Cork BHAA GNI 5K 2024

10 Things I Think About The Cork BHAA Gas Networks Ireland 5k

1. Old New Route

I think that the upgrade of the Marina has revealed the most perfect 5k route in the world, flat to slightly downhill with a likely tailwind for the crucial last 3k. If wasn’t for the pedestrian bridge it would be ridiculously fast. It seems that a lot of other people think the same, that or a t-shirt for €5 is capable of drawing a crowd of 600 people to Blackrock on a Wednesday night for a 5k at 8pm in July.

2. Is that the Start?

I think that the BHAA are making good progress in marking out the start line. There was a sign and a line with markers for the different pace levels. It was all very professional. It took very little shouting for people to push back for the race to get underway.

3. Photo, Photo, Photo

I think that it was great that there were so many photographers on hand to take photos of the start. This will be particularly handy for figuring out where the race is to start next time around. There was Graham, Mick Dooley and another photographer who I haven’t seen before. The new photographer was threatening to lie on the ground in the middle of the path about 50m up from the start. This didn’t seem wise even if we are all wearing nice soft magic shoes it wouldn’t be pleasant to be run over, especially by me or Michael Herlihy, thankfully he got out of the way just in time.

4. Tunnel of Sound

I think that the tunnel where the teenagers light fires and break glass bottles is a great tunnel to run in. There is a fabulous sound running through the tunnel in a pack of runners who have just started a 5k. Graham was on hand at the exit of the tunnel to capture the sights and sounds. I had decided after the last 5k on this route that I would stay calm until after the pedestrian bridge so I sat in behind Peter Hanrahan but ahead of Mike.

5. Patience

I think that I did very well to stay patient for the first few kilometres of the race. Normally I am immediately filled with pure hatred and want to get to the front immediately in the hope that I can stay ahead and beat everyone. I resolved this time to keep the hatred simmering before turning it up for the last kilometre if possible. It was difficult to do, it helped that Michael Herlihy was behind me.

6. Bridge the Gap

I think that I used the other runners in the race well. My main goal in the race was not time, it was to beat Michael Herlihy. I spent from the second kilometre to the third kilometre bridging between groups. I even got over the pedestrian bridge relatively fast. Describing how to pace a 5k properly is difficult, it’s like trying to describe how to kick a ball onto a particular point. It’s more of a feeling than anything else.

7. Unexpected Headwind

I think that the reason so many people turned up aside from the t-shirt was the wind forecast. I’m sure everyone else studies Windy before the race to check for excellent tailwinds. On the forecast it looked beautiful with a strong tailwind as soon as we took the sharp left onto the walkway back to Blackrock Castle. Unfortunately, weather apps are unreliable and when we turned we were hit with a brisk headwind for the first 400m. It took until the left-hand turn by Jacob’s Island for the forecasted excellent tailwind to turn up.

8. Trevor

I think that Trevor Cummins had a fantastic race. Trevor arrived with the tailwind. He was tremendously helpful to me over the last 2k. I probably wouldn’t have had any chance of beating Mike without him. We got into a good rhythm from 3k to 4.5k with no signs of Mike. I was happy to work with Trevor but I was not happy to be beaten by him. So I had to come up with a plan how to beat Trevor too.

9. The Taming of the Mike

I think that the best training for races is races. I have been working on the finish of races in my last few races and think that I have gotten slightly less terrible at the last few 100m. It takes concentration and hatred. Mix the two together and you get a sprint. I managed to shed Trevor when we turned left for the last time and could see Blackrock Castle. I kept going hoping and praying that Mike wouldn’t bound by laughing at me like he normally does. Thankfully all my practice paid off and I beat Mike and my new great rival Trevor. Nick O’Donoghue snuck up and finished between me and my rivals unnoticed.

10. First Ever Prize

I think that this is the first time that I have won a top three prize in a 5K BHAA race on in the city. These are the hardest races to win prizes in as loads of people show up. I actually finished fifth which was still great as it wasn’t fourth but Paul Moloney and Barry weren’t registered, so I came third and got a prize which I wasn’t there to collect because I didn’t think I’d won a prize. Thankfully Mark Walsh who came second but actually won was there and collected the prize for me.

Run Skibb Half Marathon 2024

10 Things I Think About The Run Skibb Half Marathon 2024

1. Agent Graham

I think that as one of Glanmire’s leading running influencers it is about time that I get an agent. I only realised the importance of an agent when I went to try and get an entry for Run Skibb. It was proving an impossible task until agent Graham Miekle got on the case, working closely with Mark Gallagher an entry was quickly found. He hasn’t come looking for commission yet.

2. Bere Island

I think that there is an opportunity for races to team up on the same weekend. There are lots of mad people like me who will happily spend the weekend in West Cork doing races. The Bere Island 10k and Run Skibb combination made a nice little running holiday especially as the weather was cooperative. They could do a package deal, maybe include the hotel and some night time kayaking on Lough Hyne. I should get a job with the tourist board.

3. Ronald Regan

I think that if I became president, Skibbereen would be what Ballyporeen is to Ronald Regan, my true ancestral home. Coakley is possibly the most Skibbereen name you could have and sure enough my grandfather was from Skibbereen so it was nice to run a race in place that I have a connection to. It still wasn’t enough to secure and automatic entry, for that I needed Graham.

4. Danny Mullins

I think that I was both delighted and horrified to see Danny Mullins on the start line. I half expected him to be there it being very close to his homeland. I caught and passed Danny in the last kilometre of the Great Railway 25k but he got revenge in the Cork Marathon where he beat me by over two minutes so we were always going to be well matched over a half marathon.

5. Uisce Beatha

I think that both myself and Danny knowing that first prize was a significant quantity of the finest West Cork Whiskey influenced the race. Neither of us drink whiskey so we were happy enough to run together and leave it to a last mile race. Well, I was anyway and when I said it to Danny he didn’t seem to disagree with my idea. I was happy enough with the pace for the opening few miles to the North of Skibbereen, not too fast and not too slow, just right.

6. Sleepy Streets

I think that it was very nice to run through the sleepy streets of Skibb at 9 o’clock on a Sunday morning. Skibbereen is a very nice town, nicely done up with some nice coffee shops and unusual restaurants. It was very quiet as we passed through the streets past Hourihane’s sports shop which I presume is owned by someone related to the fella that plays for Ireland.

