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National 10k 2017

Report by Aidan Curran – Photos by Grainne Lynch

Sportsworld results below

Pre-race in the Phoenix Park on a grey Sunday morning, and the breaking news is that Fionnuala McCormack is a late withdrawal from the elite field of the Great Ireland Run.

Race reporter Aidan

Regular competitors at this event will have noticed other absences. The title sponsor from the last few years is gone, and without their red-and-green branding the start area is lacking colour. Also, this year’s race isn’t being shown on TV, so a lot of the buzz and hype is missing.

On the upside, we’re spared last year’s surreal pre-race entertainment, where a priest sang a former Eurovision-winning song at us from the start gantry. (The organisers seemed to have misunderstood the idea of a ‘mass participation’ race.)

Still, race day at the corner of Furze and Chesterfield is always exciting, and at the heart of this hullaballoo is the National 10K Championships. There we are in the wave at the front, on the VIP side of the velvet rope and conspicuous in our club vests and our short shorts.

The mass of runners in the waves behind wouldn’t thank us if they realized that a national championship means a championship course; the first half is flat to downhill but the second half is hilly and exposed to whatever wind there might be.

Sportsworld’s women’s team had already set off with the elite women’s start and they put in another great performance for the club. Sinead Tangney finished an excellent 7th in the senior women’s event in 38:22 and we had two teams in the top 10: along with Sinead, Crona Brady and Lucy D’Arcy also scored and ensured our A team finished fifth, while Zoe Greene, Caoimhe Costigan and Eileen Rowland combined to come in tenth overall, above all the other B teams – an excellent display of Sportsworld’s continued depth of strength.

Eileen just missed out on an individual podium place, coming 4th in the F55s, but Judith Lloyd ensured honours for Sportsworld women by winning the F70 category.

On the men’s side, Stephen O’Donnell and Karl Chatterton at 41st and 42nd in 35 minutes were our highest finishers in the senior race, with Diarmuid Ó Súilleabháin also placing well and getting in comfortably under the forty minutes. Conor McCarthy, our fastest man today, would have got 38th place but the official results have him running hors compétition, as they say at the Cannes Film Festival.

Meanwhile, back in competition, Trevor Lloyd came 3rd in the M70 category – well done to both Judith and Trevor.

As for my own race, well… some races you’re playing the piano and other races you’re pushing the piano, and this was a piano-pushing day for me. From gun to tape I had no energy or adrenaline in my body, so I figured on keeping an even pace in the hope that any foolhardy frontrunners would come back to me on the hills.

This helped me keep my head up for the second half of the race, but my time and place were well down on what I had hoped to achieve. (If things had gone to plan I would have scored on the team, one of my ambitions.)

But that’s the useful thing about having a championship race tucked into a mass participation event. Do well and you’ve done well in the nationals; do less well and sure it’s only an oul’ road race.

Sportsworld Results

5km
Katie Nugent 00:24:19
Tara Murphy 00:25:03

10km
Conor Mccarthy 00:35:37
Stephen O’Donnell 00:35:42
Karl Chatterton 00:35:53
Sinead Tangney 00:38:19
Diarmuid Ó Súilleabháin 00:38:20
Garrett Moran 00:42:46
Adrian Lanigan 00:43:48
Paul Canniffe 00:44:16
Sean Garry 00:44:45
Crona Brady 00:44:51
Lucy D’Arcy 00:45:04
Aidan Curran 00:45:11
Zoe Green 00:45:32
Caoimhe Costigan 00:45:45
Eileen Rowland 00:46:25
Sandra Gowran 00:47:09
Micheal Callaghan 00:49:18
delourdes Seymour 00:51:16
Trevor Lloyd 00:52:32
Audrai O’Driscoll 00:52:38
Judith Lloyd 00:53:04
Meaghan Carmody 00:57:26

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2017 Meet and Train Summer League Race 1

Report by Naoise Waldron & photos by Catherine Mulleady

Sportsworld results at bottom

The 1st meet and train of the summer league took place on Sunday last, hosted by Bros Pearse in Cherryfield Park. The meet and train league is great for women of all abilities, for those new to running, to those coming back to it and those who have never stopped!

