Kerry009

Preview of the Dingle 10k womens mini-marathon...

Location......Dingle is located in the west of Co.Kerry and is about a 45 minute drive from Tralee and 1 hour from Killarney.

Course map...The race starts and finishes in Dingle and takes in a loop to the west of the town.

Course description....The race starts in the middle of Dingle...

.....and then heads west through the town.....

On the edge of the town after about 1 km, you turn left at the roundabout and over the bridge...

From the river, there is now a short climb of about 300m to the junction where you turn off right and begin the loop...

After an initial bend, you then see the long straight ahead which is about 2.8 kms long and is a very slight uphill gradient.

At 4.2 kms, you leave the straight section as you turn off left onto a narrow country road....

 

Initially there is a small climb but it soon levels off. At about 4.8 kms, you reach the highest part of the course which is about 45m or 150ft above sea level...

From here, the road descends gradually in long straight narrow sections which should result in plenty of fast running. At the 6.7 km mark, the road reaches a dip where the road begins to climb again. As can be seen below in the photo, the far end of the hill is actually a crossroads where you'll be turning left...

The photo below shows the view at the crossroads as you turn back towards Dingle with just over 3 kms to go. On a clear day, you can see Mount Brandon way off to the left...

From here, the next section is really fast as the road drops in height. There is one slight pull after a bridge but for the most part, it is largely downhill. At the 8km mark, you join the road from Ventry and Slea Head...

The next section is initially flat but soon there is a rapid descent to the junction where you turned off earlier...

From here, it's back down to the bridge near sea level and through the town to the finish line back where you started.

Overall...A moderately fast course. The climbs tend to be more gradual than anything. On a nice day, a stunning location for a race.

Kerry006

Preview of the Dingle Half-Marathon / Marathon...

Location.......Dingle is located in Co.Kerry in the South-West of Ireland

Course map......Both the half and full Marathon start in the town of Dingle. Half-Marathon runners finish in Dunquin and return to Dingle by bus. The full Marathon runners continue on and run back to Dingle.

Course profile.....There are a number of hills to be tackled in the first half. The most difficult part of the full Marathon is the steep climb around the 22 mile mark.

Course description.........Both the half and full Marathon start in the town of Dingle...

 Initially, the going is flat and you cross a causeway as you leave the town...

.......and then you encounter the fist of many small climbs.

The race travels west passing through the village of Ventry before going up a more serious hill as you head out towards Slea Head. Around the 9 mile mark, you cross a small stream which flows across the road......

 ....and then on towards Slea Head. This is the view looking back towards the Iveragh Peninsula to the south...

What really makes this Half and Full Marathon special is the fact the roads are closed. Normally, there is a lot of tourist traffic on this narrow road and it wouldn't be really suitable for running or walking. The road here is high above the sea and you have an incredible view out over Dingle Bay to the mountains of Kerry with the Skelligs in the distance.

Once you pass the grotto around the 10 mile mark, the Blasket Islands come into view...

....and then the twisting coastal road...

At 13 miles in Dunquin, the Half-Marathon runners turn off to the left...

...and on to the finish line. A fleet of buses take the runners back to Dingle.

The full Marathon runners continue on towards Ballyferriter with Brandon Mountain now coming into view. From here, the route is on quiet narrow roads as it heads towards Dingle...

At mile 21, there is an out and back section...

After this, there is just the big hill to tackle at mile 22 before descending down to the finish line back in Dingle.

Overall.........An incredible location for a Marathon and probably the most scenic in Ireland. Not the easiest of courses with several testing hills, especially during the Marathon near mile 22.


This YouTube clip from TG4 in Irish gives a good feel for what it is like...