Another great turn out for the club. This is such a fun race and getting a free beer at the end is a bonus!

58 YAN HORSBURGH 28:43
189 RACHEL DRUMMOND 32:10
211 MICHAEL GREENS 32:39
233 GILLIAN CAIRNS 32:57
237 ANDREW MCDERMOTT 33:04
386 TRACY PHILP 35:33
406 SADIE KEMP 36:00
486 RACHEL MCGAVIN 37:00
609 MICHAEL PHILP 38:51
755 GILLY MARSHALL 41:41

Full Results: http://www.blackrock5.org/results/2016

We got cracking weather for the 5 miler, and some great times for the harriers. Amy came first 40W and the ladies were second womens team. Derek was first home out of the harriers and the guys were fifth mens team:

29 30:58:00 Derek Newport 50M
35 31:18:00 Yan Horsburgh 50M
64 34:01:00 Amy Kerr 40W
66 34:21:00 Rachel Drummond SW
69 34:33:00 Allan Dunbar 40M
76 35:29:00 Michael Greens JM
94 37:25:00 Sadie Kemp 40W
102 38:05:00 Rachel Mcgavin SW
128 46:04:00 Julie Young 40W

full results here: http://www.caac.org.uk/sites/all/_files/_publicdocuments/caac52016.pdf

We got great weather for the 2 races with it just becoming too warm in the last few miles of the marathon. Some great times for the harriers well done all. 🙂

Half marathon:
534 Rachel Drummond (17412) 1h 33m 51s (6th in age category)
790 William Dickson (16318) 1h 36m 59s
1231 Louise Campbell (18680) 1h 41m 4s
1592 Rachel Mcgavin (19917) 1h 44m 19s
1674 Ezmie Mccutcheon (19514) 1h 44m 59s
3333 Ngeme Ntuli (24849) 1h 55m 31s
6775 Sandra Vick (26702) 2h 19m 16s

Marathon:
1160 Sadie Kemp (3604) 3h 38m 46s
2397 Tracy Philp (5133) 3h 59m 44s
5300 Christopher Burns (10292) 4h 58m 52s
6233 Vicki Lyon (12351) 5h 41m 53s

Well done to our hairy haggis team (position 83 out of 429) :
1st Leg Mark Snodgrass (8.3 miles) : 1h 5m 34s
2nd Leg Eugenio Garcia (5.5 miles) : 43m 38s
3rd Leg Julie Young (8 miles) : 1h 16m 27s
4th Leg Michael Philp (4.4 miles) : 37m 44s
Gun Time:3h 44m 41

I had wanted to do this race for some time, so when Mel and Jan mentioned it on Facebook I was tempted. When Jan suggested we indulge in a bit of fancy dress I was sold on the idea. We got money off the race entry for making the effort too. We had Jan the Zombie, Michael the Pirate and I was a fairy. When we arrived at registration there were a lot of club vests and we appeared to be the only ones in costume. So we started our warmup and tried to blend in.

Nearer the start nuns, clowns and spartans to name but a few began to appear and we were reassured that we had not fallen for a dastardly trick. The race is 2 miles up, 2 miles along and 2 miles down roughly, so after the hill you can really let yourself go and enjoy the downhill. I enjoyed it so much I tweaked my hamstring slightly and was grateful to Jan for some ‘biofreeze’to ease it. This was a really fun race with a lovely atmosphere and lots of locals out to give support. There was one water station halfway round but although it was a warm evening I didn’t need to stop. At the finish we were handed a bag with water, a banana, a cereal bar and a voucher for a free coffee at ‘Craigdon mountain sports’. I just might have to go along for that coffee and a browse….

results:

21 37:45 Derek Newport
46 41:41 Michael Greens
47 41:44 Kevin Anderson
66 43:07 Jan Dawson
90 44:45 Sadie Kemp
108 47:22 Mel Dunbar

It was a beautiful sunny evening as we left Penicuik. As we got closer the Peebles the skies blackened and the rain began. It would stay like this until after the race, when the sun found its way out from behind the clouds. We were all thoroughly soaked as most of us had dressed for the summer. This didn’t dampen our enjoyment of the race though and we were all smiles at the finish. Great turn out again for Penicuik harriers. Nice to see Scott and Rob out supporting too.

