The Great Doneraile SteepleRACE (5k - 3.1 miles) is coming up in Doneraile Park in North Cork on Saturday the 14th of September 2013 at 11am. This is the 6th race of 7 in the Ballyhoura Cork Series.
From the organisers...September 14th, local club Awbeg Valley Athletic Club will host its annual 5k SteepleRace. Borrowing from its history as the location of the first Steeplchase, the 5k will be run between the two local churches and respective Steeples. There are no jumps involved . The run will incorporate the town of Doneraile as well as Doneraile Park itself. The race is the 6th race in the Ballyhoura Cork Road Race series for 2013. This years SteepleRACE will be followed by a Barbecue at Doneraile Court. Entry fee is €5 for the race and €5 for the barbecue.
Start time is at 11am and entries will be taken at the Protestant Church, near the golf course. Entries close at 10.45am. Prizes are as follows...Men & Women 1,2,3 - €75, €50 and €30. Masters men and women - €75, €50 and €30
Location....Doneraile is located about 6 miles or 10 kms to the north-east of Mallow in North Cork.
Preview...A preview of the course with maps, photos & directions can be seen HERE
The Steeplechase......While the word 'steeplechase' today is associated with an Olympic track event or a horse race, the very first steeplechase took place here in Doneraile in the 18th century.
By most accounts, the first steeplechase race was held in 1752 in County Cork, Ireland, where a horseman named O’Callaghan engaged Edmund Blake in a match race, covering approximately 4 1/2 miles from Buttevant Church to St. Mary’s Doneraile, whose tower was known as St. Leger Steeple. Indeed, church steeples were the most prominent — and tallest — landmarks on the landscape, and the sport took its name from the chase to the steeple.
Drawing on that tradition, this 5 km race goes from the steeples of the two churches in the town of Doneraile.
Doneraile 5k race...from steeple to steeple
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