Fast Lane 3/4 Marathon / Mr Oil Intermediate Cross Country & Juvenile Uneven Ages / parkrun
Fast Lane 3/4 Marathon
Jamie Jordan was on the road again as she continued her journey towards the Dublin Marathon. The course was set out for 3 laps on a reasonably flat route. Jamie completed her run in 4:04:47 and sets herself up nicely for her marathon in a few weeks.
Congratulations Jamie and best of luck in Dublin.
Mr Oil Intermediate Cross Country & Uneven Age
Fantastic start for Menapians AC to the cross country season with 2 Individual and 2 team medals claimed.
Cross country kicked off 1 week later than planned due to last week's storm. The Intermediate races took place in the scenic surrounding of J.F.K. Park kindly hosted by United Striders. A well known route with good ground is the norm in JFK but Saturdays rain added a little bit of give and unseasonal warm temperatures were the order of the day. Athletes are more used to wet and sloppy with a hint of cold for these races.
In the U15 race Fiachra Mehigan ran an excellent race after his exploits in the recent Kilmore Winter League and claimed a well earned Silver Medal for his efforts.
In the ladies race there was a first taste of cross country running for Ann Thomas and first in a number of years for Helen Wallace but along with the rest of the ladies team they put in absolutely superb performances resulting in Individual Silver for Helen Wallace and overall Team Gold & Team Silver medals.
The ladies efforts as a team team claimed the County Intermediate Cup for the first time in the clubs history and our 2nd team claimed the Team Silver medals showing dedication pays off. Huge congratulations to the ladies, a fantastic result.
2nd Helen Wallace 17:40 Silver medal
5th Catherine O'Connor 20:13
6th Ilze Bedrite 21:54
8th Helen Sinnott 24:04
9th Ann Thomas 25:13
10th Siobhan Doyle 27:40
After the conclusion of the ladies it was the men's turn and we had two competing Tadhg Henderson & John Dier. Both men dug deep with determined energy sapping running which saw them complete the 4 lap route
27th Tadhg Henderson 40:35
28th John Dier 47:09
Many thanks to United Striders Athletic Club for their efforts hosting the event and to Wexford Athletics officials ensuring a smooth timetable was completed.
Thanks also to Helen Sinnott & Tadhg Henderson who again effortlessly managed the entries and results, Siobhan Doyle as County Children's Officer and Senan O'Reilly as County P.R.O. Padraig Kelly and to our support crew of Rob Mehigan, Sharron Dier and Mary Gaynor for travelling to support our athletes.
parkrun
Parkrun celebrated its 20th birthday on Saturday. 20 years since 13 runners and 5 volunteers set out on a journey which ended up as a huge movement I running and people's health & fitness many of whom have gone on to join Athletics clubs.
Enda O'Sullivan was at Knockancree Cloughjordan Parkrun.
Ali Asghar Khoyee was at Brickfields Parkrun in Dublin.
Dermot Foley, Brian Smyth, Martin Kelly, Paul Harpur, Gareth Lloyd, Rob Mehigan Sarah Bermingham Dave Clancy, Mary Cronin, Helen Burrell & Bridie McGuire all completed the Wexford Racecourse Parkrun.
Berlin Marathon / Hardman Valentia Island / parkrun
1/10/2024
Hardman Valentia Island Triathlon
The remote and weather-beaten Valentia Island was put on the map first in 1866 when it became the European end of the first commercially successful transatlantic telegraph cable. These days with mobile internet available everywhere, the original cable building is a museum and the island packed with tourists all summer long.
The holiday season closes every year with what also happens to be the last event on the Triathlon Ireland calendar for the season, Hardman Valentia Island. Given the late September date it was always going to be a gamble with the weather gods. Though a wet and blustery weekend was forecast (much to the delight of us who had resorted to camping due to the lack of available accommodation on the island!), Saturday race-day turned out to be quite pleasant with just one or two brief showers the whole day. A bracing swim from the mainland in cold (12.5 degrees) but beautifully clear water meant we were delighted to get into transition and off on the bike.
