Guest Post: January ...by Pat Walsh

 ** January **

January the month of many excuses not to run.
Too cold
Too wet
Too windy
Too dark
Too tired
Too lazy
The dog ate my running shoes.
Shur theres only a mile left on my 1000 mile socks !!! (Thanks Nollaig)

Remember Summer racing bodies are honed in this month. Think of it as:
Character building.
Getting the miles for stamina in regardless of pace.
Defeating the elements, who knows what the weather will be like for a race anyway.
Clearing the body from the excesses of Christmas.
An excuse to get out of the house.
You won’t overheat that is certain.
Boost your mood and immune system.
You need a shower anyway so just do a few miles beforehand.
Show off your collection of warm Beanie Hats and Luminous Jackets.
Coffee never tasted better than after a long run in the cold.

Think of the mental strength benefits that are to be gained by defeating the weather rather than it beating you. That mental strength training can be tapped into later in the Year.

Now get out and run.....
It’s only cold if you are standing still. 

"What good is the warmth of summer, without the cold of winter to give it sweetness.” Steinbeck
#pwr

Running in Cork Newsletter - 19th January 2024

Running in Cork Newsletter - 19th January 2024

The inaugural newsletter last week got a good response so we'll keep the ball rolling. If anyone has any snippets of news then leave them in the comments and I'll use them next week.

Weekend Weather: The Jet Stream over the Atlantic has strengthened and is pushing the high pressure system out of the way. The result is that the temperatures will rise on Friday night getting rid of any ice or frost that has been on the ground for days. The downside is that it's going to be wet for Saturday and Sunday and it's a case of making the best of it. All of the 5k parkruns should be ok.

Weekend events:

Cloyne Commons 4k... The third race in the popular Cloyne Commons 4k Winter Series takes place on Sunday morning at 9:30am. It should be noted that the entry fee for this one is only €5! Info HERE

Cork BHAA... The BHAA have their first road race of the year with a 5k in Little Island. As always, it's €5 for registered runners and €10 for non-reg. If you're going then don't forget the new earlier time of 10am for BHAA races in 2024.

IMRA trail race in Tipp... For trail running aficionados, there is a 8km trail race in Glengarra Woods just off the old Mitchelstown to Cahir road. Entry fee for IMRA members is €7. Info HERE

There is a selection of events on offer elsewhere as well. See the event calendar... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/p/calendar.html

Parkrun News:

Walkers at parkrun... The parkrun organisation is trying to attract more walkers to the 5k parkun events. At every event, there is a tail walker so anyone taking turning up can't finish last. A 5km walk is fantastic exercise and you might consider mentioning it to someone and bring them along. The best thing about parkrun is that if it's raining this week then there's always next week. See the parkrun article HERE 

Good numbers at new junior 2k in Haulbowline... The inaugural 2k junior parkrun for 4-14 year olds at Haulbowline Park got off to a flying start last Sunday 14th January 2024 with 122 participants taking part. It's looking good for the future of that new event.

Cork 250 Club... I put up a post just over a week ago about the number of people in Cork who have completed as least 250 parkruns as of the end of Q4 2023. Post HERE 

In the meantime, Ursula Cooney joined the club last Saturday when she completed her 250th 5k parkrun at the Macroom event. Thanks to everyone who sent on all of the other names and I'll include those in the next edition.

Some Race News:

Event calendar updated... I updated the event calendar on Thursday and Friday of this week and a lot of events have appeared over the last two weeks. No matter where you are, there are loads of running events to choose from. Looking at the prices of 5k, 4m & 10k races, €15 to €25 seems to be the norm now everywhere. The Cork BHAA with their €5/€10 entry fees really stand out. See the updated calendar HERE 

Cork Marathon increase fees... I noticed the Cork City Marathon have increased their entry fees since my last update. It looks as if the 'early bird' rates have closed.

Youghal Half-Marathon... Youghal AC have plans to hold a new Half-Marathon & 10k race in East Cork on Sunday 11th August 2024. No more details at this time. As far as I know, the new Greenway won't be open by then so I presume the event is on public roads.

Bandon 5k... Bandon AC have plans for a brand new 5k road race on Thursday 25th of April. There used to be a 5-mile race in Bandon on New Year's Day and 5k races later but it's been a good few years since there was a race in the town. The original plan was to hold it on Sunday 28th but it has now been changed to an evening race on the 25th.