23 Des Crowe 0:37:35 121.0%
25 Yan Horsburgh 0:37:53 121.9%
34 Billy Colvin 0:39:00 125.5%
37 Mike Brooks 0:39:32 127.3%
52 Gillian Cairns 0:41:48 134.5%
55 Michael Greens 0:42:03 135.4%
65 Andrew McDermott 0:44:26 143.0%
72 Christopher Downie 0:46:23 149.3%
73 Tracy Philp 0:46:37 150.1%
74 Sarah Burthe 0:47:44 153.6%
75 Sadie Kemp 0:48:39 156.6%
76 Melanie Dunbar F40 0:48:46 157.0%
70 Rachael Lees 0:45:51 147.6%
78 Kate Crowe 0:49:30 159.3%
82 Ali Hilton 0:50:55 163.9%
83 Michael Philp 0:51:04 164.4%

A DOUBLE REPORT FROM DUNC AND ROB

Rob’s bit 

Torridon is one of my favourite regions of the Scottish Highlands and I cannot believe I have waited this long to finally run the Slioch Hill Race. Slioch is a beast even for fell walking – its Gaelic meaning is “the Spear” – and the mountain dramatically dominates the skyline at the eastern end of the Torridon region. This is the 2^nd race in the Scottish Long Classic Series.

http://www.scottishhillrunners.uk/Championship.aspx?ChampionshipID=C-006

The conditions were very wet this year and the race officials decided to shorten the race a wee bit and cut out the full horseshoe (about 1km shorter) which was a real shame as the weather did improve and I am pretty sure we would have had no problems on the descent off Sgurr an Tuill Bhan. Anyway – the edited route is shown below and at ca. 18.2 kms and 1100m climb, it is still not an insignificant race and in fact race times appeared quite similar to previous years.

Slioch Race Route 2016

Duncan and I stayed at his brother’s house in Inverness the night before so we had a leisurely start on race day and got to Kinlochewe with plenty of time to register, cogitate the alternative route and jog the mile to the start. The rain had lashed down all night and it was still raining when we were all huddled at the start line. Despite the rain, there was little wind and the air temperature was mild, so deciding on what to wear was not that easy as it was mild at the bottom but presumably colder on the peaks.

At noon the start “bell” rang and we sprinted off. The first 4 kms was a relatively flat trail (minor undulations) but a little technical in places as it was so wet. Rocks were slippy and all the streams coming off the hillside were in spate. I tried to keep up with Steve Fallon for a while who was loping along in his usual style but he kept going his own route through the undergrowth so decided to follow the main line of runners on the track. Duncan passed me after about 1 km meaning I could finally concentrate on running (and enjoying?) this race for the first time with no pressure of trying to beat a PB.

Slioch race profile – full route

After crossing the bridge at the bottom of Gleann Bianasdail, the route started to climb – gently at first, but after about a kilometre, the route left the main path (more often a river actually) and went straight up to the summit of Sgurr Dubh. The cloud was down at this point so all one could see when looking up was this behemoth of a mountain disappearing into the cloudy murk. If you think the climb out of Glen Sax on Stuc a’ Chroin is steep, then you’re in for a shock if you do this race. Best technique – doggy style – all fours!! The main issue for me was that I assumed we would have to come down the same route (should have looked at the map) – that would have been horrendous so I was cursing the climb while mildly panicking about the descent. Luckily, the return descent was on the other side of the hill along the track although that was far from easy.

On reaching Sgurr Dubh, the route became nicely runnable and the cloud lifted for a while and we had great views. Bar a steep sandy/gravely section after the 2 lochs, the broad ridge traverse to Slioch submit was great fun and my legs soon loosened up after the steep climb. The wind kicked up for a while around the final summit and I had to put on my hat and gloves, but these soon came off again on the downhill plunge after the turn around.

One does not really fully appreciate the technical nature of a race until you are trying to sprint down a mountain. The descent was horribly technical and the wet rocks and bog made the descent a gnarly, slippy uncomfortable run. I fell quite a few times – my right arm having quite a few scrapes now – but did not do any serious damage. I mostly followed a V50 lady as she seemed to know the optimal route which only became embarrassing when she popped off the path for a pee. Enough said! Having made it down to the bridge at the bottom, there remained the nice leisurely “flat” 4km run back to the finish. However, despite sucking on an energy gel on the final descent, there was nothing left in my legs. What was a nice sprint out, was now a slow stumbling jog back with me reduced to walking every little rise.

