GARVEYS SUPERVALUE GALLOP ON THIS SUNDAY.
All roads lead to St Augustine’s College Abbeyside this Sunday 14th October for the West Waterford AC promoted Garveys SuperValue sponsored open event which is now celebrating its 15th year. This race incorporates the county senior championships for men and women and has something to offer all club athletes, runners and joggers. Entries are expected from many of the surrounding counties as well as a huge local involvement. The race has a starting time of 2.30 P.M.As we said the Garveys SuperValue sponsored Gallop has something for everyone what ever your pace or favorite distance there’s something in this event for you. We have the 1 lap run (2km) The 2 lap run (4km) or the 4 laps run (8km). There will be prizes on offer in all events and plenty of spots prizes too, thanks to the generosity of our sponsor Garveys SuperValue Dungarvan.The presentation of prizes will take place after the race upstairs at The Lady Belle in Grattan Square.
PRIZE CATAGORIES
There will be prizes for the first 3 men and first junior plus first over 40, 45,50,55,60 & club teams prizes outside individual winners.
For Women the first three Seniors and 1st Junior plus 1st over 35,40,45,50,55 and 60 club team’s Outside individual prize winners.
A special Garveys beginners 1 lap and 2 lap events for Men and Women will take place also with prizes for first 3 Men and Women over both distances one prize per athlete covering all categories will be adhered to.
DWYER FAMILY SHIELD.
This category is a local area match which has been held since the inaugural race back in 1993.Abbeyside have won this shield over the last three years and last year they were captained by Vincent “Bo Bo” Tutty along with Raivis Zakis, Sandis Bralitis and Conor Murray the other scoring team members, speaking with the Bo last week he duly informs me his team won’t be knocked from their pedestal either this year and local Abbeyside bookies R and R book makers, hot favorites to do a four in a row. Johnny O’Connor and his Dungarvan team have it all to do here to stop the Villagers gallop, but miracles do happen. The Dwyer family shield will be presented to the winning team in the Lady Belle and our thanks to the Dwyer family for their continued support of this race.
FORMER WINNERS OF THE GARVEYS SUPERVALUE EVENT.
1993 Gerry Cantwell, West Waterford,
1994 Mark Radley, West Waterford,
1995 Kieran Maher, West Waterford,
1996 James Sullivan, Waterford AC,
1997 John Daly, Nenagh Olympic,
1998 James Sullivan, Waterford AC,
1999 David Dunne, Clonliffe Harriers,
2000 William Harty K.C.K.,
2001 John Daly, Nenagh Olympic,
2002 William Harty K.C.K.
2003Garret Barry North Cork AC
2004Brian Maher Kilkenny City Harriers AC
2005 Sandis Bralitis West Waterford AC
2006 Sandis Braliti West Waterford AC
CALLING ALL MARATHON RUNNERS HALL OF FAME PHOTOGRAPH AND RUN AT ST.AUGUSTINES COLLEGE.
The club are organising a final get together on this Sunday October 14th at St.Augustines College for all our members taking part in the upcoming Amsterdam and Dublin City Marathon. All of our runners are asked to run in the clubs Garveys Supervalue run. Equally important, we are taking a club photograph in full club gear of all Marathon runners, which should feature, prominently in our club Annual in the New Year.
EUROSPAR AUTUMN LEAGUE.
The Eurospar Autumn League was held in fabulous weather conditions last week and as usual attracted a large crowd. The one Lap League in the Eurospar League is increasing in popularity each week and is a fantastic means for all those wishing to get started. The two lap league is great for those that want to increase the distance a little and the three lap caters for those who either want to increase the distance all the more or who want a bit more experience before joining the four lappers. Whatever your chosen distance or pace, you are always extremely welcome at the Eurospar Autumn League and if you come along any night you will see for yourself that we really do cater for everyone. With only two nights remaining on the League, all regular runners will be determined to do their best and to put in one last effort for the final nights. If you haven’t joined already you are still more than welcome to come along any night that you can make it. The league is held on Tuesday night at 6.30 p.m and the entry fee is just €2 and water is provided at the finish. Best of luck to all participants for the remainder of the league.
DEIRDRE MC CURTIN LEADS THE ONE LAPPERS HOME.
