WHW Pick-Up Times

Minibus pick-up arrangements for this Saturday morning are as follows:

Jim Holmes        4:00am   End of Road
Joanne               4:05am   The Pub (!)
David Watt        4:10am   Roundabout
Frances + Geo   4:20am   Home
Alison, Stephen  4:25am   Roundabout
Alan, Karen, Jim, Ruth 4:30am End of Road
Stuart + Maud   4:35am  Roundabout
Colin Banks       4:35am  Bus stop
Mary                  4:35am Top of Street

Eddie has spoken to you all so the above pick-up locations are hopefully not as cryptic as they seem! Any questions, see Eddie at the club on Thursday or the race this Wednesday. We probably will be making up time as we go through the pick-ups, so if you can be there early, particularly the later pick-ups, that will help the schedule.

Alan

From the organisers of the 'Frostbite' series & the 'Lost Trails' a new race-'Puffin Billy

From our Fife correspondent, George Stewart, notification of what will no doubt be another fine race.

As a recent entrant in our ‘Lost Trails’ race we are letting you know first of a new series of races
to be held at Craigtoun Park over the next few months, it’s a flat fast course-with the added
bonus of a stream crossing- well what else would you expect! We’ll be opening up on Entry Central
shortly & putting up an events page on Face Book.
Hope you can join us.
If you don’t want us to contact you again please let me know-we don’t want to upset people!

Cheers

Tony & Brian

Monklands Half Marathon 2014

Sunday 18th May was 31st Monklands Half Marathon in Coatbridge a race I had been targeting to test my improving form.  I was hoping the weather today was going to be cooler with some drizzle however it turned out it was the same weather I experienced in 2010 when I did this race for the first time.

So with hotter weather, slight breeze in some sections of the course it proved not the best weather to run in.  So I made sure I wore my sunglasses and a hat to ensure I didn’t dehydrate or get a sore head from the heat of the sun. I also made sure I took every opportunity at the water stations for a drink to ensure I kept myself hydrated throughout.

The course is 1 small lap starting just up from the railway bridge facing Blair Road which then took us left up to & along Townhead Road and into Drumpellier Park at the visitor centre through the park running towards the railway bridge then out onto the other side turning us right this time onto Blair Road to start lap 2 and the first of the big laps.

This lead the race right onto & along Glasgow / Coatbridge Road with slight detour into a new housing estate to do a small U shape route taking us quickly back onto Glasgow / Coatbridge Road then turning right up Gartcosh Road and at the top taking a right running towards Drumpellier Park entrance where the visitor centre is through the park running towards the railway bridge then out onto the other side turning us right onto Blair Road for the final big lap.

The small lap and first big lap I was feeling ok running just over 1:01 hours towards the end of my 2nd lap thinking at this point Robert Gilroy (who won this event today for the 10th year in a row) will begin to wind up his race.  Moving onto the final lap the heat was taking its toll and felt I was struggling a bit. However I just concentrated on good breathing and running technique knowing other runners will be feeling the pain of the heat and tiring.  When I got the 10 mile marker I try to convince myself I had just done 10 mile warm up and only 5k to go.  The session on Monday helped with managing my pace, to move up the gears at different stages which I found really beneficial in the latter stages.

I finished the race in 1:45:30 a personal best by 1minute 51 seconds and my first race as a M40.  According to the Winning Time website I was 22nd in my new age category and 59th overall out of 160.

Thank you to Russell for being at the finish line handing out Trail Race forms it was good to see a friendly face after a hard race.

Thanks to Richard for the report and well done on yet another PB.
Alan

National Trail Race Championships - Falkland

With only the slightest smear of drizzle, the 6 Harriers who traveled through to Falkland Estate in Fife for the second annual National Trail Race championships had almost perfect conditions to tackle the tough and scenic course. Calderglen's ladies were represented by Frances Maxwell in the 10k race. The ladies covered one full lap of the course, starting off with a couple of km of flat and gentle downhill on the estate roads and farm tracks before turning off into a forest trail. The underfoot conditions were still good, with only the odd tree root and muddy patch to contend with. The main challenge was moderating the pace when faced with a succession of gradually steeper climbs, the last of which led out onto a high level forest track. From here another km or two of climbing was followed by another few km's of very fast descent. However, inevitably this culminated in the steepest climb of the course back up through the forest to loop back onto the forest track. From there it was generally downhill back along the forest track and eventually onto a grassy track between two hedgerows which was a wonderful surface underfoot. Finally the track led to a downhill section of the estate road before doubling back on ourselves for a brutal final 100m uphill.