7. Lough Ine

I think that my favourite part of the course was the gradual climb out the road to Lough Ine more commonly known as Lough Hyne. The West Cork people mustn’t like tourists as all the sign posts said Lough Ine which was confusing. The scenery was as you would expect in rural west Cork, better than anything anywhere in the world on a sunny day, the only problem was that Danny was beginning to open a gap so I had to stop looking around and focus on running up the hill.

8. Rowing Club

I think that it wouldn’t be appropriate for a race in Skibbereen to not pass the clubhouse of it’s most famous sport, rowing. We passed it at about 11 miles, I had a quick look in but there were no Olympians spotted. Danny had been doing most of the work up to this point, so I decided to give him a brief break and went to the front for a short period to see if I could drop him which I couldn’t primarily because of the constant little hills.

9. An Droichead Nua

I think that some local knowledge might have proven decisive in the race for first place. It took a sharp left downhill turn over a bridge to create a gap. I must have been looking around at the river or not expecting the bridge but before I knew it the race was on and Danny was a good few meters ahead. I might catch him yet I thought so I tried, I wasn’t helped by the last mile being the only flat mile which made making any difference difficult. At least I wouldn’t be fourth.

10. Podium and Prizes.

I think that second is the new fourth when it comes to half marathons. I was happy enough with the effort I made to catch Danny, I made some inroads into his lead on the run to the finish but there were still a few seconds between us in the end. The race had an excellent commentator who did a great interview with me and Danny. I had time to go back to the hotel for a wash before returning for the prizegiving where I was presented with a hamper containing 2.8L of whiskey and some very nice West Cork Distillers clothing which reminded me of the time I won a couple of litres of the finest olive oil at a race in Spain. I like these types of prizes. I like this type of race, I’ll be back, especially now that I have an agent to get an entry.

Achill Half Marathon 2024

10 Things I Think About The Achill Half Marathon 2024

1. Choices

I think that there are too many races on. I am having to miss races I want to do because there are too many. After last year I have imposed a strict limit of two per week so that meant picking Achill over the Galbally 10 miler. I picked Achill because it is like a holiday half marathon being so far away and I like holidays as much as running.

2. Good Things Come to Those Who Wait for Free Cancellation

I think that I have mastered the art of booking accommodation for races. I waited until three days before the race as that’s when the free cancellation period runs out and sure enough a B&B on the beach 0.25 of a mile from the start appeared. Not only was the B&B right by the start and finish but you could walk out the back door onto the beach, it even had a nespresso machine.

3. Sheep on the Road

I think that it would be nice just to go to Achill Island stay in the B&B on the beach and go for a normal run, that’s what I was thinking when I headed out for my warmup 40 minutes before the start. There were sheep wandering along the road to slow the cars and it was a lovely morning so it would have been nice just to run easy. Instead I turned back and retrieved my magic shoes.

4. Anthony Mannix

I think I will have to send an invoice to the Cork Finally Has a Track Club for a new pair of Vaporflys. When I was putting on my pink Vaporflys in the nice B&B a chunk of the ZoomX foam broke off the heel section that Anthony Mannix keeps clipping me on in the races. It could only be the clipping that caused it as that section of the shoe doesn’t contact anything else. I considered wearing them anyway but as I had an identical spare pair in the boot I swapped to those just to be safe.

5. Unexpected Mannix

I think that Tudor could have had a nice easy day out if he had accepted my kind offer of running with me and then winning like Gary O’Hanlon did a few years ago. Tudor looked like he meant business and sure enough when Brendan Courtney of Off the Rails fame got us under way Tudor tore off after the lead car. I tried to follow but gave up after about half a kilometer once the main photos had been taken. I was just settling into my rhythm when who do I see with his head out the window of a car only Anthony Mannix. Thankfully he was doing the 10k so no clipping occurred.

6. Cadence Catcher

I think that I need to get better at running on my own. I’m terrible at it, if you put me on a straight road on my own and tell me to run I will just get slower and slower until I stop. I need someone with me to make me run any sort of pace. As we approached the top of the mountain that makes up the first 5k of the route I could hear someone behind who was clearly wearing AlphaFly3s. I had a good listen and made sure it was only one pair of shoes before I backed off a little at the top of the hill to have some water and wait for some company.

7. Probing

I think that although I was very happy to have company I also desperately wanted to win second and the €250 that would help to pay for the best B&B ever. After about three miles of running together I decided to see if I could drop my new companion. I first tried on a hill, this didn’t work at all, in fact he nearly dropped me. Then I tried on a downhill, this sort of worked but not really as there was a hill again soon. Then much to my surprise on a flat section of road I started to get a gap, must be a trail runner I thought. So I decided to wait until the end as dropping him on the hills was impossible and the hills don’t end until mile 12.

8. Undropable Man

I think that if I hadn’t of known the course I would have finished 3rd. My running buddy for the half who I later found out was called Oran was impossibly good on the hills. Normally I have to get rid of someone before the finish as I can’t sprint but I figured this time that with the downhill last mile and flat last half a kilometer I was at a major advantage so I matched Oran as best I could on the many many hills and waited for that 12th mile marker to arrive.

9. Best Sprint Ever

I think that it is a pity that I wasn’t sprinting for victory as my sprint in Achill on the beach in Keel was probably one of the great finishes. It started at the 12th mile marker where I launched my finish, I thought I’d get a gap on the downhill but Oran followed and as we entered the town of Keel and the road started to flatten I could still hear him behind. I waited until the sharp left turn into the camp site with the nice smooth tarmac before launching my newest weapon my sprint. For once I was not passed in the home straight and crossed the line victorious in second place and definitely not fourth.

10. Reigning Champion

I think that I must look like a champion. After the race I had a good chat and took photos with Oran and Mick before finishing the half with Rhona. We had time for lunch in The Beehive with Conor and Ciara before the all important prize giving in the white tent in the field. During the prize giving it was announced that I was last years champion which was great as I actually came third but sure what harm, I corrected the record before Brendan Courtney handed me my prize, I probably should have said nothing. Maybe they were just predicting the future as it is surely inevitable that I will return some year, maybe next year and become champion of Achill Island.

Cork BHAA Sterling 5K

10 Things I Think About The Cork BHAA Sterling 5K

1. Ringaskiddy Again

I think that Ringaskiddy is my favourite location for BHAA races. It’s only 20 minutes from Glanmire, has a good playground for Billy and there’s no trouble with parking like down the Marina. The only problem with Ringaskiddy is the wind and the hills but they can be useful for keeping the fast fellas away.

