IRISH 900m Summit Challenge

IRISH 900m SUMMIT CHALLENGE
aka "14 MUNRO CHALLENGE"
MAY BANK HOLIDAY WEEKEND 2008
ASCENT 3800m : cost approx euro2400
This trek will endeavour to bring challengers to the summit of the 14 highest mountains on the island of Ireland in just 2 days.
A Munro is a Scottish mountain over 3000ft (914m), named after Sir Hugh Munro. Sir Hugh Munro (1856 – 1919) was a Scottish Mountaineer who produced the first list of the Scottish mountains whose summits were in excess of 3000ft. The published work of Dillon, claims that there are just 12 3000 footers in Ireland, other lists have been compiled, using different categorizing criteria, showing greater numbers. Clements, for example, used the criteria that there must be at least 30m of height-gain above the highest adjacent col for summits to qualify for inclusion. This produced a list of 13 3000 footers. Whereas Joss Lynam, using a 15m height-gain rule, has produced a list with 14 3000 footers. There are no other lists produced with either, more than 14 Munros, or, any other Munros not on Lynams list, as the 15m height-gain rule is the smallest categorizing criteria used.
Thus, we will be climbing 14 3000 footers over the May Bank Holiday weekend.
As per the advertisement in “Walking World Ireland” the challenge will take place over two days, Saturday 3rd and Sunday 4th of May 2008, returning home on Monday 5th May.
We are looking for about 20 fit, eager and quite well experienced people to accept this challenge. It is only at the level of hiking or basic scrambling, but due to the intensity of this event relatively experienced and very fit people are being sought.

Daylight hours for early May are; sunrise 5:45, sunset 20:45, approx. That is 15 hours of daylight, and we will need every minute of it! Each day we will expect to be on the trail by sunrise at the latest.
Private buses will be used to ferry the challengers and support staff. These buses will collect everyone from a central pick-up location(s), very early on the morning of Saturday 3rd May and will transfer challengers to and from the base of each Munro. This will be our mode of transport until we are dropped back to our pick-up location, on Monday afternoon.
Accommodation will be provided. This is by way of a hotel for the Saturday and Sunday nights. A take away breakfast will be provided on the Sunday morning, as we will be leaving too early to get breakfast in the hotel. An evening meal is provided each evening. Monday morning breakfast will be as usual, with check-out and return home thereafter.
There will be 3-4 guides, each with radio contact to each other and to our back-up team at the team buses, and we will be dispersed throughout the team. The team will be broken into sub-groups of 3-4 individuals, each sub-group will need to be self-reliant and will be equipped with its own maps, compass and basic safety kit.
In this its inaugural year, it will be ran purely as a team challenge, with the goal simply to safely get every challenger to the summit of every Munro. However, next and subsequent years it may be ran as a timed team event.
Costs per person should not exceed €400 between food, hotels, buses and kit for the trip. This will be covered by means of a non-refundable deposit of €400, plus, sponsorship of €2000 for Concern. In this way you can tell all your donors that all sponsorship collected by you is going directly to Concern, not to the expenses incurred in carrying out this challenge. This event is advertised on the Concern website, and all sponsorship monies will be paid via this website, www.concernchallenge.org, or directly to Concern.
The 14 Irish 3000 Footers are:
(1) Lugnaquilla (925m)
(2) Galtee Mór (919m)
(3) Brandon (952m)
(4) Beenkeragh (1010m)
(5) Carrauntoohil Tooth (959m)
(6) Carrauntoohil (1039m)
(7) Caher (1001m)
(8) Caher West Top (975m)
(9) Cnoc an Chuillín (958m)
(10) Unnamed Top (926m)
(11) Maolán Buí (973m)
(12) Cnoc na Péiste (988m)
(13) The Big Gun (939m)
(14) Cruach Mór (932m).
For any more information don’t hesitate to contact me anytime.
John Corroon,
Event Organiser.
johncorroon@esatclear.ie
087 974 0707