Art O'Neill Challenge 2015

AON2014

Hello out there,

I just wanted to let people know that the Art O'Neill Challenge will be going ahead on January 16th and 17th in 2015.

We have opted for a postal entry followed by a draw to give everyone the same chance of getting one of the 200 spots.

Up to four entries can go in one envelope so pals can race together. Entries need to be received by October 31st. Full details of how to enter are on the Art ONeill Challenge website.

Any queries just ask or email

Thanks

The AON Team

opus

Entry forms have been in the post since yesterday morning

mloc123

I see to enter I need to include payment with the form... what happens if I do not get a place? I don't have a cheque book so would need to send a bank draft.

jlang

Where the registration form says "Ultra (Solo only)" does the "Solo only" relate in any way to the "multiple entries in an envelope" rule change?

DogSlySmile

jlang wrote: »

Where the registration form says "Ultra (Solo only)" does the "Solo only" relate in any way to the "multiple entries in an envelope" rule change?

The "Solo Only" means that you cannot be guided like you can in the other categories.

mloc123

What are the odds on getting an entry.. roughly?

AON2014

mloc123 wrote: »

I see to enter I need to include payment with the form... what happens if I do not get a place? I don't have a cheque book so would need to send a bank draft.

The entry checklist includes a SAE so any undrawn entries and the bank drafts etc that came with them will just get posted back to the sender.

Any other questions just shout.

AON2014

jlang wrote: »

Where the registration form says "Ultra (Solo only)" does the "Solo only" relate in any way to the "multiple entries in an envelope" rule change?

As DogSlySmile said this just relates to the slight issue we had last year with quite a few Ultras requesting guiding. We will only have limited guides available and they will only be walking from Checkpoint 1 to the Finish in Glenmalure. That's mad enough if you ask me.

Any category of entry can enter up to four people(with all the checklist items included) in a single entry envelope. That way a group of friends can enter and they all get in or all get left out.

This is the fairest way of doing I could think of considering the limit of 200.

AON2014

mloc123 wrote: »

What are the odds on getting an entry.. roughly?

Hard to be sure in last year's event it was about 3 or 4:1 - I'd expect it to be in the same region this time around. Still there's 200 places going a begging and not one of them is gone yet so get your entry in.

ronn

Why is it limited to 200,
Just out of Curiosity??

ThisRegard

National Parks and Wildlife Service restriction.

ronn

ThisRegard wrote: »

National Parks and Wildlife Service restriction.

You'd think they'd be trying to promote the use of the countryside, there be loads of people practicing/training and using the wicklow way and surrounding areas,
And I know from previous personal dealings with npws there be a fee involved for using the tracks,
Thanks

ThisRegard

I think their issue is too many people at the same time causing erosion problems. They've put limits on a couple of IMRA races in recent years too.

ronn

ThisRegard wrote: »

I think their issue is too many people at the same time causing erosion problems. They've put limits on a couple of IMRA races in recent years too.

That's crazy people who are doing these events have respect for the countryside,
It's a once a year event and I'm sure the imra race don't race the same track every week,
Sorry I'm ranting,
Thanks

AON2014

The 200 limit is imposed by the National Parks & Wildlife Service as they are the ones responsible for managing the National Park and Special Protection Areas(SPAs) that any event such as the Art O'Neill goes through. We are bound by the rules and want the event to have as positive an impact as possible. If that means keeping it small then so be it. Remember you have until the end of the month to get your applications in and if we get more than 200 a draw will take place to allocate places. Check the SignUp tab on the ArtONeillChallenge website for full details of what you need to enter.

mr spuckler

haha, i might be returning from honeymoon the day before this! definitely submitting an entry so

911sc

Posted my application form yesterday morning as i was walking to the start of DCM. Always sign up for a mad thing before the next one has been completed:)
Waiting game now... but this is a very fair way of selecting participants.

Gravale

Accounts of some early Art O'Neill Walks:

http://www.simonstewart.ie/Longwalk/ArtONeill/art_oneill.htm

Mad Benny

Any idea when the lucky and unlucky entrants will be notifyed?

BeBetter

Nothing from the postman again today

Endurancer123

BeBetter wrote: »

Nothing from the postman again today

Post man could have got lost on the way to you

BeBetter

Endurancer123 wrote: »

Post man could have got lost on the way to you

Well for that comment now... if you get lost on the top of the Wicklow Mountains on Jan 17th I'm not coming looking for ya!

