Sonny At Thirty
The Michael ‘Sonny’ Murphy memorial road race and fun walk celebrates its 30th anniversary on Sunday next April 13th. Organised by Kilnaboy Athletic Club the 10 mile road race has been one of the top athletic events in North Clare since it first began in 1984 and over the years has attracted athletes from all over Ireland and abroad. The addition of a 6k walk has been introduced in recent years to accommodate the many keep-fit enthusiasts who walk on a regular basis or who have trained specially for this event. The race gets under way at 1.00pm on Sunday from Kilnaboy School and follows the usual route while the walk is scheduled to start at 1.30pm.
Festival Quiz
With the Festival of Finn just three weeks away Corofin Tourism Association is organising a fundraising quiz which will be held at Crowley’s Bar on this Friday night April 11th, commencing at 9.30pm. The cost of promoting the local area as a tourist destination as well as the cost of organising and promoting the annual festival is considerable and the local association is appealing for the support of the community for this week-end’s event. As usual the quiz is open to teams of four and a raffle will also be held on the night.
Information Office Re-Opens
The Burren National Park Information Office located at the Clare Heritage & Genealogy Centre on Church Street, Corofin, has reopened for the 2014 tourist season. It is a great resource for visitors to the area wishing to explore the many attractions which the Burren and in particular the National Park has to offer. Staff will be organising free guided walks from April until September along the various walking trails within the Park looking at the flora, fauna, geology and landscape management of the area.
The first walk of the new season will be held on Sunday next April 13th commencing at the Mullaghmore Crossroads at Gortalecka at 2.00pm. Walkers are asked to dress appropriately for both weather and terrain. It is important to book in advance and this can be done by contacting 065-6827693 or by email to burrennationalpark@ahg.gov.ie
Spring Clean
Local volunteers in conjunction with the Corofin Tidy Towns group undertook a major clean-up of litter on all approach roads to the village on Saturday last. A substantial amount of litter had accumulated over the winter months, with the storms earlier this year causing much debris to be dispersed around the locality. The local group expressed its thanks to everyone who helped out on Saturday and also appealed to residents in the village to do their bit over the summer months to keep their respective areas clean and tidy. In addition the Tidy Towns organisation hope to undertake a number of specific projects in the coming weeks thanks to funding received through the Burren & Cliffs of Moher GeoPark initiative.
Recent Death
The death occurred recently of Mrs Kathleen Kierce, nee Cotter, of Boultaghdine, Kilnaboy and formerly of Drinagh. Her funeral took place from O’Halloran’s Funeral Home Corofin on Monday of last week to Kilnaboy Church and she was interred at Coad Cemetery following funeral mass on Tuesday morning.
Bridge Damage
The bridge spanning the River Fergus on the southern entrance to Corofin is one of the heritage features of the village and is included as one of the stops on the recently produced heritage walking trail for Corofin. Over the week-end however some of the stonework on the wall at the Richmond House side of the bridge was dislodged when a vehicle apparently brushed against it. The bridge can prove something of a bottleneck for traffic at times especially when two large vehicles meet there. Clare County Council was notified of the damage on Monday morning and it is expected that repairs will be carried out without delay.
Harps On Roll
While Corofin Harps found life difficult in the Premier Division of the Clare Soccer League following promotion last season two wins in the past week has made a big difference to their position. The local side had only accumulated four points in the early part of the season having drawn four games. They added six points to this with a 3 – 1 win over Ennis side Lifford on Wednesday last and followed up with a 4 – 1 win over Mountshannon Celtic on Sunday. Stephen Keane, Dean Hatfield and Jason Tierney were the scorers against Lifford while Keane with a brace, Hatfield and Brian McGauran scored for Harps on Sunday. The B team was unlucky not to collect their first points of the season on Friday evening going down 4 – 3 to Sporting Ennistymon. Goals from Jake Hatfield, Martin Keane and Mikey Singleton had Harps leading 3 – 2 late in the game when a penalty decision levelled matters. Sporting scored at the death to deprive a gallant home side of a share of the spoils.
Andy Irvine In Concert
Former member of Planxty, Andy Irvine, and friends, will perform at the Teach Ceoil on Sunday May 4th. This trad concert is another great addition to an already busy programme for The Festival of Finn over the May Bank Holiday week-end. Demand for this concert is likely to be huge and with limited availability at the local venue advance booking is essential. Padraic O’Reilly should be contacted for further information on this event
Fashion Show
A fashion show is being organised for Kilnaboy School Hall on Friday night April 25th with all proceeds going towards the school and also towards a local graveyard maintenance programme. It is the first time that the Kilnaboy venue has hosted an event like this and the organisers are hoping for strong local support.
Athenry Winners
With several sporting events clashing on Saturday last there was a relatively small turn-out for the Corofin Golf Society’s outing to Athenry. Kieran Reidy emerged winner on Saturday with David Daly in second place. Meanwhile around thirty people have booked for the local club’s weekend away to north county Dublin commencing on Thursday April 24th.
Gym Fit
The community gymnasium at the Corofin GAA complex is offering a diet, nutrition and exercise programme commencing on Monday next April 14th. This is an ideal opportunity for anyone thinking of getting fit for the summer. Additional details and bookings can be made by calling in to Corofin GAA Gym.
Promising Parade
This year’s Festival of Finn Parade promises to be an even bigger and better event in showcasing the wealth of community, sporting and cultural life in Corofin. Taking place on the Bank Holiday Monday May 5th commencing at 12.30pm businesses and organisations are invited to enter a float free of charge. While the main theme of this year’s parade is Finn McCool meets Brian Boru entries are not confined to this. Great prizes are on offer for the best float and most original fancy dress. There is a €2,00 entry for fancy dress participants. The parade committee are looking for additional volunteers to assist with this year’s event and for further details contact Pauline Bradley on 087 6383988.