This was a tough race. Although shorter and less height than Stuc a’ Chroin 3 weeks ago, the conditions really made this quite technical and was far from ideal for someone trying to overcome Achilles tendonitis. I would love to do this in dry conditions though – next year!!! Bar the technical nature of the terrain, the worst part is the ascent up Sgurr Dubh. From there to the summit is an epic few kilometres which I would love to do on a sunny day – the views are epic.

Now unfortunately (written Sunday), as my final training weekend before the Highlander in 2 weeks, I must go for a run today and see how well my legs function!

——————–

Dunc’s Bit

Although Slioch is a shorter distance than Stuc a’ Chroin, which we suffered three weeks ago, I was still slightly nervous about this race. I had walked up Slioch twice before and it had taken hours and hours! But mainly due to the 4km walk-in from Incheril – although, this is not usually a problem because of the great path and stunning scenery.

It was a bit miserable at the start with most people wearing their emergency waterproofs to keep warm and fend off the rain (except for the usual manic ones with just vests). And as well as the prospect of mist and no views, we wouldn’t even be running the horseshoe ridge (due to the poor conditions). A couple of minutes before 12:00, we stuffed our soggy tops into our backpacks and waited for the starter’s cow bell (the hooter had been dropped in a burn or something).

Once going, we soon warmed up, forgot the rain, concentrated on the wet path and tried to keep up with Steve Fallon of Carnethy. He seemed to be powered by something other than carbohydrate and we soon gave up – not even turbo-Stuart would have been able to stay with him. The field was obviously high quality (he says hopefully), as there seemed to be lots of runners in front of us. But I had resolved not to go too fast, pace myself and enjoy the run as much as possible.

Being used to the ‘tourist route’ up to the coire, the steepness of the climb was a mild shock, but having done the Arrochar Alps last year which had at least three such climbs, I wasn’t too perturbed. And, unlike Rob, remembered that we wouldn’t be coming back down the same way! From the top of Sgurr Dubh, it was much more pleasant and I was mostly running with three other runners – one of which was the first lady, so I must be doing OK.

We did get a bit of a view at the summit and could see all the way down to Kinlochewe and across to Beinn Eighe in some places through the patchy mist. Of course, we could also see the horseshoe ridge which looked perfectly runnable and quite inviting. But it was good to know that it was now all downhill, and I wondered if I had been going hard enough and had left too much in reserve. That thought soon disappeared as we slipped and slithered back down towards the main coire. By this time the rain had stopped but it had all been dumped onto the hill which was now beyond soggy with happy new burns appearing every few feet.

I thought that my down-hilling had improved over the last year or so, but I couldn’t shake off any of our small group and almost came a cropper a couple of times attempting it. After many slippery rocks, burns and bogs, we reached the raging torrent at the bottom of the hill and started the flat slog to the finish. Despite having eaten a gel and plenty of energy drink/electrolyte, my legs were not functioning all that well on the bumpy path and the first lady and the two other runners slowly pulled ahead. However, it was still a respectable pace and the finish appeared after not too much pain and joyfully no cramp!

I think I can truthfully recommend this race (in better weather) and the organisation was great with stupendously good soup/stew stuff in the hall and a bottle of beer for all finishers. We will definitely have to come back sometime to do the horseshoe. Now I have to get back to the Birthday Cake and Birthday Beer.

——————–

Full results here:

http://www.scottishhillracing.co.uk/RaceResults.aspx?RaceID=RA-0214&Year=2016

Winning time was 2hrs 12 seconds. Of 61 runners, Duncan came in 21^st (2:24:18 – 2^nd lady) and I stumbled in 38^th (2:49:10 – 3^rd FV50).

Rob and Duncan

Thanks to all who took part in the 33rd Penicuik 10k Road Race – finally some excellent weather for running (and marshaling, being involved, supporting and recording!). Although some of you might have thought it was a little too warm… Well done and thanks to everyone – runners, marshals, supporters and anyone who gave up their time to make it happen.

Results are now online at http://penicuikharriers.org.uk/10k-road-race/10k-race-results/.

Category winners are available here http://penicuikharriers.org.uk/10k-road-race/10k-race-results/race-results-category-winners/

Some video of the start and finish will follow in the next few days, however, in the meantime, long term friend of our race Bob Marshall has already uploaded a load of great photos which can be found here https://photos.google.com/share/AF1QipPudhna-wlVR2uo-LdrCYHnrt1AZjSFPAYBsxViYelfh-riZGTyYfrn6gwpnzXHGg?key=dnI0ZFRqSzBITnlhdnZTanlGWkR6b1JLc3lxNnVn Thanks again Bob!

