Ballycotton 5 25th August 2011

There were some great performances again in the last of the Ballycotton Summer Series races. The upshot of it all was that in the overall series John Meade finished 2nd which was a fantastic achievement. Also making the top 50 men were Paul Duggan in 6th, Michael Houlihan 7th, Patrick O Rahilly 21st and Stephen Geoghegan 33rd. In the ladies overall Kathleen Kelly was in the top 20 finishing 13th. Fantastic performances all round and well done to everyone who completed all four races. Here are the results from the Ballycotton race.

Ballycotton Summer Road Race Series 2011
35th BALLYCOTTON ‘5’
Thursday 25 August 2011. 7:30pm

Finishers in the St. Finbarrs AC team. Pace Race Race
Place Time Name Team Race Age Category min/mile No Place
1 0:27:23 MEADE, John St. Finbarrs AC M 05:28.5 2 6
2 0:28:27 GALLAGHER, Paul St. Finbarrs AC M 05:41.3 928 12
3 0:28:50 LYONS, Dennis St. Finbarrs AC M 05:45.9 366 17
4 0:29:01 DUGGAN, Paul St. Finbarrs AC M40 05:48.1 7 21
5 0:29:12 DEVINE, Ken St. Finbarrs AC M45 05:50.3 474 25
6 0:29:29 HOULIHAN, Michael St. Finbarrs AC M 05:53.7 5 31
7 0:29:37 DUNNE, Michael St. Finbarrs AC M 05:55.3 475 34
8 0:29:46 RAHILLY, Patrick St. Finbarrs AC M 05:57.1 21 39
9 0:30:19 PATTERSON, Robert St. Finbarrs AC M 06:03.7 936 50
10 0:30:21 O’HERLIHY, Niall St. Finbarrs AC M 06:04.1 325 52
11 0:30:52 O’REILLY, Brendan St. Finbarrs AC M 06:10.3 397 67
12 0:30:55 GEOGHEGAN, Stephen St. Finbarrs AC M 06:10.9 34 69
13 0:31:19 SARGENT, Fergal St. Finbarrs AC M 06:15.7 56 80
14 0:32:17 O’TOOLE, Paul St. Finbarrs AC M45 06:27.3 329 105
15 0:32:18 HAYES, Willie St. Finbarrs AC M55 06:27.5 929 106
16 0:34:08 WOULFE, Anne St. Finbarrs AC F35 06:49.5 440 162
17 0:34:11 KENNEDY, Dan St. Finbarrs AC M55 06:50.1 405 163
18 0:35:14 O’NEILL, Trevor St. Finbarrs AC M 07:02.6 93 202
19 0:35:25 KELLY, Kathleen St. Finbarrs AC F35 07:04.8 215 210
20 0:35:58 COTTER, Gillian St. Finbarrs AC F35 07:11.4 439 236
21 0:36:15 O’MULLAIN, Micheal St. Finbarrs AC M 07:14.8 294 245
22 0:36:45 CARROLL, Chris St. Finbarrs AC M55 07:20.8 454 262
23 0:36:46 EIGHAN, Irene St. Finbarrs AC F 07:21.0 290 265
24 0:36:55 COLEMAN, Barry St. Finbarrs AC M 07:22.8 420 271
25 0:39:54 CURRAN, Barbara St. Finbarrs AC F 07:58.6 242 365
26 0:41:13 STAVROU, Amanda St. Finbarrs AC F50 08:14.4 993 389
27 0:42:18 MULCAHY, Mary St. Finbarrs AC F45 08:27.4 237 406
28 0:42:35 GRIFFIN, Hazel St. Finbarrs AC F 08:30.8 248 411
29 0:42:54 CREEDON, Hilary St. Finbarrs AC F 08:34.6 238 415
30 0:43:07 MANNING, Denis St. Finbarrs AC M40 08:37.2 181 418
31 0:43:34 WALSH, Anne St. Finbarrs AC F45 08:42.6 254 429
There were 31 finishers in the St. Finbarrs AC team.

Novartis 5k Update

Hi, just to let you know that we were very successful in the ladies race of the Novartis 5k. Kathleen Kelly won F35 and Orla Crosbie won F40! Also Paul Duggan won M40. Thes are in addition to the previously reported wins at M45, M50, M55 and the overall mens race!

BHAA – Togher P.T.A.A. 5km, Wed 31-Aug-2011, 7.30pm

The Togher P.T.A.A 5km Road, or should I say Street Race, takes place on Wednesday evening August 31st at 7:30pm. With the summer nights closing in, this is the last of the evening races. Summer is probably a bit of a misnomer; winter with extended daylight hours would be apt. Life may indeed be like a box of chocolates, but when it comes to an Irish Summer you know exactly what you’re going to get. Now, where was I? Oh yeah, the Togher P.T.A.A. Your race H.Q. for this event is the St. Finbarr’s GAA Club, which is at the Togher end of the Tramore Road. You’ll have changing facilities here and a place to leave your bag during the race. As per usual, the fee is €5 for BHAA members and €8 for non-members. The usual BHAA house rules apply and there’ll be prizes in all the usual categories as well as the odd spot prize. Those nice people at the P.T.A.A make a big effort to ensure that runners are well catered for by way of post race refreshments.

