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Moscow half-marathon
Running along the banks of the Moskva with the fortress-like walls of the Kremlin at our side, Cat and I spent an enjoyable hour and a half taking part in the Moscow half-marathon. Rather than going all-out for PBs, we decided to run together taking in the sights and sounds of Moscow at a leisurely pace in the warm Russian sunshine.
The route was an out-and-back twice over and pretty flat, initially following the perimeter of the Kremlin then past the impressive golden-domed Cathedral of Christ the Saviour and continuing along the river beyond Gorky Park and the monument to Peter the Great.
At about 10 miles and feeling good from having taken it easier I realised that a PB might be on the cards so sped up in the last 3 miles and finished in 1:33:29 according to the clock. Cat was only a couple of minutes behind with 1:35:48 and very pleased with her time, especially considering her recent injury-induced lack of training.
Ben Lomond Hill Race
10th May 2008
A fine dry day for the Ben Lomond Hill Race. Pretty warm on the climb. The race was won comfortably by Stewart Whitlie in 1:12:20. First lady was Ellen Homewood in 1:29:10, just six seconds ahead of Val Houston at the finish.
13 Westies ran:
14 Chris Upson M40 1:21:26
17 Don Reid M50 1:22:24
18 Simon Triger M 1:22:46
40 Ellen Homewood F 1:29:10
41 Val Houston F40 1:29:16
48 John Donnelly M40 1:30:41
49 Gordon Robinson M60 1:32:19
52 Jacques Penderis M 1:33:00
61 Rob McQuater M 1:36:36
78 Christine Menhennet F50 1:42:42
81 Tony Ritchie M60 1:44:49
117 Brenda Paul F 2:14:35
118 Davy Broni M50 2:19:35
Full results
Dumyat Hill Race
7th May 2008
A fine sunny evening for the 35th annual Dumyat Hill Race. The race was won by Jethro Lennox and Angela Mudge.
24 Westies ran with in form David Riach easily the fastest on the night, and Ellen Homewood fastest woman. I did my old trick of starting much too fast and then dropping about 25 places on the climb, although I did manage to pull back nearly 10 places on the descent, which is rare for me, and just managed to catch and pass Crawford before we hit the slappy bit of downhill tarmac, and then held on to the finish unable to close down Neil Arnott.
Full results
Rock of ages...
One thing I've learned over the years about the Black Rock 5: never trust the weather forecast! The weather was fine, and the threatened rainstorms didn't materialise. The second one I learnt as I looked across the Kinghorn sands from the train as we approached: you can't judge underfoot conditions from a distance, just suck it, erm, PLOD it and see!
A good Westy turnout, thanks to Chris' enthusiastic plugging of the event: there was Chris himself, who has honed his wading technique (see sample results); Ellie Homewood; Dave Rogers; myself; and Pat herself, out for a dook. I'm afraid I didn't keep company with any of the above, but did watch several distinguished hurdies (check any Scots dictionary if in doubt!) vanish into the distance, if not the estuary quicksands: first Debbie the Bog-Trotter who is speeding up with the passing of years as fast as I am slowing; then wee Steve Newsom, my ex-student and collaborator (and dad of boy wonder runner John); and indeed YP, who passed me as I splashed round the Rock to cries of "HBT!" to which I echoed "HGV!" Anyway, got my beer 'n' banana, got my train back to Edinburry in the company of Ivor the Boggie, who makes pleasant (?!) company as he squeezes his race-fresh (NOT) red insoles like rashers of sliced spam. Yuk.
