A Fastest Known Time (FKT) attempt for an All-Ireland hill list challenge requires the participant to visit every location on that specific list of Irish summits or High Points. We only recognise FKTs for full and complete challenges. We do not accept multiple versions of the same challenge. For verification purposes, all locations on the participant's chosen hill list (as listed on this website), must be logged in any order by the participant while standing at each of those locations using the Peakhunter phone app. The official start and finish times for an All-Ireland hill list FKT attempt will be recorded in the time-stamped Peakhunter logs created at the first and last locations visited during the attempt. As a backup, all trail sections of the challenge should be recorded using a GPS device which allows the activity route to be viewed on a map and to be saved as a GPX file. We recommend using a Garmin watch for this. All motorised transfers between walk sections must also be recorded for the purpose of verifying that no speed limits are broken on Ireland's public roads at any time during an attempt. Ideally, this should be recorded as a single GPX file for the entire duration of the attempt. A series of GPX files covering all driven sections will be permitted, but a single file will speed up the verification process. We do not require photographic evidence or challenge reports for our verification process, but it is always a good idea to have these for your own records.
Full step-by-step instructions are provided below and must be followed by challenge hillwalkers and mountain runners who are attempting to achieve official FKTs for All-Ireland hill lists. We fully recognise the additional safety risks associated with All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts (e.g. mountain running at night, significant driving sections on public roads, etc). Due to these additional risks, we do not actively encourage or promote the undertaking of All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts. However, in the absence of any other FKT verification body whose checking process takes speed limits on public roads into account, we feel it has become necessary for us to formally step in as the official verifier of Irish hill list challenge FKT attempts. As such, All-Ireland hill list FKTs listed on the High Point Ireland website carry more weight than those listed on any other website due to our more robust verification process which actively promotes road safety. We do not believe that FKTs which involve speeding on public roads deserve any recognition or acknowledgement. It is up to the participant to provide all the necessary data to prove that all speed limits were adhered to.
Full step-by-step instructions are provided below and must be followed by challenge hillwalkers and mountain runners who are attempting to achieve official FKTs for All-Ireland hill lists. We fully recognise the additional safety risks associated with All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts (e.g. mountain running at night, significant driving sections on public roads, etc). Due to these additional risks, we do not actively encourage or promote the undertaking of All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts. However, in the absence of any other FKT verification body whose checking process takes speed limits on public roads into account, we feel it has become necessary for us to formally step in as the official verifier of Irish hill list challenge FKT attempts. As such, All-Ireland hill list FKTs listed on the High Point Ireland website carry more weight than those listed on any other website due to our more robust verification process which actively promotes road safety. We do not believe that FKTs which involve speeding on public roads deserve any recognition or acknowledgement. It is up to the participant to provide all the necessary data to prove that all speed limits were adhered to.
Current FKTs
The table below contains all current, fully verified Fastest Known Times for All-Ireland hill list challenges. As you can see, most of these lists have no official FKTs assigned to them yet. If you are in a position to legitimately claim a fully verifiable FKT for any of these lists and can provide the necessary location logging and motorised speed evidence, please do so using our online All-Ireland Hill List FKT Form.
| All-Ireland hill list challenge | Record holder(s) | Completion date | Fastest Known Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland's Province High Points | - | - | - |
| Ireland's County High Points* | Shaun Stewart & Lonan O'Farrell* | 22nd April 2017 | 60 hours and 35 minutes* |
| Ireland's Local Council High Points | - | - | - |
| Ireland's Range High Points | - | - | - |
| Ireland's Major Island High Points | - | - | - |
| Ireland's Major River High Points | - | - | - |
| Ireland's 20km Isolation High Points | - | - | - |
| Ireland's 500m Prominence High Points | - | - | - |
| The Irish Hewitts | - | - | - |
| The Slievemores | - | - | - |
Notes
* An attempt was made to set a new FKT for Ireland's County High Points in August 2023 when a time of 53 hours and 13 minutes was recorded. Unfortunately, this attempt does not qualify as an official record, for two reasons: 1) a County High Point was missed despite all the necessary locations being clearly listed on this website and elsewhere online and 2) no data was provided to verify that speed limits were adhered to during all motor-powered transfers despite a personal reminder of this requirement two days before the attempt. The Fastest Known Time website appears to have accepted the time recorded for this incomplete attempt, highlighting that their normal verification process is unsuitable for All-Ireland hill list challenges and should be addressed accordingly.
