Dublin Mountain Plod
Forum Messages
| Author | Date | Message |
|---|---|---|
| Tricia Conway | May 1 2011, 9:26pm | How do you enter for this event? and I would like to join the Irish mountain running assoc Thanks Tricia Conway |
| Ian Conroy | May 23 2011, 12:01am | Hi Tricia, you can join IMRA on the day of the event. It costs 10 Euro and then 7 Euro for race entry. The 10 Euro would give you membership for the rest of the year. |
| Derek Keating | May 23 2011, 5:09pm | Is there any online registration for this event? thanks, Derek |
| Robert Hickey | May 24 2011, 1:47pm | http://www.runireland.com/events/dublin-mountain-plod |
| Conor White | Jun 7 2011, 9:05pm | Hi-i have entered the Dublin Mountain Plod pre-registration. Can I now enter other IMRA events? Or if not can I just show up and join? |
| Dermot Murphy | Jun 7 2011, 11:02pm | Conor, if you want to enter an IMRA race before the Dublin mountain plod, please print off your acceptance slip for the plod to show that you have paid the registration fee. It will then cost you the usual 7 Euro race fee and we will then need to allocate a number to you. |
| Dermot Murphy | Jun 7 2011, 11:05pm | Volunteers - we will require quite a number of non running volunteers to help marshal the course (which has some road sections). If anyone is available to help out, can you please sign up as a volunteer as soon as you can so we can get some idea of numbers available to us. |
| Raedi Higgins | Jun 8 2011, 4:20pm | Hi, any chance this is full? I'm trying to register on runireland site but when I click submit, page is blank! |
| Conor White | Jun 8 2011, 8:40pm | Thanks for that Dermot. Hope to enter the 11k next week. |
| Conor White | Jun 8 2011, 8:40pm | Thanks for that Dermot. Hope to enter the 11k next week. |
| Tamas Farkas | Jun 19 2011, 6:58pm | Hi Dermot, I am available for marshaling. I don't know exactly what that includes, but if you tell me more I can get out there prior to the race with my map and familiarize myself with the route. |
| Dermot Murphy | Jun 19 2011, 7:05pm | Thanks Tamas. We will probably be allocating marshalling roles on the morning itself - there will be a marshal briefing around 8:30 - 9am (check closer to the time). Some key points will need marshals, who goes where will depend on how many we have on the day. The more marshals we have, the better! |
| Dermot Murphy | Jun 30 2011, 4:38pm | We will need about 15 marshals for the Dublin Plod event - only a couple of volunteers so far. Can people please sign up asap in order to help with the organising of this event - we need more volunteers than we usually do for IMRA races. |
| Mary Collins | Jul 4 2011, 10:43am | Hi Dermot I have added my name as a non running volunteer Did not specify any particular role as I am happy to do whatever you need-- I would be OK for marshall, registration/finish line ( but NOT lap top duty) and/or Ist aid. Thanks, Mary Collins |
| Ronan Kearney | Jul 7 2011, 9:16am | Hi Dermot, Does the imra "no headphones" rule apply in this race? |
| Dermot Murphy | Jul 7 2011, 10:48am | Ronan, and everyone else, yes the no headphone rule also applies to this race. |
| Warren Swords | Jul 7 2011, 11:59am | Can IMRA members enter on the day? Or is there a chance that the race could be full by then? |
| Jim Fitzharris | Jul 7 2011, 12:14pm | The no "headphone rule" will need to be publicised clearly before the race and at the start. There will be a high proportion of non-IMRA runners doing this event. Marshals should also be told to enforce it. Last year, I told a guy (nicely!) to remove his headphones during the race. He did so apologetically but had them on a again a few clicks down the line ........ On a route like this, if you wear headphones you can hear neither marshals nor other runners who come up behind you. I have said this before but headphone usage in a triathlon is an automatic DQ. In BHAA races they are now banned as well but enforcement is still lax and there do not appear to be sanctions (yet). This will probably improve over time because it is still early days for them given the wide usage of headphones by road runners. I am really looking forward to this race - I really enjoyed it last year. All things considered, it is an excellent circuit and the road stretches are unavoidable but kept to a minimum. One final request: could we ensure that it really is a half-marathon? I think it was 20k last year. I know it is not comparable to a road-based race but it would be nice to have the genuine distance and this could surely be accommodated by adjusting the route in Marlay Park. Cheers, Jim. |
| Sami Myllymaki | Jul 8 2011, 8:33pm | Hi, I tried to register for this event online but without success. Is there any other means to register or is the registration already over? Thanks, Sami |
