Local winner romps home in first ever Monte challenge in Mountcharles

David McKelvey from Glenties was a very clear winner of the first ever Monte Challenge in Mountcharles on a sunny Saturday morning.

McKelvey had minutes to spare as he came home alone after a gruelling run around Mountcharles, a cycle to the bottom of Carnaween, then a run up to the famous peak before getting back on the bicycle and back to Mountcharles via the Grey Mare's Tail and Altidoo and finishing with a dune run on the sands and back up to the starting point at St Peter's NS.

McKelvey looked just very fresh at the finish and was really happy with the run. He was followed home  by Conor Gallagher and Declan Donnellan.

The Full Monte was one of three races which attracted over 500 participants. There were contestants also in the Half Monte and the Little Monte, in a very well organised event.

Speaking immediately after the almost 60k event, McKelvey said: "I feel good. I'm happy with that. It was about testing the body today, getting out. We have the next leg of the Adventure Series in two weeks down in Limerick and Clare. So today was about testing the body. I haven't raced really all summer.

"Happy where I'm at. We had a lovely morning, out of the main heat of the day. It was warm on Carnaween, the sun was on your back; it was steep," said McKelvey, who said he was very familiar with Carnaween but it was the first time he had climbed it from the Drimarone side.

"This was the first time this route has been used and it's great to find another route. In terms of a runnable mountain stage, it's the best route up Carn. And when you get up over the shoulder of Carn, you can see everything, looking down on the Glen of Glenties, which was class."

The Full Monte winner David McKelvey pictured with Martin O'Boyle and Lynn Temple, organiser and sponsor

McKelvey, being a local, was fairly familiar with the course but still felt it was a tough challenge.

"I'm well familiar with it so there were no surprises. I know the roads up around the Grey Mare's Tail because we do a lot of training up there in the winter time too. Those roads are so unforgiving. You can't rest at all on them because the road surface is bad. You're constantly on it because it wears you down."

Asked what the toughest part of the event was, McKelvey said: "Yeah, that was that last run in the sand dunes. It sucks the life out of you, especially when you have no legs left. And it's always in your head, that last kilometre (uphill). You know that's coming and you know that's the hardest part."

And his overall impression of the course. "Very unforgiving. It's a bit deceptive. It doesn't look that tough on paper but it's very, very hard, as courses go. It would be among the slower courses, in line with Glendalough. They are not that long but they take as long as the big courses. There's no easy section.

"I would love to see it on the Adventure Series next year and it would drag a lot of the big contenders here too. I think they would like to test themselves on this course too, if they got a chance. If we can get the word out there how good a course it is; how well marshalled it is, we can get those guys up.

"It's up to all the competitors now to get the word of mouth out and try and drag a few people with them next year to make sure it grows."

McKelvey made a commitment to come back next year to defend his Monte title. "It's my home course so it would be a shame if I didn't come back. I feel like I have to," said McKelvey.

RESULTS - Full Monte

Male: David McKelvey 02:49:56; 2 Conor Gallagher 03:02:22; 3 Declan Donnellan 03:03:08.

Female: Rosy Temple 03:39:42; 2, Ruth Candon 03:41:55; 3, Rosaleen Doherty 04:11:55.

Mixed Team: 1,  Lauren Gormley 05:11:01; Joan Keon 05:20:58.

Half Monte

Male: 1, Declan Ferry 01:05:08; 2, Nigel Foster 01:13:57; 3, Liam McDermott 01:18:51.

Female: 1, Caron McDermott 01:32:07; 2, Fiona McCusker 01:40:40; 3, Jacqueline Harvey 01:46:14.

Mixed - Team Andrea Naughton 01:39:50.