A good turn out from harriers for this race which is a great way to burn off some of those easter eggs. The conditions were great, cool and not too windy. Its nice to be able to grab a cuppa in the Hallhill centre before the race. The route has a hill in the first half, but its not too steep and the rest of the route is pretty flat.

Results:
105 Ian Forrest 46.28
107 Michael Greens 46.40
113 Rachel Campbell 47.06
120 Michael McComb 47.36
129 Sadie Kemp 48.34
151 Michael Philp 50.13
184 Dyane Harvey 52.17

This was a brand new race and possibly due to this slightly more haphazard in its organisation. There had been a promise of maps but when we arrived at registration there was only one large one to memorize and none to take with us. Apparently there was a problem with the printer and hopefully next year this will have been sorted out. There were a few places where the route was rather ambiguous and meant mistakes were made and a few people could be seen doubling back on themselves when they chose the wrong option.

That said, the race was very enjoyable, a relaxed atmosphere and with an interesting route. The race had just about every type of terrain included with hill road and cross country sections. The hill part of the race comes first so it was important not to peak too soon (excuse the pun) and save some energy for the latter parts of the race where stony ground and mud made the going challenging. The scenery was just gorgeous in places from carpets of wild garlic in the woods to serene river sections. This was in contrast to the busy road we had to cross where thankfully marshalls were there to help us safely on our way.

I personally spent a good bit of the race fighting with my clothing as jacket and gloves came on and off with the very changeable weather. By the time I got back to the rugby club I was glad of some dry clothes and warm tea. There was a very generous buffet and the prize giving was done in a timely manner. With our Gillian Cairns winning 3rd lady. All in all a great race and many of us will be back next year.

Thanks to RM photography for the action shots.

Results:
6 Stuart Sanderson 1.22.21
12 Mike Brooks 1.29.02
25 Mark Snodgrass 1.33.30
35 Gillian Cairns 1.38.29
41 Jan Dawson 1.41.42
57 Sadie Kemp 1.52.55
60 Susie Maxwell 1.53.04
61 Frances Jones 1.53.05
87 Melanie Dunbar 2.11.15
91 Kirsty Loudon 2.58.33

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The Deuchary Hill Canter (18.7 kms, 770m) is the final race of three held near Birnam over the weekend (Tay Dash (night-time 5km) and Birnham Hill Classic (7kms, 535m)).

Andrea and I had signed up weeks ago and went north as other Harriers went south to run the new 10 mile Eildons trail race. I think we got the better weather – sunny and mild, little wind and a few spots of rain – but better weather does not always mean a better run!

Since my last proper hill run 3 weeks ago, learning from my marathon training friends, I have been busy preparing – sitting, standing, cutting wood, and more sitting while embracing all the healthiness that North America can offer  – burgers, pizza, Asian food, beer, wine and whiskey. Add on the 8 hour jet-lag and I was about as prepared as one should [not] be for a 19 km hill race.

Official start was 12 noon and Andrea and I arrived for registration at Birnam at 11am to find out that the race actually should have started at 11am. The website was wrong. In true Adrian Davis fashion, he could not understand why the website was wrong. Luckily, we were not the only ones to be “late”, so the race was delayed until at least 11.30. This unfortunately scuppered our plans of driving to the finish and jogging down to the start to get a feel for the weather and what clothing would be appropriate. That could have made all the difference to what was to come.

So – anyway – we drove to the start and as there was a chilly wind, we assumed it was going to be on the cool side. I layered up in typical Rob fashion.

At the start Adrian then dropped the next surprise that the route had been changed due to logging activities. Supposedly the new map was on the website. Well – I can only find the old one (see edited version). The good news was that it was a little more straightforward than the original route and after last year where most of the field got lost, the new route (in blue) was actually better in my mind.

Deuchary Hill Canter Route

The race started at 11.40 and after the first 500 m, I was in the leading pack. Whey hey – I could hear Stuart chuckling from afar. However, as the route climbed, I realised that the weather was not only mild, it was tending towards hot – especially when the sun was out (i.e. most of the race L). I was sweating buckets. Long leggings and 3 layers were way too much. By about 2kms in, I was a broiled lobster and was already flagging. I stupidly decided NOT to stop and strip and thought that a good sweat would do me good. Ugh!

