The big one. The home one. The “we have been training in the sun, only to run in the rain” one. The Belfast Half Marthon came and went and what a day it was for the club. With a slight change to the route from last year (enough said about that), the race still takes in as much of Belfast as it can going via South, East, City and West. The rain actually wasn’t that bad, and the fantastic support from the club’s non-runners certinly powered the runners on the day with so many PB’s.
This was the first time the half was included in the race series and tbh, some of us quietly wondered how it was going to go. We needn’t have worried. There was a huge turnout from the club with over 25 people taking part, making it the joint highest participation event this year. Brendan led the way, showing he was born to run, with a fantastic time of 1:30:40 earning the full 50 points. His “pacer” for the day took one for the team, with Ciarán accepting 40 points as payment. Jill took home 49 points to be highest female with Fabrice claiming bronze on 48. Special mention to Callum who ran 1:21:22, however this is only worth 47 points. Unfortunately as this is age graded, Callum needs to grow up fast (not the first time he has heard this).
As mentioned at the top, there were so many PB’s in the event. Even better to see were so many debutants at this distance. It really was a great sight to see people not only run their first half, but to put in some great times. Seeing so many smiles on black and green shirts courtesy of our club photographer Aaron is wonderful. We did ask JP to take a few snaps but a) he was running it and b) he mentioned we couldn’t afford his fees.
One final well done to everyone who took part and shouted/cheered/encouraged from the streets.
The full results and overall league standings can be found on the BRC Race Series Results Page. Our next event in the series is Dundrum on October 7th. The club is running a bus and have booked a few tables in Maghera Inn (similar set up to last year). There are still some spots available for both, so if you would like to put your name down, please let the club know via facebook or info@belfastrunningclub.co.uk
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