2012 Race Results and Race Reports
Ballycotton (Cork) 5 mile Road Race 23rd August 2012
A total of 495 runners turned out for this years Ballycotton 5 mile road race, the final race in the Ballycotton 5 Mile Summer Series.
The first 3 miles of the race were pretty easy as they were mostly slightly downhill or flat. The tough work came in the last 2 miles! There was a short but very steep hill just before the 3 mile mark which drastically slowed most of the runners. After that, it was mainly flat with a small bit of uphill and downhill running. The next hard section came after the 4 mile mark where we re-joined the main road going back intoBallycotton. For any of you who have done the Ballycotton 10 road race, this is the famous hill around the 8.5 mile in that race. It’s not that steep but it’s about 400 metres long and it seems to never end as you anxiously await sight of the finish line; a challenging course.
Well done to Ballycotton Running Promotions for a well organised series of races. Having completed all 4 races I now automatically qualify for a place in the Ballycotton 10 Mile Road Race in March 2013…..after finishing the 2012 Ballycotton 10 in a squad car I’ll have to think about that one!
Trudy Murphy.
Tri the Hook – 11 August 2012
Another great turn out for the club on this sunny Saturday, with strong performances from Sean Collier, Tom O’Reilly, Paul Fallon, Gerry, David Lindell, Eric, Richie Bridges, Ray Crosbie, James Browne, Brendan Sidney, Ciara O’Grady and the family relay of Aoife and Fran Traynor. The new swim location and bike and run courses are definite improvements from last year. Choppy waters caused the swim to be shortened to a mad dash out around one buoy. The bike and run course felt quite long and tough with the undulating terrain and rough surfaces. The run route started off with a beautifully scenic section along a cliff which helped to take our minds off the extreme torture which is the post-bike run.
The day was finished off perfectly with a great social event afterwards centered around tea and sambos from the Traynor campervan. Many thanks to Fran and Aoife and Ray and Sinead for the gorgeous food.
Bunclody Sprint Triathlon – 5 August
A great day for the club in Bunclody, with Neal O’Grady victorious for the men, and Kate Kelly third lady. David Mahon narrowly missed out on a prize, coming in 4th overall. Joe Mahon was first junior, and an impressive 6th place overall. John Mahon and Michael Ward also had strong finishes in the top third of competitors. A well organised, relaxed and friendly event credit to Racing 795 club.
Brian Boru Olympic Triathlon – 5 August
Impressive results were also being posted on the other side of the country as Ruth Diegnan and Sean Collier took on this gruelling race in Killaloe. A bad accident on the bike course meant the roads were closed midway through the triathlon so the times for the bike leg were discounted, leaving the race effectively an aquathlon. Sean came 8th overall (2nd in AG) and Ruth 6th lady (2nd in AG).
Kilkenny Triathlon – 28 July 2012
The sun shone on the large Wexford contingent that made their way over to the beautiful Kilkenny Castle. Gwen Cunningham travelled up especially to cheer on everyone from the club, and along with Louise Mahon, was great at motivating all the competitors during the run laps.
Congratulations to John Mahon, Micheal Ward, Phil Murphy and Richie Bridges on their achievements in the Olympic distance. Great work in the sprint distance from Tom O Reilly, Suzanne Wylde, Suzanne Monaghan, David Lindell, James Browne, Eric Pinnaqui, Fran Traynor and Padraig Murphy. Bernie Millar unfortunately had to retire after a puncture.
As has happened many times this year, fast currents in the river meant that the Olympic swim was unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your swimming prowess) shortened to 750m downstream. Reports are that the new courses for the run and bike were pleasing. A sudden downpour was perfectly timed to refresh the competitors on the run leg, although the spectators did not share the triathletes’ enjoyment of this! Bar the common complaint about the poor quality marshalling/signage which left many going around in circles in transition and running past turns on the run, most had an enjoyable race.
