Down by the river 10K

Thirteen harriers and a bunch of supporters headed down to Cambuslang on a crisp, sunny Mothers’ Day morning for the Down by the river 10k.



Hosted by Cambuslang Harriers, the out and back route along the Clyde was flat, traffic free and perfect for fast times. So all excuses gone, we made our way down from Cambuslang Rugby Club and congregated on the start line.

Andy Buchanan (with a J) is having a great first season with the Harriers and stormed home with an excellent pb of 37:53. Martin Howell also took advantage of the conditions compared with last year, finishing in a fine 39:27. David Herbertson knew he was chasing down a good time and in his own inimitable, self-motivating style he yelled and grunted his way down the home straight, reaching the finish line in a pb of 40:47. Late entry Ian Hughes made a welcome return to racing with a time of 41:48. Jim Holmes was looking for something around seven minute mile pace. The Garmin never lies, and that is exactly what 43:04 is. Stuart Waugh was going well during the first half of the race but felt he faded on the way back. However, he was still 2nd M60 in a time of 44:25. Alison Lessells decided to run rather than put her feet up on Mothers’ day and, ably supported by her daughter Rebecca, she finished in 44:58. In the closest finish of the day, Richard Lawton, 46:01, pipped Kay Conneff, 46:04. Kay is delighted with her improvement since joining the harriers. In a masterclass of time management, John McBride jetted in from Arbroath just before the race, ran a solid 47:29 then shot off straight to his work! Gordon McInally is a graduate from the Tuesday night section and his enthusiasm for training and racing since stepping up is great to see. Gordon capitalised on this with a deserved pb performance of 48:08. Russell Couper put in a steady performance of 58:19. Another Tuesday night graduate, Lorraine Buchanan dug in to break the hour, coming home in 59:18. It was also good to see Sharon Gregg, 45:23 and Seonaid Morton, 54:58 from the Tuesday section competing. Time to get yourselves a vest!
Finally, who ate all the pies? The Harriers day out was completed with Cambuslang Harriers hospitality back at the rugby club, and I think we all deserved a pie, or two…
Thanks to Neil, Maude, Frances, John and our youngest supporter, Rebecca, for all your shouts of encouragement from the sides.