Motherwell v Queen's Park, 7th January 2012

For a change, Queen's Park have enjoyed a decent run in the Scottish Cup this year. Coming in at the second round stage, we defeated Huntly 3-0 away from home. I wasn't there but by all accounts, it was a comfortable dispatching of the Highland League side. The third round saw us play well to defeat Elgin 3-1 in a replay at Hampden after a 1-1 draw. This set up a tie against Motherwell, 3 divisions higher than Queen's, at Fir Park.

Queen's Park have a rich history in the Scottish Cup, being the third most frequent winners behind Rangers and Celtic with 10 wins. Admittedly, the last one of these was in 1893 when 2 goals from W. Sellar defeated Celtic 2-1 at Ibrox. Sadly, pickings have been slim since. 1900 saw the Spiders' last final, an unfortunate 4-3 defeat to Celtic (Queen's had been a goal up). Season 1927-28 is the closest we've come to another final when we lost 2-1 in the semi final at Ibrox, again to Celtic. This year is the 120th anniversary of the 1892 final which we lost 5-1.....to Celtic! S.T. Waddell scored the Queen's goal.

We had a memorable Cup run in 2009 which took us to an away tie in the last 16 against, yes, Celtic, managed then by Gordon Strachan. An outstanding performance saw us only edged out 2-1. Queen's were 2-0 down. I think the roof came off the away end when Queen's sub Adam Coakley slotted past Artur Boruc to make it 2-1. It's hard to believe we were relegated that year.

I had a few hopes as I paid my £15 at the turnstile, namely, avoid losing an early goal, play as well as we can do, avoid a thrashing and perhaps sneak a replay or even better. I've seen Queen's play Motherwell twice in the League Cup, both resulting in 3-0 defeats. We were due a break surely.

Above: taking a photo of yourself is hellish. The club crest is (temporarily) tatooed on my right cheek.

With one of my old university acquaintances, fellow lawyer Kevin Clancy, officiating, we kicked off. We kept it tight for a whole 90 seconds before Motherwell had their first chance, attacking towards the away support. As Arthur Montford used to say, a bit of a stramash and we breathed again. Not for long as, after 6 minutes, Omar Daley somehow overcame being sandwiched by two Queen's defenders in the penalty area and fired a shot in off keeper Neil Parry's right hand post. I looked at Clancy hoping for a free kick. Sadly not. It looked like a long afternoon ahead. Early goal lost. Hope number one off the list.

I might as well run through the other goals. In 21 minutes, Jamie Murphy gathered the ball outside the penalty area. "He's aiming for the top right hand corner" I thought. Sure enough, that's where he sent it. "Bread and butter save for our keeper" I also thought until it spun through his hands into the net. 2-0. Oh dear!

Above: second half, Queen's on the attack.

In 72 minutes, Motherwell attacked with pace. Chris Humphrey's cross was converted by Murphy to put the game beyond us then in the final minute, seconds after Jamie Longworth had ballooned an effort over the bar for us, Henrik Ojamaa side stepped Queen's defender Jamie Brough and sent a shot past Parry. 3-0 would have been okay. 4-0 stung a little bit.

The bare stats don't tell all. In reality, Queen's put up a very strong fight and the main difference between the teams was lethalness in front of goal. At 1-0, Queen's had a couple of opportunities and, at 2-0 until Motherwell got the third goal, enjoyed the bulk of possession and pressure. Numerous times, balls were played across goal crying out for a tap in. I've seen us create less chances in the Third Division. We were also very guilty of over elaboration, too many touches and passes when shooting opportunities arose. Overall though, I was pleased with what I witnessed. The following from The Herald's match report is a fair assessment of what I saw with my own eyes.

"the scoreline does not reflect the crispness of so much of the visitors' passing and movement. They sought to keep hold of the ball, to be constructive and ambitious, and some sharper instincts and technique in and around the penalty area would have caused the home side to be a bit more troubled. The visitors were 2-0 down at half time...but were the more composed, more resourceful side for much of the second half. Had Jamie Longworth's drive not been tipped round the post by Darren Randolph...or Ian Watt's effort not drifted wide, the dynamic of the game would have shifted even more in Queen's Park's favour."