The bike course involved a single loop around the island, climbing at first to the top of the island, where the most magnificent scenic view of the mainland, sea, Blasket Islands and Skellig Islands was unveiled, all with the backdrop of a pale blue sky with bubbling clouds on the horizon. This was then followed by a fast and furious descent culminating in the transition back at race HQ in Knightstown.
A quick change of shoes and off for the first half of the 5km run, which is straight up the same hill we had cycled up 35 minutes earlier. This was immediately followed by an equally challenging downhill run after turning back the way we came. Lovely countryside and locals and tourists alike lining the route meant for a really enjoyable and fun atmosphere to the finish line.
Post race celebrations in the hotel and local pub were followed by the real challenge for the weekend that night - surviving the gale force storm in a tent with the family!
The 50th Berlin Marathon
Club member Ollie Stack completed the 50th Anniversary of the Berlin Marathon on Sunday. A great way to see the sights of the city with his brother and be part of a new world record with 54208 finishers on a fun flat course with great support.
parkrun
At Darndale Parkrun Dublin Ali Asghar Khoyee ran his 5k.
A bit further away at Clermont Waterfront Parkrun which runs alongside the scenic Lake Hiawatha Preserve in Florida USA Ryan Ellard ran his 5k making his run possibly the furthest parkrun from home.
At Wexford Racecourse Parkrun Eamonn Foley, John Hyland, Martin Kelly, Micheál Kinsella, Fran Power, John Dier, Gareth Lloyd Brian Smyth, Enda O'Sullivan, Sarah Bermingham, Mary Cronin, Helen Burrell, Michael Murphy & Bridie McGuire all completed their 5k runs.
Dublin Half Marathon / Griffith Avenue Mile / parkrun
Irish Life Half Marathon
Ali Asghar Khoyee continues to enjoy his new favourite distance the Half Marathon. He had set himself a target of dipping under 1 hr 40 mins and he was a very happy man when his time clocked 1 hr 39 min 32 seconds, target achieved.
Congratulations Ali, onwards and upwards from here.
Griffith Avenue Mile
The Griffith Avenue Mile caught the attention of Micheál Kinsella which took place on Sunday morning. A fantastic event where athletes can truly test themselves over the classic mile distance. Micheál ran a cracking time of 6:39 for his Mile , great running Micheál.
parkrun
A special mention this week to Sharron Dier who suffered an unfortunate fall at Wexford Parkrun which required medical attention. Thanks to everyone who helped on the morning.
Enda O'Sullivan completed his 5k at Knockancree Cloughjordan Parkrun.
Gareth Lloyd is still in the UK and this week completed the Bury St Edmunds Parkrun.
At Wexford Racecourse Parkrun Dermot Foley, Brian Smyth, Fran Power, John Hyland, Eamonn Foley, Martin Kelly, Alex Parris, Geoff Hoffheinz, Rob Mehigan, Dave Clancy, Mary Cronin, Linda Leacy, Michael Murphy, Peter Mulvany, Bridie McGuire, Jeanette Mulvany & Helen Burrell all completed their 5k.
Medieval 30k / Kilmore 10k / parkrun
Medieval 30k
Eamonn Foley likes a challenge and today ran the Medieval 30k route in Kilkenny. A race used by a lot of marathon runners as a prelude to Dublin City Marathon . Blessed with a fine morning Eamonn ran really well finishing in 2 hrs 49 minutes.
Super stuff Eamonn, well done.
Toddy Moore 10k, Kilmore
Kilmore AC returned to their 10k around the village this year attracting 77 runners to the race. The route is as good a race route as you can get using the roads from Kilmore village towards Bridgetown and looped back to Kilmore finishing near the school. Jesse, Ilze and Bridie represented the club and thanks Sharron for the action photos and our human megaphone was also present as Niall encouraged the lads home.
Well done to our 3 :
Jesse Kielthy 55:56
Ilze Bedrite 57:18
Bridie McGuire 1:25:19
Well done to Kilmore Athletics Club on a great race.
parkrun
At Wexford Racecourse Parkrun Brian Smyth, John Hyland, Martin Kelly, Geoff Hoffheinz, Alex Parris, Helen Burrell, Mary Cronin, Jeanette Mulvany, Michael Murphy and Peter Mulvany were all busy completing their 5k.
