Mr. Oil Masters Cross Country
All roads lead to the point to point venue of Lingstown yesterday morning as Kilmore AC hosted the Mr. Oil Masters Cross country. A clever route awaited the athletes incorporating some dry(ish) sections, some wet sections, plenty of mud and a few water features making it a challenging race. Heavy rain overnight also made sure the footwear was nice and muddy.
Our recent purchase of a club gazebo made its debut and was well received by our athletes giving some shelter to change and store our gear and have the welcome cup of tea or coffee from the coffee van (great idea).
As is customary it was ladies first and Helen Sinnott, Mary Gaynor & Ilze Bedrite lined up. Unfortunately due to illness we did not have a ladies team but there were plenty of age category medals on offer so plenty to race for on the 2 and a bit loop course.
Mary Gaynor came home in a fine 10th place claiming Gold O55.
Ilze Bedrite came just 2 place behind her in 12th and claimed Bronze O45.
Helen Sinnott came 16th and claimed Silver O50.
An impressive haul of medals ladies, congratulations.
Next up the mens race and the pace was hot from the start as they faced just under 3 and a half loops of the course.
Tony Harpur was our first man home in 19th just outside the O45 medals.
Dermot Foley was next home in 29th, Brian Smyth in 35th, then the trio of Tadhg Henderson 38th, John Dier 39th & Darren O'Grady 40th place.
Congratulations to John who claimed a Silver O55.
A big thanks to our supporters who travelled down Sharron, Ollie, Gráinne & Fran and thanks to Siobhan Doyle who volunteered on the day.
Big thanks to County Board and hosts Kilmore AC for another fine event.
Next up will be the road races stating with the Novice in March
Croghan Chase 2022
Croghan AC hosted their Croghan Chase 4k & 8k runs on the 27th of December. A very wet day for a road trip as a group of our men headed off to Coolgreaney instead of finishing off their selection boxes.
Martin Kelly, Dermot Foley, Ollie Stack, Eamonn Foley & John Dier all ran the 8k distance over the 2 lap route.
However the excitement was still to come as the journey home was interrupted by a breakdown, a wait for a tow truck, lift from Grainne for some and a nervous wait to see how the breakdown happened for the driver all contributed to an adventure for the lads.
Well done to everyone and thanks to Croghan and Paul Gibbons for the photos.
Mr. Oil Senior Cross Country
Sunday the 18th the Mr. Oil County County Senior Cross Country took place in Piercestown, kindly hosted by DMP AC. After a bitterly cold week the weather changed to wet, damp and grey giving a very different set of underfoot conditions to deal with.
As is customary the ladies were first to race and our own Ciara Dolan 10th, Mary Gaynor 12th, Ilze Bedrite 13th, Catherine O'Connor 14th & Helen Sinnott 15th all performed fantastically well over the 5k race. After the results were calculated our ladies have claimed a Bronze team medal for their efforts in what we think is the first time the club had a full ladies team at this event. A fantastic result and well deserved result for our ladies well done.
The men's race was up next and today we had 2 competitors in the 46 in a really competitive 10k race. Well done to Tony Harpur 30th and John Dier 46th on their runs.
Thanks to all who made the event possible including the hard working County Board and hosts DMP and all volunteers on the day.
Waterford Half Marathon 2022.
Waterford AC held there very popular Half Marathon yesterday around a changed course and they managed to incorporate the scenic Greenway. The weather was unseasonably mild, dry and calm with only a very light drizzle making a brief appearance. 9 of our members went on the road trip to tackle the 21k route, one taking on the distance for the first time.
Brian Smyth was first club member home setting a new pb over 21k. Hot on his tail Tony Harpur was breathing down his neck. Tadhg Henderson was next to finish and Eamonn Foley just after him. Helen Wallace then came in completing her very first half marathon. Darren O'Grady crossed the finish line with Enda O'Sullivan just behind. Louise Henderson & Mary Cronin finished their runs comfortably completing our club interest. Special to Brian, Tadhg, Enda & Mary who only recently completed marathons and then refocused to run the Half.
Well done to all 9 who ran. A great event hosted once again by Waterford AC.
Full results :
Brian Smyth 1:28:52,
Tony Harpur 1:30:08,
Tadhg Henderson 1:45:37,
Eamonn Foley 1:46:59,
Helen Wallace 1:57:35,
Darren O'Grady 1:57:59,
Enda O'Sullivan 2:04:00,
Louise Henderson 2:14:01,
Mary Cronin 2:22:59
Menapians AC 21 year anniversary
Covid 19 was the cause of so much disruption in everyone's lives. Many important events were cancelled delayed or rescheduled time and again as restrictions constantly changed.