This was Frances first time over the course but is exactly the sort of terrain she likes and this was reflected in an excellent time of 48:51 in 32nd position and 4th F50, beating some of her regular rivals in the process. Not bad at all considering it was only a week after the Loch Leven Half Marathon.

The men covered a 15km course (actually 14.4km but that was far enough!) which started off with a small loop over the same initial road and forest section as the ladies before doubling back towards the start to repeat that loop and then finally continuing onto the high level forest track loop. Andy Buchanan is really getting into shape now and following on from a solid performance in the Helensburgh 10k on Thursday, Andy ran strongly again today. After a reasonably cautious start, he started to move through the field a few km in and was looking strong. After about 3km though, Andy had to stop to tie his shoe lace which allowed me a brief opportunity to pass him. However, a few km later, Andy cruised past and continued to work his way through the field to finish very quickly in 57:41 and 20th position. Meanwhile I was having a much better run than last year although the legs did feel powerless on every steep and long ascent. On the bright side, nobody was passing me on these sections and I was easing past a few people so maybe I was not so bad. After briefly closing up to Andy Buchanan's shoulder at the top of the steepest ascent, I gradually fell back from the pack ahead, losing a place with 300m to go. Encouragingly, I managed to take that place back in the final 100m uphill to finish in 58:10, exactly 4 minutes faster than last year and second M45. Andy Henderson had an injury niggle through the week but this did not cause any problems on the day and Andy had a great run to finish in 66:35, over a minute faster than last year and first M60. Kenny Leinster was a first timer at this race although is very familiar with the area. Also carrying a niggle (ankle), Kenny was nonetheless running very well and finished in 69:37. One place behind was the most injured (back) of all Billy Buchanan. However, once again, the magic Fife air seemed to miraculously cure Billy's back and he finished strongest of all in 69:50 and second M60! However, Billy's main achievement was providing us with the mystery of the weekend when his vest and race number disappeared from the boot of his car before the start of the race, causing a period of panic, before reappearing on top of my rucksack lying against the wall of Falkland House. That is not the first time Billy has been involved in a mysterious disappearance in the vicinity of Falkland. There are strange forces at work obviously!

Well done to all the Harriers who competed today. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed it. A big thanks to Russell for driving through to cheer us on. His support was much appreciated.
Alan

141 miles over three races in 43 days, continued #3

141 miles over three races in 43 days, continued.

Another 20 days later…Hoka Highland Fling - 53 miles, Saturday 26^th April

The 624 starters had been avidly scanning the weather forecast in the week leading up to the race and all were prepared for rain the entire day, yet within a few kilometres of the start, jackets were being stuffed in backpacks, caps and hats were shoved in pockets and sweat poured off brows as the unexpectedly sticky and humid conditions immediately took their toll. I struggled right from the off as these are my least favourite running conditions. I had started the race with a friend from the ATHelite triathlon club, Derek Stewart (running his first ultra,  although he has run the Marathon des Sables!), as we were looking to run at around the same pace but had to stop and walk by the 5k point. Goodness only knows what he made of this, the experienced ultra guy he had been hoping would help him around the route looking like he was done in already! Removing two layers and walking from the top of Craigallian Loch past the Carbeth huts I seemed to recover slighty and re-started running, at which point I was overtaken by Ian Rae who must have started much further down the field than I and was looking suspiciously good for a man who had hardly run at all over the  previous six weeks. The overcast conditions were rapidly clearing too, which helped most of all. The rest of the race was uneventful, I’m glad to say, the usual ultra mix of great cameraderie, craic and lots and lots of food. Oh and the weather co-operated also, staying pleasantly cool but dry for the rest of the day. I came down Conic hill much slower than last year which undoubtedly contributed to my stronger finish, nailed down my nutrition strategy better than ever, didn’t fall once and really, really enjoyed the day – probably the best race, ultra or otherwise, I have ever had the pleasure of being a part of. A big thanks to the organisers, marshalls and all the many others who made it possible for us runners to have such a fantastic day out and thanks too to Angela for the lift home from Tyndrum and for putting up with Ian attempting to drive from the passenger seat!