2. Saw Tooth Profile

I think that there is no way someone would start a new race with a route like this 5K. It doesn’t have a metre of flat road. If you look at the profile on Strava it looks like a bad saw. John Walshe said that the route hasn’t changed since he first measured the route a few years back. It’s nice to have races like this so we can see how much more terrible modern runners like me are. Mark Hanrahan ran 14 minutes on this course which seems impossible, especially without magic shoes.

3. Punctuality

I think that the Cork BHAA get a bad rap for not starting races exactly at 8pm. I was worried that they might start this race early to make a point so I made sure to get to the start 3 minutes before 8pm. Thankfully the relaxed atmosphere remains and we had time for a good chat, a few photos, clapping for Andy and Sarah’s wedding and letting the 223 bus pass before we got underway.

4. Around the Outside

I think that I was surprised at how fast the race went out. I knew from running it last year that the run to the first left hand corner at the ferry port was quick but I got a bit caught out by how quick the lads at the front went out. It took me until the downhill before the bend to get back up to the front group. Then I swept around the outside of the group to the front before I quickly realized that this was not going to be a normal race.

5. Block Headwind

I think that the wind made this race. Once we turned left at the traffic light we were straight into the magical combination that is an uphill headwind. I had no interest in carrying Viv and Co up the hill into the wind so I pulled up and found shelter for the next 2km. Luckily Ray from Togher was quite happy to run a steady pace into the wind up the hill so I sat in and waited for the wind and hill to go away.

6. Thank God for Ray

I think that if it wasn’t for Ray we would still be out running the section between Ringaskiddy and Shanbally. It was disgraceful stuff by the rest of us. No one was willing to run into the wind, everyone wanted to be like Viv and tuck in and wait. Normally I would be willing to try and make it hard but I’m tired of that tactic not working so I choose to be like Viv and sit in and wait for as long as it took which happened to be until Shanbally.

7. Shanbally Shenanigans

I think that there were a lot of people in contention for the win as we passed the 3k mark before turning left up yet another climb at Shanbally. Thankfully once we turned left we only had the uphill to contend with as the wind had disappeared. Gavin began to wind things up so I got straight onto the back of him and hoped I could hang on and that Viv wouldn’t.

8. Hang onto Gavin

I think that the hill out of Shanbally was just about short enough to allow me to hang onto Gavin. Once we crested the top of the Shanbally climb we turned right down a steep hill which was perfect as I was able to use Gavin as a pacemaker all the way to 400m to go. The Vaporflys behind started to get fainter and fainter so I began to believe that I had evolved into a master tactician and would turn all my fourths into seconds without any change in ability or training.

9. I Can Move When I Want To

I think that I got up the final hill much better than normal. Gavin disappeared the minute we hit the climb, it was very unfair how quick he went up it. If I could be like Gavin I would beat Viv easily, unfortunately I’m not and Viv pranced by silently before Aidan stormed by both of us just before the crest of the hill. I was moving a little better than normal up the hill so I held off my other finishing straight enemy Kris and ended up in my usual finishing position.

10. Usualth Position

I think that races that give prizes down to fourth are the best races. This was a very well organized race so I’m not surprised that they thought about recognizing the hard work that goes into consistently finishing in 4th position. Viv was extremely delighted about the bad beating that he had administered. He probably could have beaten Aidan for second but he runs mainly on hatred for me so he stopped sprinting all out once he had me beaten. I’ll just have to accept that he is going to beat me in 5ks, at least I have the other distances.

Dromana 5 Mile 2024

10 Things I Think About The Dromana 5 Mile

1. Amazing Gate

I think that it is a bad idea to go to a race when all you know about the race is that it goes through a funny looking Hindu-Gothic gate from the 1800s. I had cycled through the gate many times when I was miserable on a bicycle so I wanted to have run through it as well, that and I had a willing Billy minder in Tim who agreed that a trip to the Lismore area was a pleasant prospect on a Friday evening in June.

2. Déjà Vu

I think that this might not be the first time that I have run this race. I have a vague memory of running a race in Villierstown during my first running career when I was even more young than I am now. Unfortunately I wouldn’t have had Strava or a GPS watch at the time so I have no record of it nor does the internet. During the race I had this strange feeling that I had run the route before but without any actual evidence that I have.

3. John Treacy

I think that it was nice to start a race in the homeplace of John Treacy. Villierstown is an odd little place, similar to where I’m from in Anglesboro but with less mountains and more walls around the village. Registration was in the beautiful community church hall with nice stained-glass windows. As I was putting my €20 in the biscuit tin I said to the fella doing the registration that I was here on a bike for a feed stop on the John Treacy Tour mixing up my great Waterford men.

4. Sean Kelly

I think that the reason I think I might have run a race here before is because I cycled through Villierstown during the Sean Kelly Tour that used to be moderately enjoyable on a bicycle when I was injured and couldn’t run. I remember that there used to be a food stop in Villierstown, I always thought food stops were ridiculous but they used to have nice flapjacks in Villierstown so it wasn’t the worst place to take a brief break.

5. Return of the Hotspot

I think that road races need to bring back the hotspot prize. I only learned that these used to exist from Kieran McKeown. The Dromana 5 has a perfect hotspot potential location as the first mile and a half is a big climb. If there had of been a hotspot prize at the top of the hill I would have won it as I led Sergiu and the two Fitzgeralds, Pat and Evan over the first climb. It would probably help runners like Sergiu to run faster as lunatics like me would go for the hotspot and provide a nice fast pacemaker for the proper runners like Sergiu.

6. Team Astana

I think that it was a pity that Raivis had to cycle alongside us in the race rather than run. Raivis probably won the Dromana 5 when/if I ran it before in my first running career. Fourteen or so years later he spent the race cycling alongside myself and Aidan Connell once Sergiu and the two Fitzs left us behind. Raivis was able to tell us that there was a good gap behind to sixth. This was great as the only thing about the race that I had actually looked up was that there was prizes for the top 5 so I was almost guaranteed a prize.

7. Photoshop

I think that I was very disappointed that there wasn’t a photographer at the gate to capture the glorious moment when I passed through the Hindu-Gothic gate in fourth position. I was almost certain that there would be a photographer there, I even put my hands through my hair as we approached the gate to make sure I looked excellent but there was no photographer there which was a great pity so I made my own photo which is in style at this time.

8. Point to Point

I think that I started to get worried about getting back to Tim and Billy once we went through the gate. I presumed that the race was going to finish back in Villierstown or at least somewhere near it. It was only when I saw the signs for the N72 and Cappoquin that I realized that the race was going to finish 5 miles from where it started in Cappoquin which is probably the reason for the déjà vu as I definitely finished a race in Cappoquin before I just don’t know which race.