Suzanne Monaghan tells me that a few of the hungry post-race athletes took advantage of some free grub courtesy of the competitors of Masterchef Ireland which was being filmed in the grounds of the castle on the day. There were cameras everywhere and some people volunteered to give interviews to camera so watch out for the Padraig Murphy in his Wexford Tri Club top when the series goes out!
Churchtown South (Cork) 5 mile Road Race 27th July 2012
A record 551 runners attended this year’s Churchtown South 5 mile road race, the third race of four in theBallycotton Summer Series.
The weather conditions tuned out dry and sunny for the race; which was quite unexpected after a dull and misty day inCorkand a very heavy shower just half an hour before the start.
Due to the narrow and crowded start to the course accompanied by a nice few potholes and grass growing up the middle of some ‘roads’ runners had to proceed with caution for the first mile or so. The course was essentially 2 laps of a 2.5 mile course with a couple of long drags, which we obviously had to do twice. Having said that, knowing what’s ahead on the second lap did help.
Overall a tough enough course but with my times steadily getting better over the series I’m hopefully for another good time in the last of theBallycotton Summer Series next month.
Trudy Murphy.
Wexford Triathlon Club Mock Triathlon Race Report 21st July
Wexford Triathlon Club held our first mock triathlon of the season, on Saturday the 21st of July, in the beautiful surroundings of Rosslare Strand. It was a gorgeous day, and the sea was as calm as a lake. There was a good turnout, with three visiting members from other clubs around the country, and fourteen year old Irish 1500 m swimming champion, Ben Curran, competing in his first triathlon.
We were treated to professional timing in the form of myself, Joseph and Louise Mahon. There was a lot of subtracting and adding to be done, all done very professionally of course, with some yawns and head scratches in between.
Suzanne Monaghan and Suzanne Wylde opted for an easy course, declining to go for a swim and shortening the run distance to 3k. And to add to the excitement, Ciara O’Grady got lost, did her own run, and that’s all we heard from her. Sean Collier was great and ‘looked after’ Ben on the course, and in transition, got on all his running gear, had a bathroom break, and proceeded to chat to all while putting on his socks. Marie Breen then appeared on her bike, and admitted that she was actually supposed to be at home doing the housework, and proceeded to accompany James on the run. And how proud was I, when my dad, (Phil Murphy), finished first in a time of 1.11! We will never hear the end of it. And, at the end of the race, we all went down to Claudia’s Pantry, and had drinks and a cake. Now that is what I call a good ending!
As Tom would say, RESULT!
By Georgia Mai Murphy (12)
Beast of the East Triathlon – 22 July 2012
Ruth and Gerry tackled and tamed the Beast. Undaunted by murkey, black water, Gerry emerged from the water 8th fastest in his wave. After completing the incredibly tough cycle and run, Ruth secured an age-group win!
Ruth tells me Wicklow tri club put on a super event, a well organised and marshalled event, friendly atmosphere all day, and a lovely BBQ afterwards.
Lough Hyne olympic Triathlon – 14 July 2012
A podium finish for Neal O’Grady in this National Series race: 3rd overall with the fastest bike split on the day. Good work Neal, keep that prize money coming in!
Carrick-on-Suir Sprint Triathlon – Sunday 8th July 2012
Wexford Triathlon club fielded one of the youngest and oldest competitors in the Carrick-on-Suir sprint triathlon last Sunday, and they put their elders and juniors respectively to shame with Joe Mahon placing 30th OVERALL out of 163 finishers, and Marie Casey-Breen leaving twenty or so younger competitors in her wake!
With Joe’s brother David, and father John also competing the stage was set for the battle of the Mahons. Unfortunately David punctured towards the end of the bike leg, a real shame after such a promising start. Despite being relegated to using an “ordinary” bike while the sons took off on the carbon models, John proved once again that, for the bike leg at least, he is still the “Daddy”.
John and Marie were members of Carrick-on-Suir Tri club in the days before Wexford Triathlon club was born, and it is a great local race which I hope to do next year.
