How to start the New Year with a bang!

Race over the Glens

The Race Over the Glens hosted by Ballymena Runners is held on New Year’s Day. It takes place on the trails in Glenariff Forest Park and includes plenty of climbing and some tricky terrain. The figure of eight route takes in the iconic waterfalls and even has a piper stationed to herald the arrival at the steepest point. Zak Hanna the other part of the winning Cracker duo went out fast and stayed away to take first place in an impressive 34.35. Martsje Hell of North Belfast Harriers was the First Female in 45.03. Paddy McDonald the sole EDAC runner has been training regularly in the Mournes and was well prepped for hills. He had performed well at the Cracker when he and partner Conor Rice (Down Triathlon Club) placed 362nd out of 613 pairs. Despite the short break he was ready for another run out and completed the tough 6 miles challenge in 60 minutes (270th out of 388) give or take a few seconds. Great work from him.

Sharon goes solo

Sharon Madine is working her way through the Born2Run fixtures and so on Saturday 8th, she travelled to Gosford for the 4th event of Run Forest Run Series. There were 475 runners in the 10k and 177 runners in the 5k. The route included some road and some forest track taking the runners through the forest and past Gosford Castle. Sharon was appreciative of the beautiful scenery which could be viewed for the entire 5K route. While there were a few uphills, there was nothing too steep. At the end it became obvious that it was short of 5K at 2.86 miles but that did not diminish her enjoyment. With the blue skies and mild temperature it was a pleasure to be there. Sharon finished 5th Female and 19th overall. 

Cross Country ahead

The cross country season is in full swing so many members are conserving energy for the back-to-back racing coming up in the next few weeks. This Sunday is the Mathieson Cup hosted by Mallusk Harriers and named in honour of our good friend and inveterate volunteer Mags Mathieson. It is often a chilly day out as there is little to no shelter on the course at the City of Belfast Playing Fields but there will be a good EDAC turnout nonetheless. The following Saturday (22nd January) will be the Northern Ireland International XC event at Comber. This has a full program with a mixed male and female club event followed by an elite level race which will be worth watching. In between there are several junior events as well. Sunday 30th is the date for the annual NI & Ulster Masters and Intermediate Championships. A Ladies’ Team of Catherine O’Connor, Niamh Kellett, Deirdre Weatherall, Caroline MacNabb and Clare Carson took home the Intermediate title and trophy in 2019 which unfortunately rules them out of entering this category but some of them may have a crack at the Masters. The men will have a strong team for the Intermediate if they can get out their best runners on the day. All these races require pre entry and details are available at https://athleticsni.org/Fixtures.

M.B. McGrady & Co back on the start line

With 9 weeks to go until Jimmy’s 10 2022 the excitement is already building. The race can be entered at https://athleticsni.org/Fixtures/Jimmys-Ten and with 200 slots sold already it is clear that there is a thirst for racing. Headline sponsors M.B McGrady & Co are back on board for the 12th year running. Their steadfast backing is an integral part of the race allowing EDAC to offer a top level prize pot and thus attract a high calibre entry. The First Male and First Female receive a generous £200 each, second place is £125 and third is £75. There are also age group prizes, relay team prizes and spot prizes so there is plenty to aim for. In addition any ANI affiliated club with more than 4 males or more than 3 females entered is automatically recorded as a team. Annadale Striders were the winners of the inaugural M.B McGrady Male Team Trophy and East Down AC took top spot for the Female Team. As the runners involved also got a free entry as well as their cash prize, they will surely be back to try to retain their title!  In the next few weeks the full list of local companies and services who offer support to the race will be revealed. The club is indebted to each and every one for their contribution. It allows us to host an event that we can be proud of. 

Get in and get at it

In the meantime if you have entered Jimmy’s 10 or are thinking about running the race but need some help getting fit and ready, contact us at East Down AC (membership@eastdownac.co.uk to ask about attending weekly training between now and Jimmy’s 10. We have a special temporary membership offer that would allow you to train as part of a group and get some advice on how best to prepare for race day. Don’t delay – it’s time to get in and get at it!