CAOILIN IMPRESSES ON 4 LEGS

The week effectively began for me, on Wednesday morning strangely enough, with the inspiring news that former East Down AC top junior runner, Caoilin Quinn, who gave up running on 2 legs to seek fame and fortune on 4, when he left to pursue his dream of becoming a top jockey, had ridden his first winner on his first race course ride in England. The race was held at Kempton Park and it marks the first of what we all hope will be, many. Our congratulations to him and best wishes for his future progress in the tough, highly competitive world of National Hunt race riding. Almost coincidentally two of the present East Down senior squad, Neil Curran and Martin Willcox, headed for Aintree racecourse at the weekend, not to seek success on the 4 legs of a horse, but to run on their own two, as part of the NI Masters team in the British and Irish Masters Cross Country Championships held at the world famous home of the world’s greatest steeplechase, the Grand National.

BRITISH AND IRISH MASTERS X/C CHAMPIONSHIPS ON 2 LEGS

There was lots of jokes about the going being good to firm and Red Rum making a possible comeback but it was certified before they started that all the runners had only 2 legs as they set off on their 8K test.  The weather was kind and as a result the pace was hot from the start. At one stage Martin Willcox found himself near the back of the 35-49 race which is not his usual zone but by digging deep he brought himself back into the stream of runners and eventually finished as 4th out of 6 in the NI M45 Team in a time of 29.35. Neil Curran up ahead in the same race but representing the M40 NI Team ran a steady race and kept himself in the pack finishing in 28.35. Both men deserve praise for getting their NI vest and their performances endorsed their selection. It has to be said that well as they ran they didn’t make a similar impression to Caoilin, finishing in mid field in the race. However these races are always tough and hotly contested affairs and both will have learned considerably from their experiences.

RUN IN THE DARK

On Wednesday over 2000 runners turned out in the 5 and 10K races which make up the Run in the Dark that is now an established annual event in the grounds of the Stormont Estate. It is an event which I have never missed since it began until this year when I totally forgot all about it. A sign of the times or just an involuntary precaution on behalf of my body help to preserve it from the cold? Luckily sufficient of the rest of the running fraternity, though none from East Down, remembered, while I sat snugly and oblivious to it all, at home.

SATURDAY IN DRUM MANOR FOREST PARK COOKSTOWN

After the horrendous weather of the previous weekend, it was a relief to have both Saturday and Sunday dry and calm conducive to good racing or simply to being outside for any reason. The EDAC athletes who took the journey to Drum Manor Forest Park for the Born2run 5/10K were able to enjoy the scenic surroundings to the full. The course started flat with a few downhills but then there was payback with a bit of climbing and one challenging hill in the last 1K. Gordy Graham was out on his own from the start and with a gap of almost 2 minutes he probably did appreciate the views. He took the win in 19.01 with Paddy Hannon in 2nd place in 21.49.  Right behind him,  Lauren Madine and Anna Gardiner were playing a cat and mouse game in a repeat of the last Born2run event and came in as first and second females with Lauren pipping Anna on the line by 1 second! Their respective times were 21.51 to 21.52 placing them 3rd and 4th overall. Sharon Madine had a good strong run (24.26) which gave her 6th lady home and 13th overall out of a field of 132.  Great running all round!

VIVA LAS VEGAS!
What better way to bring marathon season to an end than a trip to the glitz and glamour of Las Vegas Rock’n’Roll Marathon. Clare Carson and Kevin Kelly headed off to the USA last week, much to the envy of many and reported back that it was a trip worth making. They soaked up the atmosphere of the event which aims to entertain runners by playing music along the route and creating a carnival feel to ease the pain of the miles. The EDAC duo had always planned to take it as an end of season wind down and wisely took time to hydrate in the warm dry heat rather than push on for times. In the end they crossed the line in 4.28 so the tunes and bright lights must have carried them along rightly. The famous Vegas Strip is incorporated in the route and the marathon is the only time that the Strip is traffic free. With 35,000 runners it is quite a spectacle and starting in late afternoon it carries the festivities on into the night. Definitely one for those who like to combine their running with a bit of razzmatazz.

VIVA TOLLYMORE!

That doesn’t have quite the same ring to it does it, though nonetheless, whether running a marathon in Tollymore or Las Vegas still has the one common feature – they all require the runner to cover 26.2 miles, so Declan Teague’s performance on Saturday, as the only EDAC runner in the Tollymore Mountain Marathon has equal value. Though he said he ran it “slowly” his time of 4 hours and 2 minutes suggests otherwise.

SUNDAY IN DOWNPATRICK  – THE Co DOWN 5K – THE FIRST RACE – OVER 25 MINUTES.

