Cork League #3: Watergrasshill Results and Report

The first of many events in the Cork Orienteering club 2013 calendar took place on Sunday in Moanbaun Wood, Watergrasshill. A crowd of 60 turned out to participate in what was also the third event in the ongoing Cork League.

It was a very cold, crisp and dry morning and all those in attendance got to enjoy the challenging courses set out by the event planner Gerald Duffy. The terrain in Moanbaun Wood can be pretty rough in places and efficient route choice proved central to gaining precious time over fellow competitors. Utilization of the fire roads was often a lot faster than taking the direct route between controls.

Given the time of year the areas of deciduous forest were noticeably clear and bright which was in stark contrast to much of the evergreen woodland. A certain amount of weaving was required to negotiate routes through the low lying branches in many of the areas of slow forest run. In fact the majority of competitors seemed to finish with at least a few twigs attached in their hair or hats!

Some folks may have been a little rusty after the festive season but I’m sure all were in agreement that this event was a great way to start the 2013 orienteering year.

Darren Burke showed his class on the Blue course by completing the 7.5km course in a time of 58:15 giving himself a winning margin of over twenty minutes ahead of second place finisher John O’Donovan. John finished with a time of 81:06 and Jonathan Lucey took third place with a time of 83:00.

On the Green Liam O’Brien was fastest over the 5.7km course and punched all 14 controls in 72 minutes 49 seconds. Liam achieved an equally impressive winning margin of over eight minutes from second place finisher Gearoid Ryan. Gearoid completed the testing course in a time of 81:04. Coleman Deely was third with a time of 92:29.

Colin Ruane took the honours on the Orange course finishing it in 39:36. Michelle Kearney just pipped Norah O’Brien for second place with a time of 46:43 while Norah covered the course with a time of 47:22.

The competition was very tight on the Yellow course and it was Aveline Hennessy who finished first with a time of 21:45. Not far adrift of her was Nollaig O’Sullivan who finished the course with a time of 22:47. A mere two second separated Nollaig from third place finished Caroline Leahy.

Full individual results and splits are available here. If you missed the event and would like to see some images of the contrasting woodland terrain check out our gallery here.

Thanks to Gerald Duffy for braving the cold weather and planning interesting and demanding courses and for organising the event. Thanks also to David O'Donovan who controlled the event and took care of starts on the day.

Thanks also to Danny O’Hare, Darren Burke, Bobby O'Connor, John Scannell, Liam O'Brien, and John Chandler who all kindly responded to Gerald’s request for help and assisted with signage, registration and control collection on the day. Many hands make light work and ensured no one got too cold!

The next event in CorkO 2013 calendar will take place in Glengarra Wood which sits on the southern slopes of Galtee Mountains in Tipperary on Sunday the 10th of February. This event will be the first outing in the 2013 Munster League.

Hope to see you there!