Digging deep in Dunboyne and Wicklow

24/3/2024

L-R: Olwyn Dunne, Sarah Lyons, Rachael Yorke, Kathryn Sweeney, Ciara Regan, Isabelle Cairns, Julie McGrath

opefully, we have now seen the last blast of Winter in the first week of Spring. Conditions have been cold again this week, with a strong wind on Saturday, mercifully much reduced for the big races on Sunday, the Dunboyne 10k, incorporating for the first time the 10k national championships, along with the tough Wicklow Gaol Break 10k and half marathon. We had runners in all of them.

First things first, though, and as usual, we start with track results. It was a great achievement for Enda Clarke to make the final of the M40 1500m in the European Masters Indoor Championships in Torun in Poland on Saturday. On the previous day, Enda had qualified as a fast finisher by placing 3rd in his heat with a time of 4:20.06. In the final, he placed 10th in a strong field, with a time of 4:22.20. Congrats to him.

For road racing, we start earlier in the week, in fact on bank holiday Monday, with the Skerries 10k. We had 3 athletes in the race, which was held in breezy conditions on a 1-looped relatively flat clockwise course, although with a bit of a climb at the start, that took in the outskirts of the town as well as the seafront. Our small contingent in the 379-strong field was led home by Peter O’Toole in 10th place with a time of 37:31. Peter was followed by Seamus Moore (23rd in 39:13) and Mark Browne (112th in 48:12).

Later in the week, Darina Scully joined 123 other runners in the DCU Campus 5k in which she placed 32nd and 4th female finisher in a time of 24:23. Then, on Saturday morning, Gary Park took part in the Forth Mountain Trail Run, a largely out-and-back, north-south race with a steep climb at the start and a corresponding descent to the finish. He joined a field of 217 athletes running in the event, placing 16th in exactly 60 minutes.

On Sunday lunchtime attention focused on the Dunboyne 10k, the 53rd running of a road race there, although in past times its distance was 4 miles. The race this year was awarded the honour of hosting the national 10k championships (after last year’s Phoenix Park débacle) and, as a consequence, although it has always enjoyed a strong field, its ranks were swelled by quality athletes. As illustration of this, despite the club fielding at least 24 athletes and with a few PBs, we were quite far away from podium positions, age category or otherwise. Indeed, of a field of 1256 finishers, no fewer than 365 runners (or nearly 30% of the field) broke 40 minutes in the race, a figure which included 9 of our athletes.

The race took place in chilly but not too windy conditions, in some ways, perfect for such an event.

As in Tallaght last week, our first runner home was Andrea Rondina who placed 32nd in a PB time of 32:22. Andrea was followed by Kieran Little who is soon to depart for Blackrock AC. Kieran placed 58th in 33:33 and he was followed by Kevin Fitzgibbon (63rd in a PB time of 33:30). Ger Forde was next, placing 94th in 34:25 and he was followed by a late entrant, Ciarain Kelly (106th in 34:46), with, further back Joe McDermott (156th in 35:55). Remaining runners to break 40 minutes included John Fahy (202nd in 36:49), Julie McGrath (316th overall and 42nd female finisher in 39:20) and Kathryn Sweeney just behind and breaking 40 minutes for the first time (323rd and 43rd in a PB time of 39:27).

Carolyn O’Reilly enjoyed a strong outing to place 374th and 52nd in 40:18, and she was followed by Ollie McGrath (376th in 40:06), Phelim Murray (378th in 40:16), Isabelle Cairns with a steady run (443rd and 75th in a PB time of 41:43), Oisin Browne (487th in a PB time of 42:33), Ciara Regan (538th and 106th in 43:45) and Sarah Lyons, running with a slight injury (598th and 133rd in 44:46) alongside Rachael Yorke (599th and 134th in 44:45).

Next came Robbie Moore (635th in 44:49), followed by Emily Glen (637th and 144th in a PB time of 44:48), Neil Brown (666th in 45:42), Olwyn Dunne (672nd and 159th in 46:11), Tony Hackett (678th in 46:03), Sharon Woods (692nd and 171st in 46:25) and Paul E. Kelly (1127th in 59:42).

