Home to world-renowned beaches Portugal and more specifically the Algarve is a sun seekers paradise. But those who venture away from the sand and high rises will be rewarded by this bountiful country; cobbled hilltop villages, verdant headlands, and captivating sun-baked plains demanding exploration.

With the masters and the senior cross country season behind me for another year and some time on my hands, I decided to head away for a week’s training in preparation for the upcoming indoor and outdoor track seasons. I asked around about winter training and the Algarve sounded like the good option with a mix of 18C temperatures, great off-season value, the legendary trails around Monte Gordo and the almond blossom cross country course near Albufeira.

There is a good reason why many of the worlds best athletes light up those Instagram feeds over the winter, in the Algarve training. The beautiful beaches, incredible trails over the cliffs and through the orange groves and the ease of travel and lifestyle make it the perfect location to balance hard training with a perfect break. With Brian Bryne going on a trip in May I said I’d write up a few tips and good routes.

The Ryanair flights to Faro are inexpensive over the winter months with return flights typically costing less than €80. Despite there being an infinite amount of places to run in the Algarve the two most popular destinations are around Albufeira in the West and Vila Real de Santo António in the East.

I choose to stay at the Alfamar apartments which are 35 minutes West of Faro and set between Albufeira and Vilamoura. The pine forests and Albufeira nature reserve surround the hotel and it is only 400 meters away from the fabulous 6 kilometers long Falésia beach. Score!

The hotel has its own track, indoor and outdoor pools, and gym and triathletes can swim in the sea and enjoy the many safe cycling and running trails. The hotel is also less than a kilometer from the cross country course. There is another hotel nearby in the top left of the image below, which is where Brian byrne had previoauly trained.

A quick disclaimer, the hotel I stayed in is conveniently located for those with sporting intent but it’s quite basic and not a good location for a week of sightseeing without a car. On the other, and if you just wanted to run and lie by the pool or the beautiful beach them knock yourself out. I believe there are bus transfers for €15 from faro but the car was only €150 including the 500 kilometers I drove along the coast West of Faro.

Back to the running bit. Running alongside invigorating cliff top paths with the exhilarating Atlantic Ocean smashing menacingly upon dramatic cliffs provides runners with a refreshingly diverse landscape in which to train and improve fitness levels and performance.

Added to the above, the Algarve is a rural location. You don’t meet traffic on the roads, it’s not far removed from Connemara, apart from the 300+ days of sunshone. The gentler roads cut through groves of orange trees that run alongside long stretches of fine sandy trails. I promise I’m not on any commission, just check out the pictures.

When you are away for a training week you need to make the most of it and push the weekly mileage a bit higher than you would at home. It’s a good opportunity to try running twice a day if you have never done that. I set a plan for the week as follows.

On Monday I got the early flight so by 11 AM I’d landed in Faro and was on the road way too early to check-in. With DK Eyewitness Travel Guide to Portugal in hand I headed to Tavira and Loule to do some touristing.

By 3 PM I was checking in and ready to get my recovery run out of the way. The 4 AM start and national master cross country the day before. I used it as an opportunity to see the place and get my bearings. Over the course of the week, I would manage to get lost quite a few times but made a few friends.

Despite the warm midday sun, the overnight temperature in Portugal can be in the low single digits. Even on the coldest mornings, you can still see the sun and the moon. the On Tuesday morning I ran from the hotel toward Vilamoura. Its a good run on trails and asphalt. If you get out early running the cold temperatures and sunrise in your face on country roads makes for a memorable experience. All you can hear is birds chirping and life is good.

On Wednesday after a 12K morning run, I headed for the track. It is not right beside the hotel, which is good for getting a 1K warm-up done. I arrived with the intention of doing 16 x 400 Min around 70-72 seconds with a 45-second floating recovery. Quickly I was told by the grounds person that I needed a ticket, despite there being nobody else using it.

Finally, 15 minutes later than expected I was starting my session. Having not done the much fast work in months I took the very first 400M very handy but ran 76 seconds. A bit gutted I tried to pick up a bit and ran a 71. Then on number 3 something clicked and I just started to get into it.

