Annacurra Bike Challenge

hey

2008-05-22T11:35:00.000+01:00

Hi,

The Annacurra bike challenge is not happening this year due to this and that but mainly the difficulty of getting insurance cover that was actually cover and didn't leave Doug and myself with our arses out the window.

More enterprising folk include;

The lads of Not The Sunday Run who have a great race up north - blog at http://kilbroneychallenge.blogspot.com/

Johnny McCabe and friends have a cracker in Carlingford http://www.clec.ie/

avec spirite as Johnny would say...

pd

Races aces

2008-02-08T15:37:00.000Z

Currently signing up folk are Rostrevor and AnTurasBeag that I'm very aware of. I'm sure Ivan's series up north are also in full sign-on flow but I'm not really following those to be honest.

The K-Capital series of 4 MTB races is starting up on the 9th of March and is a perfect way to get your race head going without putting too much trauma into your legs (unless you crash)

The ridiculously unnessessary winter league of hill runs is also in full swing with 2 of 5 already completed. Eoin Keith is currently cantering to wins so probably could do with a race from anyone not hobbled by big frowny cross country running coaches or their own insecurites :)

Orienteering is charging away in it's over complicated fashion and i saw their new video at the wee adventure film festival and I have to say it made orienteering look very very good.

Until Doug or I or someone gets the insurance issue sorted out we will not be taking entries for Annacurra. Simple as that.

Great race in Rostrevor

2008-01-29T15:23:00.000Z

Great Race in Rostrevor

https://www.sportident.co.uk/entries/event.php?event_id=124

This was a brilliant race last year and entries have opened on their website now.

Teams of two last year so i presume it's same this year

Annacurra '08

2007-11-16T15:06:00.000Z

The Annacurra Challenge will be on the second Saturday in August, the 9th.

We need feedback on the route, the race, how you felt, the showers, the lack of showers, everything. Please add comments here.

Doug and myself are going to spend some ploddy days over the winter trying to find some more trails and tracks to add into the route with a completely new route another option.

In fact it's all up in the air as up till yesterday I thought there was to be no more Annacurra race as I reckoned we'd both had enough of it. Silly me...

Doug is keen so we go ahead.

Probably the same format bike run bike with a longer run and a longer second bike for the Elite level folk. I personnally have little interest in catering for long course athletes, we get looked after all the time so Annacurra was supposed to be an entry level event for everyone, not just whippets with lungs and legs the size of small towns. In saying that, we still fell into the usual routine of giving the best prizes to the long course winners last year - thanks again to OUTSIDER magazine for those.

Results and neck exercise - click the image please

2007-08-21T16:23:00.000+01:00

The original excel sheet (with the wrong result for Brian O'Doherty) is kindly hosted by Rick McKee who was instumental in helping this blog make any sense.
http://www.trailbadger.com/filestore/documents/Results_2007.xls

A Ryan report http://ryansherlock.blogspot.com/2007/08/2007-outsider-annacurra-adventure.html also.

musings

2007-08-21T14:04:00.000+01:00

All over again, the second time. Easier in some ways than the first time and harder in others, all interesting for me anyway.
Considering the weather and the enforced last minute route change we're happy with the way the day panned out. No injuries, no one lost, excellent food and t-shirts and all signs of OUTSIDER Annacurra '07 removed from the countryside apart from some roadpaint and one broken fence.
Joe Lalor was very busy on sunday morning, his Nav Challenge controls were in place intersecting our course before we removed the tape and they certainly were not there on Saturday. I suppose our superVet champion was just continuing to show the youngsters how it's done.
In a race where the short course could easily be won by a strong team simply deciding to stop after 3 stages it was good to see such close racing for the win between 3 teams and in the long course there was great excitment between the top 2 with a 7 minute lead after stage two being whittled away to 2 minutes at the finish.
Last years non-public "can do better" file was headed by food so if we can improve as much as the food did we'll be heading in the right direction. We did get some improvement suggestions - especially after dark and 7th round of pints - and any thoughts on the matter are welcome, either here or by email. I know Doug's new boss Cormac wasn't too pleased at my blatant favouritism with supplying water to certain people - my friends, oddly enough - so we'll have to have lots of water at transition if we do it again.
Aisling Coppinger and Sarah Moores were worthy winners of the ladies, ditto Dave Weston and Philip Brennan in the vets. Jenny McAuley and a shell shocked Cormac Conroy were unlucky or perhaps just too free spirited and independent minded to follow the route as prescibed and thus missed out on winning long course Mixed. Everyone seemed to finish with a smile which says a lot of good things about their ability to disregard this excuse for an Irish summer and enjoy themselves. Some of the tents looked as if they were very obligingly already taking themselves down before their hungover owners could awaken and face the task and my workmate Michael Neary obligingly thought outside the box and scanned in a copy of the results so we could get a readable jpeg.