9. Fourth or Fifth

I think that once I realized that the race was going to finish in Cappoquin 5 miles from where Billy and Tim were I decided to park that problem and concentrate on trying to win fourth. This was proving difficult as at 3 miles I was wishing that I had entered a 5k and not a 5 mile race. As we approached the final climb to the finish in Cappoquin I tried to sprint and get away from Aidan, this kind of worked but my sprint didn’t last long and he passed me again just after the GAA club. At this point I gave up and ran home happy enough in 5th.

10. Amazing T-Shirt

I think that the Waterford races always have the best t-shirts. As this was the 30th edition of the race everyone got a lovely Nike t-shirt with a picture of the Dromana Gate printed on it. This was probably better than any photograph. Once I collected my excellent t-shirt my attention turned to how to get back to Billy and Tim, normally a 5 mile warm down would fill me with great happiness but the week after a marathon it seemed like a terrible prospect. Luckily Conor and Pat had parked a car just beyond the gate so we ran to the car and they dropped me back to Billy and Tim who weren’t too upset that the race hadn’t finished in Villierstown like I had thought it would. We stopped at the gate on the way home and took our own photos which was the main purpose of going to the race in the first place.

Cork City Marathon 2024

10 Things I Think About The Cork City Marathon 2024

1. For Runners By Runners

I think that you can tell how good a race is going to be by the number or runners involved in the organization. This was a marathon for runners by runners, everything was how I would have done it, it was like Michael Herlihy organized it, impeccable. It was my sixth Cork Marathon which means I am nearly very old and possibly the person with the most experience of the route and conditions which is both good and bad.

2. Bagpipes

I think that I am very lucky to be classified as an “elite” marathon runner in Cork. I hope SuperValu don’t do what Mercadona did for the Valencia Marathon and turn it into the fastest marathon in the world. It’s great fun walking down from Elverys to the startline led by a man playing the bagpipes. We only had a few seconds on the start line before the best Lord Mayor, Kieran McCarthy fired the gun and off we went into the typical blinding sunshine of a June Bank Holiday weekend in Cork.

3. Computer Says No

I think that the worst thing about having run Cork a few too many times is that if you’ve stuck your hand into the fire that is going out too hard and ending up waddling in the straight road it’s hard to do it again. As we ran down the South Mall I was horrified to see Barry Twohig and Danny Mullins take off up the road not far behind the significantly larger than normal lead group. I considered going after them but as we turned back towards town after the short trip around Blackpool I saw a large group containing Viv and Tadhg behind and decided that I didn’t want to risk ending up on the straight road having my legs held up in the air by Kieran McKeown.

4. The Group

I think that the easiest way to run a marathon is to run with a big group. One or two people isn’t enough, you need about five or six to make it interesting. This is why the big city marathons are so much faster because there is always a big group to follow. I ended up with in a lovely group containing Viv, Tadhg, Anthony McCarthy, Joe from Mallow via Frankfurt and Peter in full Hoka kit who I mistakenly thought was an American but was in fact from Dublin. We stayed together until about 17 miles which is where the marathon starts in Cork.

5. Too Sweet

I think that I have work to do on my Maurten gel consumption. Every good influencer and podcast says that the key to marathon running is consuming 90g per hour of carbohydrate. I set off with 130g of carbohydrates in the pockets of my Soar Marathon shorts which over four years are slowly but surely justifying the significant cost. I managed to take 40g at miles 6 and 12, then 25g at mile 18, then it became too sweet for me, so I gave my last gel to Viv. I didn’t feel like I ran out of energy so perhaps 39.9g per hour is enough.

6. Water, Water, Everywhere

I think that the water on course was exceptional. There was water everywhere. It even came in the most perfect small bottles with sports caps that you could hold in your hand and run along with quite easily. Another advantage of being in a group is that you can give your water bottle to Viv to hold while you deal with the difficult task of opening a gel. Other notable excellent cold water came from Donal Coffey and Sheldon.

7. Slow Boil

I think that the major problem with Cork is the heat. There are lots of studies on heat and its impact on running, I bet there are none on the impacts of running a marathon in Cork. It is the perfect storm when it comes to heat and running. Because it starts off at 815am it feels kind of cool so it’s easy to go off too fast, then it warms up as it goes along and the hardest part of the course comes when the temperature has reached it’s highest point so if you’ve gone off too fast you are in big, big trouble. This doesn’t happen in Valencia as it’s on in winter so the temperature is the same at the start as it is at the end so judging pacing is a lot easier. There is no fixing this problem. It’s just figuring out how not to get boiled.

8. Leeside Lumps

I think that over the years I have come to like the miles from Turners Cross to Farranlea Road more and more. It is a terrible part of the course to end up solo but in a small group it is wonderful. The only thing I would change is I would have a shoe change station on the South Link where you could change from AlphaFlys to Vaporflys to deal with all the corners. Volunteers like Graham could then transport the Alphaflys down to the end of the straight road so that you could change back for the run home.

9. Clear Air Turbulence

I think that the best way to deal with the straight road is to think about it positively. I kept telling myself that the straight road was where I was going to be at my best because of how wonderful the AlphaFly3s are on a flat straight road so I was kind of looking forward to it. By the time we turned right out onto the most feared road in Cork the group in the battle for the all important 15th position had been whittled down to me, Viv and Tadhg. Sheldon was on hand to capture the moment Tour De France style when Viv was dropped in dramatic fashion by myself and Tadhg. This was very surprising as the slipstream created by two us two monsters running side by side was probably worth 30 seconds a mile, perhaps it was turbulent air.

10. Finishing Hug

I think that I should have asked Tadhg to leave it to a sprint down Patrick Street as there was no one on North Main Street to appreciate the greatness that was the battle for 15th position. It was epic, it began outside the Franciscan Well when Tadhg decided that it was time for the group to become a group of one. I wasn’t very happy about this decision. Unfortunately, there was nothing I could do about it and I was left to chase him down North Main Street past the historic falling down buildings held up with rusty metal bars before turning onto Patrick Street. I walked across the finish line triathlon style because I was tired before being hugged by Tadhg. I collected my car key from Graham and applauded Viv home a few seconds later. A great day out.

