Round 1

Record turn-out for the first night

Despite the awful cold, windy and wet weather and the attraction of Chelsea v Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final on TV, there was still a fantastic turn out of 299 for the opening night of the 2009 Mullingar Road League over the 5km trail through the woods of Belvedere on Wednesday evening 6th May. This is a big increase on numbers in 2008, which would have brought a satisfied smile to the face of the late Pat Finnerty, who gave enormous service to the Club over many years and in whose memory the League is run. If the League continues to grow at this rate, we’ll have to consider capping the numbers competing!

The huge turnout, which was a record for an individual round of the event and was due to a big increase in the number of women taking part, attracted athletes from many surrounding Counties and as in previous years, there was great praise for the safe traffic-free course. The rain stopped just before the start and though the course was a bit mucky, which might have slowed finish times a bit, everyone seemed to really enjoy the event.

Men
After a very closely fought race, with the lead changing a few times, first to finish was Ger Heery (St. Brigid's AC, Co. Meath) in 16:17, followed closely by last year's overall fourth place finisher Peter Mooney (Na Fianna AC, Co. Meath) in 16:18 and Derek Croal (Bohermeen AC, Co. Meath) in 16:23.

4th   Tomas Navickas (Mullingar Harriers AC)
5th   Paddy Mangan (Dunshaughlin AC, Co. Meath)
6th   Shane Fitzsimons (Mullingar Harriers AC)
7th   Tom McGrath (Mullingar Harriers AC)
8th   Philip Smith (Bailieborough AC, Co. Cavan)
9th   Martin Lyons (Mullingar Harriers AC)
10th Jody Reilly (Tullamore Harriers AC)

Women
The first woman was Maire Triona Keane (Tullamore Harriers AC) in 18:40, with Geraldine Farrell (Athlone IT) second in 19:32, and Mary Watters (Navan AC) third in 20:34.

4th   Paula Murray (Mullingar Harriers AC)
5th   Sinead Roche (Midland Tri)
6th   Maura Dervin (Mullingar Harriers AC)
7th   Linda Gunning (Bohermeen AC, Co. Meath)
8th   Sarah Mescall (Mullingar Harriers AC)
9th   Sinead Nolan (Annalee AC, Co. Cavan)
10th   Vera McCool (Mullingar Harriers AC)

Junior
No great surprise that first junior man was Shane Fitzsimons (17:09) and first junior woman was Ciara Hewson (19:23), both of Mullingar Harriers AC.

The League continues every Wednesday in May and even if you missed the first week, you can register for the remaining races by just turning up at from 7pm with €20 in hand to register and collect your race number for the 8pm start. Irrespective of your ability, or your perceived lack of it, there’ll always be someone to run or walk along with. Give it a go and you’ll be very glad that you did. We can confidently expect another large turnout for the remaining Wednesday evenings in May at 8pm. It will be interesting to see if all those who took part will improve on their time of last week.

Many thanks to the Management and Staff of Belvedere House for making the grounds available for the League, to Westmeath Civil Defence for providing first aid cover, to all the officials and stewards, but especially to all those who took part.

The League continues this Wednesday at 8pm and we expect even more people out to take part. Come on and give it a go.

Round 2

Another record-breaking turn-out

We thought a turn-out of 299 for the first night was great, but there was an even larger number of participants for the second night, when 302 finished, bringing the total number registered so far to 393, which includes runners from ten different Counties, plus competitors from England, Denmark and the USA all of whom happened to be on holiday in the area and were impressed with the Belvedere course. In fact, Belvedere could become a Mecca for runners such is its reputation at the moment.

An interesting feature is the big increase in the number of women taking part, perhaps due to the upcoming Women's 10km Mini Marathon in June, and the ratio of male to female participants is now at 60:40, so any women considering taking part on the third and fourth nights don't need to feel they'll be on their own! Also, there are plenty of walkers and joggers too, as the League is not just for serious Club runners. The real attraction of the League is that as it takes place over the same course each week, participants can try to improve their time week on week.

