Sunday afternoon brought absolutely perfect running conditions to the Greater Boston area and a final blast of late summer graced runners as they toed the starting line at the 5th Annual Irish Cultural Center 5K. This event is held at the Irish Cultural Center of New England in Canton, Massachusetts and supports the Irish heritage work that the ICC does.

The race starts and finishes on the grounds of the Irish Cultural Center which features a building including a pub, fields where hurling, rugby and soccer matches and circles the grounds on the way out onto the course. Bagpipers played in the first mile and added a nice touch to the race. Fiddlers also were around the two mile mark and infused some nice Irish tunes into the course. The course runs through an industrial park that the ICC also calls home and for the most part is a relatively flat course. Volunteers were aplenty out on the race course and two water stops were present on the course for runners to hydrate.

An absolutely stunning rendition of both the American and Irish national anthems took place prior to the race which was a true highlight of the day. Perhaps another musical act on the course could have helped infuse a bit more Irish into the course.

Upon finishing the race, runners could enjoy two free pints with each race entry and food was available, as well. The Gobshites rocked the post-race tent and performed some great tunes for the runners to enjoy.

I finished the Irish Cultural Center 5K with a respectable time of 23:48, good for 7:41/miles. It was a great day for the Irish and a great day for runners!