NATIONAL XC RELAYS (CUMBERNAULD)

The National xc relays will be held on the 24th Oct
I need names by next Monday 5th Oct
Start times are men 2.40pm ladies 1.40pm
cost is £4.00 per head
either see me at the club or leave your name using this form.

Russell

Notice from Chas

Just to let everyone know I won't be at the club on Monday, Tuesday or Thursday as I have to visit my dad in hospital as he recovers from a hip operation . I will be there on Wednesday for the young athletes training. See you all soon and lets have a big turnout at the McAndrew relay as the club will be officially 25 years old in October.

Mansfield - British Masters Cross Country Relays

For those not at the club last week, just to confirm that we are not sending teams down to Mansfield this year due to not having complete teams in any age group for various reasons. The good news is that we should have a good turn out at the McAndrew instead.

Alan

McAndrew Road Relay

Race 2 in the Grand Prix is the 70th Annual McAndrew Road Relay next Saturday, 3rd October. The relay starts at 3pm. This is a 4 x 3.25 mile relay around the streets of Jordanhill and Scotstoun. Please use this link to indicate your availability to run (or speak directly to Russell). Remember, these short relays are a vital part of your training for Brampton as well as being good fun and having a real team spirit about them. There is a place in a team for anyone who wants to run.

Russell, will enter the teams on the day. As usual, there will be lifts available from the Sports Club to the race on Saturday. For those going direct, changing is in Jordanhill School, Chamberlain Road, Jordanhill G13 1SP and the race starts a few hundred metres away on Helensburgh Drive. Please let Russell know well in advance if you have to pull out as Russell will be entering the teams and declaring the running order in advance of your arrival.

Houston Road Relay 2009

It seemed like most of the Harriers were suffering from the club cold today judging by the number of huskier than usual voices on the start line. However, at least the sun was shining and we still had 3 complete teams of 4 and a full compliment of supporters. Overall the field seemed smaller than usual too; probably also a result of the colds and flu going about just now.

Our vets A team was led off by me. Considerably slower now than when I last ran a first leg here, I nevertheless set off like I used to and went with the leaders. Big mistake! The Garmin GPS confirms that I averaged 5:08 for the first mile, dipping sub-5 at the steeper downhill parts. The GPS also confirms my collapse in the second half, averaging about 5:45 and dropping to just over 6 minutes per mile on the final climb. Overall time was 14:39 for the 2.7 mile course and a position just outside the top 10. Leg 2 saw the welcome return of Charlie McDougall to short, sharp racing. I can guarantee that there would not be another M60 anywhere near Charlie's time of 15:28 and not that many M40's either. Eddie Reid took over on the 3rd leg and paced it well to finish in 15:44, 3 seconds faster than last year. The 4th leg was trusted to Alan Cullie (the only member of the team without a sore throat) who improved by 21 seconds compared to last year to finish in 16:03, bringing the team home in 15th and 3rd vets team.

Graham Allan has made massive steps forward in the last 6 months and is heading towards the

pace that used to be the norm for him. Although we had some problems reading the time on Graham's analogue watch, the official results eventually confirmed that his first leg time was 17:59, a 3 minute improvement on last year. Jim Holmes' training is interrupted just now but even so his time of 16:40 was only 5 seconds down on last year.

David Herbertson is also on the comeback trail and his time of 17:11 was about half a minute down on last year but we know that David will improve with every race. On the last leg, the experience of Andy Henderson was put to good effect, running 16:49, only slightly slower than his last outing here in 2005.

The third team was a mixed team, Frances Maxwell being dropped in it by taking

the first leg (as I now know, not her favourite relay leg!). Frances ran her own race and did not get carried away with the fast start, finishing in 19:12, only around 30 seconds down on her pb set last year. Making his relay debut for the club, David Wardrope ran a solid 18:25,

the fastest time in the team. Colin Banks demonstrated his recent sprinting form in the home straight, getting into one of those head to head situations that is best avoided after a 2.7 mile blast. Colin finished in 19:17. Finally, Russell Couper took the final leg to finish in 22:57.