76, 71, 68, 68 
68, 68, 67, 64 
64, 65, 64, 64 
66, 64, 63, 62

Delighted with the overall pace once I got moving. My take away is to check with reception on track availability. Track workouts are particularly rough by yourself so bring some electrolytes and loads of water.

Thursday as all about doing 10 miles or 16K easy in the morning and then do the same loop again in the evening at tempo pace. The morning all went to plan. In the evening, I decided last minute to do the lap in reverse, got lost in the first few kilometers and well there isn’t exactly anyone to stop and ask for directions. If you go South from the hotels there is a trail of about 3-4 K into Vilamoura whilst if you go North it is about 6-7 away. Once you get to Vilamoura there is somewhat of a ring road with good footpaths for runners and not too many traffic lights.

One other thing I figured out is that some of the golf courses have public paths, just learn what “Quatro” in Portuguese means. you really can just make it up here.

On Saturday I was up early to do 5 x 2K with 2-minute recovery around the cross country course. Despite the European club cross country champions the course wasn’t well marked in parts. I was quite pleased with the session, running an average of 6.30 for each of the 2K laps. The course is tough with two huge sand traps, log jumps, and sharp hills. It’s not mucky but the sand is almost as bad as a day out in Galway, almost!

On Saturday afternoon I found myself doing a run around Lagos, having spent a few hours at a couple of the epic beached in the area. I wouldn’t recommend this approach for sessions but for easy or recovery runs it’s great to just throw some gear in the car and go explore.

By Sunday I was starting to get to know the place and picked out a route for just over 30K. I started at the hotel headed North and crossed the main road. You can run on the main roads, there is a cycle lane but Portuguese driver are erratic so best to stick to the side roads. As can be seen on the unintentional runner shaped Strava plot below, there’s plenty of running North of the hotels and beach on quiet roads. it’s super quiet you have the odd hill and plenty of scenery.

One quick word of warning that it’s easy to get lost and you do occasionally have to turn around and try and retrace your steps. It’s also so remote that ladies might want to runs in twos. I only found out how to enter this area at the end of the week but if you run towards the equestrian center there is an entrance to the nature reserve with miles and miles of trails. This area is majestic with the suns shadows bouncing off the trees. You really do feel like there isn’t a problem in the world running through here. You do have to jump a river at one point but be spontaneous.

I wound up a great week of running with a final lap of the cross country course before the run for home and an awaiting glass or fresh orange juice from some of the local trees.

Inevitably I compared the experience to the International running challenge in Lanzarote. The challenge is more of a holiday than a training week but the fitness benefits I found to be similar. The accommodation in Lanzorate is nicer and there are fewer options for dinner in this part of Portugal unless you get a kitchen or have a car. Overall if you are looking for a getaway from everything holiday to improve your running it is perfect

Most of the afternoons I spent exploring the Algarve West of Faro, spending a few hours each day at the beach or walking along the hill tops. There are some really beautiful spots with a lot of Roman and more recent history.

Brian Byrne is going to the area in May and I’d advise anyone with some spare holidays that is keen on getting in a week of training with some good relaxation to give it a shot. If you want to see a bit of the place get a car. M top spots are the beach near Lagos and towns of Silves, Tavira and Alte. There is a great strip of restaurants with an Italian called Pizza Falesia.

The idea that I’d make a disciplined start here is an absurdity that flies in the face of every cross-country race I’ve run since the Obama-Kenny era. And so it was with the Charlotte Winter Classic. The gun fired and despite prerace delusions of sense, I marauded down the opening kilometre with gay abandon in a stampede of comically short-shorts, colourful singlets and high V02 maxes. The start was slick until we reached a bit of gravel and then a slight bump a kilometre in. 5min miling instead of the planned 5:20s. Oops. Conservatism was out the window: adrenaline and adolescent competitiveness took over and I was fucked for the latter stages in this 8k grind. 
I was in a mediocre frame of mind beforehand with a lot of miles in my legs (being without a taper and all), so perhaps the struggle and sluggishness ought not have been a shock. And yet it was one of those beautiful, blue and cloudless North Carolina days that makes me glad to live in such a place. The yellowy-brown and bright blue conditions in contrast with my native Irish green and dark grey for which I’m accustomed to on cross-country days. I get nostalgic because it reminds me of the ferocious Irish championship races I miss each winter. But I’m grateful to be here today with the Bull City Track Club team competing in a team event, something pathetically rare in this state. And it is beyond astonishing to me that these “club” races charge us $50 for the pleasure of oxygen debt. That is a perfect scandal but I’ll leave it to another day to debate.