We’ll also be adding to our own photo album which has had a good head start with photos from young photographer Jake Horseburgh; thanks Jake! https://goo.gl/photos/E5zmmK181wpWwMv66

Update: Also, plenty of photos now on our Facebook Page (thanks Chris Burns).

Thanks again and see you all next year

Susie, Race Organiser

Bit of a last minute decision to do this one, but it had always been on my list as it’s another long distance effort (20 miles) through my lovely home county. But maybe too long after the 50k two weeks prior? At least I’d be trained up for it! So, after some car-sharing-shuttling shenanigans was hastily arranged, Allan Dunbar, Ngeme Ntuli and I set off for Porty Prom.

The weather was pretty grim on the day. No rain, but cloudy, cold and most importantly – very windy. North Easterly too, in the exact direction we were heading. Looking back on the race’s history this seems to be a common occurrence. Well, it is a coastal run so it’s sort of to be expected, even in early May. So, after faffing about with various kit combinations I settled on a thin base layer, club vest, gloves and buff and combined with a pair of shorts to catch any rays of sun that might eek out through the clouds. We gathered at registration pretty early so Allan could drive all the way to NB to drop off his car where his mate had gamely agreed to pick him up and drive him back to Portobello. Ngeme and I set off for the start-line about 10:40, which is just as well as it was a fair walk to the start line from the Sports Centre. At the start coach Dave (officiating on the day) was trying to mark out a line in talcum powder, which was a challenge in the wind! Lining up with a nice smell of talc in our noses, Ngeme and I saw Allan dashing up to the start just in time for the gun (11:00).

Off along Porty Prom we went, Allan and I running together while Ngeme decided to hang further back and enjoy the distance at a more leisurely pace. I was expecting to be left for the seagulls by Allan pretty early on but by some miracle this didn’t happen, which was probably a result of a knee injury he sustained on a training run we did in the Pentlands a month before, where my constant gabbling led to a momentary lapse of concentration on the marshy track! The gabbling continued a fair few miles into this race too, to the consternation of one runner who we kept passing/kept passing us, and who remarked “You’re obviously not trying hard enough if you’re talking so much!”. Ah well, it took our minds of the headwind. But I did keep hearing Dave in my head shouting “If you’re talking you’re not running!”. Sorry, coach.

Despite the chatting, glances at my Garmin showed a pretty steady sub-8min mile pace for the first half of the race. There were a few spectators out to cheer but mostly it was a dedicated set of marshals following us along the course who provided the encouragement. It was odd not seeing the familiar landmark of Cockenzie Power Station to help judge the distance, and running past the ghostly remains of it was even weirder.

By the approach to Gullane the constant pounding on tarmac was beginning to hurt, and I kept looking longingly at the nice soft John Muir Way trails that were tantalisingly close to the roads we were running along. The wind too, when out of the built-up areas, was getting pretty tiring. Along the golf course into Gullane I struggled with my bumbag to get some fuel and started to lag behind Allan. By the time we’d reached Dirleton though I’d caught him up, and slowly passed him on the way into NB. The long approach into town seemed to take forever, and I was counting each breath in and out just to keep going. Just past St Baldred’s Church there was a welcome bit of downhill, where my dad was waiting to wave me on. Then a short slog across the green to the finish, were Dave was recording the finishers. A quick chat with him and a hug from my dad and there was Allan, just behind.

A tough race, but a really good one. Made tougher by an uphill walk to the Sports Centre to pick up bags, coffee, tea and snacks. Even tougher still as I lead Allan and another runner the ‘scenic route’ there! Oh well, good to loosen off stiff legs before a stretch.

Mark and the kids were waiting at the Sports Centre. I didn’t stay for the prize-giving, as I was really cold and had the promise of BBQ food at my dad’s nearby. Later that night though I got a message from Dave – 2nd L40 over the line. Turns out there are some advantages to getting auld after all!

Results:
Jan Dawson – 2.40.22
Allan Dunbar – 2.41.38
Ngeme Ntuli – 3.28.26

Full results here.

I have googled the meaning of “Stuc a` Chroin” and there appears to be two definitions bouncing around the inter-web.