Ballyroan 10 mile Cancelled... This popular 10-mile road race in Co Laois should have been held on Sunday 21st of January but it had to be cancelled due to permit issues. The organisers write.. "Due to issues regarding race permits and higher grade races taking priority, unfortunately our Ballyroan 10 mile & 5k Fun Run will not take place this year. We hope to be back bigger and better in 2025"

Wexford Half-Marathon Early Bird... The Wexford Half Marathon & 10k will be held on April 21st. Early bird entry fees end in a few days if anyone is thinking of doing it.

New race in Bantry... It looks as if Bantry AC are organising a race called the 'Flying 5' which is a new one. It looks like it's a 5-miler and the provisional date is Sunday 14th April.

Some of the posts on the Running in Cork blog over the last week:

Friday Jigsaw: Where's Derek???... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/friday-jigsaw-wheres-derek.html

Notice: Carrigaline 5 mile road race - Sun 18th Feb 2024... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/notice-carrigaline-5-mile-road-race-sun.html

Waterford to Rosslare Greenway in doubt - Jan 2024... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/waterford-to-rosslare-greenway-in-doubt.html

Video: A BLOODY LONG RUN - EPISODE 1 ...by Beau Miles... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/video-bloody-long-run-episode-1-by-beau.html

Results & Photos of the IMRA Corrin Hill 9.2km trail race - Sun 14th Jan 2024... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/results-photos-of-imra-corrin-hill-92km.html

Charity Post: Run for SERVE in 2024... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/charity-post-run-for-serve-in-2024.html

Haulbowline 2k Junior parkrun is off to a flying start... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/haulbowline-2k-junior-parkrun-is-off-to.html

Cork runners take titles at Tom Walsh Memorial 10k in Limerick - Sun 14th Jan 2024... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/cork-runners-take-titles-at-tom-walsh.html

Guest Post: Kate Veale wins Jorge Costa 5k Race Walk in Portugal ...by James Veale... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/guest-post-kate-veale-wins-jorge-costa.html

Results of the 5k parkruns in Cork - Sat 13th Jan 2024... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/results-of-5k-parkruns-in-cork-sat-13th.html

Running in Cork Newsletter - 12th January 2024... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/running-in-cork-newsletter-12th-january.html

And finally...

If anyone wants to see previous editions of the Newsletter, see this page HERE 

Friday Jigsaw: Where's Derek???

For this weeks online jigsaw, we have another photo from Derek Costello at the recent Togher 5k road race. This one has 196-pieces and you can find it HERE

Waterford to Rosslare Greenway in doubt - Jan 2024

Back in 2018, I had a post up about a proposed Greenway from Rosslare to Waterford City. See HERE

Since then, work has been progressing on it in terms of planning and design. It was included in this proposed Greenway map for the south of Ireland as shown above.

However, Sean McKeown, Director of Services at Kilkenny County Council, gave this recent update...

“Waterford’s preference was to progress a Greenway on the out-of-service Waterford to Rosslare railway line, and indeed they had commenced a process of doing so, but then the All Island Rail Review was launched between the North and South of the country. 

We do know one of the 30 recommendations in the review is that the Rosslare to Waterford line form part of an Atlantic Railway Spine, from Ballina to Rosslare, principally for freight. 

The review is suggesting that the line should be retained for freight use, which would mean it would not be used as a Greenway. 

It will be up to government to decide whether they implement that recommendation or not.”

Mr McKeown also said that if the line is put back into service for freight, then that would end plans for a Greenway.

Video: A BLOODY LONG RUN - EPISODE 1 ...by Beau Miles

The one and only Beau Miles is as much a storyteller as a runner. In episode 1, he sets out on a 220km run through the mountains between two old gold mining towns in the heart of Victoria, Australia.

Results & Photos of the IMRA Corrin Hill 9.2km trail race - Sun 14th Jan 2024

There was a good turnout for the IMRA 9.2km trail race on Corrin Hill near Fermoy on Sun 14th Jan 2024 with a total of 163 runners taking part.

Top 3 men & women...
 1 Barry Twohig 893 M45 1 0:42:42 St. Finbarr's AC Cork
2 Nick Hogan 838 M40 1 0:44:06 Cork
3 Barry Hartnett 580 M40 2 0:44:34 Mooreabbey Milers Tipperary
1 Sarah McCormack 1439 F35 1 0:46:34 Clonliffe Harriers
2 Kealey Tideswell 435 F40 1 0:49:12 Clonmel AC Tipperary
3 Anita Locke 364 F40 2 0:53:16 St. Finbarr's AC Kerry

Full results HERE

Photos...

