Hill triumphs at the Lake
Colm Hill and Paul Nolan
It was a battle seen by many as one between the “master and the apprentice” of the fine art of running over rough ground as Paul Nolan and Colm Hill went head-to-head at Tonelagee and the Lake (the lake this year being run clockwise)…
Both runners learnt their off-road trade amongst the orienteers and with Paul Nolan representing the “Great Eastern Navigators” (GEN) and Hill the Curragh Naas Orienteering Club (CNOC), the race also had a battle of the clubs (and the acronyms!). IMRA nostalgics would have been heartened by the return of Paul Nolan, who may well have won more IMRA races than any other runner but has seen his career haunted by injury in recent years.
Men’s M50 winner Adrian Tucker mused after the race that the course could compete with many of the classic fell races in England, despite its shortness, but left the question unanswered of whether a clockwise lap was significantly faster than an anti-clockwise one (finishing within one second of his time the previous year).
Ahead of him Colm Hill had set proceedings in motion as he took the lead with Paul Nolan and another experienced mountain runner, Turlough Conway, watching with interest on the early stages of the one mile climb to the summit of Tonelagee. Nolan took the lead further up and rounded the cairn in the lead; Conway had dropped back while Hill remained his constant companion during this section and the two leaders enjoyed a tit-for-tat downhill until Nolan looked briefly to threaten with a break-away on the steep ascent back.
Hill didn’t let a gap materialise in the end and broke away for a small lead on the return to the cairn extending it to over a minute on the final descent.
In third, Bernard Fortune had come through strongly and employed his trademark scintillating descent to finish well clear of any other podium-seekers in the race. Women were sparse in small field but victor’s laurels would still have been sweet praise for Melanie Earwaker who won ahead of Roisin McDonnell.
Results now online over at IMRA.
WAR returns
The previous day, in Glendalough valley only a few kilometres away, competitors faced not one mountain but three runs, three bike rides and one stint of kayaking on Lough Dan to complete the second running of the Wicklow Adventure Race (WAR).
Triathlete Kevin Dunne beat off more than 260 competitors to take the win in the Adventure category, just over half a minute ahead of Aiden Campbell and Brendan Scullion. Catherine Devitt won the women’s competition.
Munster Mountain running
Meanwhile in the south of Ireland, the second regional championship kicked off as Munster’s finest went to battle and it proved a tight affair at Claragh Mountain. Four men broke Martin Bradshaw’s record of 31:41 as Paul Tierney, having romped to victory in the Wicklow Way Ultra, showed he could secure a win in only seven kilometres as well. It was nearly not enough: Rob Cleary followed only a second behind with Mike Cunningham next and Stephen, the second Cleary brother, the final record-breaker in fourth.
Mary Louise Ryan, the defending champion, had a strong start finishing well clear of Carol Finn and Sarah Hudson.
Results now online over at IMRA.