Instructions
Submit your FKT
Verification process
Additional notes
Certificates & recognition
A Certificate of Excellence can be claimed by anyone who sets a new All-Ireland hill list FKT based on the instructions and verification process described above. These certificates will only be issued after we receive a completed All-Ireland Hill List FKT Form from the challenger and have had a chance to fully verify that all the necessary location logging and motorised speed requirements have been met. Incomplete, privately-recorded, partially recorded, unrecorded or unverifiable All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts will not receive a certificate or any other official recognition on the High Point Ireland website.
Verification evidence
From 1st January 2018, Certificates of Excellence will only be awarded if ALL related location visits can be proven by time-stamped Peakhunter logs, and if the mandatory GPX files provided by the challenger prove that no speed limits were broken on public roads throughout the full duration of the attempt.
Road safety
We cannot emphasise strongly enough that High Point Ireland does not actively encourage or promote the undertaking of All-Ireland hill list Fastest Known Time (FKT) attempts which require motorised transport between trail sections. Doing so could be misinterpreted as an endorsement to break speed limits on Ireland's public roads. However, if a challenger does legally set a new FKT, we will be more than happy to acknowledge the achievement on this page, on the condition that GPS data for the entire challenge can be provided confirming that speed limits were adhered to during all sections of the challenge where motorised transport was utilised. GPX files must be provided when requested for all driven sections so that vehicle speeds can be analysed in detail. If a provisional FKT is found to have involved the violation of speed limits during motorised sections or has no recorded data to prove otherwise, it will receive no recognition or acknowledgement on the High Point Ireland website. Driving faster than the speed limit is totally unacceptable, and could result in serious injury or death to the challenger, their support crew and / or other road users. Our requirement for GPX data has been factored into All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts as a road safety measure to deter speeding.
Speed limits on public roads
Speed limit signs indicate MAXIMUM permitted speeds: please obey them at all times. Speed limits apply 24 hours per day, 7 days a week. The maximum motorway speed limits in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland are 120 kilometres (74.56 miles) per hour and 70 miles (112.65 kilometres) per hour respectively. In the Republic of Ireland, this maximum speed is equal to a pace of 30 seconds per kilometre (48.28 seconds per mile), while in Northern Ireland it is equal to 51.43 seconds per mile (31.96 seconds per kilometre). During our speed analysis, we will initially scan through the speed / pace data of the entire challenge to verify that the maximum motorway speed / pace was not exceeded. Any speeds / paces which exceed those quoted above will instantly nullify that FKT attempt. Attempts which do not exceed the maximum motorway speed will be further analysed to verify that local speed limits have been adhered to. This is a lengthier process which could take some time. The GPX file provided by the challenger will enable us to compare each point on the speed graph with its corresponding location on a map view of the driven route. We are very strict about the enforcement of speed limits throughout All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts and will not permit a single violation.
FKT research and other participant responsibilities
It is the challenger's own responsibility to know in advance the full list of locations for their chosen challenge as shown on this website. We do not generally monitor All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts, but if we do happen to observe a deviation while one is underway, we may intervene in order to bring this to the attention of the challenger as quickly as we can and through whatever channels are available to us (e.g. a social media private message). Please note that we do not have the resources to continuously monitor All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts from start to finish while they are in progress or to provide real-time advice to challengers. High Point Ireland is made up of a small team of volunteers who may not be in a position to respond quickly (or at all) to challengers' questions under pressure during an All-Ireland hill list FKT attempt. For this reason, it is imperative that the challenger has fully researched what is required well in advance and accepts full responsibility for any failure due to inadequate research. All the necessary information required to undertake an All-Ireland hill list FKT attempt is publicly available on the High Point Ireland website. It is entirely the challenger's own responsibility to carry out all the necessary research well in advance. High Point Ireland is under no obligation to provide additional information above and beyond what is publicly and freely available on our website and elsewhere online. We do not have the resources to offer personalised consultancy services. High Point Ireland accepts no responsibility for failed attempts to set official and verifiable All-Ireland hill list FTKs.
Daylight saving transition times
To avoid time miscalculations and any other possible confusion, you must not undertake an All-Ireland hill list FTK during a period which includes either of the two daylight saving transition times. One of these transition times occurs on the Sunday in Spring when clocks go forward 1 hour and the other occurs on the Sunday in Autumn when clocks go back 1 hour. Please note that we will not give any recognition to All-Ireland hill list FKT attempts undertaken across either of these two transition times.