A fine determined run from Deirdre McCurtain meant that she was the first home and recorded a super time of 7.48. This is fine running indeed and hopefully we’ll see more like that. Peter Kiely will be well pleased with his run of 9.02 and he will be pulling out all the stops to run under nine minutes for the one lap on the final night. Rosemarie Fleming will have her sights set on 10 minutes as she has been there or thereabouts with a few weeks so to break 10 minutes will be a just reward for her. Sinead Hogan and Paula Earley had a great battle and recorded 11.12 and 11.16 respectively for their efforts.
TOMMY AND TRIONA BATTLE ON.
A total of 17 took part in the two lap league and there were some great battles in this section. Emer Hurley and Nikki McKenna were close enough during the run but Emer had the edge and clocked 20.17 to Nikki’s 20.27. It’s always great to have somebody close enough to you when you’re running as each person keeps the other going. Speaking of battles, Tommy Lenihan and Triona Whyte couldn’t have had a tougher battle nor could it have been any closer between the two and they ended up with 22.12 and 22.13 with Tommy just ahead on the night. Paula Nugent was hot on their heels with 22.18. The three lap league will certainly be the one to watch on the final night! Well done to all.
CAHILL ON THE MARK.
Well done to Mark Cahill who paced himself to perfection and ran 24.58 for the three laps. This is just under 8.20 per lap of the Friary and shows what improvement Mark has made since he began the league. Paddy Power was well under 27 minutes for the distance and for round four we had a repeat performance from Tracy Dwyer as for the second week running she broke thirty minutes. Onra “powered” to a great finish and was over 20 seconds faster than the previous week. She will have her sights on breaking thirty minutes the next night.
TOM BREAKS 40 MINUTES.
Training is really paying off for Tom Scanlon these days and it was never so evident than in last week’s league. For the four laps of the league Tom knocked chunks off his previous time and was minutes faster. Well done Tom, all the training is worthwhile. Ray Curran is also experiencing huge improvements in his times and will be delighted with 37.10. Alan Hickey is back running the leagues and was very close to breaking 34 minutes on the night. Jim Barry was on the right side of 33 minutes and recorded 32.58, great running Jim. With the amount of time that Jim has been knocking off all along he will surely have 32 minutes as a target. Best of luck to all the participants.
SPONSORS.
West Waterford Athletic Club would like to sincerely thank Ger Enright of Eurospar, Abbeyside for his support of the Eurospar Autumn League. We were delighted to have Ger on board once again as sponsor this year and appreciate his co-operation and generosity.
ELITE PAINTBALL ONE LAP CHALLENGE.
Last week’s entry of 52 was increased by to 53 which all at the club are delighted to see. This proves that more and more are coming along to see what the club’s running leagues are all about and what’s more they are returning each week. As we go to press, there will be just one week remaining in the Elite Paintball One Lap Challenge. As the saying goes “It’s never too late”, so if you have been reading the notes on the leagues and are between two minds about starting running, please come along and have a look and give it one try. This league may be coming to a conclusion but we have more in store for those that want to get fit and healthy. As the bright evenings are closing in on us, the league provides the perfect opportunity to get some fresh air after a day’s work and improve your health. It doesn’t take that long to complete and you will receive encouragement and support from all those around you. The entry fee is just €2 and water is provided at the finish.
Change of starting time.
Would all athletes please note that the league begins at 6.45 as opposed to the usual 7 p.m. start due to the fading light.
BRENDA ON THE HUNT FOR A PERSONAL BEST AS SHIRLEY FLYNN MEETS CHALLENGE.
Brenda Hunt who has recently become a regular member of the Ladies’ Cross Country team had a terrific run for round four of the Elite Paintball One Lap Challenge and for her efforts clocked 7.44, down from 7.53 on the previous week. Another newcomer Deirdre McCurtain, looked very impressive indeed and recorded 7.59. As Deirdre has only just started this league, her time is quite remarkable and no doubt will show more progress as time goes on. Sharon Lynch is another person showing great promise and looks set to beat the nine minute mark before the end of the league. Well done to Shirley Flynn who ran a full lap without stopping and so has passed the challenge with flying colours! This is what the league is all about, setting yourself a goal and achieving it. No doubt, Emer Power’s goal will be to run under 12 minutes as she ran 12.04 for round four. Karolina Mazur will be well pleased with her time, knocking a further 10 seconds off her time. Michael Tutty has been edging closer and closer to an eight minute lap each week and we’ll all look forward to watching him do the honours for the final night. The very best of luck to all the participants on the final night.