Race reporter Naoise in acton

The sun was shining and it was a beautiful morning to be running. I  used the 2 mile jog from my house to warm up (and wake up) and arrived up just in time for team photos.

We had 12 entries over 3 teams and everyone ran their best out on the 3 lap course. Jean led us home in 2nd place, in what seemed to be a close nit race for 1st place, with only a second between herself and the winner Grainne Regan of Crusaders.

Next we had Sinéad in 8th position, followed by myself in 9th, Patricia 10th and Catherine 11th. It was great to have the girls to work off throughout the race. Aoife and Carmel had spectacular sprint finishes to hold on to their places. All in all it was a great mornings work! We had great support on the course which definitely kept me going, many thanks to those who came out to watch and cheer.

We retired to St Enda’s GAA club for a cuppa and and a very impressive post race spread. The winter league winners were announced with the Sportsworld A team winning the Gold category, with Sportsworld D coming 3rd the the bronze category. The A team are already on track to hold on to the title. The next race takes place on April 23rd hosted by Lucan Harriers.

Sportsworld results:

2nd Jean Wilson 19.04
8th Sinéad Staunton 20.18
9th Naoise Waldron 20.31
10th Patricia Fitzmaurice 20.37
11th Catherine Mulleady 20.39
19th Valerie Power 21.52
24th Natalia O’Grady 22.16
31st Sandra Kelly 22.53
42nd Carmel Dolan 23.45
46th Anne Marie Scanlon 24.23
51st Bronwyn Murphy White 24.45
63rd Aoife Lavin 26.10

Full results can be found on the Women’s Meet and Train Facebook page: Click here

Rome Marathon 2017

Report by Martin Doyle (finished with a PB of 3:06:32!)

I arrived in Rome Saturday morning. The city bursting with people and traffic. Checked in to the hotel which was only 3km from the start line to save rushing next morning.

The start and finish area were situated right beside the Colosseum, it all looked very impressive.

The race would start at 8:45.I arrived to start and hour early and it was already pretty full, with the race just split into 3 waves. 8:45 eventually came and I was on my way, I know I didn’t want to go out to quick but the first couple of km were ridiculously packed and against my better judgement I had to zig-zag through the crowd just keep a decent pace.

Around the 4km was a hill heading out of the city, this is where the crowd seemed to space out a little.

At this stage the rain had started,but I don’t think anyone was expecting the downpour that came, with flashes of lightening and thunder we had torrential rain for the first hour. The roads that go from asphalt to cobblestones( lots of cobblestone????)the surface grip was poor with a few falling on turns.

The first half of the marathon is pretty flat, I could keep a decent pace. There was water stations at every 5km and fruit at every 10km.

The second half at about 28k was a long hill heading back towards the city centre, at this stage you could feel it taking some of the energy out of your pace. Then we were back onto the cobblestone, which were now starting to get hard to run on. As we got to the 35-36km mark the crowds started to appear in numbers again with cheers gave you that extra push.Close to 40km I past the Spanish steps and the atmosphere had really picked up, I was nearly finished.

There was one last long pull up through a tunnel towards the finish, this felt like never ending hell, but as I turned out of it there was to my relief a nice downward run to the finish line.

I crossed the finish line feeling happy I had given it everything I’d got.

Dublin Port Tunnel 10K Run 2017

Report by David Saunders

The mark the 10th anniversary of the Tunnel’s opening, a 10K Road Race in aid of Focus Ireland was arranged. It was a glorious Sunday morning which marked the beginning of summertime, so all participants had to get up an hour earlier.

The route was to run 5km to the exit of the northbound bore of the tunnel  in Whitehall before turning back to run a further 5km to Dublin Port.  The start was fast in beautiful sunshine, then into the tunnel for a long downhill section.  This was followed by a gradually uphill section.   We caught a glimpse of the outside before turning back to the start line in the opposite tunnel.  This section had a longer downhill stretch and a steep last 1km to the finishing line. The second half of the race was faster.

There were a number of Sportsworld Athletes in action with Aoife and Crona Brady keeping pace with each other and narrowly missing out on a medal position. They finished just outside the top 3 with identical times.

The tunnel run was certainly a different kind race and considering it’s in a tunnel it was a new experience for many participants. The traffic information boards were used to display encouraging messages, there was music and lights at the 3km and 7km markers. It was a fast course on a straight piece of road allowing the competitors to take advantage of race track like conditions.

