When international travel is involved, sometimes a great plan can get flipped on its head very quickly. In the history of my Iron Phi running trip, I haven’t had any travel delays that have significantly altered the layout and flow of the trip.

That all changed with this trip.

Our flight path to Ireland was Des Moines to Chicago to Shannon, with plans to be in the country from Tuesday to Tuesday. Departing Des Moines, morale was high, but we quickly learned that weather around Chicago may throw a wrench into our plans. Circling above northeast Missouri in the air, we could only hope that everything would push past Chicago and delays would allow us to get to our next flight.

It did not, and our plane returned to Des Moines. An hour or so later, we learned that the flight was ultimately canceled, and we would be forced to re-book for two days later.

We spent the next day and half re-working flight, hotel, car reservations to get back on track. For me personally, I needed to best figure out how to make all of my donor stops work as best possible, with about a quarter of them affected by the travel woes. We’ll see how this works!

On Wednesday afternoon, we re-boarded for Chicago, said see you soon to the Galles’, as they had to make a second connection through Newark, and flew smoothly overnight to Shannon, Ireland with way too many Kansas State fans on board.

Shannon is the second largest airport in Ireland behind Dublin and offered a calm entry point to the country. I love watching Six Nations rugby, both live games and the Netflix sports doc series about the sport. Ireland is top dog in rugby, so I had to capture a runner’s choice photo of this statue at the airport. Shoutout to Tillie’s mom Julie and her husband Rob for helping us pull off this trip by watching our kids this week. We’ve already enjoyed fun photos of them enjoying their time at the farm.

Tillie and I had a few hours to kill before the Galles’ arrived in Shannon. We picked up our rental car and then used the time for me to give myself driving lessons, driving on the right side of the car and left side of the road. I only hit a few curbs in the first hour.

Just down the road from the Shannon airport, we stopped at the Bunratty Castle, a 15th-century medieval fortress with a surrounding Folk Park that recreates life in 19th-century Ireland. Ireland loves their castles. I thanked my jet-setting Canadian pal and former colleague Andrew Norrie for his donation.

We drove into Limerick to spot a few more landmarks. We’ll be spending our final evening of the trip in Limerick, so I wanted to get the lay of the land while we had some time to kill.

King John’s Castle sits on the River Shannon in Limerick, built on Viking foundations. The castle now houses interactive exhibits and offers impressive views from its battlements. I thanked Scott Mietchen who has always been a great friend and supporter of Iron Phi alongside the Phi Delts at the University of Utah.

Across the street from King John’s Castle is Katie Day’s Heritage Pub & Kitchen, a traditional Irish pub and restaurant. While it wasn’t open at 9:00am in the morning, and I could have used a pint of Guinness by this point, I was able to thank Cory & Jennifer Hanson, our wonderful friends and travel buddies.

We headed back to the airport to pick up Ryan and Nicole and got back on the road to begin our drive to the Dingle Peninsula. Along the way, we stopped through Adare, a really cute little town with great charm. Adare Manor will host the 2027 Ryder Cup golf tournament, placing it on the world golf stage. While we were not able to get onto that property due to construction, we did have access to the old Adare Manor Golf Club that sits directly in town. Here, I thanked my golf-loving buddy Brad Carlson and his awesome wife Mindy. The only other time I’ve been in Ireland, Brad was also there on our study abroad adventure.

It was time for our first pint of the trip. Auntie Lena’s in Adare welcomed us in, and it was a Guinness without question. This donor stop was the first to go off the board this year, with Chris Hill snagging it quickly. I loved hanging out with Chris and his family at Phi Delt Convention this summer, and you can always count on a good time and a few laughs with Chris. Sláinte!

Adare’s downtown was happening, and the weather was beautiful. We walked the streets and passed this beautiful church. I thanked Kerrie Herren, a former colleague and now a member of Phi Delta Theta’s General Council. Kerrie and I always enjoy catching up while running, and that was no different a few weeks ago when were both in Oxford, Ohio.

So driving in Ireland is an absolute trip. I had many people remind me to make sure to buy the car rental insurance, and we did. After a day in the country, I now know why it’s so important. It’s almost laughable how narrow many of the road are. Couple that with driving on the other side of the car/road, you have a hilarious adventure in front of you.

Take this bend on the side of a very large hill as an example. Nicole’s nervous giggle from the backseat was a clear indicator when roads became too narrow for comfort. The crew tells me I clipped our car mirrors twice on the road yesterday. I still don’t believe them.

But windy and narrow roads usually lead you to magical things, and these were no different. Leading into the coast town of Dingle, we were given amazing views of the region. One of the casualties of our reconfigured trip was probably the thing I was looking to most – Killarney and driving the Ring of Kerry. I was supposed to thank Roger Heineken in Killarney, but I took the opportunity to thank him at this view outside of Dingle.

We eventually made it to Dingle and checked into the Dingle Bay Hotel, a welcoming hotel that overlooks the harbor in the heart of town. I thanked Linda Carlson for her donation and know that she would adore this town.

Dingle is a colorful fishing town famous for its vibrant harbor, music pubs, artisan shops, and great food. It is one of the few places where Irish Gaelic is still spoken daily, and it was fun to see the language still used on road signs. I also know that Dingle was a special place for Suzanne Alexander and her late husband Neil, so I wanted to make sure to get a picture in the heart of town to spread the Live Like Lou love.

Fun fact – Dingle was home to Fungie, a wild bottlenose dolphin who lived in the harbor and greeted boats every day for nearly 40 years. While we did not see any dolphins in the harbor, we did see a fella walking his donkey and two dogs. That was neat. Speaking of neat, those Bryan & Lauren Loonsfoot folks! Lauren is officially our son Cal’s new favorite travel buddy, having accompanied him on school and church trips this year.

I needed a little pick me up, so where better to do that in Dingle than Murphy’s ice cream. I combined scoops of sea salt and Irish brown bread flavors for a great treat. I also thanked my ice cream loving mother and my dad for their donation.

It was time to explore a few of the pubs of Dingle. Dingle has more pubs per capita than almost anywhere in Ireland — many of which serve both as pubs and shops (like hardware stores!). Bob Griffin’s was our first stop, a cozy little place with friendly people. Ryan was a fan.

We did a little window shopping through town in search of our next stop.

Foxy John’s Pub & Hardware is a quirky combination of a working hardware store and classic Irish pub. After being inside, I’m still not convinced there are many hardware sales going on in there. I thanked friends Joe & Sarah Wechsler who are huge fans of Ireland, Dingle, and even Foxy John’s! Tillie and Sarah, with daughters in tow, spent a long weekend in Phoenix recently.

Dick Mack’s Pub is just down the road and doubles as a leather shop. Because why not? It’s known for its impressive whiskey selection and regular traditional music sessions. We were able to witness an older gentleman sit down at the piano and have the place rocking. I thanked my Phi Delt chapter brother Drew Miller for his donation and continual support of my Iron Phi trips.

After a delicious fish and chips dinner at The Fish Box, we strolled back through town towards the water. But first, a quick runner’s choice shoutout to my fellow non-profit buddy Andrew Christy in front of this impressive church that towers above Dingle.

After a few days of very little sleep, 8:30pm hit REAL hard, and we were all ready to crash. We finished the day with a stroll on the harbor and a quick thank you to Kelly Caughlan. While not on a Killarney Lakes boat tour, I figured these boats could do.

I was asleep exactly five minutes after this picture.