Google+ Running in Cork, Ireland

Saturday, November 07, 2026

Results of the 5k parkruns in Cork - Sat 7th Nov 2026

These are the quick links for the 5k parkruns in Co Cork this weekend. If you click on the links, just check that you are looking at this weeks results and not the results from last week.

Full results to follow...

1) Tramore Valley - https://www.parkrun.ie/tramorevalley/results/latestresults/

2) Ballincollig - https://www.parkrun.ie/ballincollig/results/latestresults/

3) Glen River - https://www.parkrun.ie/glenriver/results/latestresults/

4) Midleton Greenway - https://www.parkrun.ie/midletongreenway/results/latestresults/

5) Mallow Castle - https://www.parkrun.ie/mallowcastle/results/latestresults/

6) Macroom - https://www.parkrun.ie/macroomcastledemesne/results/latestresults/

7) Glengarriff - https://www.parkrun.ie/glengarriff/results/latestresults/

8) Bere Island - https://www.parkrun.ie/bereisland/results/latestresults/

9) Castlehaven - https://www.parkrun.ie/castlehaven/results/latestresults/

10) Clonakilty - https://www.parkrun.ie/clonakilty/results/latestresults/

11) Youghal - https://www.parkrun.ie/pobalscoilnatrionoide/results/latestresults/

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CHECK BACK FOR UPDATES

For more information about the weekly 5k parkruns in Co Cork, go to this page HERE.

Guest Post: Sorrow... by Pat Walsh

 * Sorrow *

A difficult week in Irish Athletics and just a bad week in general. The passing of Ciara Mageean has left a void in Irish sport, we have lost an inspirational person who was respected and loved. The talent, the beautiful spirit, the winner. What could she have gone on to achieve, who else could she have inspired. In the prime of her life struck down with all the medical and professional help that surrounds elite athletes. 

No words of mine can make sense or comprehend the loss to her family, friends and all who looked up to her. I never met her and still feel like many in the running community in Ireland she was one of us, a familiar face, a look up to person, a gem.

I have spent years advocating to keep going, keep running, mind yourself, watch your weight, moderation at all times. We all strive to achieve, to be the difference, to live life to the full and hopefully it will see us to old age. Then how do we explain this. I can’t. I’m actually lost. We moan about a sore knee when people are dealing with serious illness. We laugh and joke with friends when we don’t know who is going through a hard time mentally.

Life takes unusual twists and turns and many not in our favour or what we expected. It is called life. Those plans that we have we must not put off. The example we give to others and especially to the younger generation. The ability to stay positive. The life of Ciara exemplified this. I was given a present of her book recently and not sure when I will get the courage to read it. 

I strongly contemplated not writing this as what do I know? Hitting a few keys on the keyboard and you think you can solve it all, but it isn’t like that. I'm as lost as the next man. 

Friday, November 06, 2026

Four generations at the Bere Island parkrun...


Four generations of parkrunners were pictured recently at the Bere Island 5k parkrun!

(L-R) Great granddaughters Crioa and Céala who are currently in training in a Cribb to 5k programme.

Granddaughter Leahanne who has completed 86 parkruns. Daughter Joanne who recently was the first person in Cork to complete 500 parkruns.

And finally great grandmother Finola who is just behind Joanne with 497 parkruns and should soon hit the 500 mark.

Thanks to Proinnsias O'Keeffe for sending on the photo.

Thursday, November 05, 2026

Impact of the summer holiday season on parkrun numbers in Cork (2026)


In this post, we're going to look back at the numbers taking part in the 5k parkruns in Co Cork during the Spring, Summer & Autumn of 2026 and examine what impact holidays and tourism had.

To remove some of the 'noise' and variability from the data, I calculated the average numbers for each month from February to October 2026. The problem with weekly data is that it jumps all over the place and it makes it harder to see a trend.

I have also split the parkruns into three groups... a) The three parkruns in Cork City b) The satellite towns of Midleton, Mallow & Macroom and c) West Cork.

a) The three parkruns in Cork City... Ballincollig, Tramore Valley & Glen River.


I'm not sure what happened in March but it seemed to be the busiest month for both Ballincollig and Tramore Valley.

