TW3

A busy weekend began on Friday night and I found myself driving a 17 seater minibus from the Vale to the New Lanark Visitor Centre for a Wedding Reception. A late night luckily fuelled by Irn Bru.

Saturday's expedition was to Aviemore for the final race in the SHR Championship. The Meall a'Bhuachaille race, a new one to me, about 7 miles and 2100 FOA. Good field of over 200 runners meant no shortage of competition for all. Run on forest roads, heathery paths and some man made hard packed paths with rocky steps, rocky steps ok for walkers but not so good for runners esp downhill.

After a heathery climb got chased off the first hill by a skeleton, more heather and narrow trods to the beallach at the bottom of the second climb up MaB, joined the man made path on the way to the top. Took the heather on the way back down to the Beallach, a bit easier on the feet and faster.

Re-joined a man made path here, you just feel somehow that there's less grip, just to prove a point the guy in front scored a 10 with his attempted face plant onto the path, ouch, coming to rest a couple of inches short of one of the cross ditch boulders. At the bottom of the hill onto road/forrest road for a 1 1/2 mile gently undulating run to the finish.

Before the drive home we sat down to sandwiches and homebaking courtesy of the race organisers, Highland Hill Runners. Good race even though it was more trail than hill and good value at a fiver.

Plenty of pictures, from Action Heroes and Steve Fallon.

Don't do many road races but on Sunday set off for the annual club outing to the Half Marathon in Fort Bill, in another minibus, this time with JR at the wheel, he did really well to avoid the artic at the top of LL!

This is an out and back race, start and finish in An Aird along the road to the Isles. A few runners looking for about 1:45 which is round about 8 min mile pace. Set out to try to get them to about 10 miles on target then leave them to it.

First mile 7:40, too quick but better than the usual 6:40! Relaxed for the second mile but still clicked by in 7 mins, oops, eased back and 8:20 for the third before settling to 8 min miles give or take a few secs.

Turned in just under 53 mins keeping nice and relaxed until 9 miles, then had to work a bit harder to maintain the pace, making a conscious effort to keep on target until 12 miles, somehow the last mile felt easier with a slippy run thru the shinty park to finish in 1:44:50.

The crux of the race is the minibus back home, coolbags to empty of beer, a fish suppper at Tyndrum and a Dram at the Drovers.