The course was quite snaky but flat with a few humps that barely registered a groan. That short gravelly section on the opening drag was the only trouble-spot really. Once I settled in to a more sustainable pace I focused on surviving the mental struggle and not losing places. I enjoyed a little battle through mile 2 with two Asheville Running Collective runners. Chris caught up with me for the second lap – his more sensible opening mile now paying off. We ran together at a decent clip on that final lap but I honestly never felt capable of pushing it harder. With around 500m to go Chris picked it up to finish strong. I managed to hold off some Asheville lads who were gaining ground, finishing in 27:00 utterly exhausted. Slightly disappointed with that, because I felt confident of a 26:?? today after how well training’s been recently. Then I remembered it was better than the last two years, so it’d be churlish to complain. Older yet faster: I’ll take that. 
We ended up third team (out of three, to be fair!). The rest of the lads were seemingly uninterested in the spoils of a podium finish (fancy Balega socks anyone!) because they hurried to the cars, leaving a bemused Eric and myself to join the Asheville and Charlotte teams for an embarrassing group photo. The BCTC women took the gold (plastic trophy). Well done ladies, and to all those you raced. 
There was fine banter and company in the luxurious McIver mobile on the drive. #Brexit and its discontents were even broached. To top off a brilliant day with the crew, we dined at a Charlotte BBQ Smokehouse where I also enjoyed a sublime coconut porter. 
Gavin 23rd, 27:00.

Womens intermediate race report by Emma Meade

Mens intermediate race report by Conor Keating

Masters were too tired to write race reports.

National Intermediate Women’s Cross-Country

Race Report by Emma Meade

I will start with a disclaimer that this is my first race report and that I feebly attempted to get out of writing it with no success. However, with some brief guidance from José and Naoise over tea, and a look back at previous reports, I now feel more prepared to write the report than I did prior to running the race itself.

After coming down with some sort of flu/throat infection on Saturday morning I was struggling to breathe while standing still not to mention while tearing round a mucky field. Sunday morning came and the worst of it had cleared apart from the odd coughing fit/bout of nausea. Despite this, I felt there was no way I could miss the last cross-country race of the season. I was back at home with the parents, so I missed the anxious bus ride down to Dundalk and got a lift with my Dad landing in Dundalk with an hour before kick-off. For once the weather seemed to be in our favour with no high wind or rain!

Fast-forward to the start-line, and after a brief explanation of the course (1 short lap, followed by 3 larger laps to make up the 5km course) the gun was sounded, and the relatively small field was off at a fast pace. I stuck on Jess’s shoulder for about the first kilometre and a half but had to drop back to a slower pace as the longer hill on the larger lap took its toll on me. The field had stayed relatively close together for the first half of the race, around this point Margaret passed me and I kept her in my sight as something to aim for for the next two kilometres. The last kilometre was the toughest. This was my fourth cross-country race and two of the previous three had been 4km, so when I reached the fourth kilometre, I really wanted to be done!

Margaret was practically out of sight and I had a stitch in my side as I couldn’t quite get my breathing right, but the support from everyone there was amazing (especially Emily and Myles) and spurred me onto the finish line. Despite feeling a bit lightheaded at the finish, and once I got my breathing back under control, I was delighted I had completed the race and hope to be a bit more consistent in my training for next season!       

2019/2020 cross country Ladies Gazebo is being upgraded

National Intermediate Men’s Cross-Country

Race Report by Conor Keating

With the weather forecast the last few weeks predicting snow in ‘the next few days’ the lead up to the National Intermediate was filled with trepidation that it might be ‘a bit of a slog’ again this year.  However by around Thursday it  became increasingly clear that the East was having the fairer of the weather and there would be no repeat of the shinanings of Clarenbridge 2018. To get over any lingering trauma I suggest watching the Netflix documentary ‘The greatest party that never happened’ about the infamous Fyre music festival which as you know was supposed to be the most awesome festival ever on a private island in Bermuda. One of my favorite parts of the documentary was when there was no proper transport organized from the airport so a local bus driver drove the attended to the ‘venue’ and politely informed that them on the way that ‘Oh people, I’ve seen this site and your in for a shit storm here’. Brings back memories of the bus journey to Galway but at least I didn’t have to pay 3k minimum (before expenses) for the experience! Joe.ie was funny when stating ‘Netflix releases the first horror movie of 2019’ – Rated R for Retared (I may have made up the last bit).

