A LOST CAUSE??

I went to Mallusk again on Sunday morning, for the 2nd staging of the Mathieson Cup and Shield cross country races, splendidly organised by Mallusk Harriers in honour of the lovely Mags Mathieson, who supports every event in the running calendar and is an inspiration to everyone connected with running. At least I set off on Sunday morning, though with my sense of direction, the absence of any directional signs or Sat Nav, it was approaching mid-afternoon by the time I got there! I knew the way or at least I thought I did, I was there only last February. But despite all this knowledge I somehow managed to embark on a comprehensive tour of the Antrim plateau or at least that part of it above Belfast.

Now the perceived wisdom in this sort of situation is to call at a house to ask directions or ask a passer by. However in this particular instance there was a noticeable shortage of the former and a  complete absence of the latter. Not only that but where the occasional residence did appear it was usually beyond walking distance from the warmth of my car, or to put it another way beyond the distance my wife was prepared to walk in weather which carried the tag, “wouldn’t put a dog out in it”.  I know some of you are going to say I’m far too soft, but at approaching 50 years of togetherness, I’m not in the mood to upset the applecart now.

ONLY 2 LAPS TO GO

Anyway to cut a long story short I eventually made it, thanks to the only person brave enough to head out in the freezing cold wind, a young lady in North Belfast Harriers colours, who provided the necessary directions. As it turned out we were within 400 metres of the Mallusk Playing Fields anyway!   All of which meant I only got to see the final 2 laps of the Mens Open race over 8K. However it was long enough to encourage Dee Murray and Donal Smith the only 2 from East Down to take part in the race, which attracted such a large turnout because it is a Cross Country League fixture.

 JUNIORS SMALL BUT SUCCESSFUL GROUP

The EDAC Juniors were in fine form at Mallusk on Sunday morning and fairly galloped around the pitches to complete their respective distances. In the Primary Race Kelsey Murray and Maeve McNeill showed their grit and pushed hard right to the line, finishing in 9^th and 13^th respectively.

Anna Kearney ran in the U12 race and enjoyed the experience finishing in 8^th place. Lauren Madine ran in the U14 race where she took the win when she outsprinted Emmy Thornton (Willowfield Temperance Harriers) who had run with her neck and neck for the most of the distance. Lauren came within one second of beating the winning boy as well!

In the U17 Mackenzie Murray had to do a full two laps and timed his race well moving from third to second with less than 1k to go and then increasing the gap to ensure that he stayed there.

LADIES OUT IN FORCE

There were 212 athletes in the line up for the Ladies 6K race as it is now an ANI XC League fixture and because so many of the runners were keen to put their overindulgences of the festive season behind them.

Etched in the memories of those that were there in 2018 was the harsh snowy landscape and blizzard conditions. There was no snow this year, although the fixture was a month earlier than last and at times the sky cleared to a watery sunshine but the strong winds ensured that this was never going to be a “walk in the park”. Also the very steep rise up to the pitches was still a feature that many were dreading and it proved just as tricky without the snow.  The race was won in style by Sinead Sweeney who is surprisingly unattached.

 CAROLINE LEADS THE EDAC LADIES HOME

Caroline MacNabb went out with the lead group at the start and when it split over the first half lap, she found herself in a vacuum which is hard at any time but with the fierce headwind on the longest side of the pitches, it was especially difficult. She battled nonetheless to a 9th position covering the challenging 6k course in 24.05, a welcome return to racing fitness. Clare Carson had a good solid run and was pleased with her time of 28.08 which put her in 60th place. Janine Murray set out to pace Kelly Smith in her first cross country and gave her a good steer. Janine came in 109th in 31.01 and Kelly who recently joined the club hung on well coming not far behind in 31.46. She found it tough but was still smiling at the end. Lone wolf Tom Dowey also ran in this race and he came 8^th in the Vet 60 class in a time of 28.39.

2 STALWARTS BUT NO TEAM

Dee Murray and Donal Smith having supported the rest of the EDAC runners had to wait till the last event of the day. For the reasons mentioned above the men’s race had 213 runners and provided a great spectacle as they swarmed up the first hill.  Mark McKinstry, winner of last year’s Jimmy’s Ten, took very little time to assume a strong lead and seemed to fly round in no time.

Dee was in the thick of the pack and had plenty of runners to work off. He came a pleasing 62nd place in 30.38 and Donal having started as far back as he could get, worked his way through the runners to come 189th in 40.43. It was a long haul with no let up in the stormy conditions so it felt like a long 8k but all the more satisfying to make the finish line. Mallusk Harriers did a great job with marshalling and delivering the event and managed to provide much needed hot drinks and food.

ROLLERCOASTER RACES ON 2^nd MARCH

The races will take place on 2 March this year, again with the support of Phoenix Gas so all the school kids are in for a special treat. There will not be a Senior 5K this year as the Parkruns cater more than amply for the runners who would normally take part. It will be a festival of running for all schoolchildren and juniors up to age 17. Details will be issued to local schools this week.

JIMMY’S TEN on SUNDAY 17^th MARCH

Numbers are rolling in for this year’s event which wil precede the Festival parae in Downpatrick on Sunday 17 March. Anyone intending to run is encouraged to enter now at www.athleticsni.org  as there is a limit on the number and no entries will be taken on the day.

 

Joe Quinn & Alison Carroll

14  January 2019