John’s summary of the conditions are below:
The swim was interesting (in strong flow: 1.5-2.0m/s, which accounts for the fast times). The cycle was a nice quiet rural triangular circuit (well marshalled) and the run was also interesting! – with so many gone ahead of me, it meant running through pure muck for about 1km alongside the riverbank – and to think we were worried about a short puddle of (clean!) water on our run course the previous day! All in all though a most enjoyable event and hosted by a most welcoming club.
Ironman Austria 1st July 2012
At the beginning of most race reports, clever people like to give a run down on the geography and some background on the race area. As I am useless at geography, all I can tell you about Klagenfurt is it is extremely pretty, with postcard scenes in every direction, glistening lakes and majestic mountains everywhere. It seems to be the country where God stores all his leftover epic landscapes.
Pre race
I arrived in Klagenfurt on the Friday evening, so Saturday was spent registering, attending race briefings, and racking the bike. As I was staying 15k from the event and dependant on scheduled lifts, this took all day. And what a day it was. I had been warned it was going to be hot, but nothing prepared me for the reality of 38 degree heat. It is the kind of heat that makes you want to lie down inside on a cool tile floor and pant like a dog. You sweat when standing still in the shade. I had no idea how I would race in it, and doubts about finishing began to surface. These were justified; I do not work well in heat. There had been murmurings throughout the week about a non wetsuit swim, but I never imagined they actually would do it. So when, after a massive build-up, the non wetsuit swim was confirmed at the race briefing, I was stunned. As was everyone else, it seems. 1500 people gasped in unison when they said it. A few, like me, began laughing hysterically. ‘But, but I bought a 300 quid wetsuit! This isn’t fair!’ J But, them’s the breaks, nothing to do but give it a shot. I lay in bed the night before the race thinking ‘Just survive. Stay on your feet till the end’. In this heat all thoughts of a good finish time were gone, any finish at all would do.
Race morning
I was on autopilot on Sunday morning. I just did what I had to do, and turned up where I needed to be. I pumped my tyres and taped my frozen ride bars to the bike. Met a few familiar faces and some new ones in transition, it was a friendly, if nervous, place. I just felt numb. I did not want to do the race. I was scared, but my thoughts were quiet, not even letting me contemplate what was ahead. Queued for the horrendous portaloos, where my nose clip came in handy, then it was down to the beach of the Worthersee for race start. After few minutes of stillness on the beach with crowds of nervous wannabe ironmen, we were into the water. The start was a bit of a let down, as the lead swimmers ‘forgot’ to stop when heading to the start point, so it turned into an emergency rolling start with no gun.
Swim
In spite of being nervous about the swim, I loved it. The water was warm and clear, vividly blue. I didn’t get hammered in the washing machine, I settled into a rhythm quickly and ended up swimming in a pretty good line to the first marker. The turn to the second marker was easy and sighting a doddle. I thought to myself, that even if the rest went wrong, this swim was wonderful, and I began to enjoy myself. It only got difficult at the turn back towards the canal, when the glare of the sun made it impossible to sight. I think I strayed off course here, but nothing too serious. The canal swim was a big change from the lake, murky and dark, with weeds and mud. But the proximity of the crowds helped, and I knew I was on the 800m home straight. I got out of the water knowing that would be the only time I would be cool all day. Swim time 1hr 55min. A bit off the time I had hoped for, on account of no wetsuit.
Bike
I was dreading the heat and distance of the bike. After a 6 min transition I left an almost empty T1 and headed out. I’m not the world’s best cyclist, all I could hope for here was to keep myself fed properly and get in before the cut-off. Stay alive, in other words. At first it was cool enough, and the downhills made it easy. Even the first drag was not too bad, but I was glad to get to a feed station at 40k. There were some funny sights on the course. A gang of hippies in a rubber dinghy on the roadside, smoking their heads off. A mad irish man yelling ‘gwan the yellabellies!’. Spectators having a bbq complete with marquee… Great fun. The scenery was amazing, and the support was better. At every feed station I took water and banana, and got either hosed down or poured my own warm water bottle over my head before changing it. I was dry five minutes later every time. Boy, it was hot. Like riding in an oven, with solid walls of warm air in the valleys. I drank litres and litres of electrolyte. The end of the first lap was mostly downhill and cooler, but god, the thought of doing it again was rough. My ride bars had turned to soup in their packets, making eating messy. I got covered in melted chocolate. My electrolyte drink was lukewarm no matter how often I topped it up.
