7:57 Club Long Run Saturday July 23rd

Well folks week 2 of the 7:57 Long run update. These are the hearty souls who ventured on last week’s run (missing form crew is Mickey as he is the designated photographer, this pic will be filed under wildlife).Last week took in the Rosses point route so this week it changes to a more undulating route. This week’s route took us quite a while to come up with a title for the route, so after much deliberation and differencing of opinions we finally christened, it “The Calry Route”, probably wondering why......well it goes out to Calry.Geneous

This route holds biblical significance to the 7:57 crew, and one member in particular our beloved chairman Mr. O’Connell who believe it or not “walked on water” one Saturday morning. Confronted with flooded roads and fields the crew had to go cross country or turn back over killargleboy again, so it was onwards for the crew. We trudged through swampy marshes, and had to scale barbed wire and electric fences and the occasional wall to get to dry land, we nearly lost a man or two that morning but no soldier was going to be left behind (well unless a dog appeared then I was gone), when one fell we picked them up and carried on, more than once a fatigued comrade whispered “You go on leave me here, save yourself “but no we started together and we would finish together. Eventually we made dry land weary from the journey some men lost runners and socks, everyone’s runners were covered in a coat of mud and dirt except for one......Jesus O’Connell emerged from the battlefield spotless, not a spec on him his new Asics actually seemed to come out cleaner than when he went in, rumour has it he got a “piggy bank” from Mark Burns, but Burnsie categorically denies this, no that day Mickey walked on water, that’s the only logical explanation. God bless ya Mickey.
Also that faithful day we all made a collective decision, Mark Burns would only be permitted to select the long run route between the months of May and July, strictly for health and safety reasons.If by chance Burnsie was permoitted to select the route outside these dates it would require all athletes to bring a life jacket, rubber armbands, a flre gun ,iodine tablets and 20 fags......

Fortunately the weather has improved and Burnsie has used his quota of route selections so we’re back to Calry for the 15 miler tomorrow morning.
Starting at Complex heads across the back avenue, over footbridge, over by hospital, out toward Calry, left up the Black Mud Hill, Left over Faughts lane (at bottom of lane a left turn will bring you back to town) then from here head towards Killargleeboy (nice wee drag) in by Deer Park, Cloghereveagh, back in by the GAA pitch, Hazelwood Road, up by hospital, down footbridge and over back avenue back to the complex. Once again the pace is nice and easy (as should the Long Run be) and water will be left out on route and there are many stages you can turn off.
So look forward to seeing (well not as will be heading to Coollaney for the 8km).

Happy Running