€22,000 grant secured for investigation of new Greenways in the Kinsale area

The  Kinsale and District Greenway / Blueway Project has the backing of several community groups in the Kinsale area with the aim of opening up new walking and cycling routes in the area. They have now successfully secured a €22,000 grant to undertake a feasibility study.

5.5 Flagship Project... 

Objective:To create a physical connection between the different communities in the area. The geography of the area offers the possibility of a combined Greenway and Blueway and its design would exemplify our core concept of Care for our wellbeing and our environment and highlight our local heritage and biodiversity. 

 7.4 Blueway-Greenway for Area: Initial Scoping for Walkways and Cycleways

We  propose that  Cork  be  the  first  county  to  open  a  complete  coastal  trail  along  its  1100  km  of  coastline:  starting here!•Development  of  a  Coastal  Walk  Route  from  James  Fort  /  Dock  to  Sandycove  and  on  to  Garretstown / Old Head in cooperation with landowners as was used for the Seven Heads and Sheep’s Head ways. This would join up with Garrylucas to Garretstown Walk already in place.•Charles Fort to James Fort is currently a well walked route.•Charles Fort to Preghane Point, Hangman’s Point and onto Ballymacus Strand and Ferry Point at Rathmore with landowner’s co-operation. 

There is a heritage site (Wedge Tomb) at Ballymacus, known as The Prince’s Bed.•Extend Charles Fort / Preghane eastward toward Oysterhaven, Novohal Cove and Robert’s Covevia an extension of the Belgooly estuary walkway to the town of Kinsale. Originally funded by West Cork Leader and the local community, the extension would enhance the 1.836 km corridor on the R600, which is home to a diverse ecological system and natural bird reserve.Walks adjacent to Bandon river e.g. at Shippool Castle,  Shippool Wood and Dunderrow Forest. There is also the potential of a looped walk south of Dunderrow in the Ballywilliam area if it could be linked upstream at the Old Bridge, subject to co-operation of landowners. These would complement the walkways, which havealready been earmarked along former railway lines in the area.Connection points at•Tracton Community & Arts Centre•Belgooly Parish Hall•Lusitania Tower•Kinsale -  Charles Fort / KAFC - town centre - possibilities at Commoge Marsh

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This is a very welcome development as any route suitable for walking is also a nice route for runners. It obviously is only the start of a very long process but at least it has started.

Greenway projects are now seen as giving huge benefits to local communities not only in their tourism potential but also in terms of a local social amenity.

This is a map of the old railway network in West Cork...

It would really be fantastic if large parts of this old network could be reestablished as Greenways. From my understanding, most if not all of the land is now is in private ownership so it certainly wouldn't be an easy or cheap project.

You'll notice as well that there was a small branch line to Kinsale which closed back in 1931. It's not hard to imagine the tourism potential if this connected to a new Greenway from Cork City to Bandon.

We'll have to wait and see what the study proposes.

Link...

1) PDF document on the Transition Town Kinsale website

New walkway at Dunkettle Interchange promises to open up new routes

Update: July 2020 - I first posted about this new pathway at the Dunkettle Interchange back in September of 2019. While the plans have changed slightly, work has been proceeding on it in the meantime.

This week, they installed a new pedestrian bridge over the railway line...

 This will connect into the new Greenway which will go from here to Carrigtwohill and it will also connect to Little Island.

In running terms, this will open up a lot more safe routes for people living in Mayfield, Glanmire and Little Island.

More info below....

Much has been written in the local press recently about the new proposed Dunkettle Interchange and how it has gone back out to tender. The suggested completion date for this project is now 2023.

However in all the fuss about the delay, one part of the project that didn't get much attention is a new slip road and pathway. This is going ahead straight away and it will have a positive impact for many pedestrians, runners and cyclists in the area. It will also probably have a bearing on the annual Cork to Cobh 15 mile road race.

BBC Radio podcast about running...

During the last week, Mike Williams of the BBC World Service had a look at humans and how they evolved to be the most efficient runners on the planet.

The 18 minute podcast also looks at some of the various aspects of running today.

Click HERE to listen.

Marathon runner dies after taking sports supplements and painkillers

Back on the 14th of April 2013, a 23 year old runner named Sam Harper Brighouse fell ill at the 16 mile mark in the Brighton Marathon in England and tragically died. At an inquest last week, the coroner said that the cause of death of due to......."idiosyncratic reaction to hyperthermia, dehydration, endurance exertion, hyperosmolar sports supplements and ibuprofen".

The deceased had taken two or four ibuprofen tablets during the race as well as the sports supplements and at the time of his death, his potassium levels were three times the normal level which caused his heart to stop.