You'll notice that there is a definite dip in July which is probably the peak of the summer holiday season. The change is about 10% so it's not huge. The fact that both were down suggests that there is something there alright.

The Glen by contrast showed no dip and it increased by about 13% although it wouldn't take that many runners to show a big jump there.

b) The satellite towns of Midleton, Mallow & Macroom


Midleton saw a large jump in April when a lot of runners took part in the parkrun in memory of someone who had recently passed away. During July and August, there did seem to be a noticeable increase in numbers. July was up 19% on June.

Mallow and Macroom seem to be pretty steady and there seems to be a balance between locals going on holidays and visitors taking part.


c) West Cork

West Cork is a different story though and there is a clear sign of visitors causing a jump in numbers.

The numbers at Clonakilty seem reasonably steady except for July & August when the numbers jump about 40%.

The Castlehaven parkrun in Rineen Woods is the smallest parkrun in Co Cork and also the toughest! The big surge in numbers in August is more than double the figure for June.

Glengarriff shows a similar pattern although it's curious as to why it slowly declines from March to June as opposed to staying steady? Like the rest, there is a big jump in numbers in August.

The most dramatic change is on Bere Island with the August numbers jumping about 180% compared to the usual level in the Spring.

If you look at the charts at the top of the post then you can see that during the months of July and August, Bere Island is the 4th largest parkrun in Co Cork and the largest in West Cork.

Think about that for a monment. A 5k parkrun on an island off Castletownbere way down the Beara Peninsula and where most participants have to get a ferry is the fourth largest parkrun in Cork during July and August.

Wednesday, November 04, 2026

Is Triathlon under threat from Hyrox?

 


Most of you will have noticed that over the last year or two, there has been a huge surge of interest in HYROX in both Ireland and abroad. HYROX is an indoor fitness competition that combines running and functional strength training.

It was announced last week that Hyrox became a recognised discipline within World Triathlon which in turn could make it eligible for inclusion at the Olympics.

The sudden announcement hasn't gone down well with all of those involved in Triathlon. In a BBC interview, British triathlete Max Stapley said the following... "I was like, hold on a minute, what's this? We don't even get an early notification, we found out on Instagram. How does Hyrox grow triathlon? If anything they've killed triathlon. Sponsorships have reduced because there's no visibility on TV, you have to pay to watch us.

We are triathletes that do the short distance, which is the Olympic distance, and we've trained all our lives for it. There's no swimming, there's no biking, it's indoors. [Hyrox] has got nothing to do [with triathlon]. It seems like our sport's gone, 'no worries, come along, use our structure, use our access to the International Olympic Committee, and perhaps take our space'.

We've got an opportunity to win medals in Los Angeles [at the 2028 Olympics], but will we have it further down the track?"

The full article can be found on the BBC website HERE


Monday, November 02, 2026

Tony Higgins is the first person in Ireland to earn 1000 parkrun volunteer credits

Tony Higgins & Co at the inaugural parkrun in Carrigaline

Last weekend, Tony Higgins became the first person in Ireland to earn 1000 parkrun volunteer credits!

Not only has he volunteered 1000 times but he has also completed 437 5k parkruns at a total of 101 different events. His home parkrun is Tralee and he has completed 209 there.


Tony is the regional event  ambassador for Munster and helps in the setting up junior & 5km parkruns in the province. Tony who is originally from Cork, works in Kerry General Hospital.


When Tralee parkrun was getting ready to launch back in January 2015, his wife, Maeve said to event director... “I think Tony might enjoy volunteering – he’d like doing the results and taking the photos, but I can tell you he’ll never do a parkrun!” 😂😂

Parkrun Ireland have an article up on their website HERE

Sunday, November 01, 2026

Major problem with Strava using too much mobile data


If you have an Android based mobile phone and you are using the Strava app on it to record exercise sessions, make sure to check how much data you are using.

Looking back on the sessions that I did at the start of October, a workout might use up something like 3 to 10 MB of mobile data which is not really an issue.

I can see that on the 22nd of October, a training session used up 2.18 GB which is 2180 MB! I did a cycle today (Sun 1st Nov 2026) and it used about 1.2 GB so it's still a current problem.

Needless to say, a lot of people are having problems with Strava causing users to exceed the data available on their mobile phone plans and incurring additional charges.

