runners stuck in their handlebars somehow, including the winner. I was slow enough that a backpack wasn't going to slow me down much more...

Yeah me too. Bit of warmth on ur back too

Supernintento Chalmers

woody1 wrote: »

dont think your allowed to leave them there, you definitely cant leave them behind you when you get back on your bike.. il have to check a race briefing from before ..
debating having a pair on the bike, either in bottle cages or on the tri-bars- this year and wearing the bike shoes for the first time..

I contacted the orgnaisers.
No issue with leaving runners at second transition, obviously you do so at your own risk, etc.

woody1

Supernintento Chalmers wrote: »

I contacted the orgnaisers.
No issue with leaving runners at second transition, obviously you do so at your own risk, etc.

thats interesting, still would mean an extra spin out there on the morning, or get someone to do it for you.. worth thinking about though.

Supernintento Chalmers

woody1 wrote: »

thats interesting, still would mean an extra spin out there on the morning, or get someone to do it for you.. worth thinking about though.

I think I'll leave the SPDs there to have them for the 35k cycle.
Then have a second pair of runners left at T1 for the final run.

iluvfatfrogs

Anyone see the compulsory race packs popping up in local shops / tesco yet?
This time last year they were everywhere

woody1

Supernintento Chalmers wrote: »

I think I'll leave the SPDs there to have them for the 35k cycle.
Then have a second pair of runners left at T1 for the final run.

doing the short race, im still debating, mostly cos i cant be bothered changing the pedals on the bike, so im probably gonna run in one pair , leave them at t1, have the second pair on the bike or left at t2, bike shoes to croagh patrick, second pair for the run up and down, back in on the bike shoes and back up the road in the runners again..
is it worth it for the short race.. probably not.. but ive done the race a load of times on flat pedals so i might do it this way for a change

for the long race id definitely have the bike shoes..

Zzippy

woody1 wrote: »

doing the short race, im still debating, mostly cos i cant be bothered changing the pedals on the bike, so im probably gonna run in one pair , leave them at t1, have the second pair on the bike or left at t2, bike shoes to croagh patrick, second pair for the run up and down, back in on the bike shoes and back up the road in the runners again..
is it worth it for the short race.. probably not.. but ive done the race a load of times on flat pedals so i might do it this way for a change

for the long race id definitely have the bike shoes..

I'm doing the short one this year too, def not going to bother with SPDs for that short and flat a cycle. Too much faffing about. Would def have them for the long race, only problem is if you can't make it up the Maum hill (:o ) you have to walk up it in SPDs...

Supernintento Chalmers

woody1 wrote: »

doing the short race, im still debating, mostly cos i cant be bothered changing the pedals on the bike, so im probably gonna run in one pair , leave them at t1, have the second pair on the bike or left at t2, bike shoes to croagh patrick, second pair for the run up and down, back in on the bike shoes and back up the road in the runners again..
is it worth it for the short race.. probably not.. but ive done the race a load of times on flat pedals so i might do it this way for a change

for the long race id definitely have the bike shoes..

I'm going to use runners on the SPD pedals for the first cycle then use SPD shoes for the second cycle.

Last year I did all the cycling on SPD pedals in runners, if I was doing that again I'd get a pair of these covers for the SPDs I think.

Davee71

I did the supreme race (long one ) last year and wore a backpack to carry my cycling shoes/ trail runners. Bit of a pain but I was glad of it at the finish as I had put a long sleeve top and waterproof jacket in and I was able to wrap up while waiting for the others in my group.

I bought a smaller back pack with a drinks bladder in it for this year as I didn't drink enough on Croagh Patrick and suffered on the rest of the event.

I wouldn't cycle a bike without cycling shoes...especially on hills

iluvfatfrogs

Received an email last week (presume everybody did), where it stated Portwest had a pouch pack which contained the compulsory pack all for €14.99.

Went into Portwest on Saturday and they didn't have a notion what i was on about. Proceeded to shoe me a pouch (empty) for €22.99!

Not sure why they go to the hassle of included the info in the circular whent he store hasn't prepared it!

Tec Diver

I did the Dingle AR in June and used cycling shoes for the bike and had my trail runners in the two bottle mounts with a short bungee. I had a camelbak for water. Worked out really well.

Eoin

AdpRo

Anyone done this as well as the killarney Adventure race? How does the cycle compare to Killarney?

Animella

iluvfatfrogs wrote: »

Received an email last week (presume everybody did), where it stated Portwest had a pouch pack which contained the compulsory pack all for €14.99.

Went into Portwest on Saturday and they didn't have a notion what i was on about. Proceeded to shoe me a pouch (empty) for €22.99!

Not sure why they go to the hassle of included the info in the circular whent he store hasn't prepared it!

Not good. A bit more hassle but far cheaper to put your own together anyway. Foil blanket, bandage, plasters and whistle, squash into a small ziplock bag and stick it in your jersey pocket.

stampydmonkey

AdpRo wrote: »

Anyone done this as well as the killarney Adventure race? How does the cycle compare to Killarney?

Not done both but if KAR goes up Molls Gap, then KAR is harder

AdpRo

KAR goes up Molls alright but not on the main road, comes up from the black valley, that actually isn't the hardest part of the KAR cycle, the Gap of Dunloe is the steepest part. I should be well able for the S2S cycle so. Cheers.

Animella

Decisions, decisions ...
Did the marathon on Monday. Feeling fine but trying to decide if I would benefit from doing Reek tomorrow ( just to shoulder ) or not?
Would love to re familiarise myself with it before Saturday but worried I might be sore if I do. Haven't been up since January.
Glorious day today, would have been fab for the race. Fingers crossed it will be just as nice this day week.

Hurler85

I would tend to leave the reek until next week. Even going to the shoulder will have the quads burning tomorrow, and with having the marathon done last week, doesnt leave a lot of time to be firing on all cylinders for the race on Saturday. Great day for climbing the reek though!

Animella

Hurler85 wrote: »

I would tend to leave the reek until next week. Even going to the shoulder will have the quads burning tomorrow, and with having the marathon done last week, doesnt leave a lot of time to be firing on all cylinders for the race on Saturday. Great day for climbing the reek though!

Thanks. You're right- just such a beautiful day it's hard to resist!
Good luck if you're doing it again.

Zzippy

stampydmonkey wrote: »

Not done both but if KAR goes up Molls Gap, then KAR is harder

Well I haven't done both either so I wouldn't dream of comparing, but the Maum hill on S2S cycle is one of the few I've ever had to get off and walk up. The KAR cycle is the first leg so your legs are fresh, the S2S cycle comes after climbing Croagh Patrick, so your legs are already tired from that.

AdpRo

KAR cycle is the 2nd leg, it's after a 7km mountain run, no comparison to climbing the reek though!

woody1

no obstacle course this year ! didnt do it last year so dont know if there was one last year, cant say im sorry always left my legs in bits for the last run..

weather looking like it could be on the wet side which is a pity, hopefully things change as the week goes on ..

iluvfatfrogs

woody1 wrote: »

no obstacle course this year ! didnt do it last year so dont know if there was one last year, cant say im sorry always left my legs in bits for the last run..

weather looking like it could be on the wet side which is a pity, hopefully things change as the week goes on ..

No obstacle course last year either