Brady victory puts one over on the men
Wednesday, 26 November 2008
Race winner Rhonda Brady receiving the Fulton Trophy from Denise Sharratt. SL4802
THE Fulton Five, the second race in Larne Athletic Club's Wine Bar sponsored 2008/09 handicap series was held on Saturday 14th November.
As the name suggests, the race was run over a five-mile course, which as usual started and finished at the Leisure Centre and took in the Promenade and the Coast Road to Drains Bay carpark and back.
Weather conditions were nigh on perfect, which might go some way to explaining why the turnout of twenty seven for the race was the highest ever, although it must also be said that the high turnout clearly reflects the fact that the Club is now numerically stronger that it has ever been.
The first two runners to get underway were Bernie Regan and David McIlroy, who were both running in their first handicaps. They were followed a minute or so later by another pair of handicap novices, Julie Anne Mitchell and Rhonda Brady, before old hand, Elaine Hall, was given the off.
Heather Baxter, one of a number of Club members competing in their first race after running an autumn marathon, was next away. Eventually, by the time the last runner, James McIlroy, was sent on his way almost nineteen minutes had elapsed since the start of the race, by which time Regan, Mitchell and Brady were probably fast approaching the two-mile mark.
Once everyone was on the road and running, it was immediately apparent just how hard a task the handicapper had set the late starters.
James McIlroy, with the New York marathon still very much in his legs, pretty much ruled himself out of contention by taking it relatively easy from the start, but Andy Gregg set his stall out very early by quickly making up the five seconds that Nat Glenn had on him at the start.
However, Glenn knew exactly what he was doing and rather than let Gregg get away he soon moved ahead of him again before gradually drawing away.
In the middle group of runners, Kieran Sharratt was making the best of some lenient handicapping by reeling in the two Pauls, Hutchinson and Tilson, on the run out to Drains Bay. This put the third Paul (Gaskell) and Brian Spence in his sights.
But try as Sharratt might, Gaskell wasn't for being caught and although the gap separating them would reduce progressively all the way to the line Gaskell's marathon training made sure that he had the strength to hold onto his place.
Unfortunately, Spence, who was running well at this stage, would eventually succumb to an old calf injury, which would leave him with no option but to slow down.
Ahead of Gaskell and Sharratt, Paula McAllister was making steady headway, running down and overtaking Jackie Wallace, Dan Magill and Jenny Magill as she closed in on Kevin McRandal, who was making one of his irregular forays back into racing.
Further back, Billy Thompson had passed John Agnew and Greg Lavery without too much difficulty and was moving in on Kevin O'Boyle even as he was himself being chased down by Glenn and Mark McManus.
James Brown, who had started thirty-five seconds behind Thompson, was finding that racing wasn't quite as easy to get back into as speed work training after his brief sojourn in Hanoi.
At the head of the field Rhonda Brady had by now moved into an unassailable lead, but the second and third spots were far from being settled as McRandal, McAllister, Regan and Bernard Brady, Rhonda's long suffering but easy going husband (or, as he naively likes to think of himself, her significant other), who had made up a considerable amount of ground on those ahead of him, were all still in with a shout of a top three place.
By now all the runners had completed the outward leg of the race to Drains Bay carpark and were making the best of their way back to the Leisure Centre.
Brady only had to maintain her effort to make her first handicap outing a victorious one but the race for second and third looked like going down to the wire, with McAllister closing on McRandal with every stride and Bernard Brady and Regan only a few seconds further back.
Glenn, Thompson and McManus were still making his way through the field but they were too far back to make any impact on the top-ten and like Justin Maxwell, who wasn't that far behind them, were running largely for bragging rights and pride.
By the time Rhonda was halfway along the Promenade with the finish in sight she was over two minutes ahead of her nearest challengers and she was able to relax some distance before the line, which she crossed to claim victory in a superb corrected time of 38:59.
Despite being under severe pressure from McAllister, McRandal eventually managed to hold her off for second place by about the width of his vest.
Fourth and fifth places went to Bernard Brady and Bernie Regan in 32:10 and 42:45 respectively. Mitchell finished in sixth place in 42:17 with Dan Magill, who is just setting out on his first marathon-training programme, in seventh in 38:13.
Jenny Magill and Gaskell were the next pair across the line in 38:27 and 31:19; both excellent times, which leaves one wondering what they could have done if they hadn't run in Dublin at the end of October.
Sharratt was tenth in 30:47, easily his best run of 2008, with Baxter, another runner to put in a marvellous performance with a marathon still in her legs, in eleventh place in 42:01.
Glenn, in twelfth place, was the first of the Club's heavyweights (in running terms) to cross the line. His time of 28:18 was by some way the fastest of the day. Thompson, McManus and Agnew filled the thirteenth, fourteenth and fifteenth places with O'Boyle sixteenth.
Seventeenth place, in the second fastest time of the day (28:38) went to Maxwell. His run in Dublin may have slowed him down a bit but not so you'd really notice.
Wallace, after winning the final handicap of last season and the first handicap of this season, knew that a third victory in a row was unlikely but he was more than content with his time of 35:55, which was ample compensation for a finishing place of eighteenth.
Lavery finished in nineteenth in 31:10; an indication that his target of a sub-three hour run in London is no mere pipe dream as long as he can fit in the necessary training.
Gregg, Tilson, Brown and Hutchinson occupied places twenty to twenty-three in corrected times of 29:35, 33:57, 31:00 and 35:33 respectively while Spence nursed his injured leg into twenty-fourth place, just ahead of Hall in twenty-fifth. The final two places went to David and James McIlroy. James, who took the race very easily as part of his recovery from his New York run, accompanied David over the last mile or so.
Thanks to John Agnew for setting the handicap, to Elaine Hall for organising the prizes, to Denise and Kirsty Sharratt and Emma Somerville for the time-keeping and refreshments and to the Wine Bar for their continued sponsorship.
Results (corrected times in brackets):
1st Rhonda Brady 40:19 (38:59)
2nd Kevin McRandal 42:24 (35:44)
3rd Paula McAllister 42:35 (32:25)
4th Bernard Brady 42:40 (32:10)
5th Bernie Regan 42:40 (42:40)
6th Julie Anne Mitchell 43:17 (42:17)
7th Dan Magill 43:23 (38:13)
8th Jenny Magill 43:27 (38:27)
9th Paul Gaskell 43:39 (31:19)
10th Kieran Sharratt 43:47 (30:47)
11th Heather Baxter 44:21 (42:01)
12th Nat Glenn 44:28 (28:28)
13th Billy Thompson 44:33 (29:33)
14th Mark McManus 44:47 (29:07)
15th John Agnew 45:00 (30:30)
16th Kevin O'Boyle 45:16 (30:56)
17th Justin Maxwell 45:18 (28:38)
18th Jackie Wallace 45:25 (35:55)
19th Greg Lavery (45:35 (31:10)
20th Andy Gregg 45:50 (29:35)
21st Paul Tilson 46:07 (33:57)
22nd James Brown 46:35 (31:00)
23rd Paul Hutchinson 48:03 (35:33)
24th Brian Spence 48:12 (37:53)
25th Elaine Hall 48:19 (46:39)
26th David McIlroy 51:45 (51:45)
27th James McIlroy 51:48 (33:08)