I'm not sure if Stava on Apple iPhones are having the same problem.

If you are using an Android device then check your data limits and be careful how you use Strava.

Saturday, October 31, 2026

Results of the 5k parkruns in Cork - Sat 31st Oct 2026


Saturday 31st of October 2026 - After the torrent of rain and cancellations of last Saturday, there was a full house of parkruns in Co Cork this weekend.

It's amazing to see what a difference the weather makes, both Ballincollig and Tramore Valley more than tripled their number of finishers this week compared to last week.

Macroom celebrated its 600th event and had over 100 finishers, they haven't had over 100 since January of this year.

There were a number of visitors to the new Carrigaline parkrun this weekend and the numbers were at 79 which is fine for this narrow course.

There was a total of 1372 finishers across the eleven events.

Milestones... 

Midleton... Eibhlin Cleary completed her 100th parkrun this weekend and most of them were in Midleton and Youghal.

Tramore Valley... David Lynch completed his 100th parkrun this weekend.


Ballincollig... Martin Lynch taking halloween costumes to the next level when he completed his 300th 5k parkrun at the Ballincollig event this weekend.

23:24 in a clown suit!

At the same event, Peter Shanahan completed his 100th parkrun and 94 of these were at Ballincollig.

Macroom... The Macroom event is the oldest parkrun in Co Cork and it celebrated it's 600th edition this weekend! 



There were 101 finishers which is the 13th highest for this parkrun.

Glengarriff... Well done to Peter O'Brien who earned his 100th volunteer credit!

Bere Island... Edel Murphy completed her 499th parkrun! Just one to go.

Elsewhere...

Dungarvan... Kamila Jakubowska-Switaj is a regular at the parkrun in Ballincollig and she travelled to Dungarvan to do her 250th parkrun.




Results...

Tramore Valley Park - Number of finishers - This week 329, last week 89

Top 3 men & women...
1 Eoghan O'CONNOR Male SM20-24 Belgooly AC 14:50
2 Andrew HINDS Male SM18-19 14:55
3 Naoise MACNIFICO MAC MURCHADHA Male SM18-19 15:51
22 Eilish MALCOLM Female SW25-29 19:35
25 Niamh CRONIN Female VW50-54 St Finbarrs AC 19:48
44 Maria INSA PRAT Female SW25-29 22:04


Ballincollig - Number of finishers - This week 316, last week 95

Top 3 men & women...
1 Sheldon KIRKWOOD Male VM40-44 Leevale AC 18:22
2 Trevor WOODS Male  VM55-59 Cork Triathlon Club 19:23
3 Jim POWER Male SM25-29 19:34
30 Davina FENTON Female VW45-49 Ballinora National School 22:53
36 Ciara FITZPATRICK Female VW40-44 23:14
38 Georgia BURNETT Female SW25-29 23:23


Glen River - Number of finishers - This week 67, last week 28

Top 3 men & women...
1 Donal FALLON Male VM40-44 Mt. Hillary AC 19:47
2 Liam CUNNINGHAM Male VM50-54 Fr Murphy Athletic Club 19:52
3 Diarmuid DEASY Male SM20-24 20:16
14 Mags HASSETT Female VW50-54 St Finbarrs AC 24:11
15 Niamh SHEEHAN Female VW35-39 Togher AC 24:34
18 Eileen KENNY Female VW75-79 St Finbarrs AC 24:55


Carrigaline - Number of finishers - This week 79, last week 53.

Top 3 men & women...
1 Evan FITZGERALD Male SM25-29 West Waterford AC 14:54
2 Peter FENYVESI Male VM50-54 18:40
3 Aaron HORNIBROOK Male VM40-44 19:06
15 Liz O'BRIEN Female VW55-59 23:17
28 Anne Marie SHEEHAN Female VW40-44 Eagle A.C. 25:37
29 Aisling ODONOGHUE Female VW35-39 Team Fitness Goose Running 25:51


Midleton Greenway - Number of finishers - This week 197, last week 76

Top 3 men & women...
1 Darren MCCANN Male VM40-44 17:06
2 Andy GOULDING Male VM40-44 Leevale AC 17:36
3 Martin COLLIER Male VM45-49 17:47
10 Fiona RIORDAN Female SW30-34 Glanmire A.C 19:46
29 Anna ERFURTH Female VW40-44 22:19
31 Sinead FITZGERALD Female VW50-54 22:31


