Senior Section News

Action Galore Makes February A Busy Month

After the famine in January has come a feast in February with races galore across the county and plenty more to follow as the countdown continues to Ballycotton on March 21.

The last two Sundays have been dominated by the beginning of the John Buckley Sports sponsored Munster ’10’ Mile Classic Series with the events in Dungarvan and Mallow attracting a very strong Midleton AC entry.

Dungarvan ‘10’

First to the sunshine on the last day of winter in the Deise County where another great show was put on by the host club as their numbers soared to almost 1,000 runners. Just a minor alteration to the course of twelve months ago, meant many in the Midleton singlet were familiar with the Waterford roads, but for those who journeyed for the first time the lasting memory was very much a positive experience.

Some of our competitors were literally hopping off the road. Noel O’Regan’s 59:51 saw only 43 runners cross the tape ahead of him, whilst behind marathon bound Shane Cooney 1:02:00 and the reigning ‘male athlete of the year’ Neilus Aherne 1:02:02 were also in inspiring form. Donal Broderick’s 1:03:32 suggested the Ladysbrige man is very much in form with more big runs likely to follow. Behind this impressive quartet, John Cashman, Sean O’Sullivan and leading lady Michelle Nolan, who clocked a great personal best, all broke the 65 minute barrier.

There was also a great debut over the distance by Emmet Hennessy who hit the 65 mark on the nose whilst both Adam Duchnicz and Alan Kelly were in close company as they came home impressively in just over 68 minutes.

Amongst our other competitors who recorded good runs on the day were Michael Murphy, Trevor Mahoney,, Breda Cahill (our second lady – 1:13:32), Sally Drennan, Caroline Geary, Sandra Bohan and an outstanding debut over the distance by Claire Fitzgerald. The full list of results is available on West Waterford AC web site
. Apologises for not outlining all results individually, but with such a wide spread of runners from our club now taking part, it is impossible to accurately recognise personal best times etc. At present the membership list is also just being completed.
(Please don’t be shy to keep me in touch with your progress)
In conclusion a collective word of congratulations is due to all completed the first 10 miler of the new decade.

Mallow ‘10’

So to Mallow and a week down the road the arrival of Spring coincided with a rise in temperature. Conditions overall were quite good for the race except for the southerly breeze which certainly became a factor once the left hand turn was negotiated after the six mile mark.

Mind you this breeze did little to halt a few of the club’s pace setters and in particular Noel O’Regan who chopped 46 seconds off his Dungarvan time, on a day when quite a few runners fell back a little on their previous week’s showing. Neilus Aherne had another excellent run and in the process came home with the top accolade in the Over 50 category, whilst Michelle Nolan was top Over 35 and also a superb 5th overall to complete a great eight days.

Margaret Barry again proved tops in her category with junior athlete Philip O’Neill bringing another prize to Midleton, finishing in third position. Danny McCarthy, Vincent Connolly, Brian Healy and Anne Marie Perry were amongst the experienced Midleton contingent that enjoyed steady runs.
Meantime our relative newcomers continue to make great progress with some of them running the distance for the first time in recent weeks.
Deidere Aherne, Claire Fitzgerald, Ciara Coughlan, Anne McCarthy, Mel Manning and debut man Philip Mullane all turned in creditable displays. Again with such a big number of participants from the club (33) it is impossible check pb’s etc – however the full list of all Midleton AC finishers is now listed on the club blog -

East Cork 3K

Last week was the penultimate chapter in the East Cork AC 3K story for the winter. It will be remembered as the Series which lost a race due to the weather, but it also means that 4 is now the magic number to reach if you want to collect that souvineer long sleeve tee-shirt. The next race on Tuesday 23rd gives a final chance to reach that target.

As for last week’s race, Donal Broderick, Declan O’Connell and Emmet Hennessy were particularly spritely beating the 11 minute barrier whilst our distinguished coach Edmond O’Sullivan gave us an example of his talents with an eye catching 11:18. Tom Cody, Billy O’Sullivan and Conor McGrath were also inside the 12 minute barrier. Good to see some of our ladies such as Margaret Sinclair, Christine Murphy, Nora Savage, Margaret Twohig and Marie McGrath record good runs in this hugely enjoyable Winter Series. - A special word of congratulations to Joan Hough who ran 12:28 on the night, having earlier been named on the Cork team for the National Masters Cross Country Championships in Roscommon on February 21.

Also looking ahead to a major fixture is Brian Healy who warmed up for his trip to the Barcelona Half Marathon with action in the 3K Series and the ‘10’ milers. Also looking on the European stage are Fergal O’Meara and Kevin Morrisson who mixed the 3K and 10 mile distance in preparation for the Paris Marathon.


New Race in Bantry

Yet another new addition to the ‘10’ mile fixture list is next Sunday’s race in Bantry.
The following press release has been issued by the organisers.