DogSlySmile

Check your emails lads - there will be no post sent!

opus

Just got 'the email', I'm in for next Jan! Of course I may regret this when I'm shivering on the side of a hill at 5am

Hatcho

Same here - delighted to be in!! Training time...big time!!

mloc123

I am in also, entered under the 'Ultra'.. did all mails go out today? My sister was in under the trek but heard nothing yet.

Mad Benny

Wooo hooo. I'm doing the hybrid

Stark

Got a mail confirming my entry.

AON2014

100's of envelopes, paperclips, emails and a funny taste in my mouth and the draw is complete. Everyone who provided a legible email address has been contacted to give the results and the unsuccessful applicants have had their cheques returned by post.

It would be great to accommodate everyone but we need to observe the NPWS limits. Best of luck with the training to those who got in and better luck next year to those that didn't.

We have the makings of a another great Art O'Neill Challenge with a great mix of walkers, hybrids and Ultras of course. Both title holders will be back to defend their records but we have a very strong Ultra field so AON2015 could see a real challenge for those coveted first spots.

That's it for now but further event information will be made available here and on the Art O'Neill Challenge website.

Mont Blanc

Hi all,
I was absolutely delighted to find out this evening that I'll be taking part in the Art O'Neill challenge in 2015. I'll be hiking the route and was just wondering if anyone could give me an idea of a suitable training schedule? I have started hiking in the mountains one day per week (at the weekend) and doing some cycling or walking on the roads in the evening. Does this sound like it's enough at all? I'm trying to build up my stamina and general fitness so do you think I should add in some gym work to this?
Thanks for your help.

Gasherbraun

Mont Blanc wrote: »

Hi all,
I was absolutely delighted to find out this evening that I'll be taking part in the Art O'Neill challenge in 2015. I'll be hiking the route and was just wondering if anyone could give me an idea of a suitable training schedule? I have started hiking in the mountains one day per week (at the weekend) and doing some cycling or walking on the roads in the evening. Does this sound like it's enough at all? I'm trying to build up my stamina and general fitness so do you think I should add in some gym work to this?
Thanks for your help.

I guess it varies from person to person but I have found a mix of road and hillwalking worked for me. About 10km road walking a day and weekly 15 / 20 / 25km hill walks leading up to it. Try and walk each section of the route at least once as well and embrace all weather conditions....there is no guarantee of good weather on the event.

Finally I walked from Marlay to Glendalough (Wicklow Way) in one push about a week prior to the event which is not as tough as the AON but I found was good for confidence as regards doing the distance.

Gravale

Concentrate on hiking and more hiking. At this stage I wouldn't do less than 30k hikes each weekend. I've done 48k hikes each Sunday for the last three weeks and always perform better going solo.

Don't march to the beat of another's drum. Don't run around with the turkeys, fly with the eagles.

Gasherbraun

Gravale wrote: »

Concentrate on hiking and more hiking. At this stage I wouldn't do less than 30k hikes each weekend. I've done 48k hikes each Sunday for the last three weeks and always perform better going solo.

Don't march to the beat of another's drum. Don't run around with the turkeys, fly with the eagles.

Out of interest Gravale do you do any specific training for the event or are you naturally at a fitness level where you can just undertake it?

Do you still manage it on a Mars bar and some Lucozade ;-)

Gravale

My speed isn't what it used to be, but I can still get through it based purely on year-round activity.

1.5L of Lucozade Sport and two Mars bars does the job for me, but most of all it's my psychological approach:

It's only a 28k road walk with 798m total ascent to Ballynultagh, followed by a 24k mountain hike with 840m total ascent (13k of which is on forest trails) to Baravore.

It doesn't sound so bad when you look at it that way.

Mont Blanc

Thank you guys, that's very helpful.

Mad Benny

I have a question about the down jacket and Merino wool base layers. I have a Berghaus gore-tex fleece lined jacket that I use for hillwalking. Will this do?

Has anyone tried running with Merino wool base layers. I'm doing the hybrid. It's expensive gear. Don't want to buy it if it's not suitable.

Stark

Have Merino wool base layers for running in and very happy with them. Worth the investment.

Mad Benny

Stark wrote: »

Have Merino wool base layers for running in and very happy with them. Worth the investment.

Thanks Stark. Can you recommend a brand?

Mad Benny

Stark wrote: »

Have Merino wool base layers for running in and very happy with them. Worth the investment.

Thanks Stark. Can you recommend a brand?

Stark

Icebreaker, Smartwool, Ortovox are good brands imo. You might also be able to get cheaper ones that are still good quality in the Patagonia outlet store on Dublin's Exchequer street.

Mad Benny

Found this post from a previous year. Only the gear with asterixs beside them are mandatory.

See http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showpost.php?p=74536652&postcount=9

911sc

I am doing a bit of shopping as well....

