Long Distance Flying

5/3/2023

L-R: Donna Barry, Sharon Woods and Cliodhna O'Reilly

There was a lot of action this weekend, both near and far, from the BHAA ALSAA XC, at Dublin airport, to Paris for the half marathon and to Tokyo for the marathon, and places in between.

We start with the BHAA races taking place on the ALSAA campus in Swords next to the airport, with race commentary punctuated regularly by aircraft on their final approach overhead. The course used would have been relatively flat and this year not as soft as it has been in previous years. Sometimes these races in ALSAA can be conducted in a quagmire. First off was the ladies’ 2 mile conducted over 2 loops of a twisty course in a counter-clockwise direction, with little wind to worry about, but that which there was added to the chill. The field was modest with 30 runners, but our two representatives, Clare Sullivan and Rebecca Fleming acquitted themselves well. Clare placed 4th in 13:29, whilst Rebecca crossed the line in 10th place with a time of 14:44. Next up was the mixed 5 mile event on the same course. The field for this race was 74. Again, we had fewer than usual the number of Crusaders in the race, perhaps only 3. The contingent was led home by Joe McDermott who placed 7th in an excellent 30:10, followed by Karl Walsh (31st and 3rd M45 in 33:27) and by Robbie Moore (51st in 37:24). Members may be interested to know that Sean Murphy, who trains with us from time to time, placed 32nd just behind Karl in 33:28.

Also, on Saturday morning, Kathryn Sweeney headed to Bundoran in Co. Donegal where she ran in the Bundoran 10 mile road race2, finishing in a super PB time of 65:42 for 100th place overall, 9th female finisher, in a field of 1,131. The one loop anti-clockwise course was reasonably flat with only a 20m differential for the most part and, thankfully, although being along the coast, was free of any wind.

On the same day, we had runners in Galway taking on one of the three races on offer in Kinvara. 3 Crusaders at least joined the field of 601 in the half marathon there (the other two races were a full marathon and a 10k). Geoffrey Keating placed 77th in 1:34:42, possibly a PB for him, and he was followed by John Lohan (91st in 1:36:26) and by Tara Murphy (384th and 95th in 1:57:00).

Staying with Ireland, we then saw runners taking part in the Lusk 4 mile road race on Sunday morning. In a field of 660, the M55 Paul Cowhie placed 18th and winner of the O/50 age category in 22:10 and he was followed by recent new member Laura Garcia (109th and 13th in 26:57). Next came Mary Fitzsimons (221st, 48th female finisher and 3rd F50 in 30:26) and the contingent was completed by Lorraine Fitzsimons who placed 558th overall in a time of 41:54. Also, on Sunday, Tim O'Donnell competed in the Cork BHAA-organised MTU 5k. He placed 69th out of a field of 379 in a time of 19:53. Members may be interested to learn that Shane Collins, an ex-Crusader, placed 2nd in 15:33.

Further afield over the weekend we had some great success. At the start of the weekend, our visually impaired para-athlete, along with his guide Sean Husband, won the Abu Dhabi edition of the World triathlon series, a great start to the season. The Polish and Spanish teams were, respectively, second and third. One of our exiles in the Antipodes, Steven Walker, took on the Ironman NZ, where he ran a 3:47 marathon as part of his 10:55:50 finish, to place 110th out of 727 finishers in total.

Then, on Sunday, Áine Kenny participated in the Tokyo marathon, the 6th of the majors which she needed in order to complete the set (the others being London, New York, Berlin, Chicago and Boston), and she ran a super race, despite suffering a little towards the end, finishing with a great time of 3:11:42, her second ever fastest. Conditions were chilly at 8 degrees Celsius with a bit of a wind chill from the 15kph northerly wind on a relatively flat course (starting downhill and finishing slightly uphill) that appeared to have several out-and-back elements to it. Also, on Sunday, at least 7 of our clubmates took part in the Semi-marathon de Paris, also with some reward. Kevin Lambe was our first runner home in a PB time of 1:26:52 and he was followed by Tara Gavin (1:42:44), Sharon Woods (1:45:16), Cliodhna O’Reilly (1:52:59), Donna Barry (1:54:21), Kevin Kenny (1:54:43) and by Maureen McGinley (2:13:07). Well done to all, battling it out in cold conditions (4 degrees Celsius) but also with little wind. The course climbs for the first half by about 35m along the on the left bank of the Seine to the Bois de Vincennes, but then generally descends as it doubles back on the right bank, finishing on a slight upwards drag near the Bastille. Another super result came from Italy and one of our Italian exiles, Italo Giancaterina. Italo took part in the point-to-point Rome to Ostia half marathon, recording a phenomenal PB time of 66:52 for the distance. The course had a couple of sharp climbs in the middle of the race, but otherwise enjoyed a 7kph tailwind in temperatures of 8-10 degrees Celsius.