Thanks to Brian McDougall for taking the photos and hopefully he will get over his recent injury quickly to join the fun. Well done to all.

David Herbertson takes an early lead in the men's Grand Prix and Frances leads the women. The positions can be viewed using the Grand Prix menu item on the left. The newly introduced Club Championship positions are also there for men and women.

Brampton Entry Form

Click here to download an entry form for the Brampton to Carlisle 10 Mile road race. Fill out the form and return your cheque made out to Calderglen Harriers for £18.50 (£8.50 race entry + £10 deposit for bus) to Russell. Refer to Chas' earlier post on this blog for full details.

Grand Prix Joker Starting List

For this season, all the women in the Grand Prix will start with 1 joker and will have no maximum number of jokers obtainable throughout the season.

In the men's Grand Prix, taking account of last year's performances, the starting jokers and maximum jokers playable throughout the season are listed here.

For those new to the Grand Prix, the rules are actually quite simple, honest! The purpose of the Grand Prix is to encourage as many Harriers as possible to participate in the main races throughout the Winter season. This is achieved by assigning Harriers who finish further down the field (relative to other Calderglen runners) "Jokers" which can be played in subsequent Grand Prix races to double your points. In this way anyone who does most of the races in the season should be in with a chance of winning a prize, even if they are not one of the fastest runners. Check last year's results to see how close it ended up. Your best 11 from 16 Grand Prix races count at the end of the season. A list of Grand Prix races will be published soon.

Points are awarded from 12 points for the first Harrier to finish down to 1 point for the 12th Harrier to finish. All other Harriers score 1 point. If you score 6 points or less in a race, then you earn 1 additional joker (subject to the season maximum limit listed in the above link) which may be used in any of the subsequent races. If you score 3 points or less in a race, then you earn an additional 2 jokers. Each joker played doubles your points in that race up to a maximum of 24 points. e.g. if you finish 5th Harrier in a race, then you score a basic 8 points. If you had played 1 joker, this score would double to 16 points. If you had played 2 jokers, the score would be capped at 24 points. If you finish 13th and score a basic 1 point but play 3 jokers then you score 1 x 2 x 2 x 2 = 8 points. Jokers must be declared to Russell Couper or Alan Derrick before the start of the race in which they are to be played (you can leave a comment on the blog or see us in person at the race).

A "scratch" Club Championship will run in parallel with the Grand Prix this year. In this competition, jokers will be ignored and only the total "basic" score used to determine the winners.

Alan

Houston Teams

A small readjustment of the teams due to injury.

A good response to the opening round of the Grand Prix. The teams and running order are listed here. If you have to pull out, please contact me as early as possible as I will enter these teams in advance of your arrival.

A number of Harriers will be leaving from the Sports Club at 12:45 on Saturday. The race starts at 2:30pm. The course is short enough that it is possible to do a very gentle lap of the course as a warm-up, so please arrive in plenty of time.

This is the first race of the Grand Prix season. I will produce a list of starting jokers and bring it on Saturday. This year sees the introduction of a "scratch" Club Championship competition in parallel with the Grand Prix. This will be based on your best 11 from 16 scores without counting the effect of jokers. Otherwise the events and scoring will be exactly as for the Grand Prix. A full list of Grand Prix events will follow in due course.

Alan

RELAY SEASON STARTS AGAIN (HOUSTON)

The relay season is off and running on the 26th Sept.
The venue is Houston with a 2.30pm start
teams of 4 for men and 3 for women
legs are approx 2.7mls
cost is £3.00 per head so bring this with you and remember your SA number
Please let Alan know by thursday the 24th so the teams can be picked on thursday night
either leave a comment with your name or click on the link that will appear here later
this is also the first event in our grand prix for 2009-2010.

Click here if you are available for this event. Team running order will be decided after the run on Thursday 24th September and published on the blog. Everyone will get a run as usual.