List of gear is @ http://www.artoneillchallenge.ie/gear.html

mloc123

Heading up to Wicklow on Sunday to recce the section from Kippure to the wicklow gap road. To me that section and the section from there to the cross seem to be the more difficult parts to follow. The rest all looks to be road and well defined trail.

911sc

Interesting reading about base layers @ http://thenextchallenge.org/comparison-base-layer-materials/

Gasherbraun

mloc123 wrote: »

Heading up to Wicklow on Sunday to recce the section from Kippure to the wicklow gap road. To me that section and the section from there to the cross seem to be the more difficult parts to follow. The rest all looks to be road and well defined trail.

The section from Arts Cross to Table track is probably the most testing part of the route being a pretty much featureless and trackless area of bog and peat hags that is well worth getting a feel for before the event. Admittedly there is Three Lakes as a waypoint (normally actually two lakes) but these are hard to find in low visibility. Hitting Table track at the right point is also important and requires careful navigation in this section.

All of this is is undertaken when the body and mind are tired and you may well be questioning what the hell you are doing there :-)

Mad Benny

911sc wrote: »

Interesting reading about base layers @ http://thenextchallenge.org/comparison-base-layer-materials/

Thanks for providing the link. This part is interesting. Merino wool doesn't sound great for those running.

Even the thinnest types of wool tend to be warmer than synthetic tops so they are better suited to colder environments and less intense activity, particularly as they don’t wick as well (better than cotton but not a patch on synthetic). Running on a cold UK winter’s day, I found mine getting saturated with sweat and, similarly, my team mates skiing hard towing a pulk in Svalbard at -15C still preferred the more efficient wicking of their synthetic tops.

DogSlySmile

Merino wool is recommended by the organizers but its not a must have piece of kit. I did AON last year in a base layer I bought in Lidl (€7 or €8) and a regular running t-shirt on top. I stuck the rain jacket on when I got out onto the open mountain as it was windy and I was slowing down a bit. But there is really no need to spend €80-90 on a base layer, just keep moving, have a "just in case" layer in your bag and let the thoughts of the hot soup, porridge and hot chocoloate at the CPs keep you going

ThisRegard

Mad Benny wrote: »

Thanks for providing the link. This part is interesting. Merino wool doesn't sound great for those running.

I have a few Icebreaker merino wool tops, even a pair of leggings (I wouldn't wear them running, just under waterproofs if hiking, or for skiing). I also have some those Helly Hansen Lifa tops in that article.

I'm not sure which I prefer, the Helly Hansen Lifa tops are great, I've always loved them as they're brilliant at wicking. You can take one off and the inside is practically dry with all dampness on the outside.

The merino ones are better at keeping you warm though without over heating, and I'd probably wear them in the colder weather when in the hills, I wouldn't usually wear one just out of a road run. But I do find the same thing as the reviewer in that they can become really saturated if wet. It's not a problem in that the dampness makes you cold, you still remain warm when you're active or have another layer

mloc123

I hiked some of the section from CP1 yesterday, after the forest it was very wet and boggy... I couldn't find anything that looked like a trail so just stuck to solid looking ground. Some frost might help for the event...

Gasherbraun

mloc123 wrote: »

I hiked some of the section from CP1 yesterday, after the forest it was very wet and boggy... I couldn't find anything that looked like a trail so just stuck to solid looking ground. Some frost might help for the event...

I would guess a lot of Wicklow is waterlogged at present - certainly where I was over weekend was a quagmire. There is a faint trail on the SE side of the Balinagee River leading towards the forest entrance at O488 386 but at that point you may have daylight (visibility is not a given however) and see the forest entrance anyway. Depending on where you are in the field these tracks may be more enhanced by people ahead of you.

From CP2 the Glenreemore Valley can also be very wet and soft and contouring up the drier slopes to the SW of the river is worth considering. You still get to visit the cross but avoid the steep climb from the plaque.

As for frost and frozen ground you may have this according to a lot of forecasts. However the weather that gives you that ground can provide its own challenges. Just ask anyone who did the event in 2011.

Stark

Gasherbraun wrote: »

As for frost and frozen ground you may have this according to a lot of forecasts. However the weather that gives you that ground can provide its own challenges. Just ask anyone who did the event in 2011.

That was the year I did it. Fond memories (especially of the beautiful snow covered road from Stone Cross to Kippure, made that section far more interesting) Only issue I remember was the freezing fog over the Black Hill section. Made navigation very difficult. Other than that, the ground was very enjoyable to run on, fastest time I've ever done over the three lakes terrain.