Unfortunately our constructive and ambitious team are out the Cup for another year. Maybe in 2013, 120 years since we last lifted the trophy, it could be our turn again.

For now, it's Elgin in the league on Saturday at Hampden. Come along and see us for yourself.

Queen's Park team against Motherwell: Parry, McGinn, Meggatt, Little, Brough, Anderson, Watt, McBride (Gallacher), Smith (Daly), Longworth, Murray (Burns), Subs Not Used: Ronald, Strain (goalkeeper)



Beith Harriers 4.8 Mile New Year Road Race, 2nd January 2012

Firstly, Happy New Year. I kept fairly busy over the festive period running wise, doing the club Christmas Handicap the day after the Turkey Trot. I was cruelly handicapped to the tune of 6 and a half minutes compared to the first runner so while running the fastest time overall for the 2.3 mile course (11:15), finished in 13th place, 42 seconds adrift of the winner, Dave Thom. Fix! All good fun. The rest of the week looked like this:-

Wednesday 28th: 10 miles easy (1:06:01)- back at work for a day, run afterwards.

Thursday 29th: 10 x hill reps, High Point, running hard off top, 8 miles approx including warm up and warm down- usual Thursday hills.

Friday 30th: 2 miles easy (13:13)- originally a rest day but having a lamb Madras at the club curry night made me feel like a run.

Saturday 31st: Track, 10 x 600m plus 2 x 200m, all with 200m walk/slow jog recoveries, 8.2 miles including warm up and warm down.

600s- 1 in 1:45, rest in 1:47-1:48

200s- 32 secs, 33 secs

Not been on the track in December due to weather conditions. Ideal chance. Windy back straight.

Sunday 1st January: 15 miles easy, Windfarm run (1:42:38)- cold and windy, trying to forget the Rihanna/Kylie/Lady Gaga tribute act from the night before.

All that gave me 56 miles for the week. It's fair to say I wasn't feeling totally fresh come Monday but I like this race and was going no matter what. I'd only have been doing a session on the road anyway.

After last year's mini tour of Ayrshire, I took the road to Glasgow Airport and, wait for it, got to Kilbirnie first time. Once there though, I forgot where Glengarnock Rugby Club was and got directions from the local police station. Crisis averted, I was soon there shivering in a bitterly cold wind. In terms of Cambuslang runners, I had Stephen Wylie for company. None of last year's Inverclyde trio had shown, Chris Mackay, Mark Pollard or Craig Ruddy.

As a refresh, the route is simple. One lap of Glengarnock Industrial Estate. 1.2 miles, run 4 times. I began by gradually pulling away from a disappointingly sparce field of 52 runners, turning straight into a headwind and cold rain. Ouch. Unfortunately it looked like I would have all the work to do alone and so it proved. I came up with a tactic of running as hard and fast as possible when the wind was in my favour and grinning and bearing it when it wasn't. I didn't bother with split times, instead, focusing on running at as high a tempo as possible. By the third lap, the rain had stopped and I was lapping runners. The wind stayed as strong as ever. I did think I would be struggling to match my previous time of 22:55. Nevertheless, I kept the tempo up to the finish, coming through in a winning time of 23:55. Behind me Iain Connell (Kilmarnock Harriers) clocked a good 25:03 for runners up spot, edging out Stephen Wylie by 8 seconds. Ladies winner Kara Tait was 40 seconds down on her previous time. With me a minute worse off, a sure indicator of less than ideal conditions.

After a warm down with Stephen Wylie, I had time for a quick shower before the post race grub and prize giving to receive the McLuckie Trophy and a bottle of wine from race organiser Susan McIsaac of Beith Harriers. There's a few well known names on the trophy- Lachie and Glen Stewart, Tommy Murray (1986, 1990 and 2001), Gordon Rimmer (1981), Laurie Spence and from more recently, Mark Pollard, Jamie Reid, David Millar, Chris Mackay and Ross Toole. Additional spot prizes ensured most of those present went home with something from this great wee race.