Deuchary Hill Canter profile

I was definitely slower than normal but as Mike B was not running, I had no one to really compete against, so decided to set a comfortable pace. I did after all blow my calf last year on the same race and really wanted to get around this time. The route, at this stage, is made up of small tight undulating forest tracks and trails – really nice actually and should be quick. From km 7, the trail steadily climbs and after 1.5 kms, the route leaves the trail and goes up Deuchary Hill itself (I did finally stop briefly to take one layer off – not enough!). This climb seemed much longer than the last time I ran it. I was starting to feel tired and I was not even half way round the course L. I found my legs a little coming of the peak and managed to pass a few people. On returning to the track however, my legs felt like rubber and that did not improve. I haemorrhaged places. The next few kms were really tough and I was regretting my OTHER mistake of the day. I had not eaten enough and I had forgotten to have a snack while going up to the peak. At 14.5 kms, I had to walk – the track was not steep – but I had to eat and drink. I was losing my legs badly. The final bit of “new route” was a short hill up and I could barely make it. My legs started cramping and I was quite miserable at this point. Luckily, I knew that once at the top, it was downhill all the way. Although tortuous, I managed to make it to the finish line without serious cramp although every little rise seemed to morph my muscles into undulating quivering spasms of putty. I crossed the line at 1:51:28. Utterly exhausted.

I had promised Andrea that I would walk back up the route to jog her in. Och – the regrets of life! After a 10 minute rest of drinking the rest of my Camelpack and eating anything I could get my hands on, I looked back up the hill and started walking. After about 10 minutes, Andrea came running down the road not looking too dejected despite having got slightly lost (again!). I jogged with her for a while, until an old bloke passed us and Andrea realised she had slowed down so I could keep up. She left me and then battled with the man to beat him over the line at ~2:16 – a PB ~9 min improvement on last year.

Moral of the story – expect to be a little tired after lots of travelling – but at least eat properly and wear the bloody appropriate clothes. It at least was a good training run.

Rob

A relatively newbie on the running festival circuit. Enterants can choose from the 10K, Half and Full marathon option. The organisation is first class. All participants start at the Loch Katrine Pier on an out and back course. The route was very hilly. Undulating would be an understatement. The 12% incline aptly named Graveyard Hill was a test! But the scenery was magnificent. One to recommend.

So while many of the harriers headed northwards for the D33 and Alloa I headed south for the not so sunny Northampton and the F1 race track. While I am sure that my lap times will not have Lewis worrying about losing his World Championship bid I did enjoy running on the track usually raced by the fast and furious. Possibly set the scene for my own half marathon PB.

The D33 or the Deeside Ultra marathon starts in Aberdeen and takes you along the old railway to Banchory for 16.5 miles where you then turn around and run back to Aberdeen. Chris Burns was attempting his 4th D33 but the rest of us were newbies to this Epic Race, Gilly and Chris doing it as a lead up to the Highland Fling 53 mile Ultra they are doing in April. I must confess to having had a couple of glasses of Prosecco on Hogmanay when I signed up but I had made the decision before then that I was going to attempt an Ultra.  Unfortunately I was poorly for most of January so training only really started in February and I couldn’t follow a plan becasue you don’t get 6 week Ultra plans – I just ran at every opportunity!

On the morning of the race, Gilly and I met Chris and Mark in Duthie Park and after the necessary photos we all got our drop bags into the appropriate van, made last minute decisions about clothing, shared out gels and joined toilet queues before the 9am start.

A great start to this very flat route where you could easily just as well be on our local old railway, I hooked up with Sadie’s sister Zoe and we basically chatted our way to Banchory with another lady from Edinburgh.  Although I kept saying to both of them that these 9 min miles we were doing were not sensible for me I just felt so comfortable that I stayed with them. Ross Houston passed us on his way back with a huge smile and looking so relaxed running his 5 minute miles and on his way to smashing the course record by 20mins! Mark passed me when I was at 14.5 miles and he was at 18.5 – told you I was running too fast!

Hit half way in 2h 35m and refuelled with some jam sandwiches and a brunch bar before starting back.  Zoe had to make a pit stop at Milton of Crathes so I kept going knowing that she would catch me.  I then faffed about with clothing and headphones and eventually got myself back in a rhythm but I had really slowed down, Ed Sheeran was doing his best to keep me going though.  Zoe caught me about mile 24 I think but she was so steady that I told her to keep going and I then did my best not to let her out of my sight.

After miles 25/26/27 I was hurting and regretting my earlier pace so had to start a bit of a walk 10 steps run thing, the ‘Paula Radcliffe counting to 100’ helped and then I abandonded the music and got talking to people going through the same routine of walk running as me.  Gutted that so many people passed me and that my Garmin died but my new friends were able to tell me our distance and the last 3 miles are on a gradual downhill.  On the very last section of railway I heard a ‘C’mon Susie’ and looked up expecting Mark Snodgrass but saw Gord and the boys sat on a wall and now all cheering me home, well if that didn’t make me shift nothing would – what a surprise!!!  Got through the finish and had a wee cry and a hug with my boys who as it turned out had got on the bus in Penicuik to the train station at the same time I had started my wee run.