The Two Ferries 10.8 mile Race

Two Harrier's made the long journey to Fort William to compete in this road race, which was just short of 11 miles long. Scot Hill was first to finish and came in 8th in 69:50, just missing out on a vet prize. Graham Lindsay was next in 75:27 (22nd) making a 13 second improvement on last year's time which was good considering there was a strong head wind.
Sadly though there are no photo's of any of the Harrier's finishing this race, as their "support team" where in the pub and missed the finish.
Well done to both of them!!!!!!!

WEST DISTRICT XC RELAY

URGENT RESPONSE REQUIRED
The west district xc relays are on the 10th oct at strathclyde university (Stepps)
i need names by this Thursday 24th on this blog. Use this link to record your availability.
cost is £3.50 and race start times are men 1.30pm ladies 12.40pm
sorry about the delay but we have just recieved the forms.

Barrhead 10k

This is the 3^rd year of this 10K event but with growing amount of new races appearing in the race season calendar events gets double booked so reduces number of runners in attendance (Stirling 10K and our own Trossach’s weekend to mention a few this weekend). However there were 231 runners taking part in today’s event and high number of them unattached but still providing good competition and challenge. Most of the run was a rural in the back roads of Barrhead not so dissimilar to the Auldhouse roads in EK.

The first 5K was uphill leaving from Cowan Park onto Aurs Rd then into Springfield Rd up towards “the famous Craigie hill” then the next 2½ K was downhill followed by the final hill by St Luke’s High School and then after the wide curve at the top of Aurs Rd, a fantastic, long, straight and fast downhill section, leading back to Cowan park and the finish line.

I would recommend the race as it is has a tough and challenging route and don’t forget enjoyable however my time of 51mins 12secs wasn’t my best so roll on winter training and hill sprints to get faster for next year!

Thanks to Richard Lawton for the race report.

Alan

TTC 2009 in Pictures

The pictures tell the story of TTC2009. Click here for an album of those pictures received so far. A great weekend!

(TTC2010 will take place from Friday 17th September to Sunday 19th September 2010).

Trossachs Training Camp

I hope everyone will agree that the 3rd TTC was a resounding success. I know that Alan thanked all those who helped put it together, but without his enthusiasm and drive it would not have been the success that it was. Well done and thanks to you Alan from all the athletes who enjoyed the experience.

Malcolm

Trossachs Training Camp 2009

Details for the TTC09

You can Arrive at the Trossachs Backpackers Hostel from 3.30pm onwards. First run will be at 5.30pm prompt. Please be here and ready to run otherwise it is dinner and no run!

You will need to bring the following with you;

• 4 run outfits - please check weather and dress appropriately
• waterproof/water resistant jacket
• running shoes (you might like to have a spare pair!)
• casual outfit for dinner
• bedding will be provided but you'll need to bring a towel
• water bottle and something to put in it e.g. energy drink for Sunday long run
• your own toiletries
• and pajamas (the rooms are dorms)

Dinner on the first night is at 7.30pm in case you're running late.

There are roadworks on the A80 at Cumbernauld so please allow enough time for this especially if you are travelling at rush hour.

There will be a welcome board at the main reception, on this will be room information, pack information and a reminder of what you've ordered for dinner!

DIRECTIONS -

25th Anniversary Celebrations

Well that’s it all over for another 25 years. I hope you will all agree that the day was a great success. Thanks to all who helped make the day such a memorable one. In particular, thanks to Scot and Eddie for their efforts in organising the race and the putting the evening celebrations together.

Malcolm

Calderglen Harriers 10 Mile Road Race Results

Fantastic weather and a large turnout for the Harriers' 25th Anniversary 10 mile race. The race started at 10am from Langlands Gate where the field of around 100 climbed the long, uphill start straight to Greenhills Road. The eventual leading contenders established their positions along Shields Road with Calderglen's veteran M45 duo of Davy Watt and Martin Duthie joining Cambuslang's Robert Gilroy and Stuart Gibson in the initial break away. By mile 4 the first 4 were strung out and effectively making long, solo efforts for the remainder of the race. Robert Gilroy was the clear winner in 54:15 followed by Stuart Gibson (55:28), Davy Watt (57:46) and Martin Duthie (59:05). Both Davy and Martin achieve comfortable Calderglen M45 Gold performance standards for these times, incredible given the severity of this officially verified course.