1. Peak of the little sheepfold
2. Peak of harm or danger

For anyone who has ever run this race, I think they would all agree that the latter definition is probably more apt.

I have ran Stuc twice before (the first time in 2012 failing due to a pulled muscle) and the 2^nd time in 2013 in probably the worst weather conditions I have ever experienced on a hill race. For more on that, see the 2013 report:

http://penicuikharriers.org.uk/2013/05/06/stuc-a-chroin-hill-race-2013/

so, it was high time for a nice weather problem free iteration of this race. Ha!

Last year, they changed the route slightly and instead of the first (and last) 3 kms being a nice easy forest road (blue), the route now passes through poorly trodden and very boggy woodland tracks (red). In fact, the distance of the new route is ~1km shorter, but this beginning and end is much more technical than the old route (with major implications for tired legs after 3 hrs of running!). This has therefore turned an already technical race into an uber-technical race and there is almost no respite from intense continuous concentration through boggy holes, half sunken trees and rocks.

Stuc a`Chroin Hill Race Route and Profile

So – this race is really not for the faint-hearted and while Yan, Kevin, Tracy, Chris, Susie and Gilly plodded their way along 53 miles of the Hoka Highland Fling Ultra (slackers!), me, Duncan, Stuart, Mike, Tim and Andrea braved the Munro Stuc.

The forecast was cloudy with bright periods and bar some drizzle at the beginning and some hail at around the half way point, the weather was actually almost perfect – I would have overheated if I had ran in my leggings! The ground conditions were however far from perfect. Very soon from the start, we already entered the melting snow line and the run up through the wood for the first few kilometres was a rather slithery affair. Fine when one is fresh, but did cause some anxiety for the return. The melting snowy/boggy mess continued after we left the forest and traversed northwards up towards Creag Mhadaidh. Strangely the steep plunge down into Glen Ample was snow free although typically wet and slithery. However, this is where I started picking up places and really enjoyed this rather reckless descent and only slithered on my tush once.

Blah! What can I say, the steep > 400m climb out of Glen Ample up Bein Each is horrible. Really no way to pass anyone on the thin very steep muddy track even if you had the energy in your legs. However, on reaching the top, despite quite a lot of residual deep snow in places, I raced an American along much of the ridge for the next 20 minutes or so and passed several runners who were taking the rather treacherous route more sensibly. This was the best section of the whole race. It was only on the final ascent up Stuc itself through the deep snow that I realised that maybe I had pushed a little too hard and my leg muscles were already starting to twitch.

Just before the summit, Stuart, followed closely by Duncan, came flying past (well – actually – it was more of an uncontrolled slither with mad desperate looks in their eyes). Blimey – I was not that far behind them – again – clear evidence that I had probably ran far too fast. I quickly chomped my way through yet another muesli bar to ward off cramp. From the peak, the profile hints at a mostly continuous run down. However, the course really does undulate rather annoyingly and my steadily tiring legs were now losing their precision control and I was less than spritely down to the turn off from the ridge. I took the descent down into Glen Ample steadily – the melting snow and contouring not making it very easy on tired legs. I lost a few places, but decided that a steady slower place was better than forcing myself towards a cramping disaster.

Although relatively short, the return ascent out of Glen Ample is a grim steep affair. I passed one guy who was suffering awfully from cramp and I stuffed down my last muesli bar to hopefully ward of a similar attack. From the top, it was all downhill although by no means easy. The snow had continued to melt and was probably even more slippery than on the original ascent. The return through the wood was exactly how I had worried earlier – slippery, hidden boggy holes and slimy slippery fallen tree stems – urgh! However, I somehow kept plodding through. For some reason I had 3.25 as my 2013 time and felt that I might just be able to beat it. Alas, I was a tad deluded on that score, and in the end was a tad slower than my previous time of 3:18. So, not a PB, but with the conditions, was very happy how the race went.

This is a serious race – a fabulous race and a perfect start to the Scottish Long Classics Series:

http://www.scottishhillrunners.uk/Championship.aspx?ChampionshipID=C-006

Here are the final results with individuals BPs to highlight how much tougher the new course and conditions were:

163 runners completed the race.