Olbia21 Half Marathon 2024

10 Things I Think About The Olbia21 Half Marathon

1. Parco Fausto Noce

I think that Cork City Council need to go to Olbia to see how you build a park, I’m sure they’d be happy with a trip to the sunshine. Olbia has the most perfect running park I have ever seen. It has a track, a huge playground, two fountains, a one kilometre road width loop and a two kilometre loop all withing a tiny footprint that would fit anywhere in Glanmire. It was so perfect that I couldn’t resist doing a session on Thursday that probably wasn’t the best idea with a half marathon on Sunday.

2. Bureaucracy

I think that Italian races are the hardest to enter. It is almost like they don’t want any people like me running. French races require a medical certificate which is fine, Italian races need a medical certificate and evidence of affiliation to a world athletics affiliated club which is harder to get than you’d think. I thought I’d fixed it all by paying €15 for a Runcard which I presumed would make everything ok, money normally makes problems go away.

3. Are There Any Kenyans?

I think that the registration was full of surprises. I ran down to the square in the sunshine on Saturday to collect my number. When I got there, I saw my envelope with the sticker on it saying, “not certified”. I was well prepared for this, I had all my three documents ready, the medical cert, the Athletics Ireland screenshot and the Runcard. I showed them and was quickly given my envelope which I was delighted with. I jokingly asked the organizers if there were any Kenyans running, “yes, they are sitting over there in the café”, and sure enough there they were. All chances of a podium and the €700 for first were gone.

4. Fake Josh Kerr

I think that if the Kenyans weren’t enough of a surprise when I got to the start I met a fella who looked suspiciously like Josh Kerr, dressed head to toe in the professional Brooks gear and hanging around with a girl wearing a Scottish clubs singlet. He wasn’t actually Josh Kerr but a Slovakian version. We traded PBs and discussed the heat before we were called to line up for the start.

5. Umbrella

I think that the start of the race was excellent. This is the first race I have been at where there was a five minute dancing performance involving the Umbrellas and the Rhianna song. It was very good; I was lined up in between the two Kenyans who weren’t as impressed with the length of time that the performance was taking. When the dancing finished the gun was fired and off we went in the sunshine towards the big wheel before looping back over the big bridge.

6. 15%

I think that my race was over after two miles. After 100m it was obvious that the Kenyan would win as he ran off with two fellas that were doing the 10k. I was left with Fake Josh Kerr, and a few handy looking locals some of whom were doing the 10k. We had a nice group for about a mile before I started to feel the heat, after two miles I was boiling and reluctantly had to drop off into no mans land.

7. Solo

I think that being solo in a half marathon from two miles to the end is no fun. Up ahead once the 10k runners turned off at about 6k I counted that I was in 5th which wasn’t too bad. 4th was not catchable and there was no one behind so there wasn’t much to run for. The only entertainment I had was the wild gesticulations and musical language of the drivers who were being stopped from driving down the road.

8. Go to Beach

I think that the best part of the race was the section along the Pittulongu beach. The problem was that getting to the beach involved running up a very steep mile long hill to get to the beach. The beach was worth it though and if I still used Instagram the pictures would be excellent and make everyone want to run the race.

9. Heat Training

I think that when running in the heat it is very important not to worry about Strava. I spent the whole race looking at my watch seeing the average pace gradually drift higher and higher. I simply can’t run when it gets over 21 degrees, that seems to be the cut off. I just get slower and slower. I know how it feels at this stage so I just ran home as best I could. Up ahead there was a brief moment where I thought I might get 4th as Francesco who had won the Alghero race I ran last year was sent the wrong way at a roundabout but he got going again and held me off easily enough.

10. Don’t Run with Runcard

I think that the main lesson I learnt from the race was that if you are running a race in Italy don’t use Runcard. Runcard is like running a BHAA race as an unregistered runner, you aren’t eligible for any prizes. I just missed the podium because I had to checkout of the AirBnB, I asked if there was any prize for 5th and was given a nice bottle of Sardinian wine but without the trip to the podium. When I was walking back to the car I met Francesco who told me that even if I had come 4th I still wouldn’t have gotten the €250 as Runcard runners aren’t eligible for prizes. All you should enter with is the medical cert and the evidence of Athletics Ireland membership. Less is more when it comes to entering Italian races. Just as well I did that great session in the lovely park on Thursday.

Ballintotis 4 Mile 2024

10 Things I Think About The Ballintotis 4 Mile

1. Ballintotising

I think that it has been too long since I last raced Ballintotis. For a multiude of reasons I haven’t raced it since 2017 when I ran 22:00 in a pair of Brooks Ghosts which according to the validated Michael Herlihy magic shoe calculator is equivalent to 20:48. Amazingly and shockingly this was John Meade’s first ever time Ballintotising, the alure of a potential county champion medal was probably too much to resist for him.

2. Good Parking Comes to Those That are Late

I think that the parking for the race was amazing. Tim kindly drove us down and also provided Billy minding services, we were slightly later than most people who seemed to arrive at 5:30pm for the 8.00pm start. We arrived at 7.30pm and were awarded with the best car park just before the turn into the finish only 500m from the hall.

3. Les Amis de Ballintotis

I think that the roads in Ballintotis should be preserved like they preserve the cobblestones in Paris Roubaix. They are proper roads for road racing, they have everything one could want in a road race surface, a nice camber, filled in potholes, dust, mud, soft verges. It’s a proper test of strength and agility, none of that smooth black tarmac stuff.

4. Elite Level Organisation

I think that Ballintotis could handle a world road race championships. The organisation is elite level. They could definitely achieve a gold label event. Everything worked, over 1000 runners in a small village the size of Anglesboro should not be possible but somehow it all hums along perfectly. The start line should be a mess but instead it’s probably the least stressful start of any race.

5. Sun Safety

I think that it was nice for the rain to finally stop. It was becoming silly how cold, wet and windy all the races had become. Apparently, it is always sunny for Ballintotis. It was so sunny that the sun was almost dangerous for the first mile. The first half a mile was terribly fast and slightly uphill. Once we turned right after the hall we hit the sun, perhaps due to having not seen the sun in six months it was hard to see the lumps and bumps on the road so I had to pick up my knees to make sure I didn’t trip and end up getting trampled by 1000 runners.

6. Chariots of Fire

I think that for a small race in the countryside there was an atmosphere like a big city marathon. They even had music at most of the mile markers. Chariots of Fire gave a little boost around two miles. At that point I was at the front of a big group of people that I wanted to beat. A foreign athlete Brian Murphy was helping me at the front with the likes of John Meade hiding behind waiting to pounce once the line was in sight.