The weather was much kinder for the second night, which was reflected in the improved finishing times for most participants. No change in the leader board after the first night though, as first to finish was Ger Heery (St. Brigid's AC, Co. Meath) and first woman was Máire Triona Keane (Tullamore Harriers AC), the same as on the first night.

The overall men's and women's titles are decided on the total of the three best times over the four nights and on current form, Máire looks good for the overall women's prize but Ger doesn't have it quite so clear cut in the men's race with Peter Mooney (Na Fianna AC, Co. Meath) only a few seconds adrift, and it would be foolish to discount Derek Croal (Bohermeen AC, Co. Meath) just yet.

The third night promises to be an intriguing battle but it could still come down to the final night to decide the overall men's winner. With plenty of category prizes also on offer, there are plenty of battles further down the field too. The League continues this Wednesday and even if you missed the previous two weeks, you can still register this week by just turning up at from 7pm to register and collect your race number for the 8pm start.

As always, many thanks to the Management and Staff of Belvedere House for making the grounds available for the League, to Westmeath Civil Defence for providing first aid cover, to all the officials and stewards, but especially to all those who took part.

The League continues this Wednesday at 8pm.

Round 3

Big turn-out again for the third night

Proving the popularity of this year’s Mullingar "Pat Finnerty Memorial" Road League and that the very large attendances on nights one and two were no fluke, there was another big turn-out for the third night when 293 competitors finished, drawn from all the surrounding Counties and further, including a large number of women, spurred on no doubt by the upcoming Women's 10km Mini Marathon in June. A total of 425 have registered so far.

There was a very close finish to the men’s race when There was a very close finish to the men’s race when Ger Heery (St. Brigid's AC, Co. Meath) just got the better of Peter Mooney (Na Fianna AC, Co. Meath) right on the line to win by the smallest of margins, with Derek Croal (Bohermeen AC, Co. Meath) finishing well in third. Looking at the results of the first three nights, Ger has a 12 second advantage over Peter for the overall men’s trophy, which is a big gap to close, but there’s no doubt they’ll have another great battle on the final night as Peter tries to stop Ger making it four victories in a row. With prizes for the first six senior men, keep an eye on Paddy Kelly, Martin Lyons and young Vincent Connolly, all from Mullingar Harriers who will be battling for prizes.

Máire Triona KeaneMáire Triona Keane (Tullamore Harriers AC) was first again in the women’s race and now has such a lead that she is certain to win the overall women’s trophy, but she’ll also be looking for a clean sweep of four victories in a row on the final night. The closest challenge to Máire came from Ciara Hewson who finished a mere 4 seconds behind to win the junior women’s race from Lorraine Daly, both star underage athletes from Mullingar Harriers. First junior man was Padraig Moran, ahead of Shane Kelleher and Stephen Nea, all from Mullingar Harriers.

However, outside the top places, there are still plenty of prizes to be won in the various categories, many of which are far from decided yet, so the final night promises some great racing throughout the large field of competitors.However, outside the top places, there are still plenty of prizes to be won in the various categories, many of which are far from decided yet, so the final night promises some great racing throughout the large field of competitors.However, outside the top places, there are still plenty of prizes to be won in the various categories, many of which are far from decided yet, so the final night promises some great racing throughout the large field of competitors.However, outside the top places, there are still plenty of prizes to be won in the various categories, many of which are far from decided yet, so the final night promises some great racing throughout the large field of competitors.

Even if you missed the previous three weeks, you can still take part on the last night if you turn up at from 7pm to register and collect your race number. The League concludes this Wednesday at 8pm and will be followed by light refreshments and prize giving, including plenty of spot prizes, in the Reception Centre at Belvedere.

Sincere thanks to the Management and Staff of Belvedere House, to Westmeath Civil Defence for providing first aid cover, to all the officials and stewards, but especially to all those who took part.

Round 4

Great finish to the most successful Mullingar Road League

The lure of the Champions League final on television wasn’t enough to prevent the 242 participants that turned up to run last Wednesday in Belvedere on the final night of the most successful Road League we’ve ever held. With registrations still taken on the final night, the total number registered over the whole series exceeded 450, which is terrific and would certainly have greatly pleased the late Pat Finnerty, whom the League commemorates.