Enda O'Sullivan was at Knockancree Cloughjordan Parkrun.
Ali Asghar Khoyee was at St Anne's Park Parkrun.
Gareth Lloyd was further away at the Irchester Country Parkrun in Northamptonshire.
Dingle Marathon / Ballindaggin 6K / Tried & Tested Triathlon / Club League / parkrun
Dingle Marathon
Helen Wallace who is only recently back from hiking and running her way through the Alps made her way to Dingle with the challenge of a Marathon awaiting her arrival. She had a brilliant run around the course completing the distance in 4:13:14 on one of the most scenic marathon courses in the country. An excellent result in her first marathon.
Congratulations Helen and we hope you enjoy the recovery.
Ballindaggin 6K
Well done to John Dier who ran in the Ballindaggin Community Developement 6k run on Saturday evening. He put in a good shift with a time of 27:35
Congratulations John on being elected Commodore of Kilmore Quay Boat Club.
Tried & Tested Triathlon
Dungarvan triathlon club hosted their Tried & Tested triathlon on Saturday. Held around the beach area of Clonea Strand Donal competed in the Sprint distance and Marion competed in the Olympic distance events. Congratulations to both on their achievement.
Donal Grant 1:27:37 Sprint distance
Marion Galvin 3:29:48 Olympic distance
Menapians Club Summer League
The final event in our summer league was held on Sunday at Wilf’s field. Well done to David Clancy, winner of this years league. We celebrated with tea and cake after on a lovely sunny Sunday afternoon. Well done to all who took part.
parkrun
At Wexford Racecourse Parkrun Dermot Foley, Brian Smyth, John Hyland, Eamonn Foley, Gareth Lloyd, Martin, Alex Parris, Fran Power, Sarah Bermingham, Ollie Stack, Mary Cronin, Linda Leacy, Jeanette Mulvany, Marie Casey Breen, Fiachra Mehigan, Rob Mehigan, Michael Murphy & Bridie McGuire completed their 5k runs.
Enda O'Sullivan was at Dodder Valley Parkrun in Dublin.
Ali Asghar Khoyee was at Griffeen Parkrun in Dublin.
Ironman 70.3 Tallin
Ironman 70.3 Tallin
Super performance by club member Marie Casey-Breen who again won herself a podium finish in the Ironman 70.3 in Tallin at the weekend. Well done Marie!
Pink 5K Dublin
Well done to Marion Galvin who ran the Pink 5k in aid of Breast Cancer which took place in Leopardstown. She completed the 5k in 28:56 while running with friends & family.
Greenway Half Marathon
Rob Casey took on another half marathon , this time the Greenway Half Marathon on the scenic greenway from Kilmacthomas to Ballinroad. He finished the event with a time of 2 hours.
Well done Rob
Tullamore Harriers Half Marathon
Tullamore County Offaly was Jamie Jordan's destination as she took on the Bord na Mona Tullamore Harriers Half Marathon. A superbly organised event by athletes for athletes. Jamie finished strongly in a great time of 2:29:44
Congratulations Jamie.
Pink 8K Kilkenny
Bridie McGuire travelled to Kilkenny City and ran the 8k Pink Run for Breast Cancer. A great finish time of 1 hr 4 minutes.
Well done to you Bridie.
parkrun
It appears that this was a weekend of milestones so we have a few special mentions this weekend:
1 Brian clocked up his 250th Parkrun in Kilkenny
2 Michael clocked up his 250th Parkrun in Wexford
3 Martin clocked up his 200th Parkrun in Wexford
4 Fran clocked up his 150th Parkrun in Wexford
In Wexford Racecourse Parkrun Fiachra Mehigan, John Hyland, Ali Asghar Khoyee, Fran Power, Eamonn Foley, John Dier, Martin Kelly, Gareth Lloyd, Enda O'Sullivan, Rob Mehigan, Sarah Bermingham, Oliver Stack, Mary Cronin, Linda Leacy, Michael Murphy, Sharron Dier, Bridie McGuire, Sinead Ryan & Helen Burrell all completed their 5k.
Kilkenny Parkrun hosted Brian Smyth for his big 5k run.