Earlier in the morning, we had 7 clubmates take part in the hilly Wicklow Gaol Break Half marathon, with its 100m climb over the first 10k of the race and its cobbled finish. In a field of nearly 1600 finishers, Dee Lawlor ran exceedingly well to record a time of 78:16 for 4th place. He was followed by Gerard Moore (45th in an excellent 88:38), Michael Judge (63rd in 91:53), Daniel Cullen (124th in 96:27), Phil Sykes (544th in 1:50:55), Catriona Egan (905th and 178th in 1:58:54) and Kelly Brown (1206th and 297th in 2:08:57).

The results of the 10k were somewhat traumatic for at least one of our runners. Unfortunately, Joanne Carey was late to arrive at the start and, as a consequence, had to run without a chip. Her time of 45:59 would likely have placed her in the top 45 overall (in a field of over 1000 participants) and quite likely 7th female finisher place. Moreover, although she was the second F40 to cross the line, she would likely have been awarded first place, as the first runner in her age category placed 3rd overall in the women’s race. Commiserations to her. Joanne was followed by Darina Scully who placed 195th and 47th in 52:41 and by Carina Davidson (532nd and 222nd in 61:20).

Further afield, in the South of France, Kevin Lambe ran in the windy and warm St. Tropez marathon, completing the point-to-point course in a time of 3:34:19. The route went from Sainte-Maxime in the north to Cavalaire-sur-Mer in the south and runners enjoyed a tailwind for large parts of it. It was mostly flat except for a large hill towards the end. Also, over the weekend, one of our London-based exiles, Louise Van der Wildermeersch took part in the flat Milan half marathon, the “Stramilano” which she completed in a PB time of 1:38:13.

There was at least one event in the mountains this weekend, that possibly had Crusader participation. It was the Maurice Mullins 50k. If and when the results are published and they show we had one or more runners then the report will be updated. Also, just to point out that an IMRA race last week was initially missed, but last week’s report has now been updated with the result, which saw Warren Swords compete in his first race of the year, placing 6th overall along with Gavan Doherty in 79th spot.

Saturday morning’s parkruns enjoyed a reasonable turnout, although several runners, who would otherwise have participated, may have been saving themselves for Sunday’s efforts and so our numbers were a little down as a result.

As usual, our largest contingent contested Poolbeg. In a field of 187, Stephen Hurley was first across the line in a time of 18:38. Stephen was followed by Sharon Woods (29th and 2nd female finisher in 23:13), Franky Keane (36th in 23:31), Tanja Narancic (42nd and 4th in 23:52), Fiona Bane (72nd and 12th in 26:31), Olwyn Dunne (73rd and 13th in 26:32), Josie Ward (78th and 16th in 26:46), Louise O’Riordan (85th and 20th in 27:14), Maureen McGinley (107th and 30th in 29:24), Djinn Von Noorden (119th and 38th in 30:03), Niamh Trihy (149th and 53rd in 34:20) and Kevin Kenny (150th in the same time). Another podium place went to Dee Lawlor in Shanganagh, where, in a field of 185, he placed 3rd in a time of 17:55, followed home by Orlaith de Burca (136th and 37th in 30:40).

Elsewhere, Ross Neill placed 4th in the 575-strong field in Ormeau Park in Belfast. Ross’ time was 18:27. Then, in the Ballinamore Greenway parkrun, Áine Crotty joined 31 other runners, placing 10th and 3rd in 29:05, whilst Maria Pertl placed 29th and 7th in the 38-strong field in Tolka Valley. Enda Currid and Hannah Jones ran alongside 402 other runners in St. Anne’s, where Enda placed 29th in 20:47 and Hannah took 160th and 34th spots in 26:23. We had 5 participants in Malahide. In a field of 296, Emer Kenny ran 25:11 for 115th and 15th places and she was followed by Darina Scully (136th and 23rd in 26:39), Fiona Shine (155th and 29th in 27:33), Máirín Shine (194th and 51st in 29:15) and Lisa Shine, tailwalking.