Mallow Castle - Number of finishers - This week 91, last week CANCELLED

Top 3 men & women...
1 Vinny GRIMES Male VM35-39 18:34
2 Finbarr ODWYER Male VM50-54 19:37
3 Will CHARLTON Male SM30-34 20:26
10 Elaine O'CALLAGHAN Female VW40-44 22:48
12 Edel BUCKLEY Female VW40-44 22:55
13 Bernadette O'DRISCOLL Female SW30-34 22:56


Macroom Demesne - Number of finishers - This week 101, last week CANCELLED

Top 3 men & women...
1 Jude MURPHY Male SM18-19 18:37
2 Steven O'KEEFFE Male VM35-39 19:14
3 Cian MCPARLAND Male VM45-49 St Finbarrs AC 19:32
6 Chloe MCCARTHY Female JW15-17 21:04
18 Ellen BURKE Female SW20-24 22:56
33 Karena NÍ CHÁRTHAIGH Female VW45-49 West Muskerry A.C. 26:35


Glengarriff - Number of finishers - This week 61, last week CANCELLED

Top 3 men & women...
1 Jonathan NEVILLE Male VM35-39 18:37
2 Liam OCONNOR Male VM50-54 20:21
3 Finn CONNER Male JM15-17 21:14
6 Sharon LEVIS Female VW45-49 24:38
14 Marian MINEHANE Female VW40-44 27:24
18 Catherine BELAIR Female VW35-39 30:06


Bere Island - Number of finishers - This week 65, last week 15

Top 3 men & women...
1 Joe O NEILL Male SM25-29 20:34
3 Cyril MCNAMARA Male VM60-64 21:48
4 Garry HILLIARD Male VM50-54 St Michael's AC 23:14
2 Genevieve COLLINS Female VW35-39 20:42
6 Farrah O SULLIVAN Female JW15-17 24:45
8 Laoise Ann O SULLIVAN Female JW11-14 25:34


Castlehaven - Number of finishers - 19 this week, 10 last week

Top 3 men & women...
1 Florence FITZGERALD Male VM35-39 22:08
2 Stephen CONNOLLY Male VM45-49 23:41
3 Ben PITTON BRADY Male JM11-14 25:10
9 Celine BUCKLEY Female VW55-59 Castlehaven GAA 31:47
17 Therese LYNCH Female VW65-69 35:46
18 Geraldine RYAN Female VW60-64 Dunboyne AC 36:24

 
Clonakilty - Number of finishers - 47 this week, CANCELLED last week

Top 3 men & women...
1 Simon NOLAN Male VM40-44 17:11
2 Tiarnan O DONOGHUE Male SM18-19 Togher AC 18:01
3 Alex O SHEA Male VM50-54 St Finbarrs AC 19:19
13 Deirdre MCCARTHY Female VW45-49 Manchester Tri Club 23:25
15 Anna O'NEILL Female VW55-59 23:32
16 Saibh GILBERT Female JW10 23:34

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For more information about the weekly 5k parkruns in Co Cork, go to this page HERE.

Guest Post: Halloween ...by Pat Walsh

 ** Halloween **

What is the scariest thing about this coming weekend. Is it the hordes of children in costume roaming the streets or is it the fact the year is drawing to a close and as a runner you wonder what did you do? If like me, you feel underwhelmed by what you achieved, I suppose there is still time to rectify it and get some sense of purpose come years end. We won’t get a second chance at 2026.

Maybe the lesson is to do stuff and not dream or procrastinate about it. Take part, go for it, what is to lose. If you don’t try you can’t succeed, if you don’t even bother trying then you need to have a chat with yourself. There are many who commit may end up walking a major challenge towards the end or get injured in the training process. That showed intent, a purpose, a goal. Don’t ever be afraid to try. 

- “The person in the arena, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly” -

Don’t worry what anyone else thinks. Some of the best critics never get off the couch. Their opinion is worthless. Only the fellow runner in the competition that supports and encourages you is your true friend. Social media is full of bluffs, fakes, AI enhancements to make you feel inadequate. Be you and proud of you. You are the only one that matters anyway. Say: I ran today.