BHAA-Togher P.T.A.A. 5K Route - Click here

To get to St. Finbarr’s GAA Club, townies can head out the Togher Road and turn right at the Tramore Road intersection. People coming from East or West via the South Link Road (N28) will need to take the exit for Pouladuff Road and then get on to the Tramore Road heading West for Togher. This is a straight forward manoeuvre if you’re coming from West to East via the Sarsfield roundabout. Coming from the Kinsale roundabout however, you’ll have to take the same exit, then make a U-turn and drive back over the South Link to get to the Tramore Road roundabout. In this event, you’ll need to follow the road signs carefully to avoid getting lost. The race itself starts in the vicinity of Togher National School. This event is basically a street race through housing estates. There’s no pretty scenery, but this type of environment is bread and butter for us city slickers. Hereabouts is where you’ll find us clocking up the miles in preparation for all those summer evening forays into the Ballys.

BHAA-Togher PTAA 5K Elevation - Click here

Togher is a fast course and the 2010 event attracted a total field of 345 runners. There’s one minor hump near the start as the race heads over the bridge to get across the South Ring Road. After about 800m or so, you turn left onto Clashduv Road/Estate, a sort of mini version of the Carrigrohane straight. Now at 1.7km you take a sharp left onto Glasheen Road. This is the main hump on the 5km course as you head uphill past St. Finbarrs Cemetery. For the next 600m you are climbing. Marathon runners will recall this as the 20M mark back in June. It wasn’t very pleasant then either. Now the race heads off-road into the housing estates. From here on in it’s all downhill and flat. At 3.5km, you are back on Clashduv Road heading for home. The orange bicycle lane that runs along in front of Clashduv Park will make it feel like a track race as you push your pedal to the metal for the final 1.5km.

Wedding Bells

Congrats to Davina Fenton who married Ian O’Malley recently. The honeymoon must be over as Davina is back running again! 🙂

National Masters Track & Field Championships

There was a great medal haul for club members at the National Masters Track & Field Championships last weekend in Tullamore.

Flor O Leary ran a National record in the M70 200m when he won in 34.79 seconds, a fantastic time. Well done Flor!

Elsewhere in the mens Eamon McEvoy won the M55 5k race in a time of 18.04.

In the ladies Marion Lyons won two gold and two bronze in F55. Marion is the champion at 200m and 400m while she was third in both the 800m and 1,500m. A fantastic haul! Another ladies champion was Mary Sweeney who won gold in the F50 800m.

Congrats to you all!

St. Finbarr’s A.C. plan for the Cork Half Marathon 2011

Cork Half Marathon Sponsor 2011 - John Buckley Sports

John Buckley of John Buckley Sports, presents Ken Devine, race director, with sponsorship for the upcoming Cork Half Marathon at the recent launch of the race promoted by St Finbarr’s AC. Included (left to right) are Dan Kennedy (chairman), Marian Lyons (president), Ken Devine (race director), John Buckley (race sponsor), Trevor O’Neill (race committee) and Paul Gallagher (men’s captain)

Excerpt from the Cork Evening Echo dated Tuesday, 12th of July 2011:

ST FINBARR’S AC PLAN FOR THEIR HALF MARATHON

ATHLETICS

By STEVE DINAN

THE increasing growth in interest in running is apparent as you drive around the city day or night, and was confirmed by the numerous entries for the recently completed Cork City Marathon, Half Marathon and Relay.
St. Finbarr’s Athletics Club, which recently celebrated their 60th anniversary and are one of the largest athletics clubs in the City, recently announced their plans for the upcoming John Buckley Sports-sponsored Cork Half Marathon which will take place in Blarney on Sunday, September 11, at 11am.

Race H.Q. will be the Blarney GAA clubhouse and the course will follow the traditional route along quiet county roads from Blarney to Grenagh and back again. The race also incorporates the Cork County and Munster Half Marathon Championships. The course is suitable for runners of all abilities and would be an ideal challenge for runners who recently completed legs of the marathon relay and are participating in the shorter local road races. This year’s race will also feature highly visible race pacers who will be there to help pace and encourage runners to achieve their target times and should make for an enjoyable half marathon experience for all.

