It’s that time of year again, the evenings are drawing in and the autumn leaves are beginning to fall. It is also time for the annual Terry Fox run and walk which takes place in Ballina on this coming Sunday, October 10 starting at 3pm.
The Ballina event, which will be organised by local man Michael Rice for the 18th year in a row, will have as usual its start and finish at Belleek where the excellent facilities of Ballina AC will be race headquarters
This is the fourth year that the event has been part of the Mayo AC league and this year it will be the seventh of nine races in the 2010 series, which will ensure that many of the west’s leading runners will be there. Entries will be taken at the Ballina AC club house from 1.30pm, the entry fee is €20 and all entrants will receive a Terry Fox run T-shirt. The top 25 men and women will get points towards the Mayo AC league table, for further information contact Michael Rice on 087 611975.
Roger and Mary are the current table toppers
After six races in the 2010 Mayo AC/C and C Cellular league, Mary Gleeson (Mayo AC ) is the clear leader in the women’s league, having scored 148 points out a possible 150 after running all six races. Her team mate Kathy Connolly, after some great performances, is in second place on 134 points, having also run all six races, while Chris Gallagher lies in third on 102 points from five races run .
In the men’s league Roger Barrett of Ballina AC is current league leader on 117 points from five races. Roger has run some excellent races throughout the season and continues to improve. Last year’s league winner Gerry Ryan (Craughwell AC ) lies in second place, having scored the maximum 100 points from the four races he has run, while Sean Gallagher (Ballina AC ) lies in third place on 79 points As in previous years it is one’s best six scores from the nine races that will count as the final score so there is plenty running still to be done before they cross the line in the big finale, the Westport 5k, on Sunday December 12.
Mayo AC table quiz
The annual Mayo AC general knowledge table quiz will be held tonight, Friday October 8, in the Sheebeen Bar in Balla starting at 9.30pm. It costs €20 per table of four, with prizes for the winners and spot prizes throughout the evening; teams can be made up on the night.
North Mayo national schools cross country championships
The north Mayo national schools cross country championships were held in Belleek, Ballina recently. Over 400 young girls and boys from many schools in North Mayo competed in the competition. Weather conditions were ideal. The event was hosted by Ballina Athletic Club and they would like to thank everybody who helped out in any way. Competition was keen, with the winners of the four races, Ciara Holmes (Currabaggan ), Pearse Ruttledge (Garacloon ), Emma Loftus Richmond and Eric Connolly (The Quay, Ballina ) setting a high standard for their classmates. The Connacht cross country championships will take place in Hazelwood, Calry, Sligo on Saturday, October 23 at 1pm.