1) IMRA have a gallery of photos HERE

Charity Post: Run for SERVE in 2024

Joanna Dukkipati of the Cork based charity SERVE sent on the following info...

 "Are you one of those who's taking up running this year! Need the motivation? Then let everyone know you're running for SERVE - a Cork charity with global impact! Run to give young people a fresh start! Your friends can support every mile you run by making a donation to SERVE. 

Donations to SERVE will help young people get a fresh start & brighten their future! Donate: serve.ie/donate or raise money directly on Instagram/Facebook for SERVE!

About SERVE: We have completed 20 years in the areas of sustainable development, social advocacy and hosting overseas volunteer programmes

Most of our work with our partners is about improving access to education, training and employment opportunities for those who're deeply impacted by lack of access to quality education and also basic Human Rights. We have worked with partner organisations in Brazil, Thailand and Vietnam over the years. Presently, we work with partners in India, Philippines, South Africa, Zambia, Mozambique & Zimbabwe.

Where will your donations go?: SERVE works with partners who support young people who are disproportionately affected by lack of access to quality education. Our partners' programmes ensure these young people have a bright future. Your donations will be spent effectively to have the maximum impact through these programmes."

Website... https://serve.ie/

Haulbowline 2k Junior parkrun is off to a flying start...

The inaugural 2k junior parkrun for 4-14 year olds at Haulbowline Park got off to a flying start on Sunday 14th January 2024 with 122 participants crossing the finish line. Results HERE

122 is a good number for a junior parkrun and suggests that it will be popular in the catchment areas of Carrigaline, Ringaskiddy, Monkstown, Passage West, Douglas and Rochestown.

Located in the centre of Cork Harbour and with the town of Cobh as a backdrop, it's a nice location for a parkrun.

Cork runners take titles at Tom Walsh Memorial 10k in Limerick - Sun 14th Jan 2024

One of the big races in Munster this weekend was the Tom Walsh Memorial 10k in Caherconlish, Limerick with a total of 407 taking part. As races go in Limerick, that's a big number and it's up a whopping 53% on last year.

Conor McCauley of Leevale AC crossing the finish line in first place

Top 3 men & women...
1 Conor McCAULEY 00:31:58 506 M MS Leevale A.C.
2 Damien MADIGAN 00:32:20 348 M MS North Cork A.C.
3 John KINSELLA  00:32:22 507 M M40
1 Hannah STEEDS 00:35:24 482 F FS Leevale A.C.
2 Dympna RYAN 00:35:34 505 F F40 Dundrum A.C.
3 Dee COLLINS  00:37:03 503 F F40 Ennis Track A.C.

Results HERE

In the women's race, Hannah Steeds of Leevale AC was the first woman home in a time of 35m 24s.

Guest Post: Kate Veale wins Jorge Costa 5k Race Walk in Portugal ...by James Veale

Guest Post by James Veale of West Waterford AC... KATE VEALE WINS JORGE COSTA 5K RACE WALK TROPHY IN PORTUGAL.

At the 8th Jorge Costa Trophy race walking event held in the Algarve Portugal last Saturday Kate Veale was in action in the open 5k, the race was the regional championships for 2024 and had a full programme of races from juvenile to seniors and masters. Kate is no stranger to that part of Portugal an area which holds fond memories as the race was held on the same course where she recorded a bronze medal performance back in 2011 at the European youth’s . 

After a good race with local athlete Costa, Kate broke clear in the final kilometre to record a winning time of  22:42 with Portugal’s  Carolina Costa in 2nd place 23:17 and Annette Torma Hungary was 3rd with a time of  25:38.Kate will now continue here her training in Portugal where she has been for the past few weeks as preparation goes in for the upcoming indoor season which will be next on her agenda of races.

1 Kate Veale 22:42
2 Carolina Costa 23:17
3 Anette Torma 25:38
4 Helena Diaz Madera 26:57
5 Justina Pereira 30:51
6 Anabela Moreira 32:59
7 Beatriz Lopes 33:49
8 Helena Rodrigues 39:26
9 Sara Guerreiro 41:54
10 Maria Martins 44:58

Results of the 5k parkruns in Cork - Sat 13th Jan 2024

Results of the 5k parkruns around the county on Saturday 13th Jan 2024. Approximately 1002 runners and walkers took part in the 10 events in Co Cork.