Above: with the spoils prior to driving home.

Speaking about two indoor 5000m performances, Charlie Spedding describes one as a Harvard performance and the other as a Tyne Tunnell performance. This compared one winter when he was churning out good track sessions at Harvard University's track and the next back in the UK training in the Tyne Tunnell to avoid the freezing weather. Applying this logic, I'd consider this year's run more a Tyne Tunnell one than Harvard. It didn't flow well and it wasn't fluent but got a good result. Next stop, the Alsager 5 on 5th February with no disco diva tribute acts in the build up.

Finally, a brief step on my soap box to start the year. Courtesy of former member Gordon Rimmer, here are some Cambuslang results from the 1980 race (4.5 miles).

2nd: G. Rimmer, 22:47
4th: S. Rimmer, 23:17
5th: E. Stewart, 23:51
13th: D. McAuley, 24:27
17th: D. Cooney, 24:55

Gordon Rimmer was a UK international steeplechaser yet couldn't win the race in 1980 (he did in 1981). In my 4 appearances at this race, it has saddened me to see it so poorly supported. If it was good enough for the calibre of runner mentioned in this post, it should be for today's generation as well. A hit rate of 800-900 per month indicates there are enough people reading this. £3 (£5 if a non-Scottish Athletics member), provides a good, hard workout followed by a feed and a social afterwards. Races like this are the lifeblood of the sport and will die out without support. Spread the word. I will be posting reminders nearer the time.

See you on the start line at Glengarnock on 2nd January 2013.

2011- My Year in Running

2011 Statistics

This is my 2011 in words and numbers.

Races (including Parkruns)- 37, constituted thus:-

Road- 15

Track- 13

Cross Country- 9

1st places- 7
2nd places- 7
3rd places- 3

Clubs/Regions/Nations Represented:-

Ronhill Cambuslang Harriers- 28

Whitemoss- 5

West of Scotland- 2 (UK Inter Counties Cross Country Championships and BUPA Great Edinburgh 10k)
West Coast- 1 (Scottish Inter Regional Championships)
Scotland- 1 (Home Countries Cross Country Championships)

Personal or Course Bests Set- 13 (not including courses or races run for the first time)

Championship Results:-

Scottish West District Cross Country Championships 2010/11 race (9.6km)- 31:02, 4th place, individual bronze (senior) and team silver

Scottish 4km Cross Country Championships 2010/11 race- 12:15, 8th place, 4th placed team
Scottish National Cross Country Championships (12km)- 40:21, 9th place, team bronze
UK Inter Counties Cross Country Championships (12km approx)- 38:22, 63rd place, team silver
Home Countries Cross Country International (10.8km)- 35:36, 10th place, 2nd Scot and 2nd team behind England

Scottish Senior Track and Field Championships- 5000m, 15:17.91, 10th place
Scottish Inter Regional Championships- 5000m, 15:20.27, 4th place
Scottish Inter District 10km Championships (BUPA Great Edinburgh 10k)- 31:07, 12th place, 3rd Scot and 2nd team

Scottish West District Cross Country Relay Championships (4km)- 12:38, team silver

Scottish National Cross Country Relay Championships (4km)- 13:28, 4th placed team

Scottish 4km Cross Country Championships 2011/12 race- 13:04, 14th place, team bronze
North of England 10 Mile Championships (Brampton to Carlisle)- 50:42, 2nd place (ineligible for a medal)
Scottish West District Cross Country Championships 2011/12 race (9.6km)- 31:14, 7th place, team silver

Other Achievements

Scottish Mens League Division 2 Track Athlete of the Season
Scottish Mens League Division 2 Track Athlete of the Match, 21st May 2011

Longest Race- 10 miles

Shortest Race- 800m

Worst Race- there's been a few. I'm not the biggest Parkrun fan. So far this winter, I've had one or two slightly below par runs in the relays plus the 4km championship due to asthma induced breathing difficulties which thankfully a visit to the GP has sorted out. To pick one race though, the Sunderland City 10k, run in a heatwave. First 5km in 15:31, second 5km in 17:04. Painful from beginning to end. I'd been losing enthusiasm for a while. This performance was in the post.