7. Tarmac

I think that it is a terrible shame that they put smooth tarmac at the left turn between two and three miles. I would love to have seen how bad the road was for Cork County Council to have spent money on the road. These old style roads should be preserved only for running and should only be repaired using tar and chippings to preserve the character of the race.

8. Three Miles

I think that I was very surprised to be still ahead of John Meade at three miles. I had pushed the first two miles at an effort that was probably unsuitable for my moderately old man legs. To my surprise when we got to the three mile mark I had only the foreign athlete Brian Murphy for company. I could see Aidan Noone and Mark Walsh just up ahead so I began to think less of John Meade and more of catching my Leevale colleagues.

9. Talking Tactics

I think that I could probably have run a faster time if it wasn’t for the tactical running of John Meade. I had been running honestly and with full effort until we turned left onto the N25 by the lake. Then in the corner of my left I eye saw the all too familiar sight of John Meade rolling level. I thought he might keep the pace honest but instead he decided to slow down so we all bunched up leaving the foreign athlete Brian Murphy to escape up the road. It took James Hayes bombing past us on the outside at twice the speed for John Meade to be triggered into action just before we turned into the finishing straight.

10. Championship Sprint

I think that the finish of the race is wonderful. The last 500m of the race once we turned off the N25 was like a bunch sprint in the Tour De France except it was for the Cork County Championships and it was in Ballintotis and not on the Champs Elysees. Once I hit the 400m mark on the road I launched a hopeless effort at catching John Meade and Aidan Noone but succeeded only in being passed by James McCarthy in sight of the line. No shame in that I suppose. Great fun at a great race.

PHOTO: Graham miekle

Cork BHAA PWC 5K

10 Things I Think About The Cork BHAA PWC 5k

1. Training Season

I think it’s great to have the midweek races back. They are a great excuse for not having to do a training session. I don’t particularly like training sessions, everyone else seems to love them, there are even podcasts dedicated to people talking about their training sessions in great detail. I wish that more people in Cork would do training sessions instead of races so that I could win BHAA races.

2. Evening Preparation

I think that it takes a while to get back into the flow of an evening race. An evening race is a lot harder to prepare for than a morning race especially for the belly. I basically ate toast for the day to keep the belly happy. Then I had to take a beetroot shot for the first time in the evening which is more unpleasant than in the morning.

3. Some Turnout

I think that there must have been nearly 1000 people at the race. It was a very big crowd for a small 5k on a dank, wet and windy evening in early April. It is great to see that so many people have discovered how great running races is. The BHAA people registering 1000 people in one hour is impressive work.

4. The Fear

I think that it is interesting that no matter how often I race I am always scared at the start. When I got to the start line at Kennedy Park, I found a terrible number of good runners, Denis Hegarty, Aidan Noone, James Hayes and Adamh who I jogged over to the start with. At least I’ll be able to beat Peter Hanrahan I thought.

5. He Gone

I think that Denis Hegarty is a very good strategist. It is an excellent strategy to just run away from everyone at such a pace that no one will even think about trying to follow you, Mark Hanrahan used to do this to great effect. Before we got to the Live at the Marquee junction after about a kilometer Denis had the race won with second and third place being all that was left for decision.

6. Cork No Track Club

I think that being able beat all of the Cork No Track Club athletes would guarantee at least a few BHAA road race victories. They may have no track, but they have some good athletes. Tonight, they sent James Hayes, I knew he was probably going to run away from me over the last mile like Anthony and Barry normally do but it was nice to be able to stay with him for a while.

7. It’s The Athletes Responsibility to Know the Course

I think that if I learned anything from last year it was that you could potentially become a national champion over 10k by knowing the course when everyone else doesn’t. Because of that race I now study the race route in great detail before the race so that I can win if there is any confusion. The bit around SuperValu Pairc Ui Caoimh seemed to cause James Hayes great confusion. James Hayes is a nice man so I told him where the course went and we were all fine.

8. The Monster

I think that Billy is a very good judge of characters. He has always called Peter Hanrahan the monster ever since they first met in The Edge when Billy was about two. As we came back onto Center Park Road for the final mile I was horrified to see Peter cruising along with perfect form looking completely untroubled in his Swiss engineered On Cloudboom Echo shoes which no one else wears. I knew that we were all doomed if Peter was in touch within sight of the line so I tried briefly to push the pace to get rid of him. It did nothing, this monster was undroppable.

9. That Point

I think that races are very annoying. The worst part of any race is that point when the group you are with gradually eases away and there is nothing that you can do about it. It is terrible and doesn’t seem fair at the time as you are trying very hard. As we passed the Marina Market it was still a group of five, first James Hayes slowly increased the pace, followed by Aidan. Then to my horror Peter followed Aidan and I was left briefly left with Adhamh before he too gradually distanced me. There was nothing I could do except run home as fast as I could and try and get under 16 minutes which I didn’t.

10. Zero Carbon

I think that the BHAA races are very green races. The Green Party would have been very happy with me tonight. Tim gave me a lift into the race, the race number had already been used at least once if not twice and I gave it back afterwards, even the safety pins had been used before. Then to make it even greener I ran home as my warm down as I hadn’t reached the acceptable amount of running for the day which is currently 10 miles. There are benefits to not being good enough to win prizes, it’s probably green not to win prizes too.

pHOTO: gRAHAM meikle

Kinsale Regatta 5 Mile 2022

10 Things I Think About The Kinsale 5 Mile

1. Operation Quieten Viv

I think that it is a disgrace that Viv is making a show of all the very young runners like me. He’s only running 15:30 for 5k in magic shoes and winning by miles which is a desperate standard. When I found out that he was running Kinsale I had to go to see if I could quieten him.

2. Magic Roads

I think that Kinsale is very hard to get to. The roads don’t make any sense. There isn’t really any road to Kinsale just lots of roads that meet at deadly crossroads where you could easily be killed on your way to the race.

3. Toolbox

I think that there are very few things left in the toolbox for getting better at running. I could try training properly but then it would be really boring and I’d have to tell people that I’m training for a sub 2:30 marathon the whole time and never ever run a race for fear of missing a session. Instead I bought a pair of Asics Metaspeed Sky+. I was going to wear them as I thought they might be magic but I was terrified of being beaten by Jeremy if I didn’t have magic shoes so I didn’t.

4. Strategy

I think that I had a good strategy for the race. I had analysed Viv’s previous races where he had won easily, actually there was only one but he won easily. In that race he was allowed run slowly from the start and then pick it up for the last mile and destroy everyone. I figured it would be a good idea to make it as hard as possible from the start in the hope that he would be wrecked by the time he got to the last mile. Jeremy agreed that was a good plan and agreed to cooperate.

