The iconic multi-sport adventure race.
Just you versus the elements through the most stunning landscapes in the West of Ireland.
The iconic multi-sport adventure race.
Just you versus the elements through the most stunning landscapes in the West of Ireland.
Kippure | Bray Cliff Run | Howth Summit
Unique 10k trail runs in Ireland's East coast.
Scenic routes, varied terrains & great views.
Why not complete the 10k Trail Run Trilogy?
Great River Swim | Great Lake Swim | Great Fjord Swim
Open water swimming in 3 magical locations.
Swim river, lake & sea to complete the Great Swim Trilogy.
An epic mud-filled obstacle course.
8km of mud & mayhem in the Connemara bog beside beautiful Killary Fjord.
Find your Gaelforce event on our adventure race calendar and start your journey to the finish line. Our events sell out fast, so sign up soon if you don’t want to miss out on Ireland's best multi-discipline events.
Gaelforce Great River Swim 20 May 2023
Gaelforce Great Lake Swim 22 July 2023
Gaelforce Great Fjord Swim 09 September 2023
Gaelforce 10K Kippure 16 April 2023
Gaelforce 10K Bray Cliff Run 12 August 2023
Gaelforce 10K Howth Summit 07 October 2023
Gaelforce West 17 June 2023
Turf Warrior 11 November 2023
ALL DATES ARE SUBJECT TO LICENSE AND GOVERNMENT COVID REGULATIONS AT THE TIME OF THE EVENT.
A city run like no other, along grassy tracks, rough trails & sealed roads to the summit of scenic Howth Hill.
A city run like no other, along grassy tracks, rough trails & sealed roads to the summit of scenic Howth Hill.
The original and best adventure race in Ireland. A 68km run, kayak & cycle though the incredible Connemara landscape.
The original and best adventure race in Ireland. A 68km run, kayak & cycle though the incredible Connemara landscape.
Of course it’s hard. It’s supposed to be hard. If it were easy, everybody would do it. Hard is what makes it great.
Of course it’s hard. It’s supposed to be hard. If it were easy, everybody would do it. Hard is what makes it great.
You don’t have to be a finely tuned athlete or a muscle-bound machine to enter a Gaelforce event. You just need to be open to the challenge, follow our event training plans and be eager to participate. All events have elite waves for more experienced competitors and lots of support for first-timers. And of course, we’ll be on hand with advice and help all the way.
"There's no place like Connemara...stunning landscapes, crazy weather & tough mountains. Thanks @killarygaelforce for another fantastic race. It was brilliant, if tough. I had a wonderful weekend in the Wild West"
"Thanks again for yet another fantastic event, a perfect day, super organisation, happy marshals all the way. Looking forward to the next event!"
"What a cracker of a race yesterday for @killarygaelforce mountain run with about 1500 metres of climbing over 20k in easily the most scenic and wild open mountains to be found...huge shout out to the organisers and all the marshals who braved the all the elements to keep us all on track, very much appreciated."
"Many, many thanks for a great and memorable day in Dublin!! Love the team of people you have...it’s never the place, always the people that make it!!"
"@killarygaelforce what a great day at #gaelforcedublin and a well run event! Will be back next year #adventureracing"
"What a fantastic and beautiful open mountain race in Connemara by Gaelforce. A fantastic and painful mountain race, one you should all try! It's 95% open mountains with steep slopes and super muddy sections you can really enjoy if it's on your bum or just staying on your feet and letting go...one race I’ll be doing over and over."
"That was a fantastic race, so well organized. Congrats to you all."
"Amazing day in Killary for @Gaelforceevents #mountainrun The weather gods were kind to us, even blue skies at times. Thank you to all the amazing organisers, always so sound."
Our iconic, award-winning Gaelforce Events bring competitors through the most interesting routes and varied terrains in the most stunning of landscapes. Our mission is to seek out new challenges and unique race offerings to bring the best of adventure racing to Ireland. You just won’t find locations or challenges like this anywhere else!
Here is a snapshot of how the Gaelforce journey has progressed since it began back in 2006.
The story of Killary Gaelforce began in 2006 when renowned adventurer and Director of Killary Adventure Company, Jamie Young, supported by Failte Ireland and others, brought his dream of hosting the largest one-day adventure race in Europe to life. Gaelforce West was born and adventure racing in Ireland came to be.
Gaelforce Events is born creating one strong and recognisable brand for the events that were to come.
The Connemara Adventure Challenge (a sprint adventure race) and the Turf Guy Challenge (an obstacle race through the Connemara bog) began and were unique events for the Irish adventure racing scene at the time.
Gaelforce Events take on the wilds of Donegal with Gaelforce North. A sprint distance event was added to Gaelforce North in 2012 to cater for the less experienced racer.
In 2012 the Bray 10km Trail Blazer brought runners on a 10km trail and beach run along the cliffs of Bray Head on a spring evening. Now a sell-out event renamed as the Bray 10km Cliff Run. 2012 also brought a new and daring direction with an open water swimming event in October, The Great Fjord Swim. Taking place in magnificent Killary Fjord and now including 3 distances it continues to grow each year.
In 2013 the Turf Guy toughened up as it became the Turf Warrior and much ingenuity and expense was invested in making this a superb obstacle course which featured on Ireland’s Fittest Families. 2013 saw the introduction of a women-only adventure race in Galway.
2014 saw the introduction of a women-only adventure race in Roundwood Wicklow.
2015 saw the Gaelforce Mountain Run, taking place in the Maamturk mountains begin. Experienced mountain runners were attracted by the unmarked routes and generous prize money. This is a Gaelforce staff favourite as it is our home training ground and is such a spectacular location and a tough challenge.
2016 brought more innovation and daring with a night cycle and a regular triathlon - both in Connemara. The Night Rider Sportif took place in April on a beautiful moonlit night and the Connemara Triathlon was launched in September.
In 2016 John West Ireland joined as title sponsors of Gaelforce events providing natural protein products to our athletes.
2017 saw us take on the exciting task of bringing a major adventure race to the capital city with Gaelforce Dublin in February. We stayed in Dublin for a second trail running event in 2017 as the Howth Summit 10km run began in October 2017 and has had extra waves added due to its phenomenal success!
2018 brought an added level of endurance to the already iconic Gaelforce West with the introduction of Gaelforce West Ultra. 152km of pure endurance!
2019 saw the addition of the Gaelforce 10K Kippure trail run to the Gaelforce events calendar. It is part of the Gaelforce 10K Trilogy trail run series.
Keep an eye on our social media as we release information on our new events.
We are very excited about the future and we look forward to seeing you at one of our start lines soon.
Gaelforce story
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