With the Grand Prix season coming to it`s exciting finale this Saturday sees the Series return to Malahide Castle for the club 10 mile Championship for the Ahern Cup. Last year`s race was won by Ernie Ramsey, on what was a new course when as a result of tree felling on the traditional 4 lap route a slightly short course was put together. This Saturday runners can look forward to an accurate safe 10 miler on this the 53rd running of the race.
The club 10 mile championship, the brainchild of the renowned Clonliffe coach and Captain Harry Cooney, was first run on April 12th 1964 from near Murtagh’s pub on the Belfast Road straight down the then main road back to the Stadium. The winner was Ray Heffernan. On the occassion of the 15th running of the race in April 1978 Maurice Ahern presented the Ahern Cup for the 1st time to that year`s winner Gerry Finnegan
By 1999 the the road venues of the previous decades around the Swords/ Airport and Santry areas had become too dangerous and so since the year 2000 the race has been “housed” in the beautiful grounds of Malahide Castle
Next Saturday’s race starts at 12 noon.