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. 🙂

Lovely sunny weather and a great turn-out for Penicuik harriers.
Nice to see Dyane, Allan and Susie out on the course and of course our very own coach Dave.
A special well done to the ladies on winning a team prize.
Also to Amy on being the fastest local lass.

53 Duncan Ball 66.48
56 Yan Horsburgh 67.37
87 Allan Dunbar 71.11
95 Amy Kerr 72.05
103 Andrew McDermott 73.09
113 William Dickson 74.25
127 Rachel Drummond 75.36
141 Tracy Philp 77.12
152 Rachel Mcgavin 78.04
154 Sadie Kemp 78.28
168 Ezmie McCutcheon 79.26
197 Louise Campbell 82.01
207 Ian Forrest 83.24
212 Michael Greens 84.07
215 Melanie Dunbar 84.34
230 Michael Philp 86.57
237 Christopher Burns 88.06
258 Ngeme Ntuli 91.07

3rd ladies team:

Amy Kerr
Rachel Drummond
Tracy Philp

Post race refreshments were enjoyed:

It was nice to get back to this part of the city, we lived near KB for around 25 years and while I had never run this race before, I had run the route many times. Also nice to meeet some Harriers I hadn’t met before: Alan, Billy, Julie and Rachel. In fact I had met Alan before – we were at school together (and you haven’t changed a bit Alan).
Conditions were a bit cool (freezing!) at the start, but it turned out to be good running weather. Despite knowing the route, I still, as usual, went off too fast and it took me a couple of K (and the hill up past Midmar Allotments) for me to settle in to my usual sedate pace. I really enjoyed the run along Braid Hills Drive, with its great views of Arthur’s seat. Kilometer 7 was great, all downhill, then came the sting in the tail, up Mayfield Road and into KB. On the run in I managed to hold onto my (lowly) place and get a welcome from Davy Cairns

A new race (only since 2015), Ben Gullipen is a rather runnable out-and-back race of 13.5kms with 350m of ascent. The route is entirely track (a lot of forest road – you could drive it in a car) and is certainly not my preferred surface. However, the weather at Callander was stunning – cool, sunny with a light northerly wind. I cannot remember when I last ran in the sun. So despite the rocky gnarly track of the first/final kms, this was a rather enjoyable jaunt. The views of Ben Ledi were amazing as its snowy cap gleamed in the sunshine. We ran the wrong hill!!!

Gullipen Hill Race Route

The race starts at the Wheels Cycling Centre near Callander and is an almost continuous climb for 6.7 kms. The gradient is not steep enough, except maybe the final 0.5 km, to justify NOT running, so it is a rather continuous gruelling ascent up through clear-cuts, spruce/larch/pine plantations and finally onto the open moorland of Ben Gullipen itself. Having said that, at only 13.5 kms, the race is shorter than my preferred distance so I felt pretty strong and continually battled with a Falkland Trail Runner (Lyle) all the way up, and all the way down. He just pipped me over the line!

Four Harriers ran – Des Crowe, Stuart Sanderson, Peter Avent and moi.

While I went at a more leisurely pace – slightly regretting the leggings and 1 too many layers – Des and Stu battled all the way up. However, on the way down, Des had the upper hand and left the “poodle loving old duffer” in his wake. Peter however had the day and came in 3^rd.

Great weather, but at £10 (£15 on the day), this is not a race that Stuart and I will come back to. This is a nice trail race, but there are better hill races which have less impact on recovering legs and more excitement.

Do I have my Mojo back? Hmmm – tricky to say, but it is certainly on the up.

Rob

We got fantastic weather for the trail races at Glentress, with clear blue skies, bright sunshine and a light breeze. It was quite cold waiting for the start and people were joking that the water en route had frozen. The routes were hilly as could be expected as they snaked around the forest following cycle tracks. It was great to see Sarah popping up all over the place taking pictures and offering sweets.

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I ran with a friend and I will admit we chatted most of the way. I had a cold and was feeling less than energetic. I was worried that I would struggle with the 2 loop course. It did help that lap 1 ended on a nice downhill stretch, the last couple of miles flying by. I refilled my drinking bottle and ate a couple of cereal bars at the halfway point and washed them down with a cup of cola. The first few miles of the route were mostly uphill, I had ran some of this section on the first lap, but mostly walked it the second time. There were some lovely stretches of winding trail and every few miles the forest opened to give a fantastic view of the surroundings. The route was well marked, although a few people did manage to take a wrong turn near the beginning. It was strange that although I was more tired I think I enjoyed the second lap more as the runners were more spaced out and I wasn’t being constantly overtaken by the faster runners and the half marathoners. I feel very happy to have completed my first marathon of 2016. Well done to all those who took part, at all the distances. A very special congratulations to Jan at getting 4th woman in her race.