We all cheered Gilly and Chris home before taking more photos and eating a pack of jaffa cakes, that was just me 🙂 Well now we had Gord to drive us home which was great because Gilly and I sat in the back eating and announcing that we were Ultra runners, actually that was just me too 🙂

Really great experience, huge achievement with my lack of training, great thing to share with Gilly, Mark and Chris, my fellow Harriers – I totally recommend it!

Susie 🙂

1 Ross Houston 3h 10m
72 Mark Snodgrass 4h 36m
262 Susie Maxwell 5h 54m
300 Gilly Marshall 6h 12m
319 Chris Burns 6h 40m

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We had all four seasons in one race with sun, wind, rain, sleet, snow and hail. There was a great turn out from Harriers and Amy came away with some lovely prizes.

Susie Maxwell said about the race: “We would like to say a huge thank you to Lasswade AC for organising a great race today, we really appreciate you going to so much effort! The course was well marshalled and marked very clearly with no doubt as to what the route was.

Great support from the marshalls and thanks to the team of kids at the end for dishing out the medals and water – they must have been as cold as the runners were :o(

What can we say about the fantastic spread of food afterwards, it was incredible?! Please also pass on our thanks the the officials and time-keepers. Penicuik Harriers will be back next year!

mens: 11th Team
womens: 2nd Team

http://www.lasswade-ac.org.uk/club/wp-content/uploads/2015/03/LAC-10-Mile-Road-Race-Results-2015-3.pdf

41 24 Sarah Mckechnie Penicuik Harriers 65.09 F
51 386 Duncan Ball Penicuik Harriers 66.14 MV O/50
55 215 Mark Snodgrass Penicuik Harriers 67.05 MV
108 13 Amy Kerr Penicuik Harriers 72.34 FV O/40
165 6 Tracy Phlip Penicuik Harriers 78.07 FV O/40
188 14 Sarah Burthe Penicuik Harriers 79.37 FV
197 89 Ian Forrest Penicuik Harriers 80.13 MV O/60
200 17 Sadie Kemp Penicuik Harriers 80.38 FV
214 8 Susan McFarlane Penicuik Harriers 82.51 F
224 26 Frances Jones Penicuik Harriers 83.50 FV O/45
235 4 Michael McComb Penicuik Harriers 85.40 M
246 287 Louise Campbell Penicuik Harriers 86.28 FV
253 10 Susie Maxwell Penicuik Harriers 87.13 FV O/40
262 278 Rachel Gavin Penicuik Harriers 88.57 F
264 320 Pamela Newport Penicuik Harriers 89.22 FV O/50
279 42 Ezmie McCutcheon Penicuik Harriers 91.05 FV
288 280 Helen Osman Penicuik Harriers 92.06 FV
339 2 Vicky Lyon Penicuik Harriers 105.39 FV

Thanks to Bob Marshall for yet more great photos!
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Congratulations to the Harriers who completed the 2014-2015 Borders XC series; and particularly to Ian Forrest, who was 3rd over 60, and Michael Greens who was 3rd Junior.

A great day for Penicuik Harriers at the 45th Carnethy 5 today.  Weather conditions were perfect and the race was enjoyed by all of us – I can’t speak for the 500 other runners of course!

Fran and Sarah were both first timers and thoroughly enjoyed it too; that’s the trouble with Carnethy – you get hooked!  Lovely to see Bill there supporting us, as a veteran of 21(!) Carnethy 5’s he would have a good idea how we all felt finishing a pretty tough race.

Many thanks to the Organiser Olly Stephenson and Carnethy Running Club who hosted us all so well as usual!

Bob Marshall’s photos are here:  https://picasaweb.google.com/m/viewer#album/113562417702657933373/6115772281429119329,authkey:Gv1sRgCPu50dmxi86FvQE

Thanks to Bill for the lovely photos of us all coming off Carnethy and approaching the finish.

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Having wanted to do this race for a few years it was great to get organised in time to get a place. Michael, Mark and myself headed off for the 15K trail race. Pam and Derek were also  signed up for the 5K race. The race is held on the trails surrounding the Tulliallan Police College. Traditionally its a bit of a mud fest but with the heavy frost of the night before conditions under foot were nice and firm. No wind and some good winter sunshine made this the perfect day. A great race with great company.

