Italian Job well done; Running Fiesta in Spain

3/4/2017

Brian Rainey, Joe McDermott, Michael Maughan, Pat Quill, Brian McGuckin and Federico Corradini

We were so lucky in Milan for the marathon on Sunday. Sandwiched between two rather hot days on Sunday we enjoyed good marathon running conditions, overcast following a rainstorm and temperatures between 11 and 16 degrees for most of the race, with just a gentle breeze to keep us cool at times. Also, we were able to fuel up the day before on the best pasta Milan had to offer selected by our able host for the weekend and Cru exile, Federico Corradini. With their local knowledge, he and Gian Piero Allerta were fantastic at making sure we found the expo and that we ate well, both before and after the race. The event itself was, as one might expect in Italy, slightly chaotic, but great fun and enjoyed a modest field of just over 5,300 finishers, alongside a significantly larger contingent of marathon relay runners who, thankfully, started half an hour after us. The course was as twisty and at times as narrow as we were expecting, with the odd 180 degree turn but it was certainly surprising to see how many corners were taken on the pavement by nearly every runner. Because of it, we all fully expected our Garmins to show that we had run a shorter distance than 42.2km, but in the event we all surprisingly came home with lengths varying of between 42.5km and 42.8km! It was not altogether flat, either, with a major hill at the start (repeated at the finish) and the odd underpass. Additionally, the route took us at times down cobbled streets following tram tracks which were quite tough on the feet and at one point we had to mount the pavement to go over a grass central reservation (something the Gardai would have vetoed immediately!). Despite the significant congestion at the start of the race with several collisions leading to quite a number of runners falling to the ground as participants weaved in and out, we all managed to get away safely, if somewhat slower than goal pace, following a shower of green, white and red confetti (the colours of the Italian flag) that were shot into the air at the gun by three cannons above the starting gantry.

On a day when the winner of the race ran the fastest marathon ever on Italian soil, Joe McDermott and Federico led the Cru contingent for most of the way until at one point a runner stopped without warning in front of Joe and our runner's evasive action led to a probable strain in his calf muscle following which he had to slow down considerably. In the event, both ran PBs, with Federico improving his by over 90s to 2:53:46 and 118th place (having been in 219th place at halfway). Despite his injury, Joe was able to break 3 hours for the first time, coming home in 2:59:08 (224th). Next home was Pat Quill in another sub-3 hour performance (174th place with a time of 2:57:19 and 8th in his age category). The second best chip-time performance of the day went to Brian Rainey who was just getting over a head cold. He ran at times with Michael Maughan and both produced PB runs (Michael having agonizingly run only a few seconds over 3 hours last year in Rotterdam), with Brian coming home in 2:57:38 (183rd) and Michael, 2:57:55 (190th). Brian McGuckin also ran well to finish in 3:00:19 (258th), but has already enjoyed breaking 3 hours. James Cottle didn’t quite achieve his sub-3 goal, finishing in 3:04:44 (342nd), but had the major consolation of winning his age category by a decent margin (as with Pat, the only non-Italian in the first 10). James found the second half of the race quite tough with a niggling Achilles, but still managed to pick off over 130 runners in the second half. Jane Wallace also excelled herself. After having been in 1733rd place at halfway, Jane managed to come home in a super PB time (a 3 minute improvement) of 3:27:37 and placed 1,261st (overtaking more than 470 runners in the second half) and finishing in 71st in the women’s race (interestingly women made up only 10% of the field). Gian Piero was our final participant. Despite almost being unable to walk at the beginning of the week and having had to pull out of the Dunboyne 4-miler the previous Sunday because of cramping in his legs, Gian Piero acquitted himself well, placing 1,851st in a time of 3:38:30 (his time including a 2 minute detour to say hi to his invalided father en route).

Meanwhile, in Madrid, another Cru contingent were clearly having an enjoyable time sampling the Spanish nightlife early on, to such an extent that not all managed to make it to the start line on Sunday of either the half marathon or the 5k that were staged there. Some of those that did start did manage to complete the course, but, it is suspected, with some difficulty! Those that appeared to have no trouble, however, included Shane Collins and Yvonne Macauley. In the half marathon in a field of nearly 15,500 participants, Shane took 58th spot with a great time of 1:16:59, whilst Yvonne placed 416th overall, 16th woman home, in a PB time of 1:25:39. Next came Michael Kiely (617th in 1:28:20), followed by John Mulvihill (1,872nd in 1:36:01) and Michael O’Conor (1,879th in the same time). We appeared to have only 2 runners in the 5K. Alan Sheehy placed 37th in a field of more than 1,600 runners in a time of 18:44, whilst Niall O’Connell took 74th place in a time of 20:30.