There was the same finishing order in the men’s race on the first three nights, but this was slightly changed on the final night when Derek Croal of Bohermeen AC just got the better of Na Fianna AC’s Peter Mooney to finish second, but no doubting the winner on the night and overall winner of the men’s trophy, Ger Heery of St. Brigid’s AC, who finished 5 seconds clear of Derek, and in doing so won all four races, which hasn’t been done before on the Belvedere course. First Mullingar man was Paddy Kelly in 4th, just ahead of Tom McGrath on the line, with Ben Vaikavichius in 6th and young Vincent Connolly who has really improved over the series in 7th. In the junior men’s race Thomas Lynn, another up and coming star from Mullingar, was first, followed by Gavin Doran (Midland Tri Club) and Shane Kelleher (Mullingar Harriers).There was the same finishing order in the men’s race on the first three nights, but this was slightly changed on the final night when Derek Croal of Bohermeen AC just got the better of Na Fianna AC’s Peter Mooney to finish second, but no doubting the winner on the night and overall winner of the men’s trophy, Ger Heery of St. Brigid’s AC, who finished 5 seconds clear of Derek, and in doing so won all four races, which hasn’t been done before on the Belvedere course. First Mullingar man was Paddy Kelly in 4th, just ahead of Tom McGrath on the line, with Ben Vaikavichius in 6th and young Vincent Connolly who has really improved over the series in 7th. In the junior men’s race Thomas Lynn, another up and coming star from Mullingar, was first, followed by Gavin Doran (Midland Tri Club) and Shane Kelleher (Mullingar Harriers).

Máire Triona KeaneMáire Triona Keane from Tullamore, the winner of the women’s race on the first three nights, sat out the final night and watched Ciara Hewson (Mullingar Harriers) finish first woman with a fast time, followed by Club mates Lorraine Daly 2nd and Alwyn Kinane in 3rd. Of course, with prizes decided on the total of the three best finishing times over the four races, all through the field there were battles taking place for prizes in the various categories, sometimes with only a few seconds separating competitors, which made for some exciting finishes.

Once the race concluded, all retired to the Reception Centre in Belvedere for welcome refreshments and the prize giving ceremony. No surprise that Ger Heery and Máire Triona Keane scooped the Pat Finnerty Memorial Trophies for first man and woman respectively, which were presented by Susan Finnerty, but they were very pleasantly surprised when Bartle Darcy, the General Manager of Belvedere, stepped forward and presented them with annual family memberships of Belvedere. This is a very desirable bonus prize and we can look forward to seeing Ger and Máire training in Belvedere over the next year.Once the race concluded, all retired to the Reception Centre in Belvedere for welcome refreshments and the prize giving ceremony. No surprise that Ger Heery and Máire Triona Keane scooped the Pat Finnerty Memorial Trophies for first man and woman respectively, which were presented by Susan Finnerty, but they were very pleasantly surprised when Bartle Darcy, the General Manager of Belvedere, stepped forward and presented them with annual family memberships of Belvedere. This is a very desirable bonus prize and we can look forward to seeing Ger and Máire training in Belvedere over the next year.

The other men’s prizes were awarded to Peter Mooney 2nd (Na Fianna AC), Derek Croal 3rd (Bohermeen AC), Paddy Kelly 4th, Martin Lyons 5th, and Vincent Connolly 6th (all from Mullingar Harriers). Women’s prizes were presented to Alwyn Kinane 2nd, Eva Ross 3rd, Sarah Mescall 4th, Riona Ní Mhuirairtaigh 5th (all Mullingar Harriers) and Sinead Nolan (Annalee AC). Apart from the individual prizes, there were many spot prizes presented too, which created a buzz of anticipation and feel-good factor at the awards ceremony.

It would be wrong not to pay credit to the many back-room people involved in organizing the League, without whose help the League just wouldn’t take place. These are the people who give freely of their time to take registrations, record results, steward the course, organize prizes, and the myriad other tasks required to run a race series successfully. Thanks also to the Management and Staff of Belvedere House, the Westmeath Civil Defence for providing first aid cover, but especially to all those who took part.