10K
48 Julie Young 01:12:06
49 Alan Black 01:12:08
50 Emma Baird 01:12:11

Half marathon
50 Jan Dawson 02:08:15
149 Michael Philp 02:51:53

marathon
44 Yan Horsburgh 04:39:15 (lap 1 1.59.36, lap 2 2.39.38)
77 Sadie Kemp 05:16:33 (lap 1 2.26.41, lap 2 2.49.52)
87 Tracy Philp 05:26:58 (lap1 2.37.16, lap 2 2.49.43)
118 Gilly Marshall 06:18:35 (lap 1 2.53.31, lap 2 3.25.04)
Vicky Lyon (lap 1 03:28:26)

Here are the overall results for the borders cross country for the harriers that took part. Your score is your best 4 finishing places, with a costly addition of 1000 points for each of the 4 not completed. Well done, especially to those who managed to complete them all. Great commitment 🙂

515 Ian Forrest M 14
494 Gillian Cairns F 18
476 Michael Greens M 18
529 Rachael Campbell F 31
530 Stuart Sanderson M 31
461 Tracy Philp F 35
516 Margaret Forrest F 41
473 Sadie Kemp F 43
564 Zoe Fowler F 44
805 Chris Downie M 99
501 Kirsty Loudon F 103
462 Michael Philp M 136
525 Mark Dawson M 145
791 Des Crowe M 1009
455 Dyane Harvey F 1026
454 Rachel McGavin F 1048
807 Kevin Anderson M 1055
507 Amy Kerr F 2019
562 Mike Brooks M 2020
471 Yan Horsburgh M 2025
477 Daniel Greens M 2078
518 Vicky Lyon F 3038

And the juniors:

199 Holly Dawson F Penicuik Harriers 21
179 Lewis Cairns M Penicuik Harriers 45

We got great weather for the last of the borders cross country season. There was snow on the ground but the weather was crisp and we even got a bit of sunshine. The course goes through the woods then out over the fields, then back through the woods with a couple of stream crossings. The most challenging part for me was the wooden walkways which were pretty slippery and I felt like I was going to career off the side of one. After the race there was food at the ‘Focus Centre’ and we all got a medal to cherish. 🙂

43 476 29:21 Michael Greens
44 807 29:24 Kevin Anderson
67 494 31:39 Gillian Cairns
76 564 32:39 Zoe Fowler
80 461 32:59 Tracy Philp
82 515 33:21 Ian Forrest
83 529 33:42 Rachael Campbell
86 473 33:46 Sadie Kemp
92 805 34:49 Chris Downie
108 462 37:55 Michael Philp
123 516 45:50 Margaret
125 501 46:12 Kirsty Loudon

Well done to our juniors, we are so proud of you.

77 179 18:08 Lewis Cairns
80 199 18:50 Holly Dawson

A fantastic turnout for Penicuik Harriers, the snowy conditions added to the excitement of it all. The ascents were pretty slippery in parts which Im sure slowed many of us down. However we did make up some of the time sliding back down again on our bums. It was great to see Bill, Sean, Sarah, Mike and Dave out supporting and marshalling. The route was very well marshalled this year perhaps because of the challenging conditions, as visibility wasnt great.

I personally seem to be getting slower each year although my percentage compared to the winner is improving so maybe its just down to the weather and conditions underfoot. I was unable to run last year due to being ill so was extra enthused this year. I love this race and will definitely be trying my luck for a place again next year.

56 264 01:03:14 Des Crowe
82 526 01:05:52 Stuart Sanderson
85 199 01:06:00 Duncan Ball
148 371 01:11:26 Yan Horsburgh
170 613 01:13:06 Rob Wilson
210 362 01:16:24 Alasdair Hind
230 344 01:18:03 Michael Greens
259 287 01:20:10 Allan Dunbar
276 19 01:22:01 Gillian Cairns
307 283 01:23:58 Tim Doyle
319 591 01:25:20 Robert Walker
326 446 01:25:40 Andrew McDermott
352 51 01:28:51 Jan Dawson
360 267 01:29:29 Craig Davenport
397 89 01:35:07 Sadie Kemp
398 282 01:35:09 Christopher Downie
417 278 01:37:17 William Dickson
447 113 01:42:42 Susie Maxwell
455 222 01:45:13 Andy Briggs
479 275 01:55:08 Mark Dawson

Way back in the dim and distant past on a cool but fairly mild day in January, 12 intrepid Harriers burdened themselves with a jolly through the Lomonds of Fife. Apologies that it has taken me so long to put pen to paper, but blame all those school kids applying for University places in Scotland. Not all my job is hugging trees you know!!