| Marijn van Trier | Jul 9 2011, 1:02pm | Hi All! Are there really no carpool options??? I'm coming over to Dublin and will stay at the Four Courts Hostel on Merchants Quay. Anyone who could help me with a ride? Thanx in advance! Marijn |
| Marijn van Trier | Jul 9 2011, 1:11pm | Hey Sami! Did you try: http://www.runireland.com/events/dublin-mountain-plod |
| Tamas Farkas | Jul 9 2011, 1:38pm | Hi Marijn, People normally start offering seats for carpool just a couple of days before the race, so no need to worry if you don't see any yet. Or you could stick up a note (as you did) on the forum asking for a lift, with your phone number. Somebody will surely help you. |
| Paul Whyte | Jul 9 2011, 5:20pm | Hi Marijn, I hope to be going again this year and I carried you last year. I will be putting car up later in week but I will keep a seat for you. Can collect at same place as last year.... Cheers Paul |
| henny brandsma | Jul 11 2011, 8:46am | Hi there. You can ad me aswell on list of non running volunteers,i spoke allready to Dermot about my roll and what i have to doo. Give me a call on my mob.087-7604825 or by e-mail:hennybrandsma@yahoo.ie. regards Henny. |
| Marijn van Trier | Jul 12 2011, 9:21am | Hi Paul! Nice to receive a message from you. I'd be gratefull to ride with you. We can keep contact by phone +31655395841 Pick up at the same point as last year is fine! See you there! Regards, Marijn |
| Sami Myllymäki | Jul 12 2011, 9:58pm | Marijn, that was the address I tried unsuccessfully over weekend. Today, finally, I got to sign up! Now I can start to search from the map where it is and how to get there... There's bus stations or something nearby? |
| Zoran Skrba | Jul 12 2011, 10:50pm | The race start/finish is in Marlay park - which is served by no. 16 bus. (other busses 14, 14A, 15B, 48A and 75 stop close by). |
| Dermot Murphy | Jul 13 2011, 9:00am | Just a further note on Zoran's note on the buses - the Sunday morning bus time table is pretty poor - it would be very tight making it for registration if you were depending on them. |
| Sami Myllymaki | Jul 13 2011, 4:14pm | Race start at 10AM but I don't think I saw any cut-off time for registration? Buses do seem to run sparingly on Sundays. 15b goes through Rathmines and leaves relatively early so I guess that is my best bet. Eden Quay 9:10 -> Whitechurch in 20 minutes(says dublinbus.ie). Leaves me with ~30minutes to find the starting line, register and watch grass grow. Doable? |
| Mary Gurrie | Jul 13 2011, 10:07pm | a 15b leaving town at 9.10 would be cutting it very fine. Usually takes at least 30 mins to get to Whitechurch and the start is a good mile from there |
| Dermot Murphy | Jul 14 2011, 10:14am | Please note that online registration closes at 4pm on Friday evening. Please ensure to register before then. There will be limited on the day registration between 8:45am and 9:15am. However, participation cannot be guaranteed if the race limited of 400 is reached. |
| Johan Dehantschutter | Jul 14 2011, 10:26am | Getting conflicting information about this race. Can somebody confirm whether: 1. it is mandatory to register via runireland.com (at a cost of €20); or 2. we can register on the day as normal (at a cost of €7) |
| Warren Swords | Jul 14 2011, 10:54am | According to race details: Pre-entry is needed for this race. Register here: http://www.runireland.com/events/dublin-mountain-plod . Entry is limited to 400 people. Online entry will close at 4pm on Friday 15th July. According to http://www.dublinmountains.ie/plod/ "Online registration is now open. Online entry closes at 4pm on Friday 15th July. A limited number of entries will be available on the day. Registration opens at 8.30am." There is no difference in price between pre entries and on the day, price was always E20 |
| Dermot Murphy | Jul 14 2011, 11:14am | As Warren has stated, race entry on the day will be €20, €30 for non IMRA members. |
| Shane Jenkinson | Jul 14 2011, 1:02pm | Will there be somewhere to leave a bag near the start/finish area by any chance? |
| Dermot Murphy | Jul 14 2011, 1:07pm | Yes, there will be a place for bags - please don't leave any valuables in it though. We will have the Marquee again for registration, and bags can be left here during the race (this is also the start/finish line). |
| John Rowe | Jul 14 2011, 1:13pm | Would it be possible to change an entry from one name to another? One of the guys from my club has entered the race as a non IMRA member, but is now unable to compete due to work commitments. I have checked the runireland website and it’s not possible to get a refund. Regards, John |
| Shane Jenkinson | Jul 14 2011, 1:15pm | Great! Thanks Dermot! |