On a beautiful sunny morning, with not even the slightest whiff of a wind, the Co Down 5K Series got under way at 10.00am with the “Over 25 minutes” estimated timed runners, all 67of them, taking to the measured loop around St Patrick’s Square, the Mall and Lr. Market St, with 7 and a half laps ahead of them. The idea is that runners enter one of the 3 choices on offer, i.e. over 25 minutes, 18 to 25 minutes or under 18 minutes, which is most appropriate to their known pace and should see them finish close to this estimate. The fact that the top 5 runners all finished inside the 25 minute target with the top two clocking 22.22 and 22.50 respectively means that they had seriously underestimated their times.

East Down’s Cathy Burke ran extremely well to finish in overall 9^th place and 3^rd Female in 25.07, with Sean Sealey in 16^th place in 26.00 minutes. It is inspiring to guys like me who are ”temporarily” sidelined to also see Emma Mallon and others like her turn up and run just for the fun of it.  Well done everyone.

 THE SECOND RACE 18 – 25 MINUTES

There were 77 runners in this race, the most popular of the day and certainly there was a much more competitive  edge to proceedings with the target times of between 18 and 25 minutes being achieved by 74 of the 77 finishers, from the winner, East Down’s Barrie Atkinson’s 17.53, also representing Down Triathlon Club, (good to see him back racing again and competitive with it) to Maureen Kelly’s 25.31 everyone nailed down their target times and there were several races within the race, and close finishes as club colleagues tried to outrun each other. No doubt Barrie will target the Elite race next year!!

Several, including Anna Gardiner and Lauren and Sharon Madine, had run the day before in Cookstown so deserve double credit for not only travelling to compete in one of the remotest parts of the country, but for turning out again on Sunday and giving it a real go.

RACE 3  – THE ELITES – UNDER 18 MINUTES

The top race of the day certainly didn’t disappoint as all 32 of the 36 runners were either inside the target or just on the 18 minute mark. From the gun Eoin Hughes Acorns AC took the race by the scruff of the neck and proceeded to open up a sizeable lead by hthe end of the second lap. But then Eoin Mullan, Omagh Harriers, really got the bit between his teeth and over the course of the next 4 laps he whittled Hughes lead down to a mere few seconds so it was a case of could Hughes hold out for the final lap. As they approached the line for the final time it was only just Hughes ahead and despite Mullan’s desperate final charge Hughes 15.09 just prevailed by a single second with 3^rd  place going to Gareth Lyons North Belfast Harriers in 15.46.

NEW WORLD RECORD

Of course the main source of interest, to those in the know, was the redoubtable Tommy Hughes aka the Marakesh Express, now in his 59^th year, trying to break his own world record in the M55 Age category. Remarkably he was also vying with the other half dozen or so runners who were battling for all the places at the head of the field. And quite a cheer went up when it was announced that he had actually set a new world by one second in his age group. The new time is 16.13. Congratulations to Tommy who finished in overall 7^th  place.

East Down’s James Sloan ran a superb race to finish in 16^th place in an eyecatching 16.47. having worked his way steadily through the field.

WHAT ABOUT THE WOMEN?

Rachel Gibson turned up to defend the title she won last year and had East Down’s Catherine O’Connor and Newcastle’s Mari Troeng for opposition. And although Rachel was virtually untouchable as she posted 16.50 in 18^th place Catherine stuck to her task and came home in 17.50 in 28^th place with Mari taking 3^rd Female place in 18.44.

All in all it was a superb morning’s racing, very well organised and marshalled with the sunny conditions an added bonus. Well one to everyone involved.

AARON PERFORMS WELL IN LONDON

News from the capital is that Aaron McGrady is training hard to make a significant bid for honours in the Seeley Cup 10K on 30 November. Evidence of his progress and his well being came on Saturday when he placed 10^th in the London X/C championships held on a very muddy and hilly course at Parliament Hill. The course is used for the English National Championships. His time was 37.59 and he was 25 places better than when he last ran the race, out of a massive field of 494 finishers, which considering he hadn’t tapered for the race and had a heavy week’s training beforehand, was a superb effort.

This follows on the heels of his notable win in the North London Championships 2 weeks earlier when he cruised to a relatively comfortable top spot in 27.21, ahead of Glenn Hughes Serpentine/New Zealand 27.54 2^nd  and Roger Maidment London Heathside 28.11 in 3^rd .

HANNAH HITS THE HEADLINES TOO

Aaron runs in London for the Victoria Park and Tower Hamlets Club which is also the “local” club for his girlfriend Hannah Somani. She too is also making significant progress as she targets the Seeley as her next outing for East Down. She took 5^th place overall in the North London C/ships and 28^th in the North London C/ships on Saturday out of 309 Women which was good enough to give her the honour of being first Female athlete from her club to finish, beating several experienced runners by over a minute.

Well done to both of these up and coming runners who promise to make East Down a force to be reckoned with in the coming year.

 

Joe Quinn & Alison Carroll

 

18 November 2019