Another strong performance over the weekend came from the Women’s Meet and Train teams competing in the first race of the summer league in Ballyboden, hosted by Bros Pearse. There were approx. 80 runners in the 4.7k race, which was won by Grainne Regan, who completed it in 19:03. Next came newcomer Rachel Yorke in 15th (21:25), followed by Carina Davidson (25th in 22:20). Another relative newcomer, Sarah Lyons, was next, in 30th place (22:50), followed by Rachel’s sister Louise who placed 56th in 25:31. Just behind Louise, Rhona McGrath was our sixth finisher (57th in 25:33) and the modest seven-woman contingent was completed by Mairead Cashman (68th in 26:34). A good solid start to the season!

Over the weekend, Kris Ryan and Leo Lundy took part in the Ultrafest in Crawley in East Sussex. They chose the 24hr event which takes place each year around a 400m running track and attracts an international field. There were also 12hr and 6hr events. In hot and humid conditions during the day and under clear skies at night (extremely cold) 30 runners took on the 24 hours challenge. Leo had a strong start but after a bad patch after 50K was languishing in 18th place. Shaking it off, however, he made his way through the field and by 100K was in 9th place. He was still in 9th when he came through 100 miles before promptly retiring from the race. Interestingly, because of track etiquette, the inner lanes were prioritised for the faster runners who were mainly in the shorter events and also the elite GB Ultra team who were preparing for the upcoming world championships in Belfast. This meant that the entire race was run in Lanes 2 and 3, which effectively added 6 miles onto the total over the 100 miles. Kris had a strong first 50 miles before stomach problems meant that she spent a lot of time with the first aiders and away from the track. She did, however, tough it out for the full 24 hours, registering 82 miles.

The sun brought out the parkrunners over the weekend and we had participants in no fewer than 10 of them. Fiona Bane distinguished herself with a first place finish in the women’s event in Poppintree, finishing 15th overall in a field of 134 and a time of 22:53. Maria Pertl and Darina Scully also took part, with both women coming in alongside each other in 78th and 79th places overall (34th and 35th women) in respective times of 29:29 and 29:30. In Marlay, in a field of more than 500, Alban Coghlan placed 2nd in 17:01 and he was followed by John McAuley (10th in 18:37), David Long (preparing for next weekend’s national 10K), 19th in 19:18, Kate Murray (88th overall, 10th woman, in 22:28) and Mary Noelle Rohan (314th overall, 90th woman, in 28:53). We had an equally decent turnout in St. Anne’s. In a field of nearly 400 runners, Matt Cranley placed 18th in 19:54, Colm Kernan, readying himself for London, took 35th in 21:16, the venerable John Fitzsimons showing that he still has it, was 227th in 28:36, followed by Denis Murphy (267th in 29:51) and Lorraine Fitzsimons (293rd overall, 97th woman, in 30:47). We had two runners in each of Cabinteely and Shanganagh. In the former, Lisa and Mairin Shine joined 119 other participants and placed overall respectively 98th and 99th (35th and 36th women) in the same time of 32:02. In the latter event, Neil Brown placed 23rd in 23:38 and Orlaith de Burca took 40th spot overall (6th woman) in 25:41 among a field of more than 140. Then, we had singletons in 5 parkruns. Olwyn Dunne was our sole representative in the 325-strong field in Malahide, taking 149th place overall (27th woman) in a time of 26:26, whilst in Tymon Natasha Murray placed 139th overall (66th female) out of 155 in a time of 37:33. Brian Langton came home in 21st place out of nearly 80 runners in Porterstown. His time was 24:20. Mairead Cashman continues to run in Bushy Dublin, taking 85th spot overall (25th female) in 28:35. The field measured 124. Lastly, in Ballincollig, John Fahy took 5th place out of 288 runners in a time of 19:10.