Best Race- Bristol 10k brought a huge new 10k personal best (30:41). However, for the result achieved, it's the UK Inter Counties Cross Country in Birmingham. I still look at my team silver medal and wonder how on earth I got it.

Most Enjoyable Race- races with a good social side are the best ones. Probably a toss up between the Bella Belter 10k and Brampton to Carlisle. The former brought nothing more for winning than some food, drink and chat. Prizes aren't always necessary. The latter was a great day out in good company. Running well too does no harm.

Summary- the year can be broken into 4 parts.

1. January- March: a series of big races and achievements- West District, National 4km, Armagh, National, Inter Counties and Home Countries- with success all the way.

2. April- July: summer with one or two bright spots on road and track. Overall however, started the summer flat and never really got going with a combination of winter tiredness and one or two wee issues outside running, all of which combined to drain all my zest and enthusiasm. Ended up overtraining in late June/early July resulting in a knackered run in the Scottish 5000m. By my summer holiday in mid-July, I had lost all interest in running. I used the 10 days away to work out a way to recover it.

3. August- returned from holiday with a bit of appetite back. Wrote off the rest of the summer and ran for fun. Won the Dundonald and Bella Belter 10ks in the one week to restore some confidence, my first race wins all year. Had a poor run in the Inter Regional 5000m which I was very angry about. It was the kick start I needed to get my act together. I set out a training plan with the Round Cumbrae Road Race the target.

4. September- December- won the Cumbrae Race in hellish conditions, more importantly, taking two good scalps in Conor McNulty and Michael Deason. Felt good about getting a call up for the BUPA Great Edinburgh 10k and fully redeemed after running a strong race, Andrew Lemoncello and John Newsom being the only 2 Scots crossing the line before me. Cambuslang club captaincy has brought a sense of self responsibility and helped me keep a focus. Some medals in the relays and West District and a couple of wins, in a Parkrun and at Ayr, helped end a difficult year on a positive note.

Looking back at my 2010 summary, I can't believe some of the steps forward taken. Health and fitness permitting, I go into 2012 with a clear idea of what I want to achieve, short and long term, and how I want to go about it. Fingers crossed.

Ayr Turkey Trot 10k, 26th December 2011

As a footnote to my last post, I reached Christmas Day 4 miles short of a 50 mile training week. In the 18 years since I first ran at primary school, I have never run on Christmas Day, until now. I thought about another jog after the Queen's game but I'd had a pint then a pie and bovril before the game. Nothing else for it. I had an early night on Christmas Eve and crept out the house at 8am for a run in a howling gale. 27 and a half minutes and just over 4 miles later I tip toed back to bed until everyone else surfaced none the wiser. I need to get a place of my own soon! Starting in the dark and ending in daylight was a new experience. Apart from a solitary dog walker, I encountered no-one.

My Parkrun put me 4th on the Pollok Park all time list for a mere 24 hours. Unknown to me, while I opened my Christmas presents and hid my washing from my mother, Luke Traynor was blitzing round the Christmas Day event 7 seconds quicker than me. I enjoyed the rest of the day oblivious to it.

Cambuslang's race now being in March, I had pencilled in the Ayr Turkey Trot 10k on Boxing Day as, I confess, a "pot hunting" opportunity. A 12 noon start gave me just enough time to be sufficiently sober to drive. After my obligatory wrong turning on route, I arrived at a rather blustery coastline with half an hour to spare. After some brief hellos with, from memory, Kirsty (Marcathon day 26), Gavin Harvie (I'm still owed that bacon roll), Scott Martin, Claire McArthur and Kerry Wilson, I took up a place on the start line.

