Preview of the Cork BHAA 'HSE' 4 mile Road Race - Sun 2nd Nov (11:00am)

Now that the Dublin Marathon is behind us, it's time to take a look at what is happening locally. There are now only 3 BHAA races left in the 2008 calendar, all of them 4 milers. The 3rd last one takes place next Sunday, the 2nd of November on the Marina in Cork City. The registration is at the Lee Rowing Club clubhouse which is located just next to the Pairc Ui Chaoimh GAA stadium. There are plenty of parking spaces available here at the stadium, outside the rowing club and down along the cul-de-sac by the waterfront (Just where the 4 is marked on the map).

They got about 270 at this last year so I would expect something similiar if not closer to 300 this year. The race starts at 11am so it is worth getting there a bit early to avoid the backlog at the sign-on.

Course...They hold a number of 5km and 4m races in this area using different routes. The route shown above is the usual one for the HSE race. You can get a better look at the course at this LINK
So, on to the description. The course is almost dead flat and there are no climbs. The race basically starts on the Marina near the clubhouse, takes in 2 laps of the Centre Park Road and Monaghan Road, and then finishes near the Marina again. You can expect your times to be pretty fast on this course. They only thing that you have to be careful about is the road surface. There are a lot of heavy goods vehicles using these roads and the road surface can be uneven in spots. It is not a big issue but just keep it in mind if you are running close behind someone and your view forward is obstructed.

Overall, this is a nice fast course. The roads are quiet at this time on a Sunday morning and it is one of the few places where you can hold a road race in Cork City without traffic being an issue. There are refreshments available after the race in the clubhouse.