- Preparations for the “Valley Ring "10 mile road race on Sunday February 14th in Bantry are well under way. This is the first road race in West Cork this year so organisers are encouraging locals and anyone with family connections to The Mealagh to participate as well as casual and club runners to help put the region on the running map. The race is aiming to promote physical activity as a way of getting fit, de-stressing, experiencing the feel good factor and meeting new people. Post race gatherings are interesting as everyone has a story to tell and great friendships are formed as a result. The course is takes in some of the most scenic parts of West Cork.
Come along please and support us by participating. You can walk, jog or run on the day!

On-line registration is now open on: www.runireland.com. Only €10. Race HQ is in Mealagh Community Hall, 3 miles outside of Bantry. There will be plenty of signposting so you cannot miss the event. There will be water stations organised by the local community and refreshments after the race.

Your support would be greatly appreciated – further details email bantryac@gmail.com.

Cross Country

Next Sunday also sees the Cork BHAA host their annual Cross Country fixture. Race time here is also 11am and the action will take place in Beaumont, near Blackrock.


ESB 3K
A week further down the road the BHAA action switches back to the road when the popular ESB 5K will take place in Mahon. The local Community Centre is again the race base with the usual 11am starting time. Remember if you have not already registered on a BHAA team do so in advance in the race and who knows you could come home with either a team or individual prize.

Eagle ‘5’ Miler

The Eagle AC Tommy Ryan Memorial ‘5’ Mile Race in Carrigaline on Sunday February 28th rounds off a busy month of action. There should again be a very big entry for this race which also has an 11am start. The host club have also confirmed that the Cheetah Run at Fota Wildlife Park will this year take place on Thursday May 20th.

Ballycotton Meal

- A reminder that Midleton AC will again be organising a post Ballycotton ‘10’ meal on the evening of the big race. We will have further details in the near future of what is an annual occasion for reflections and inquests.

New Dates/New Venues/New Races

2010 is probably going to set a new record for the number of races held in the county and further afield. We can confirm that the BHAA have the Janssen ‘4’ in Little Island on March 7 added to their diary and the AIB 5K in Macroom on July 1st. We also know now that the Great Island ‘10’ in Cobh on Sunday April 18 is gathering momentum and there is a definite Sunday fixture in Dunmanway in June for a 10K race. Killarney could host a new 15 miler to add to their growing list of races, whilst word locally is that we could a new ‘4’ miler in Carrigtwohill to replace the Stryker ‘4’ in mid summer. Rumour has it that we might also see a race in the Aghada parish in the not to distant future.

What we can confirm as fact is that Ballintotis will host the East Cork AC ‘4’ Miler on Thursday April 22nd. This traditional opening evening fixture of the calendar has been held in Castlemartyr for the last number of years. The race will now become a fund raiser for Ballintotis Community Council and in particular the proposed new Community Centre. A scenic location is guaranteed with just limited use of the Main N25 Road adjacent to Loughaderra Lake. - More details to follow soon.

We also believe some significant changes are in the pipeline ahead of this year’s Cork City Marathon on June Bank Holiday Monday. The aim is to eliminate some of the drags particularly late on, which have caused some problems in recent years.

Ballycotton 10 Update

- A quick word on Ballycotton as the countdown gathers momentum. By now the full list of entrants – all 3340 of them are on the Ballycotton Running Promotions web site. It might be worth a browse to see who is listed to participate in this year’s race. Midleton AC with over 100 entrants again has the highest of any club.


Keep An Eye

Keep up to date with all the latest Midleton AC news by checking out our up to the minute club blog – if you have not already found it just check http://www.midletonathleticclub.blogspot.com/ for all the latest club news.
E mail contact is midletonac@ireland.com
You may also have regular club news, updates and results sent directly to you via our club e mail service. Please give your e mail address to PRO John Cashman to avail of this service.
Telephone enquiries regarding the club may be directed to Danny McCarthy on 087-2403940

Fixture Guide

Sun Feb 14 – Bantry 10 Mile Race – 11am
Sun Feb 14 – BHAA Cross Country – Beaumont, Blackrock – 11am
Sun Feb 21 – BHAA – ESB 5K – Mahon – 11am
Tue Feb 23 – East Cork AC 3K – Race 6 – 7.30pm
Sun Feb 28 – Eagle AC 5 Mile – Carrigaline – 11am
Sun Feb 28 – Dungarvan 10K – 11am


Sun Mar 7 – Cork BHAA – Janssen 4 Mile – Little Island – 11am
Sun Mar 7 – Adare 10K – 2pm
Sun Mar 14 – MunsterSenior/Novice Road Championships – Clare venue
Wed Mar17 – Paddy Desmond Memorial – 4 Mile – Ballinhassig – 11am
Sun Mar 21- Ballycotton ‘10’ = ENTRIES CLOSED
Sun Mar 28 – Munster Masters Road Championships – Limerick venue


Training

Numbers are soaring at training each Monday and Wednesday with the usual annual buzz becoming apparent as the calendar moves closer to Ballycotton. Remember it’s 6pm each Monday at Midleton College and 7pm each Wednesday at Midleton Community Centre,

- Until next time – ‘keep on running’