There was another IMRA race in the mountains on Saturday morning. It took place around Annacurra Hill near Arklow in Co. Wicklow. On a relatively easy course with an uphill climb of nearly 500m and a distance of just under 11.3k, there were 124 runners in the race. The first of our contingent to finish was Warren Swords whose time of 56:07 was rewarded with an 11th place finish and 2nd in his age M40 category. Next came Becky Quinn, winning yet again the women’s race. Becky placed 19th overall in 59:17. Next came Donatas Jocius (40th in 64:43) and he was followed by Redmond Murphy (61st in 69:57), Pat Quill (74th in 74:20) and Berndt Heim (124th in 1:46:34).

We had some success as usual in Saturday morning’s parkruns. Both Toby Benham (1st in 18:44) and Nina Holmes (8th overall in 22:08) were first finishers in Brickfields with its field of 103, whilst Kieran Little led the field of 184 home in Shanganagh in a time of 16:28. Dee Lawlor placed 7th there in 18:39 and he was followed by Carina Davidson running well (58th and 7th in 24:50) and by Orlaith de Burca (119th and 30th in 28:47). Once again, Stephen Hurley finished ahead of the field in Poolbeg in a time of 18:03. In the 166-strong field he was followed by Rob Glascott (6th in 19:28), Kenan Furlong (9th in 19:55), Paul Campbell (13th in 20:31), Josie Ward (36th and 5th in 22:33), Franky Keane (60th in 24:39), Niamh Trihy (141st and 56th in 31:41) and Mari Hansen (155th and 65th in 34:43).

Podium places were recorded in Tramore Valley in Cork, Cabinteely, Avondale Forest and Royal Canal, Kilcock. In Cork, in a field of 175, Orla Drumm made a welcome return to competitive running after her maternity leave, placing 8th and 2nd in a time of 19:13. Orla was followed by Mairead Cashman (119th and 34th in 30:04). Meanwhile , in Cabinteely, Miriam Logan placed 22nd and 2nd in 23:40 in a field of 150. Miriam was followed by Olwyn Dunne, in an event she was instrumental in setting up (46th and 7th in 26:05), Lisa Shine (125th and 54th in 40:19) and Máirín Shine (126th and 55th in 40:20). Brian O’Kelly joined the field of 92 in Avondale Forest where he ran easily for 3rd place in 19:06, whilst Caroline Crowley and Eoghan Corrigan ran in Kilcock. Caroline placed 9th and 2nd in 21:24, whilst Eoghan came in a little further back in 12th with a time of 21:37. The field there measured 139.

Just off the podium, Irene Gorman ran 20:03 for 23rd and 4th places in St. Anne’s Raheny. In a field of 467 participants, Michael Maughan also ran, recording a time of 21:51 for 67th place. Susanne Englidh ran once again in Oldbridge alongside 61 other runners. Susanne’s time was 26:52 and she took 27th and 5th spots. Kate Murray also ran well, placing 20th and 4th in a time of 23:14 in Mullingar, alongside a field of 105 other runners. Cathal O’Hara joined 91 other runners in Sligo where he placed 49th in 28:51, whilst Diarmuid Byrne ran with 141 other participants in Poppintree, where he took 56th spot in 25:41.

