This is the thirteenth year Ballymena Runners has hosted the Glenariff Mountain Race, supported by the local company Glens of Antrim Potatoes. Mark Alexander commented that it must have been the best weather they had in those 13 years, as indeed the sun was shinning over the Glens and the mountains were looking majestic, green and glorious.
Waterfoot Bay
It’s that time of year again and the races will soon be coming thick and fast and before long you will feel like you have been clobbered by something like a big bag of spuds! Well — it so happens that the first Northern Ireland Championship race at Glengariff next week rewards all participants with a bag of spuds from their sponsor, Glens of Antrim Potatoes so at least you can get some free carbs to help build up for the other races.
Glenariff Glen
The 10 Forest Parks 30 mile Fling, (sequel to The Forest Challenge previously reported) took place on Sunday 2nd March 2014).
Ready for the off!
The first race of nirunning was a fast course . There was a large cross section of members from different running clubs. It was great to see new clubs there that I was never even aware of, until today.
We decided to organise a club Forest Trail challenge covering 7 Forest Park lands in the Greater Belfast area, running them back to back, and using vehicle transition between locations. The date was set as Sunday 2nd February 2014 with a 08.30am briefing and gear check prior to a sharp start at 9am.
A fine bunch of BARFers ready to go at Barnett Demesne.
02/01 Church rd + Glencreagh hills
09/01 Pyramids around Ormeau Park
16/01 Shaws bridge hills
23/01 Hill reps Newtownbreda Road
30/01 Church rd + glencreagh hills
Meeting at the Ozone, Ormeau Embankment 7pm for 7.15 start. Approx 2 hours. All welcome.
Boxing Day is capable of producing an array of winter conditions, most of them tending towards the unpleasant end of the scale, but this year we enjoyed a lovely winters day with sunshine, blue skies and light winds. Given the stormy weather which had preceded Christmas and the horrendous day which followed Boxing day we were indeed lucky to have raced in the lull between two storms.
A cold frosty morning with beautiful blue skies.
As usual at the start line there was a flurry of activity as we checked that everybody was carrying the correct gear and tried to deal with those who always turn up unprepared for the potential dangers and consequences of an accident in the hills in winter. We managed to get everybody kitted out one way or the other and a record number of 95 runners were sent on their way up the Trassey track.
Continue reading
Here are the official results for the 2013 BARF Turkey Trot. A full race report will follow. Well done to all runners, and a big thank you to all involved.
Place Name Club Cat TIME
1 Johnny Steed Ballymena MO 00:46:11
2 Seamus Lynch Newcastle AC* MO 00:46:36
3 Neill Carty North Belfast Harriers V45 00:47:12
4 Eoin Lennon Olympians MO 00:48:27
5 Jack Millar LVO MO 00:50:16
6 Dale Mathers Newry City Runners* V50 00:51:31
7 Alex Brennan Ballymena Runners V40 00:51:34
8 Emmet McAlister Ballymena Runners* MO 00:51:46
9 Cathal McGreevy Team Purple V45 00:52:00
10 Pete Grant Newry City Runners* V45 00:52:24
Saturday 30th November saw an assortment of BARFers decent on Lamb Doyle’s Pub (53.26593, -6.24177) for the Run The Line trail race. Now in its second year, the Dublin Wicklow Mountain Rescue fundraiser has two courses to choose from, an 11.5k short or a more appealing 25k long course. We all signed up for the main event!
The weather on the day was perfect, with bright clear skies, little or no cloud, and a crispness that a thin frost brings to the air!
Thursday Evening Training
5th Church Road & Glencregagh Hills
12th Ring Road
19th Shaws Bridge Hills
We will meet at the reception area of the Ozone Complex, Ormeau Embankment at 7pm for a 7.15 start. All comers welcome.
Climbers can also meet from 5pm for 2 hours of climbing before the run sets off!
BARF!