Therapy over I made my way to the clubhouse for just before 10:45 Sunday, bumping into Brian Conway on the way. Once there there was only Michael there quickly followed by Emily who declared that a lot of people were making their own way and it would be a half empty bus. However the feeling of being bus wackers only lasted a few minutes as a great crowd materialized and once on the bus a roll-call ensued. Karol, who was sitting next to me, had his name called out twice by Emily – you don’t however have to be nearly as good as Karol to take part in these XC races and it was great to see such a crowd from the club on this road trip. Conor McCarthy had text to say he was making his own way, but his lift didn’t work out, and he ended up taking the public bus to Dundalk but still arrived in good time.

We had a  few hours wait for our race which gave us plenty of time to warm up and cheer on our colleagues in the other races. Both the ladies teams packed well and each came away with the team bronze. Special mention to Lisa Madden on a fantastic 5th place finish in the women’s Intermediate. The Masters men’s race had a huge crowd of nearly 250. There was a few cluster of Sportsworld runners which required a quick tongue to say c’mon to each as they passed by. Apologizes to the few women who had to make do with ‘C’mon Sportsworld’ – I’m bad at names, I don’t know how Emily and Myles do it. Karol had a great run to finish 10th closely followed by Gareth in 14th – well done to both for winning a Gold county medal on the Dublin team. 

Finally it was time for the Men’s Intermediate which comprised 2 small laps and 4 larger laps. There was only 57 in this race and the race started at a lightning pace – Justin said he ran the first mile in just under 6 minutes and was nearly last. Justin was soon past me and I tried to keep a good steady pace, not helped by a strung  out field and the fact there were few behind me. The race commentator could be heard at all points on the course and we were informed that a group of 9 made up the leading pack half way through the 3rd lap. Shortly after the  commentator then declared that one athlete was falling off the lead group and even named the athlete and his club – a little bit of a low blow I thought. As I commenced my penultimate lap I knew that the leaders were closing so I gave it an extra push – determined not to get lapped and avoid an unwanted mention on the commentary. I had just passed the bell when I saw the leaders heading to the finish straight. This sense of achievement was quickly quelled by the realization that I still had a lap to go having treated the 2nd last as a ‘final push’. Ronan was a little bit ahead of me throughout the race and even though I closed the gap in the last lap he finished a few seconds ahead of me with Justin circa another 30 mins better off. Further up the field and not far off mid pack finishes were Stephen, Conor McCarthy and Sadanand – great running in a high class field. I was 14mins quicker than this race last year, my time this year would have won last year’s race by over a minute and I finished ahead of twice as many people as last year – in other words I finished 5th last.

I enjoyed the XC season – I did 7 out of the 9 races that I can compete in; only missing the Dublin senior (we club had no participants this year) and the national senior – I was in Lanzarote. Nearly constitutes ‘full attendance’ – My lack of medals has me really clutching at straws.  We were quickly back on the bus home with a quick stop in Applegreen for coffee and in some cases Burger King – you’ve earned it lads. There are a few more BHAA XC races coming up which I intend to do and would recommend. If you’re busy those weekends don’t despair – it’s only 7 months to the Dublin novice XC in Phoenix Park.

Summary of Results

Intermediate Women’s Team Bronze – Lisa Madden, Ciara Brady, Jessica Kennedy, Adelie Reinaudo

Dublin silver county medals – Lisa Madden, Ciara Brady

National Women’s team O/35 Bronze – Catherine Bambrick, Ruth Kelly, Mary Finn, Naoise Waldron

National Women’s team O/50 8th

Dublin team gold medal – Catherine Bambrick

Intermediate men’s team 6th

Masters men O/35 6th

Dublin team gold medal Karol Cronin, Gareth Murran

Masters men 0/65

Dublin team gold medal Ray Carpenter

Full race results can be found here

The John Treacy Dungarvan 10 mile took place on Sunday afternoon. With the dearly departed Ballycotton 10 no longer a fixture on the Irish running calendar, the Dungarvan 10 has soared in popularity as one of the “go to” Spring 10 mile races, along with the Mallow 10.

