Mountains to climb

Last week was all about the mountains for the East Down Athletics Club senior members. All the racing was off road and involved climbing of some sort starting with the fifth race in the Hill & Dale Series on Thursday 19th May. 3 EDAC runners headed to Rocky Mountain for their weekly fix.  Paddy Erskine had another good outing and was first EDAC runner to make it to the finish in a time of 49.59 in 115th place. Paddy McDonald and Brian Hamilton continued their campaign making it 5 out of 5 races completed. Paddy was 159th in 56.19 and Brian was 181st in 1.01.03. With 205 finishers on the night, they are holding their own. Well done guys!

Donegal Skyline 2022

Saturday 21st May was the Donegal Skyline Seven Sisters race. As much as EDAC’s Joe Napier was looking forward to it, his club mate John Taylor was dreading it. For Joe it was a race that he had done previously and he was eager to see if he could better his performance whereas John likes to enter a variety of events and set himself challenges but on this occasion he was worried that he might have bitten off more than he could chew. The event bills itself as Ireland’s premier mountain running race and attracts both local and travelling entrants. There is the option to do a 30K or a 55K race and both EDAC men opted for the 30K which is a World Cup Mountain Running event and includes 2100m ascent. The route runs along the top of all of the Seven Sisters in the Derryveagh mountains from Errigal to Muckish and the others in between. The course is a tough one due to the climbing and the variable terrain but it is undeniably scenic in return. 

Joe gets top 20 with ease

After his strong performance in the Slieve Donard Race the week before Joe Napier headed west primed for action. He had company this time as he was accompanied by his brother Nicky. Conditions were far from ideal due to the recent heavy rain which had created leg sapping quagmire conditions in many places. There was also a strong blustery wind in many parts to work against but Joe ran a steady race pacing himself for the full distance. He snuck enough of a lead in the many climbs to see off his brother over the ‘sprint’ finish, taking family bragging rights and more importantly 3 minutes off his 2021 time. He clocked 4 hours 34 and placed 17th out of 250 finishers which is a fantastic result. 

Not as bad as John feared!

John was concerned that he might not meet the cut-off limits imposed by the organisers for safety reasons. He felt underprepared for mountain running having only started training for this last month but in the end he was well within the times and was able to continue without issue. He got a huge boost when he reached the summit of Errigal and his young son William suddenly appeared having walked almost to the top to meet him. John’s wife Nuala and daughter Alice were then at the bottom as an added support. This family cheerleading kept him going through the last section when he discovered that having finished the climbing he still had to traverse a further 8k of forest and road. He reached the line in 6.41.07, elated to have conquered the race and his fears. He ended up a creditable 121st and was last heard planning his next adventure.

Niall back to racing form in Annalong

Niall Gibney found the Slieve Donard race 2 weeks ago a tough one. He regretted entering it as his legs had not recovered from his efforts on the Wicklow Round and he found himself struggling on a mountain that he would normally eat for breakfast. With another week of active recovery though, his energy returned and he decided to give the Annalong Horseshoe Race a go on Sunday 22nd May. The event organised by BARF was on part of the NIMRA Championship and started and finished at Carrick Little. It included 6 mountains which had to be ticked off in a specific order. Reaching the summits of Chimney, Rock, Donard, Commedagh, Cove, Lamagan and Binian North Tor with a free route choice in between gave Niall a distance of 12.3 miles and 5000 feet elevation on his gps watch. He was pleased to come 13th out of 63 runners in a time of 2 hours and 54 minutes and happy to be back to form.

Ollie on track for success

The Ulster Schools Track and Field Championships took place on 2 days over last weekend at the track in Antrim. Participants had qualified for their places at the Districts a few weeks ago. East Down juniors Abigail Elliott, Jacob Crawford, Jessica Martin and Ollie Robinson were all there representing their individual schools. Abigail (long jump), Jessica (high jump) and Jacob (800m) all gained useful experience taking part at a higher level and Ollie came home with a gold medal in the Inter Boys’ 400m. Ollie had raced the 400m at the Districts and discovered it suited him very well. He got a silver medal that day setting a new personal best of 53.67 in his heat and came to the Ulsters keen to try for podium. His race (Inter Boys) was a straight final in the end and he set off like a rocket on the go. He moved into the lead early on and with steely determination he held it to the finish. Not only did he get a gold medal he also set himself a new personal best of 51.66 and qualifies to run at the All Irelands next month. Congratulations Ollie!

EDAC Quiz for Ukraine

Paddy McDonald, Wayne Giles, Catherine and Mark O’Connor aka “The Darragh Dashers” Winners of the Quiz

The EDAC quiz held in Denvir’s, Downpatrick on Friday evening was the brainchild of James Magennis who was keen to gather donations for the Ukraine Relief Fund. With the able assistance of Patrick Smith, he drew up a 10 round contest and there wasn’t a seat left in the house when the quiz kicked off.

Thanks to Patrick and James for organising a very successful Quiz

With spot prizes and good company it was an enjoyable event and even better over £600 was raised through generous donations. This will be handed over to the Irish Red Cross and put to immediate use on the ground in Ukraine. James would like to thank all who turned up, especially the visiting teams from other clubs and also to mention that many who could not be there were kind enough to pass on prizes and cash to add to the kitty. It should also be mentioned that Denvir’s as well as providing the venue chipped in with some prizes too. Full credit to James and Patrick for putting on a great night’s entertainment for a good cause.