SPONSORS.
West Waterford Athletic Club would like to take this opportunity to thank our sponsors Marie and Jeff Allen for their loyalty and support throughout the league. They have been participants from the start of the league and in no small way have contributed to the success of the league. We very much appreciate their presence and support. Many thanks.
ALLROUNDER SPORTS WINTER LEAGUE .
The 14th Annual Allrounder Sports winter league is set to return to the streets of Dungarvan and Abbeyside in the coming weeks and months. Event organizing chairman Gerry Cantwell and his back room team are well on with their preparations for this year’s league. Once again we are delighted to have Pearse Moloney and Allrounder Sports on board as sponsor of the event as he has been for all of the previous 13 years. The league will again this year start and finish at Dungarvan Sports Centre Quanns and we thank Tom Keith and all his staff for always been so helpful to our club over the years we look forward to meeting up with them again for what we hope will be another hugely successful event. With the great work being done by Tony Ryan and his small committee who organise the two leagues currently taking place each week in St Augustine’s College where great numbers are taking part each Tuesday and Thursday, It is hoped that all those will now keep their fitness levels up over the winter months by participating in the Winter league, again as with all West Waterford events all levels will be catered for, We have our usual two distances the 2.7 mile and the 5.7 mile run, so a distance to suit all. Registration night will take place on Wednesday October 24th from 6.30 pm to 7.30 pm and the league proper will start the following Wednesday night October 31st with eight nights of league running before Christmas.
COUNTY NOVICE CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPIONSHIPS LAST SUNDAY.
The Novice County Championships for 2007 were held in the grounds of the Friary College on Sunday last. The weather was ideal for such a course and the club had a fantastic turn out in both the men’s and the ladies’ competitions. First up after the juveniles were the ladies and it is here that they showed their determination and spirit at its finest. West Waterford had a total of nine ladies competing but were facing tough opposition from the ever improving Waterford A.C. From the gun these ladies ran with sheer gusto and were ever so deserving of their team silver and bronze medals. Ann Dunford was the first West Waterford lady home and will be well pleased with her performance on the day. Brenda Hunt, on her second outing with the club had a fantastic run and in the last 200 metres really gave it her all and no doubt helped the team to claim silver. Next up was Ailish Ni hAodha and having put all her injuries behind her showed a great display of cross-country running at its best. Ann Whelan, a regular and dedicated member of the club was the fourth scorer on the day and won for her efforts another silver to add to her ever- increasing collection of cross-country medals. Any day that a club can field more than one team is a great achievement and this we duly did with our second team winning bronze. Brigid Coffey, who is making great strides at cross-country lately led the second team home. Brid Veale was next to cross the line and had a fine run indeed. Josie Ui Chuirrin pulled off a great performance on the day as did Judy Hanrahan. All will be well pleased and will look on this race as a preparation for the busy season ahead. Waterford A.C. Ladies team won gold on the day.
Next up were the men and there was a huge turnout for this event. The competition was high but as usual the men took on the challenge and won the second team prize. The winning Men’s team were Ferrybank on ten points and West Waterford were second on 32 points with Waterford A.C. finishing with 58 points. Rory Moloney got off to a great start and finished 5th which was a fantastic achievement among such a large field. Next to score for West Waterford was Kevin Kenneally in 8th position. Padraig Healy was in 9th place and just after him was Keith Radley. This was club running at its best. Martin McCarthy had a fantastic run on the day and will be well pleased with his finishing position of 11th place. DesFeeney was in hot pursuit of Martin and will be happy with 15th position. Conor Murray who can always be relied upon to represent the club claimed a very credible 20th position. Like the ladies the lads will all now be focusing on the season ahead and using each race to get stronger and faster. Well done to all athletes that represented the club and also to the supporters that turned up to cheer on the athletes.
ALL IRELAND NOVICE AT ST.AUGUSTINES COLLEGE.