Report... It was a full house for this weeks 5k parkruns in Co Cork with all ten events going ahead. It's worth noting that the total number just exceeded the 1000 mark!

Ballincollig... Big numbers for this week's event in Ballincollig with 313 taking part. It's hard to believe that the last one prior to this was back on Christmas Day thanks to the flooding and frost.

Well done to Catherine Desmond who was the only runner in Cork this week to hit the magic 100 mark! Catherine has done 77 parkruns in Ballincollig, 17 at Tramore Valley Park and the balance at five other events. Catherine's first parkrun was at Tramore Valley Park back on the 26th of September 2015.

Macroom... Another Cork 250 club member! Well done to Ursula Cooney who hit the magic figure of 250 parkruns in Macroom on Saturday.

Event director Marie McCarthy with Ursula Cooney

Out of the 250 events, 92 have been in Macroom and 42 were at Ballincollig. Ursula is obviously a bit of a parkrun tourist as the balance of the runs were done at a huge variety of parkruns elsewhere. Ursula's first 5k parkrun was in Macroom back on the 11th of July 2015. Ursula also has 121 volunteer credits to her name.

If I missed anyone who passed a notable milestone like 100, 200, 250 or above parkruns then let me know.

***

Ballincollig Regional Park: 313 this week, cancelled last week. Long term average 285

First 3 men & women...

1 Darren MCCANN Male VM35-39 17:08

2 Eoghan LOONEY Male JM11-14 17:45

3 Nick HOGAN Male VM40-44 Sanctuary Runners 17:46

24 Clodagh CREEDON Female VW40-44 St Finbarrs AC 21:22

29 Siobhan HOLLAND Female VW45-49 Eagle A.C. 21:38

33 Cherie TURNER Female VW50-54 St Finbarrs AC 22:06

Ballincollig results... https://www.parkrun.ie/ballincollig/results/308/

Tramore Valley Park: 235 this week, cancelled last week. The long term average is 172.

First 3 men & women...

1 Briain MADDEN Male SM30-34 17:37

2 Jim WHITE Male JM15-17 17:59

3 Ciaran COSTELLO Male SM30-34 Piranha TC 18:30

23 Amy GOGGIN Female VW40-44 22:30

29 Gillian COTTER Female VW50-54 St Finbarrs AC 22:46

31 Jennifer KENNEDY Female VW35-39 22:51

Tramore Valley Park results... https://www.parkrun.ie/tramorevalley/results/88/

Glen River: 79 this week, cancelled last week. The long term average is 74.

First 3 men & women...

1 Seamus LEDDY Male VM45-49 Abbey Runners Leeds 19:39

2 Kieran RUBY Male VM40-44 St Finbarrs AC 20:44

3 Brendan HALLISSEY Male VM45-49 21:05

18 Deborah O Female VW45-49 24:53

19 Maria STONE Female VW35-39 25:27

20 Mary COTTER Female VW60-64 Tracton AC 25:37

Glen River results... https://www.parkrun.ie/glenriver/results/190/

Mallow Castle: 80 finishers this week, 82 last week. The long term average is 63.

First 3 men & women...

1 Tomás KIELY Male JM11-14 North Cork AC 18:36

3 Adrian COLLINS Male VM40-44 19:12

4 Oisín Ó CADHLA Male SM30-34 19:49

2 Emma FLYNN Female JW11-14 North Cork AC 19:01

10 Michaela FLYNN Female JW11-14 North Cork AC 21:39

13 Marina SEYMOUR Female VW45-49 22:36

Mallow results... https://www.parkrun.ie/mallowcastle/results/117/

Youghal (Pobalscoil ne Tríonóide) : 58 this week, cancelled last week. The long term average is 57.

First 3 men & women...

1 Thomas O NEILL Male VM35-39 19:12

2 Don RYAN Male VM50-54 19:43

3 Ian MURPHY Male VM50-54 21:49

7 Anna PAWLIK Female VW35-39 23:29 

8 Saoirse KINSELLA Female JW11-14 24:03

10 Claire MURPHY Female VW50-54 24:55

Youghal results... https://www.parkrun.ie/pobalscoilnatrionoide/results/94/

Macroom Castle Demense: 63 this week, cancelled last week. Long term average is 51.

First 3 men & women...