In a statement, the coroner said......"There is no evidence that any other death has occurred in the same circumstances as Sam's did. Sam died as a result of a combination of complications arising on a background of endurance sport. This combination has never been recorded before and may never be recorded again. Sam was unique in life and he remains unique in his death. His intent was to undertake to run the Brighton Marathon and prepared entirely sensibly. He didn't indulge in any risky behaviour. The products he used to support him were recognised and recommended. Everything that Sam did was entirely appropriate and yet events took an unexpected and unintended turn which led to his death. This is a definition of misadventure."

A spokesperson for the family said afterwards that they urged marathon runners to be careful when taking sports supplements....."We would like to thank all the people who attended to Sam after he collapsed. He was cared for by extraordinarily kind, compassionate people who could not have done more or tried harder to keep him alive. Sam's death was described by the coroner as extraordinarily rare, but it is a tragic reminder that participation in any endurance event and taking gels and analgesics to help you get through it carry a level of risk, no matter how fit you are or how hard you train. The endurance sports industry is still relatively new and we are all still learning about how the body copes and reacts to what we put it through and feed it. We would urge all those involved in the industry to do what they can to ensure that everyone who participates does so knowing what they need to do and take to make the experience unforgettable for all the right reasons."

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In all of the running related websites that I visit, I have never seen any responsible website recommend the use of painkillers while running. It seems to be more confined to opinions on running forums. If you have to take painkillers to mask the pain then you are only hiding the problem. The results of a German study released in April of this year raised serious concerns about taking pain killers before a race. You can read it here on the Guardian website.

Simon Community are looking for used running shoes...

Cork Simon, a charity for homeless people are looking for used running shoes.

For anyone who does a lot of running, you will know that after a while, shoes lose their 'bounce' and they should be replaced. By the time that happens, the shoes overall can still be in pretty good shape....i.e. not good enough for running but perfectly fine for walking.

The shoes should have no holes/damage and be clean. So if you can see your toe sticking out the top then that's a no-no ;o)

There is now a collection point in John Buckley Sports. The shop is located just across the river from Cork Opera House. You'll find a map in this earlier post.

This initiative is ongoing so drop those old shoes in whenever you get a chance.

Thanks to Ruairi O'Mahony for the above info.

Introduction to running in Cork & Ireland...

This post is for any beginners who have found this website for the first time. This basically shows what kind of running events take place in Cork and in Ireland in general. Note the triangle to the left.......(roughly but not exactly to scale)

A - Track Events.......This would include anything from say 100 metres up to say 5,000 metres. The numbers taking part are generally very small....say 10-20 per race. Usually club athletes only at a high standard. Not suitable for beginners.

B - Inter Club.....Cross Country / Road Championships.......These would be competitions between members of athletic clubs only. The numbers in each race would be reasonably low.....say 30-70.

C - Club Races / BHAA Races......These are by far the most common type of race. Distances can vary from say 5 kms up to say 15 miles (~24 kms). For most races, anyone can enter and you can enter on the day. Some are members of athletic clubs but many are not. Numbers taking part can be anything from say 70 up to 400. A typical entry fee might be say €5 to €20 depending on the type of event it is. Information on these type of races can be found on websites like this one here but in general, they are not really advertised on mainstream media like newspapers, radio, etc.

D - Mass Participation Events....Examples might be the Cork City Marathon, the Dublin City Marathon, Womens mini-marathon, etc. Thousands take part and with advertising in the mainstream media, a lot of the  general public would be aware of the event.

If you are a new runner and you have just completed your first race...say the Cork City Marathon.....then there are plenty of other local races to choose from. One common concern is that beginners think they will be too slow or that they don't want to finish last. All different types of runners take part in the local road races shown as 'C' above....from the very fast to those going at a slow jogging pace. For most races, you just turn up, pay the entry fee and run in the race. You do not need to be a member of a club or anything like that...they are open to anyone. Afterwards, there is ususally water, tea, sandwiches, etc before the prize giving.

If you are interested then why not come along on the day and try one. You will find regular updates on what is happening locally on this website.

(No comments on this post please as I am going to use it as a permanent introduction for beginners coming here for the first time)

Another video clip about barefoot running...

Last week, I put up a post about barefoot running. In the meantime, I came across another clip.

This one is about an 8 mile race / fun run in New York city. Also included in it is the author of the 'Born to Run' book which is about the Tarahumara Indians in Mexico who run long distances barefoot........covered in a previous post HERE.

Benefits of Barefoot Running....???

Back in January of this year, I put up a post about barefoot running.

Now a group of researchers in Harvard University have carried out a series of tests to compare running with shoes and comparing it to barefoot running.

Most people who run in shoes strike the ground with their heel first. They found that this resulted in a sudden shock as the foot landed.

