ITERA Ireland
Monday Morning Rush to The Finish Line
Rob Howard / 22.08.2016
The big news on Monday morning at ITERA ... the sun came out!
In other news there was a rush of finshing teams who had been held by the Dark Zone overnight and completed the race by paddling across Lake Muckross and Lough Leane before running into the finish. (The paddling course had reverted to the original route now the wind had dropped.)
First of the Monday morning finishers were Team Bob Kittens of Canada – so as you might expect they’d been pretty quick in the Canadian canoes. They’d managed their race by stopping at accommodation along the way and even had their washing done at one stop!
Lowland Leopards followed and said, “The weather was O.K. when it was horizontal, but when it was vertical, and then vertical and horizontal at the same time it became a problem!”
Two more full course teams followed – the first of them Rootstock Racing who crossed the line carrying the U.S. flag, and then the second Irish team to finish, Columbia Ireland. The full course teams looked noticeably more weather worn and haggard than the short course and Eoin Keith was limping in across the line. Then he told me, “I won’t be around for the prize giving as I have to get back to Dublin to fly to Geneva for the UTMB. I’ll bet none of the other runners have had preparation quite like this, but at least I’ll be down to my race weight!”
Team Wundersoul finished between the two full course teams, and next in were Chester Tri AR from the UK with ‘Token Bloke’ Simon McAllister carrying a toy leprechaun on his shoulder which the team had acquired near Galway. They’d looked for the most kitsch Irish souvenir they could find and have been posing their leprechaun for photos along the way. Once they received their shiny medals the team then used them as mirrors, pulling shocked faces at their appearance and adjusting their hair!
The Irish Defence Forces team had a big welcoming crowd to cheer them in and for a while there was a gathering of international teams standing under the flagpoles of the convention centre and chatting about their race experiences.
In the afternoon there will be a second batch of teams crossing the lake to finish (after the canoes are recycled), and right at the back of the race, but still full course are DAR Dingle who sensibly stopped overnight before tackling the peaks of Carrauntoohill. They are currently approaching the last checkpoint where they will join Japanese team Fujin Raijin who are now close to completing their first expedition race.
[The full results will be prepared for the prize giving tonight and the top positions are currently in dispute with protests lodged about Godzone Mountain Hardwear’s second place position.]
SleepMonsters