1 Conrad WATT Male VM35-39 Magnolia RR 17:24

2 Conor LUCEY Male VM35-39 17:54

3 Henry BROWNE Male VM40-44 18:46

15 Sarah CUDDIHY Female JW15-17 24:37

17 Noreen STEWART Female VW40-44 25:00

19 Marie CONDRON Female VW35-39 West Muskerry A.C. 25:25

Macroom results... https://www.parkrun.ie/macroomcastledemesne/results/459/

Clonakilty: 48 this week, 42 last week. Long term average 36.

First 3 men & women...

1 Martin WHITE Male VM40-44 Clonakilty Roadrunners AC 18:41

2 Ronan MC MAHON Male VM40-44 18:47

3 Jerry KEOHANE Male VM40-44 20:20

12 Anna O'NEILL Female VW50-54 23:34

15 Niamh O'BRIEN Female VW35-39 24:48

16 Sandra WALSH Female VW50-54 24:55

Clonakilty results... https://www.parkrun.ie/clonakilty/results/415/

Glengarriff Woods: 74 this week, 86 last week. The long term average is 60.

Top 3 men & women... 

1 Trevor MCGUIRK Male VM40-44 20:00 

2 Michael MINEHANE Male VM45-49 Marathon Club Ireland 21:01

3 Cathal MINEHANE Male VM45-49 21:36

9 Marian MINEHANE Female VW40-44 24:49

15 Hilje LABUSCHAGNE Female VW35-39 26:12

19 Meave QUINLAN Female VW35-39 27:00

Glengarriff results... https://www.parkrun.ie/glengarriff/results/332/

Bere Island: 30 this week, 34 last week, long term average of 46. 

First 3 men & women... 

1 Ben MURPHY Male VM40-44 22:16

3 Breandan MURPHY Male SM20-24 26:09

4 Cian TWOMEY Male JM10 26:11

2 Michelagh MURPHY Female SW18-19 23:51

8 Carol HURLEY Female VW50-54 Beara AC 27:13

9 Mags O NEILL Female VW45-49 Beara AC 28:28

Bere Island results... https://www.parkrun.ie/bereisland/results/422/

Castlehaven (Rineen Woods): 22 finishers this week, 25 last week. Long term average 28.

First 3 women & men...

1 Ciarán BOUSE Male VM45-49 Eagle A.C. 21:10

2 Florence FITZGERALD Male SM30-34 21:35

3 Toby BENHAM Male SM30-34 Crusaders AC Dublin 23:15

11 Sharon POULTER Female VW40-44 30:48

13 Celine BUCKLEY Female VW50-54 Castlehaven GAA 31:46

14 Rachel O'REGAN Female SW25-29 32:06

Castlehaven results... https://www.parkrun.ie/castlehaven/results/343/

For more information about the weekly 5k parkruns in Co Cork, go to this page HERE.

Running in Cork Newsletter - 12th January 2024

Running in Cork Newsletter - 12th January 2024

It's time to try something new! I was putting snippets of news into a monthly 'News Bites' post but this soon moved down the page out of view. This new weekly Newsletter post will replace this and I plan to post this every Friday.

If anyone has any snippets of news then leave them in the comments and I'll use them next week.

Weekend Weather: A high pressure system out in the Atlantic is going to control the weather in Ireland this weekend with a northerly breeze keeping the temperatures well down in single figures of about 2-6 degrees. There is plenty of cloud over Cork overnight so that should reduce the risk of ice and frost. All of the 5k parkruns will probably go ahead but check before you travel.

Weekend events:

Skibbereen 5k... Skibbereen Rowing Club are a 5k fun run on Sunday 14th January at 11am. Entry fee €10.

IMRA Corrrin Hill Trail Race... IMRA are holding a 9.2km trail race on Corrin Hill near Fermoy on Sunday 14th. Info HERE 

Tom Walsh 10k in Limerick... This one is on Sunday 14th Jan but has now sold out.

Trail  race near Dungarvan... West Waterford AC are holding a 5-mile trail race at Colligan Woods near Dungarvan on Sunday 14th. For this one, there are no watches and you must predict your time in advance. Info HERE 

There is a selection of events on offer elsewhere as well. See the event calendar... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/p/calendar.html

Parkrun News:

New 5k parkrun in Waterford... There used to be a 5k parkun in Waterford City but it was cancelled a lot of times due to no fault of the organisers. A new 5k parkrun has now been established at the SETU Arena West Campus at Carriganore which is a lot better. The inaugural event was held last weekend and got 295 which is a big number for Waterford. Considering it's located on the edge of Waterford City, this one should be a big success. 👍

New junior 2k in Haulbowline... The inaugural event was supposed to be on the 6th of January but like so many other parkruns that weekend, it had to be cancelled due to ice on the course. The plan now is to go ahead on Sunday 14th Jan. This should be of interest to parents in the Carrigaline, Ringaskiddy, Monkstown & Passage West catchment area who want an event for their 4-14 year olds.