It was a most enjoyable event from which Focus Ireland will benefit.

Results

Winners
Declan Power 33.09
Anne Marie Kenny 41.47

Sportsworld Results
20th David Saunders 38.59
Aoife Brady  44.05 (4th female overall)
Crona Brady 44.05 (5th female overall)
Eoin O’Brien  51.50

BHAA K-Club 10km

Report and photos thanks  to Peter Knaggs

I don’t know why but, having never visited, I envisaged the post run spread at the K Club to entail being attended to by nattily attired Butlers serving swan in a Georgian mansion.

The reality, however, was only marginally less salubrious. Hot dogs, pasta, noodles and plenty of cake were the order of the day.
Before that, though, what a fabulous run in glorious weather. The BHAA K Club 10k has a great reputation and it lived up to its billing in spades. A decent turnout from Sportsworld athletes, some running in their corporate alter egos, returned some great performances. Jose Chapa continues his run of great form and broke the 40 minute barrier to record a career best, while Anna Delaney also gave everything to achieve a superb PB.
There was a respectful minutes applause before the race for the late and very highly respected Maurice Timmons, a great stalwart of the running scene.
There was a big turnout of 429 runners, testament to the reputation this race has for the “great spread” afterwards. Not just a few slices of Brac and a cup of Tea – definitely one for your culinary running diary for next year. Spare a thought for our Lucy D’Arcy, though – while we were scoffing all before us, she was busy wrapping up the results and dismantling the timing apparatus and only later got to eat the
barely existent leftovers.
The course itself was reasonably flat and gently undulating, reminding one of those great summer road races down in Dunboyne and Dunshaughlin.
Afterwards we sat in glorious sunshine outside, ate the very tasty grub and, although very sorry to miss the Sportsworld track session, remarked how lucky it was we made the decision to run in such a splendid location on such a lovely morning.

Sportsworld Results

Paul O’connell 37.07
Jose Chapa 39.54
Peter Knaggs 42.39
Adrian Lanigan 43.06
Anna Delaney 43.39
Phillip Kerr 43.46
Eileen Butler 43.57
Noel Lynam 44.22
Conor Kenny 51.27
Maria Finnegan 52.12
Ray Carpenter 54.52

2017 MSB St. Patricks Festival 5K

Report by Michael Cunningham

I have watched the St Patricks day 5K for the last 6 or 7 years but never ran it. Handing out the race flyers, injury or post Cross County blues I never got around to doing it. Watching a 5Km while drinking a cup of coffee is so easy, effortless, even enjoyable. Running it mmmmmm. I ran the Phoenix park 10mile last Sunday with the race organiser of this years race as he did the last part of his 2.5 hour run training for the London marathon. So while running that my mind was made up to enter this years race.

A few of us did our warm up in St Stephens green which you easily forget is so nice, full of history and character and on a Sunday morning runners warming up nearly had the park to themselves. After a few strides it was time to head to the start line were around 20 Sportsworld runners were lining up to do the race. It really is disgraceful how none of us had hangovers or had St Patrick’s day outfits on.

The course is flat with a few twists and turns but because of the wind you were happy of the turns as it meant a change in the wind direction. The course goes through Georgian Dublin so any one visiting Ireland does get to see a nice part of Dublin while doing a 5k race.

There is nothing easy about a 5k and I think the shorter the distance the more you have to concentrate and push yourself along and of course lie to yourself as your running that you are nearly there, your running great and this is the last time I’m doing a 5km.

The men’s team was 4th overall out performing the women’s team for once with great runs from Karol, Stephen and Karl. Val Power organised a brunch after the race but she never said they were going to pick who did the race report at that brunch. Pretty sneaky Val. Below are the race results.