Any lingering doubts about the appeal of Dungarvan surely vanished on the day that entries opened last autumn – the entry website crashed and the organisers had to resort to a raffle for entries.

Assuredly, the course is a PB course. A relatively flat loop that navigates sheltered country roads. It’s a course that rewards patience in the early miles – there are plenty of opportunities to attack the downhill sections from the turn at halfway. The race t-shirt is one of the best in the business and comes with a decent goodie bag, and a spread of food in the sports hall afterwards that could feed an army.

The weather conditions on Sunday were surprisingly good – temperatures rising to nearly 10 degrees by the start, albeit tempered somewhat by a headwind for the first half of the race.

A small crew of Terenure’s red and white toed the line and put in some admirable performances – Diarmuid O’Suilleabhain and Andrea McNamara both snaring PBs. Recent Cork exile Damien Geraghty, also ran a stunning PB. Martin Doyle thundered around despite only being back running a couple of weeks. Tom Kinsella, David Kennedy and myself also took part. Many thanks to Brian Byrne and Lucy D’Arcy for the support en route.

In the overall results, Kevin Maunsell of Clonmel took the spoils for the second year in a row, while in the ladies, two runners with close connections to Sportsworld, Laura O’Shaughnessy and Siobhan O’Doherty finished second and third, behind Grace Lynch of Iveragh AC.

Like Raheny last week, Dungarvan serves as a great indicator of where the fitness is coming into springtime and the drier sod. I heartily recommend it for next year – just be sure to set your alarm for the morning the entries open!

Sportsworld times:

Laura O’Shaughnessy 58.00

Siobhan O’Doherty 58.56

Damien Geraghty 1.01.19

Diarmuid O Suilleabhain 1.01.49

Martin Doyle 1.02.30

Adrian Lanigan 1.09.03

Andrea McNamara 1.09.13

Tom Kinsella 1.14.43

David Kennedy 1.14.46 

First one done in Tirmoghan, Co. Kildare with the East of Ireland Marathon group. Heavy rain from start to finish in this one. Relatively flat. Out and back for a mile and half then 5-mile loops. Disappointed not to get sub 4 but cramp set in on last lap. Finished in 4:17.

http://www.eastofirelandmarathons.com/

https://www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=167678

The 35TH AXA Raheny 5 mile took place this past Sunday with over 4,600 runners and walkers signing up, making it one of Ireland’s biggest club races. The race marks the beginning of the season for most runners and attracts both elite runners along with fun runners, joggers and walkers. This is very much an event for everyone. Nobody wants to miss the Raheny 5 which has turned into a must do race at the start of the year. The event is noted for fast times, a fantastic atmosphere and the now famous goodie bag that other races struggle to match up to.

The weather on Sunday was good with cold and sunny conditions. The last time I ran this race was in 2016. The course route has changed somewhat since then. Despite the dreaded last mile on the old course I did prefer it in comparison to the course today, more on that later.

I have been running relativley well over the past month and was looking forward to this one. I set myself a target of 25.45 going into the race which equates to 3.12 per kilometer. Very achievable given recent training and races. The plan was to do the bulk of my running at the start of the week and taper down at the end. Best laid plans don’t always come to fruition. I ended up being sick after training on Tuesday, not running Wednesday and felt really sluggish on Thursdays doing the Terenure lap. Not an ideal build up week when attempting to run a PB. 

Come race day I did around 5K to warm up and was on the start line with 10 minutes to spare. During the warm up I sensed I was a little tired as I wasn’t feeling any kind of a kick when doing strides. With a chill in the air I felt my hear beating a little too much. 

At 3.00 PM we were off and 3000+ runners went hurtling down All Saints Road. I had a bad start to the race, almost walking off the line but pretty soon I was galloping around people, dodging cars and making up furlongs.