The ladies race was a comfortable affair for top Scottish road racer Toni McIntosh of Ayr Seaforth. Toni finished 10th overall in 63:02. Second lady was the unattached Claire McArthur (63:57) and third lady across the line was Clare Gemmel (65:44) of Springburn Harriers. Clare graciously deferred the 3rd place prize, instead taking the F35 prize, allowing the 4th lady across the line, Jill Smylie (72:22) of Giffnock North to get a prize.

There were strong performances in all the veteran categories, men and women. With Martin Duthie having taken the M40 prize, it was great to see Andy Henderson returning to his best form for years to win the M50 category in 68:34. This gives Andy an M55 Bronze performance standard. First M60 was David Adams of Hamilton Harriers in 73:28 and first M70 and oldest competitor was William Drysdale of Law & District (1:43:10). The F45 prize was won by Heather McIntosh of Garscube Harriers (74:36) and the F55 category was closely contested and won by the oldest woman in the race, 64 year old Elizabeth Gilchrist of Ferranti AAC in the incredible time of 82:34.

The Team of Ten competition was contested by Springburn Harriers and ourselves with Kirkintilloch Olympians just failing to field the required 10 runners. Calderglen's ladies were the key to this event. Our men had runners to spare but with only 3 Calderglen ladies running everyone of them had to finish and run well to keep the team in it. Mary Goldsmith was first of our ladies in 80:21, an F50 Bronze performance standard. Although Alison Crooks established an early lead over Sandra Reid, in the final quarter Sandra came through to finish ahead of Alison in a time of 84:37 with Alison just behind in 85:52. The 7 men completing the Team of Ten were Davy Watt, Martin Duthie, Colin Freeman (62:04 an M35 Bronze performance standard), Alan Cullie (65:24 an M40 Bronze performance standard), Eddie Reid (65:37 an M45 Bronze performance standard), Andy Henderson and Jim Holmes (69:07). The combined score for these 10 runners was 289 points, enough to beat a very competitive Springburn team (383 points). There were more strong performances from the remaining Calderglen men. Graham Lindsay raced strongly in the early stages but just returning from holiday must have been at least a little jet lagged, finishing in 73:06. In one of his first races for the club (and certainly his first Calderglen 10), David Wardrope achieved 77:40. Not to be forgotten, former Harriers' stalwart Kenny Davidson made the trip through from Peebles and recorded a time of 67:53. This early season 10-miler must surely set a lot of Harriers up for some personal bests at Brampton.

There were 93 finishers and only 3 or 4 DNF's. The feedback received so far suggests that all who ran were impressed with the event.

The full race results can be found here. Some great photos and complimentary remarks from RoadRunPics.com. There are further photos taken by David Herbertson and myself here. We think we have captured everyone in at least one photo.

Races for Young Athletes

Here are some provisional dates for the clubs young athletes over the next few months.



10 October West District Cross Country Relays for Under 13 / Under 15 / Under 17 age groups. This event will be held in the Strathclyde University Sports Grounds in Stepps.



17 October Lanarkshire Road Relays for Under 13/Under 15/ Under 17 . This event includes a non relay race for Under 11's. This event will be held in Drumpellier Park , Coatbridge.



24 October National Cross Country Relays for Under 13/ Under 15 / Under 17 . This event will be held in Cumbernauld Park.



21 November Lanarkshire Cross Country Races for Under 11/ Under 13 / Under 15 / Under 17. This event will be held in Drumpellier Park , Coatbridge.



5 December West District Cross Country Championships for Under 13/ Under 15 / Under 17
Venue not yet known.

Some of these details may be subject to alteration .

Club Dance Final Confirmation of Menu/Attendance

It would be appreciated if you could bring along a prize for the raffle on Saturday night.

You can now use this menu form to select your main course for yourself and your guests (just go back to the blog and click the above link again to submit another copy of the form for each of your guests) or leave a note of any special dietary requirements. Alternatively leave a comment or see Eddie at the club. The main course choice is:

Chicken with sauce or

Roast Beef

(both will be served with a choice of vegetables).