Milan Marathon
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Edwin Koech 1 02:07:13
9 Sheila Chepkech 1 02:29:52
Crusaders AC runners
118 Federico Corradini 02:53:46 (PB)
174 Pat Quill 02:57:19
183 Brian Rainey 02:57:38 (PB)
190 Michael Maughan 02:57:55 (PB)
224 Joe McDermott 02:59:08 (PB)
258 Brian McGuckin 03:00:19
342 James Cottle 03:04:44
1261 Jane Wallace 03:27:37 (PB)
1851 Gian Piero Allerta 03:38:30
Full results here: http://www.tds-live.com/ns/index.jsp?login=&password=&is_domenica=-1&nextRaceId=&dpbib=&dpcat=&dpsex=&serviziol=&pageType=1&id=8260&servizio=000&locale=1040
Madrid Half Marathon
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Moses Kibet 1 01:01:54
15 Joy Kemunga Loyce 1 01:10:27
Crusaders AC runners
58 Shane Collins 01:16:59
416 Yvonne Macauley 01:25:39 (PB) (16)
617 Michael Kiely 01:28:20
1872 John Mulvihill 01:36:01
1879 Michael O’Conor 01:36:01
Full results here: http://www.mediomaratonmadrid.es/mm3-resultado-detalle/consulta-resultado/16880/renault-medio-maraton-de-madrid-2017
Madrid 5K
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Tyler Andrews 1 00:15:35
35 Noelia Martinez Cabanas 1 00:18:39
Crusaders AC runners
37 Alan Sheehy 00:18:44
74 Niall O’Connell 00:20:30
Full results here: http://www.mediomaratonmadrid.es/mm3-resultado-detalle/consulta-resultado/19121/5km-sanitas-madrid
Women’s Meet&Train
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Grainne Regan 1 00:19:03
Crusaders AC runners
1 Grainne Regan 00:19:03
15 Rachel Yorke 00:21:25
25 Carina Davidson 00:22:20
30 Sarah Lyons 00:22:50
56 Louise Yorke 00:25:31
57 Rhona McGrath 00:25:33
68 Mairead Cashman 00:26:34
Porterstown Parkrun #76
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Niall Sherlock 1 00:17:37
17 Annemarie O’Reilly 1 00:23:19
Crusaders AC runner
21 Brian Langton 00:24:20
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/porterstown/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=76
Marlay Parkrun #203
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 James Kelly 1 00:16:56
16 Lynne Hennessy 1 00:19:07
Crusaders AC runners
2 Alban Coghlan 00:17:01
10 John McAuley 00:18:37
19 David Long 00:19:18
88 Kate Murray 00:22:28 (10)
314 Mary Noelle Rohan 00:28:53 (90)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/marlay/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=203
Cabinteely Parkrun #105
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Vincent McKenna 1 00:19:08
16 Emma Flynn 1 00:21:56
Crusaders AC runners
98 Lisa Shine 00:32:02 (35)
99 Mairin Shine 00:32:02 (36)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/cabinteely/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=105
St Anne’s Parkrun #177
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Aidan Jones 1 00:17:23
23 Adrienne Atkins 1 00:20:35
Crusaders AC runners
18 Matt Cranley 00:19:54
35 Colm Kernan 00:21:16
227 John Fitzsimons 00:28:36
267 Denis Murphy 00:29:51
293 Lorraine Fitzsimons 00:30:47 (97)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/stannes/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=177
Shanganagh Parkrun #106
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Yaoling Zhu 1 00:20:06
17 Ciara Carter 1 00:22:38
Crusaders AC runners
23 Neil Brown 00:23:38
40 Orlaith de Burca 00:25:41 (6)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/shanganagh/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=106
Bushy Dublin Parkrun #6
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Donatas Jocius 1 00:18:47
9 Christine Kinsella 1 00:20:38
Crusaders AC runner
85 Mairead Cashman 00:28:35 (25)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/bushydublin/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=6
Tymon Parkrun #145
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Aaron Hurley 1 00:18:51
18 Anne Hughes 1 00:22:16
Crusaders AC runner
139 Natasha Murray 00:37:33 (66)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/Tymon/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=145
Poppintree Parkrun #126
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Adam Bruce-Smith 1 00:17:57
15 Fiona Bane 1 00:22:53
Crusaders AC runners
15 Fiona Bane 00:22:53 (1)
78 Maria Pertl 00:29:29 (34)
79 Darina Scully 00:29:30 (35)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/poppintree/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=126
Ballincollig Parkrun #42
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Rory O’Sullivan 1 00:17:49
40 Suzanne Twomey 1 00:22:46
Crusaders AC runner
5 John Fahy 00:19:10
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/ballincollig/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=42
Malahide Parkrun #230
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 David Brady 1 00:17:01
6 Annette Kealy 1 00:18:20
Crusaders AC runner
149 Olwyn Dunne 00:26:26 (27)
Full results here: http://www.parkrun.ie/malahide/results/weeklyresults/?runSeqNumber=230