Photos courtesy of Chris Upson.
Out of all the races during a successful 2010/11 winter season, this one stuck out. It's the only one where I came away feeling I hadn't done myself justice. I didn't handle the two lap circuit of Rouken Glen Park at all. Still, it fired me up for the National Cross Country Relay two weeks later. Reports on both those races can be found earlier on this blog.
Out of all the races during a successful 2010/11 winter season, this one stuck out. It's the only one where I came away feeling I hadn't done myself justice. I didn't handle the two lap circuit of Rouken Glen Park at all. Still, it fired me up for the National Cross Country Relay two weeks later. Reports on both those races can be found earlier on this blog.
It being my parent's anniversary, I was happy to excuse my Dad's attendance so set off for Drumpellier Park in Coatbridge on my own. Amazingly for me driving to a relatively unfamiliar venue with no directions in adverse weather, I found it first time. Just as well with no Bob and Winifred from Edinburgh to help me this week.
With heavy legs and a blister on the big toe of my left foot, both helped by a bath on Thursday, my case for a B team place fell on deaf ears with the Cambuslang hierarchy and I was allocated 3rd leg for the A team. I replaced Andrew Coulter who, when I spoke to him pre-race, wasn't perturbed in the slightest. Still, I had ensured everyone was happy, captain's duty fulfilled.
I wandered round the course with David Munro, Gordon Robertson and Robert Rossborough. The length of a muddy football pitch, under a bridge, round a narrow grass verge, lap of a field, onto a trail, through the same bridge then a series of convuluted twists and turns eventually leading to a finish line adjacent to the main road. I spent a good 10 minutes watching the senior women race to ensure I knew the correct route. Our youthful pairing of Katie Bristow and Lucy Deeny combined to be 6th after 2 legs and, with a 3rd runner to complete the team, would easily have earned a top 10 place.
On the senior men first leg, Derek Hawkins stormed half a minute clear of the chasing pack to give Kilbarchan the lead. For us, Robert Gilroy came through 6th, Andrew Coulter in 8th, under 20s Bobby Bristow and Dean McNaught in 12th and 21st respectively and Alan Ramage 23rd for our vets team. The race made for exciting viewing. Conor McNulty held off a chasing Tewoldeberhan Mengisteab to keep Kilbarchan 18 seconds clear. Shettleston's B team were clinging on to 3rd narrowly ahead of VP City of Glasgow and our A team. Jamie Reid kept our B team in 8th, Charlie Thomson brought our vets/C team up 11 places to 12th, 5 seconds ahead of Alistair Campbell who took over from Bobby Bristow in the D team and Robert Rossborough, running in the incomplete E team, competed well considering limited cross country experience, handing on to the vastly experienced David Fairweather.
Jack Hamilton gave me plenty to chase in a close 5th place. I set off to put us in the medals. In the first few hundred metres, I caught and passed VP City of Glasgow's Alan Ramsay and set my sights on Shettleston's B runner Lee Wilson as I went under the bridge. Determined not to let one club win two medals in the same race, I chased him hard.
I wandered round the course with David Munro, Gordon Robertson and Robert Rossborough. The length of a muddy football pitch, under a bridge, round a narrow grass verge, lap of a field, onto a trail, through the same bridge then a series of convuluted twists and turns eventually leading to a finish line adjacent to the main road. I spent a good 10 minutes watching the senior women race to ensure I knew the correct route. Our youthful pairing of Katie Bristow and Lucy Deeny combined to be 6th after 2 legs and, with a 3rd runner to complete the team, would easily have earned a top 10 place.