I felt sluggish even at this early start in proceedings, this should have been an early indicator that there wasn’t too much in the tank. The course looped back around Wade’s Avenue, well known as part of the beloved national road relays course. The 3rd kilometer was probably the toughest part of the course for me. I have it in my head for years that when you hit the top of All Saints Road in the relays that it’s all downhill. I really slowed to a crawl here and was running exposed at half marathon pace into the strong headwind.

Normally so early in the race I would have expected to have more drive, more tenacity so early on.  I sensed a bigger group of runners gaining ground behind and the runners in front getting further away. I picture myself getting ever slower as the races progressed, not gathering myself for that final kick in the last mile as I’d visualized before the off.

It was clear after 3 kilometers that it was not going to be my day for a PB but I was never the less determined to keep pushing the pace for the next couple of miles. On Sybil Hill, the lead lady Anne Marie McGlynn of the cross country face was up running alongside. I pictured Myles telling me to hang up my spikes if she beat me so I kept pushing on.  It was quite an enjoyable part of the course. Very flat, great support and some good surfaces. As we came into St Anne’s however I was starting to lose a few meters and then running onto the main avenue my legs weren’t having any of it, despite my breathing being comfortable. I’ll happily give up the cross country spikes after the Nationals next week. Fair play to Anne Marie she ran a super fast 25.59

In slow motion, almost exactly like a freeze-framed runner, I was falling behind. I really struggled in my last two kilometers. Not even with the wind at my back, Sportsworlds finest out supporting, and the finish line within smelling distance could I muster anything but the faintest of efforts to hold off the runners behind. Each made efforts to get ahead but were held off as I solemnly contemplated whether or not I should have lined up? All the time bearing in mind that your own resolution to keep going is more important than anything else.

In hindsight today I’m glad I ran but just didn’t have the energy to execute the plan. 

A little bit about the course to finish. The support was amazing, the looping around Raheny not so great. The turns in the park were tight, particularity the one on the main avenue. This really broke my stride. I would have preferred there to have been a chicane, it would have required just a few more cones.  On the old course, you had a tough hill but a good downhill section before it. As you are running up the main avenue in the park you can see the runners coming down the other side. It’s not really clear how far ahead they are. I didn’t like this part of the route. The long finish as always is fantastic. It seems so much wider than it did  26 minutes earlier.  
As always a great race, superb goodie bag and well recommended. It’s probably the second best 5-mile race in Dublin after the Terenure 5.

Well done to all ofthe Sportsworld runners who took part and thanks to our great supporters and their photos. Note the times below are from the gun. Which is all that was listed on the club results page. Many people ran great personal bests which are not fully reflected below. Check My Run Results for accurate chip times.

The race was won by the home town and extremely popular Mick Clohisey of Raheny Shamrock A.C. The women’s race was won by Anne Marie McGlynn of Letterkenny A.C. This was Anne Marie’s second successive title.

Just when you thought it was safe to go back to training without fear of being catapulted into a  cross country race, Meet and Train is back!  Meet and Train – for those who haven’t had the pleasure – is the starter drug for Cross Country.    For the serious runner it’s a great training ground in cross country. For those of us who aren’t expecting to bring back a medal haul  any time soon it’s a chance to compete at your own level, to get to know your clubmates and to be part of a team.  And when it’s all over there’s always a friendly cup of tea afterwards from the host club.

A near 30 strong contingent of Sportsworlders rumble into the car park of the National Basketball Arena on Sunday morning.  We gather round car boots, beating concreted mud off spikes and wrestling safety pins through the race numbers that Emily and Breda are handing out.   Conditions aren’t ideal; “It’s Baltic” is the general comment and a thickening mist is inducing crisis levels of frizz.  What else would have us out of bed and this sociable on a wet Sunday morning?For a good portion of the runners, this is their first XC experience, their first time to compete as part of a team and their first time to wear spikes. (On that point, there are some stylish if ultimately unhelpful ideas put forward. Thanks, Maria Waterhouse.)

Down to the field and the glamour continues. Bags hung on dripping trees, numb toes slipped into spikes, tense legs eased into a warm up lap and strides, the wet of the field instantly soaking through to our socks. (Another thing learned about spikes, no absorbent outer layers!)

