If you didn’t know that yesterday was St. Patrick’s Day, shame on you.

The past year has been a rough one and missing out on road races has been a significant struggle of COVID. And when it comes to running road races, some of my favorite races are St. Patrick’s Day runs as they usually feature the best crowds, Irish music, general merriment and usually a pint of beer at the finish line. (Or heck, sometimes even on the course!)

So yesterday it was time to tackle a virtual run while St. Patrick’s Day runs are cancelled once again this year and it was the Irish Cultural Centre of New England’s Luck of the Irish 3.17 mile virtual race that fit the bill. A touch over a 5K but with an appropriate 3.17 mile distance fitting for March 17th the race could be run anywhere in the world and I ran in Bridgewater, Massachusetts during the afternoon. The roads were, of course, open to traffic so I had to plan a route accordingly but ran a rather straight course from my home down to the heart of downtown Bridgewater. The weather was nice for March with temperatures right around 50 degrees and with clear skies so shorts and a jacket were in order. I felt good during the run and wrapped up the 3.17 mile run with a time of 25:21, good for 7:59/miles. Not too shabby for a virtual run!

To learn more about the great work that the Irish Cultural Centre of New England does, please be sure to check out their website by clicking here.