Battling the Elements, One Parkrun at a Time

By Chris Edwards

It was a quiet week for the Scrabo Striders, with the weather continuing its wet, windy and wintry ways. With the spring race season yet to begin, three Striders took part in the Born 2 Run Forest Winter Series, which this week headed to Antrim Castle Gardens.

The penultimate race in the series started in the picturesque 400-year-old gardens before heading out towards Shane’s Castle, taking in stunning views across Lough Neagh, and finally returning to the gardens for the finish. Karen Collins was the first Strider home in 47:34, closely followed by Simon Ferguson in 47:37, with David Morton rounding out the results in 1:05:24.

Scrabo Striders also welcomed its two newest Coaching Assistants, Aimee and Hannah. Congratulations to both on passing the course and we look forward to seeing you at a training session in the near future.

On Saturday, Northern Ireland hosted its inaugural Running Show at the Eikon Centre in Lisburn. Running across both Saturday and Sunday, the expo featured engaging talks and workshops with coaches, expert-led sessions on nutrition, injury prevention and performance, as well as the chance to browse the latest running gear. It was great to see members of Scrabo Striders in attendance supporting the event.

Parkrun

Scrabo Striders were out in force across the parkrun scene this weekend, with members running at venues right across the province and producing plenty of strong performances.

Comber parkrun saw the biggest Strider turnout, with 18 members tackling the local course. Mark Halus was first home in 24:19, just ahead of Michael Williams and Martin Oakman in near-identical times. There were also notable runs from Judith Boyd, Clare McIlveen, Karen Wilson and Rachel Brown, highlighting the breadth of participation across all age groups and abilities.

The strong performances continued at Stormont, where Andrew Haylett finished fifth overall in a rapid 19:02. Willow Farrington followed in 24:38, finishing ahead of her brother Heath Farrington in 26:42. Glenn Campbell ventured to Stormont for the first time, coming home in a respectable 30:18.

Victoria parkrun continued to be a fast course, with Harry McCready setting a new PB, completing the course in 19:57, and showing his brother how to do it. Calum McCready was the next Strider home in 26:04, earning him a course best for Victoria.

Bangor parkrun featured a strong cluster of Scrabo Striders near the front of the field. Michael Johnston led the way in 21:22, followed closely by Luke Braniff in 22:42 and Daniel Warke in 22:58. Rory Braniff and Jonathan Keenan added further depth to the results, while Stephen Braniff completed the course in challenging conditions.

At Wallace parkrun, Michael Burgess topped the Striders results with a solid 22:51. Caroline Dwyer continued her consistent form finishing in 26:39, with Catherine Lavery close behind in 27:28.

Further west in Enniskillen, Amanda Martin delivered an excellent run to finish second female overall in 26:19, a standout performance on the scenic but testing course.

Meanwhile at Ormeau parkrun, Matt Bell led the Striders home in 23:30. Faye Alexander recorded a course personal best of 30:34, with Cheryl Alexander finishing in 34:01.

Elsewhere, Steven Hanna ran well at Carrickfergus, Georgia McGonigal took on Hillsborough Forest, and at Lurgan parkrun Abrar Hossain secured a top-five overall finish in 21:43 and a course personal best, with Kathy Henderson debuting with a time of 37:36 and completing the Strider line-up.

Junior Parkrun

Comber junior parkrun proved to be the most popular on Sunday, with standout performances across the board. Heath Farrington clocked an impressive 8:36 to take third place overall, while Joshua Bingham and Keara Simpson raced each other to the line in matching times of 10:08, securing Keara second female. Elijah Ferguson completed his 100th junior parkrun in 10:09 a fantastic milestone.

At Jordanstown juniors, Harry McCready showed no signs of slowing down after Saturday run, crossing the line in 7:46 to take first place, Rory Braniff finished in 9:20, and Calum McCready clocked a debut time of 9:55.

Over at Antrim Castle Gardens junior parkrun, Lyla McNamara earned a personal best of 10:23, also finishing third female.

Members of the Month

Male member of the month goes to Martin Oakman, who since joining the club has had a fantastic range of running achievements. He started this year by running up to Scrabo Tower on New Years Eve to watch the fireworks over Ards alongside fellow Scrabo Strider members, just a few hours later he was participating in the Race over the Glen. Martin has become a regular face at training, social runs and parkrun, his enthusiasm and consistency never go unnoticed. Martin’s commitment, positivity, and approachability perfectly reflect the Striders spirit.

Female member of the month goes to Catherine Lavery, who started off January with a CPB at the Waterworks Parkrun, and her running during the month has just gotten stronger and stronger. The cold and icy weather during January hasn’t stopped Catherine putting in the miles and attending training sessions, parkruns and strider social runs. Catherine can be found at parkruns on a Saturday mornings (when she is not working) with Belfast’s Waterworks parkrun being one of her favourites, and where she has had two CPB’s in January. Social runs are a big part of Catherine’s running journey and she enjoys both Friday nights and long miles Sunday morning runs, not to mention the coffee and chats afterwards. Congratulations Catherine Lavery, all your hard work is paying off. A big thank you as always to Boyd Rice Solicitors for sponsoring our Member of the Month awards.