from NSRT/SMART cross-country It was a lovely sunny morning on Saturday for the NSRT/SMART cross-country race at St. Margaret’s. Same course as before, different registration venue.
It was, however, very cold following the overnight snowfalls. Road conditions were not great which contributed to the rather low turnout.
Nevertheless, you would hardly believe the amount of enjoyment that runners at these races got. It was a very well-organised event that showed the huge efforts that Austin Mooney (SMART) and Dave Corcoran (NSRT) had put into the preparation. I heard several people remark that they understood why this race won race of the year in the past. The course was very well marked out, despite having had a late change due to poor ground conditions.
The ground was mostly fairly firm but there were a couple of very soft muddy patches. As usual, the river crossing was one of the highlights. There were some interesting techniques. I think those who jumped tended to land poorly and lost momentum and those who ran through it did better. Stan Woods (Farrell Bros.) had four faults but still managed to get 2nd in M55. The video is very interesting and I hope that it will be available on YouTube soon.
The women’s race was won by Fiona Mahon (Primary Teacher) by a short distance from Lorraine Manning (Garda) with Bridget Buckley (Garda) in third. The men’s race was won by Keith Heary followed by Gavin Noble and Brian Leahy. I would think that Sorcha Nic Amhalai (SAP) (15th in women’s race) and David O’Brien (HSE) (96th in men’s race) enjoyed the races. Sorcha got a great round of applause from the assembled crowd as she headed up the hill to the finish. David told me that he was exhilerated. A couple of years ago he was a heavy smoker trying to shake off a long-term illness. On Saturday, he finished a very tough cross-country race – he was delighted. We wish them, and all our runners, all the best for our future races.
Don’t forget, the BHAA AGM will take place on Monday 6th December 2010 at 8pm in the Alexander Hotel, Dublin 2.
Our last race of the year will be the Data Solutions/Barnardos 5km Santa Dash in Marlay Park on Sunday 12th December 2010 at 10.30am. Registration from 9.00am.
Bye for now.
The Editor