At Rathcoole 08 September 2007 Hello all,
Conditions were almost perfect on Saturday morning for the Dublin Bus 10 miler at Rathcoole. There was quite a low turnout which was disappointing for the organisers, particularly given the very generous cash prizes on offer. The course is generally regarded as being a bit tough, making it hard to achieve personal bests. Nevertheless, I think that most runners enjoyed the event and were pleased to have conquered that long climb – twice. There were fewer runners under the hour than previous years – only seven managed it this time but 15 did it in 2006 and 2005. Our thanks go to David Byrne and colleagues in Dublin Bus for their hard work in putting on this race, their 30th anniversary race.
The winner was Kevin O’Connor (UCD) who had a good lead from David Fitzpatrick, also of UCD and these were followed by Ronan Hartnett (Garda). In the women’s category, the first finisher was Grace Kennedy (Jackie Skelly Fitness), followed by Annemarie Hickey (Met Eireann) and Bridget Clarke (Enfield Hardware).
There were some very good performances that may not have won individual prizes in the race. For example, there were some remarkable performances from the runners from Durkan New Homes. Neil Durkan was 16th in 62m 59s; Pearse Walpole was 18th in 63m 25s; and John Durkan was 88th in 75m 42s. Pearse chopped 8 minutes 16 seconds off his 2006 time. However, because they were in composite Construction teams, the lads were on winning teams in grades A and C.
Another runner to slash his 2006 time was Gearóid Ó Cathaláin (NTMA) whose time was 77m 09s, down by 10m 38s on his 2006 time – but not in the prizes.
Anyone else claiming big reductions in their times in this race? (Can anyone beat 11m 14s reduction over two years?)
The BHAA committee has decided to carry out a survey to find out more about what influences runners’ decisions to run in certain races – obviously there are numerous factors and it would help race organisers to understand these. Race organisers like to see large fields in their races – they put in a lot of effort and their reward is a large group of happy runners. More on this later.
The next BHAA race will be the half-marathon in the adidas race series on Saturday 22 September 2007 at 10.00 in the Phoenix Park. Since the online entry system does not record BHAA membership, can you please notify me if you have entered for the half-marathon. We will try to capture all BHAA names somehow or other.
After that, we have a few weeks to wait until the first cross-country race of the season on Saturday 20 October 2007 at Castleknock College, the Teachers 4 mile cross-country for men and the 2 mile for women. (adidas Dublin Marathon is on Monday 29 October 2007).
If these races don’t suit you, you should consider running in my own club’s annual promotion, the Rathfarnham WSAF 5km road race which will take place on Sunday 7th October 2007 at 10.00am. Early, short and fast. The prize fund is one of the largest of any race in Ireland. Entries are €15 and the first 500 entrants receive a sports back pack. You can enter on the website www.rathfarnhamwsaf.com.
So, keep up the training and stay fit and healthy.
Bye for now.
The Editor
