The heartbreaking news from the Ironman, in Youghal, that two athletes sadly lost their lives sent shockwaves around sporting circles and further afield. Deepest sympathies to the family and friends of both men. I take it for granted when I go out for a race, an event or a training run that I will come home safely. I often complain about small trivial items after a race, like my own performance, the weather, that a certain mile maker was slightly off and probably a lot more. I have a lot to be thankful for and instead of complaining I should be more appreciative. The tragic news put things in perspective.
Things are tipping away nicely with my training with 2 races in the space of a week and some very good training runs also. The BHAA Stryker 4 mile over a challenging course in Carrigtwohill was my first port of call, followed by the Cork City 10 miler. These were 2 excellent races that will stand to me going forward. The 10 miler was on very familiar terrain around the marina and most runners in Cork know this area like the back of their hand. While the course was excellent and relatively flat, the day was very humid and I found some patches difficult. Speaking to others after the race they also found it difficult. For my efforts, I was awarded with a new ten mile PB by a few seconds, which was a good day’s work.
We had a busy few days in our house recently as Ella celebrated her 16th Birthday. Getting runs in between getting the house ready for the parties was a delicate balancing act. Tuesday was a particularly busy day at work. After getting home I knew I had to get the grass cut as the following day had rain forecast. In the past I would have debated doing a run or not following a busy day. But having not run the previous day, I headed out later than usual. It turned out to be one of those runs that I dream about-Seven wonderful miles! It was one of those runs where I felt like I could go on forever, with an effortless flow and the run seemed to be over in a heartbeat.
I was in Dublin another day this week on taxi duty for a gig and got to run around the Phoenix Park. It’s such a beautiful amenity to have in the city. Even the rain couldn’t dampen my experience of exploring the park. The Charleville Half Marathon is coming up soon and I’m looking forward to the challenge that will represent. I ran it once before and didn’t run particularly well on that day, so hopefully I will rectify that poor run in a few weeks time.
In the meantime, I’ll continue to get out running consistently. Getting runs in when life is busy is critical going forward and I hope to continue that in the weeks ahead. I’ll finish off by getting two cheeky plugs in.
The first is for The Echo Women’s Mini Marathon which I am running in full women’s clothing for Adobe (Doorway to Life Clg). Adobe provides services for people with sensory and physical disabilities and I am delighted to be able to run to try and raise some much needed funds for the people that use the services. My wife Lorna works with Abode and I’ve seen first hand the excellent services the organisation provides. Please find the link below and please donate if you can. Thank you.
https://www.idonate.ie/fundraiser/MartinOleary1
The second plug is a date for the diary for the Churchtown 10 mile road race on the 18th of November at 10am. It’s on a nice route on beautiful country roads. Entries on the link below.
https://eventmaster.ie/event/BvjGH23c8j