10 MILES FOR BARRIE

Last Sunday Barrie Atkinson made a last minute decision to travel to Trim for the popular 10 Mile Race. He was keen to take part in a longer distance run and the large entry of 1500+ runners was enticing. He set off to stay with the 70 minute pacer but found himself able to step up in pace and he eased on at his own rhythm. He finished in 1 hour and 5 minutes which placed him 171st. A good test of the legs.

NI CIVIL SERVICE CROSS COUNTRY AT STORMONT

Saturday 12th February was another chance for a run in the mud for a hardy band of EDAC runners. Continue reading →

EDAC JUNIORS AT DELAMONT McGRADY XC

EDAC were the host club at the XC on Sunday and their runners were out in force. They managed to raise their number from 18 in the first race of the series to 29 in Race 2. East Down fielded 9 Primary School athletes and 20 in the upper age groups. Big shoutout to the youngest of our runners Ozzy Ferguson and Rachel Mulhall for their bold efforts. Gabrielle Marquess in P5 and Thomas Magee in Year 9 deserve a mention they are barely into the club and managed to make podium in their first time in an EDAC vest. It is brilliant to see how many of the recent intake were prepared to give it a go. Continue reading →

ANTRIM CASTLE

On Saturday 29th January Suzy Smith and her niece Kelly travelled to Antrim  for the Born2run event. This was 5th of 6 races in the Run Forest Run Series. It was an idyllic setting with trees and parkland and they even got fair weather. Both runners were out to take in the surroundings as well as clock a few miles. Kelly even did the Antrim park run as a warm up! Both opted for the 5K distance with Kelly across the line in 25.14 in 36th place overall. Suzy clocked 27.06 for the undulating route placing her 46th. There were 180 participants so both were well up the rankings and pleased with their efforts. Continue reading →

SCHOOL DISTRICT CROSS COUNTRY

For many of the Juniors it was a busy week with the Schools’ District Cross Country on Wednesday as well as weekend races. District A which incorporates most schools in County Down was contested in Delamont Country Park with a large entry across the age groups. Runners are there to represent their school team with qualification for the Ulster Schools event as the main aim. As well as qualifying as part of a team, runners can also get selected as an individual if they come in the top 15 of their race. Well done to all our juniors who took part and congratulations to those who are proceeding to  the next round which takes place in Mallusk on 9th of February.  Apologies to any who were missed from our summary due to being in school vests rather than their customary red and yellow East Down AC colours. Continue reading →

Aaron in the top 20

On Sunday 16th January Aaron McGrady took the chance to grab a last minute entry for the Manchester League, an event which is close to where he lives at present. It seemed like a good opportunity to test his legs before he comes home to run with the East Down AC team in the upcoming NI & Ulster Intermediate Championships at the end of the month. He had a good run out and said that it was a fast course, not too muddy but long enough at 9.6km. He paced it easy at the start and then ramped up his efforts in the second half. These tactics took him from being outside of the top 15 into an 8th place finish so it worked well. In comparison to his previous 14th place finish at Manchester league this was a decent improvement. Continue reading →

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 Continue reading →

TITANIC FESTIVAL OF RUNNING

Glenn Grant of Championchip Ireland provided the perfect reason for runners to get off the sofa on Boxing Day. He lined up 2 races – a 5K and a 10K which were held in the Harbour Estate in Belfast and while the weather was unkind to say the least, the course was flat with a perfect surface and the roads were closed. It may not be everyone’s ideal way to spend the morning after Christmas Day but close to 400 individuals saw it as a way to offset their indulgence and perhaps make room for round two of festivities. Continue reading →