- “It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better.” -

I look back on the Covid times when we could do nothing and we all said once it was over we would change our ways and make life more meaningful. Instead for many the hamster wheel of existence is spinning faster than ever with more commitments and less personal time. What happened our promises to ourselves?

Pick one thing you would like to do before New Years Eve. It doesn’t have to be earth shattering or life changing. It is a simple goal to prove I'm alive and 2026 was a good year. If it is running around your neighbourhood in a scary Halloween costume then so be it. If it a parkrun 5k somewhere nice, or a local charity event or one of the many longer races that pop up this time of year. 

Make it your goal, don’t be scared or frightened of Halloween. 

-- quotes are from Roosevelt – Man in the Arena speech 1910

Have a lovely weekend.

#pwr

Friday, October 30, 2026

Maryborough to Carrs Hill Link to open soon - Nov 2026

 


The team behind the new M28 motorway to Ringaskiddy has announced that the new link road connecting the Maryborough Road to the Carrs Hill road will open in the next two weeks.

As can be seen from the photo above, there is also a new footpath which will give more route options for walkers and runners.

As the map shows above, it's a higher alternative to Maryborough Woods and connects estates like Broadale to the new Bayly estate.

This will hopefully in time connect to the new proposed greenway from Douglas to Carrigaline.









What Cork runners have completed 100 parkruns at more than one event???


Back on the 3rd Oct 2026, I completed my 136th 5k parkrun and my 100th at the Tramore Valley Park event. 

This in itself is nothing too special as there are already 96 Cork runners who have completed 250 or more parkruns and nearly all of them were mostly at one event.

It got me thinking though... 

Q. How many Cork runners have completed 100 parkruns at more than one event?

I checked the data and I found two people who have done a century of parkruns at two events.

1) Proinnsias O'Keeffe (Ballincollig 156 & 140)

2) Olive McCarthy (Glen River 169 & Ballincollig 117)

There are a few others that are closing in on a century at a second parkrun

a) Batt Kearney (Macroom 185 & Ballincollig 90)
b) Tony Cooney (Macroom 106 & Ballincollig 85)
c) Sam De Lint (Tramore Valley 118 & Longford 96)

Ursula Cooney has just to do a few more parkruns to get a double century over the line (Ballincollig  98 & Macroom 96).

If anyone knows of any more then let me know. To keep things Cork based then at least one of the parkruns must be in Co Cork.

Thursday, October 29, 2026

Cloyne 4k Winter Series - Nov 2026 to Mar 2027


The Cloyne 4k Winter Series is a set of five low key races in the village of Cloyne in east Cork with an entry fee of just €5! As can be seen from the flyer above, there are five dates. Complete 4 out of the 5 to get a high tech dry fit top.

Each race starts at 9:30am and registration opens in The Rock Bar (P25 DY72) from 8:30am.

Race prizes for 1st three male and female runners of the overall series and 1st 2nd and 3rd male and female juniors.

Children running must be accompanied by a parent/adult. Organised by Cloyne District Community Council (Registered Charity 20079345)

There are no hidden charges, online fees, one-day licence fees or other add-on's, you just turn up on the day and throw €5 into the biscuit tin.


The start line is 600m away down a narrow country road. The course is essentially one loop with a slight overlap and it's a flat and fast course.


This race is very much in the tradition of many of the old road races in East Cork and the Ballycotton area where the entry fee was very modest for a high quality race.

Tuesday, October 27, 2026

Notice: Newmarket 5k road race - Sun 6th Dec 2026


This popular 5 km road race is coming up in the town of Newmarket in North-West Cork on Sunday the 6th of December 2026. This is a fast 5k course and gets a good turnout every year. The race starts at 1pm.

Entries HERE

As you can see from the race flyer above, one of the main attractions this year is that there is a long sleeve dry-fit top included in the entry.

If you do quite a few road races, you generally end up with plenty of dry fit tops. Most of them will be short sleeve and only suitable for running in the warmer months. It's the long sleeve ones that you keep going back to especially in the winter months when you want to keep your arms warm. Even if you're wearing a running jacket, it's just nicer to have a long sleeve top underneath.


As always, there are lots of generous prizes on offer.