Clonmel Half / Oilgate 10k & County Half Marathon / Antrim Coast Half / Tri the Hook / parkrun
Clonmel Half Marathon.
A few years back a group of club men travelled to Clonmel to run the half marathon there which incorporated the very scenic Blueway. Today they went again such was their enjoyment of the previous one with Ollie joining them. An early start to drive there but a well organised event with all the essentials - lots of water, a nice training top, a medal as a memento and some light refreshments afterwards.
Well done the the four guys on their results showing regular training pays.
Brian Smyth 1:36:54
Dermot Foley 1:38:04
Ollie Stack 2:05:50
Enda O'Sullivan 2:15:47
Oylegate Half Marathon & 10k
The roads around Oylegate village were awash with athletes on Sunday morning as a 10k loop awaited them with 2 laps for the half marathon and 1 lap for the 10k race.
The club was well represented with Ann, Nora, John, Gareth & Sharron in the 10k and Tadhg, Ciara & Eamon in the half. The rain cleared just in time resulting in a very pleasant morning with a nice cooling breeze at times. Some age category prizes were claimed with John 2nd in his cat, Ann and Nora were both 2nd in their age in the 10k race, well done everyone.
Ciara in her first run for the club was joined by Tadhg and Eamonn in the half with excellent performances from all 3.
Everyone put in great performances in this event and its great to see so many representing the club. Another well organised event which ticks the boxes for athletes around the county.
10k results:
John Dier 51:39
Gareth Lloyd 54:16
Nora Boggan 59:12
Ann Thomas 1:03:23
Sharron Dier 1:23:18
Half Marathon results:
Eamonn Foley 1:46;46
Tadhg Henderson 1:50:43
Ciara Maddock 2:03:50
Antrim Coast Half Marathon
In a third location for members running a half marathon in one day Ali Asghar Khoyee travelled all the way up North to run in the Antrim Coast Half Marathon as a pacer.
He was rewarded with a very scenic but challenging route which he got stuck into completing his run in 2:12:52
Well done Ali and enjoy the recovery.
Tri the Hook
Congratulations to club member Ryan Ellard who competed in the Tri the Hook at the weekend finishing 32nd in 1:25:32, and to club member Marion Galvin finishing in 1:42:20
parkrun
Special mention to Helen & Peter who recorded a new 5k PB for themselves. Also nice to see Martin returning to form.
Brendan Broderick was in his home county and ran the Listowel Parkrun while he was there.
Enda O'Sullivan ran in his home county completing the Knockancree Cloughjordan parkrun.
Peter Mulvany ran the Erris parkrun picking up a new PB time.
Brian Smyth was also back in his home county and ran the Clonmel parkrun.
And at Wexford Racecourse Parkrun John Hyland, Helen Wallace, Fran Power, Eamonn Foley, Martin Kelly, Rob Casey, Paul Harpur, Mary Cronin, Linda Leacy, Michael Murphy, Sharron Dier, Bridie McGuire & Gareth Lloyd all completed their 5k.
Irish Life Frank Duffy 10 Mile / Mr Oil County Road Relays / parkrun
Irish Life Frank Duffy 10 Mile
Ali Ashgar Khoyee has found a distance he likes and travelled to Dublin for this 10 mile event around Phoenix Park.
He had a super run improving on his last outing with a time of 1:16:32 setting a new PB for himself with an improvement of over 4 minutes.
Congratulations Ali, great running.
Mr Oil County Road Relays
The rearranged Road Relays took place at Wexford Racecourse on a very pleasant Sunday morning. Our call for Relay runners during the week was answered and we entered 1 Senior women's teams, 1 Senior men's teams, same again in Masters and finally 2 mixed Relay teams. A brilliant spectator event as the athletes can be seen for almost 3/4 of the loop so watching your club athletes whizz around the 1500m loop before handing over to the next athlete brings extra excitement to the event.
A super haul of medals was their reward for stepping outside their comfort zone and blitzing the laps one by one.
In the Mixed we were gold and silver medal winners.
In the senior ladies we were also gold medal winners and gold in Masters.
And in the senior men's we were silver medal winners and gold in Masters.
Congratulations to all our athletes.
