Preview of the Youghal 'Emer Casey Memorial' 10km road race - Sun 25th May (3pm)
This charity 10km road race and walk takes place next Sunday in the town of Youghal in East Cork at 3pm. The is the 2nd year of this event and it's purpose is to raise funds for cancer research. You can find out more about the Emer Casey Foundation at this link...http://www.emercaseyfoundation.com/index.php


Registration...
If you are coming from Cork and as you approach Youghal, stay on the bypass. At the top of the hill, take the 1st left. You then go left again, cross over the bridge over the bypass and head in towards Youghal. (If you are coming from Waterford, take the bypass and at the highest point, take the slip road left before the bridge. Proceed towards Youghal).
As you head towards Youghal, you'll see the Pobalscoil na Trionoide school where you register for the race. Seeing as how this is a charity event, the entry fee is €20.


Course...
By all accounts, it looks like it should be a fast course. The race starts on a height near the registration point. You then run towards the bypass but you turn off left before you get anywhere near it. Then, its a steady drop down until you join the main road into Youghal. The race then basically goes through the town to the far side and then turns around and returns through the town again. The only hill worth talking about is the slight drag after 5.5 miles when you need to pass the small lighthouse on the left. Then around the corner, stay left and finish near the beachfront.

If you want to have a closer look at the course, I have put the route up on the MapMyRun website.

Overall...
This race is for a good cause and it's worth attending for that reason alone. However, if you are running the full Marathon in Cork, you really must make sure that you do not run too fast. It's just way too close to the Marathon to be doing a fast 10km. Take it easy and jog around. For anyone else, it should be all guns blazing as usual!! ;o) The current forecast is for a bright dry day.