Newry City Runners celebrate success in 5Ks and 10Ks

The beautiful Dromara Hills were the backdrop for Anthony Morgan as he took on the Dromara 5K on Wednesday night. Indeed, they were not just in the backdrop as he scaled some of them too whilst racing the tough 5K route.

Starting at the Dromara Running Club, next to the Primary School they were into an immediate climb, with a steep uphill start. Thereafter in was ‘undulating’ with a few rolling hills until, in the last mile there was another very challenging climb. The finish however was a dream in comparison, as it was downhill, helping gather momentum onto the flat for roughly the last half mile to the finish line.

The weather was beautiful as after almost two weeks of rain, it took a reprieve and the sun shone making the views all the more spectacular. Anthony Morgan had another great race as he crossed the finish line with a time of 20:41.

Co Down 5K

There was quite a stiff breeze on Friday evening before the start of the Co Down 5K in Downpatrick.

The extremely popular and competitive race draws a high calibre of runners from near and far and consists of 4 different races, according to pace. Race 1 – 30 mins+, Race 2 – 25-30 mins, Race 3 (Elite 5K) Sub 20 and Race 4 – 20-25 mins.

Whilst the course is basically flat, it is mentally challenging as it consists of 7.5 laps, with some sharp corners that could hamper speed.

This was not the case for Lorcan Magee though, who was took part in the second race (22-30). Lorcan ran a great race, finishing in 25:38.

Mo Chara Old Carrick Mill Gin Run 5K

They say that ‘gin makes you sin’ but this Saturday it was a case of ‘gin makes you run’ and fast too, as was proved by all those who took on the Old Carrick Mill Gin Run 5K.

Three members from the club headed to Monaghan for the 5K race, which was in its second consecutive year. Starting at Nuremore Estate it headed through the very scenic countryside featuring local landmarks such as Shriley’s Estate and the iconic Red Door. The start of the race was quite congested as close to 1000 people took part, including walkers, so it took a while to gather momentum to a steady pace. There were some tough climbs too, but all were conquered by the trio and before they knew it the were crossing the finish line at Old Carrick Mill distillery, were a very welcome ‘finishers pack’ was waiting for collection.

The weather has been improving daily, and Saturday was dry and warm, making very pleasant running conditions. Mark Goodman 24:59, Lorna Murphy 25:38 and Dennis Heaney 43:59.

Glenmore Challenge Running Festival

It was another day another race and yet more hills for Anthony Morgan as he headed down to the heart of the Cooley Peninsula for the Glenmore Challenge Running Festival on Saturday morning.

There were four distances to choose from, Marathon, Half Marathon, 10K and 5K, each of which took the runners through the mesmerising Glenmore Valley, so picturesque it made the challenge of the uphill much more doable and pleasant. The flat downhill start became an uphill battle as they were tough and plentiful after the turning point. Anthony smashed all the hills, having another very strong race. He finished in seventh place overall with a Gun-time of 43:35.

A special mention to Willies’ daughter Eimear McCracken who was second lady in the 10-mile race, with a time of 1:15:41

Enniskillen 10K

Paul McCrink and Aine Fegan meanwhile headed to Fermanagh for the Enniskillen 10K road race.

The course was more than undulating, described as moderately hilly, there were a few tight climbs, particularly toward the end of the route, and hairpin turns to negotiate, which could have impeded speed. Starting from Enniskillen Castle they headed out through the surrounding countryside, through Castle Coole to the finish line at Derrychara Playing Fields.

Both Paul and Aine ran a powerful race. Paul finished in 43:28 (a PB of 10 seconds) and Aine finished 1st in her age category in 45:09.

City Parkrun, Craigavon

Ruairi Donnelly completed City Parkrun in Craigavon in 17:47.

Hillsborough Parkrun

Ryan Corrin ran at Hillsborough Parkrun, finishing in 18:36.

Lower Drummans Parkrun

Hayley McAteer completed not only Parkrun 218, but also has now done 120 different Parkruns, 94 of which are in Ireland and the Lower Drummans Parkrun (also unofficially known as Magillian Prison Parkrun) was the latest of these and she finished in 19:51.

Newry Greenway Parkrun

Four members completed Newry Greenway Parkrun; Chris Devine 19:30, Ruth Black 27:03 (course PB), Aisha Topia 29:33 (course PB) and James McEvoy 33:27.

Special mention to young Maria Devine who ran a time of 22:42.

Congratulations

Congratulations must go to our fellow runners - 'Murdock 110KM Challenge' who completed an incredible 110KM in on Friday morning. The team - Kevin Murdock, Connor Gough, Stephen Patterson and Drew Fowler completed the challenge by running 110KM across all 11 Murdock Builders Merchants branches in just 24 hours.

This was a challenge was both mentally and physically challenging as they battled fatigue through the night, with each step becoming more difficult.

It was all in aid of three very deserving charities: Daisy Lodge Cancer Fund for Children, Down's Syndrome Association and MND Association.

If you would like to support these excellent charities, you can do so on the Go Fund Me page - www.gofundme.com/f/murdock-110km

Upcoming events:

Sunday Bun Run:

The next Sunday Bun Run will take place on 28th June at 10:00. Everyone is welcome to this easy 3-mile jaunt around the town at a nice easy pace, as fast as the slowest runner! We all stay together.

Keep an eye on our social media pages and in the local press for further details.

We hope to see you all there.

Willies 5 x 5K Summer Series:

With the Advent of Summer in the not-too-distant future, we are delighted to report that the very successful Willies 5K x 5 Series returned with great success on Thursday 14th May at 19:30, followed by another great turnout on Thursday 04th June. This 5K event takes place once a month x 5 at WIN Industrial Estate along the Canal Tow Path, with the last event in the series being handicapped.

The first four rounds will be a ‘mass start’, at the end of each race, give your name and time to the ‘timekeeper’. The times will be recorded which will be used to calculate your ‘handicap’ for the 5th and final race of the series. This system gives all participating an equal opportunity of winning the series.

There will also be prizes for the first three runners in both male and female categories across the finish line. There will also be prizes for the most improved in the male and female categories.

In addition, there will now be a Junior Race (under 18). In this race there will also be prizes for the first three runners in both male and female categories.

Some rules and regulations that must be adhered to are:

To run in the 5K you must be at least 11 years old to run by yourself.

If under 11 years of age, you must run alongside a responsible adult for the duration of the race

Dates of Races (subject to change): Thursday 23rd July, 19:30; Thursday 13th August, 19:30; Thursday 20th August, 19:30.

As always, the entire proceeds of the series go to Charity, being Evora Hospice, all we ask for the entry fee is a minimum donation of £3.

The first event in the series takes place on Thursday 23rd July at 19:30.

Training:

Club Training continues each week St Colman’s Running Track on Tuesday evening at 19.00 sharp.

Thursday evening club meeting point is outside The Quays in Newry at 19:00 and it is a run for all levels; all are very welcome.