Thanks to the management of Wexford Racecourse for use of the facility, Irish Red Cross for first aid, County board for their organisation, Tadhg who was on entry and result duty as well as running and all the club members who came out to support our runners as we hosted the event.
*Senior Ladies
Gold
Catherine O'Connor, Ann Thomas & Sarah Bermingham
*Senior Men
Silver
Ryan Ellard, Brian Smyth, John Hyland & Rob Casey
*Masters Ladies
Gold
Bridie McGuire, Sharron Dier & Sam Donegan
*Masters Men
Gold
Ali Asghar Khoyee, Ger Mulhall, John Dier & Tadhg Henderson
*Mixed Relay
Gold
Sharron Dier, Ann Thomas, Ryan Ellard & John Dier
Silver
Sarah Bermingham, Bridie McGuire, Ger Mulhall & Rob Casey
parkrun
Parkrun have recently changed there requirements and now each event needs a second Event Director. Our own Brian Smyth has been elected as the 2nd Event Director for Wexford Racecourse Parkrun joining John Dier. Congratulations Brian.
Fiachra us going from strength to strength as he continues to improve his times.
Enda O'Sullivan ran the Knockancree Cloughjordan parkrun.
At Wexford Racecourse Fiachra Mehigan, Micheál Kinsella, John Dier, Gareth Lloyd, John Hyland, Brian, Fran Power, Martin Kelly, Mary Cronin, Linda Leacy, Ollie Stack, Michael Murphy & Sharron Dier all completed their 5k.
United Striders 5k / Gaelforce Bray 10K / parkrun / Menapians League
United Striders 5k
The Greenway is more used to cyclists but on Friday evening it was flooded with 350 athletes as United Striders held their extremely popular 5k run. An A to B route athletes were bussed to the start although some jogged out as their warm up. Blessed with a lovely warm evening the athletes gathered with some watching Ms Adeleke race on stewards phones before the event started.
A very fast course resulted in elite athletes chasing times and PBs seemed to be broken by many on the night including our own Geoff and Fran.
Congratulations to United Striders Athletic Club on a hugely successful event and a welcoming cup of tea with goodies afterwards.
Brian Smyth 19:25
Rob Casey 20:40
Fran Power 21:28
Paul Harpur 22:10
Geoff Hoffheinz 23:43
John Dier 23:56
Darren O'Grady 28:20
Sharron Dier 38:29
Gaelforce Bray 10k
Ilze Bedrite took a drive to Bray on Saturday to run the Bray 10k. A tough 10k route as it involves trail for the most part with the going mostly either uphill or downhill and incluses the Little Sugarloaf. Ilze completed the course in 1:16:08 on the energy sapping route.
parkrun
A combination of no Wexford Racecourse Parkrun and the United Striders 5k on Friday evening saw a much smaller club crew running parkrun at the weekend. Well done to Ryan who had a great run dipping under 20 mins for the first time.
Ali Ashgar Khoyee was on pacing duty again this week in Corkagh Parkrun.
In JFK Ryan Ellard, Dermot & Martin Kelly ran the New Ross Parkrun.
Menapians League
Our club handicap league continued on Sunday with the short but challenging due to the surface beach course over 3 km on Carne Beach. Out and back saw everyone home within 19 minutes leaving plenty of time to take advantage of the good weather with some opting for a soak in the cool Irish sea and others heading to Our Lady’s Island for coffee in the sun. Well done everyone,
Masters Track & Field Tullamore / Leo Carthy 6k
Masters Track & Field Tullamore
A big round of applause please for Catherine O'Connor who yesterday ran the 1500m in the Masters.
She lined up in Heat 2 putting in her usual determined performance where she finished just outside the medals in her age category. She clocked a brilliant time of 6:32.66 for 4th place.
Congratulations Catherine.
Leo Carthy 6k
The Leo Carty 6k run took place on Bank Holiday Sunday morning as part of the weekend festival in Our Lady's Island.
Tony Harpur put in a super run battling for most of the race with another athlete before eventually taking 4th place. Also having very good runs were Ryan Ellard, John Dier & Sharron Dier.
A well organised event over 2 laps of the course and tea/coffee afterwards, what's not to like ?