The second lap all I could do was suffer it. Get it done. A chat when passing some other slow souls helped, and I did find I was stronger on the hills than anyone left around me on the course, which was a boost. Water,hosedown, eat, sweat, grind, repeat. As I approached the last hill tough hill, I had to psyche myself to push on and get up it. Not that it was that steep, but you just cook once you put the effort in. At the top I had to stop, and lean over the bars, my quads were shaking from effort. Once that was done, I cruised home. I had been watching the clock, and knew I was ok for the cut-off. Part two of three was done. Hallelujah! Now, just the little jog to contend with. Bike time 7hrs 33. About what I expected to do.
Run
My T2 transition took 8 minutes. This was because I sat in the tent, turned out my run bag, and stared at my run shoes, wondering how in the hell I was going to find it in me to cover 42k in this heat. Nothing for it but try. I had seven hours. I’d do it on my knees if I had to.
Usually in a tri, it takes me a few kms to find my run legs. This time though, they refused to play ball. I shuffled, I dragged, I tried really hard, but I had nothing. I ended up walking before the 1km marker, and that was how it continued. In spite of staying constantly soaked, I kept overheating, and my legs felt like lead. I ran a bit, then walked a lot. I wouldn’t call it a run/walk strategy, more of a desperate effort. At 15k, the wheels came off completely. I felt dizzy and disoriented, and went to use a portaloo. Once inside, I had to cling to the walls as the whole thing rattled and shook like it was about to fall over. Except it wasn’t. The shaking was all in my head. I got out and walked again, conscious of the fact that it wouldn’t take much for me to faint, and dnf. I decided that I had all night, so I would walk, and once the sun set, and the temperature fell, if I could, I would hit my groove again. The next 6k was the lowest point. Walking solidly but being passed by everyone, and left for dead by a limerick guy I know who tried his best to get me moving, bless him. The crowds tried to egg me on as well, but I just kept shaking my head. I still tried to take in the sights, and remember this one time event. A girl drumming on a snare drum as her sister hosed us down. Flaming torches on the underpass feed station. Sweet orange segments that tasted like heaven. Passing through the narrow streets with beer drinkers cheering us on. Ringing the town bell on my last run through.
As I got to 21k, a strange thing happened. I started to run more. I was over halfway, and my mind suddenly knew I had broken the back of it and could finish. My speed picked up, and I got more comfortable. I still walked bits, and it was still hell, but bearable hell. I clicked off the kms one by one, until I was 35k into it and the sun had set. Only then did I feel like I normally do, like I could run properly. It still wasn’t fast, but I ran the last 5k without stopping. It was the best part of the whole day.
I ran the last section lost in the pitch dark, asking anyone around which way to go, till I got to the bright section with the banging music, and the final stretch to the finish chute. I had been told to savour this bit, but it went in a flash, I barely remember it. I know I grinned like a loon though, whilst trying not to make a complete eejit of myself by crying. Run time 5hr 10.
Total race time 14hrs 54mins 16 seconds.
Post race
Before I even got to the recovery tent, I was nabbed for a race face picture. It was grim. They couldn’t get me to stand without swaying. It took a very wobbly hour before I felt able to go collect my bike, but after that, I was fine, and watched the fireworks as I walked back from transition.
My time was a disappointment, as I know I had a better time in me, had the weather been kinder and more suited to pale Irish flesh. But I know how I felt on that run, and I know I left absolutely nothing out on that course. I did my best, and 14.54 was it.
The body has survived well, with no soreness, nor any blisters. Just a touch of vertigo to contend with! I’m just left with the haunted feeling that it could have been better…. I guess someday, Ill have to find out. But not any day soon!