From Duhallow AC... "‘’One of the Fastest 5ks in Ireland‘’

Join us as we celebrate 15 YEARS OF FAST RUNNING at one of Ireland's premier 5K races!
🏁 FAST, FLAT & ACCURATE COURSE
⏱️ Chip timed by MyRunResults
🎯 Perfect for chasing that end-of-year PB!
👕 Exclusive race top for the first 750 online entries (Update: Very limited tops, remaining sizes not guaranteed)

Race tops can be collected by eligible athletes who entered in the first 750 online  at race hq the morning of the race time to be confirmed.  

No on the day entries



Race HQ is the HI-LAND, Newmarket, Co Cork P51CY62

📬 Race numbers posted out this year!
📅 Sunday, 6th December 2026
🕐 1:00 PM
📍 Newmarket, Co. Cork
🏃 Open to ages 13+
👏 A massive thank you to our main sponsor Ayrton Group and all our fantastic local sponsors for their continued support!

🚨 DON'T LEAVE IT TOO LATE! 🚨


🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️🔥 CALLING ALL RUNNERS & RUNNING CLUBS! 🔥🏃‍♀️🏃‍♂️

🏅 NEW FOR 2026 – CLUB TEAM PRIZE MEDALS! 🏅


‘Prizes for one of the Fastest 5ks in Ireland and one of the biggest prize funds over €6000

1st Athlete home wins the Jerh Murphy Perpetual Cup

Prize Fund (ALL CASH)

€350 1st Man and Woman / €250 2nd man and woman / €200 3rd man and woman

Bonus Cash Prize €150 for Breaking course Record – (Men’s- 14:06) (Women’s – 15.49)

1st 6 men and Women over the line
1st Three Juniors Boys & Girls
1st Three Veterans Men over 40,45,50,55,60,65,70,75,80
1st Three Veterans Women over 35, 40,45,50,55,60,65,70,75,80
1st Wheelchair Athlete male/female
1st visually impaired athlete  male/ female 

All prizes will be presented at 14:30pm Sharp at Race HQ

Contact: Donie 086-8149970, Jerry 086-8050821, Jerh 089-4794529



AAI PERMIT GRANTED

Everyone competing in this race are doing so at their own risk, Duhallow A.C. accept no responsibility or liability for any injury, loss of damage to persons or property

Course Preview...Lots more info including directions, photos, course details, etc can be seen HERE

Sunday, October 25, 2026

Results of the Dublin City Marathon - Sun 25th Oct 2026

Corcaigh Abú. Anthony Creed from Cork ran the Irish Life Dublin Marathon last weekend dressed in American Football gear and finished in 3h 18m!

Considering all the rain on Saturday, the weather conditions for the 2026 Dublin Marathon were pretty good with plenty of sunshine even if it was a little windy.

This also doubled up as the National Marathon Championships and these are the provisional medal winners from Cork.

Women 50-54 - 3rd. 3800 Áine O' Donoghue Togher A.C. 3:10:07 

Women 70-74 - 2nd 21954 Anne Sheehy St. Finbarrs A.C. 5:43:03

Men 45-49 1st. 4759 Barry Twohig St. Finbarrs A.C. 2:27:08 

Men 60-64 2nd. 3726 Cathal O' Connell St. Finbarrs A.C. 2:53:04 

 The chip timing results can be seen HERE

Photos...


2) Joe Murphy has loads of pics...



4952. 6005 David Gillick M M40 Dundrum South Dublin A.C. 3:35:58
4954. 6004 Charlotte Gillick W W40 Dundrum South Dublin A.C. 3:35:58

Very long video showing the finish line...



Saturday, October 24, 2026

Weather for the 2026 Dublin Marathon...


After all the rain on Saturday, Sunday looks like it's going to be mostly sunny for the 2026 Dublin marathon. As Storm Boelo moves over Scotland and heads towards Norway, the winds from it will still be very much present on Sunday for the marathon.

Key points...

1) Very windy. Runners will have a headwind from the Start to mile 7, 13 to 15 miles & 24 mile to the finish.

2) 10 deg C. While it's reasonably mild, the wind will make it feel a lot colder, especially for spectators. 

3) Showers. There might be the odd passing shower but nothing persistent.