A wee surprise run for Bill to celebrate his Octogenarian status.  Lots of Harriers turned out to enjoy his birthday with him by running round the beautiful Clerk Estate in Penicuik, he took us on one of his usual routes and now we all know where the Hurley pond is!
Bill is a true inspiration, to still be running at the age of 80 years is something we can only aspire to.

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The planning and organisation has been going on for months and we are pleased to say that entries are now open for the 2015 Penicuik 10k Road Race!

https://www.entrycentral.com/penicuik-10k-road-race

2014 Feedback
Great event! – Well done guys…
Really friendly members and marshalls (one in particular. ).
That hill at the start is gaining a reputation lol.
Never ran in torrential rain and hailstones either lol.
Hope to come back next year.
Great Race today ! Rain was redic as what that hill right at the start ! Really enjoyed it though !

Just arrived home from running your 10K today and would like to say thanks for a well organised and marshalled race, oh and the cake fest at the end – fantastic.

This was my first time running this event and I found it quite challenging, should be back next year though.

Jan 24^th, 2015

Conditions: cool (icy underfoot), sunny, with stiff westerly wind

Devils Burden is a 4 section relay [hill] race which caters for all runners from road to fell. Although some potential for some waiting around, it is a fun day with loads of soup and bread at the end. What’s not to like!

The Cuikie Creams

Team Name: The [Penicuik Harrier] Cuikie Creams:

Micheal, Rob, Chris, Sadie, Mark and Andrea

Leg 1: Michael McComb: Falkland to Strathmiglo: 7.5km, 220m

36:38

Devils Burden Leg 1

Leg 1 was by far the easiest leg, which I was more than happy about. It was approximately 4.5 miles, but felt a lot longer. This is the first hill race I’ve entered – I don’t think I’m hooked yet – but I’ll definitely be signing up for more. It was really cold at the start but thankfully it was sunny, although it did still take a couple of miles to warm up. The route itself was enjoyable. It was really icey in some parts, especially on the tarmac but luckily for me I somehow managed to stay on my feet for a wee change. There was only one checkpoint on my leg, woohoo, unfortunately after the checkpoint it was mostly uphill until the last 200ish metres which gave me the chance of a, faster than usual, sprint finish.

After a swift changeover it was back to the hall for me for a rather long wait, and loads of amazing soup.

Leg 2: Mark Snodgrass and Rob Wilson: Strathmiglo to Kinnesswood: 10km, 680m climb

1:24:31

Devils Burden Leg 2

Theoretically the toughest of the legs although Leg 3 is a smidgeon longer (less height). I have always ran the East Lomond leg in its varying forms, so was happy to get my teeth into something new. The 1/2 changeover was in a cold icy field and luckily all runners could wait in Stathmiglo village hall before braving the elements. I had put myself with Mark and was a little anxious that he would be constantly putting the pressure on me to keep up. I told him to take it easy for the first few kms as it was on road and I did not want to pull a muscle. As he was a “little” hung-over from the previous night, he said this would be no problem.

The first 2.5 kms was on a small tarmac road which was very icy in places so care was needed. This then morphed into a forest track and then contoured westwards on a sheep track below the steep slope of the Lomonds hills (and scarp) above. Mark was struggling a little which gave me time to look at the map and plan the route. I know these hills quite well and I very nearly made a huge mistake. Checkpoint 3 is marked on the 1:50 000 map beside the “Bunnet Stone” label. This is a well know sandstone formation at the base of the steep slope below West Lomond. I did not understand why everyone was slowly contouring upwards. Surely it would be better to stay low. In the end, I decided to follow lemming-like the quick runners in front as they seemed to know what they were doing. This was the right decision. The checkpoint was not at the Bunnet Stone at all but at the top of a small spring just below the scarp. Phew – sometimes it pays to be a Lemming. Moral of the story – use the damn grid reference provided and look at the map properly before the race. This time I was lucky.

A bit of a slog up to the top of West Lomond where the views were amazing. The mild panic on top as I lost the punch card allowed Mark to catch up and we were then off for the very runnable 2^nd half of the leg. Conditions were snowy and icy, but generally OK. One section appeared to be a frozen river, which needed some care but overall, with the sunny conditions and excellent views, this was a real pleasure. Mark was suffering which allowed me plenty of breather time at each checkpoint to have a rest and look around. Even managed to have a pee in Glen Vale behind the wall which resulted in getting tangled in barbed wire and a friendly runner had to stop to help me as I had fallen over and was slowly getting myself more and more wrapped up. My ‘skins’ will never be the same again. The final section of the leg is a steep run down to Kinnesswood (the beginning ascent for leg 3). I waited for Mark at checkpoint 7 and we plunged down. This was a great bouncy descent so long as you stayed in the longer grass so you would not slip. My knees are behaving so this was great fun. I reached the bottom where what looked like 100s of runners were waiting to start leg 3. I met up with Chris and Andrea who said, “Where’s Mark?”. I looked back – he was nowhere to be seen. Mark came in a couple of minutes lately, looking quite exhausted and sweating profusely as if he had just completed the Marathon des Sables. There’s a moral here I think……..!