Kate Kelly
Athlone olympic distance National Championships – 30 June 2012
Athlone was all about the bike and run this year – a short downstream swim in the honking Shannon didn’t do much to separate the field. Congratulations to Neal O’Grady who was 7th overall (1st in 35-39 AG) and Phil Murphy who was 161 overall (27 in 40-44 AG).
Shanagarry (Cork) 5 mile Road Race 28th June 2012
This was the second race in the 2012 Ballycotton Summer Series in East Cork. A total of 485 runners turned out in the small East Cork village on a wet Thursday evening; however in the end it was dry for most of the race with just some pools of water on the road.
The first mile was pretty fast with a few ups and downs but no major drags. This was followed by a nice flat second mile bringing runners down past Garryvoe beach.
The third mile was not so easy. It was a long gentle uphill section though some quiet country roads which continued onto an easy start to the fourth mile and a great view over the East Cork countryside. Runners then took a very sharp left where the road dropped rapidly but it wasn’t too long before we hit a nasty hill and up to the four mile mark.
For the start of the fifth and final mile we had a gradual climb before the road flattened out. The last half mile was very fast and was slightly downhill all the way to the finish.
A varied little course but not as bad as last month’s race and my finish time reflected this with almost 2 minutes shaved off my Ballyandreen finish time.
Trudy Murphy
West Cork 200 Cycle – 24 June 2012
John Mahon took on this tough, but spectacular, cycle over the hills and hollows of West Cork.
Enniscorthy 5 mile run – 24 June 2012
Closer to home, Phil Murphy had a great run to finish 10th male in the Enniscorthy 5 mile road race.
Ballyandreen (Cork) 5 mile Road Race 24th May 2012
This was the first race in the 2012 Ballycotton Summer Series in East Cork. Under blue skies and sunshine, a record 598 runners took part.
The start of the race was on a very narrow country road (more like a country lane) and it felt crowded but once the race started, it thinned out quickly. The initial mile had a good bit of uphill running, after that it wasn’t too bad although there was a very steep downhill section near the 2 mile mark. The 4th mile was without doubt the hardest. Just after 3.5 miles, we took a sharp left and the ‘Beast of Ballyandreen’ welcomed us!! It was basically a 500 metre slog up a tough ‘little’ hill. I was glad to see the 4 mile mark because after that the last mile was a complete contrast. After an initial flat stage, we soon started running downhill and all the way to the finish which was a very fast mile.
This is not a race to record a PB due to the difficult hills however you will probably record a PB for the last mile. Overall a challenging 5 miles but I was happy to get up those hills with out stopping and can now proudly state that I beat the ‘Beast of Ballyandreen’!!
Trudy Murphy
Hell of the West Triathlon – 23 June 2012
Well done to Marie, Tom and Sean who were flying the Wexford flag in Kilkee at the weekend, taking on the 1600 m swim, 44 km cycle, and 10 km run that make up the notorious Hell of the West triathlon. The Collier comeback looks like it’s on track, and Tom worked hard to take over 5 minutes off his time from last year. Apparently, the goody bag made it well worth the effort. Huge congratulations goes to Marie, who came first in her age category and got the biggest cheer of the day as she crossed the line. Marie has been participating in Hell of the West since its creation 28 years ago and has only missed a handful.
Eireman X Triathlon – 23 June 2012
Meanwhile Gerard MacGabhann was up in Courtown for the Eireman X off-road triathlon. Gerry finished 15 overall, with the 5th fastest swim of the day.
Ironman Regensburg – 17 June 2012
A fantastic result for Alan Ryan: 1st Irish athlete home, 3rd in AG, and 44th overall with an awe-inspiring time of 9:24:59!
Just to reflect on what that time means: Alan swam the equivalent of – 38 x 100’s all off 1:39, followed by just over 5 hrs in the saddle averaging nearly 36kmph and then finished off with a 3:12 marathon. Even Roy Keane couldn’t criticise celebrating this performance! Surely this has to be an inviation to the World Ironman Championships in Hawaii?