And then we herd behind some ticker tape, smiles, shoulders hunched against the cold, last words of cheerful encouragement from Emily: “move up and stay with your team” and then the off. A congested but pacey start, pulling back from a full stride for the first 100 metres lest our shins are pierced by the high flying spikes ahead.   Then there’s some opening out of the field and a settling to a (hopefully) more sustainable pace.  Tymon feels like a nice course, not too uneven, grass not too long, hills short and sharp and relatively infrequent.  Nonetheless, at just 1.5kms in I’m ready for a sit down.   I gear down the pace again. Above all, I don’t want to have to stop. One small lap and two big laps is the starting instruction.  Just 3 kilometres.  One tesco lap. It should be easy.  But it’s hard work.

The hard work is eased by having clubmates Mary, Claire, Val and Anne all in the general vicinity and having Michael, Carmel, Emily and Breda shouting encouragement from the sides.  The watch clocks 3km.  It came sooner than I’d expected in the end so enough left for an unnecessary but dramatic final sprint. 

We line through the finishing corral.  It’s places rather than times that count.  Then back to Tallaght AC for a warming and welcoming spread from Tallaght club and a post mortem on our experiences.  Katie has steamed home 4^th with Jess, Elaine and Margaret all getting in the top 20 and putting the Sportsworld A team at the top of the leaderboard. (Woohoo!)

February 10^th is the next one so keep your race numbers stuck on your singlets, pep talk your teammates, polish the spikes and get your game face on.

Ladies report by Lisa Madden

As the Leinster Intermediate Cross Country came upon us, I was a bundle of nerves! Still remembering the pain of the last XC race I ran at Tymon Park, picking up my first injury and hobbling around for the following week, I can’t say I was looking forward to this one, at all! This was my third cross country race and I think I only get more nervous each time. Poor Ronan & Padraig tried to calm me down on the way to Gowran but, despite their best efforts, I still felt panicky & apprehensive as we pulled into the car park.

Everyone I met seemed as calm as can be so either they’re better at hiding it then I am or they need to teach me their ways!! We were just in time for the masters’ race and as it kicked off, we cheered on from the side-lines. Both the ladies & men ran amazing races and both picked up team & county gold! Huge congrats to Noreen & Karol as well for winning individual silver & bronze and well done to Eileen & Ray who both got bronze in their age category.

A quick warm up & a few strides later and we were at the start line. The first line was already full so we squeezed in behind. My pre- race jitters were in full swing and I was already looking forward to being finished! The 4km course consisted of 2 laps. After starting too fast in my last XC race and struggling (a lot) for all of it, I vowed to learn my lesson and not to get carried away this time. The front runner went off hard, and seemed miles ahead, so the rest of us settled in behind. After the initial mad dash, we settled into our stride. The course was generally okay; a little wet, mucky and soft under foot in places, but apparently that’s the norm at these things! There were a few more bends in the course than I anticipated and, as Miles kindly reprimanded me at the end, I went too wide on a couple of these! I think my over cautiousness probably stemmed from falling a few months before hand at Phoenix Park during my first XC race (and taking someone else out with me).

The first lap was okay and I felt relatively comfortable, tucking in with a little group, behind the leading three runners. As we neared the end of the first lap, somehow or another, I realised I was in & around third place. It genuinely hadn’t occurred to me before this that I was in with any chance at all of placing in the top three, so I was as surprised as anyone! From here on in, the whole race was a bit of a blur for me to be honest. The second lap was harder, a lot harder, and it was mind over matter towards the end to keep on going. The support was incredible and I honestly don’t think I would have kept on going without the cheers, screams & roars of support from the side lines. I think I was around 600m out when I realised I was leading. With the end in sight and hearing the enthusiastic screams of Emily, Miles and everyone else from Sportsworld, I pushed on through the pain that was threatening to take over at this point. I knew the next girl was right behind me because I could hear her club mates screaming ‘She’s only a few yards ahead of you, you can catch her!’ This made me all the more determined to win and the feeling of elation as I crossed the finish line (a mere second in front of her) overrode all of the pain I felt. The sense of camaraderie that comes from running in a team is the best thing about cross country; everyone is in it together, cheering each other on. The rest of the girls all ran superbly and we just missed out on a bronze team medal.