Winner: Finlay Wilson: 02:25:24 (BP = 2:12:51)

Stuart Sanderson: 36^th: 03:06:28 (1^st time)

Duncan Ball: 39^th: 03:10:30 (BP = 2:53:51)

Rob Wilson: 60^th: 03:21:52 (BP = 3:18:05)

Mike Brooks: 90^th: 03:37:26 (BP = 2:58:03)

Tim Doyle: 121^st: 04:02:56 (BP = 3:53:13)

Andrea Wilson: 150^th: 04:28:55 (1^st time)

Roll on Slioch in 3 weeks

Rob

Distance 6.5 km
Climb 240 m

Michael and I parked some distance away from Arthurs Seat and with only about 15 minutes until the start we were still looking for registration. The gazebo where this was happening was tucked behind a little hill. We were just about to turn round and go in the other direction when we spotted it. The weather was changeable and there had been hailstones as we left Penicuik. As we got our numbers on the sun began to come out and we stripped down to our race vests. There was time for a quick picture and then we were lined up at the start. The race is fast and furious with a couple of steep hill sections and the aptly named ‘radical road’ to contend with. This is a fun race with plenty of tourists to dodge and of course great views over Edinburgh. Its no nonsense and for £3 for SAL members and £5 for non SAL, its a steal. As such there are no niceties like water at the end, and I was cursing my lack of preparation at the finish. Luckily Daniel was meeting us and brought us a big bottle of water as I was parched. As the prize giving went on the hailstones came on again and Gill and I were huddled under an emergency bothy bag belonging to one of the HBT. At this point I put on all the layers I had. At least I had brought clothes even though I had forgotten to bring anything to drink. Duncan and Gill both came first in their categories and won some beer. Well done folks. 🙂

Results:

POSITION TIME NAME CATEGORY
20 32:05 Duncan Ball MV50
40 36:46 Gillian Cairns FV40
46 38:03 Allan Dunbar MV40
54 39:50 Michael Greens MJ
63 42:06 Chris Downie MV50
66 42:47 Sadie Kemp FS

The race has changed slightly from when I ran it 2 years ago. It used to start from the primary school, but now starts at Winton house :
‘A dramatic and historic castle only half a lunch hour from Edinburgh, Winton lands predate the Magna Carta; and the Setons built the House before Leonardo da Vinci established his reputation. Their architect, the King’s Master Mason, didn’t work on ordinary castles! His carved, twisted chimneys still herald the palace within and his ornate plaster ceilings are the most elaborate in Scotland.’

Its a great venue for a race, the grounds were smothered in daffodils. We were surprised to be allowed to use the facilities, a rabble of runners queued up for the loo under the portraits of ancestors. The race has a gala day feel. There was bouncy castles for the kids. ‘Saltire radio’ were there doing the PA and there was even a man dressed as a daffodil having his picture taken with runners. I think he actually ran in this garb and probably finished in front of me. They do a fun warmup too:

There is a 3.5k, a 5 k and a 10k route. Each winds around the Winton estate through the woodland and there isnt much hill making for a race that feel a bit like a cross country.
‘The Winton Trail run 10K, 5K and Family 3.5K Fun Run offers a unique opportunity to run off road through some of East Lothian’s most beautiful countryside and the estate of Winton House. Formally the Pencaitland Fun Run, the event is now into its 5th year and supports the work of Marie Curie and local registered charities, the Pencaitland Primary School PTA and Pencaitland Playgroup, with the funds raised. There are clearly marked and marshalled off road routes’

At the end of the race you are handed a goody bag, with water and a macmillan daffodil pin. You also get a biscuit medal that you can decorate with icing and sweets. Both children and adults were making the most of that!

10 K Results:
Place Racer name Finish time difference to winning time
39 Michelle Walkingshaw – Kevin 44:11.9 +10:29.5
45 Michael Greens 44:55.2 +11:12.8
68 Rachel Lees 46:56.5 +13:14.1
79 Sadie Kemp 48:42.6 +15:00.2
119 Michael Philp 52:47.5 +19:05.1

Kevin was running as a Michelle.
We were hoping he might end up with a podium finish, that would have been interesting!