When people are running barefoot, they tend to land on the forefoot, the foot rolls forward and there is less impact.

Needless to say, if you are interested in trying some barefoot running, it probably makes sense to try it on a soft surface like grass and to run short distances like 1 to 2 miles to see how it feels.

There is a link to a video on the Guardian website.

'Why expensive trainers could be worse than useless'...

Over the last few months, several people have commented to me that they had been reading a book called Born to Run about the Tarahumara Indians in Mexico. They live in a remote part of the country and are famous for running huge distances, often barefoot or with very basic shoes.

Just a few days ago, an interesting article appeared in the online version of the Daily Telegraph debating the pros and cons of barefoot running and also mentioned that book. The writer contends that "those expensive running shoes you've been relying on may be worse than useless: they could be causing the very injuries they're supposed to prevent ". The basic argument is that most people with modern shoes tend to land on their heel and 'pound the road' whereas people running barefoot adopt a different style of running to protect the feet which results in a softer landing...i.e. no pounding.

The article goes on to say..... "When the Tarahumara aren't barefoot, they wear nothing more cushioned than thin, hard sandals fashioned from discarded tire treads and leather thongs. In place of artificial shock absorption, they rely on an ancient running technique that creates a naturally gentle landing. Unlike the vast majority of modern runners, who come down heavily on their foam-covered heels and roll forward off their toes, the Tarahumara land lightly on their forefeet and bend their knees, as you would if you jumped from a chair. "

Also......."Out here in the non-Tarahumara world, where we have access to the best in sports medicine, training innovations and footwear, up to 90 per cent of all marathoners are injured every year. The Tarahumara, by contrast, remain spry and healthy deep into old age. "

Needless to say, there is an opposing opinion as well. The full article which is a bit long can be found at this LINK.

Cork Runners on Twitter

Tweet, tweet...twitter, twitter...tweet, tweet...

No doubt a lot of people have heard of the Internet service 'Twitter' but may not be aware of what it is.

A quick explanation...Twitter is a 'micro-blogging' service. People post very short posts which can be 140 characters maximum in lenght and you can follow what other people are up to. A more detailed explanation can be found at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Twitter

I first heard of Twitter over a year ago and at the time, it sounded like it was just a fad. Since then, it has grown to be hugely popular yet I have seen nothing to suggest that it's still not a fad!

However to be fair to it, maybe it's better to try something first and then criticize it rather than not try it at all.

The Twitter Experiment....

As an experiment, there are at least 2 runners in Cork who now use Twitter to post information about their training runs and races. I guess the best thing to do is to have a look below and see what it's about. If enough Irish runners use it, it might be interesting to follow the training schedules of people who are training for the same events here in Ireland rather than say following people on the other side of the world.

Invitation...

If you are living in Cork / Ireland and want to join in, then open a Twitter account and leave a comment here with your User Name and maybe your real name (optional). I'm not sure if this experiment will go anywhere (or will be of any use!) but unless you try, you'll never know.

Update Oct 2010....I have created a list of Cork runners on Twitter HERE. Please note that those included mainly tweet about running.

Be Safe, Be Seen - Wearing reflectors at night...
Now that the clocks have changed and the dark evenings have arrived, it's hard to get out running in the daylight anymore, especially during the week. If you are running under street lights or when it's nearly dark, then it's vital that you wear the correct gear.
While I was out running during the week, it was good to see that some of the other runners that I came accross during my route were wearing some form of reflective jacket. However, there are always some who don't which is a pity. Reflective clothing is cheap and can make a huge difference to whether you are seen or not.

Here are facts that I found on the net...
17 metres...If you are wearing dark Blue clothing, this is how close that a car must be before the driver can see you in the headlights.
24 metres...As above but this time it is for Red clothing.
37 metres...Distance for Yellow clothing.
55 metres...Distance for White clothing.
150 metres...Distance for a reflective vest.

Car - Stopping distance.....
For a car doing 35 mph (55 kph), which is a typical speed around a city, the time it takes for a driver to react and for the car to stop is 41 metres. See the colours above, unless you were wearing White, you'd be in trouble.
For a car doing 45 mph (72 kph), which is typical for a careful driver on a country road, the time it takes to react and stop is 60 metres. So, on country roads, you really need a reflective vest to be seen.
For a car doing 60 mph (100 kph), the stopping distance is 93 metres. Way beyond the limits of bright clothing but still well within the visibility limits of a reflective jacket.

Now that these type of vests are compulsory on building sites, they seem to be everywhere and are pretty cheap. They are loose fitting so you don't sweat inside them and they are very light. You can also get running versions which are a bit thinner but basically do the same thing.

So do yourself a favour...be safe, be seen.