Sportsworld Results:

16th Karol CRONIN 00:16:26
33 Stephen O’DONNELL 00:17:19
40 Karl CHATTERTON 00:17:43
45 Michael CUNNINGHAM 00:18:00
58 David SAUNDERS 00:18:14

68 Martin KEENAN 00:18:31
99 Denis McCaul 00:19.18
146 Johnny DWYER 00:20:09
153 Jean WILSON 00:20:24
165 Jim BROWNE 00:20:38
195 Dermot SULLIVAN 00:21:10

209 Eoin O’BRIEN 00:21:29
267 Ray CARPENTER 00:22:46
270 Valerie POWER 00:22:52
277 Damiano CELESTINI 00:23:08
291 Sandra KELLY 00:23:18

303 Grainne LYNCH 00:23:27
317 Breda BROWNE 00:23:45
351 Conor KENNY 00:24:21
455 Tara MURPHY 00:25:56
481 Phil DALY 00:26:36

Barcelona Marathon 2017

“Més Que un Race Report” by  Will Greensmyth

 

I travelled with some pals from Limerick to Barcelona last weekend for the marathon. I got talked into signing up for this race while supping pints in JJ Bowles’ pub in Limerick after the Munster v Glasgow game last October. Great call, genius.

While I didn’t get the pb time I thought I was in the shape of, I did get around in one piece with no injuries. The heat was tough and I guess a winter of training in cold and wet Dublin wasn’t condusive to a spring marathon. I thought that my training went well with decent long runs logged, and my weekly mileage since December was consistently up around 80-100k mark but as Phil K advised me post-race, I probably didn’t do enough long pace runs, which would have helped put another bit of steel in the legs. Still Marathon #4 in the bag, and a decent block of training to attack a fast 5k/10k time in the summer.

Anyway back to Barcelona, we landed in on Friday afternoon and there was no escaping the reality of the heat which we classified as scorchio. In order to keep cool and stay properly hydrated, we took refuge in The George Payne Irish pub for the Wales v Ireland rugby match. The following morning, we hit up the expo early to collect numbers. The expo was located at Placa Espanya, right beside where the marathon starts and finish. A stroll around Parc Gúell that afternoon ticked the culture box for the weekend. I retired early to the cot on Saturday night.

Alarm set for 5.30am on Sunday morning, quick feed of porridge and off I toddled from the hotel to the metro. En route, I met many revellers still partying who must have quite the come down on the metro surrounded by luminous lycra clad runners in their hundreds.

There was the usual pre-race buzz around the start line. Into the pens we went and at 8.30am, we were let loose on the streets of Barcelona, showered with confetti and serenaded by Freddie Mercury. Straight away I knew this was going to be a long tough hoor of a morning, the first couple of kms were up hill and I don’t think I relaxed into the race until after five miles or so. I had notions of breaking my pb of 3’09 so placed myself a sensible distance behind the 3 hour pacer lads and kept a nice rhythm. As the kms increased so did the heat and it was obvious how much this would play a part in the day as everyone seemend to be gulping down the water from the first refreshments station onwards.  At half way I felt tickety-boo and was thinking that a respectable – but not by Gareth Murran’s sub 2’40 standards 😉  – time of sub 3’05 was on the cards.

A few miles down the road however and the gig was up. We came to the Forum where we had to run 2k up and 2k back down the same road. This was a part I knew well, from partying at the Primavera music festival a couple of times in the past. However, this was not a happy reunion and unfortunately I had to seek refuge twice in the portaloos in this stretch. The time lost along here and the stop/start nature meant it was a long traipse home from 30k. I was going to finish the damn thing though, and I shuffled, jogged, walked my way home to a time of 3’24”. The support in the last 10k was unreal – even better and more intense than Berlin or Dublin. At times, I felt like a Tour De France cyclist climbing up the alps with the amount of people cheering “Venga Venga” in our faces and running (well, walking) alongside me.

Crossing the line, I was disappointed. Then I looked around, saw moms and dads crossing the line with their kids (at least, I assume, they were their kids) and some lad with an Ecuador flag bawling his eyes out and I realised that it was a sunny morning in Barcelona, I wasn’t in a field in Ballycotton and a great night of tapas scoffing and dive bars awaited with good friends.

Ever tried. Ever failed. No matter. Try Again. Fail again. Fail better.

 

Ballycotton 10 2017

Report by Naoise Waldron

Photos from the ‘Running in Cork Blog’ Facebook Page. For Full albums: Click here

On Sunday 12th March a number of Sportsworld runners made the trip to Ballycotton in Cork for the 40th running of the famous 10 mile course.

