This week we have a report from the Biboa 10k back in June 2008

I’ve always been very fond of the Bilboa 10k. It’s a race that has a lot going for it. The course is interesting, well stewarded and very quiet from a traffic point of view. In fairness it’s not a particularly fast route as it gets quite hilly towards the end and those hills tend to knock the stuffing out of you just as you might reckon you have a chance of a decent time. Part of the race’s charm for me is the warm welcome you get at registration and the generous homemade refreshments that are provided for all when the running has been done. The Bilboa AC Clubhouse is a fine facility with a huge grass area to the rear of the building that acts as a perfect warm-up/warm-down space and an overflow carpark. This year the race was being run in memory of Ger Mullane who sadly passed away last year. Ger was a familiar sight to many Athenry AC runners at races up and down the country. His warm smile and gentlemanly demeanour have been greatly missed by all who knew him since his passing. It was with fond memories of Ger that I made my way into the heart of wild and woolly East Limerick last Friday evening for this year’s Bilboa 10k along with Johnny O’Connor and Gary Doherty. We had been blessed with beautiful weather that evening. A warm summer sun shone down on us as we jogged slowly around in preparation for the race. As is usual all three of us had vague time targets in mind but, as Olympic qualification was probably out of the question for the moment, we tried not to worry too much. In five previous efforts over the course the best I had managed was 36:10. Despite having run 36:03 in Carramore a few weeks back, I didn’t feel like I was in the shape to go that quickly again. Those hills are a fecker you know! Johnny said he’d be satisfied with anything under 39:00, and the more ‘under’ he was the more satisfied he’d become. Gary was taking a very philosophical view and planned running another 10km race in Annaghdown the following evening. Having only recently returned from long-term injury he appeared more concerned with getting back into the action safely than recording any particular time.

And They're Off...

With the preliminaries disposed of we made our way to the starting line where we all paused for a moment to remember Ger and, perhaps, to realise how lucky we all were to be able to run that night. As usual, in the twinkling of a digital stopwatch, we were all flailing down the road as best we could manage. The three of us Athenry lads had all promised each other to take it very handy from the start and so it came as little surprise to see Johnny O’Connor take off like the proverbial rocket in chase of Seamus Power who was an obvious favourite to win the race. It took me the traditional mile or so to catch up with Johnny who was looking as fresh as could be expected from a rocket pilot who was running a little short on fuel. Although I didn’t see him again for the duration, he must have recovered reasonably well from this early exuberance as he wasn’t that far behind me at the finish line. If we could only get Johnny to start his races a little more conservatively and to pack in the ‘smokes’, world records might tumble.

Men's Race Winner Seamus Power

I made my way carefully along the road in the early couple of miles in anticipation of the mountain climbing to come in miles four and five. From previous experience, I felt the best approach was to keep a little bit up my sleeve to deal with those later difficult miles. My first three mile splits were 5:27, 5:41 and 5:50. As we turned away from the village of Cappamore at around halfway I braced myself for the real hard work. The field was well spread out by this point but I was consoled by the fact that I seemed to be catching the odd ‘straggler’ who may have been a tad overenthusiastic in the early miles. I put my head down and pushed up the first incline. Two miles later and with mile splits of 6:09 and 6:10 behind me I passed the five mile marker and could see the last turn just ahead. Thankfully the last mile of this race is all downhill to the line and so if you can hold it together reasonably well on the climb you have a chance to make some time back before the finish. I felt relatively strong on the last descent and was very happy to hold off a few whippersnappers who were chasing me down the hill. My finish time of 36:01 was pleasantly surprising given the course and how I had felt before the race. Perhaps there’s some life left in the old legs yet. Johnny struck another blow for the maroon and white following me closely past the post in 39:01, having earlier jettisoned his second stage boosters around Cappamore somewhere. Gary maintained the evening’s high standards from an Athenry perspective when he came home unruffled in 42:16. I reckon we’ll have to wait until later in the summer to see the best of the ‘Headford Headcase’. The afters were sociable as always in the Bilboa clubhouse and the men’s race winner Seamus Power accepted the Ger Mullane Perpetual Trophy with an appreciable hint of sadness. We all stood for a moment and remembered the man in whose honour the race had been run and we raised a cup of tea in his memory. Sometimes it’s good to pause and appreciate what you’ve got.