The starter is lentil soup and there is a dessert to finish off.

Thanks

Alan

Brampton to Carlisle 10 miles Road Race

This years "Brampton" will take place on Saturday 21st November.


The itinerary is as follows:

9am - Depart EK Sports Club to travel to William Howard School, Brampton.

If time allows we will stop at Gretna Green for tea/coffee. All travellers are advised to bring their own refreshments / snacks if we cannot make this stop.

12.30 pm - Race Start . Non runners should be back on the bus for 12.15 pm to travel to the Sands Sports Centre , Carlisle.

15.45pm - Depart Carlisle and travel to Moffat.

18.00 - 2 Course meal at the Star Hotel ( the menu will be placed on this blog asap)


19.45 pm - Depart Moffat

20.30 - approx time of arrival at EK Sports Club

ALL TIMES MAY BE SUBJECT TO ALTERATION.



Race entry forms can be downloaded from the host club web site borderharriers.co.uk

Completed forms with an entry fee of £8.50 and a £10 deposit to book a seat on the bus should be returned to Chas Steven or Russell Couper. Cheques should be made payable to Calderglen Harriers.

Hadrian's Wall Breached

Eddie Reid and Stuart Waugh travelled south on Sunday in search of some better weather (and a 10 mile race to get a Performance Award standard in!). They really couldn’t have asked for better conditions for the 21st Tynedale 10 mile Jelly Road race from Hexham to Ovingham , with both of them delighted with their performance. Stuart’s time of 68 mins 27secs gives him yet another Gold standard by about one and a half minutes! Eddie's time was 65mins 55secs.

Thanks to Sandra for the report and well done to the guys on another great effort.

Alan

Great Scottish Run 10k and Half Marathon

After a week of rain it looked like a promising start for the Great Scottish Run Half & 10K with thousands of runners turning up for the annual event however on the start it started to rain but in some respects added to good cool running weather. While walking to my cluster I saw the first Harrier David Searil who popped out of nowhere as he was trying to find a good starting position. After waiting for the white cluster to go first I was hoping my training would pay off with a good run and maybe a PB.

Then it was time and the blue cluster was away next so I was determined to run a good tactical race and stick to my own pace. The second Harrier I saw storming past me in Bothwell Street towards the Kingston Bridge was Graham Allan then I was running with no Harrier in sight until John McBride ran up to me then passed me on Paisley Road West swiftly followed by Mary Goldsmith. From Bellahouston Park (5 mile stage) I didn't see another Harrier until I passed Chas Steven at the 8 mile mark at Pollokshaws Road then it was getting nearer to the end at Glasgow Green.

Up until mile 12 I was feeling alright then once I got into Glasgow Green I developed a stitch that seemed to get worse so my last mile I had to slow my pace & change my breathing to get to the end. Thankfully the sight of my wife Sarah and my daughters, Emma & Melissa, in the crowd gave me the final boost I needed to get to the finish line. All in all a good race with a good goody bag at the end. Not a PB time but for my 2nd Half Marathon not a bad time @ 1hr 51mins 34secs.

Here is a list of all the Harriers times' I could find from the result page so if I have not mentioned you sorry. The results are: 10K - Jamie Mcmonagle (40:16), Stephen Phimster (40:45), Brian McDougall (41:10), Julie Collins 58.17, Jennifer Fegan 63.36 and in her first ever 10k, Jamie's wife Jean McMonagle in 1:23:31.

Half Marathon - Jim Holmes (1:30:46), David Herbertson (1:35:42), David Wardrop (1:38:29), Graham Allan (1:38:36), Colin Banks (1:42:16), Mary Goldsmith (1:43:29), John McBride (1:45:15), Ian McKenzie (1:49:58), Alison Crooks ((1:48:31), Richard Lawton (1:51:34), David Searil (1:54:24), Clare Brady (1:58:52), Chas Steven (2:02:51) and representing the Tuesday Night section, Caroline Dewar 1.52.21, Mhairi Steven 1.57.23 and Monique McAdams (2:23:02).