Leg 3: Chris Downie and Andrea Wilson: Kinnesswood to Maspie Den: 11km, 360m climb

1:08:29

Devils Burden Leg 3

Leg 3 was a 4-legged variety run of about 11km. The first stretch, “the leg warmer” up towards  Bishop Hill, was the ideal remedy to get your muscles moving after waiting around for some 2-leggers whose face was a similar shade as the frozen grass (maybe have a pint less next time, Mark?). I thought the first stretch was fairly safe, but Chris did get attacked by a violent prickly bush.  After the short sharp climb, the body is just warm enough for sliding down to the 2nd leg, “the hairy leg”. I had to concentrate on not slipping on the ice, but if I had looked, I would have probably admired the gorgeous runnable track through a nice bit of forest. The 3rd leg winded through farm tracks, along fields, never ending small roads and bridges. Quite nice for those who enjoy a fast uneventful stretch of road. It reminded me why I never want to run a marathon. At least I had good company to cheer me up. Leg 4 , “the cruise”, takes you gently downhill through some forest towards the hand-over. Don’t forget to smile at the sweaty leg 4 runners, who stumble their way up towards East Lomond while you are enjoying the downhill cruise.

Leg 4: Sadie Kemp: Maspie Den to Falkland: 5.5km, 390m

43:36

Devils Burden Leg 4

The changeover from 3/4 was a 20ish minute walk from the hall so that I had plenty of time before my section. I spent it with a couple of fellow leg 4 runners (Kirsty Loudon and Margaret, a Carnethy runner) doing a walking recce of the route. The weather was cold but fresh and sunny and we had time to enjoy it and the lovely views. I popped back to the hall for a bite to eat and to drop off my warm clothes before heading along to the changeover. I didn’t have long to wait until I received a text from Rob to say that Chris and Andrea were on their way. After a bit of stretching the leg 3 runners appeared. Leg 4 started in the woods behind Falkland house and followed a winding track up through the woods and onto the moorland. After stamping the card at the gate I headed up the winding track that leads to the summit of East Lomond (Having flashbacks of Lomonds of Fife race). Once I had stamped the card at the summit I made my way down the other side of the hill. Here there is no proper track and much fun was had jumping down over the tussocks – a fellow runner shouted over to me at this point ‘this is the most fun I have had all day”. There was a large stretch of snow/ice that a couple of runners in front of me sat down on and slid over so I did the same and saved myself a bit of running and was the closest I have got to sledging this winter. I made my way down to the next checkpoint and over the stile. From there it was just a case of following a woodland trail that turned into a more substantial track, there were a few steps and some of it was a bit rocky, but still quite runnable and made for an exciting finish. It was great to see the rest of the team waiting for me at the finish and Rob was ready to take an unflattering photo as I crossed the line (thanks for that :-)) I really enjoyed the whole day and it would be lovely if we could get a couple of teams together next year.

Final time: 3:53:14

64^th from 123 teams.

Full results here: http://www.fifeac.org/events/fife-ac-events/devils-burdens/740-devil-s-burdens-2015.html

Imagine what we could have done if all the team members had been sober.

“Feel the Burns” is an early season hill run that includes Peat Law, the Three Brethren, Brown Knowe and Foulshiel Hill. Parts of this race a very runnable and the snow added a extra element of fun to the race. It is well marshalled and marked.

Distance 21.4 km
Climb 800 m

It takes on a Burns Supper theme and a hot meal of haggis neeps and tatties awaits you at Selkirk Rugby Club along with some hot tea and biscuits.

All profits in aid of Tweed Mountain Rescue.

Results:
33 Stuart Sanderson 1:54:00
43 Duncan Ball 1:58:27
47 Mark Snodgrass 2:00:29
77 Mike Brooks 2:07:43
83 Rob Wilson 2:08:46
121 Kevin Anderson 2:18:26
144 Sarah Burthe 2:32:35
146 Sadie Kemp 2:33:04
160 Andrea Wilson 2:40:27
192 Kirsty Loudon 3:02:47