Kinnoull Hill race, 18 May

The sixth race in the Strathearn Harriers championship series was the Kinnoull Hill race in Perth. Once again, there was a great turnout from the club, with some outstanding performances.

First Harrier to finish was Will, in 3rd position overall with a time of 27:48. Next home was Phil M in 27th position in a time of 31:22, followed by Andy G in 33:14. Angela was first Harrier woman to finish, just 2 seconds behind Andy, to finish in 4th position in the woman’s race. Kerry was second Harrier woman home in 35:53, with Cathy third in 37:11. Following Cathy was Jim Cahill, competing for the first time in a Harriers vest. A bit further down the field were Nicola, Liz, Alastair and Fran.

Loch Leven Half Marathon, 14 May

A strong team of Harriers women Harriers were out in force at the Loch Leven Half Marathon. The race route follows the A and B roads from Kinross round the loch, finishing back in Kinross at the King George V playing fields. It’s mostly flat, but there’s an unwelcome slope in Scotlandwell, at about the 7 mile mark, just when you could do with a bit of help. The weather was kind for most of the race, but a headwind over the closing few miles made the going hard for tiring runners.

Kerry continued her strong start to the season to come home in 10th position in the woman’s race, in a personal best time of 1:41:08 (and just to prove what a good race she ran, she also set a personal best for her 10k time in the first half of the race). Next Harriers home were Julie H in her first half marathon in a time of 1:49:40 and Steph in a personal best time of 1:49:51. Not far behind was Ali M in a time of 1:50:54. A bit further down the field were Fiona McDonald in another personal best time, delighted to come in under the 2 hour mark, Tracey Oates in her first half marathon, Shelagh Wake and Kirsty McKay.

There had been rumours beforehand that club president George Carson was going to run, but in the event, he turned out to do a splendid job of touring round the course in Kirsty’s new car, offering support to all and sundry. So I ended up as the only man running for the Harriers. The first few miles felt okay, but I developed a foot injury and found the last few miles really tough going, and it ended up as my slowest half since the Tewkesbury half marathon donkey’s years ago.

Glen Lednock race, 8 May

A torrential downpour an hour before the race start wasn’t enough to put off the 30 adults and 22 children for the Glen Lednock race on Sunday morning, and by the time the race started, the conditions were close to ideal for this annual race run for the Margaret J Gordon Art and Craft Trust. Harriers were out in force, and very grateful for the shelter offered under Graham’s gazebo-thingy. This was the fifth race in the club championship, and we had ten runners competing in the main adults’ race. There were also assorted juniors races and a shortened adults race. All way too confusing.

The adults’ race, run from Carmichael’s Yard at the foot of Monument Road in Comrie up the glen to Invergeldie and back down again, was won by Paul Acari in a very fast time of 45:31 for the 8.5 mile course. I hung on to Phil M’s heels for the first 5 miles or so and then managed to open up a gap on the downward half, and I was first Harrier to finish 9th overall in a time of 57:08, about 5 minutes faster than I’d managed last year. Phil was just under a minute behind, finishing 10th in 58:03, followed by Andy G in 14th position, in 62:29. John Davidson, James and Gordon finished close together in 17th, 18th and 19th positions.

For the Harrier’s women, Angela won the women’s race in a time 59:35, with Kerry second in 63:14, and Nicola fourth in 66:52. Karen G and Jayne M completed the Harrier’s turn-out a wee bit further down the field.

The Junior race started at the same time as the adults race but followed a different route up the steep path towards the Deil’s Cauldron, with a turnaround up the hill to give a 1.5 mile run. The race was won by Dominic M in an exciting sprint finish with Lewis following just 10 seconds behind, with Sol in 3rd place.

In the girls 13-15 race, there were great performances with Poppy Robertson finishing first girl in 6th place followed by Maddy in 8th place with Sav having a great run finishing 10th. The girls 9-11 race was won by Abigail, followed by Catriona and Morgan in 13th and 14th place respectively. There were good performances from all the other junior Harriers, including Chris Martin, Sammy Wake, Levi Sweeney, Daniel Saunders and Jessica Martin.

Stuc a‘Chroinn hill race, 30 April

Three Harriers took on one of the toughest hill races in Scotland - the Stuc a‘Chroinn hill race. This brute starts in Strathyre, heads up Beinn Each and then on up to the top of Stuc a‘Chroinn. It’s difficult terrain all the way, with a distance of about 14 miles and a total ascent of 5000 feet. I was watching from the top, and it was pretty remarkable watching the progress of the runners as they made their way along the ridge of Beinn Each and then headed up the spur up to the top. On one of his regular forays north, Colin Glencorse was first Harrier to finish in 19th position, in a time of 2:43:36. Phil M finished in 28th position in a time of 2:49:22, and Lisa MacDermid finished in 131st position in a time of 4:19:53.

