(Photos courtesy of Keith McClure Photography)

Race Report by BOGBOY

The NI & Ulster Senior Cross-Country Championships returned to Ulster University at Coleraine for the first time in several years, sponsored by local estate agents and former international athlete Phil Tweedie, on Saturday. Newcastle & District Athletic Club have won the title once, 2016, and City of Derry were back to try and secure a 4th team title in a row. The most successful cross-country captain in the club’s history, David O’Flaherty, whose reign (after taking over from David McNeilly’s successful captaincy) stretches back to Cross-Country League win in 2017, bronze in the Senior Champs, a team victory in the Intermediate where Zak Hanna won with Patrick McNiff 2nd plus team medals at the Irish XC Champs in Divisions 3 and then 2. This year again the bus of ‘maybes’ turned into a bus of ‘definites’ and 17 runners and ‘one hanger on’ set off for the north coast, or at least almost to the north coast in typical February wintry conditions. Continue reading →

A special report by Bogusboy

As the New Year dawns, plans are made, priorities set, goals established and milestones identified as barometers of progress along the way. For many one such goal is a Spring Marathon or Half. This means that training starts in early January as the 16 week programme is drawn up. February marks the end of the first quarter of training and many like to get a race in to see how things are progressing and the extent to which fitness levels have improved.

Training has been intense

Since the beginning of 2020, a lot of effort has been made by club members preparing for spring marathons. January has meant 4 tough Tuesday speed sessions, 4 Thursday tempo runs at increasing pace and 4 Sunday long runs of 13, 13, 15 and 17 miles in preparation for London, Belfast or one of the other marathons taking place around the same time.  Athletes are putting in between 40 and 70 miles each week in training, evidence of commitment, lunacy or both! Two races are regularly identified as markers of progress along the way – Trim 10m (2 February) and Bohermeen Spring Half Marathon (12 March).

Trim

The Trim 10 Mile Road Race is a relatively flat and fast course (as evidenced by the winning time of 48 minutes!) that attracts large numbers for the reasons outlined above. The Meath town was awash with colour as 1526 took the line, many racing for the first time this year. NAC is usually very well represented at this event and this year 5 of those entered made the trip south through Slane to test their speed and endurance over a favourable course. Conditions were ideal in the early stages and one could have been forgiven for thinking it was early may as the sun shone brightly in temperatures around 14 degrees. However, in the slightly hillier and more undulating second half, the wind picked up and made for a tougher finish than might have been anticipated. Continue reading →

NI & Ulster Intermediate Cross-Country 2020 (Gosford Forest Park)

Photos courtesy of Paul Fegan & Bogboy

New Year, New Decade – darker January days to start with and runners seeing what can be achieved on race day after all the work in the latter days and weeks of 2019. January is mainly about cross-country (and also probably putting in the miles for the spring marathon up ahead when the days lengthen once again).

It was Patrick McNiff’s day. Building on his breakthrough performance a fortnight earlier in Scotland, McNiff led the field from start to finish in the NI & Ulster Intermediate 8k Cross-Country Championship to keep the title in the club after last year’s victory from Zak Hanna. Conditions were firm which made a change from most of the other races of the winter where mud had been the order to the day.

Continue reading →

Stirling International Cross-Country (11th January)

Club youngsters Patrick McNiff (20) and Zak Hanna (24) were members of the NI & Ulster U23 and Senior teams respectively for the race under the shadow of Stirling Castle in Scotland on the 2nd Saturday in January. Traditional ‘old school’ cross-country was served up with torrential rain, mud, mud and more mud underfoot and spartan changing conditions – a waterlogged tent and the opportunity to shower back at the hotel accommodation in the ‘spa’ where staff had clearly never seen muck like it and were quickly keen to see the back of the runners.

McNiff had an indifferent early cross-country season with an excellent first senior vest at the Bobby Rea International in November at the Billy Neill Playing Fields coming home in 11th place in bitter conditions of torrential cold rain and mud. However, he had a tough day at the office a fortnight later dropping out of the U23 National Cross-Country Championships in Abbotstown, Dublin. After another solid period of training he made the trip to Stirling knowing that he was ‘in the shape of his (young) life’ and he duly delivered. Continue reading →