A new event comes to the shores of Lough Derg this September 14th. Quest adventure races involve running, cycling and kayak across various distances. The beauty of the events is that it’s not just for hardened athletes, people with a relative level of fitness will be able to take on this challenge too.

This exciting, brand-new event will see more than 1500 participants start and finish their event in Ballina and run, cycle and kayak their way around Lough Derg taking in locations like Tountinne, Garrykennedy, Ballycuggaran and Moylussa.

There will be three routes to choose from for participants, the 22km ‘Challenge’ route, the 57km ‘Sport’ route and the 69km ‘Expert’ route. There’s one to suit all levels of ability – by way of a guide for those new to the sport, the level of fitness required to compete in the ‘Challenge’ is similar required to run a 10km race.

Quest are working with support from Clare County Council, Tipperary County Council and Lough Derg Marketing Group to bring this high-profile event to the area. Quest has four other events in Ireland including Quest Kenmare and Quest Glendalough which were completely sold-out earlier this year.

For anyone new to the sport, Quest have lots of advice on their website www.questadventureseries.com and next week are running a specially tailored campaign for newbies called ‘Rookie Week’. They’ll be sharing lots of content on their social media and website to help people get started in adventure racing. But be warned, many of those who have done similar events in the past say once you do one, you’ll be hooked! All participants receive a really cool event medal and top in addition to the great sense of achievement. Be sure to check out this new event which is sure to have the area hopping.