| Turlough Conway | Jul 14 2011, 1:24pm | Hi The event details states "Pre-entry needed". This may be where a conflict of information exists. I know theres a clarification above but could this be changed to reflect that you can register on the morning? Thanks |
| Mary Roe | Jul 14 2011, 5:36pm | I was wondering if you need any more volunteers for Sunday. I will not be running in the event. |
| Dermot Murphy | Jul 14 2011, 9:06pm | We could do with as many volunteers as are available - as there are sections on the road, we need as many marshals as we can get. |
| Tony Berkery | Jul 15 2011, 8:59am | Hi Dermot, I'll volunteer for the event, as a non-runner. TOny |
| Tony Berkery | Jul 15 2011, 9:01am | What time should volunteers be there for? |
| Deirdre Casey | Jul 15 2011, 11:07am | Hi All, Just to let you know that I'll be there providing sports massage at the end of the race. €10 for 15 minute post event treatment to reduce stiffness and pain as well as reducing recovery time. See you at the finish line. Dee www.dcasey.ie |
| Dermot Murphy | Jul 15 2011, 1:06pm | Running volunteers - please help with registration - can you be there for 8:15am? Non running volunteers - I will need you there for the marshal briefing at 8:45am. I will also need one or two non running volunteers to help with the finish - if any of the non volunteers cannot make it earlier, could you please help out with the finish instead? These volunteers can arrive around 11 - 11:15am. Please let me know if this suits you better. |
| Cormac MacDonnell | Jul 15 2011, 2:57pm | Hi Folks, Just a reminder to all runners to carry a light wind breaker and basic first aid kit when out running in the hills - you never know when it will be needed ! I ended up busting my knee open last year after a bad fall on the plod and got cold very quickly up there - thankfully I was able to scramble down to a track and got some help there ! Enjoy, Cormac |
| Mick Hanney | Jul 15 2011, 3:06pm | There hasn't been anything on the race instructions about a mandatory jacket to date so advising people to have one now will undoubtedly get missed by the majority of would be runners I'm afraid. |
| mike gomm | Jul 15 2011, 9:08pm | hi dermot I could do stewarding for the plod on sunday. bestway to contact is on mob 0879135541. all best mike |
| Marijn van Trier | Jul 16 2011, 12:19pm | Paul, could you confirm by sms you are riding tomo? And at what time do you want to pick me up? +31655395841 Regards, Marijn |
| Mary Collins | Jul 16 2011, 3:19pm | Hi Dermot As per your last note re Non running volunteers--I will plan to be there for 8.45 am briefing Will not have access to check forum again before tomorrow's race--so if you need me to arrive earlier please text me on 087 2389914-- Thanks, Mary Collins |
| seamus kilcullen | Jul 16 2011, 8:55pm | dermot will you put me in as a marshallearli stage to cover the eaely stage of the plod |
| Gary Condon | Jul 17 2011, 5:22pm | Many thanks to the organizers and volunteers who did a superb job. Thanks also to the Gardai who were out in force, keeping the roads clear. Certainly my second favorite race of the year, after the WW Relay. |
| Deirdre Fitzsimons | Jul 17 2011, 7:11pm | Many thanks to all who involved in organising and helping out at the Dublin Plod today - it was a great event, superbly organised an well stewarded, a truly fantastic route, plenty of uphill but we were treated kindly with a nice downhill stretch at the end! |
| Turlough Conway | Jul 17 2011, 8:24pm | Hi Folks Registered myself as a DNF when i finished as i got lost and didnt complete the course. Im down as 19th. Could someone change when they have a chance to be fiar to the runners above 19th position. Thanks a million |
| diarmuid O'Colmain | Jul 17 2011, 8:41pm | Great race; very well organized, great input and coopeation from a very friendly and encouraging group of Gardai. Thanks Dermot. |
| diarmuid O'Colmain | Jul 17 2011, 8:52pm | I measured today's race at 21.03 km. Obviously it was slightly shorter last year but I seem to have deleted my file from last year - anyone know what the length was? |
| Dermot Murphy | Jul 17 2011, 9:10pm | Turlough, before I sent the results to Kevin, I noticed you were down as a DNF. I changed it, as I know that when you went wrong it added time rather than shortening the length of your race. I'd rather see a race time than a DNF, you weren't really a DNF. |
| Paul Whyte | Jul 17 2011, 9:11pm | Would agree with all the positive comments with regard to today's race. Well done to all involved. |
| Pól Ó Murchú | Jul 17 2011, 9:20pm | Well done to Dermot and all his helpers and marshals etc. What a fantastic race. So well organised and very well marked. Thoroughly enjoyed. Thank you. |
| Mick Hanney | Jul 17 2011, 10:14pm | Diarmuid, you must have cut some corners :-). I measured today as 21.24k and last years 21k exactly. |