I’ll therefore keep this short and much of the text below has been kindly arm twisted out of people who normally prefer to run than write.

The DB is a relay consisting of 4 legs:

Leg 1: 7.5kms, 220 m http://www.fifeac.org/files/races/maps/devils_burdens/devils_burdens_leg1.pdf

Leg 2: 10kms, 680 m http://www.fifeac.org/files/races/maps/devils_burdens/devils_burdens_leg2.pdf

Leg 3: 11.5kms, 410 m http://www.fifeac.org/files/races/maps/devils_burdens/devils_burdens_leg3.pdf

Leg 4: 5.5kms, 390 m http://www.fifeac.org/files/races/maps/devils_burdens/devils_burdens_leg4.pdf

We entered two teams:

The Penicuik Panthers

Leg 1: Kevin Anderson

Leg 2: Duncan Ball and Stuart Sanderson

Leg 3: Yan Horsburgh and Rob Wilson

Leg 4: Michael Greens

The Penicuik Pussies

Leg 1: Rachel Drummond

Leg 2: Sadie Kemp and Chris Downie

Leg 3: Andy Briggs and Sarah Burthe

Leg 4: Des Crowe (having already ran Leg 2 for Dundee).

Although a little muddy, conditions were pretty good on the whole and there was a slight south-westerly that probably hindered the leg 2 runners a little.

Of the 131 teams that ran, our final places were:

Panthers: 33^rd, 3:29:49

Pussies: 89^th,      4:13:18

Full split info here:

Here are some choice words from a few of the runners:

Duncan – Leg 2 Panther runner with verbal diarrhoea

At just after 9:30 we left the warm hall in Falkland and Chris drove Rachel’s posh BMW with the four leg 2 runners to Strathmiglo to be in plenty of time to catch the leg one runners Kevin and Rachel arriving. We did a little bit of warming up whilst keeping an eye on the tops of the hills which were periodically swathed in cloud.

Just after 10am, Kevin appeared in the distance and we removed tops, etc. ready for the changeover. Stuart grabbed the checkpoint card and we were off up the side of a muddy field. Then on to some boring tarmac and a massive puddle. Stuart sploshed noisily through it whilst I daintily skirted round on the verge, trying to keep the feet dry for as long as possible. On to the forest track and we were running with Des and his running partner – fortunately for us as we would have missed the first checkpoint!

After about a mile and a half of running, we were out of the forest and on to the northern slopes of West Lomond. As it got steeper, the traverse got trickier and tough on the ankles. We were keeping up with Des though and reeling in a couple of other teams. I was working pretty hard trying not to slow down Stuart too much – and although I sensed he was champing at the bit somewhat, he was behaving himself and didn’t blast off as usual into the distance.

Left turn up the grassy gully and another checkpoint. Then the steep slog up to the summit of West Lomond. Whilst Stuart punched his card, I found my compass and set it to about 200. We had been told to head for a snazzy new style and sure enough after some pleasant bounding down heathery slopes, there it was. I was conscious that the last time I had run this race, we had headed too far left and I overcompensated a bit until there were some corrective yells from Stuart.

Also in contrast to last time, visibility was good and navigation was very straightforward with new paths (well long soggy sandpits) and a wall to follow, not to mention two teams ahead of us. We were still keeping up with Des but didn’t seem to be gaining on the leading team.

Up on to Bishop Hill and into a strong wind, but good running underfoot. We were now getting quite knackered but I was quite enjoying the running and the competition with the other teams. Phew, the last checkpoint and the fun steep slidy descent down towards the leg 3 changeover. We could hear loud yells from the four Harriers leg 3 runners and we had made it! Second team in? Brief exchanges and Rob and Yan were off back up the steep slope.

We related our experiences with Andy and Sarah (and ate one of Sarah’s energy bars), donned emergency full body cover and waited for Chris and Sadie to arrive.

The leg had taken us 1 hour 12 minutes, which seemed a bit slow, but neither of us were in peak condition and we should be faster next time!

