Reist set to take Race Around Ireland glory in Moynalty

With just the final big obstacles in Wicklow stretched out in front of her, Nicole Reist is heading for the home stretch and heading for glory in Moynalty.
 
As darkness fell over the Wicklow mountains on Thursday night, Reist was in Carnew with 188km still to complete in the Race Around Ireland endurance race.
 
But with some of the toughest hills on this extraordinarily demanding route still ahead of her, she could not yet begin to think of the finish line. All through Thursday from early morning she and the other seven solo riders left in the race ticked challenges off the list.
 
From the precipitous St Patrick’s Hill in the dead of night, across windswept Mount Leinster in Carlow to take on the tortuous triptych of Slieve Maan, Drumgoff and Glenmacnass Military Road in Wicklow, Reist continues her relentless march to victory.
 
The Swiss engineer has enjoyed another day of metronomic consistency, drawing further clear of what is now a titanic tussle for second place between Valerio Zamboni of Monaco and England’s John Musgrove.
 
Zamboni was in County Waterford, some 196km behind Reist with Musgrove just 25km behind. Meanwhile Henk Verouden of the Netherlands was 25km further back with Erikur Ingi Johannsson of Iceland just over 15 further in arrears and swapping places in a battle for fourth place on the road.
 
All being well Reist is expected to reach the finish line in Moynalty some time after 4am with her current estimated time of arrival just after 5.30am on Friday morning.
 
Meanwhile, the two-rider class was decided earlier today in favour of the Mick/Ted Racing duo of Michael McCarthy and Francis Melia who arrived back in Moynalty after 2153km and 93hours and 45 minutes of epic tag team racing.
 
Canadian duo Jean Pierre Genereux and Nicholas F Martire of Team Aldo Racing were expected to reach the finish line some time after midnight.