BHAA ALSAA women’s 2-mile XC (30)
Overall place Name Guntime
1 Laura Buckley 00:12:16
Crusaders AC runners
4 Clare Sullivan 00:13:29
10 Rebecca Fleming 00:14:44
Full results here: https://irp.cdn-website.com/15e8030f/files/uploaded/BHAA%20ALSAA%202%20mile%20CC%20Results.pdf
BHAA ALSAA mixed 5-mile XC (74)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 George Snee 1 00:27:39
18 Zoe Quinn 1 00:31:08
Crusaders AC runners
7 Joe McDermott 00:30:10
31 Karl Walsh 00:33:27
51 Robbie Moore 00:37:24
Full results here: https://irp.cdn-website.com/15e8030f/files/uploaded/BHAA%20ALSAA%205%20Mile%20CC%20results.pdf
Kinvara Half Marathon (601)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 James Elgar 1 01:11:24
20 Grainne Ni uallachain 1 01:23:45
Crusaders AC runners
77 Geoffrey Keating 01:34:42
91 John Lohan 01:36:26
384 Tara Murphy 01:57:00 (95)
Full results here: http://www.redtagtiming.com/rockandroad2023_21km.html
IMRA Annacurra 11.26k (124)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Andrew O’Donnghaile 1 00:49:02
19 Becky Quinn 1 00:59:17
Crusaders AC runners
11 Warren Swords 00:56:07
19 Becky Quinn 00:59:17 (1)
40 Donatas Jocius 01:04:43
61 Redmond Murphy 01:19:57
74 Pat Quill 01:14:20
124 Berndt Heim 01:46:34
Full results here: https://www.imra.ie/events/results/id/2291/
Bundoran 10-mile road race (1,131)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Jake O’Regan 1 00:49:23
17 Breege Connolly 1 00:58:15
Crusaders AC runner
100 Kathryn Sweeney 01:05:42 (PB) (9)
Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/bundoran_10/4646/results
Lusk 4-mile road race (660)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Chiptime
1 Ian Guiden 1 00:18:57
20 Kate Purcell 1 00:22:20
Crusaders AC runners
18 Paul Cowhie 00:22:10
109 Laura Garcia 00:26:57 (13)
221 Mary Fitzsimons 00:30:26 (48)
558 Lorraine Fitzsimons 00:41:54
Full results here: https://www.myrunresults.com/events/lusk_4_mile_2023/4652/results
Cork BHAA MTU 5k (379)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1. Conor McCauley 1 00:15:13
25 Michelle Kenny 1 00:17:42
Crusaders AC runner
69 Tim O'Donnell 00:19:53
Full results here: https://www.corkbhaa.com/2023/03/05/mtu-5k-results-2023/
Sligo Parkrun (92)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Diarmuid O’Kelly 1 00:21:23
6 Ciara Connellan 1 00:22:59
Crusaders AC runner
49 Cathal O’Hara 00:28:51
Avondale Forest Parkrun (92)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Finn Buck 1 00:17:36
13 Layla Dixon 1 00:22:47
Crusaders AC runner
3 Brian O’Kelly 00:19:06
Oldbridge Parkrun (62)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Alan Wade 1 00:19:38
11 Bernie Balfe 1 00:22:55
Crusaders AC runner
27 Susanne English 00:26:42 (5)
Shanganagh Parkrun (184)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Kieran Little 1 00:16:28
16 Sarah Baryga 1 00:20:16
Crusaders AC runners
1 Kieran Little 00:16:28
7 Derek Lawlor 00:18:39
58 Carina Davidson 00:24:50 (7)
119 Orlaith de Burca 00:28:47 (30)
Brickfields Parkrun (103)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Toby Benham 1 00:18:44
8 Nina Holmes 1 00:22:08
Crusaders AC runners
1 Toby Benham 00:18:44
8 Nina Holmes 00:22:08 (1)
Royal Canal, Kilcock Parkrun (139)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Alexander Wallace 1 00:18:03
6 Sandra Mason 1 00:20:19
Crusaders AC runners
9 Caroline Crowley 00:21:24 (2)
12 Eoghan Corrigan 00:21:37
Poppintree Parkrun (142)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Leon Brady 1 00:17:02
29 Kate Cleary 1 00:22:35
Crusaders AC runner
56 Diarmuid Byrne 00:25:41
Tramore Valley Parkrun (175)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 James Grufferty 1 00:17:30
7 Teresa Murphy 1 00:19:00
Crusaders AC runners
8 Orla Drumm 00:19:13 (2)
119 Mairead Cashman 00:30:04 (34)
Mulingar Parkrun (106)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Micheal Conway 1 00:19:06
7 Melissa Doohan 1 00:20:43
Crusaders AC runner
20 Kate Murray 00:23:14 (4)
Poolbeg Parkrun (166)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Stephen Hurley 1 00:18:03
10 Sophie Bankes 1 00:20:14
Crusaders AC runners
1 Stephen Hurley 00:18:03
6 Rob Glascott 00:19:28
9 Kenan Furlong 00:19:55
13 Paul Campbell 00:20:31
36 Josie Ward 00:22:33 (5)
60 Franky Keane 00:24:39
141 Niamh Trihy 00:31:41 (56)
155 Mari Hansen 00:34:43 (65)
St. Anne’s Parkrun (467)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 Stephen Butler 1 00:16:37
11 Ailis Murtagh 1 00:18:33
Crusaders AC runners
23 Irene Gorman 00:20:03 (4)
67 Michael Maughan 00:21:51
Cabinteely Parkrun (150)
Overall place Name Cat. Place Guntime
1 George Callery 1 00:17:46
9 Derval Devaney 1 00:21:35
Crusaders AC runners
22 Miriam Logan 00:23:40 (2)
46 Olwyn Dunne 00:26:05 (7)
125 Lisa Shine 00:40:19 (54)
126 Máirín Shine 00:40:20 (55)