On this note also, thank you to Ruth for holding me up & looking after me after I crossed the finish line! I think anyone who saw me at the end would agree that I looked like I was in danger of passing out! (Padraig later told me he was looking around for the paramedics.) Thankfully, 10 minutes later I was all recovered (the dizziness and wooziness had passed) and we set off to cheer on the men’s intermediate race. I really can’t imagine running an extra lap, not to mind 2, so well done to them for that alone!! They all ran great, starting & finishing strong and narrowly missed out on team bronze.

Before I sign off, I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone for all of the amazing support throughout the race and especially at the end; it gave me the much needed push I needed to finish.

Finally, any tips or magical solutions on how to overcome the nerves before the next cross country race would be much appreciated!

Mens report by Conor McCarthy

There must have been no such thing as Cross Country running in 1789 because if there were, Benjamin Franklin surely would have added “and acute suffering during cross country running” to his famous “in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes” quote!
Fed, watered and caffeinated at the nearby Apple Green, we arrived at the Gowran venue just after noon. There was a quiet sense of anticipation about what the club could achieve today, especially from Myles who had the glint in the eye! Sportsworld has enjoyed many a success in Gowran and today was no different. The Masters men’s team ran very well the week before in Raheny, winning team silver and placing two in the top ten individually, so it was plain for all to see that the club now possess the requisite strength in depth to compete for Gold. 

The exact same applies to the women’s masters team as well, who got the day’s proceedings off to a flyer, led by Noreen Brouder, who for the second successive week, finished in second place individually, helping Sportsworld to win the team Gold in the process.  Well done to Noreen and also to Catherine Bambrick and Ruth Kelly, who made up the team.
The Masters men’s race was very competitive and all our lads put in serious performances to take the team Gold, spear-headed by Karol Cronin, who competed in a sprint finish with Portlaoise AC’s Tom Lupton for second and third place, respectively. Karol, Gareth, Andrew and Phil have all been in fine form of late and it was great to see them go one better this week. Two top six finishers is fantastic hurling by the lads.
Then, during our warm up, we witnessed Lisa Madden win Gold in the Ladies Intermedate race to add more silverware to the day’s collection. So, no pressure boys!! 

The Gods were kind to us weather-wise; memories/nightmares still linger like a bad smell from The Battle of Clarinbridge last year where it lashed out of the heavens all week and we had the privilege of taking to the mud after about 58 (slight exaggeration) races took place before ours. To my delight, there was no repeat situation today! The conditions in South Kilkenny were mild, which was a help to us in our 8K race.
Given the expectation of hardship and as cross country courses go, today’s assignment of five miles was challenging without being overly tough. There were 4 x 2 km laps spanning two separate fields to get stuck. We all took on the steep incline in the back field pretty well and mentally, it was a huge lift to get up and over it on that last lap, before making the final dash to the finish line. At a personal level, I am still searching for full race fitness and found the race a great test of endurance and strength. Out a field of 42 runners, we fell just short of landing third place, which was disappointing. Stephen O’Donnell was the first man home on the team in 19th place. Rathfarnam AC’s Mitchell Byrne won the race at a canter, running masterfully. Cool downs, cups of tea and post mortems completed, we headed back to the Capital after what was collectively a great day of racing for the club. Roll on the Nationals.

Masters Men’s Results: Karol Cronin 20:06 Gareth Murran 20:35 Andrew Brett 21:04 Phil Kilgannon 21:22 Bruce Campbell 22:02 Kevin Curran 22:19 Michael Cunningham 22:35 Johnny Dwyer 24:25 Ed McEntee 24:26 Joe Byrne 24:35 Liam Lenehan 24:44 Anthony Gillen 25:04 Brian Conway 25:19 Declan Brady 25:33 Mark Heffernan 25:34 Jose Chapa 25:38 Noel Tobin 25:41 Jim Browne 25:58 Padraic Moran 26:23 Peter Knaggs 26:44 Ray Carpenter 28:26
Intermediate Men’s Results: Stephen O’Donnell 29:12 Conor McCarthy 29:26 Mark Hogan 29:52 Ronan Masterson 31:19 Conor Keating 31:52 David Kennedy 33:29 Padraig Looby 33:52