It has been, as always, a fraught number of weeks for our athletes with races coming thick and fast and across all of NI!  Every member seems to have done a race in some shape or fashion, and have been by and large successful in promoting the Coleraine / Ballymoney running fraternity.

A number of weeks ago, the Marcus McBains Memorial Race held at University of Ulster in Coleraine saw Pegasus athletes compete in the main races of the day (in very VERY chilly weather I might add!).  Chris Denton managed 19th in the feature race (30:10), with Pegasus’s number one beating many seasoned cross country runners in the process.  Next up was Harry ‘the marathon man” Reilly who surprisingly only finished a minute behind Chris in 25th position considering he paid for his fast initial pace.  Peter Bell aka ‘the Portstewart flyer’ ended up winning in the Vet 50 category, a marvellous and deserved result for the modest local man!  Ralph Thom also participated in the race, and on his debut for Pegasus achieved a very creditable time of 38:22 and will only improve in the coming months.  Many thanks must go to Hutchison’s Tiles and the other sponsors for their continued support.

The ladies race saw City of Derry’s Anne Paul win in fine style, with 2 Pegasus ladies taking part in the 5000m race.  Tess McComb managed 2nd Vet 40, just behind Springwell’s Kay Hack on her cross country debut, and Lorna Stynes managed 12th overall in her 1st cross country race as well which was a real learning curve for the 2 ladies.

The following week saw Pegasus junior Jason Wilson compete at the prestigious Malcolm Cup run by Annadale Striders around Sixmilewater Park in Ballyclare.  In the 4 mile feature race, Jason sped off with the large pack with the majority paying for the rapid pace, including Jason...  Despite this, he still managed 2nd U20 and 22nd overall in 26:43 with the race winner being David Morwood of North Belfast Harriers.  Not bad for an off season performance.

The Willowfield Harriers run ‘Joe Seeley’ Cup took place just last Saturday around the Ormeau Park in Belfast.  This incorporated the NI 10k Road Championships, and is recognised as one the most high-status races in NI.  Nearly 500 runners turned out for the race in near perfect conditions, with only a slight breeze hampering times ever so slightly.  First Pegasus athlete was Chris Denton in 37:00 and 84th position overall, another leading run and he managed 1st Coleraine and District runner in the process.  Next was Pegasus junior Jason Wilson, gaining a personal best in 38:54, a bench mark he’ll be keen to break in the future.  Next up was the Portstewart flyer Peter Bell who managed an excellent 8th Vet 50 in a time of 40:07, one of the Pegasus performances of the day.  Ralph Thom took part in his 2nd race in as many weeks to come home in 47:14 which will definitely be improved as his training progresses.  Leading lady was Shirley Park in 50:14, a time which bettered her previous year’s time by 5 minutes.  Amazing!  Cathy Barr sprinted to the line soon after to come home a well earned 4th Vet 45 in a strong field.  Our 2 lady debutants (Gillian McMullan and Debbie McLaughlin) thoroughly enjoyed their 1st races in Pegasus colours to finish well below the 1 hour mark to beat quite a few other runners in the process.