Irvine Athletic club stars shine at start of 10k season

Jul 1 2011 by Eric McGowan, Irvine Herald

IRVINE Athletic club runners have been in action all over the country as the 10k season gets into full swing.

Members have competed in events at Grangemouth, Moray, Brodick, Kilmarnock, Troon, Helensburgh, Ayr, Campbeltown and Dumbarton, recording impressive times along the way.

Alex Allardyce crossed the line in 33.25 at Troon, 34.29 at Helensburgh and 34.17 at Dumbarton, Billy Richardson clocked times of 35.30 at Brodick and 35.20 at Ayr, Pat Cullinane finished in 36.43 at Grangemouth and 35.32 at Kilmarnock and Mark Livingstone 36.53 at Troon, 37.47 at Helensburgh and 38.00 at Ayr.

Veteran Joe MacNamee has recently returned to the club and has put in some consistent performances with 38.42 at Brodick, 38.26 at Troon and 38.54 at Ayr. However, the furthest travelled has to be Jim Sneddon who has been striving to get under the 40min barrier for the season with 40.08 at Moray, 40.35 at Kilmarnock, 40.11 at Troon and 41.55 at Campbeltown.

Sneddon's efforts received a welcome reward last Sunday when he travelled to Gleneagles to compete in a 5k road race. The event was run alongside a 10k and when the 5k runners made the turn for home after 2.5k Sneddon found himself leading the field in the shorter race and held on for a well deserved win in 18.59.

The competitive motivation for most club runners is to achieve a personal best or a season's best, so Irvine’s lads can be pleased with their season's efforts so far.

For more information about Irvine AC visit www.irvineac. co.uk or contact Andy Rennie on 01294 274772.