3.5K Results:
179 Lily Dunbar 28:17.1 +14:34.5

The weather was very mild for the 10k this year, as we had been expecting it to be quite cold and windy we were all de-layering before the race. There was the usual stampede at the start and at this point I could see Michael and Rachael heading off in the distance. Once we got a few Km round and began to head up the hill I had Rachael in my sights again and made more effort to catch her. I managed to pass her on the hill and this spurred me on to keep going. Michael was too far off so I gave up any chance of catching him. After the uphill there is a nice long downhill section to make up for it and I thoroughly enjoyed this part of the race. Then the route levels off for a while before going back through the underpass. After this point there is an out and back that I find psychologyically difficult. Although it is nice to see the front runners and at this point I saw Duncan and then Allan seppeding past. Once at the turn around you know there is only a couple of Km to go so I did my best to keep my pace up. I was waiting for Rachael to pass me at this point as she is so good at sprint finishes. At the finish line I was handed a beer and a goody bag. The bag contained an assortment of things including a very useful running pouch and some edibles. We also got a medal. This race is great value and afterwards there was lots of soup and sandwiches and flapjack. Duncan had to rush off to Aberdeen but the rest of us stayed for the prize giving and food. On the way home I was buzzing, saying its not often I finish in front of Rachael. Michael soon brought me back to earth by saying ‘Oh, I don’t think Rachael was feeling very well today’! When the results came out I was delighted to see that I had got a pb for 10K. So in the evening I went off to Jan’s birthday party with a spring in my step and of course had a few drinks to celebrate. 🙂

Position Time Gender pos’ Cat pos’
27 40:07 Duncan Ball MV50+ 27 2
41 42:46 Allan Dunbar MV40+ 40 13
59 44:53 Michael Greens MS 54 29
67 45:57 Sadie Kemp FV35+ 7 3
72 46:11 Rachael Lees FV35+ 9 5
142 55:53 Julie Young FV35+ 38 18
172 61:34 Lynne Stevely FV45+ 58 11
173 61:35 Alan Black M60+ 115 5

This race took place on Easter Sunday, and not only that, but the day after the clocks changed, meaning a whole hour of sleep lost and, in my case, some regret about eating a hefty stash of chocolate eggs the night before! The drive through the Borders to get to Melrose didn’t bode too well- dark skies and heavy rain- but I was hopeful that my lucky pants would stave off the bad weather…

There were a few Penicuik harriers competing: Sadie Kemp, Michael Greens, Gillian Cairns, Yan Horsburgh, Tracy Philp, Andy Briggs and myself. This 10.2 mile route is mainly trail and is essentially the middle section of the 38 miles Jedburgh 3 Peaks Ultra which is held in October each year.

Registration and most excellent post-race food took place in the Melrose Rugby Club, a great race venue complete with showers (very useful for folk travelling on to Easter engagements) and comfy seats!

A short walk up to the start line in the rain, with lots of discussion about whether to run in waterproof jackets or not. I was glad I whipped mine off and stashed it just as the race started, as the sun came out (must have been the lucky pants) on the first section and it suddenly became warm work on the uphills! The race starts with a pretty brutal climb up the eastern most Eildon hill, particularly difficult following the previous days heavy rain and there was an awful lot of slipping and sliding. At one point the guy in front slid back down into me and I had to give him a helpful shove back up the hill! I was glad that I had put on my hill shoes rather than trail ones, especially on the first steep downhill where they gave me the confidence to go for it, despite the mud, and overtake a few people. Really blustery and cold on the tops but soon warmed up again with another shorter slog up to the second Eildon. What a cracking view from the top, you could see all the way over the Cheviot hills to the south and away over the Tweed. Had a very welcome sight of a grinning Mark, and my two dogs, to give us a boost at the top of the hill, then a long and fun descent back down again on a winding gravelly path through the heather. One more, much smaller Eildon hill and then we were through the main hilly part of the course and the trail running began.

What a fabulous route- down through the lovely beech woods south of the hills was so much fun- lots of lovely mud, gentle descent and gorgeous scenery. The route is pretty much undulating for the last 7 miles, with only short sections on road and a wonderful stretch along the river Tweed- especially lovely with all the spring flowers starting to show and the smell of wild garlic. At a couple of places the path went really close to the river- could see why we were warned not to fall in! I spent the middle part of the race trying desperately to keep up with Sadie (a challenge!) but overtook her with a couple of miles to go on the section coming away from the Tweed and over the A68, mainly because she slowed down to adjust her pack. The last wee hill climb was a killer- my legs were pretty wobbly by this point and I had just started to walk when a bellow of “Keep running Sarah Burthe!” from Sadie spurred me to dig deep and keep going- thank you Sadie! Sadie then powered past me on the hill and despite managing to keep her in my sights she was too strong and fast for me to catch again. The last mile was, thankfully, downhill for about a mile on the road- what a fabulous race. Welcome banana, bottle of water and muddy greetings from the dogs at the end.