Meanwhile, Mairead Cashman ran alongside 38 other runners in Macroom Castle Demesne, where she took 29th and 11th places in 32:20, whilst, in Poppintree, Paul F. Kelly placed 16th in 23:41 in a field of 232. Kevin Flynn ran 41:14 for 85th in the 97-strong field in Porterstown, whilst Eoghan Corrigan (and baby daughter Clodagh) tailwalked in River Valley. Over in the UK, Richard Morrissey placed 25th in 17:44 in the 666-strong field in Dulwich, whilst Aidan Hudner ran once again in Pollok in Glasgow, where he placed 70th in a field of 317 and in a time of 25:16. Following her recent return from a trip to Japan to run in the Tokyo marathon at the beginning of the month, Kate Murray ran 26:29 in Brickfields with its field of 113, to place 46th and 9th, whilst, in Ballincollig, Toby Benham joined 260 other participants, placing 27th in 22:46. Finally, Andy Deuser ran in Fairview where, in a field of 147, he placed 23rd in a time of 23:37.

Dunboyne 10k (National 10k Championships) (1256)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Sean Tobin 1 00:29:17
44 Shona Heaslip 1 00:32:48
Crusaders AC runners
32 Andrea Rondina 00:32:22 (PB)
58 Kieran Little 00:33:23
63 Kevin Fitzgibbon 00:33:30 (PB)
94 Ger Forde 00:34:25
106 Ciarain Kelly 00:34:46
156 Joe McDermott 00:35:55
202 John Fahy 00:36:49
316 Julie McGrath 00:39:20 (42)
323 Kathryn Sweeney 00:39:27 (PB) (43)
374 Carolyn O’Reilly 00:40:18 (52)
376 Ollie McGrath 00:40:06
378 Phelim Murray 00:40:16
443 Isabelle Cairns 00:41:43 (PB) (75)
487 Oisin Browne 00:42:33 (PB)
538 Ciara Regan 00:43:45 (106)
598 Sarah Lyons 00:44:46 (133)
599 Rachael Yorke 00:44:45 (134)
635 Robbie Moore 00:44:49
637 Emily Glen 00:44:48 (PB) (144)
666 Neil Brown 00:45:42
672 Olwyn Dunne 00:46:11 (159)
678 Anthony Hackett 00:46:03
692 Sharon Woods 00:46:25 (171)
1127 Paul E. Kelly 00:59:42
Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/dunboyne_53rd_road_race_10k_2024/5045/results
Wicklow Gaol Break 10k (1002)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Eoin Cregg 1 00:37:20
18 Elaine Kennedy 1 00:43:00
Crusaders AC runners
XX Joanne Carey 00:45:59
195 Darina Scully 00:52:41 (47)
532 Carina Davidson 01:01:20 (222)
Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/the_wicklow_gaol_break_half_marathon__10km_2024/4930/results
Wicklow Gaol Break Half marathon (1597)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Marc Augustin 1 01:14:19
19 Evelyn Twomey 1 01:22:13
Crusaders AC runners
4 Derek Lawlor 01:18:16
45 Gerard Moore 01:28:38
63 Michael Judge 01:31:53
124 Daniel Cullen 01:36:27
544 Phil Sykes 01:50:55
905 Catriona Egan 01:58:54 (178)
1206 Kelly Brown 02:08:57 (297)
Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/the_wicklow_gaol_break_half_marathon__10km_2024/4930/results
Skerries 10k (379)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Mick Clohisey 1 00:32:23
39 Sive Duncan 1 00:41:55
Crusaders AC runners
10 Peter O’Toole 00:37:31
23 Seamus Moore 00:39:13
112 Mark Browne 00:48:12
Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/skerries_10k/5023/results
DCU Campus 5k (124)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Gearóid Ó Cleircín 1 00:17:59
11 MK Andersen 1 00:21:57
Crusaders AC runner
32 Darina Scully 00:24:23 (4)
Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/dcu_campus_5km_fun_run/5169/results
Forth Mountain Trail Run 13k (217)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Niall Sheil 1 00:49:25
17 Eilis Peat 1 01:00:31
Crusaders AC runner
16 Gary Park 01:00:00
Full results here: https://justrunsevents.ie/event-results/forth-mountain-trail-run_results_2024-03-23?fbclid=IwAR3F3hE_H7AoRJMr7AaibNVeFtaRMxf5CURRidmQfjfsBC3O7UZChO2Mvxw

