The Beast is back for 2025
The Beast Adventure Race.
The Beast Adventure Race will return to the Irish adventure racing calendar as a 24hr expedition race on the 23rd and 24th May 2025. It will be based in Carlow in the Southeast of Ireland and will serve as the Irish and 4 Nations Championship race for 2025.
The Southeast of Ireland has a great mix of outdoor landscapes ranging from scenic rivers and lakes, upland areas, canal towpaths and large forest plantations, making it a great location for a 24hr race.
The race will be open to Teams of 2 and 4 (Male/ Female/ Mixed) and will involve mountain biking, trekking, orienteering, kayaking and a few extra surprises. Navigation will be required, and each team will receive 1 sets of Race Maps. A second set can be requested (modest fee applies).
It will start on Friday 23rd May (PM) and finish on Saturday afternoon 24th May.
The full price for a team of 4 to enter the Beast is €1000 (€250 per person). That includes
- Race Maps (Colour/ Water Resistant)
- Race Guide Booklet
- Full Event Support
- Kayaks, Paddles & Gear (for kayak stages)
- Free Camping at Race HQ
- Event Medical Support
- Team Trackers
- Transfer of Kit During Race
- Special Stages
- After Race Meal
An early bird discount of €100 is available for team of 4 that enter before the end November 2024.
The full price for a team of 2 to enter the Beast is €500 (€250 per person)
An early bird discount of €50 is available for team of 2 that enter before end November 2024.
The Beast Story
The Beast Adventure Race began life as the Beast of Ballyhoura in 2007, when it was first run by the Ballyhoura Failte in collaboration with Outsider magazine and race director, Greg Clark.
The race quickly established itself as the toughest adventure race in Ireland attracting teams from around Ireland and further afield.
Fast forward a few years and the race continued under the direction of Ivan Parke and Eoghan Carton where it was part of the European Adventure Race Series and served as the European Championship race in 2015.
Ivan and Eoghan continued to host the race in Donegal and Northern Ireland in 2017 and 2018.
The Beast holds a special place in the hearts of all adventure racers in Ireland as it’s a race that introduced many to expedition length adventure racing, delivered many epic adventures over the years and created many friendships.
UK & IE 4 Nations Adventure Racing Championship
Adventure racing is going through a rapid growth phase around the world with several national, regional and global series in place.
This has been spearheaded by the Adventure Racing World Series with their global ARWS races culminating in the annual world championships. With this in mind the UK Adventure Racing and Adventure Racing Ireland (ARI) have come together to launch the inaugural UK and IE 4 Nations Adventure Racing Championship – hosted in 2024 by Itera Lite in NorthWales and 2025 hosted by the Beast adventure race.
The hopes are that this event will be hosted annually in one of the four countries and will generally be a 24 hr to 36 hr adventure race. The 2025 edition is hosted in Ireland in Co Carlow and lead by the ARI team.
The championship in 2025 will crown two winners – Mixed Pairs and Mixed 4 based on the key qualifying criteria detailed below.
This event will run alongside the main event at The Beast Adventure Race and winners will be crowned alongside the overall winners in the various categories.
Beast Adventure Race Mandatory Kit –
Updated 23rd April 2025
Individual Kit – All race participants must carry the following
- Backpack
- Bladder or Water Bottles
- Dry Bag (for inside Backpack)
- Headlamp (Guide 500+ lumens / circa 10-12hrs battery life)
- Waterproof Shell Jacket & Over Pants
- Spare Base Layer
- Gloves & Buff
- Survival Blanket / Space Blanket
- Whistle
- Mountain Bike
- 2 Spare Tubes & 1 Powerlink
- Biking Helmet
- Bike Lights (Mounted Front / Rear on Bikes)
- Race Bib (supplied)
- High-Visibility Safety Vest ( suitable for wearing over jacket and backpack at night)
Team Kit – All teams must carry the following
- Compass x1 (spare recommended)
- Water Resistant Map Case
- Bike Repair kit (includes levers, pump & chain repair tool)
- Bike Bell (1 for each team)
- Bike Map Board (1 per team / mounted securely on bike)
- Transition Bag (s) – 1 for Teams of 2, 2 for Teams of 4. Max Weight 20kg
- Wet Bag (1 for Teams of 2, 2 for Teams of 4)
- Group Shelter (2 person or 4 person)
- 5meter Length of Rope x 2 (for kayak stage)
- Mobile Phone (fully charged and stored in sealed bag)
- First Aid Kit containing
- Pressure Bandage (Elastic/ Crepex2)
- Triangular Bandage
- Wound Dressings x3 (Sterile)
- Strapping Tape (Adhesive/ surgical tape)
- Disinfectant Clean Wipesx4
- Antiseptic cream
Please Note:
- Teams can bring/ use own paddles, buoyancy aides and backrests (suitable for fixing to double sit on top kayaks)
- Backrests will not be supplied by race organisers
- Race participants are responsible for bringing own food, drinks and goodies for the race
- Bikes will be transported (twice) during race. If people wish to protect bike frame(s) they can use protective wrapping.
- All Mandatory Kit must be carried during the race. Penalty of 20minutes will apply to any team found to be missing items during the race
The Beast will be made up of several different stages where you will be going from one discipline (e.g. kayaking) on another (e.g. Biking) over the 24hours in the race. Typically, on a 24 hour race you might expect 7 stages and you are required to stay together in your teams throughout the race.
Team adventure races do not follow a pre-defined course. Teams decide what route they wish to take from one control to the next on each stage. Teams can also decide what controls they wish to get, and which they may wish to leave out.
You will be racing through the night, and you can stop, rest and re-fuel at any stage as you will carry food and whatever you need with you during the race. Teams are also able to access team gear bags at pre-defined transition locations during the race.
It would be helpful but it’s not a requirement. The Beast is a great challenge for a group of friends to get together, prepare for and do. You can train and prepare for it and enjoy the challenge. The most important thing in team adventure racing is working together as a team to get through the race.
Mountain bikes are used on the Beast AR.
Probably best travel option is to travel over by car and ferry. That way you have your car and all your gear with you and you can simple drive to race location.
Other option is to fly into Dublin Airport and either rent a car or get a bus down to Carlow. JJ Kavanagh run a regular bus service from Dublin airport to Waterford ( via Carlow ) every day and will take bikes. Details here.
A reasonably high level of fitness is required to complete the Beast and participants should be able to bike, trek/trail run and paddle at your own pace for a few hours in outdoor settings. You should also be used to being active in the outdoors in both good and bad weather conditions.
One team member should be able to read a map and plan a route from one control to the next during the race, all of which will be marked on the maps provided. The map reader should ideally be able to follow a bearing with a compass if required.
Double sit on top kayaks will be used and you can expect to paddle on flat and moving water ((L1 up to L2 conditions). There will be option to portage weirs if the paddling local rivers.
If you haven’t done much paddling, we recommend doing a few sessions with a kayaking operator as part of your preparation for the race.
Racers typically wear a cycle jersey, base layer, running shorts/ leggings, socks & trail running shoes and bike shoes during a race. Waterproof jacket and over pants are often needed in poor weather conditions and at night. Gloves, buffs are also used during races and all racers would typically have spare kit available in gear bags to change into during a race.
A good quality day pack is required for the beast to carry all mandatory kit, food, water and spare clothing items during the race. Typically, a 25-30lt pack would be used on races like this, with a platypus water holder.
Yes.
We don’t think so at this point. Bikes will be moved without being in boxes
Still have questions?
For further information on The Beast Adventure Race, or any queries please contact us using this form