| Adrian Tucker | Jul 18 2011, 12:19am | Measured it at 21.1K, but I was cutting a corner as I passed Mick Hanney :-) |
| Justin O'Keeffe | Jul 18 2011, 9:26am | Big thanks to all the marshals , DMP & Dermot for an excellent race; was well marked & marshalled - great job with the weather too! |
| Turlough Conway | Jul 18 2011, 12:07pm | Hi Dermot, I was definately a DNF. I didnt complete the last couple of hundred metres of the course, walking directly to teh tent and would prefer it to be recorded as thus, to be fair to the people behind who completed it. |
| Turlough Conway | Jul 18 2011, 2:16pm | Hi Folks, Just a few points to make but first a big thanks to everyone who gave their time to volunteer yesterday for what was for the most part a hugely enjoyable and successful day, particularly IMRAs no 1 volunteer (joint first with Mick at least) el Presidente Dermot. Im just going to give my opinion on a few things that maybe could be improved from yesterday. Marshalling: The test effective of marshalling/marking is really can the people with no-one to follow get though the course easily without going awry? The fact that 2 out of the top 3 went wrong in the last 2k would suggest otherwise. Colm, the guy who was leading the race by a winning margin seems to have gone wrong at an unmarshalled junction near an underpass. ( i chose the word "an" deliberately to help people who would normally use "the" to empathise with someone unfamiliar with this area of public road). This is the situation he would have found himself in: you have ran through 5 junctions on the race on the way out. You are approaching one of them from a different angle and you may or may not recognise it, you may or may not remember that you passed an underpass. You may remember that you came down a hill to the underpass: was that it off to the left there? You ahve a few seconds to make this decision and remember you are expecting this junction to have a marshall. Also and most importantly, if you dont have a marshall at a junction there is a safety issue as you are risking runners running on unpoliced public roads. I was running through the bushy section on the left of Marley within 200m of the line when i went wrong. I knew i needed to take a left at some point. I saw someone in high vis but he was 40 metres away from me with his back to me so i discounted him as a race marshall. And i ended up a minute later face to face with the baby train track with my race over. I believe a few more people also went wrong at this point, having to turn back swapping places etc. 2: Race Route change The race route was changed from last year. The change i believe was to bring the race an extra 200-250 metres up to the exact race distance. i. The main point ill make here is that we were not informed of the race change until the race briefing right before the race. The race route was not the one published on the website. Therefore there was no oppurtunity for competitors to recce the complicated race finish to minimize any chance of error. (there is no real advantage in recceing the first k or two of the race) ii. If the race had to be lenghtened it should have been done either by extending the loop at the start or by adding more track on the Dublin mountains. Adding a complicated loop only took away from an excellent finish from last year, made it more likely that people would go astray so close to the finish, and importantly means that a consistant route from last year does not get established. iii. Last point here, not the main one but important. Last years route seems to have been within 250 metres of a half marathon by last years GPS readings i saw.The only reason to get an accurate distance for that route is to get an AAI permit. And that means a Jones counter. I would say that getting within 250m for a half marathon on a GPS is plenty good enough to call it a half marathon. If anyone thinksthe Wicklow should be rounded to an even 120 they should be threatened with the Jones counter. Suggestions for next year: 1. Apart from these two gaps the marshalling and marking was excellent. I would suggest that IMRA take complete responsibility for all logistics of the race organisation as they are the experts here. DMP do a great job and they should continue to supply volunteers for the race and maybe present the prizes. I have a feeling the lapses may have been caused by a division of responsiblity for race organisation between DMP and IMRA. Only one should have control of organising the race and as its a race on mounatins it should be IMRA. 2. Route to be used is published well in advance. Perhaps IMRA should look at the habit that has developed of IMRA races deviating significantly from published routes for several reasons including safety and to a lesser extent record times, overall and personal. 