I took an early lead which was quite short lived as the galeforce wind cut me in half. Previous winner David McNamee then Kerry caught me up and opened a 30-40m gap. I was also under pressure from behind since my heels kept getting clipped. Both Iain Connell of Kilmarnock Harriers and Irvine's Alex Allardyce crept up beside me. All the runners around me were stockier and handling the wind well. I felt drastic. I found enough strength to pull clear into 3rd and now had to find a way to catch the leading two.

Above: the first 3km direct into a galeforce wind, entering the festive spirit kitted in red and white. Photo courtesy of Kerry Wilson (pictured on the right). 

As we moved along the promenade, I attempted to run in David and Kerry's slipstreams, tracking every step they took. With sprinting impossible in the wind, I tried to lengthen the stride, lift the knees and work my arms more. Exaggerating my normal style really. By the end of the promenade, I had grinded my way up and was still 3rd but on their shoulders. The course then turned inland away from the wind, 20-30m before the 3km mark. I injected a surge of pace to take the lead. It hurt me but I hoped it would have a more adverse effect on them. I could sense David at my back because I could hear his number flapping in the wind.

From there, I tried to make the most of less windy conditions. I didn't need to look round to know David was still pursuing me. A 5km split of 17:18 shows how treacherous it had been on the coast. We were by no means out the wind but I did feel a bit more at ease and piled the effort in. The last 3km is back along the seafront in reverse. To get there, you pass the rest of the field. I got a few shouts. I needed them.

Wind now in my favour, I really went for it. I told myself, provided I ran no slower than David, I would win. 8km (5 miles approx) in 26:42 so 9:24 for the previous 3km. A definite pick up in pace. I found another opponent in the sea waves which crashed over the wall to give me a cool down I neither wanted nor needed. Prompted by a wee shout from Suzanne McMahon, I held on to finish a relieved and jaded winner with a time of 32:32. The second 5km took me 15:15 and the final 2km, 5:50. As the Broons say in this year's annual, "Jings." It had been very hard work.

David McNamee crossed the line in 33:14 and Kerry 3rd in 33:38. Sarah Hood (Edinburgh AC), who I did a short warm down with, was the winning lady in an impressive 36:12 following up a 34 minute clocking in Telford in no doubt kinder weather. Louise Hill Stirling (Ayr Seaforth) and Claire McArthur (no club) filled the next two spots. Kirsty battled through in 49 minutes with a spectacular 3 minute improvement in the second 5km (23 minutes) from the first (26 minutes). Her parents had travelled through from nearby Maybole. I'd met them once in less happy circumstances when Kirsty was in hospital. It was nice to be re-acquainted. I had heard an unfamiliar shout and wondered who it was. Many thanks Mr and Mrs Grant.

Another notable performance came from a man with itchy feet, Ian Goudie, who wasn't content with one race and ran both the 5km and 10km. He was non-committal on the question of running both the Hogmanay and New Year Day Parkruns. In addition, Toni McIntosh clocked a 22 minute 5km as she recuperates from injury and surgery. Fingers crossed she returns to her former glory soon.

I hung around for the post-race grub and such was the time the presentation took to start, enjoyed quite a long chat with Kilmarnock's Scott Martin about running and our respective football teams. £40 and a Ayr Turkey Trot mug was worth the wait. Next stop, Kilbirnie with the McLuckie Cup at stake.

Christmas Eve- Parkrun and Footie

Christmas week saw the continuation of a hectic period at work, earning running the role of light relief. With Christmas Day on a Sunday, my plan was to train straight through to Saturday then take Sunday off before the Ayr Turkey Trot 10k on Boxing Day. Training up to and including Friday looked like this:-

Monday: Road, 10 x 2 mins with 1 min jog recoveries, 8.5 miles including warm up and warm down.

