Club Notes for 10th April 2011

An Epic Voyage at the Titanic sees Eoghan in Seventh Heaven! Article by Joe McCann

Eoghan Totten put in a magnificent performance to claim a fantastic 7th place overall in the Titanic 10k in Belfast on Sunday 10th April.  Eoghan was first junior (under 18) across the line, beating the talented Ryan Holt of Willowfield Temperance Harriers by over a minute. This result is all the more remarkable given that there were 1151 finishers in what is arguably one of the most competitive races in the NI calendar. Eoghan set a blistering pace for the first 5k, clocking 16:09 and was at that point ahead of Paul Rowan, one of the finest runners the province has produced in the last 20 years.  Despite slowing a little in the second half due in all probability to the searing heat on the roads, Eoghan crossed the line in a very fast 33:51 in his first race over the distance and take a few notable scalps in the process.  Eoghan will be a real threat if he and his team of coaches decide that Castlewellan is a suitable race to further showcase his considerable talents.  Kerry Harty was also in action and won the ladies race in 36:11 with 79 seconds to spare over Breege Connolly.  In this her last outing before departing for intensive training in preparation for the track season, Kerry can feel a real sense of accomplishment in her recent performances and will surely set some PBs as the season unfolds.

Junior training: Junior training resumed last Monday, 4th April, and the sight of javelin throwers, long jumpers, sprinters, hurdlers to name but a few was a sight to behold.  The coaches have obviously honed their skills in these disciplines during the short break and have returned full of verve.  Training continues for all juniors on Mondays for the next 9 weeks until the summer recess.

Mourne Peaks Fell Race: The cream of the Fell running fraternity from the length and breadth of the UK assembled en masse for the latest round of the British Mountain Running Championship at Meelmore Lodge on Saturday 9th April.  What lay ahead was 12.5 miles of gruelling climbing (some 6500 feet) and sharp descending over no less than ten of the peaks in the central Mournes.  The race was dominated by Tom Owens and Jethro Lennox who completed a 1, 2 for Shettleston, the adopted club of our very own Dermot ‘wee shug’ McGonigle.  No doubt his knowledge of the mountains he covered with distinction in the past was shared with his colleagues as they prepared for the two hour plus test of endurance.  Top local runners were Des Woods of Mourne Runners in 12th and Jonny Steede from Ballymena in 24th overall, two great performances given the depth of talent on display.  Jim Patterson was the best place Newcastle runner in 65th place, but more importantly first V60 and less than 4 minutes behind Jonathan Graham, who is over 40 years younger!  Eugene McCann and Richard Bell finished 104th and 105th respectively while Laurence Hamilton came in 127th.  Well done to all athletes on completing the most demanding of races.

Ultramarathonman: Demanding races is just the phrase to tantalise the racing taste buds of Paul Fegan who this week competed in an Ultra-Marathon, presuming that the Mourne Peaks did pose a stern enough challenge!  Paul took to the line in the 10th Anniversary Ron Hill Connemarathon.  Set in against the idyllic backdrop of the West of Ireland the 39.3 mile course is a marathon and a half!!!  Paul completed the course in 7 hours 15 minutes and at the end summed up the experience in three words, “A great day.”  Well done Paul.

And Finally… Good luck to everyone in the first race in the Hill and dale Series.  A full report and photographs will be in next week’s Mourne Observer.