species of wildlife. Give a wave to the swans as you run past. The 20-mile mark is up ahead.
From the 20.5-mile mark to 21 mile mark you are running downhill. Enjoy it, and it’s time to take a nice breather before the last climb of the day on Farranlea road. It’s our version of Heartbreak hill except it’s not really all that bad. More like a mild romantic disappointment rather than heartbreak! I tend to split this climb into three. It’s best described as one short, sharp climb followed by a plateau. A second long, light, almost flat gradient climb followed by a high, short step at the end. Confused? Don’t worry. You have the worst of the climb over you when you reach the top of the hill behind County Hall. When you come out towards Model farm Road there is a very short, sharp step up onto Model farm road. You’ve 21 miles down and the remaining 5 miles are flat. You know that the hills are behind you and glory is ahead. We now take you down a quiet country lane just to cover off everything. You’ve run on every kind of road Cork has to offer from bridges to tunnels, railways, greenways, motorways and now the country boreen! Get some fuel on here before you exit onto the Straight Road. You are now on the Carrigrohane ‘Straight’ Road (N22). As the name suggests, it is straight – you have a full mile, dead straight and dead flat, ahead before you reach the County Hall. Built in the mid-19th century, the Straight Road was served by trams in the late 19th/early 20th centuries. In the 1920s, it became one of the first concrete road surfaces in Great Britain or Ireland. Because it was built on a flood plain, the road and its surrounding areas have seen dramatic flooding, most recently in 2009. The Straight Road used to be part of a Grand Prix Circuit, believe it or not! Combined with the Model Farm Road,
Farranlea Road
The Last Leg!
Carrigrohane Straight
30 Cork City Marathon 2026
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