Ballycotton 5M Road Race, Thu 25-Aug-2011, 7.30pm

The Ballycotton 5M Road Race takes place on Thursday evening August 25th at 7.30pm. The 4th and final race in the Ballycotton Summer Series always attracts a large field of entries, so you’d better give yourself plenty of time for parking, registration, warm-up and any unforeseen delays you may encounter along the way. Entry on the final night of the series is €6, of which €1 is donated to a nominated charity. Parking is provided for in green fields on your left as you approach the village – just follow the stewards’ instructions. Registration takes place in the National School about 5mins walk away from the car park. Refreshments and prize giving will be held afterwards in the school hall.  

Ballycotton 5M Map - Click here

I’m sure the vast majority of you out there can find your way blindfold to Ballycotton. However, there are bound to be a few, like me, who’ve been up and down to Youghal for decades without ever turning left or right at Midleton. If you’re one of those intrepid few, welcome to pastoral East Cork and the Ballycotton 5M. You take the N25 Cork-Waterford road to the Midleton roundabout and exit southwards into uncharted territory. Veer left at Ballinacurra and take the R629 onwards to Cloyne. When you arrive in the centre of Cloyne, the R629 takes a left hand turn for Ballycotton, which is quite literally the end of the line for this stretch of road.

Ballycotton 5M Route - Click here

There’s a slight incline as the race starts out of the village heading for the first corner at 1km. You take a sharp right and head downhill for about 500m at which point the course begins to rise again until you reach Monagurra and take a sharp left. From there, the course is mostly flat until you reach the 4.3km (2.7M) mark. There’s a short steep 15m (50ft) climb before you turn right up to the 3M mark. The course drops again until just before the 4M mark where you will encounter the famous Ballycotton hill. This is a long gradual climb at a point in the race when you can almost smell the finish line and it’s sure to put dampener on your race progress. Once over the top however, you’ll be back on the main road and back in business, ready to start your final dash for the line. 

Catch me, if you can - Click here

A total of 25 BARRS members participated in the 2010 race, which drew an overall field of 497 runners. There’ll be prizes in all the usual categories plus overall awards based on cumulative times over the four race series. In addition, the first 50 men and the first 20 women overall will each receive a souvenir T-shirt and all runners completing the four races will receive the famous souvenir plaque.

Ballycotton Post 3rd Race Positions 2011

BHAA – Army/Navy 5M Road Race, 17-Aug-2011, 7.30pm

The Army/Navy 5M Road Race takes place on Wed 17th August at 7.30pm. Entries are in the Sports Hall inside the Naval Base. The fee is €5 for BHAA members and €8 for non-members. The usual house rules apply and there’ll be prizes in all the usual categories as well as spot prizes. Over 300 turned out for this event in 2010. From check-in to changing facilities and post-race refreshments, the Army/Navy is more than representative of the high standards set by the BHAA. It’s worth remembering that Haulbowline is a fully functioning military base, so you’ll need to follow instructions and try not to break anything. To accommodate the BHAA road show for the evening, there’ll be a special password in operation – “DON’T SHOOT”.

BHAA-Army/Navy 5M Map - Click here

Those of you who attended the recent Novartis 5K will feel a sense of déjà vu heading off to Haulbowline. The former event could well be termed Ringaskiddy West and latter Ringaskiddy East, the difference being an extra 3km, allowing you to explore the delights of the lower harbour area. Getting there is pretty straight forward! From the old Carrigaline road (R609) or the South Ring road (E30), get yourself onto the N28 heading for the Ringaskiddy Car-Ferry. As you enter Ringaskiddy, instead of turning right for Novartis or left for the Ferry terminal, you go straight ahead through the village and follow the road all the way out to Haulbowline Island.

BHAA-Army/Navy 5M Route - Click here

The race starts and finishes inside the Naval Base. Apart from the Rocky Island bridges, the first 1.5M is almost flat. For the next 0.5M you turn left up a steep hill. You’ll have to work hard on this section. Once over the top, you turn right and head downhill along country back roads. At around 2.5M, there’s another short climb before turning right again and heading back down towards the main road. From there, you turn right and head slightly downhill through the village. From the 3.5M mark, you retrace the same route back to the Base. As you head over the bridge, you’ll find the sound of the waves lapping in the background very relaxing.

Cloyne 5k 11th August ’11

Congrats to Martina Kiely who kept her recent run of success going with another win, this time in the Cloyne 5k. Martina led the ladies home in a time of 17.51

John Meade was second in the mens race in a time of 16.30 as his good form also continues. Paul Gallagher was 5th in 17.10 as he continues his recovery from injury.

Well done to all who participated.

Wedding Bells

Congrats and best wishes to Derrick O Leary who is getting married today (Saturday 13th Aug). Derrick is a top runner and has a 2.29 marathon under his belt. Cathal O Connell is his best man today. All in the Barr’s wish Derrick and his bride the best.