Lakes Races

Lakes Races

We started 16 years ago with the original 10K race. Each year we welcome back some beloved regulars. Each year we're discovered by new runners. In 2023, we introduced a 5K race; in 2025 we're expanding our portfolio even further. We've decided to introduce a real challenge: the Heartbreak Hills Half-marathon. The least you can do is admire the alliteration.

Lakes 10K

The original and still the best. Ten kilometers around the Blessington Lakes with a touch of the Wicklow Hills. Samba band; road-closures, hill; prizes; medals; goodie bag; community. What's stopping you?

See below the Strava map of the course. If you use the Strava app, you can send the route to your phone. If you're a Garmin-head here's the Garmin link: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/course/380873563. The route has been measured and approved by Athletics Ireland.

Lakes Fun 5K

We realised that not everyone wants the joys of running a hilly-10K. So we invented a new concept: the fun 5K. OK, maybe we didn't invent the concept - but we have optimised it through the use of AI prompting. OK, maybe we measured an out-and-back course from the same start and finish points as the 10K. But that took some deep learning. It's fun. It's flat. It could be fast. Maybe you're thinking of improving your 5K PB. Maybe you're thinking wouldn't it be fun to run 5K near Blessington Lakes. Maybe you could do both. At the same time. Come on - have some fun.

Lakes Heartbreak Hills Half-marathon

One hundred and fifty runners will get the opportunity to race, or maybe just run, the Lakes Heartbreak Hills half-marathon. Not for the faint-hearted, the 21+ kilometer track includes breath-taking views of the Blessington Lakes. Whether you get to enjoy those views as you climb not one, but two hills is moot. We believe "Challenging" fails to adequately describe this course. "Heartbreaking" is the closest polite word we could come up with. We've included the Strava route below - click "Send to device" if you're using the Strava app. Note that the route's actual distance has been verified by Athletics Ireland. The map below depends on Strava's route creation tool to define the distance. 

If you're a part of the Garmin eco-system, you can access the route and download it to your device here: https://connect.garmin.com/modern/course/379586981.

You might look at the profiles below or on the Garmin map and think to yourself "what are they going on about?" Those two hills have grades of 8 and 11%. Now you might ask yourself: "well, how did I get here".

Routes for the Lakes Races