Also huge respect goes to the lady who, having fallen whilst running along the lochside, carried on for about three miles to the checkpoint at Beinglas from where she was taken to hospital to learn she had broken her jaw in five places – courage like that puts us all in the shade. If you are given that leg for the club relay next month Jim,then please take care!

Some numbers; Ian finished in an excellent 11:19:18 while I came home in 12:40:48, a course pb of 49 minutes and 2 seconds! My finishing place was 378th from 624 starters and 566 finishers. That's a statistic I hadn't noticed until now -  58 DNF's.

Derek Stewart came home in a great debut time of 12:16:42, sadly he pulled a hamstring 20 metres from the finish, see picture.  This has meant him pulling out of his main event later this year, a half-ironman. (note the red carpet at the finish, nice touch RD)      

As I write this, twenty days later, I feel surprisingly well recovered, indeed I ran a 23:34 at the Auldhouse 5k TT just five days after the Fling, my fastest for a couple of years and also had a very strong three-stage effort on Monday night. Lots of swimming and a four day break in Barcelona have also greatly contributed to my well being.

I must report that I now feel like a 'proper' ultra runner. For some time I have heard folk talking about the number of toe-nails they have lost doing these long-distance races but it has never happened to me, until now - I am proud to report the nail fell off the second toe on my right foot ten days after the Fling!

Ian and I are both building the mileage up again, in his case for the full WHW on the longest day of the year while I have two weeks longer to train for the Great Glen Way - a 72 mile trek from Fort William to Inverness on the 5^th July. Making fun of myself for racing three ultras in a short period of time aside, in reality it was a deliberate plan to push myself over these, my 9^th, 10^th and 11^th ultras, solely in an effort to prepare my body for going another 17 miles beyond anything I have done before – a scary feeling, but then I was scared when I lined up for my first 33 miler! As they say, it’s all in the mind.

Looking forward also to supporting Ian (along with Angela, Frances and Geo) as he chases his tenth WHW finish this year. I’m sure everyone at the club will wish him all the best as he goes for the decanter to match the nine finisher’s goblets he already has. A nice malt would fill it nicely Ian, hint hint!

141 miles over three races in 43 days, continued.

20 days later…Glasgow to Edinburgh - 55 miles, Saturday 5^th April

This race was one I have long fancied, well before I started running ultra distances. I don’t know if it is the thought of running right across the country or between the two main cities in the country or the fact it is entirely run on canal towpaths but something was pulling me towards this race. On reflection I simply like running point-to-point races, the feeling of actually getting somewhere and achieving a distant goal by your own efforts - the classic Edinburgh to North Berwick race being another example.  Yet this was the one that I shouldn’t really have entered coming as it does between the two others, precisely when I should have been recovering.

Ironically it turned out to be the hardest of the three, mainly due to the three hours of pouring rain from the start (the rain was so heavy the canal was overflowing the lock gates although some local residents were clearly enjoying the conditions, see pictures)

 

and because of my hips and knees aching from the constantly flat terrain, so flat that a profile of the route looks like a map of Norfolk with a pin sticking out of the middle. You would never believe a 55 mile route could be planned through Scotland with only one hill on it!  

Another new experience for me as I took drugs for the first time during a race (calm down folks, only two paracetamol and I’ve checked - they’re not on the WADA banned list) due to the above mentioned joints and it certainly did help me over the last ten miles or so. With around five miles left a blister decided to form on the ball of my right foot, no doubt due to running in sodden socks and shoes, which became excruciatingly painful – I dread to think how bad it would have been without the painkillers.

