Pegasus AC leaves its mark on Knockdhu International 2007!

Last Saturday saw the 15th edition of the P&O sponsored Knockdhu International Mountain race held at Cairncastle just outside of Larne.  Magnificent conditions graced the internationals from Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and the Republic of Ireland with a slight breeze making it just about bearable!  A number of Pegasus AC athletes were in attendance; namely Jason Wilson (representing NI U20s), ‘Arctic King’ Peter Bell and Belfast based Michael Henry.

The junior international started at 12:30 on the button with the usual small but very high calibre mixed field of 23 runners fighting for national pride over the 2.8 mile course (210 metres of climb), consisting of a small and subsequent big lap to finish with.  Jason managed to come into this race unfazed after a number of weeks of trial races and was close to his best form.  The 1st lap was a matter of pacing, with the Ballymoney junior holding back for the harder 2nd lap and was 3rd Northern Irish runner at this point and 12th overall.  He scuttled up the penultimate climb with ease, passing 3 rivals to move into 9th overall and catching on a number of others.  The local support helped him up the seriously tough last climb, requiring legs and arms to conquer.  Jason managed an unbelievable spurt to pass 2 rivals (NI runner Ciaran Collins and Scottish international Stewart Fraser) and gain a decisive advantage down the 0.6 mile downhill section to the finish.  With a hurdle over the last fence signalling the 250 metre dash to the line, he managed a time of 26:02, exactly a minute quicker than last year.  This gained him 7th position and 1st NI runner by nearly a minute, his primary aim!  Beating 2 other male internationals from Scotland and Wales just added gloss to the result.

The main race was held over 4.3 miles and included 420 metres of ascending being completed by 92 keen runners.  Peter Bell, still recovering from his 5th position at the North Pole Marathon netted 3rd position in the Veteran 50, running alongside some of the best mountain runners from across the UK and Ireland.  Having frostbitten feet didn’t help his cause any, but he still managed to break his personal best for this course by 40 seconds, finishing in 49:19!  Michael Henry has taken part in no less than 5 races in the past 3-4 weeks, but managed a competitive time of 56:41 to come in 8th Veteran 45 runner.  An added bonus to these results is the fact both are not near their peak form but still had the beating of a number of female internationals!

Congratulations to all 3 lads, finishing off this great month for the club in fine style!