5. 4:56

I think that my plan would have been easier to execute if Gavin O’Rourke hadn’t shown up. While it made taking the race out at what I would call hard easier as we had someone to follow it also made me realise how terribly slow my version of hard is, even with a 4:56 mile Gavin was miles up the road. I was stuck with Jeremy and a hopefully suffering Viv.

6. 4:54

I think that the second mile of this race is completely mad. It is incredibly downhill, well there is one section that is almost vertical. I am exceptional at falling down hills so as soon as we got to this section I went for it. I managed to shed Jeremy but somehow Viv stuck to me like one of those limpets on a rock. We went so fast down the fall that we nearly caught up to Gavin.

7. Davide Rebellin

I think that the third mile of this race was incredible. It was horrible to come off the hill and suddenly meet gravity again. It felt like I was crawling along which I probably was. Viv came up beside me and then promptly danced off away from me. Gavin was a nice bit up the road but Viv continued to prance up to him effortlessly like one of those fellas from the early 2000s in the Tour De France.

8. Hometown Hero

I think that Jeremy was very happy to beat me badly in this race. The last time I saw him this happy was eating his Knickerbocker Glory the night before the Berlin Marathon. He was very clever and hung back on the crazy downhill and let me destroy myself trying to get rid of Viv. Then he caught me on the flat near the three mile mark and then dispatched me on the little hill on the way back into the town. At least it took a PB for him to beat me. It’s definitely a PB course for downhill PBs.

9. Cars into the Gap

I think that just letting Jeremy run away from me on the way back to Kinsale was a bit weak. Those first two miles destroyed my legs, I’m not able for that leg speed. Once Jeremy was gone I was mainly concerned about Fergus who I knew was thinking about beating Jeremy. I was able to relax when they started letting cars into the gap behind me. I knew this meant I was safe in 4th, my third consecutive 4th, my third consecutive race with no prize.

10. Outdoor Dining

I think that the finish of the race is pretty unique. All races should finish in the middle of town where people are sitting outside eating their Michelin Bib Gourmand dinners. When I got to the finish I expected Gavin to have sat behind Viv and kicked by in the last 400. But no Viv had dropped Gavin with a 4:50 last mile and won. I wonder did the outdoor diners realise that they were watching one of the best masters athletes in the world putting on an exhibition. An amazing performance.

San Silvestre Chiclanera 2021

10 Things I Think About the San Silvestre Chiclanera ~5.5k

1. Loading Bay

I think that parking in Spain is the hardest part of driving in Spain. You have two choices, ridiculous underground car parks and on street parking which will result in your car being scratched. As I expected Chiclana was not designed for cars, with about as many parking spaces as American tourists. I eventually found a curiously empty spot so left the car there while I got the dorsal for the race. When I got back to the car there were two lottery stall people giving out to me pointing at the loading bay sign so I had to go and find another spot, thankfully someone pulled out of a lovely spot just in front of a playground for Billy to continue his “El Diablo” terrorizing of Spanish playgrounds. .

2. Imperdibles

I think that the safety pins for this race were the most carefully packed safety pins ever. They were so well packed I didn’t know what they were. The four safety pins were wrapped in a tiny package with the race logo printed on it. It must have taken someone days to do.

3. Meta

I think that the start of the Chiclana race was particularly unsuitable for someone of my size especially when racing Spaniards with a significant size advantage. It started on a steep uphill with a left hand turn at the top. As normal in Spain everyone was wearing masks at the start so for the first 100m you had to sprint uphill with a mask on. This was particularly horrible. I started very badly and had to use a few of the Spaniards as leverage to get going up the hill. I don’t think that they were used to my starting technique.

4. Tranquillo

I think that I was very glad to see that once we got to the top of the hill the guys at the front stalled the pace while they took off their masks. It was still fast but not the complete madness in Malaga. I decided that I wouldn’t make the same mistake as in Malaga so I sat at the back of a big group of about 20, this was a mistake as this was a different style of race.

5. Fermín Cacho

I think that all Spanish runners must train as 1500m runners when they are young. It must be something to do with Fermin Cacho. In nearly every race I have run in Spain the first 1500m of the race is the hardest. They are exceptionally good for that first mile. It is amazing how far back you can be in a Spanish race after a mile and still end up in the top 3.

6. Fortress Chiclana

I think that it helped to be a local in this race. The streets in Chiclana were definitely designed to help defend the city from foreign vandals and vikings. After the initial stall in pace the guys at the front of the pack suddenly took off stretching out the group down the hill through the winding narrow streets. I was stuck at the back and because of all the twists and turns I missed the break.

7. Catch the Locals

I think that Spain is the only place where I catch people on hills. The first lap of the race took us back to the start where we had to run back up the hill again. I was in about 7th place trying to catch the locals that had escaped up the road. The minute we hit the hill four of them came back to me all of a sudden and I swept by them up into 3rd.

8. Random Distance

I think that not having any idea of the course or distance is a great way to get rid of the mental side of running. If you don’t know when the finish is all you can do is run as hard as you can for as long as you can. Chiclana was a 5.5k race which is a great distance free from any PB nonsense. At no point in the race had I any idea how close to the finish we were.

9. Pegasus

I think that I never caught as many people in a race as in Chiclana, once I had dispatched the locals on the uphill there were only two guys ahead. On the second longer lap out by the river I managed to catch one of them and get up to second place. I didn’t think there was anyone behind me because I couldn’t hear the sound of any magic shoes behind me. As we ran back through main street of the town I started to recognize the streets again so realized that we were near the finish. As soon as this thought entered my head a Spaniard in a pair of Pegasus danced out from behind me and outsprinted me for second. Third isn’t too bad I suppose. According to the guy in the Pegasus the guy who won the race is a Spanish champion junior triathlete like Chris Mintern and is unbeatable.

10. Chiclana

I think that the San Silvestre in Chiclana is the best of the San Silvestres in the area, Chipiona is pretty similar but I think I prefer Chiclana. The course in Chiclana is very excellent and the atmosphere was like a mountain stage of the Tour De France. Running through old narrow Spanish streets at 6pm on a warm sunny winters evening is so much fun. Unfortunately, because of the disease there was no podium so I didn’t get my prize for third so I’ll have to come back next year to try and win it, and maybe if I don’t win they can give me my prize from this year.