I had been in two minds all week about whether I would run, but when I woke up in Passage West that morning to glorious sunshine, I decided that it would be a shame to miss the race. I had combined the trip to Cork with a visit to a friend on Saturday to avoid having to complete the round trip in one day.

I left my friends house with plenty of time to get to Ballycotton and spent an hour in the car park psyching myself up. Having arrived there I realised that Ballycotton was a lot windier than Passage West had been and I was beginning to question my decision.

I met Anne in the car park and we wandered down to the start area together. This year they changed the route to the start line and as we were dropping off our bags we were met with the most spectacular view.

We made our way to the start with only minutes to spare and tried to squeeze our way as near to the front as possible but made very little progress. And then we were off.

As we set off down the main street music was blaring and the crowds were cheering. As I left the them tune from Baywatch behind me, I couldn’t help think that I might need rescuing later on!

The course is roughly 2 miles down hill out of the village, a 6 mile loop and then the same 2 miles back in to the village again. Starting so far back, my first mile or so was slow and I was trying not to get too caught up with weaving in and out of people.

Once we were down the hill, the race field started to spread out a bit and I got in to a rhythm. There was a bit of cross wind for the first few miles and when that eased off, the conditions were perfect.

One good thing about starting at the back was I could see the Sportsworld singlets up ahead of me, so I was using them as targets and I slowly made my way up through the field. There was lots of encouragement from club mates I met along the way – thanks to Ann, Aoife, Tom and Phillip to name a few.

After the half way point I found the sun was over powering and started to wilt a bit with the heat of it. The final 2 miles up hill were tougher than I had remembered them being the previous year.

I spotted Peter ahead of me and focused on keeping him in my sights for the final mile. There was a huge crowd cheering on the main street again. The race organisers have countdown signs every 200m with 1000m to go. There was discussion after about whether this was helpful or not – not being the general consensus. Sometimes 200m seems so long!!

A few of us gathered after for the walk back to the car park and post race analysis. In general people were happy with the run, there were a number of PBs gotten and the trip down had been worth it. Our top man was Karol in 32nd place overall and Sinead was our first female to cross the line in a spectacular 5th place. Not bad going for her first 10 mile race! Race winners were Mick Clohissey of Raheny in 49:20 and Siobhan O’Doherty (Borrisokane) in 58:02.

Sportsworld Results

32nd Karol Cronin 55:53
5th Sinead Tangney 1:01:45
Martin Doyle 1:05:18
Diarmuid O’Suilleabhain 1:05:52
Michael Lillis 1:05:48
Damien Geraghty 1:06:54
Jose Chapa 1:07:24
Alan Hynes 1:10:14
Naoise Waldron 1:12:03
Adrian Lanigan 1:12:09
Kathleen Horgan 1:12:30
Peter Knaggs 1:12:44
Aoife O’Leary 1:13:29
Neil Purdy 1:13:50
Philip Kerr 1:14:44
Noel Lynam 1:15:11
Thomas Kinsella 1:16:50
Ann Higgins 1:19:41
Peter Duggan 1:22:55
Anne Belton 1:25:35
Siun Tobin 1:29:37
Declan Horgan 1:34:31
Kathryn Potterton 1:36:55

Full results available on http://www.myrunresults.com/events/ballycotton_10_mile/1987/results

Photos from the ‘Running in Cork Blog’ Facebook Page. For Full albums: Click here

Sean Donegan

This week we have Sean Donegan who works in the music industry, prefers vinyl, has comfortably broken 90min for a half marathon and has the remarkable ability to run a full marathon without getting a single hair out of place!

When did you join Sportsworld?
November 2012

Where do you work?
I work in town, for a non-profit that represents songwriters, composers & music publishers. My job is to sort out music licences with broadcasters, advertisers and online services.

What is your favourite club session?
I enjoy the Mount Carmel lap sessions in Winter – hard fast laps with a small hill at the start and a nice decline at the end (and places to hide if struggling) and the Bushy Park Fartlek in the summer – it really works the reflexes dodging kids, dogs, crossfit groups and random footballs, travelling at high speed through the trails.

What is your favorite race distance?
Probably the 10 mile – it’s long enough to be a decent challenge without needing a long recovery. The Frank Duffy 10 mile every August is my favourite race of the year.

