So up early and on the road to Charleville by 8:15am on a foggy Sunday morning. It was cold, so very cold but it was clear, not a breeze and perfect conditions for the race. I had a dioralye and the obligatory coffee before setting off and threw a banana into me about 30 mins before the race. I had a couple of friends staying down with me who were also doing the race so after registration we said our good lucks and off I set on a 2 mile warmup. I prefer to do my warmup alone giving me some headspace and time to focus, the quiet before the storm if you will. Target today was to finish in the 75’s, the pace for the recent 10 miler was 5:40 so I reckoned I could shoot for a 5:45 pace and if feeling good I’d push on in the latter stages. PB of 1:16:17 was set 2 months ago in Killarney so I expected at the least today to be setting a new PB.

Got back to the line with minutes to spare, met up with a flew clubmates and hopped in a couple of rows back. Seriously stacked race with some of Irelands finest standing right in front of me, it’s what makes this such a great race and almost spurs you to just knuckle down and get it done when you consider the blistering pace these guys will be going at.

Mile 1 -3

Bang went the hooter, I mean honnnnnk went the gun, well whatever it was we all started running. I quickly moved into step with clubmate DC, we’ve been doing a lot of sessions for DCM together so we’re in similar shape and it was almost assumed we’d work together for this one. We talked beforehand knowing the pace would be quick for the first downhill mile and to not get sucked into it, that plan suited me just fine. It did feel extremely easy for the first half mile and I was surprised to see a 5:30 pace. We naturally eased off as the route levelled out and hit a 5:40 for the first one feeling very comfortable. We gradually started catching a few quick starters but the field was pretty much settled by the 2nd mile, a group of 5-6 were just ahead of us including the 2nd and 3rd females. We clocked off pretty steady splits in the first 3 miles though by mile 3 I was working hard and I expected to be, it’s a half marathon after all.

Splits: 5:40, 5:46: 5:45

Mile 4 -6

The course is advertised as being flat and to be fair it’s flatter than most but not without its drags. I started feeling them in this section, the long stretches seemed never-ending and effort really started feeling hard though we were bang on target. Around the 5th mile we passed the group ahead of us who were all working very well together. I was pretty glad to have DC there, he was most definitely dictating the pace but I made a point of not sticking on his shoulder and letting him do the work, I made sure to run alongside him but by mile 6 I starting tiring and getting seriously concerned as I started falling back. I didn’t expect to be feeling tired and I wasn’t even half way. DC was starting to pull away and I responded a few times getting myself back up to him. He asked me was I ok and I told him to go ahead, I didn’t see any point in chasing a pace I wasn’t capable of at this early stage. Mile 6 was a 5:53 but I knew not to panic though I actually felt like pulling in and stopping. I had to trust my training and get through this patch.

Splits: 5:42, 5:45, 5:53

Mile 7 – 9

I arrived into the village of Kilmallock and I don’t know if it was the change of scenery, the better road surface or the friendly faces on the side of the road but suddenly things felt ok again, not comfortable but manageable. DC was only about 10 meters ahead but he wasn’t pulling away any more so I just focussed on keeping effort steady. I didn’t watch my pace here and ended up clocking good splits for 7 and 8 as we headed out into the countryside, the loneliest patch of the course. I turned off my pace somewhere around here as I just focussed on the runners ahead, there was DC and 3 other guys on my radar, pretty spread out. Having felt good for a while, I must have started tiring on mile 9 though I didn’t realise it until I saw a 5:53 pop up. Sometimes turning the pace off works, sometimes it doesn’t. This time it didn’t seem to help and I ended up relaxing so I made the decision to turn it back on to keep me focussed over the last 4 miles. DC was pulling away now but I was happy with where I was at having responded well to the earlier hiccup. I just needed to focus for 4 more miles.

Splits: 5:43, 5:44, 5:53

Mile 10-13.1

Mile 10 was a key mile for me. I knew I had slowed on the 9th mile and had to respond and I did with a 5:46, back on track and the watch actually really helped me maintain effort here. The undulating country road surface was draining a lot of my energy but I knew once I was back on the main road and feeling ok I’d persevere the last 3. I quickly caught and overtook a fading runner on mile 11 though again I lost concentration and another 5:53 (whats with all the 5:53’s!!). Maybe it was the thought of almost being home but for the next 2 miles I dug deep and pulled out two 5:47 miles, really big miles when I look back and at a time where I was almost throwing in the towel having had so many ups and downs. I was really tiring coming into the last stretch, mile 13 itself is all uphill back to the start line and at one stage I started thinking I’ve done enough I’ll just ease it back home now, almost one eye on the marathon. That all changed when the runner in front of me was drastically slowing, I felt a surge and gave it everything over the last half a mile. I overtook him and I’m not sure where that burst came from, I thought I was wiped. There was a great crowd cheering at the finish including my coach and it was great to get a few cheers from him. I kept it going all the way to the finish crossing 25th in 1:15:40, the last 2 miles key to me getting in under 76 mins. DC was one place ahead of me and about 30 seconds ahead, he was a bit surprised as he thought I was almost done at 6 miles.

Splits: 5:46, 5:53, 5:47, 5:47

13.1 miles in 1:15:40 @ 5:46 min/mile

I had mixed feelings after the race, apart from extreme thirst and exhaustion. Half of me expected a slightly quicker time closer to 75 but the other half was delighted with the fightback and the fact I hit my target. I was a little disappointed with those three 5:53 miles sporadically thrown into the mix, that’s almost 30 seconds lost due to lack of concentration but on the flip side I responded to each of them and they focussed me to get back on track. Maybe because of the good summer I had I’m expecting huge chunks off my PB every time I race but it doesn’t work like that. It seems the more you improve, the less you shave off your PB each time, principle of diminishing returns I salute you.

Overall looking back now I’m very happy with the race, this bodes well for DCM and the training is obviously going well. 3 more hard weeks ahead of me and it’s a case of putting in the miles, staying healthy, avoiding injury and continuing to eat around me.

What an extremely well run race (and what a spread). I know the organiser and I know how passionate he is about athletics and raising funds for North Cork AC and it really showed in the event. At €35 (early bird) this was a real bargain I can’t recommend it enough and I’ll be back for sure.

Looking at my half marathon progression this year, I can’t but be pleased. Back in Bohermeen in March of this year I remember looking at the 75 min guys thinking they were absolute machines and wondering what it takes to get to that level. Little did I know I’d be there myself 6 months later and here I am still complaining 

March – 1:21:50
June – 1:18:40
July – 1:16:17
September – 1:15:40