Selected results and times:
1. Ross Houston (Central) 23.04
24. Chris Upson 26.07
107. Ellen Homewood 30.19
145. Dave Rogers 31.10
191. Debbie MacDonald (HBT) 32.42
258 "YP" aka Robin Thomas (HBT) 34.46
276 Steve Newsom (U/a) 35.15
312. GrimOrr 36.07
438. Pat McLaughlin 40.24
stuc a chroin hill race
STUC A CHROIN HILL RACE
SATURDAY 3 MAY 2008
13 MILES 5300 FEET
Westies did well at the Stuc race this year with newcomer Elsie Riley doing great to win the female race and David Riach placing in the top ten. The slog up the forestry track never gets easy, and it took me the full 20 mins to the end of it to feel warmed up, sort of. My poor wee legs were feeling the effects of last week’s Three Peaks race so I tried to relax and just enjoy the race. The precipitous climb up the Corbett of Ben Each was, well steep and heathery, heathery and steep. I slowly edged a few places here before the cracking undulating ridge along to the foot of Stuc, where the leaders had already came down. Plenty of chance to say hello to everybody as they flew past in the opposite direction. Turned at the top feeling great and taking in the beautiful views and then hared off the long descent all the way down to Glen Ample for that infamous slog back up the final climb. Caught a few here by ever so slowly crawling past them, then big gaps ahead meant a solo last few miles to finish just over 3 hours. Well pleased with the time on tired legs and still in the top half of the field. I even got to down a couple of pints of the specially brewed “Stuc a Chroin Anniversary Ale” in the pub after. A grand day out, many thanks to the masses of helpers strung out everywhere on the course handing out virtually unlimited supplies of water and goodies, and well done all you Westies.
7 David Riach MV 02:31:46
20 Simon Triger M 02:45:53
25 Graham Kelly M 02:48:00
26 Don Reid MSV 02:48:19
41 Crawford Spence M 02:59:12
52 Murdo Macleod MSV 03:04:14
54 John Donnelly MV 03:05:48
63 Elsie Riley F 03:14:53
102 Elspeth Scott FV 03:37:26
120 Davy Broni MSV 04:16:52
121 finishers 5 drop-outs
Full results
Photos
My Fling-a-ding,Highland Fling 2008
5.30am.Milngavie station.
Dawn is breaking,no rain(YET) not too cold.Sign in,collect race number wristband(33) and deposit drop bags in respective checkpoint vehicles.Scout about for Glorious Team Leaders(no sign) and we're off!
Milngavie to Balmaha.
Just barely into Mugdock woods rain starts.Settle into pace with a affable group Alex Simpson shares some sage advice and great encouragement as we negotiate the waterlogged terrain to drymen.Injured R. ankle holding up well(tightly strapped in jaunty blue neoprene brace).Somewhere in Garadhban Forest I encounter Phil Mestecky and together we go on to conquer the raging torrent that is Conic Hill(River?).Cheers Phil!
Bamaha to Rowardennan.
Greeted by cheering crowd at first checkpoint(2.53) shout "33"and then continue to run past support vehicle with drop bags and merrily on out of car park "DOH"!Chagrined return finds my provisions and happy helpful support crew(since I am running unsupported these kind folks are my surrogate family for the duration of the race,wonderful people all).Scoff two large sweet pancakes,chocolate flapjack(huge),pkt "Mini Chedders" and small box of raisins.The words "Big Mistake" are looming.Retrace my steps out of car park and hit the lochside trail.Nausea soon takes my mind off sore ankle,so that's a plus....Mile 25ish hook up with Brian McIntosh(with whom I shall weather almost the remainder of the race with).Brian is excellent company and cheers me up no end when he announces that by his magical watch we have just completed a marathon!
Ankle hurting but as yet no re-appearance of provisions.
Rowardennan to Inversnaid.
Reach checkpoint 2 (4.24),very welcome bathroom visit followed by additional elastic bandaging of gimpy limb.Not very hungry,energy bar in back pocket and we're off.Taking the high road we start a long steady climb that seems designed to melt tired calves.Eventual heavenly descent leads straight into treacherous technical root/rock/burn territory,beautiful waterfalls though"sigh".
Can't feel ankle but manage to force down energy bar,phew.
Inversnaid to Beinglas Farm.
