Cairn Table – a man’s race…

4th June 2011

Results | Photos

…or at least, a race without any female entrants in the compact field of 17. I was surprised not to see Don "Pot Hunter" Reid in drag, and the female prizes went a-begging.

On Epsom Derby day, Westerlands had entered a carthorse (or donkey?) at Cairn Table, one J Orr. The going was good to soft following recent rain, and well-suited to my first race experiment with the Inov8 Bare-Grips. This shoe has no midsole, only a Mudclaw-like outsole to protect your feet, and it sits very low to the ground. A couple of attempts to go over on my ankle on the descent were easily sensed and corrected early, and the shoes seemed ideal in these conditions and provided great feedback on the terrain.

A stiff crosswind became a headwind as we neared the summit, with Portobello’s Michael Geoghegan having established his lead from the start and holding on to ensure victory. Adam Anderson (Carnethy) pulled away from me easily when the climb steepened, and picked up a place to claim second slot from Ian Fleming.

Having set off smartly and run most of the ascent, I was only 30 seconds or less ahead of Tam Begley as we rounded the massive cairn, and despite good shouts of encouragement from Kilmarnock’s Rod Pugh, I lost out to Tam on the descent and didn’t have the fitness to make it up again on the long run to the finish. The chase propelled me to a PB of 39:26, a huge improvement on the 41:53 I clocked in 2007. Minor changes to the eroded scar of a path have improved runnability, but I doubt that it would account for such a difference.

Former Westie Alan Wilson was in Tinto Hill Runners colours at the race, and the new wee club seems to be getting well established – best of luck to them.

The race records belonged to oor ain Antipodean crew until recently – Dave "The Snake" Riach and Cat Miller. The female record hasn’t been lowered by much of late, and at 40:25 looks within the reach of the faster Westie Wimmin – any takers?

This race is a great wee blast, and surely deserves more runners. It’s well marshalled and marked, so perhaps one to consider for a move to a Wednesday night Bog and Burn slot?

Brennan – PB and sole Westie bonus for me please! Big thanks to Cheryl for taking photos today.

Full Results:-

1. Michael Geoghegan (Portobello) – 35.08
2. Adam Anderson (Carnethy HRC) – 35.36
3. Ian Fleming – 37.45
4. Tommy Begley (Irvine AC) – 39.11
5. Johnston Orr (Westerlands CCC) – 39.26
6. Alan Wilson (Tinto Hill Runners) – 41.08
7. Steven Thomson – 41.13
8. Rod Pugh (Kilmarnock Harriers) – 42.20
9. Kevin Smith – 42.53
10. Bob Cherry (Ayr Seaforth) – 43.09
11. Bill Gerrie (Troon Tortoises) – 43.39
12. David Mitchell (Kilmarnock Harriers) – 43.43
13. David Duncan (Ochil HR) – 44.38
14. Mark Wheeler – 45.12
15. Alex Drain (Troon Tortoises) – 47.40
16. David McManus – 51.21

(1 retirement)