Results

2007-08-21T02:05:00.000+01:00

A bit of confusion about Team 42 as they started late - Michael O'Donnell and Cormac Lynch. A more pressing confusion was control number 13 which unfortunately was missed by Aaron and Alan and in effect cost them the win as they were quickest over the course. In fact of 6.5 teams out on the long course only half finished properly - a concern for the organisers, maybe more tape required for the fast lads. Gerry and Eoin also missed 13 and Jenny and Cormac went their own variant of stage 3+4. Cool heads John and Paul were followed by Melanie and Ryan and in third place were Bob and Chris - go Denny.
On the main course there was a cracking race for the win with with the first 3 teams within 3 minutes of each other after nearly 4 hours of racing and two mixed teams topped the listing, the girls are strong with Orla and Barry taking top honours and Cait and Nigel close behind and Sean and Brian gentlemanly taking up the final podium spot.
As this is an inclusive race we like to wait till all teams are home before prizegiving so well done to Rachel and Niall cruelly slandered at the prize-giving.
Special mention goes to Paul Crowley whose brakes failed on a 1km long descent and who ended up in a nice man's garden after wrecking a fence and his bike.
cheers,
pd

Photos now

2007-08-20T00:28:00.000+01:00

Check back here for a link to photos here - http://picasaweb.google.com/peterofarrells/Annacurra07

loads of Thank You's to many folk - The volunteers Fidelma Mary Ray Nora Christina Donie Shirley Pam, the people in Annacurra for accomodating us, the priest, Coillte for opening gates and moving boulders (which were back in place on Sunday), OUTSIDER for insurance and prizes, all the competitors and the weather for giving us a memorable day.
I think we got you wet enough this year even without the delight of the river crossing.

so more updates and a race report later.

What Where When - YES YOU can do it

2007-07-16T12:31:00.000+01:00

What - Two 20km biking sections split by a 6km hillrun
Where - Annacurra, Co. Wicklow. Very close to Aughrim. 60 mins from M50
When - 10.30am Saturday 18th August

This event is fully marked and takes in tarmac, fireroad and some very cyclable offroad. Your €60 per team of two entry form includes a fully marked map, a t-shirt and good food afterwards.

The course has been designed to be completed by anyone with some fitness and their own fully functioning mountain bike.

Showers, a pub and camping are all available.

You can enter by sending an email to doug.corrie@oceanfree.net or click on the entry form shown in the next post.

An additional 12km bike/run stage is there for faster lads. The idea is all entrants finish within 2 hours of each other and have food and conviviality together at the prizegiving with the super marshalls.

Partnerless people

2007-07-05T15:31:00.000+01:00

Please email doug.corrie@oceanfree.net if you are still looking for a partner. The current list of people looking for a partner is:

Thibault Peigne - mystery man, does lots of biking
Donough O'Keeffe - congrats to the new daddy

Darragh Maloney - strong biker

Roisin McDonnell - two letters.. A R

If you get sorted also please email doug.corrie@oceanfree.net

Camping

2007-07-03T11:23:00.000+01:00

Camping last year was on the edge of the GAA field the race starts in, should be the same story this year. The Annacurra pub has some B&B accomodation and the nearby town of Aughrim has hotels, B&B's and a fine cafe.

This B&B is half way between Aughrim & Annacurra, less than 5 mins away from Annacurra. 2 mins away in fact by mountain bike through the forest track that starts it...Regards,Mick Hanney - Thanks Mick
Butlers ByrneRoy Shorey Rednagh Hill, Aughrim. Co. Wicklow. Tel: 353-(0)402-366 44

Last year's winner of the mixed cat - Beth McCluskey - will be at the Nationals of the mountain biking XC series this Sunday with flyers, entry forms and a voracious wallet for any of ye bikers who might wish to hand over said entry forms and moolah.
I'll be there too!

The run

2007-06-27T16:42:00.000+01:00

You can email me at ptrfrrll@yahoo.co.uk and I'll send you the entry form.

The picture is of the hillrun, well most of it anyway. 6.5km, only a wee trot...

We've a few lads looking for teammates ranging from the force of nature known only as Don Travers to the AR savage Bob Boles to Martin Ayres who'll have a great day at a more enjoyable pace

2007-06-19T14:39:00.000+01:00

This idyllic image in shades of brown and dappled sunlight awaits all participants on stage 1 of the race - admittedly you'll probably still be breathing very heavily after the short but oh so savage climb that precedes it....

Photos

2007-06-19T14:19:00.000+01:00

Photos will be hosted on http://picasaweb.google.com/peterofarrells with some selected ones posted here.
We have space for 50 teams of two. €60 per team, bring your own fully functional mountain bike, approved bike helmet, runners and enough food and energy water to keep you going for 4~6 hours. The transition from the first bike to the hillrun is not at the start so you will have to either carry your runners during the bike stage or cycle in your runners.
This year a relative of Doug's has organised some very good food so sadly we'll be losing the greasy sausage and chips of last year.