Checkpoint 3(5.48)
Once again the cheery support chaps take my number and tend to my needs.Discard all foodstuffs except energy bar and gulp down caffeine laden Lucozade stuff (bought on most fortuitous impulse),lets go!This is by far the most tricky footing so far,yet the Caffeine has sharpened my flagging wits and the intense concentration needed blocks out the fatigue.Visibility increases and we can see Ardlui and the end of the loch.
The rain stops.
Ankle,what ankle?
Beinglas Farm to Tyndrum.
Shout"33"and enter checkpoint 4(7.23).Now I'm starving,flapjack,Mini Cheddars,energy bar and wonderful Lucozade caffeine bastard.Bring it on.Say farewell to my faithful borrowed pit crew and away.Brian and I have been joined by Davie Bell somewhere along the way, the craic is good and morale is high.
Final leg in trance -like flashback.
Sun shining.
Wonderful scenery.
Muddy path.
Reminiscences of past Flings and WHW races by my companions.
Bridge under railway.
Big dark forest.
Rollercoaster hills.
Burning Quads.
Water runs out.
Exit forest.
Feel a bit funny.
Tunnel vision.
Legs not responding.
Lights fading.
Rosebud......
Saved!!!Brian's Family to the rescue,water,energy gel and words of encouragement.Which way is Tyndrum? I'm on my own now but buoyed by the news that it's a mere two miles to go.The scenery is lovely and the sun warms my back as these final miles flow by.Photo guy tells me 400 yards and suddenly I see my Daughter running to meet me and all of a sudden I shout "33"one last time and it's over(10.06).
And so ends the inaugural report by Westie Craig "Cragster" Docherty.Many thanks to all concerned,fellow racers and organisers who made the day one to remember.Next year sub 9 deffo!
Footnote.
Despite 53 miles and 10 hours of constant wetness not to mention being encased in ageing road shoes,removal of socks revealed nary a blister and not one discoloured toenail.
The ankle,forget it.........
Three Peaks Fell Race
With a wild bunch of Fifers ( really pretty nice actually) I travelled to Yorkshire for the grandly named World Mountain Running Long Distance Challenge held over the long established Three Peaks Race. What awaited most of us for the first time was 23 miles of trail, rocks, limestone pavement and 5300 feet of climbing up the peaks of Pen-y-Ghent, Whernside and Ingleborough. For me it was the chance to run one of the classic fell races and the lure of being Westies World Champion if I was lucky enough to be the lone Westie, shame on you Gordon Robinson for spoiling my fun! Picturesque Dentdale was our home for the weekend and what a cracking area this is - rolling hills, drystane dykes everywhere and full of great pubs and tea shoppes. I behaved the night before, restricting myself to only 2 pints of the lovely local ale in The George and Dragon in Dent village. Topped up the next morning by a cooked breakfast it was off to Horton in Ribblesdale, where we were greeted by a very well organised event that had to cope with almost 800 runners and hangers-on. After trying to out-psyche the Russians and top Brits with our extensive warm-up routine of lounging around and gossiping away and, of course my tartan lycra shorts, Gordon, me and the few other Scots were off up the wee lanes and onto the hill for a 4 hr blur (well more a sort of trudge, plod, walk and gravity-assisted plunge) of blood, sweat and tears. The field split up quickly on the runnable climb up Pen-y-Ghent, where we had to be careful to avoid the mad leaders descending past us. We then had miles of track and trail leading to the famous Ribblehead railway viaduct, before a steep “on all fours” climb up to Whernside. A pretty tricky descent for a few miles led to the equally steep final climb to Ingleborough, where I spied Gordon a few minutes ahead of me at the summit. Trying to stay ahead of long-time rival Wendy Dodds, and maybe seeing if I could make up time on Gordon, I hared off (sort of) down the tricky descent taking about 40mins to the finish, ungraciously out-sprinting a lady just on the line. I was well please to take 4h 14m and finish in 320th place, easily in the top half of the field. Gordon was easily ahead of me, and in a fantastic performance fellow Scot Jethro Lennox of Shettleston Harriers was ahead of everyone.
