The folks at Red Bull are not just known for their best-selling caffeine infused beverages; they're also known for their ridiculously cool events, sponsorship deals of off-kilter extreme sports stuff and their support of numerous charities – also, that dude who literally jumped from space like it wasn't a thing. Mad yoke.
As the main sponsor of the Wings for Life foundation - set up to find a cure for spin cord injury - they have come up with something is almost inexplicably cool; where folks from around the globe will take part in a simultaneous run, the Irish one happening around the scenic and incredibly beautiful Ring of Kerry. We'll let them explain it a bit better:
On May 4th 5,000 runners will set off around the Ring of Kerry at 11am for the Irish leg of the Wings for Life World Run 2014. Up to 150,000 runners in 40 countries will take part in the first event of its kind to raise money for the Wings For Life foundation, which funds research into spinal cord injuries.
There are only 5,000 places available in the Irish race, so registration is on a first come, first served basis. Register at www.wingsforlife.com/registration. Register for €40 before the end of January, or for €48 after February 1st. If there are any places left by the end of March, registration fees rise again from April 1st to €56. In every case 100% of the registration fee goes to the Wings For Life research foundation, and the closing date for registration is April 20th.
The race has no finish line – instead, runners will be followed by a chase car. As the race progresses, the chase car speeds up and competitors are then eliminated when the chase car passes them out. The winner is the last runner standing in the world.
The race is being co-ordinated by Richard Donavan, who tell us "The Ring of Kerry is a spectacular course, and this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to run it. The course is 120km long, but we're expecting truly elite endurance runners to make it as far as 70 or 80km before the chase car catches them. However the race is open to runners of every ability, so without a finish line to aim for, participants should set themselves goals to reach before the chase car catches up."
The above stream features a Google hangout attended by the likes of Red Bull ambassador, Dublin GAA star and general heartthrob, Bernard Brogan; while the folks at Red Bull Ireland will tell us more about this incredible event and challenge as well as the worthy charity it's all about.