Some Race News:

Stook 10m... For anyone interested in a 10-mile race in Kilkenny, the organisers of the Stook 10-mile have just announced a new date for their event. It will now be on the 3rd of March. The original date was for later in the month.

New Killarney 5m... When I was updating the calendar recently, I came across a new 5-mile road race in Killarney. It's called the Streets of Killarney 5-mile and it's coming up on Friday evening 29th of March. The entry fee is €25. There used to be a popular 5k series in Killarney a few years ago so we'll have to see if this one catches on.

Rosscarbery Surf n Turf changes date... The Rosscarbery Surf Turf n Tar Half-Marathon & 10k have now changed the date of their event to Saturday 27th April. This new date is just a day before the Bandon 5k which isn't great timing. There are few enough running events in West Cork without having both on the same weekend.

Dungarvan 10m Elites... While entries for the upcoming John Treacy Dungarvan 10-mile road race sold out a few week ago, West Waterford AC have now announced that they will be taking elite entries. They write "Elite entries will be accepted up to Friday 26 th  January 2024. The standards set down are Men 55 minutes and Ladies 60 Minutes. These times must have been posted within the last 2 years. Proof of these qualifying times may be required. For Elite entry, please contact James Veale at info AT westwaterfordathletics DOT org 

Connemara 100-mile to restrict entries... Due to increasing popularity of the Connemara 100-mile, they are now restricting it to 25-participants. The organisers write "There is a major change to the Connemara 100 entry system for 2024.

Due to the popularity of the event we are regularly seeing up to 50 people on the starting line and as each participant is required to have a crew vehicle with them at all times, the roads are becoming increasingly congested. We have decided for 2024 to strictly limit the number of participants to just 25. The fairest way we can make the selection is in two ways. 20 places will be available on a random selection from the waiting list. And 5 additional places will be kept aside for the people on the waiting list who have run the event most. The waiting list system for the 2024 event will be open until January 29th and the field will be announced on February 1st. If we receive any withdrawals the next waiting list selection will be given a place. Because of this limit, we have also decided, in order to keep the event viable, to increase the entry fee to €150." 

Trivia... The sister of Karl Marx was a runner apparently! 😂

Some of the posts on the Running in Cork blog over the last week:

Cork 250 parkrun Club - Q4 2023 - https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/cork-250-parkrun-club-q4-2023.html

Training programme for the 2024 Cork City Half-Marathon - https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/training-programme-for-2024-cork-city.html

2023 sees an increase in the number of visitors to the blog - https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/2023-sees-increase-in-number-of.html

Haulbowline Junior parkrun to start Sun 14th Jan 2024 - https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2023/12/haulbowline-junior-parkrun-to-start-sun.html

Results of the Cork BHAA ESB 5k cross country - Sun 7th Jan 2024 - https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/results-of-cork-bhaa-esb-5k-cross.html

Notice: IMRA Corrin Hill 9.2km Trail Race - Sun 14th Jan 2024 - https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/notice-imra-corrin-hill-92km-trail-race.html

Results of the Run the Line 5k in Carrigaline - Sat 6th Jan 2024 - https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/results-of-run-line-5k-in-carrigaline.html

Results of the 5k parkruns in Cork - Sat 6th Jan 2024 - https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/results-of-5k-parkruns-in-cork-sat-6th.html

Guest Post: What does the New Year hold for you ...by Pat Walsh - https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/2024/01/guest-post-what-does-new-year-hold-for.html

And finally...

If anyone wants to see previous editions of the News Bites, see this page... https://corkrunning.blogspot.com/p/athletics-news.html

Friday Jigsaw: Togher 5k - Dec 2023

For this weeks online jigsaw, we have a photo taken by Derek Costello at the recent Togher 5k road race.

This one has 204-pieces and you can find it HERE

Cork 250 parkrun Club - Q4 2023

Every Saturday after putting up the 5k parkrun results for Co Cork, I have a look to see if anyone has completed 100 parkruns. It takes at least two years to reach this level and it's worth noting.