We have just received the news that the All-Ireland Novice Cross-Country Championships will be held on home ground in the Friary College. This is a great honour for the club and it will be all systems go in the preparations leading up to the big day on December 16. The juvenile Championships will also be held there. So put that date in your diary and come along and support your club athletes in their bid for All-Ireland glory, both in the juveniles and in the Novice.
RUNNING QUOTE.
I run because it’s my passion, and not just a sport. Every time I walk out the door, I know why I’m going where I’m going and I’m already focused on that special place where I find my peace and solitude. Running, to me, is more than just a physical exercise… it’s a consistent reward for victory. Brett Lynam.
SPECIAL NOTICE TO ELITE PAINTBALL ONE LAP PARTICAPANTS.
Due to fading light next Tuesdays Elite Paintball one lap challenge gets under way at 6.45 PM. sharp
MARATHON CORNER..
How can I estimate my finishing time for my first marathon?
Well-trained runners sometimes can multiply their 10K time in minutes by 4.66 and predict their approximate marathon time. First-timers should probably multiply by 5, and then add some more time for safety. Another rough estimate can be had by multiplying your half-marathon time by two and adding 10 minutes. There also exist various online charts that allow you to predict pace based on your times at shorter distances. But don’t get totally caught up on times. Your first marathon should be more about finishing.
Be realistic.
Your goals should be challenging, but achievable. If you are competing in your very first Marathon your goal is all about getting to the finish line, as you are now coming towards the end of your training schedule, your work load will decrease, don’t try and cram in any extra training as this will have the opposite effect and will just leave you with tired legs, Be realistic.
Put it in writing.
Talking about your goals and writing them down are two completely different things. By writing down the specific steps that you will take to reach your goals, it will give you another reason to stay motivated and stick with your program. Many of the best athletes in the world write down specific goals. You will often see these athletes posting these goals just about anywhere—from their racing shoes to their bedroom wall—their goals are always in front of them.
Reward yourself.
It is very easy to be hard on yourself in the last couple of weeks and it is common to feel that you haven’t enough training done as we approach the big day. Make sure you reward yourself for the progress that you have made along the way. You can do this by taking an extra day off, or enjoying a treat that you gave up during your training. But remember, too much of a good thing will defeat the purpose of your training program, so don’t go overboard and keep your goals in the back of your mind.
Collect yourself.
On race morning find a quiet place, and spend five minutes reviewing your race plan and motivation. "Remind yourself of why you’re there, Take confidence in the months of effort behind you. An exciting and satisfying day is just ahead of you!" If you’re running the race with a training partner, make it a group session: Share your goals with each other for mutual reinforcement.
Start slow.
Run the first two to three miles 10 to 15 seconds per mile slower than goal pace. This preserves precious glycogen stores for later in the race so you can finish strong. When Catherine Ndereba set a world record at the 2001 Chicago Marathon, she eased into things by running the first 5-K at just over 5:40-per-mile pace, and went on to average just under 5:20 per mile for the race.
Think laps, not miles.
Instead of obsessing about each of the 26 miles, I look at each three-mile segment as a lap," says Dowling. "That makes it more manageable mentally. To concentrate on every mile would be like paying attention to the odometer throughout a five-hour drive."
Drink early, drink often.
Take sports drink at the first aid station and every one after. Taking in carbohydrates and fluid early will help postpone or prevent serious dehydration or carbohydrate depletion later, so you’ll be a lot more likely to maintain your pace. "During prolonged exercise, our thirst mechanism doesn’t keep up with our actual needs, Then, as you become dehydrated, less oxygen and fuel is delivered to working muscles, and you run slower.
The work is completed.
With just over one week to go sometimes as we taper down our mileage it is not uncommon that we start to mentally and physically start to feel tired and a much shorter run that we are normally used to seems a difficult task. Well this is just our mind playing tricks with us, we have put in the work, the miles are logged and I promise all will be O.K. on the day. Under no circumstances should we try man make up for lost miles at this stage, No training done now will make a blind bit of difference to our performance on the day, The most important thing for the coming week is to make sure to get at least 8 hours sleep each night. And Relax, Waddle on friends 12 days to go.
