Last Saturday I ran this understated classic, now a tribute to sadly-departed Glasgow Uni/Westies legend Des Gilmore. Some wee guy called Sam was also there. He looked familiar but I’d certainly not seen him at road race before. He did pretty well despite being one of the few without carbon in his soles. For
My first time at the newer, longer, better (?) Ben Chonzie hill race. On the drive up self-described ‘map nerd’ Cameron recounted his reccy of the course, along with detailed descriptions of the various route finding micro- optimisations he had identified. It was a shame to see his face drop when the RO announced
The last time I did a road race was the Bisophbriggs 10k 2020. I remember sitting on the train from Queen Street, listening to a news podcast interviewing an eminent epidemiologist about a new strain of flu doing the rounds in China. When the host asked him if this ought to be cause for concern
Alwyn and I were stood at the finish, straining to catch a glimpse of the runners. A pair of yellow vests appeared in the distance, moving well, keeping the pace, but needing a strong push to achieve success. The suspense was nail-biting – would they catch the others in time or be left in the
My 10th (I think?) trip to Jura for the best (I think!) race in the world. Some pretty dreary conditions this year – the long spell of good weather had broken just in time to provide the course with 24 hours of heavy rain and Friday night was spent running between rare spots of shelter
I wrote a race report for the 2012 edition of Kaim Hill Race. I finished 15th but thought I was 6th at the top. I beat a then-unattached Pete Mackie and future world-champion cyclist Neah Evans. Apparently I was passed by Alan Gilkinson and Luke Arnott on the descent. I distinctly remember Luke nipping by
It was a beautiful day in Dumfries & Galloway for the first champs race of the season. On my warm-up jog I saw a few guys checking out a wee path that cut the final corner. It was definitely a short-cut but there was a nasty jaggy-stick dip at the end. “Could make all the
Even at 20.52 you could still book a room at the Travelodge for £14.50 each. Sitting with a pint in the Black Isle pub on Friday, I argued that a warm night’s sleep would undoubtedly put us in a good position for the weekend ahead. Niall & Alwyn were having none of it –
“Watch out for the barbed wire.” Kind advice that came just in time for my bottom foot to slip off, leaving me impaled on the fence by the kissing gate with some choice lacerations on the back of my thigh. Thanks to whoever it was who prised me off and pushed me over. “Y’know, I’ve
“I’m outside.” “Ring the buzzer, flat 9, I’ll let you in.” “There isn’t a flat 9.” “What?” “I can’t see a 9.” “….” I eventually found Alwyn standing outside the wrong block. A good start to a weekend orienteering competition. On the early drive up on Saturday morning he and I were complaining about the