3. The old excellent finsih down that lovely grass hill should be reinstated. The new finish takes away from teh race. If the route from last year is used then we have only one year where the year on year results are not on the same established route. Thats it. These suggestons (rants) are no slight on any volunteer at any level. Fair play to one and all for great volunteeringa nd putting the time in. Well done to Aengus on getting the win. He managed to torture me and Colm with his relentless climbing, he didnt manage to quite shake Colm but he deserved his win after a great run. Performance of the day must go to Sarah Mulligan with a fantastic run after apparently running 29.13 in the Phoenix Park 5 miler on saturday. Only 3 minutes behind the mens winner in a 90 minute race is a truly high caliber run. |
| Dermot Murphy | Jul 18 2011, 4:29pm | Turlough - a couple of quick points to cover most of the areas on your post - can go through in more detail later if required: 1) Marshalling and IMRA taking complete ownership - comes down to numbers volunteering. Without the DMP volunteers, would would not have all points marshalled as we did. Marshalling problems at the underpass and Marlay park - I think this was a case of the marshals not been prepared for the lead runners when they should have. Definitely a mistake on the day, hopefully lesson learned. 2) The change in route around Marlay park had nothing to do with distance - it wasn't a factor. The main driver here was the way we entered and left the park. We changed it so we did not have to cross the road and the car park near the entrance which can busy and is a safety hazard. The loop at the start was to spread the field. On the way back in, as we need to take a left at the gate, I suggested that leaving the marking the way it was and returning the same way was the simplest. I take your point that this should have been pointed out in advance - but the final decision was not made until the day before and I thought it was simple enough. 3) All runners should listen to the race briefing at the start to ensure they are aware of any changes/safety measures etc (I think you missed it Turlough!!). |
| turlough conway | Jul 18 2011, 5:24pm | Hi Dermot My point about marshalling was that IMRA should be the sole entity in charge of directing marshalls and logistics which might avoid problems with delegation of responsibility in future. I did suggest DMP should still supply volunteers and perhaps do prize giving, but organisation by IMRA. Surely the DMP would not withdraw its volunteers if IMRA took substantial charge of race logistics. I did arrive at about 9:53-4 so in time i thought for the safety speech which was advertised as "immediately prior to race start" in the letter to pre-registered runners. It actually happened a little earlier. Just to note also that if i hadnt pre-registered i would not have been aware of the safety speech as this was not advertised on the race details. Knowing that the route was returning the same way would not have afforded me the chance to recce any potential dodgy areas and would still not have put the marshall in the correct position to help direct runners out of the bushes. Remember, there were others who had problems at this point who were at the safety speech so the problems at this point seems to be clearly one of marshalling. I am surprised to hear the route change had nothing to do with the lenght of a half marathon, given the new route is exactly that by GPS, however, ill let that go. If the decision to change the route was only made the day before then it shouldnt have been made at all for reasons ive already given. |
| Turlough Conway | Jul 18 2011, 7:47pm | Derek was on the boards forum explaining the route change there. He explained any marshalling mishaps too. I do think that if the likes of yourself Dermot, had more control over things (like marshalling) yesterday there would have been less or no mishaps. Not ypour fault, nor was getting the late notice for route change. Eoin Keith was present the last time i went wrong so ive decided to blame him instead. Over and out. |
| Mick Hanney | Jul 18 2011, 7:59pm | Thanks Dermot and to the rest of the race volunteers, in particular the non-running ones for their help and cheerful support throughout the day. The gardai, who seemed to be out in force, were brilliantly supportive too. |
| Zoran Skrba | Jul 19 2011, 9:55am | I cannot really comment on the marking, as I am very familiar with the route. But from my point I thought the race was well organised and well marked. Thanks to all the volunteers and organisers. Suggestions for next year: Maybe few distance markers could be added to aid people unfamiliar with the route, so that they know how far from water stations, finish etc. they are throughout the race. |
