Reviews – Wild Atlantic Ultra

I never need encouragement to run in Mayo. I headed to Louisburgh on Saturday morning for the first running of the Wild Atlantic Ultra. This included a 50 mile run and a marathon. I had won an entry to the 50 mile race but after a bad run last wk , I asked to do the marathon. Michel van der Klei and his team put on a great event. Plenty of water stops with fruit and sweets, stewards with smiles and encouragement. The course was tough but the scenery made up for it. Congrats to Deirdre Lynn and Finn O Mara , first and second ladies in the 50 miles. I was first lady in marathon. Sheila Fitzgibbons

Wild Atlantic 50 miles (80k)
Good training, no flat sections as promised 😁
As this was the very first edition only 14 people signed up for ultra. (There was also marathon distance to choose).
Glad that the organiser didn’t cancel the ultra distance due to low numbers. Water stations every 5k and you could have some real food (bananas, oranges) not only sweets as you can see at so many races. Route marked very well. You can tell that the organiser knows something about running – Michael van der Klei is ultra-marathoner himself, will definitely come back. Agnieszka Pamula

So this was my first marathon. Previous longest distance was 14 miles, 2 weeks previous. Honestly, that run nearly killed me off. But I learned so much from it, and I was determined to run this race. It was a personal thing. I planned my nutrition and hydration right, and I finished in a time of 5 hrs and 42 minutes. Ecstatic doesn’t even come close. I really enjoyed the run, tough as it was and the location is fantastic, beautiful countryside scenery. Very well organised and executed, so kudos Michel van der Klei, I will be back next yr for the ultra, without doubt. But I will see you before then. I will see you on the 10th of august, as I’m now signed up for the connemara 100 and looking forward to it. Thank you for a great race, that showed me I can do more then I think. George Keogh