This morning I continued my recovery from the last couple of weeks madness by taking part in another Tralee parkrun. I travelled to Tralee Town Park with Catherine and Lee in very heavy rain showers, but as soon as we got there, the skies cleared, and it turned into a sunny, if breezy morning. We met lots of our club mates there, including husband and wife team Brian and Lorna White, and my frequent running partner Brian O’Sè. Brian, myself, Lee, Tracy, and Catherine getting in a pre-run stretch (pic Tralee parkrun) After instructions and introductions from race director Mary, we set off. Myse ..read more

Last night was the latest in the Tralee Triathlon Club Mini Tri Series, and there were two distances on offer – a Tri-a-tri, and a Sprint distance. After my exertions at the weekend, I decided to opt for the tri-a-tri (though I nearly changed my mind on the way out!), while Catherine was doing the sprint. When we got to Fenit, there was a good crowd starting to gather, and Race Director Sinead was getting everything organised. It would also, incidentally, be the first night the club tested our new timing system. After a bit of chat, and getting my transition area ready, I gathered with the oth ..read more

After last weeks shenanigans in the 102k ultra, I wasn’t exactly full of enthusiasm for dragging my aching legs out on another ultra this week, but I did it anyway. I ran this race last year, and was determined to complete it again, especially as I am getting close to qualifying for my Marathon Club of Ireland 25 marathon bronze medal, and this race would leave me with just two more to go (hopefully they will be the MCI Tralee Marathon, and the Tralee 100k). I had only gotten in one training session between last weeks ultra and this – a short swim/run brick session, and I definitely wasn’t ful ..read more

I will be recovering from last weekends ultra by, well, running another ultra this weekend. And before you ask, no, I wouldn’t advise this as a smart move. This weekends ultra is a “mere” 40 miles, and is a race I did last year. It’s nice and close to home, and, being run in 5 mile circuits, means that you are never too far away from your drop bag and aid station. It also has the added advantage of not requiring a crew, as I’m not sure anyone would be crazy enough to crew two weekends in a row. I’m hoping this will be good training for the Tralee 100k in a few weeks. Either that, or it will ki ..read more

Running a 100k is never easy. Running a tough, hilly, 102k with no training is madness. But then running ultras probably isn’t a sane activity anyway. I looked forward to this race with some trepidation, as I knew I just didn’t have the mileage done – I am way behind the training mileage I had done last year, and have been carrying a hamstring injury for the past few weeks that has made what little running I have done, slow and painful. However, I didn’t want to miss this race – it was the inaugural running of it, and it just seemed like an awesome challenge, so I decided I’d have a crack at i ..read more

In a few hours I’ll be taking on the beautiful Ring of Kerry (or 102km of it anyway) in the RTK Run the Ring Dusk to Dawn Challenge. There are 2 races in this – the individual 102km race that I’m doing, and a 183km team relay event. If you are badly stuck for something to do (and want to see just how slow I really am), you can track all the runners here. I might be calling on Luke Skywalker for a hand (get it?!) when we pass near his Star Wars: A Force Awakens home on Skellig Michael. Best of luck to all the runners, team and individual, and to the organisers and volunteers. A big Thank You t ..read more

I was on Kayak duty last night for the Tralee Triathlon Club Aquabike (that’s a swim, followed by a cycle!), as I had decided it was better to rest my legs before tackling the monster 102k Dawn to Dusk Run The Ring Challenge on Saturday. Despite some slightly dodgy weather conditions at times (and an unexpectedly long swim!), everyone seemed to have a great time, and it was a great training exercise for the season ahead. Well done to Race Director Sinead, all the volunteers, and most of all, all the brave souls who completed it – especially the completely insane Mazza, who is also running the ..read more

Yesterday evening I took part in the Tralee Triathlon Club Slip to Shore Swim (it was actually shore to slip due to tide direction, but that doesn’t roll off the tongue as well), where experienced swimmers were partnered up with newer swimmers who were doing their first longer distance sea swim. The evening was a great success, with lots of club members doing the full 750m distance for the first time. Well done to organiser Joanne, and to all the kayakers and helpers, and especially to those who conquered their fears and completed their first full distance swim. We had great fun. The club is r ..read more

My family and I celebrated Global Running Day by taking part in the Run The Kingdom 5k in Tralee. The event was organised by Marcus Howlett and the Run The Kingdom crew, and there was a great turnout for both the 5k and the 3k, with runners of all ages, on a fantastic sunny evening. Well done to the organisers, and to sponsors Radar Sports ..read more

This evening (Tuesday) I took part in the latest in the Tralee Triathlon Club mini-try series. There were two options, and, due to hamstring issues, I opted to go for the shorter tri-a-tri version of the aquathon, which consisted of a 250 meter swim followed by a 2.5k run. There was also a sprint distance, consisting of a 750m swim and a 5k run. Conditions were absolutely perfect in Fenit, with warm, calm water, and blue skies. There was a great turnout of over 70 athletes, with lots of members of Tralee Bay Swimming Club joining in. After the usual preliminaries from race director Bridget, we ..read more