Westmeath man runs 200km non-stop across Ireland for charity

A Westmeath native and a group of friends have raised over €30,000 for charity by running 200km non-stop from Galway to Dublin in under 30 horus.

Mullingar's Daragh Crowley and his seven fellow ultra runners (Stephen McCabe, Ger Clarke, Shane Kenny, Podge Malone, Henry Fleming, Brian Fitzsimons and Damien Ward) set off on their Coast To Coast 200km Challenge from Oranmore Castle in Galway at 6am on Saturday November 26 and finished up on the Samuel Beckett Bridge in Dublin just before noon the following day.

Their epic west to east coast run took them through Ballinasloe, Shannonbridge, Ballycumber, Clara, Kilbeggan, Tyrrellspass, Rochfortbridge, Milltownpass, Kinegad and Clonard, before they joined the Royal Canal at Furey's Bar in Moyvalley for the final section into Dublin.

The Coast to Coast Challenge was the group's third charity fundraiser in as many years.

Last year the group ran the full length of the Royal Canal (150km) in just under 20 hours, breaking the previous record by around an hour; while the year before they ran a 100km stretch of the waterway from Dublin to Abbeyshrule.

Over the past three years, the group has raised over €70,000 for charity, including over €30,000 and counting this year for the Irish Wheelchair Association and Muscular Dystrophy Ireland.

The two charities are very close to the heart of one of the group, Henry Fleming, as his nephew Conor Mornington is an ambassador for both organisations.

Daragh and his running companions are mad for road. Seven of the eight ran the recent Dublin City Marathon, while Daragh - whose late father Johnny was a long time employee of the Westmeath Examiner - has also completed iron men events in Lanzarote and Austria this year. In total, he has ran a whopping six and a half thousand kilometres this year.

Unlike his siblings who were talented athletes when they were growing up, Daragh (49) says that he is a relative latecomer to the world of running and triathlons.

“It was a midlife crisis. I couldn't ride a bike or swim until the age of 40. It was this or the Harley Davidson,” he joked.

A buyer with Woodies and based in Dublin, Daragh says that he wouldn't be able to devote as much time to his training if it wasn't for his very understanding wife, Carol.

Looking ahead, Daragh says that just in case the group was tempted to run 250km next year, they have already signed up for a 100km ultra run in Denmark instead.

When it comes to ultra running, Daragh says that the key to ensuring that you make it to end is to take it nice and steady and to make sure that you eat and drink regularly. One of the highlights of the Coast to Coast Challenge was when a friend turned up in Clonmacnoise with freshly made chip butties for them all.

“It's surprising what the body can do. It's not like a marathon when you are chasing a time. The secret to getting through 200 kilometres is pacing yourself and slowing down rather than running hard,” he says.

Anyone who would like to make a donation can do so online.