Tuesday: Club, Hampden run in reverse, 7.8 miles (46:47)

Wednesday: Tempo, 5km steady (19:24), 5km tempo (17:41), 1 mile warm down, 7.2 miles (43:39)

Thursday: 10 x hill reps, High Point, running hard off the top, 8 miles approx including warm up and warm down.

Friday: 10.2 miles easy (1:07:33)

Being stuck for a session on Christmas Eve, I made an impromptu decision to run the Glasgow Parkrun at Pollok Park for the first time since May. No major races in the immediate future so why not? I've learned to manage my expectations at Parkruns so decided to aim to run at a good tempo without worrying about time. Kirsty had shown up too and after exchanging best wishes I lined up with my brain awake but my body still in bed. I had enough time to exchange pleasantries with Parkrun regular Ian Goudie before being set on our way.

I put in an early surge of pace to wake my body up then settled down. I had Stephen Trainer of Greenock Glenpark for company. I hoped to use the hills to my advantage. I'd probably taken all the wrong turnings possible on previous Parkruns so felt able to take the lead with confidence. With a 10 mile run in my legs from 15 hours earlier, it was feeling like hard work. I felt the hill which rounded off the first lap. I then came to a path which gave a choice of left or right. Knowing left was the wrong direction having gone that way on a previous visit, it left one logical option and I carried on right into the second lap. Trainer was close enough that I couldn't ease off and I kept the effort level constant to the finish.

I was gobsmacked with my time of 15:29. 20 seconds quicker than my previous best at Pollok. 14 seconds faster than the Strathclyde event in September.  It did not feel as quick as that. Trainer was hot on my heels in exactly 16 minutes. After handing in my result barcode, I met Dave Thom who had also clocked an unexpectedly quick time. 18:09 represented his fastest of the year. He got within 4 seconds of it the next morning when he returned for the Christmas Day event. Kirsty got to within 6 seconds of her course best with 23:39. She is participating in some bonkers challenge called "Marcathon" which involves running for at least 25 minutes or 3 miles every day in December. This ticked off day 24 of 31. Fellow Marcathon participant Ian Goudie was only narrowly ahead, also clocking in the 23s.

By the time I had warmed down, Kirsty had handed in her own barcode and offered me a scone and a hot drink in the Burrell Cafe. I was in no great hurry and in a happy mood so accepted and relaxed for a wee half hour with a caramel cake and coffee chatting to various Parkrunners including regular blog reader Suzanne McMahon (hello if you're reading) and doing my best to answer questions such as "how did you go so fast?" I'm on the tab for Kirsty at the Burrell next time.

In the afternoon, Queen's Park were playing on Christmas Eve for the first time since 1988. Back then, Queen's defeated Arbroath 2-0 at Hampden with goals from Crooks and O'Brien. Current Cambuslang Harriers coach Michael Hendry started the game for Queen's that day. The Third Division's bottom side East Stirling provided the opposition at a wet, blustery Hampden before a crowd of 502. Queen's enjoyed the best of the play and a goal duly arrived when Longworth played Smith through on goal. Shire keeper Antell blocked his effort with the rebound pounced on by Ian Watt. 1-0 Queen's at half time. It was then very nearly a merrier Christmas as my Dad was one digit away from scooping over £100 in the half time draw.

Above: Queen's Park v East Stirling. Queen's (black and white) prepare to defend a corner.

Above: keeping warm at half time.

Queen's continued to keep control in the second half. Antell was having a great game in the Shire goal. You're never relaxed though with only one goal. A second finally came when Smith was played through again, this time by Anderson. His shot deflected off a defender, into the air above Antell's head and over the line.

Any time I've seen Queen's win this year, it's been with some conviction. This was no different. Shire substitute Lurinsky was presented with a late chance which Queen's keeper Parry blocked to keep his goal intact and leave the away side crying into their turkey.

The result puts Queen's into 4th, a play off spot. Touch wood, we're looking in decent shape for the trip to Fir Park to face Motherwell in the Scottish Cup on 7th January.