Kinross 10k, 28 April

For the fifth race in the club championship, ten of us made our way to Kinross for the Kinross 10k race, supported by a pair of Phils, who chose not to run this one. The race is run on a flat course in the grounds of Kinross House and the golf club - it’s flat and fast, but a bit dull, with laps of a parkland course with sharp turns which isn’t exactly inviting. On a perfect evening for running, Will was first Harrier home, finishing in 18th position overall in a time of 38:06, despite running with a broken rib. I was second Harrier to finish in 47th position in a time of 41:05 – bit disappointed, to be honest. Third Harrier, and first woman Harrier was Angela, 10th overall woman in a time of 42:44. Gordon and James had their annual Kinross tussle, with Gordon finishing stronger in to finish in 45:03, followed by James in 45:25.

After running almost side-by-side for much of the race, Nicola won her tussle with Ali, pulling away to finish in 47:08, with Ali finishing in 48:02. A wee bit further down the field were Liz M, Alistair S and Fiona McD.

Newtyle Hill race, 13 April

Strathearn Harriers were out in strength for the Newtyle Hill race, run on Wednesday 13 April, for the third of the Club Championship races, with the girls outnumbering the boys. The race is a mix of trail, hill and woodland with the finish through the Dunkeld golf course and back on the Fungarth path to Loch of the Lowes. Confusingly for Gordon and I, who had recce'd the course the previous week, it was decided to run the race in the reverse direction. This did mean the big hill came nearer the start (which may or may not be a good thing), but also meant that there was a nasty wee hill about a mile short of the finish which I really didn’t appreciate.

The first Harrier home, in 13th position overall, was Phil T in a time of 34:56. I was second Harrier to finish, in 22nd position, in a time of 36:50, and Gordon was third, 28th overall, in 38:42.

For the women, Kerry was first home in a time of 39:52. Kerry finished second in the women’s race, closely followed by Cathy, third in the women’s race, in a time of 40:16. Nicola and Liz followed in fifth and sixth positions in the women’s race, with Nicola finishing first in her age group category. For Kerry and Nicola, this race come just three days after they ran the Lochaber Marathon in Fort William – just how hardcore is that!

Somehow, the women managed to acquire numerous prizes, consisting mainly of bottles of wine.

A Busy Weekend in October

It was another busy weekend for Strathearn Harriers, with runners racing across the country.

Saturday’s action kicked off with the Ben Venue hill race. This was the sixth and final race in the Scottish Hill Racing Championship, and Will was racing for a top ten position in the championship table. Will finished tenth, in a time of 1:20:21 to cover the 12 kilometres distance and 860 metres of ascent from the bottom Ben Venue, up to the top and down again. Also running for the Harriers were Andy Gallagher (79th in 1:36:13), Doug Flint (112th in 1:43:25), Gordon Morrison (127th in 1:46:13) and Rhian Evans (16th woman, in a time of 1:48:06).

Will’s finish gave him sufficient points to finish 7th overall in the SHR Championship, and 3rd in the V40 category. Last year Will finished 10th overall, so the Ben Venue result rounded off a very successful season in great style.

Much of Sunday’s action was centred on the Loch Ness Marathon. This is the biggest marathon in Scotland and follows a scenic route from the southern end of Loch Ness to Inverness. Kerry and Nicola ran together and finished in the very impressive time of 3:39:10. This was only the second time that Kerry and Nicola have run a marathon, and they were delighted to improve their previous best times by more than 10 minutes. Karen P was next Harrier home, in a time of 3:49:51, followed closely by Allan MacInnes in 3:53:04. Susan Saunders run her first marathon and finished in 4:21:46, with Colin T flying the flag for the over-60s with a splendid time of 5:05:42.

Following her success at the Pitlochry 10k, Angela once again headed the women’s results at the Saint Andrews Hospice 10k, held at Strathclyde Park. Angela was first woman home in a time of 41:51.

Also running on Sunday was Elaine Moffat, at the Oban half marathon. Elaine ran a personal best time of 1:51:15 to finish 8th woman on a course which has a very nasty sting in the tail, with a steep climb right at the finish.

Upcoming races for Harriers’ members over the next couple of weeks include the Kirkintilloch half marathon, the Mersey marathon in Liverpool, the Meall nan Tarmachan hill race, and the first race in the Eastern District Cross Country League.