On the senior men first leg, Derek Hawkins stormed half a minute clear of the chasing pack to give Kilbarchan the lead. For us, Robert Gilroy came through 6th, Andrew Coulter in 8th, under 20s Bobby Bristow and Dean McNaught in 12th and 21st respectively and Alan Ramage 23rd for our vets team. The race made for exciting viewing. Conor McNulty held off a chasing Tewoldeberhan Mengisteab to keep Kilbarchan 18 seconds clear. Shettleston's B team were clinging on to 3rd narrowly ahead of VP City of Glasgow and our A team. Jamie Reid kept our B team in 8th, Charlie Thomson brought our vets/C team up 11 places to 12th, 5 seconds ahead of Alistair Campbell who took over from Bobby Bristow in the D team and Robert Rossborough, running in the incomplete E team, competed well considering limited cross country experience, handing on to the vastly experienced David Fairweather.
Jack Hamilton gave me plenty to chase in a close 5th place. I set off to put us in the medals. In the first few hundred metres, I caught and passed VP City of Glasgow's Alan Ramsay and set my sights on Shettleston's B runner Lee Wilson as I went under the bridge. Determined not to let one club win two medals in the same race, I chased him hard.
Not my most flattering of poses. Heel flick clearly visible.
By the time we got to the narrow trail, I had overtaken Wilson and achieved my target of putting Cambuslang into the medals. Now to keep them there. The trail went slightly downhill and I lengthened my stride to try and pull away. Back under the bridge, I still had about half the race to go. Club treasurer Colin Feechan gave me a shout and some directions to keep me on course. Chairman David Cooney told me the gap was closing. I thought he meant the chasing pack were getting me. However, he was referring to me closing in on Kilbarchan's 3rd runner, Graham Evans. He had been overtaken by Michael Deason who completed the catch up job Mengisteab started for Shettleston on leg 2. I was closing on Evans with every stride. By the end of the leg, I would have closed the gap from 1 minute 6 seconds to 18 seconds. I threw everything into catching him but ultimately the finish line beat me to it. I ran 12:38 to Evans' 13:36. I had a minor triumph of clocking the fastest time on leg 3.
In the home straight.
Stewart Orr finished the job Robert, Jack and I started, overhauling Kilbarchan's last runner, Craig Haxton, and safely securing us a silver medal. A speedy effort from Matthew Gillespie (12:16) won Shettleston gold. David Vernon hauled VP City of Glasgow up 2 places to bronze medals pushing an unlucky Kilbarchan quartet, in the medals for 75% of the race, to 4th and Shettleson B into 5th. David Munro guided our B team to 7th and Greg Hastie overhauled Scott Hunter to earn our vets team gold medals and 12th overall one place ahead of our D team.
This was a huge improvement for me on a year ago- first ever District relay medal, fastest Harrier and 7th quickest overall. At the prize giving I had a chat with Calderglen Harriers coach Alan Derrick. He ran a swift 14:05 on 2nd leg to help my former club to vets bronze medals. I received an open invitation to do the Brampton to Carlisle 10 Mile Road Race on 19th November. I haven't been to Brampton for 3 years. I might just take the offer up.
On my way back to the car, I spoke to a guy I'd never met before who reads this blog. I didn't get his name so if you're reading, please re-introduce yourself at my next race and hopefully you've enjoyed reading this.
Cambuslang Senior Results
Men
A Team (2nd)
6th: Robert Gilroy- 12:58
5th: Jack Hamilton- 12:44
3rd: Stuart Gibson- 12:38
2nd: Stewart Orr- 12:47
B Team (7th)
8th: Andrew Coulter- 13.16
8th: Jamie Reid- 13.11
8th: Gordon Robertson- 14.06
7th: David Munro- 13.16
C/Vets Team (12th, 1st vets team)
23rd: Alan Ramage- 14.24
12th: Charlie Thomson- 13.17
12th: Michael O' Hagen- 14.26,
12th: Greg Hastie- 13.42
D team (13th)
12th: Bobby Bristow- 13.51
13th: Alistair Campbell- 13.55
10th: Ian McCorquodale- 13.19
13th: Scott Hunter - 15.08
E team
21st: Dean McNaught- 14.18
31st: Robert Rossborough - 16.20
35th: David Fairweather- 18.25
Women
8th: Katie Bristow- 15:52
6th: Lucy Deeny- 16:47
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