McNeilly a fine third on New Years
Day
New Year's Day dawned dull but with
no real signs of the fury of the weather to be unleashed
on the 215 runners who gathered for the 5.5 miles
'race over the glens' at Glenariff Forest Park.
Right from the gun, pre-race favourite
and defending champion Jarlath Falls of Ballymena
raced away from the rest of the field down the steep
descent. A fast start at the best of times, but forty
minutes before the start of the race, the heavens
had opened with first torrential rain and then sleet
and finally snow. The ground was treacherous and the
turns dangerous but that didn't stop the lead runners
reaching four-minute mile pace as they descended the
initial 400 feet drop. Behind Falls Newcastle AC's
Deon McNeilly had settled in third place.
Where there is a drop in a one-lap race,
there are always climbs and the next ten minutes running
involved a couple of steep climbs sandwiching a steadier
pull along mucky and icy ground. As the runners reached
the top of the forest the views opened up over the
Glens of Antrim closely followed by the icy blast
of the gale force winds and the rush of the snow and
sleet battering already cold faces and legs. This
part of the course was most exposed as the runners
fought their way along the top.
In the ladies race Lagan Valley's Northern
Ireland international runner Jill Shannon had established
a lead over Newcastle AC's Kerry Harty, who in turn
was pulling away from Shannon's club mate Maria Skelton.
Other Newcastle runners well up the field were the
Rodgers brothers and Dermot McGonigle with Anne Sandford
in a nip and tuck battle with City of Derry's Hannah
Shields for the Lady Veterans' win.
There was even more snow as the race
turned for home and at the very summit of the course
about one mile from the finishing line a lone piper
played an eerie lament across the bleak glens. Falls
won from City of Derry's Alan Bogle by 14 seconds
with McNeilly a further 16 seconds back in third place,
securing first veteran. Newcastle AC's Paul Rodgers
is fast returning to fitness and posted a fine seventh
place with McGonigle coming home fourth veteran.
Harty also demonstrated her improving
fitness coming home in 2nd place, 37 seconds behind
Shannon and 40 seconds ahead of Skelton with Sandford
taking second place in the lady veterans to Shields.
Suffering from the extreme cold, ladies Turkey Trot
record breaker Newcastle's Martina Hawkins demonstrated
her guts and determination to come home as 8th lady
overall in a big field.
All in all, this was a fine way to spend
the first day of the New Year and a lesson in preparing
for the weather conditions. How tough they were was
demonstrated that in a short race there were 17 non-finishers.
BOGBOY