None The weather could not dampen the atmosphere at Castlebar on the 31st Jan for the first West of Ireland Fun Run. Over 145 runners of all ages turned up to brave the elements and test themselves with three laps of the grounds at Breaffy House Hotel in Mayo. Lynch Hotels rounded off January by hosting their first 10km running event in the grounds of Breaffy House in Castlebar on the 31st . Conditions were not ideal with the rain falling softly but consistently throughout most of the race. That didn’t stop anyone on the day though, and over 145 runners set off at the 10am start to make their way around three laps of Breaffy’s spectactular grounds.
For some it was a first time challenge and they may have found the terrain tough going in places, but as the race title suggests this was a Fun Run and not a serious winner-take-all event. With that in mind it was good to see so many taking part and everyone completed the course. The more seasoned runners like John Byrne finished comfortably taking first place while Ann Lennon finished first for the ladies. In the senior categories Edel Carty, John Byrne senior, James Donnelly and Helen Rosamond Gurley all ran good races. Paul Higgins was the lucky winner of the spot prize of a weekend away, which we hope he enjoys.
As with any first time event there was bound to be one or two teething problems and the medals presentation ceremony could have been executed a bit better than it was. We are confident this wont have put people off from participating in Castlebar next year when those problems will have been sorted out. All in all it was a good day out and Runireland thanks all those who participated and we hope to see you there again. A special thank you goes to the Lynch Hotel Group, especially Terasa Brady, for her support of the event.