One such event was Menapians AC 20 year anniversary which was delayed and finally became our 21st anniversary and as a club it was marked by a fabulous night in Wexford Golf Club on Friday evening.
It was a fantastic occasion as we gathered as a club for the first time since Covid 19 appeared. Our Chairman Oliver Stack welcomed everyone and gave a brief history of the club from its formation in 2001 with 10 members right up to the current day.
Next up Mick McKeon was delighted to present two Malachy Sheridan Awards as we were unable to do so during the pandemic.
Two very deserving recipients were called up to receive their awards - Clodagh Dunbar & Eimear Halpin. Congratulations ladies, well deserved.
A great night of chats, food and for some reconnecting with other members again. Some then rose early on Saturday and ran the parkrun 5k !
Special thanks to Louise for organising the celebrations.
2022 Dublin City Marathon.
The Dublin City Marathon took place this morning taking athletes on a tour of the capital city. Normally we only have 2 or 3 athletes out on the course but this year we had an impressive 7 in total, 6 men & 1 lady. Luckily the weather was dry and cool which suited everyone, athletes and spectators alike. Some were completing a marathon for the first time and others adding another marathon medal to their collection. Some raised funds for charity while others ran purely for personal achievement. A huge achievement getting prepared to get to the start line including lots of long slow runs when you don't feel like it and the popular carb loading.
Huge congratulations to our Magnificent 7 athletes and we all hope you enjoy the recovery.
Thanks also to our supporters who were out on the course.
Full list of Menapian’s AC athletes :
Dermot Foley 3:49:21
Jesse Kielthy 4:19:19
Tadhg Henderson 4:25:45
Paul O'Meara 4:25:51
Mary Cronin 4:46:44
David Clancy 5:01:58
Enda O'Sullivan 5:13:22
Well done folks.
The Leinster Schools Combined events was the competition of choice for Secondary school athletes held recently at the National Indoor Arena Dublin. Two club members were competing in the school colours of St Peters College. A busy day showing their versatility across a number of events and recovery is key as they move from event to event. A 60m sprint, long jump, shot putt, high jump and finishing with a middle distance run.
Elijan Page Redmond was competing in the minor competition finishing 9th.
Lucas Page Redmond was competing in the junior competition finishing 14th.
Well done to them both.
Great Pink 10k Run Kilkenny
The Great Pink Run was held in around the grounds of the beautiful Kilkenny Castle on Sunday last. A huge fundraiser for Breast Cancer Ireland which saw big numbers turn up to run. One of those was our own Enda O'Sullivan who travels quite a bit taking part in a variety of runs of different distances, well done Enda.
Amsterdam Marathon.
As a club Menapians AC are not known for marathon running but the odd member here or there sets out to complete one.
Today our recent recruit to the club, Brian Smyth, travelled to Amsterdam to compete in his first challenge over the marathon distance. In almost perfect weather conditions, with only a slight wind to contend with, he set out on this flat course through the city. With a fantastic atmosphere & music playing along the course, it proved a great encouragement to all participants. A fantastic pacing job throughout as he did the Menapian’s vest proud & finished in a time of 3:35:19.
Congratulations Brian and enjoy the recovery.
The Solas Cancer Support Centre 10k fundraising run made a welcome return to the streets of Waterford on Sunday. A celebration of survivors of cancer and a huge fundraising event welcomed runners and walkers to take part. A number of club athletes laced up and turned up as Helen Sinnott, Orla Redmond, Louise & Tadhg Henderson, Enda O'Sullivan, Therése Byrne, Sinead Ryan & Paula Gondard all completed the 10k route.
Well done guys n gals, it's good to give back to such a worthy charity.
After the unusually fine day last weekend for the Novice CC, today the weather was cooler, a bit more of a breeze and a little damper as athletes headed to Adamstown for the Mr. Oil Intermediate Cross Country races. An 8k race over a 1k course awaited our 4 men who took to the line in the final race of the day. A fair course was laid on with thanks to Adamstown AC who kindly hosted the event in conjunction with Wexford County Board and another well organised event thanks to all who volunteered including our own Senan, Catherine & Padraig.
Well done to our four men for togging out and racing today Gavin Hayes, Rob Casey, John Dier & Darren O'Grady.
Thanks to our support crew on the day who kept our men's spirits up during the race.
