Denis Rankin Round Relay
Info: New entries for this event closed on Monday 9th September 2024 at 21:00.
| Entry Fee (per team) | £30.00 |
B.A.R.F. Denis Rankin Round Relay
Background
The Denis Rankin Round is a circuit of all the peaks in the Mourne mountains over 400m in height, covering 90km and 6500m in ascent. The challenge is to complete this within a 24 hour period. The Round is named after Denis Rankin, a pioneer and leading light in fell running and mountain marathons in Northern Ireland since the 1970’s, who tragically died on 16th May 2013 competing in a fell race on Slievemoughanmore.
2024 is the 10th anniversary of the first completion of the Denis Rankin Round, and to commemorate this, BARF are organising a team relay event for the mountain running community, with the added goal to fundraise for the MMRT.
As an event run by and for the NI mountain-running community, we would encourage all teams to get their friends, family and club-mates involved to support them in their DRR attempts, and also for teams and crews to support each other in the spirit of friendship and community within our small mountain-running family. If you or your club would like to volunteer to provide support at one of the change-over points, please drop an email to admin@barfni.co.uk. All support is greatly appreciated!
The JustGiving link for our MMRT Fundraising for this event is here. Please share it as widely as you can, to help us raise much-needed funds for the mountain rescue.
Event Format
- The DRR route consists of 5 sections (see DRR Route here), and the relay event will accordingly consist of 5 legs, with runners passing a GPS tracker to the next runner at each changeover point.
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The relay will start and end in Slieve Donard Car Park. This will be a 'mass finish' event, aiming to have all teams finishing in the same time window - Saturday 14th September @ 8-10pm.
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The relay is to be completed in a clockwise direction (see DRR Route here)
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Teams are to be made up of 3-5 people (ideally one person per leg, but the option for participants to run a maximum of two legs is available).
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Relay team members do not need to all be from the same club.
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Each relay team will determine their own start time based on a suggested target finish time of Saturday 14th September @ 8-10pm When signing up, you will be required to choose a starting slot between 10pm on Friday 13th Sept and 10am on Saturday. For example, if you think your team will take 20 hours to complete the round, then you should start at 1 or 2am so that your final runner can finish at approx 9 or 10pm. If you are unsure of how long your team might take, it is better be conservative and start earlier so that you can finish earlier. These are guideline times for the event, as long as your team finishes the round within 24hrs from your start time, it will count as a valid completion of the round.
- A marshal team will be available in Donard Park from 10pm on Friday until midnight on Saturday to facilitate collection of GPS trackers and provide support for those starting and finishing their rounds.
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There will be one tracker per team, which should be handed over at the end of your section to the next member of your relay team before they set off.
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This is a self-supported and self-navigated event. Changeover points will not be marshalled, all teams should be prepared to be self sufficient. As ever with these events, please look out for one another out on the hills and enjoy!
- It is the teams responsibility to arrange transport of runners to the changeover points. We encourage teams to share transport where possible. Changeover points are as follows:
- Leg 1-2. Silent Valley dam (https://maps.app.goo.gl/bBV6y1rCBkekyoEx9)
- Leg 2-3. Deer's Meadow road crossing (https://maps.app.goo.gl/HYpvwjtSzWNRiaV48)
- Leg 3-4. Summit of Slievemartin (https://maps.app.goo.gl/kJS8VBzFKeuHmNRN8)
- Leg 4-5. Spelga Dam carpark (https://maps.app.goo.gl/MoG3VGWKTXUmqrhVA)
- BARF will set up a communication channel on WhatsApp to help teams and supporters to coordinate transport and logistics. This will be sent out to teams after registration.
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The cost will be £30 per team via SiEntries to cover the cost of the GPS tracker. Teams should contribute to the fundraising effort by donating themselves and/or sharing the JustGiving link here for donations to the MMRT.
Equipment
Although there will be no kit checks, we strongly recommend that all runners should carry at least the minimum safety kit according to the FRA rules, in order to stay safe in the hills.
- Waterproof whole body cover
- Hat
- Gloves
- Whistle
- Map covering the entire course and compass *
- Thermal (foil) blanket or bag
*GPS devices for navigation are permitted on the DRR and may be used if desired.
Rules
The full rules of the DRR can be found here.
NOTE: DRR club relay rules specify that teams must comprise of 5 runners. Therefore, teams running this relay with less than 5 runners should be aware that their round may not be officially ratified by the DRR committee.
As organisers, BARF will communicate with the DRR committee to register the intended attempt of each team, and follow up to have each completed round ratified. As such, the important rules to observe are as follows.
- The Denis Rankin Round is to be completed on foot within a 24 hr period.
- The start and finish is the white entrance arch to Donard car park in Newcastle.
- The route traverses all the significant Mourne peaks, over 400m in height, in a fixed order, either in a clockwise or anticlockwise direction. (see Route)
- There is no fixed route between the peaks and participants are responsible for ensuring there is permitted access along their route.
- Touch each summit cairn.
- Do not run on top of the Mourne Wall.
- Respect private land (fences, gates etc.) and use stiles when possible.
- One GPS tracker per team which is transferred between runners at each changeover
- Support runners are not allowed
- Logistical support is allowed at changeover points
Disclaimer
This is a personal challenge in a mountain environment, where competitors individually are responsible for their own safety. The Denis Rankin Round committee and B.A.R.F. do not accept any responsibility of any nature or kind for loss, damage or injury suffered by a participant who takes part in or attempts the Denis Rankin Round.
View the Event Disclaimer / Terms and Conditions.
View the Event Cancellation / Refund Policy.
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