Saturday, to kick start the season, the Carnethy 5. Arrived at Beeslack school without any detours. Registered, changed and off we went. The guy who thought up the race and has run them all wearing No 41.
Wet underfoot with blue sky overhead and a cool breeze. At 2 pm 500 runners set off across a boggy bog, the field soon spread out on the 1st climb up Scald Law, around 22 minutes of puff pant wheeze for me to reach this first top, brief respite to re-oxygenate on the run along to South Black Hill then two sharp intakes of breath that make up the Kips. Steady descent and run along to the Howe before the struggle that is the gulley on Carnethy's western side, the slope eases for a jog then one last push to the top. Round the trig point and downhill all the way, through heather, scree and don't forget the bog to finished 307th in 82 minutes. Lots of pictures.
Sunday, the clubs rescheduled Cross Country, 2 laps round Polaroid Industrial Estate, cloudy and wet although similar underfoot to yesterday. Good field of 13 runners and a few helpers made the effort on this cold and sodden morning. Jogged to the start to help get everything moving again. Felt my way round the first lap looking for the best way round the puddles, usually straight through. Our small group of five runners broke up, one away in front, one off the back and we were down to three by the end of the lap.
Lap 2, slower run along the side of the Leven then back to a steady pace after climbing the steps. Round the pond, eased up the short climb closing in on the runner in front, tucked in until we turned down the road towards the finish where a few short bursts of pace took me clear over the last couple of hundred yards, 4th in 36:18.
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