What is your favorite meal before a big race?
This is a hot topic for me at the moment as I am experimenting with my pre-race meals to try avoid the regular stitches I get towards the end of short distance races. Right now I try to eat as little as possible, maybe a little toast.

My Favourite place to train/compete is?
I am a big fan of the Dublin Mountains, you will often find me on meandering long runs around Three Rock, Masseys, Tibradden, Cruagh and the Waterworks.

What is your target for the next year?
I have a 2-year plan in mind to train for a Sub 3 marathon in 2018. I also want to get stuck into the IMRA Summer mountain races of a Wednesday evening.

What is your best Sportsworld memory?
The support you get competing is fantastic. I recall the Dublin Marathon in 2013, almost at every point I started to struggle, someone would shout out..”Go on Sportsworld”….Myles in particularly seemed to be at every key point on the course….Phoenix Park…Dolphin’s Barn….Ballsbridge…. all had Myles (or at least a convincing Myles look-a-like) telling me to catch the guy in front of me. Great stuff.

What do you like doing when you don’t run?
Arguing with people about football, explaining why vinyl sounds better than digital music files, or slagging off bands I use to like but are now too popular.

How/When did you start your adventure with running?
I’ve always been fond of hiking and going on long walks listening to music…one day on a long walk up the mountains I found myself halfway to Glendalough without realising it and so resolved that running these routes would be much more time efficient!

Tell us about your PB’s / What is your biggest achievement?
5k – 19:17
10k – 39:52
5m – 31:45
10m – 66.45
Half marathon – 1:28
Marathon – 3:15

Biggest achievement & most treasured memory will always be my first marathon – Connemara in 2012. I’d only been running regularly a few months and thought there was no way I could complete a marathon. However, by following a training plan combined with doing the clubs Thursday tempo sessions, I did enough work to ensure I was ready.

If anyone knows the Connemara course, you will be aware of the “Hell of the West”, a real nasty incline (read mountain) at Mile 23 / 24. I’ll never forget the rush I got once I eventually got to top, with 2 “easy” miles downhill left to enjoy, taking in the scenery and the accomplishment. A definitive “Runners High” moment.

How often do you run / What is your typical weekly mileage?
When marathon training I max out about 55 miles a week and during the rest of the year its about 30 miles a week. I reckon I need to move up to about 70 miles a week to give myself a good shot at a sub 3.

What would you say is the best thing about being in a Running Club?
As someone who has a competitive streak the best thing for me is trying to keep up with the faster folk in group sessions, which then spurs me on to improve my own training & races….For example, in the irish ¾ Marathon last October I ran well and really thought I was about to be the first Sportsworld athlete home, when with 2 miles to go one of the faster lads (who shall rename nameless, the scamp) sauntered by me casually while I was busting a gut…He is now on my hitlist in training….(although I never get near him…one day….)

What made you join a Running Club?
I happened to be running a lot on my own around Bushy Park in the Summer of 2012 and noticed the organised sessions going on and thought, hey, that looks fun. Took me a few months to get the courage to come down though.

What was your first day at the Club like?
It was in the middle of winter and I turned up with a friend hilariously overdressed……hat, gloves, leggings, shorts over the leggings, big soccer socks, long sleeve shirt, Nike air max runners, jacket, big red face and a phone on my arm with a stupid app shouting out mile splits which I couldn’t figure out how to turn off. By the time we got down to Mount Carmel I was sweating buckets.

After that experience I’ve found there is a direct correlation between how overdressed an unfamiliar face is arriving down to the Club and how new they are to running, so I always try and say hello and put them at ease.

Why is running important to you?
Running is my way to clear the head and de-stress. It’s a big part of my life and I couldn’t imagine not running regularly. On non- session days, I often try to run into work first thing in the morning which really sets you up well for the day, or else an easy jog last thing at night to wind down. I do a small bit of travel with work and always pack the gear with me. It’s a great way to explore a new city.

Is there anything you would like to see more of or less of at the Club?
Yes, less faster folk so I can feel better….(joking…)..I’ve noticed a really big improvement on the communications/information side of things over the last 18 months compared to when I first joined, so well done to the Committee members who’ve organised that.

