2024 Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series concludes in Mourne Mountains
This weekend, the Mourne Mountains were the battleground for the 2024 Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series, inaugural SkyUltra® Series and Irish Skyrunning Championships, where all series champions were decided.
All smiles in Northern Ireland at the last SkyUltra® race of the series! © Evan Davies
SkyRun the Mournes, hosted from Newcastle in Northern Ireland was back for its 10th edition after a two-year hiatus. Revamped by new organisers Apex Running (news item HERE) and ready to impress with the inclusion of the inaugural 50km Mourne SkyUltra® alongside the classic Mourne Skyline, nearly 400 Skyrunners across 15 nationalities were entered with a stacked elite field champing at the bit, both races being battles worth waiting for!
From the start, competitors faced cold temperatures and testing autumn conditions on the trails, leaving the golden sunrise of the valley behind for mist and cloud on the summit of Slieve Donard. All runners raced in and out of cloud throughout the day; facing hail, rain and strong wind, but sometimes blue skies in a rollercoaster of weather and challenging mountain terrain.
Cold and fresh racing conditions in the Mourne Mountains this weekend © Sam Davis
Ultrarunners in the new 50km/3,500m+ Mourne SkyUltra® raced through Donard Forest, before following the Mourne Wall up Slieve Donard. Dropping from here, they stayed low to call at the first aid station at Carrick Cottage, before linking the many Slieve Binnian summits above Silent Valley. Dropping to the second aid station at Fofanny Dam, they then joined the classic Skyline route heading east, finishing with an ascent of Slieve Commedagh SW top before a final dash to the finish line. Revisit the full race route on our Strava account HERE.
In the women’s race, Irish athlete Laura O Driscoll and English runner Jessica Partlett jostled to lead the field. O Driscoll was first to the summit of Slieve Donard, setting a fast pace from the off, but by the time the pair reached Fofanny Dam, Partlett had nudged ahead. Over the Slieve Binnian summits however, local knowledge and experience tipped the balance back in favour of O Driscoll as she reclaimed her lead. By the time she tagged the final checkpoint on Slieve Commedagh, she was a full 12 minutes ahead of her nearest rival.
Despite rolling her ankle and being in some discomfort, O’Driscoll reached the finish line in 7:52:52 — also an impressive top 10 finish overall.
“The race was Brilliant! I felt really strong throughout and had a definite second wind. I love the Mournes, they’re less than an hour from my home, so they feel like my back yard. The course was just fantastic!” says O’Driscoll, who not only won the women’s race and first female V40-44, but also claimed the inaugural SkyUltra® Series win with this performance at SkyRun the Mournes, following victory at the inaugural 14 Peaks Ultra in June.
Laura O Driscoll making it look easy on her way to winning the race and SkyUltra® Series! © Evan Davies
Finishing in second place, Partlett maintained a convincing lead over third place finisher, Irish runner Dierdre O Gorman throughout the ultra-distance course. Originally from Australia and now living in Devon, Partlett usually races on the road. But after hiking in the Mournes last year she decided this would be the perfect challenge race for her! “It was amazing and I enjoyed every second – even the brutal climbs and descents” Partlett said about her second ever ultra distance race in an emotional finish.
Third finisher, O Gorman executed a memorable performance for her very first SkyRace, despite painfully scraping her knee on the final descent (she was still smiling at the finish!) “I’ve never been up the Mournes before” she says. “It was long and tough but a brilliant event. It was well-marked and the marshals were so encouraging. I’ll definitely be back for more skyrunning next year!”
Top 3 women (left to right): Jessica Partlett, Laura O’Driscoll and Dierdre O Gorman © Evan Davies
Close behind O Gorman was V55+ age cat winner and accomplished INOV8 athlete Nicky Spinks, crossing the line in 8:26:01 (21st overall). With this finish, Nicky also claims 2nd position in the Overall Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series and 2nd in the new SkyUltra® Series. Other age cat winners included Becky Wightman first V45-59 and Rachel Burgess V50-54.
Nicky Spinks finishes second in the inaugural SkyUltra® Series © Evan Davies
“The race started cold and showery but after halfway the clag cleared and the views were absolutely stunning! I found the combination of granite steps, fast track and sections of road running hard work but I still manged to finish bang-on my 8.5hr schedule” says Spinks. “It was lovely to join the Skyline route and give encouragement to the 35km leaders as they came through – they were moving so effortlessly over the rocky ground!”
Indeed, the men’s race proved an exciting spectacle, with a close competition between La Sportiva athlete Gavin Dale and Irish runner Cillian Fleming at the front. Despite taking the lead on the first climb up Slieve Donnard, Dale briefly lost some time after going the wrong way off the summit, but worked hard to gain it back. Third runner in the front pack was another La Sportiva elite, Ry Webb, who stayed with the leading duo as far as Carrick Cottage. From here, Dale climbed strongly and yet Fleming managed to stay hot on his heels. By the time the pair reached the Slieve Bearnagh checkpoint, they had both pulled away from Webb but Fleming was still less than a minute behind Dale – a small margin which the pair maintained all the way to Slievnaglogh.
In the latter stages of the race, Dale slowly began to increase his lead, gaining another minute by the time he reached the shoulder of Slieve Commedagh. A fast and furious finish saw him cross the line in Donard park in 6:27:10, with Fleming less than three minutes behind him. Webb finished ahead of Polish athlete Maciek Dzieledziak in 6:59:10 to complete the podium.
Ry Webb finishes 3rd male in the inaugural Mourne SkyUltra® © Evan Davies
“It was an awesome course! I was pleased with my fuelling and managed to get plenty of carbohydrates in. We had mixed conditions, with better visibility in the second half” said Dale, who was sussing out the event as his first race in the 2024 the Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series. Dale plans to target the series in 2025, and in particular the Helvellyn Sky Ultra which is local to his home in the Lake District.
Just off the podium, 4th place Maciej Dzieledaiak secured overall SkyUltra® Series victory following a stellar 3rd place at the Seven Sisters Skyline 55k three weeks ago. The second of only two runners this year to complete two SkyUltra® Series races, In 20th position, Irish runner Niall Farquharson secured 2nd in this sub-series, thanks to a victory at Seven Sisters Skyline 55k. Overall and SkyUltra® Series rankings have now been updated and can be found HERE, with age cat series and Irish Championships rankings to follow imminently.
Top 3 men in the inaugural Mourne SkyUltra® (left to right): Ry Webb, Gavin Dale and Cillian Fleming © Evan Davies
Full provisional race results can now be viewed online HERE. First male V40-44 was Jonathan Gibson (10th overall), and first V45-49 was Robert Jankowski (5th overall). In the V50-54 age cat Robert Johnston came in first (23rd overall) and Billy Reed came in first V55+ (12th overall). Spectators also enjoyed watching a strong performance from U23 runner Ashley Crutchley, who crossed the line in 14th position overall.
What Next?
The top 20 M/F overall finishers will now receive points and the ranking charts will be updated on the Skyrunning UK website in the next few days. With SkyRun the Mournes being the finale in this year’s Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series, all positions and sub-series’ champions are now concluded! So make sure you check the final standings later this week for all the closing positions, including age category rankings U23 to V55+.
Also, keep your eyes peeled for tomorrow’s Mourne Skyline race report with details on winners of the inaugural Irish Championships! This weekend, new Race Director for this event Michael Jones will also release his report from the event over on the Apex Running website, so look out for that too!
Incredible views once the weather cleared! © Sam Davis
Goodbye for now. We’re already looking forward to SkyRun the Mournes 2025! © Evan Davies
