Hill and Dale Series continues

The series hosted by Newcastle&District AC has continued on Thursday nights with Slieve Martin on 28th April and Binnian the following week. Brian Hamilton and Paddy McDonald remain resolute in their attendance with none missed so far.  John Taylor has also made a showing by racing these last two as he gets mountain ready for “The Seven Sisters” in Donegal. Paddy Erskine ran at Slieve Martin and in fact was the quickest man home for the club. He was 163rd in 55.13, Paddy McDonald was 180th, John Taylor was 186th and Brian was 191st with 224 finishers that evening. The Binnian event took in a new route and it was debatable if this was any easier than the old course. John Taylor was the lead EDAC on the night with 44 minutes on the clock in 170th place. Paddy McDonald was 174th and Brian Hamilton was 194th out of 222 over the line. Keep it up, guys!

Run the Runways

The clue to this race is in the name. On Friday 6th May runners turned up to this event which took place on the airport runway in Newtownards. It was obviously flat but it was by no means easy due to the breezy location. The course was laid out in a series of twists and turns marked by cones. So many cones in fact that Roisin Gaffney said that she was seeing rows of orange markers in her sleep after the race! She did the full 10K and while she found it a challenge she was pleased to finish in 54.36. Paul Lloyd and Sharon Madine signed up for the 5K and clocked 20.21 and 22.00 respectively. All three were quick to praise the organisers Scrabo Striders and the enthusiastic marshals. They said that it was a slick event with a very warm welcome and great support during the event.

Seskinore Forest 5K

On Saturday 7th May Suzy Smith was cajoled into yet another road trip by her enthusiastic sibling Patrick. He likes to study the fixture list and choose runs that he thinks might be interesting, scenic or just somewhere he would like to visit. This week’s day out was to Seskinore Forest in Omagh. In the words of Patrick, “it is rightly labelled a hidden gem.” He added that there was a real buzz at this event organised by the local rural community group. The family atmosphere and picturesque setting attracted a field of almost 400. Some preferred to walk it in the Saturday morning sunshine. The course began in the forest park and runners then exited after 500m to complete an anticlockwise lap of the country roads around the perimeter of the forest itself. The opening 3k was favourable but there was a testing  ascent at 4km and the finish itself was a 400 metre straight leading back into the courtyard at the park. Safely marshalled this is an excellent addition to the calendar with representation from amongst others local clubs based in Omagh, Knockmany, Killyclogher, and Killeshil. It had an environmentally friendly aspect to it  – wooden trophies for all  age categories and wooden commemorative medals for all finishers. Both he and Suzy enjoyed the run enormously despite the hills. Patrick finished in 23:58 in 67th place and Suzy (26:47) was 108th. The final verdict was that they would definitely recommend it but given the 150 mile round trip perhaps adding a 10k option it would make it one for a future club day out.

British Mountain Running Inter Counties Championship

This year’s British Mountain Running Inter Counties Championship took place in North Wales over the Llanberis Ridge, an undulating 11km course with over 700m of climbing. There were teams from England, Scotland,  Wales and Northern Ireland.  EDAC’s Aaron McGrady had been selected as part of the Northern Ireland & Ulster Team.

The course consisted of 3 climbs, the first 4 kilometres long peaking out at 724m. The second two were mere bumps compared to this but coupled with steep descents and warm temperatures, they really stung the legs before a flat out 4km descent to the finish in Llanberis. The NI team packed well in the front half of the race and worked together up the first climb before getting strung out on the sharp descents. Aaron held his own but ran out of legs in the final 2k and lost 3 positions. He ended up finishing 23rd out of 90 runners in the open race. The NI & Ulster Men’s Team was 7th and the Women’s Team placed 9th. The scenery and weather made it an enjoyable experience as well as a competitive event.

District A

A quiet week for the juniors with only the Year 8-10 District A Track and Field to report on. Abigail Elliott after her recent good showing in the long jump at the Firmus Fab Five Track Event arrived ready to give it her all. She jumped well to get a bronze medal in the Year 10 (Junior) age group. This also qualifies her for the Ulster schools later this month. Alex Robinson was 10th in the Year 9 (Minor) 800m. He also ran the last leg of the 4x100m relay for his school (Down High). The team qualified for the final where they came 4th narrowly missing a medal.

EDAC at Dunleath parkrun

Having a parkrun on the doorstep is a great chance for a weekly run so if you haven’t tried it yet, what are you waiting for?  To take part is free of charge but there is a one time registration to complete online in advance if you want to appear in the results. Go to https://www.parkrun.org.uk/register/ to get your scannable bar code.

*Further details about Dunleath, parking, toilets and start time can be found at this link – https://www.parkrun.org.uk/dunleathplayingfields/

This Saturday 14th May,  members of East Down Athletics Club will be volunteering , running and walking.  It is a good chance to come along and say hello if you are thinking that you would like to try out being part of a club. It is definitely easier to run with others!