Jack and I awoke at 04:30 to a grey and overcast day. Of all the mornings across this race, in terms of enthusiasm levels, this day was our nadir. Given the weather and our sheer exhaustion, we were not in a good place. We set our minds to a hearty breakfast in Tralee, which we knew we were going through, but didn’t know exactly how far away we were from it. Once we’d got going, there were numerous signposts saying it wasn’t that long until Tralee, but we hadn’t realised that the route took us away from it before we went through it. So, by the time we’d got there, we weren’t in the best mood. But what’s the best thing to pick up your mood when you’re weary beyond belief? That’s right, a hot breakfast roll! After devouring a roll, our moods began to improve, things didn’t seem all so bad as we rolled out of Tralee.
We were now heading onto the Dingle Peninsula. I was personally excited about this, having heard so much about the peninsula and having drunk a fair amount of Dingle Gin! The grey overcast cloud that we had had up to that point started to break up and it was a blustery, cloudy day with sunny patches in it, which framed the landscape majestically. We soon approached Conor Pass, which was the third climb in the Mike Hall KOM Challange and the literal high point of the race at 456m. It wasn’t the hardest climb of the race, due to its steady gradient up to the top, but it was the longest at 5.1km from its base. There were stunning views from the top, but it was blowing hard, so we had to keep moving to avoid getting too cold, but at least we had a thrilling descent into Dingle from the pass.
We stopped for some grub in Dingle, and even had a brief sit-down beside the harbour to scoff down our salad boxes (a rare treat from a food variety perspective). Our knees had been getting worse and worse as the race went on, but as we were nearing the end of the race, we decided to pull out our secret weapon, codeine! Essentially from this point until the end of the race (two days later), I was on a steady intake of codeine to make the knee pain tolerable. I also thought, as we ate our salad boxes, that now would be a good time to replace the knee tape I had had on since the start of the race, as they may have lost some of their potency and elasticity. When I took them off, I was greeted with one of the most extreme tan lines I’ve ever seen, on me or anyone else! We knew we had got a lot of sun, but the sharpness of the lines was hysterical. I carefully reapplied my new knee tape (which I had pre-cut before the race), so as to conserve the tan lines, and we set off on a loop of the peninsula head, before coming back through Dingle and back along the peninsula.
The loop was breath-taking, particularly as we came around by the Blasket Islands on the cliff side roads. There were quite a lot of tourist buses and motorhomes to avoid as the loop is really popular with tourists, but regardless, it was a real unforgettable moment. We could also just make out Skellig Michael on the horizon, which had recently become very famous due to its use as a setting in the latest Star Wars films. As we came back into Dingle, we could see across to the next peninsula which we would be tackling, the Iveragh Peninsula. It was quite daunting as we knew that it would be the last big obstacle between us and the finish, and it was big, with the Macgillycuddy's Reeks looming large on the horizon.
After passing through Dingle, we proceeded along a forgettable, dead-straight road that we could see rising up into the distance, seemingly forever. It was also an N-road, which meant it was very busy with cars and lorries overtaking us with minimal distance. After what felt like an age, we turned off down towards Inch Beach, which is another famous location for surfing (which again, we didn’t have time to stop for). As we were finally coming off the Dingle Peninsula, we had stopped for a pee-break, beside a Mother Mary statue as it were, when a TAW staff car stopped just up the road, and a guy came running down. In his hand he had Jack’s credit card, which Jack had lost at some point two days previously. Another rider had found it, recognised the name and handed to a staff member, who in turn had tracked us down. This was a great example of the community that there is around the ultra-endurance event, with staff going out of their way to make the ride more enjoyable and less stressful for the riders.
We were soon approaching the Macgillycuddy's Reeks and knew there was some heavy climbing to come. What made the task slightly easier was that the first climb we had to conquer (and the fourth on the Mike Hall KOM Challange) was the Gap of Dunloe. This was such an alluring climb as it wound its way up through the Reeks, it was quiet, serene, and rather peaceful. As we reached the top, the Black Valley opened up to us and we descended down into the lush valley and were once again greeted by peacefulness. We didn’t come across another soul for what felt like ages, just quiet scenery. As were just cycling along, we were coming up to a small T-junction and could see a van just sitting there. We didn’t think anything of it, but as we passed the junction, we heard a shout behind us and there were two lads jogging after us. After being a bit startled at first, we realised they were race staff and had been specifically waiting for us. They were looking to have a chat with us, and we also had a little impromptu photoshoot! During our chat, one of the guys asked if it was true my Mum set us off with load of sandwiches at the start, which I was baffled by how they knew this. I immediately replied that of course it was true and that my Mum, being an Irish Mother, wouldn't have had it any other way! I realised afterward that Greg and Anthony must have told them, as we hadn’t spoken to anybody else about it.
Once we parted ways from the two guys, we continued on what felt like an abandoned road and were soon wondering if this would lead us to a dead end or another ghostly figure. We followed it up over into another valley with a treacherous descent due to the quality of the abandoned road and the failing light. We were soon passed by another pair in the race, two guys from Omagh, whose path we had cross a couple of times in the race. They looked to be in good shape and, after a brief chat, proceeded to motor on past us as we were beginning to fade as the day came towards an end. We stopped briefly in a pub/shop place where the bartender was also the shop cashier, where he had access to both the shop and the bar through a door, what a world we live in. After purchasing some food, I was putting on my leg warmers, when we were completely covered in midges, but given the wetness of the valley, it was no surprise there were midges everywhere.
We had covered 230km at this point, so knew we had to push on a bit to try and get over that magical 235km minimum distance. So, as it got dark, we kept pushing on, and at one point looked over into a B&B and saw the two guys from Omagh heading into it. Knowing they had called it for a day, we both got a little spur of energy (from the competitiveness I guess), knowing that the more we pushed tonight, they further head start we’d have in the morning. This spur of energy only lasted for maybe 30 minutes before we were wrecked again and ready to call it for a day. So, as we arrived in Sneem, we saw that there was still a shop open, so we called in to get some last-minute supplies. It was another pub/shop combo place, with the bartender also serving the shop, so maybe this area is famous for developing this style of establishment? As we were sussing out a place to sleep just outside Sneem, we thought we had found a grand little spot in a field gateway, but it was actually pretty exposed, so be it we thought, but then Jack walked about 15 metres up the road found the perfect spot in a manicured little public garden amongst some shrubs on freshly cut grass, ideal!
Distance (km): 252.56
Elevation (m): 2,780
Moving Time (hh:mm:ss): 13:39:00
Elapsed Time (hh:mm:ss): 18:25:27
Moving Time Percentage: 74.05%
Average Speed (km/h): 18.5
Calories: 5,033
Average Heart Rate (bpm): 103
Strava Link: https://www.strava.com/activities/2445492588
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