With around a mile to go I took the time to check behind and was very pleased to see I had dropped all of the runners who had been there or thereabouts with me for the previous ten miles or so meaning I could cruise home, having left them well behind with a sustained increase in pace since the last checkpoint at Ratho, or so I thought - after plodding past the 500 metres to go sign I was disturbed to hear the guy standing beside it suddenly start to applaud someone else. Quickly looking around in a panic I saw a female runner looking very comfortable just behind me and there followed what felt to me like a 450 metre sprint but to anyone watching probably looked more like an arthritic crab scuttling along the towpath until, mercifully, Alison, in answer to my query ‘how close is she behind me?’ looked at me pityingly and simply said there was no-one there. Phew, it must just have been someone out for a wee jog who then turned off on one of the many cut-offs from the canal into the city. I don’t think I will be displaying the photo from the finish line as it shows me still puffing and well out of breath. Alison also had to physically support me as I seemed ready to topple over at any moment while the first aiders were chatting to me, no doubt sussing out whether their services were required or not (not, as it tuned out) What a way to finish a 55 mile run! Home (thanks again Alison, taxi to the start, constant support and supplies along the way and taxi home again) and straight into the shower, something to eat then bed in preparation for my sixtieth birthday party the following day – nae peace for the wicked.

Report three to come…

141 miles over three races in 43 days

141 miles over three races in 43 days - D33, G2E and the Highland Fling

Even allowing for the fact that I thought three weeks between each of three races meant I was doing them over a nine-week period and not six (doh!) it was still a daft idea to enter them all, but once I’d sent the entry fees off I thought I might as well get my moneys’ worth. Tight? See me?

As you may have noticed from the lack of them, race reports from me this year are like buses, you wait and wait and wait then three come at once. As some of you might know I am now no longer part of the rat-race but, strangely, have never had less time to do all the other things I used to do besides work - I simply haven’t had the time to sit down and type this stuff.  So as I was once again the victim of my own lack of clear-headed advance planning I decided to put off writing a report for each race and condense them into one - this one. To avoid clogging up the blog I’ll post them in three separate stages.

D33 - 33 miles, Saturday March 15^th

After my highest-ever volume of winter training, starting with an excellent base of the Marcothon in December, I felt in fine fettle for my favourite wee race. I started steadily and cruised through uneventfully to the twenty mile mark, comfortably on course for a 30 minute(!) improvement on last year. I should have known something was about to go wrong - firstly I developed a stitch on the right, then the left and finally all the way across my diaphragm which no amount of deep-breathing or stretching would clear. Having no alternative but to slow down I at least managed to keep running, after a fashion, and finally crossed the finishing line in a very disappointing 5.39.00, a frustrating one minute slower than 2013. Although uncomfortable in the extreme I felt strong all the way through the run and reasoned that my fitness and strength was still intact and, in retrospect, being unable to push on in the latter stages might turn out to be a blessing in disguise, forcing me to keep something in reserve for the races coming up.

The news that Calderglen ultra virgin, John McGregor, had chatted his way round in a tremendous 4.44 soon cheered me up, in fact he seemed so enthused by the whole experience that I strongly suspect this will not be his only long-distance foray.

It was also reported to me, by the man himself, that the experienced Ian Rae had meandered his way around the route in 4.54, a new hydration strategy perhaps responsible for, shall we say, his frequent wandering off-course to relieve various needs! Your intrepid reporter has since discovered it was a reluctance on Ian’s part to waste wife Angela’s failed prune jam (it hadn’t set properly so Ian added water and powdered glucose to make an alternative electrolyte drink) that led to the frequent purging of his system! Subsequently a persistent metatarsal problem forced Ian to give running a miss for a few weeks while cross-training like mad to keep his fitness levels high for the up-coming 53-mile Highland Fling. So a poor time by his usual standards but, in the circumstances, quite an achievement to finish at all. Also running was an Calderglen ultra harrier from years ago, Ivan Field, who ran a solid 5:23:00

Conclusion? Third Calderglen harrier in an ultra - please go back to running just marathons John!

Reports two and three to come…