Marrakech Marathon & Half Marathon 26/01/25
Paula Simpson and Sarah Gibson didn’t need to board the Marrakech Express to enjoy clear Moroccan skies far away from the chaos of Storm Éowyn at home, as the speedy duo made a return trip to the beautiful Moroccan city for the half marathon and marathon. The relief of the cool early morning start quickly wore off as the temperature rose but Sarah and Paula passed souks, ancient city walls, camels, palm trees and enthusiastic local supporters as they took in the sights of the city and the Atlas Mountains beyond. Sarah finished the marathon in 3:27:00 and Paula completed the half marathon in 1:51:57.
Raheny 5 Mile Road Race and 1 Mile Race 26/01/25
The route of the ever popular Raheny 5 mile road race in North Dublin was subject to a late change in light of weather warnings. The host club, Raheny Shamrocks AC and Gardai worked to ensure a safe course for almost 3800 runners, avoiding any risk of falling trees, changing the start area and including more of the coast road. The feedback from previous runners was positive so perhaps some of these changes will continue into its 42nd edition next year!
Alex Downey won the 1 mile race convincingly in an outstanding time of 4:18. An NDAC member explained just how impressive Alex’s time was as the Irish mile record stood at 4:19 until July 1946!
In the 5 mile race Jessica Craig was the first North Down finisher and 3rd lady in 27:12. Dean Varley finished in 29:11 closely followed by Andy Lowry 29:37. Tara McDonough was 18th in the women’s race, breaking 30 minutes for the first time at this distance to finish in 29:59. Nicola Downey finished in 37:53.
Alex Downey
Jessica Craig
Arc of Attrition, Cornwall 24/01/25
Seán Nickell and Donald Smith’s latest adventure was the 100 mile race at the Arc of Attrition by UTMB in Cornwall following the South West Coast Trail from Coverack to Porthtowan. The 36 hour cut off didn’t deter the North Down men, but they both appreciated that it would be a challenge to meet the interim safety time cut offs at various check points along the route in stormy winter weather whilst traversing clifftop paths through the night. Both made excellent progress past Lizard Point, Penzance and through Lands End but as the sun rose Donald made the check point at Botallack with seconds to spare before setting out on one of the toughest sections towards St Ives. After timing out by a few minutes at St Ives he arrived at the checkpoint to find that Seán who had started in the first wave of runners had also timed out in St Ives. They both covered approximately 80 miles of the course (including 14800 feet of vertical ascent) in 26 hours and whilst disappointed not to finish the event acknowledged that the “attrition” of the race was so demanding that 261 runners completed the route within 36 hours while 255 DNF through injury, exhaustion or missing the safety cut offs.