Stuart – also Leg 2 Panther runner

Duncan and I set off in almost perfect conditions, 20 seconds ahead of our new member Des, (running for Dundee at this point) but within 500 m he and his team mate had already caught us . The gauntlet was set and I thought we were in for a hard fought battle. Des continuously skipping ahead and setting the pace, unfortunately for Des his mate wasn’t quite as fast and Des had to keep dropping back. As Dunc and I hit the first hill Des was slipping backwards. (no fault of his )? Enough of Des, this was a PH race (he has his own PH story to tell) . As Dunc and I climbed West Lomond we gradually passed a number of competitors, eventually descending in 2nd place (of the first wave). The pace picked up again as we were joined by another team? Between the 4 of us we made good ground on the leaders but not quite enough to catch them. I started to flag a bit but Dunc kept pushing on to the changeover point dragging you know who down our final descent. Where Rob and Yan took control of the PH batten.

Sadie – Leg 2 Pussie

Once we had picked up our numbers and wished each other luck, the Leg 2 runners headed straight to their start at Strathmiglo. It is near the Lomonds of Fife race start and if you have done that race you will know there is stretch of path that takes you to the woods that seems to go on for quite a while. Once Rachel had come in for our team (the Pussies) we ran straight up the muddy field and on to the path which at one point was completely flooded. I ran through it. Chris chose to go up the side but said he thought this was worse as it was very muddy. We then headed up through the woods (1st checkpoint) and out onto the side of West Lomond. This was a free for all where a number of different routes were taken, Rob had advised us to gain height quickly so we did this as we made our way round the hill to our second checkpoint. Then it was a calf burning climb to the top of West Lomond. Once at the top the view to East Lomond was rather obscured by the low cloud but we could see where to go and headed across the open ground to Bishops hill. The rest of the route was undulating and quite muddy in places. Rob and Yan passed us going in the other direction doing leg 3 for the Panthers, they were both putting in a massive effort and were the first leg 3 team through. We caught the rest of our checkpoints and even stopped for a quick picture on the top of the last hill where a photographer was positioned. Then it was a steep downhill to the end of our leg. I was thinking I am glad we are going down this and not up, as the leg 3 runners would be. I was hoping Andy and Sarah wouldn’t be cursing me too much on their way up for giving them a leg with such a brutal start!

Rob – Leg 3 Panther runner

OK – gonna keep this short due to all the winging about my blogs posts!!

Stuart and Duncan CAME IN THIRD, but when Yan and I started up the steep hill out of Kinnesswood, we were not far behind the first two teams. That first kilometre is a killer on the calves, but Yan huffed and puffed behind me and by the time we got to the top we were already 2^nd and very soon were leading the first wave. At this point I was so happy that Mike B had been injured as this new leg 3 route is fabulous – very runnable (bar that start section) and Yan and I were pretty well balanced. I being a tad quicker on the ups but he be much quicker on the flat and down. The 2^nd place pair were never far behind and bar some cautious navigation along Glen Vale and up towards West Lomond we did not go too far from the proper route. Once we hit the main track just east of West Lomond, it was a sprint down to the changeover and Yan was very patient with my slower track speed. Overall, we made pretty good time and it was damn weird leading a race for once as you’re constantly thinking whether your route is correct. It was a nice relief to pass the punch sheet over to Michael who flew off – from what we heard later – in the wrong direction!!!

Sarah – leg 3 Pussie runner

I was feeling a large amount of trepidation about the race, having not raced for so long, but I had a thoroughly brilliant time. Leg 3 started with a pretty brutal hill climb, the most risky part of the entire race was dodging the super-fast people descending at break-neck speed, but once that was over, my calves had stopped burning and my lungs stopped threatening to explode (really need to get fit), it was a magical run across the muddy hill tops. Andy and I were pretty well matched in terms of pace and enjoyed the view from the hills and running through lots and lots of mud.  The last descent back down into the valley was superb – in fact I thought the race was going to last a bit longer and the finish line came as a surprise! Leg 3 was about 7 miles with ~400m ascent according to my watch. Great race- would thoroughly recommend.

Final word from Rob

Des ran legs 2 and 4 so kudos to where it is deserved. Michael messed up a little with the route of the final leg, but we’ve all done it (some worse than others……….Amy!!!) – it just means that next time you’re guaranteed a PB.

I love this relay and we really should try and get as many teams in as possible next year. Logistically it is a lot easier than other relays and the soup, food and camaraderie at the end when we all get back to the Falkland Village hall makes it all worthwhile.

We were incredibly lucky with the weather again this year for the race. There was a bit of snow on the ground but as we made our way up the first hill with the sun shining on us layers were coming off and being stashed in packs. I was grateful of Susie’s help at this point, she held my kit while I took my jacket off which was a great help.