Hook or by Crook Triathlon – 16 June 2012
4 Wexford triathletes braved the choppy waters in Dunmore East. Neal O’Grady was 10th overall (2nd in AG). John Mahon shaved over 3 minutes off his time from last year. Andrea O’Neill must be pleased with her bike split which was 3rd fastest in AG (see how those outings with the Wexford Wheelers can pay off!). Congratulations also to Ray Crosbie and Alice Melland for completing this tough course and still managing to smile crossing the finish line.
Skerries Triathlon – 16 June 2012
A podium finish for Ruth Diegnan who was 4th female (1st in AG) over the olympic distance! Aoife Traynor also had a great race over the sprint distance, coming 3rd in 25-29 AG, and narrowly missing a top 10 finish by just 4 seconds.
Results from TriAthy – 2 & 3 June 2012
The club was out in force in Athy the weekend before last. It was great to have the support from fellow club members racing and spectating. Special thanks to photographers Joe and David for going along when they weren’t even racing.
Double Olympic Distance
Hat’s off to Tom, Ruth and Kate for taking on the gruelling double-olympic distance. Ruth came out of the water top in her age-group. I was amazed at how comfortable you all looked after the 3 km swim, and 80 km cycle. Tom in particular looked disturbingly happy midway through the 20 k run! Kate finished strong with a 1:44 run split – very encouraging for her Ironman race in a couple of weeks.
Olympic Distance
In the standard olympic distance race, Neal and Phil stormed home to avoid the impending storm: Phil for a sub-2:30 finish and Neal holding off F1’s Jenson Button to come in 6th place overall and 1st in AG.
Suzanne Monaghan and Stephen had their first bash at the olympic distance. Despite having a calf injury, Stephen managed to drag himself around the run to top off impressive swim and cycle splits. Suzanne trotted out the 10 km run in less than double the time for her 5 km in the sprint last year.
Supersprint Distance
The wind and rain had arrived by the time Ray and Ciara lined up to dip their toes in the water in the supersprint. Nevermind all this ironman hype, they were “going short”. Ciara was delighted to be placed 1st female. A timing chip malfunction means the provisional results put Ray in the water for 20 mins longer than he actually was, but in reality he was bang on his target time.
Sprint Distance
Suzanne Wylde, Alice, Aoife, Dave and Brendan braved the terrible wind and rain on the Sunday for the sprint distance. Aoife was the first Wexford athlete home, with a strong performance throughout. A great result for Dave’s second sprint triathlon: lopping more than 16 minutes off his previous attempt at the distance! Suzanne and Alice had no problems graduating to the sprint distance after the supersprint last year. Congratulations to Brendan for winning his fight with the river bank and rope and completing his first triathlon in a very respectable time!
The Emer Casey 10k Road Race Youghal 20th May 2012
This was the sixth running of the Emer Casey 10k road race in Youghal and it was blue skies and sunshine all the way with a record 484 runners taking part.
The race started high above Youghal town and the first 1.5 miles were very fast as runners headed downhill through country roads and onto the main road into Youghal town. There was a good flat section from here into the town itself with only one gradual climb. As we hit the top of this small hill around 2.6 miles we passed the lighthouse which looks out over stunning views of Youghal harbour. From here it was downhill towards the town itself and a nice flat couple of miles looping around the town which took us under the iconic Clock Gate Tower which I believe was used to hang prisoners …probably best not to dwell on that too much! From about 5.5 miles we had a gentle climb back up passing the lighthouse once again before a downhill and flat section to the finish.
It was a beautiful sunny day and the first real heat of the summer, a welcome break from the cold weather of late! All finishers received a souvenir t-shirt with yummy post race refreshments taking place in the local school. They even had Physiotherapist on hand and live music…..the pain of the post-race rub down was eased by the cheery music J
Fabulous weather, great atmosphere, yummy cakes and my second fastest 10k so well happy J
The atmosphere on the day was fantastic and well done to the Emer Casey Foundation and organisers. All proceeds from the race went to Ovarian/Uterine/Endometrial Cancer Research. More information available on the Emer Casey Foundation website
Trudy Murphy.