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28 November, 2009

Tibradden Race Report
by Douglas Barry
The absence of Trafford's Simon Fairmaner removed any sense of suspense from the Tibradden race. The only uncertainty left before the start was just how much Paul Nolan's winning margin would be. Fairmaner had to miss the race due to business commitments in England and left the Winter League title on a plate for the RDA runner.
Nolan, never short of alacrity if an unconsidered trifle is left lying around on an abandoned platter, snapped up the title with a driving 2 minute win on a course he relished. "If only there were more courses with finishes like this" he remarked later of the tricky twisting route that snaked through the trees. He wound up with an emphatic margin over Declan Doyle who easily held off the pressure of Irish Trail Running Champion Eoin Keith.
Eva Mulleady (Crusaders) took the women's race from pre-race favourite Jane Watt who, even though she was relegated to third behind her fellow Crusaders runner Nina Philips, finished with the women's Winter League title. Eva looked very comfortable with her win over the tricky 7 kilometre course which took in the summit of Tibradden before heading to the heights of Fairy Castle with its magnificent views of Dublin Bay.
In addition to her League title, Jane took the veteran's prize in the race with the men's Over 40 prize going to Doug Corrie. Graham Porter took the Supervet prize with a clear win in the Over 50s, although a revived Diarmuid O'Colmain took the League title. Mick Kellet took the Over 60s win and League title from Mike Gomm. The best Junior on the day was David Simpson with category wins for Brendan Murphy and Brendan O'Reilly.