I find this first section of the race very steep and was already walking the hills. I find I need to save energy for the later more runnable parts of the race. The track is quite narrow at this point anyway so I just settled in to the pace of those around me and enjoyed the surroundings.

I was taking a few pics at this point but promised myself once the terrain got a bit flatter I would put my phone away and focus on covering some ground. For the first part of the race I was trying to keep Andrea in my sights. It wasnt until after the halfway mark that I began to catch up with her and this gave me a boost. I tried to stop being destracted by the beautiful scenery and remember I was meant to be racing. I stuffed an energy bar in my face around the halfway point as I knew I would need it later. Some sections of the race are a bit flatter and you can get a bit of running in, these are my favourite sections of this race, you are running over the hill tops, crossing stiles and navigating the heather.

There is a nice downhill section leading to the burn crossing which is alot of fun in the snow as it is not too steep.

After the burn I got close enough to Andrea for us to have a bit of chat as we made our way upwards again. There is a nice trail section before you head on up the last hill that is a real calf burner. Helped only by the view back across the valley behind you. I had an energy gel just before I hit the hill and finished the water I was carrying.

This is followed by some steeper downhill that in the snowy conditions frightened the life out of me. Of course there was a well positioned photographer there to catch our expressions.

The track near the end was also quite treacherous and I was hopping from side to side trying to avoid the icier parts. Once back in the field that is the start/finish there is a very boggy bit to contend with before you do the final sprint to the finish. At this point Andrea and I were neck and neck and I just managed to get my toes over the line before her. I didnt hang around long at the finish as I very quickly began to get cold. So it was off to the Rugby club for a hot shower and some hot grub. There was soup and haggis neeps and tatties. Also plenty of hot tea and biscuits. This is a fantastic race and I enjoyed it just as much as last year, I was also a couple of minutes faster even though there was more snow this time. Results were up very quickly along with plenty of photos. I cant wait for next year!
Well done to all the harriers who took part. X

Results:
20 Des Crowe 01:50:30
83 Rob Wilson 02:11:50
135 Sadie Kemp 02:31:35
136 Andrea Wilson 02:31:36
154 Susie Maxwell 02:38:53
186 Gilly Marshall 02:59:57

EDL at Broxburn and the ground was icy hard, mud was in short supply (only one very large puddle to negotiate). Some runners were wearing spikes to get a decent grip, when the snow started, I actually thought of crampons!. 3 laps of a gently undulating trail (so-called ‘Lungbuster Hill’ was no problem – but then maybe I wasn’t trying hard enough!) Managed to restrict to 18 the number of those lapping me, which is one less than at Alloa, so maybe I’m improving. Once again I comprised the entire Men’s Team, while the Women’s Team was twice as large: Rachel Campbell and my wife Margaret.

A fantastic start to the 2016 hill race calendar. The race starts at the Broughton Brewery with a road crossing then its over a stonewall any way you can, cross playing fields avoiding falling over the playground equipment, over a fence, wade river (rather deep this year due to all the rain we have had in December) , wade a marsh, then up through fields before hitting the base of the hill. Straight up this and turn to slip and slide back down, then back across the field and river for a final dash along the road to the village hall. At the finish most of us had a dip in the river to clean off our shoes and cool our muscles. Then its inside for soup and rolls. Andrea, Gillian, Duncan, Stuart and young Lewis (doing the junior race) managed to win themselves some beer as well. Nice to see Bill and Dave there too. Results:

15 Stuart Sanderson 0:19:41
18 Duncan Ball 0:20:24
31 Rob Wilson 0:22:04
36 Gillian Cairns 0:22:59
43 Alan Dunbar 0:23:53
62 Rachael Campbell 0:26:50
64 Andrea Wilson 0:26:53
65 Sadie Kemp 0:26:55
74 Susie Maxwell 0:28:47
84 Gilly Marshall 0:32:59
86 Kirsty Loudon 0:36:18

This race is a flat 4 miles along the Portobello Promenade, the Start and Finish are both close to Tumbles. After the Start the route goes to the old start at the Dog and Cat Home, turns, goes all the way to the usual turn at Joppa, then back to Tumbles to Finish. Its a lovely way to start a new year of running and we were especially fortunate with the weather which was cool and calm. The results:

50 24:24 Yan Horsburgh
96 26:22 Amy Kerr
107 26:53 Michael Greens
138 28:15 Rachel Mcgavin
140 28:15 Rachel Drummond
156 28:44 Sadie Kemp
274 35:06 Dyane Harvey