1st Jethro Lennox (S.H.I.T.) 2:53:39
32nd Anna Pichrtova Czech Republic 03:14:43
295th Gordon Robinson 4h 10m 04s
320th John Donnelly 4h 14m 07s
754 starters 685 finishers
My photos
Race website
Grough race report
westies ten take on balfron
A good crowd of Westies turned up today for the 'scenic traffic-free, with beautiful views of the Campsies' Balfron 10k , scenic being a euphemism for slightly hilly, which suited us fine. Early dull skies burned off on cue to present a crisp sunny morning - sunshine with enough lingering coolness just right for running. I set off steady, watching the leaders drift away while sizing up those in the second pack, wary not to overdo things too soon. The course meanders out into farmland countryside, revealing itself through the hedgerows, undulating down to a low point at 3km, climbing back up to the turn, and then all again in reverse. The out-and-back route made for a sociable occasion, with greetings and support being exchanged between the opposite runners. I gradually made places up the field, taking advantage of the gradients (actually gaining more rapidly on the downs than the ups), reeling in the last runner in my sight after 8km before gritting to the finish worrying that I too was being reeled in. But fortunately not, and I was extremely pleased to take 4th place and 1st vet.
A good show by all - Cat, Bill pleased with a PB boding well for flatter courses, Val 7th lady and Rob acquitting themselves well after a late start, Ellie 3rd lady, Chris 6th and 2nd vet, Andy Freer, Jacques, Pat, and me with a PB too. Robert Gilroy (Cambuslang) and Kirsty Husband (Garscube) took the main honours in a well organised and supported community event.
results
Beinn Ratha Hill Race
26th April 2008
The most northerly hill race on the mainland saw a new winner this year due to the unfortunate absence of defending champion Manuel Gorman. In returning his trophy, I did at least get my hands on a race prize for once.
21 runners started the race on a beautiful sunny afternoon, with an aggressive headwind battering the field. A couple of miles of easy land rover track gives way to wildly rough tussocky ground, which saps energy as it sinks under your feet. Leaders Graeme Taylor and Steven Worsley were clear by this point, with Eric Duncan putting in an incredible bull-like continuous run up the steep slope to take the fading David Spencer who was 3rd.
Some barely-runnable ground leads to the first summit, before a steep plunge down a heathery slope and over a fence towards the second peak. For some reason I chose to spend time re-attaching my number which had been ripped off by the wind on the descent, rather than going with Colin Olden in 5th as he battled with Spencer. Another tactical mistake then saw me blast up the final climb in pursuit of this duo, hands-on-heather, and fail to run "over the summit" as I had overdone it on the climb.
The long rough descent across the moor is well-flagged, picking up an overgrown vehicle track on the way down. This varies from help to hindrance - sometimes it's a solid tyre track, other times it becomes an ankle-bursting ditch. Eventually you meet the road for the mile back up past the start and on to Reay Golf Club and the finish.
Young local lad Taylor was first home in 55:32, trailed at some distance by a fatigued J Orr in a not-too-hideous 1:03:35. Twenty runners finished, with HHR's Russell McKechnie suffering a pulled calf at a fence on the initial track. I'm now planning a wee break from racing as I think I'm going backwards a bit since my good early-season form.
If you don't think a race with 240m of ascent sounds like much of a hill race, the reserve judgement until you're tried this one. I see why Manny likes it, as it's pretty wild! For lowland Westies, think Kaim and you wouldn't be far off. It sure ain't a trail race.
Thanks to organiser Sophie Dunnet and her team for a well-organised race, with good marshalling and marking throughout and a friendly welcome (with cakes) back at the accomodating Reay Golf Club.
Full results on SHR.
My full set of photos are online, and I've put a few up with this report too.