Ballygalget 10k
Ballygalget GAC once again hosted 5k and 10k road races down the peninsula near the club on Easter Sunday. Three North Down AC members, Luke Hamilton, Sophie Hamilton and Pat O’Driscoll raced in the 10k with Sophie collecting a prize as the only under 18 in the race. It appears likely that Pat was the oldest competitor too!
[no results available]
[Sophie & Luke]
[Pat O’Driscoll]
Mark Weir – Denis Rankin Round 30/03/24
The Denis Rankin Round is one of the toughest challenges in the Mournes; it’s not a race but a personal challenge to complete a circuit of more than 90k including 6500m of ascent over a set route summiting the 39 peaks over 400m in either a clockwise or counter clockwise direction within 24 hours. The route starts and finishes at the entrance gate to Donard Park in Newcastle. Mark was accompanied by Seán Nickell who has previously competed the round in both directions, for most of his challenge before injury forced Seán to withdraw after approximately 17 hours. Mark started his round at midnight and elected to go in a clockwise direction meaning Slieve Donald would be his first summit and Slieve Commedagh his final peak before the descent to the saddle and down the Glen River to the finish line in Donard Park. The live tracker supplied by the Denis Rankin committee ensured that friends could follow his progress down to the nail biting finale as he returned to Newcastle within 24 hours in 23:53:33.
[Mark & Seán]
Whitehead 5 mile road race
The oldest road race on the island, the Whitehead Road Race, celebrated its 100th anniversary on the traditional Easter Monday date as 235 runners lined up to complete 3 laps of the Co Antrim town which is far hillier than visitors stepping off a steam train onto its colourful promenade might realise! The sole North Down AC runner to make the trip across the lough was Denis Stewart who finished 80th in 39:09.
[photographers about to move very quickly from the start of this year’s race!]
