Irish dominate Seven Sisters Skyline 55k
It’s been a beautiful weekend in County Donegal where Irish skyrunners have taken the Derryveagh mountains by storm and dominated the Seven Sisters Skyline 55k race!
Seven rocky peaks make up this ultra-distance race route, which includes Mackoght (555m), Aghla More (584m), Ardloughnabrackbaddy (603m), Aghla Beg (564m), Crocknalaragagh (471m), then out-n-back over Muckish (666m) and back along the skyline to finish with an ascent of Errigal (751m), the highest summit of the day. Runners on the 55k shared the course with competitors on the point-to-point 30k race on Saturday, with both races counting towards overall ranking in the Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series. The 55k race is also part of the and the new SkyUltra® Series.
A wild and rugged route, designed to test the all-round abilities of every Skyrunner! © Ian Corless
In the men’s 55k race, 7 out of the top 10 finishers were Irish, a striking proportion that was also reflected on the podium, where the top 2 finishers also hailed form Ireland. Starting out in the darkness of early morning, local man Declan Gallagher led the charge. For the first couple of hours, several front runners stayed grouped together and it looked like it would be a close race at the sharp-end, but by Crocknalaragagh, Niall Farquharson began pushing ahead. In second position, Polish athlete Maciej Dzieledziak was looking strong, and with this being his fourth time at this race, looked to be shaping-up for a fast finish. But by Muckish the cooling cloud cover had given rise to some low visibility up high and runners had to work hard to stay on route.
“I had a real low moment when l got lost for a while” says Dzieledziak. “I lost quite a lot of time and dropped position, then I had to work my way back up. This year was the first time I’ve ever got lost and it was really disappointing because I was thinking that having plenty of experience on this race route would be to my advantage.”
By the time the leaders reach the Aghla Beg checkpoint, Dzieledziak had worked back up to 3rd position but by now Farquharson had extended his lead. In second position Declan Gallagher fought hard to hold off Dzieledziak, who was gradually closing in, but managed to reach the summit of Errigal a full 7 minutes ahead of his rival. By this time Farquharson had a convincing lead but was himself feeling the strain.
Farquharson in action during the 2019 event © Ian Corless
“I actually stopped and walked for a bit near the end because my legs were really cramping up over the last two mountains. I ate some crisps to get some salt in, which did the trick” says Farquharson who describes himself principally as a road runner who is good uphill but struggles with descents. Farquharson crossed the line in a very respectable 07:58, a full 18 minutes ahead of the next runner, taking first place and also first V40-44.
Both Gallagher and Dzieledziak smashed the descent off Errigal, reaching the finish line in under an hour; Gallagher taking the top second spot and Dzieledziak completing the podium in 08:16 and 08:21 respectively. Dzieledziak was just one of several strong Polish performances over the course this Saturday.
“My race highlight was coming down from Muckish and Errigal” says Gallagher. “I knew my position by then and just kept the hammer on! Great conditions for fast descending and I’ll definitely back next year!”
First V45-49 was Irish runner Tomasz Jezierski and first V50-54 was Kenn Bates, also from Ireland. Jim McLaughlin took first male V55+, finishing in a very respectable 25th position overall.
With most U23s targeting the 30k race, there were few younger athletes in the 55k but Ross Clarke welcomed the full challenge and took the U23 win in 11:47.
Men’s podium in the Seven Sisters Skyline 50k 2024: Farquharson, Gallagher & Dzieledziak 1st, 2nd & 3rd
The women’s race began with an exciting battle at the front between local runner Rosy Temple and accomplished elite Nicky Spinks. Rosy has raced this course once before but it was first time for visiting Spinks, who loved the course and will be heading to Northern Ireland for the Mourne Skyline™ next month.
Both ladies enjoyed excellent racing conditions underfoot. “It was beautiful up there; a foggy start but then clearing up” says Temple. “The weather really suited me, quite cool with low cloud towards far end,” said Spinks. “The rocky course reminded me of a cross between the Peak District fells and the Jura Fell Race - but with more bogs!”
The pair were well-matched in the first half, overtaking each other intermittently. Temple would get ahead on the technical descents but Spinks would reel her back-in over the longer climbs. Following her return over Muckish, Spinks made a break, one that she was able to extend to 36 minutes by the time she reached the line.
“For a while I ran with a few local guys which helped in the clag and we spurred each other on - it was good to have company. The ascent of Errigal is a straight-up beast and I was glad of my poles! I enjoyed descending the steps and pushed really hard towards the end, face-planting in a bog at one point and finishing with wobbly legs! It was a brilliant race - great organisation and a fantastic atmosphere” says Spinks who finished 7th overall (and 1st V55+) in 09:07. Behind Nicky, the next 7 female finishers were all Irish athletes, showing the overwhelming depth of local talent.
The 55k included a lung-busing direct ascent of the North Ridge of Errigal © Ian Corless
With Temple taking second place in 09:43, the final spot on the podium fell to Bernadette Quinn, another Irish athlete who lives only a few hours drive from these spectacular hills.
“I’ve got no words!” said an exhilarated Quinn after crossing the line. “It was tough. The boggy sections were not dry! I sped up in the second half and my descent off Muckish was good.” Quinn finished in 09:58 and will be back for the Mourne Skyline in a few weeks’ time.
Spectators enjoying the sunshine also witnessed a strong performance from V50-54 cat winner Rachel Burgess, who claimed 4th position in the women’s race, finishing in 10:30. The V40-44 age cat was won by Karolina Bernacka from Ireland and V45-49 was claimed by Rachel Ormrod, also from Ireland.
Women’s podium in the Seven Sisters Skyline 50k 2024: Spinks, Temple & Quinn 1st, 2nd & 3rd
What Next?
The Seven Sisters Skyline 55k is the penultimate race in both the overall Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series and the new SkyUltra® Series, the latter concluding with the Mourne SkyUltra® on October 12th. With only one event left to go in the race calendar, things are really hotting up for the rankings, with some positions already decided after yesterday. The top 20 M/F overall finishers now will receive points and ranking charts will be updated on the Skyrunning UK website in the coming days.
Keep your eyes peeled for tomorrow’s Seven Sisters Skyline 30k race report with details on developments in the overall rankings and final positions for the U23 series.
Find out your current ranking in the Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series later this week.
Next up in the 2024 Skyrunner® UK & Ireland Series and SkyUltra® Series are the Mourne Skyline & Mourne SkyUltra® races on 12th October, in Newcastle, Northern Ireland:
Mourne Skyline: 35km & 2,700m+
Mourne SkyUltra®: 50km & 3,500m+
Entries close at midnight on Friday 4th Oct, so it’s still not too late to be part of the last event in the 2024 Skyrunner® UK & Ireland National Series! For full details see the event website HERE.
In the meantime, be sure to follow Skyrunning UK on Facebook HERE, Instagram HERE, or why not join the Facebook Group HERE or the Strava Club HERE.
