Location & Directions...Registration for this event is at the Valley Rovers GAA grounds in Brinny. Coming from Cork, the easiest way to get there is to take the N71 road to Bandon. At the roundabout near Halfway, turn off right and take the R589 for Cross Barry.
Drive through Crossbarry and at the crossroads where the Schering Plough plant is located, turn left and the GAA ground is about 400m up this road on the left.
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| Crossroads at the Schering Plough plant in Brinny |
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| Valley Rovers GAA grounds |
Course Map...
Course Profile...
Course description......The 7k starts about 200m west from the entrance to the GAA grounds...
The course is initially slightly downhill until you cross a small bridge at 300m and at the junction shown below, you begin a gradual climb for the next km...
At 1.3kms, you come to a T-junction where you turn right and then left almost straight away...
The course continues its gradual climb and at 1.5kms, the road takes turns to the right....
The building on the corner is the Railway Bar and in on the left is the old railway station and platform...
This was part of the old West Cork Railway which closed on the 31st of March 1961. The station house itself was the scene of an ambush back in 1921 as part of the War of Independence.
Back to the course...You continue to climb gradually and at 1.7kms, you turn off left onto a private road through St.Patricks...
Along this quiet stretch of road, you reach the highest part of the course...about 35 metres higher in elevation than the start line.
At the far side of St.Patricks, the road begins to drop and you rejoin the public road at 2.5 kms...
From here, it's a gradual downhill for the next 1.5kms till the T-junction at 4 kms where you join the R589 Bandon-Crossbarry road.
This stretch of road could potentially be busy so it's likely you will be asked to stay on the left. The road rises slightly and after 500m, you turn off left around the 4.5km mark...
From here, you are back on a quiet country road is it drops gradually...
At 5.6kms, you run downhill past the old gate lodge and back to the junction where you came out earlier. This time you're turning right and heading for home...
From here, it's more or less a gentle downhill to the finish line near the GAA grounds.
Overall.....Mostly on quiet country roads except for a 500m stretch near the 4k mark. Gradual climb for the first 2 kms. Plenty of gradual downhill running over the remaining 5 kms.