As someone who can’t get down to the sessions every week, I wouldn’t mind if the Tuesday/Thursday sessions were posted on the website/weekly email in advance which would help plan to make sure I make the key sessions, but apart from that I’ve no complaints. The club is run really well and there is great sense of community amongst the members.

Who is the person in the club who inspires/drives to run better?
The guy from the Irish 3/4 Marathon. (See answer above). He knows who he is. Also Myles; my biggest fear is to turn a corner at a race to have Myles spot me heaving at the side of the road in a heap. Nearly happened in the recent Raheny 5 mile.

Do you do any cross training / other sports on a regular basis?
I’m doing a runner’s specific weekly core/ strength session at the moment. I’m hoping this will help my posture & strength to close out races stronger.

Debra Wicklow Mountains Trail Half Marathon

Race Report by Bronwyn Murphy-White

Race photos by Keith Mulvey from the race Facebook page.

Arriving in Brockagh Resources Centre, the starting and finishing point for many trail runs in Laragh, registration was swift and easy. Toilet queues were short as they’ve added extra toilets. Every runner’s dream, many toilets.

Realising it’s nearly 9:50am, I headed straight out to the bus to sit and daydream whether I should really have signed up for the 10km rather than the half as my training over the last year has been sporadic due to injury, wedding, holidays and other various excuses…. That opportunity came briefly when a race organiser came onto the bus looking for a person who wanted to switch to the 10km – I missed my chance.

Race reporter Bronwyn discovering its not a road race

It seemed others had the same thought; there was a slight air of nervous tension amongst the runners, perhaps due to the miserable rain and the ever decreasing temperature on the bus thermostat as it crept up the mountain road. It’s best not to pay attention to how far the bus is driving you away from the centre, a half marathon is long!!

The safety briefing at the start line was thankfully short as we were freezing and eager to get going. They mentioned that the route was being diverted from the ‘swamp’, though as I waded through several swamps along the way I wondered had I mis-heard.

At least 7 Sportsworld members representing the club were present, with our Sportsworld singlets (ahem) buried beneath the 3 layers we had been advised to wear as it was to be very cold. The steep 1 mile hill immediately after the start line put the cold out of our minds and our muscles. I had my jacket, neck warmer and ear warmer all off me within 30 seconds!

The uphill was swiftly followed by a very much appreciated 1 mile downhill and then the fun began at mile 3. We were advised by the stewards to avoid the stepping stones and just run through the rivers and knee deep puddles. One woman was overheard proclaiming her surprise that ‘both her feet were wet’, both my entire legs were wet so I think she got off lightly.

There was good camaraderie all along the way, this is something I really like about trail runs. People were really enjoying themselves.

The terrain was slippy and rocky and down-hilly and up-hilly. There were sections where you had to walk, for safety or because there was only single file space. These were good moments to catch your breath. As it had been raining it was quite treacherous in places and on the downhill you could find your speed pick up quite suddenly. I decided to play it safe and take it easy, I had a bad fall the last time I did this run and didn’t fancy another cut knee and a few weeks off running.

I found that the miles just melted away as the course was really interesting, the scenery is beautiful but you really have to keep your eye on the ground a good bit. I enjoyed the surroundings on the sections of road and flat trail. Spoiler alert: there’s a horrible, horrible hill about 2 miles from the end. A never ending snaking incline, just around the time that your muscles are beginning to seize up and your runners feel like they’ve finally turned into cement from all the wet and muck. When you finally get to the top, you’re not really sure if you are or if there’s another nasty surprise waiting around the corner.

Luckily the last mile is downhill and as you descend into the back part of the Brockagh Centre grounds you can hear the fantastic sound of the cheering crowd from around the last corner. The ‘Thank You’ posters placed just before the finish line were very touching and you are reminded why so many people gathered to run and raise money for such a worthy cause. I would highly recommend the Debra Ireland Wicklow Trail Half Marathon, I’m glad I didn’t hop off the bus to do the 10km.

Sportsworld results

19th Michael Cunningham Male 1:48:48
Lucia Prihodova Female 2:24:07
Denise Kilkenny Female 2:24:32
Ronan Murray Male 2:24:33
Eileen Rowland Female 2:27:55
Bronwyn Murphy White Female 2:42:15

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