Art O'Neill 2023

Mad Benny

Well done! What was it like and have you done it before in January? I saw photos of many of the finishers wearing shorts.

TheRef

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/123859300#Comment_123859300

I only done the Pursuit (first half all on road section) in January 24 so it was very different this weekend. It was pretty mild for the most part but obviously anywhere exposed on the mountains was very windy and the temps dropped. I'd guess that you'd need to be a pretty experienced fell runner to consider wearing shorts the whole way as otherwise you are asking for trouble. The rain also started just after sunrise and didn't stop.

I think I'd go again giving the chance, but considering how difficult Friday night was in mild-ish weather, I can't imagine how much more difficult it will with ice and snow to contend with.

buffalo

I was in the same boat - did the Pursuit last year. I had shorts on up until reaching Art's Cross when the driving rain started and I put on leggings there. I'd say anybody moving at speed would've been finished by the time the rain started, so shorts were definitely an option!

The DWMRT folk were saying that they didn't have many slower finishers compared to other years. Their words were that everyone must be very fit, but I'd say the milder weather played a big factor.

py

I forgot I had this in draft so may as well post it now.

I ran the AON Pursuit last Friday (now many Fridays ago). The standard race route is not being held until the end of September. I was due to run this in 2024 but had to drop out last minute with injury. The change of date to May meant it was much more accessible to me. There were perfect running conditions on the evening, approx. 10C at Dublin castle and little to no wind. Whilst I had paid for the bus from Kippure to the start line at Dublin Castle, I didn't want to be hanging around for hours before starting my race. I opted to drop the car up and had a family member give me a lift home before making my own way to Dublin Castle much closer to the race start time. I arrived close to 9pm and number collection was swift. There were plenty of DWMRT folk about and also other runners who I had some chats with.

The race started on time and I opted to be near the front as the horn blew as I knew I wanted to push early on before the real hills started at about 12/13Km. You have a persistent drag up until that point. I was a little apprehensive on how to approach the open roads whilst racing. For the most part, the roads were relatively quiet and I got luck with traffic lights for the entire distance so was never held up unnecessarily. They got even quieter after the turn onto Firhouse Road which is a wide enough road in the suburbs. I started following the racing line along this stretch which resulted in me passing several faster runners who opted to follow the road's curvature.

The real fun began as we passed the turn off for Bohernabreena. No more street lights and you were solely relying on your head torch. The roads were pretty much empty at this point too with less than 10 cars passing us by for about a 90 minute period. I had been up here several times on the bike and once recently on a long run. I knew the hills were sharp at points so I went for a run/walk strategy at various points were running was just not worth the effort. The double digit gradients were incredibly tough so walking/hiking was the best option for me. DWMRT were located at the bottom of Shankhill Road. There was still 10Km to go from here and quite a bit of ascent. My earlier swift pace had allowed me to bank quite a bit of time so the walk/run wasn't impacting my goal of coming in under 2:45. On the main descent on the other side of the Shankhill road, my legs and feet were beginning to hurt. The routine mental maths late in a race had me considering a sub 2:30 effort so I tried my best to keep the pace below 6mins/Km.

Coming down off Shankhill road you can see the entrance to Kippure estate but there is still the best part of 1Km to go. I was pushing as hard as I could along the driveway. As you get to the end of the driveway, there is a left turn that inclines up towards the finish line. This was brutal at this stage. I get the legs pumping as quickly as possible and come in under the 2:30 mark which I was delighted with. My legs were proper cooked and it took a few minutes to gather myself so I could get fuel/hydration from the wonderful DWMRT team and other volunteers.

The spread of food and refreshments at the end was fantastic. Exactly what I needed. I had a chat with a few of the runners whilst I waited for some friends to finish. As the legs were more comfortable underneath me, I helped other runners who looked too cooked to go back up for seconds by getting them more food/hydration. A minibus from the finish line to the car is something that needs to be offered, I'd have paid a lot of money for it :) I eventually got to the car and as I drove down the driveway, I uttered a few words of encouragement to the runners who coming into the finish.

A very enjoyable and challenging experience. One to consider if you struggle for motivation through the darker months as its usually schedule for early/mid January.