Portmarnock 10k starts off on the right foot

It’s a cool, bright autumn evening. The moon is on your left shoulder, big and bold as it reflects on the calm sea beneath it. Beneath your feet is a firm, sandy beach, occasionally pock marked by tidal movements. Slightly ahead, again to the left, is Ireland’s Eye which is nothing but a big rock that escaped from the mainland.

Even further ahead and stretching further to the left is Howth Head, a green mound but with a beading of street lights which become more distinct as the darkness silently takes the place of dusk’s half light. Idyllic. Scenic. A perfect evening.

But I’m almost too busy, too fast to notice. I am running a hard, but fairly steady pace in the company of 300 others as we cut our way through the inaugural Portmarnock Road to Beach and Back 10k.

I’m glad I took up the invitation of Martha, a cousin from my mother’s side, to participate in this event this year because, when word gets out about this race, they’ll all be doing it! It was a super event from start to finish.

Using social media largely, I think the organisation of this race had an efficient, friendly feel to it. There were no frills. A time, a date, invitation to register all went out. A Facebook page was established and regular updates provided, including directions, detail about parking (ample thanks to GAA grounds nearby), how to register and so on.

Bang on 7.30pm the race began. The first mile was on the road, through housing estates and downhill. It was hard to hold back and I was soon clocking 7.26 minutes per mile. By the end of that first mile we were on the beach, descending by way of the slipway and turning right to run back in the direction of the city, as it were. The crowd strung out as it does, but on the beach there was the added advantage of not being hemmed in at all, you could easily pass or not, run alongside with much arm space. I loved that aspect of it all too. In the distance, the headlamps of the Coast Guard jeep marked the turn point for the 5km/3mile turn. From the outset, at the pace I was going, it never seemed too far away. I took that as a good omen and began my mantra: controlled, steady effort; controlled, steady effort. In 23 minutes, one second I had run three miles a PB/PR in itself. I was feeling good, not over extended at all, not feeling too much pain.

At the turn, we did face back into a slight headwind. As we went on, I soon forgot about it, though I did occasionally try to tuck in behind some of the bigger guys, but soon passed them. For the first half mile after the turn, I found myself in silent combat with a tall, strong chap. We just kept apace, slightly challenging, but wordlessly. I left him behind eventually, I think.

After that, I clipped on, a little uncertain as the light faded on the sandy ridging, but with the adrenaline flowing, braver than I would have thought.

I picked off a few individuals, including the girl with the t-shirt which read:

‘Pain is only temporary, Internet results are forever’. I contemplated that line for a while as I did my best to keep the controlled, steady effort. Soon, we were turning off the beach, up the slipway which felt like a sudden steep climb to begin the last mile home. This was hilly and slowed my pace somewhat. Some guy told me that I passed him here but hand on heart I have no idea. I was just fighting the fight, pulling or pushing up, determined to not lose too much time.

Soon, it flattened out and I could see the final set of traffic lights marking our last 100 metres or so and then the real race began. A guy in an orange t-shirt appeared on my shoulder. I took him on. I pushed, pushed, nearly passed him, pushed again and then sadly, my tummy would not hold up and I felt a touch of the old heave-hos and had to let him go. I met him afterwards. We high-fived, laughed and he thanked me for the challenge. It was good fun to hear the cheers as people realised there was a showdown broken into the guys against the girls.

As I crossed the finish line, I ran straight into the arms of my younger cousin whose husband bent down to remove my timing chip. It was lovely to be hugged by the race organiser so familiarly! Well done Martha, you did a fantastic job.

And my PB was 48:30, a minute and a half better than my last PB for a 10k which was four years ago. It does warm the cockles of my heart to be PB-ing in my late 40s (yes, I am technically in my late 40s since last week).

And just as I finished this report (modest blush here), I have learned that I came second in my age category! Never before!