Some great running from the harriers and would really recommend this race. The only downside to the whole event was the state of poor Yan’s knee- he had slipped off one of the very slippery wooden bridges and completely trashed his knee (and apparently inner thighs and had a bruised testicle, but he didn’t show us that!). Maybe Yan also needs some lucky pants. Heroically though Yan had carried on running and still ran a fabulous time. Really great atmosphere at these Melrose races, and well organised, with all profits from the event going to The Brathay Trust, a charity who helps young and vulnerable children who have had a bad start to life. A thoroughly enjoyable mud-fest of a race and one that I will definitely do again- wonderful!

Race results not available yet but will post when I can.

Distance, 19.3 km. Climb, 700 m

Six intrepid harriers made our way through to Birnam to test our strength, courage and navigational skills against the might of Deuchary hill. Rob, our gallant guide, strengthened himself with a feast of sandwiches fit for a king on the way. We had been forwarned that many an adventurer had come a cropper on this race and so we studied our maps on the journey to registration to make sure we were forearmed. This turned out to be a futile endeavour as when we arrived we discovered that the route had been altered. Hurray! It had been made simpler and also there was apparently less tarmac and more trail than before, double plus! So armed with our fresh parchments we took the short trip to the forest where our trusty steeds were stored to be there for us at the finish. Then began the derobing and inov-8 armery was applied along with lashings of ibuprofen gel (in Rob’s case). Once Stuart had finished his warm-up of ceilidh dancing round the carpark, off we ventured to the Hilton about 2 klicks away, where facilities were enjoyed and we indulged in the usual pre-race photos and nervous chattering. Once a head count had been done, and the organiser realised he himself was the missing runner he was looking for we got started. Onwards and upwards for quite some time, there was a road crossing where Des and Kate were positioned, cheering us on.

At this point I was frantically trying to keep up with Andrea who was dashing up the hill like a mad march hare, it didnt take me long to realise I wasnt going to keep that up for long so I settled into my own pace and started to enjoy the scenery that could be glimpsed through the breaks in the trees. Soon I was quite far behind the runners I was following and found I had to keep my wits about me and began to focus on following the red and white stripped tape that very helpfully showed the way. At times it was like being on an easter egg hunt, where will it be? Up in that tree? Tied round a gate? Will it be high or low? We had been warned that if we hadnt seen a ribbon for a while we should turn back and a few times near the beginning I was turning to ask the runners behind me for reassurance before going on. By the time I had reached the first marshall I had begun to trust the stripey way markers, by now I was pretty much running alone and this continued for most of the race. I was glad of this as I was a sweaty mess, it was warmer than I had expected and I was wishing I had done without the second vest I had on. I was puffing and panting up the hill, and my GPS watch kept going on pause as I was going so slowely it thought I had stopped. Thanks Garmin! I told myself this was good training and not to worry that I was the tortoise, not the hare. After some time I made it to the top and stopped to catch my breath and get a couple of snaps.

I was glad to have made the first checkpoint on the top of Deuchary but struggled to see how to come off it. I could see another runner in the distance near the water so I just made a beeline in that direction. As I descended I picked up the trail again. I was glad to see Des and Kate another couple of times and am immensely grateful to the marshall who was on top of the last hill (checkpoint 3). I almost missed it completely. He was up there waving and shouting ‘Im over here, come this way’. He also supplied me with some much needed water as I had finished mine by this point. He pointed me in the right direction and off I went, through a bog (wet feet) and down the hill. Most of the route is very pleasant track and trail, but there was a little stretch of road near to the end, before you head back into the woods. I hadnt realised just how close I was to the finish and was just contemplating another gel when I looked down and saw the carpark. To my dismay the runner who had been a little behind me for the last couple of km had taken the correct route and was now nearly at the finish while I was floundering around in the bushes.

I was glad to see my fellow harriers patiently waiting for me and off we went to refuel and regale eachother with tales of races past and future back at the Birnam guesthouse.

Results:

Duncan 01:36:02
Stuart 01:37:41
Rob 01:48:14
Gillian 01:55:22
Andrea 02:10:14
Sadie 02:14:48

Well done to Duncan on bagging himself a prize. 🙂