Hen and Cock

Hill and Dale Race 6

Thursday 10th May 2007

McKibbin now favourite

Hen & Cock is the 6th race of 2007 Blue Lough (www.mountainandwater.com) Hill & Dale Race Series with Father McCann stepping in to take control of the reins just for this year from Brother Morgan. Traditional summer weather has returned and last week’s bone-dry conditions made way for the more usual boggy and damp conditions.

This week’s race became a story of three duels - the two at the front, the next four and the first two ladies. At least these were the visible ones, there were many more amongst the 117 runners that started and finished this classic mountain race. There would have been more runners except for lower than usual turnout from the Mourne Runners club. Some said it was because of the long distance Annalong Horseshoe coming up on the Saturday, but possibly the real truth was that they had not recovered fully from the ‘2-mile mini-marathon’ along Kilkeel Esplanade from earlier in the week.

The start of this race is steep, very steep, straight up the side of Hen Mountain onto its summit crags with the picture showing the sudden jump that the runners need the confidence to spring off towards Cock Mountain. After Hen there is a boggy run across the valley to the grassy gully climb of Cock – steep again and unrelenting until the summit is reached.

The last runner in the field reached the summit of Cock in quite a state of shock to be greeted by the McNeilly clan summit marshal team. “Is this the finish?” he asked. Then he sat down to take in the answer, “no, just make your way back to the start by the same route”. He couldn’t believe it and sat on, “is there an easier way back?” Again the answer was no, just back the way you came and “don’t forget to take in the summit of Hen or it won’t count”. Slowly, the forlorn runner rose to his feet and looked across to Hen and shook the hands of the stern summit team and set off to make the return journey. He made it ok, some five minutes behind the next runner, but he made it nonetheless – turns out he injured himself on the climb of Cock (no sympathy at the summit then), so gets this week’s gallantry award.

The Hill & Dale Series is about racing and serious racing at that, but there is a certain rhythm to each race that includes Peter McGuckin arriving last minute, this week he was unfashionably early at 7.22pm ahead of the Monaghan clan – who themselves as usual just made it to the start but were still in the Horseshoe Bar after the prize giving singing their hearts out when everyone else had gone home. Then there is Brian Campbell, who is improving every week and at 101st will aim to break into the top-100 next week. Jim Erskine has been going best in his life this year and this week was no exception, at 23rd it might seem a bit below par, but he did do the full Belfast Marathon on Monday as a warm-up.

Meanwhile back to the duels, Alan McKibbin shot off to his usual fast start onto the step climb with Neil Carty in his wake. The two reached the summit crags of Hen in less than 7 minutes and stormed off towards Cock. In less than 11 minutes the two emerged on the summit of Hen turning in 17 minutes and 55 seconds and over two minutes clear of the rest of the field.

The ‘rest of the field’ was led by a competitive group of four – Dave McKibbin, Don Travers, Eamon McCrickard and David McNeilly. They each have their own strengths, but it is a race like this that brings them all together into the battle that followed. Travers, from Armagh AC, is arguably going the fastest of the lot. He has recovered quickly from the London Marathon done in the heat in a very respectable 2 hours and 49 minutes. McKibbin would dispute that he is the fastest and that is the great thing about racing, it’s very competitive – for the record Travers pipped McKibbin the last time they raced at the first in the Series in Castlewellan Forest. Then there is McNeilly, returning this year to something approaching his best form (but not there yet), he is a strong climber and a very fast descender too. Finally, McCrickard is an even faster descender, whose climbing is getting better all the time.

Meanwhile, Alan McKibbin had stolen lead on Carty at the front and for those on Hen watching the returning runners, McKibbin was giving another great exhibition of his favourite pastime of refusing to run in a straight line between two points. Those points this week were Cock and Hen and his chosen route looking like a snake. This gave Carty encouragement to hold on and fight all the way as he plotted a more direct course. But it wasn’t going to be enough and McKibbin came home finally an easy winner in 29 minutes and 1 second some 18 seconds ahead of Carty to make it four wins from six and he seems to be building what looks like an unassailable lead for Series title.

The race behind was tight and coming off Cock, McCrickard showed all of his descending powers to hit the lead as the group reached the valley floor. Whether it is a lack of belief in himself or just sheer exhaustion (indeed probably a mix of both), McCrickard could not sustain his third place as they climbed to Hen and instead it was the competitive instinct and superb descending speed of McNeilly who powered down the final descent to come home in 3rd place ahead of McKibbin by only two seconds in a nip and tuck battle. McCrickard was a further 9 seconds back having out kicked Travers by a mere second in another close finish.

BARF’s Jim Brown continued his return to form next in seventh place and first vet45 with Ballydrain’s Dominic McGreevy first vet50 and inside the top ten yet again. Ballymena’s Mark Alexander came home next and first vet35. Ballydrain’s Ronnie Rutherford was first vet55 in 28th overall with his club mate Fred Strickland first vet60 in 56th overall.

The ladies series is still wide open with Martina Hawkins and Alwynne Shannon on two wins after six races, Fiona Maxwell on one and a new winner picking up her first victory for some time this evening. Newcastle AC’s Anne Sandford has always loved Hen & Cock as it suits her climbing and descending strength. Having reclaimed some of her past career form this year through a steady build up of longer training runs in the mountains and some excellent racing. With Shannon chasing her hat trick of victories after last week’s record run, she didn’t legislate for Sandford hanging on to her for the whole race. In fact, Sandford knocked more than a minute and a half off her time on the same course last year to eclipse Shannon in the finishing stages by seven seconds to win in 37 minutes and 20 seconds. Shalene Ward was third lady in just under 40 minutes.

Race seven takes the runners back to Tollymore Forest Park. The Monument Race means the return of the dreaded grass bank finish – registration is in the Main Car Park from 6.30pm.

BOGBOY

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