Malahide Parkrun (296)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Hugh Armstrong 1 00:14:57
12 Iseult O’Donnell 1 00:18:37
Crusaders AC runners
115 Emer Kenny 00:25:11 (15)
136 Darina Scully 00:26:39 (23)
155 Fiona Shine 00:27:33 (29)
194 Máirín Shine 00:29:15 (51)
296 Lisa Shine 1:01:52
Shanganagh Parkrun (185)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Nickolas Colyn 1 00:15:20
16 Emily Feighan 1 00:21:05
Crusaders AC runners
3 Derek Lawlor 00:17:55
136 Orlaith de Burca 00:30:40 (37)
River Valley Parkrun (95)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Viktoras Kuzminas 1 00:19:19
8 Sarah Pye 1 00:23:04
Crusaders AC runner
87 Eoghan Corrigan 00:46:14
Poppintree Parkrun (232)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Andrew Gaffney 1 00:17:55
10 Peigí Allen 1 00:22:09
Crusaders AC runner
16 Paul F. Kelly 00:23:41
Brickfields Parkrun (113)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Wesley Harrison 1 00:18:51
11 Eva Kennedy 1 00:22:20
Crusaders AC runner
46 Kate Murray 00:26:29 (9)
St. Anne’s Parkrun (404)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Kevin Kelly 1 00:16:46
18 Carmel Ward 1 00:20:01
Crusaders AC runners
29 Enda Currid 00:20:47
160 Hannah Jones 00:26:23 (34)
Tolka Valley Parkrun (38)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Oisin Gavin 1 00:18:29
2 Joanna Brown 1 00:19:58
Crusaders AC runner
29 Maria Pertl 00:32:53 (7)
Poolbeg Parkrun (187)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Stephen Hurley 1 00:18:38
24 Deirdre McGing 1 00:22:41
Crusaders AC runners
1 Stephen Hurley 00:18:38
29 Sharon Woods 00:23:13 (2)
36 Franky Keane 00:23:31
42 Tanja Narancic 00:23:52 (4)
72 Fiona Bane 00:26:31 (12)
73 Olwyn Dunne 00:26:32 (13)
78 Josie Ward 00:26:46 (16)
85 Louise O’Riordan 00:27:14 (20)
107 Maureen McGinley 00:29:24 (30)
119 Djinn Von Noorden 00:30:03 (38)
149 Niamh Trihy 00:34:20 (53)
150 Kevin Kenny 00:34:20
Ormeau Parkrun (575)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Tom Fleming 1 00:16:17
16 Lyda Martin 1 00:20:09
Crusaders AC runner
4 Ross Neill 00:18:27
Fairview Parkrun (147)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Edward Blacque 1 00:19:41
15 Ann-Marie Hayes 1 00:22:43
Crusaders AC runner
23 Andy Deuser 00:23:37
Macroom Castle Demesne Parkrun (39)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Conor Lucey 1 00:18:22
7 Claire Curtin 1 00:24:49
Crusaders AC runner
29 Mairead Cashman 00:32:20 (11)
Ballinamore Greenway Parkrun (32)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Caoimhe Mohan 1 00:22:41
2 Eamon MacFihionnlaoich 1 00:22:45
Crusaders AC runner
10 Áine Crotty 00:29:05 (4)
Ballincollig Parkrun (261)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Diarmuid O’Sullivan 1 00:19:06
3 Aoife Cooke 1 00:19:20
Crusaders AC runner
27 Toby Benham 00:22:46
Porterstown Parkrun (97)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Niall Sherlock 1 00:18:32
18 Caroline Nolan 1 00:25:05
Crusaders AC runner
85 Kevin Flynn 00:41:14