Rising Sun AC 4 mile Road Race (Ballinhassig) - Tues 17th Mar (11am)

Rising Sun Athletic Club are holding their annual 4 mile road race next Tuesday, the 17th of March at 11am. The registration point is the Marian Hall in the middle of Ballinhassig which is just off the main N71 Cork to Bandon road. There is plenty of parking alongside the hall itself.

Race Flyer...Here is some of the info off their race flyer...Rising Sun A.C. ...5th ANNUAL Paddy Desmond Memorial ...4 Mile Road Race ...Tuesday March 17th at 11.00am ...In Ballinhassig....Race H.Q. Marian Hall (lower Ballinhassig) Awards 1st 2nd and 3rd Senior Men and Senior Ladies , 1st 3 Men O 40,45,50,55,60 and 65. , 1st 3 Women O 35,40,45,50,55 and 60. , 1st Wheelchair Athlete. , Entry Fee 8 Euro , Enquiries to Jim Murray 086 3320461. (Flyer HERE)

The course...The race starts about 300 metres away from the Marian Hall. The first section of the race is a tough and uphill drag as you gain height and pass underneath the N71 Cork to Bandon road. Once the hill flattens out, you are on to the old Bandon road and this road is fairly quiet at this time of the morning. There are a few small drags along this section but nothing compared to the inital one at the start.You run into the village of Halfway and then left and out onto the main N71 road. From about the 2 mile mark to about 3.5 miles, the course is flat and going slightly uphill at the end as you run inside a very wide hard shoulder on the road.

After about 3.5 miles, the road begins to climb and the hard shoulder begins to narrow. Soon, you reach a bridge and you can see the road you passed under at the start of the race. Just after this, you turn left and you now have a downhill run all the way to the finish.

Overall...Due to the hill at the start, it's probably not the fastest of 4 mile road races. But seeing as how it is 9 days after Ballycotton and 3 weeks before the UCC 10 km race, it's a good excuse to get out and stretch those legs! In fairness to the members of Rising Sun AC, they are very good at supporting all of the local races so now is your chance to return the compliment....Ballinhassig...11am.

If you want to have a look at the course, I have put it up on the MapMyRun website. Here is the LINK.