The parkrun organisation have a number of milestones from 25 to 500 parkruns. The thing about milestones is that they are open to everyone and anyone can aspire to reach a certain level.

A number of people have recently passed the 250 mark and it's a significant achievement as it takes at least five years to complete. At the end of 2023, I compiled a list of runners and volunteers in Co Cork who have passed the magic figure.

Cork 250 Rules... As with any list, there must be some sort of guideline or rules. The criteria I went with were simple...

1. At least 100 of the 5k parkruns must be in Co Cork
2. Only the information on the parkrun website counts

I'm sure there are plenty of people in Dublin and elsewhere who over 250 but this post is about the parkruns in Cork.

Cork 250 parkrun Club - Q4 2023... Here is the list of people who have done 250 or more parkruns in Cork...

This is the list of volunteers who have 250 or more credits... 

Errors & Omissions... Digging out all of the names and totals took a fair bit of work and I almost certainly missed some. If you know of any runner of volunteer missing who might at 250 or more, leave a comment with their name and parkrun.

This is the first attempt at this so the next one should include a few more.

Link... More information about the 5k parkruns in Co Cork can be found HERE

2023 sees an increase in the number of visitors to the blog...

Before we get too far into the new year, this post is about 2023 and the level of traffic to the blog. At the end of 2023, I had a look at the level of traffic to the site and I noted a rise in the number of pageviews.

The number of monthly pageviews changes a lot over the course of the year but the stats for each December for the last few years gives a good overview of what it's been like.

Back in December of 2020, we were in some form of lockdown and there were no races. There were a few virtual runs with people doing their own thing but there's only so much you can write about when there's nothing really happening. The number of pageviews for December 2020 was down around the 31,000 mark.

I should add that 'pageviews' isn't the same as the number of people. If someone visits the blog every day then they'd generate about 30 pageviews for the month. If they visit once a week then it's 4 pageviews for the month.

By December 2021, some of the races had resumed and the blog shot up to 61,000 pageviews for the month.

By December 2022, most of the races had resumed but the race numbers were down on what they were. The number of pageviews to the site stayed around the same level with 56,000.

2023 saw a real recovery in the number of people doing races, parkruns and running in general. The figure for December 2023 was around 90,000 pageviews, a significant jump on the previous year.

For the year as a whole, the blog got 1.34 million pageviews. Again, that's not 1.34 million people but it's still a huge number of pageviews for a site about running in Cork.

The number of followers to the Running in Cork Facebook page continues to grow. At the moment, it has 19,259 followers and it reached 98,805 Facebook accounts in the last 28 days.

Some of the most popular Facebook posts in the last 90 days were...

• Post about the new Greenway from Frankfield to Tramore Valley Park - this one reached 280,547 Facebook accounts.
• Post about the lead women in the Clonmel 4-mile over Christmas - this reached 67,760 accounts.
• Post about the first three women in the Newmarket 5k - this reached 37,373 accounts.
• Post about the Clonakilty marathon moving location - this reached 37,016 accounts.
• Post about Cork runner Ryan Creech finishing second in the Dublin marathon - this reached 28,489 accounts.
• Post about Michelle Kenny winning the Rebel Run 10k - this reached 21,820 accounts.
• Post about Paul Hartnett finishing 3rd in the Clonmel 4m at Christmas - 18,658 accounts.
• Post about the Dungarvan to Mallow Greenway - 18,658 accounts

...and so on.

The thing about Facebook is that size really matters. If a page has say 1000 followers then a post reaching 5000 might be considered 'viral'. When a page has over 19,000 followers, the same 'viral' post is up over 90,000 accounts.

Twitter & Instagram... The Running in Cork Twitter / X account now has 3,492 followers. The Running in Cork Instagram account has 1,455 followers.

I guess if I was just starting off now, I'd probably be making more noise about these stats but I've been at this since late 2006. I hardly ever check the stats now and I just post away.

Looking at the stats got me thinking about how much of an impact does the blog have on the running scene in Cork? It's impossible to know for sure but 1.3 million pageviews per annum and reaching tens of thousands of accounts on Facebook must have some impact.

When I update the calendar on a regular basis, I'm often reminded that the running scene in Cork is not replicated in places like Limerick, Galway or Waterford. The number of races there is only a fraction of what happens in Cork.