It's also very worthy of a mention, the performance of Wednesday night parent helper Brian Bourke who ran a fantastic 1:30:55. (Somebody get him a membership form and a vest!)

Thanks to Richard Lawton for the report and well done to all. As Richard states, if we have missed anyone then please let us know. The lack of club names on the results sheet and the fact that Calderglen does not appear in the drop down list of clubs in the on-line search makes it very difficult to find Harriers. Disappointing considering how much money all of you paid to enter this event.

Alan

Great Scottish Run 3k

Some of the clubs youngest athletes were out in force on Saturday morning to take part the the biggest participation race for their age groups in Scotland. The course started in Glasgow Green just outside the People's Palace and finished in the park . Fortunately the youngsters were spared some of the incessant rain we are experiencing. The total entry for the 3k was about 1700 and with many families there to support it made for a fantastic running event. Times and places of our own club is as follows:

Ross Barrie 12.00 (76th) Lewis Miller 15.34 (441st)
Ian Rae 12.47 (122nd) Megan Brady 16.42 (541st)
Jai Lawson 13.13 (159th) Paul McMonagle 16.58 (632nd)
Alistair Crawford 13.52 (238th) Lewis Easton 17.41 (739th)
Paul Wilson 14.07 (274th) Connor White 18.11 (816th)
Findlay Easton 14.28 (312th) William Brady 20.47 (1112th)
Connor McKeown 14.32 (317th)
Mark McKenzie 14.52 (350th)
Drew Gordon 14.54 (356th)

Apologies to any one I may have missed in the results.
Once again many thanks to the parents/carers of the young athletes for supporting our club.

Auldhouse Time Trial

The final Auldhouse 5k time trial of this year was held on Thursday night in blustery and increasingly dark conditions (we must get a club Winter outfit that emphasises the gold part of our club colours rather than the black!). There was a very good turnout of 16 Harriers (plus another 2 or 3 to help with the timing) including several first timers on the Auldhouse circuit. A number of Harriers are competing in this Sunday's Glasgow 10k and Half Marathon so were under instructions to run the 5k as a tempo run at their target 10k or half marathon pace. We will know after Sunday if they followed this instruction or not.

Fastest time of the night was backmarker and first timer Martin Duthie in a time of 17:50 and fastest lady (OK, the only lady this time) was Mary Goldsmith with another great (corrected) time of 22:37. The first timers were Ian Rae (lost in action for many months it seems) 22:14, James Carrigan (only his second week at the club) 22:29 and Ben Ferguson 19:23. Biggest improver was John McBride (23:00) improving by 28 seconds, closely followed by David Dickson (24:02), taking 14 seconds off his previous best. All the times for this and all the previous time trials can be viewed using the link on the menu to the left.

All the best on Sunday to the several Harriers who were just cruising around the 5k course, following instructions and saving themselves for Sunday.

Alan

Perth 10k

On Sunday Stuart, Eddie and Sandra travelled to Perth to participate in
the Perth 10K. The race started at the George Duncan Athletics Track with
2 laps of the track. The route then went down to the North Inch park,
round the North Inch twice and back to the Athletics Track. Although it
was a bit windy the winner, Michael Carroll from Perth Road Runners
completed the course in 31.02 with Robert Gilroy finishing 2nd in a time
of 31.52. The Calderglen trio were fairly pleased with their times each
recording just about a minute off their P.b.’s. Eddie was first over the
line in a time of 38.52, Stuart 41.01 and Sandra 45.30.
Sandra

Thanks to Sandra for the race report and well done to all on recording excellent times. Sandra and Eddie's times correspond to Bronze performance standards whilst Stuart's time is a Gold standard. Race photos here.

Club Dance - Fully Booked

Eddie advises that all the tickets are now sold and would like to thank everyone for your last minute, enthusiastic support! Please remember to complete your main course menu choice as detailed on the previous Blog post and to get all money in to Eddie asap.

Thanks

Alan