III San Silvestre Solidaria RCM Malaga 2021

10 Things I Think About The III San Silvestre Solidaria RCM Malaga ~10k 2021

1. A Wedding, a Christmas and a Flight

I think that running a race a few hours after getting off a plane is a bad idea. It is especially a bad idea the day after Christmas. It felt like all of the blood in my body was in my calves when I went to warm up. Flights do bad things to my legs, they swell up, sort of like a bag of crisps if you take it on the plane.

2. El Diablo

I think that Spain has the best playgrounds in the world. There are playgrounds everywhere, on every street corner, on a run you might pass 20 of them. There was an excellent playground beside the building where you collected the dorsals for the race. Billy had great fun chasing two Spanish children around, they called him El Diablo, I hope that If I get good at running they will call me El Diablo too.

3. Masks

I think that the Spanish are excellent at masks, very excellent, probably better than the Germans. You have to wear a mask outside if you aren’t running which is great because everyone feels safe from the runners so you don’t get any abuse or scowling. At the start of a race you have to wear a mask until a few 100m after the start. Taking off your mask while running full tilt and putting it on my upper arm is a skill I didn’t think I’d ever have to develop. If the strap of your mask breaks while doing this you don’t have to worry as at the finish they will give you a new mask. It is great.

4. Light Show

I think that there should be more races at night during the winter. I much prefer running in the evening as I am awake. The race started at 7pm which unlike in Ireland is only 30 minutes after sunset in Spain in December. This is one of the main reasons I like Spain in December, each day is about 2 hours brighter than Ireland.

5. Follow the Motorbike

I think that you don’t need to understand the language to understand what is said at the start of a race. The race director appeared at the start line with a motorbike helmet. I couldn’t understand a word but from his gesticulations I understood that we were to follow the motorbike and not the car.

6. Loco

I think that this might have been the fastest race start I have ever been involved in. It was completely mad. It was supposed to be a 10k but everyone took off like it was a 1500m race. I was about 30th after about a kilometer, when I looked back on Strava it was about 4:30 pace for the first kilometer so god knows what the 30 people ahead of me were doing. It wasn’t like they had any hope of maintaining this pace, it just appears to be the done thing in Spain regardless of ability.

7. Roundabout

I think that I now understand why the roundabout in the Kipchoge 1:59 challenge was cambered. It is very hard to run completely around a roundabout at full tilt wearing magic shoes. The roundabout in Malaga was very small which made it even harder.

8. Who Blows up Least

I think that if I were to run this race again I would run the first kilometer a lot more conservatively and work my way through. It would have been far more fun. Instead I spent the next 8k passing Spaniards that had completely detonated. I had blown up too but not as badly. It was a very strange race. I was lucky it was only 5.8 miles and not the advertised 10k as I was in major trouble by the end.

9. The Disease

I think that the Next% disease is just as bad in Spain now as it is back home. It probably isn’t as contagious as the Irish version as it seems to have only infected the front of the field. Further back it is mainly Asics and Joma shoes. The disease is definitely as virulent in Spain as the times have improved significantly.

10. No Podium

I think it was a shame that the other disease that has impacted running meant that there would be no podium. I finished 3rd in the masculino category which would have normally resulted in a podium trip despite finishing 9th overall. I don’t understand how a podium could be considered a high-risk activity, but I suppose it was a case of give something up to appease the gods.

The North South Masters XC

10 Things I Think About The North South Masters XC

1. Don’t Forget to Bring the Singlet

I think that the most important part of the weekend was to remember to bring the Irish singlet. This was the whole point of the weekend, the green singlet. I really should have done one of those Instagram post with the singlet the night before the race, but I bought it off the internet, so it didn’t seem right.

2. King Billy

I think that it was a great idea to bring Billy to the race in Belfast. A cross country race is a great place for a toddler, toddlers love cross country races. They don’t actually watch the cross-country race but they enjoy the grass and attacking other children.

3. Old Man

I think that old men like me are not able for a long XC season, the tendons in my lower legs are really suffering. Physios on twitter tell you to load your muscles and tendons to cure the niggles while removing stress from your life. I think this is nonsense as my calves are completely overloaded from wearing spikes twice a week and I have a perfect level of stress. Physios need to learn about magic shoes, I plan on curing my niggles by going back racing in magic shoes running in a delusional and pain free state again.

4. Queen’s Farm

I think that the race was excellently organized. The race took place on the Queen’s University playing pitches which is like a hilly UCC Farm. There was one muddy section on the downhill part of the course which is the first mud I’ve seen on a XC course all year. The lap was a proper lap with tight ankle breaking turns and small little steep hills but still plenty of fast sections, it kind of suited me, it was great fun to run and went by too quickly. I wish it had of been 10 or 12k.

5. 1215 or 1230

I think that having any timetable for the race was great after having to guess the start of the Munster Senior. There was a little bit of confusion about the start time as one email said 1230 and on Facebook it said 1215.I went with the Facebook option which turned out to be more accurate. Two timetables is still better than none.

6. Aussie Team?

I think that the start of the race was my favourite part of the race. There were two pens at the start, one for the Irish team and one for the Northern Ireland team. It looked like a battle scene. Apparently according to Instagram at the start I looked like Morgan McDonald who is a tanned hairy Australian runner, I will take this as a compliment and a sign that I should keep the hair and keep using the fake tan.

7. The Old Man Mile

I think that the first lap of the race was very cagey, I suppose it was a master’s race but the start was very slow, it was sort of like the old man mile you have to start doing when you get over 30, I ended up leading, not because I wanted to but because no one else wanted to. I lead for about a kilometre before the Northern Irish lads and Toldo warmed up and tore off into the distance.

8. Keep Her Lit

I think that running in Northern Ireland is great. It is kind of like a race abroad as it sounds completely different during the race. It's not very different but it is different enough to be refreshing. The crowd seemed to be more encouraging than back home, they shout stuff like Keep her Lit that you see on t-shirts in St George’s Market.

9. Motivation

I think that it was very difficult to find a reason in the race. I didn’t really want to badly beat anyone in the race. The Northern Irish M35 lads were in a different league to me so I couldn’t race them and you couldn’t really hate fellas like Niall O’Riordan so I couldn’t motivate myself when he went past me. It was an odd race on that front. In the end I just tried to run as hard as I could which is an acceptable way of racing too.

10. M35<M40

I think that the problem with the M35 category is that it gets harder every year you get older. Then you reach the M40 category and it get inundated by the people who refuse to accept M35 as a category. Next year I would like to run against the English, Welsh and Scots too. I might as well take advantage while everyone else my age is afraid of being called a masters athlete it might be my only chance and its a great day out.