Race Report – Dublin Novice Cross Country – Sunday, 6th October 2024
The day of my first cross country started like most firsts: a glorious blend of excitement and naivety but also nerves and anxious panic. Naturally, it led me to frantically googling ‘how to run a cross country race.’ in the hours before. Thanks to Wikihow,How to Run a Cross Country Race (with Pictures) – wikiHow, I became an expert on the subject in only a few minutes!
‘Preparation is crucial’ was the first wise piece of advice. I had a decent breakfast and dressed for the typical Irish rain, which definitely made me question my life choices. When we arrived, Veronica and Michelle whipped out the resistance bands and started doing ‘activation exercises ‘ and I followed in their footsteps. Emily sent the six of us on a jog and we then did some strides. At that stage, I would lie if I said we weren’t all second-guessing our fitness levels, murmuring to each other that we can’t imagine how we could hold a similar pace for 100 metres let alone 4km.
In the minutes before the race, I tried the visualisation technique, envisioning myself having a great race! The gun went off and, unsure of what to expect, I set off like it was a 400m race, very quickly realising that everyone else was pacing themselves… like sensible people!
I soon set into my own race, with Rachel by my side, remembering the advice to get a good position early in the pack, cause if not “it’ll be psychologically tough to catch up later in the race”.
By the second lap, the lactate in my legs was building and my body was sending me SOS signals. Luckily I remembered the next piece of advice, ‘If your legs start to hurt, don’t slow down. (As this will make them hurt more seemingly. If you run, you actually can’t feel them anymore…) Great! Thanks to the many Sportsworld supporters hyping us on, everyone was having a great race.
Up above, I heard Emily yell ‘she’s not looking strong at all’ about the runner in front of me. The poor woman had a good 25 metre lead on me and was probably just dying inside as much as the next person, but Emily’s words gave me hope, and I eventually caught up with her.
On the final stretch, I was running solely in fear as multiple screams warned me to speed up, as the girl behind was catching up. Luckily I held on and crossed the finish line in third.
After finishing, I found my team and we were delighted to finish second.
After our race, we sat back to watch the men’s race… a gruelling 6 km. Everyone put in a great effort with Paul O’Beirne leading the team home, finishing tenth team overall.We finished the afternoon off with free sandwiches which the food truck was handing out at the end of the day. They were delicious!
Although I’ve only been a member of Sportsworld since the start of Summer, I’ve learned a lot about the power of teamwork. Before, I’d say I viewed running as an individual sport. But, there’s a unique feeling of camaraderie within the club. Everyone is genuinely so friendly and inviting. Emily and Michael are just great! I don’t know how they do it but although the club is so big, they make everyone feel like they’re worth it and a part of something bigger. People are there for you through your small and big wins (and the losses too). This cross country has also shown me what the power of belief can do. By both having self-belief and when others believe in you, you can achieve great things!
Written by Lorna Sheehan
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