The Ballycotton 5 mile road race is the 4th race of 4 in the Ballycotton Summer Series. It is usually held on the 4th Thursday of August and it starts at 7:30pm.
Location...Ballycotton is a fishing village in East Cork. As you can see on the map below, the easiest way to get there from Cork City is via Midleton and Cloyne (R629). If you are coming from the east then turn south at Castlemartyr and go via Ladysbridge (R632).
In more detail...
As you approach the village, follow the stewards instructions for parking. Registration is at the local national school.
The distance from the parking area to the registration is about 800 metres (10 min walk). From the registration area to the start line is about 200 metres. So if you consider parking.....walking to the registration.....the queue to enter.....walk back to the car......walk back to the start........and the 7:30pm start, you can see how easy it is to get caught out. Make sure you leave yourself plenty of time.
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Course..........The first three miles of this race are pretty easy as they are mostly slightly downhill or flat. The tough work comes in the last 2 miles. First of all, there is a short but steep hill just before the 3 mile mark which will almost certainly slow you down. At the top of the hill, you turn the corner and the 3 mile mark will be just there.
After that, it's mainly flat with some small bit of uphill and downhill running. The next hard section is after the 4 mile mark where you re-join the main road going back into Ballycotton. For any of you who have done the Ballycotton 10 road race, this is the famous hill around the 8.5 mile in that race. It's not that steep but it's about 400 metres long and gradually reduces in intensity. Once it flattens out, you'll have a nice run into the finish in the village.
Overall...Even though it has two hills, this is probably the fastest of the four races in the Ballycotton Summer Series. Probably one of the best 5 mile road races in Cork.