Queen's Park team: Parry, McGinn, Little, Brough, Meggat (Burns, sub in 87 mins), McBride (Gallagher, sub in 31 mins), Longworth, Anderson, Watt, Smith (Daly, sub in 87 mins), Murray, Subs not used: Strain (goalkeeper), Ronald.

Bits and Bobs, Including a Sunday Epic

Firstly, a correction to my last post. Cambuslang's under 17 men in fact won team silver rather than team bronze at the West District Cross Country. Thanks to medal winning team member Stuart Roe for pointing this out.

Secondly, I've had another version of a Brampton to Carlisle photo diverted my way by Steve Angus of http://www.athletesinaction.co.uk/ for directing some people to his site from here. It's a cropped version of me at 3 miles with a lesser watermark so a closer view of my ugly, make up clad mug.

Finally, as I write, I'm recuperating from doing 30 miles, over half my average weekly mileage, in 2 days. Tonight's road session of 10 x 2 minutes with 1 minute jog recoveries (8.5 miles including warm up and warm down, East Kilbride track still having traces of ice), was preceded yesterday by an experimental long run. I had decided at some point this winter when there were no big races in the immediate future to experiment with a 20 mile run to see how I coped. Viewing the Ayr Turkey Trot 10k on Boxing Day as a medium sized race, I devised a route after a couple of pints on Saturday night and at 11.50am on Sunday set off with a drinks bottle full of Lucozade, my house key and a packet of Fruit Pastilles, wrapped up in a hat, gloves, two layers...and shorts.

From the back gate, the first 2.5 miles took me to East Kilbride's Holiday Inn. From there, it was along the road then right into the country roads to Carmunnock then Castlemilk where one local encouraged me to "get my knees up." I held my tongue, took his pearls of wisdom on board and carried on over the brow of the hill past Kings Park then Hampden into the Gorbals area of Glasgow. Between 8 and 9 miles done.

I couldn't believe I'd dared run into Glasgow with no means of getting home other than my two feet. However, my Gran lives in the area so if I was really in trouble, at least I had somewhere to go. Maybe the bus fare would have been an idea though. I was really enjoying myself and feeling stronger as I crossed the bridge over the River Clyde past the Gala Casino towards the St Enoch Centre. The aim was to turn back at 10 miles. I reached that landmark at Marks and Spencers on Argyle Street after 65 minutes of running. I zig zagged along Argyle Street through the Christmas shoppers then turned left at Pizza Hut towards home.

Sooking pastilles on route seemed to keep up my energy levels. Looking at my reflection in shop windows and bus shelters kept me amused. Apart from spitting a pastille out accidentally sprinting across a road at the O2 Academy, eating on the run was without incident. My beer inspired route took me to Queen's Park, Mount Florida, Clarkston, Busby, back to the Holiday Inn then along the 2.5 mile route I started with, returning to my back gate at 2.10pm. The run was longer than expected, 21.5 miles, and took me 2:20:42. The pace stayed consistent since I went through 20 miles in 2:10:18. I'd have broken my marathon personal best by 18 minutes had I carried on without slowing down.

Overall, this was one of my barmier ideas but I felt brilliant after completing it. It became a slog from 18 miles on but I certainly didn't "hit the wall." Boy, did I have an appetite when I got back. Wait until I run it again with intervals.

West District Cross Country Championships, 10th December 2011

Despite a week of indifferent weather, this winter's West District Cross Country did not suffer cancellation, commencing on its scheduled date in December. The Royal Academy in Irvine again provided the setting for the second biggest cross country in the Scottish domestic calendar. I'd been down to the course 2 weeks before for a training session. I was joined on this excursion by club mate Kirsty Grant. Anything she says about my music taste is true. Anything relating to my driving is entirely without foundation.

I tapered down as planned in the week of the race having fulfilled my target of 4 weeks of 50 plus miles back to back with 52, 55, 55 and 53. Anyone desparately wanting to read my training, feel free to get in touch. By race day, my week's mileage, beginning on Monday, totalled 19.

I arrived on time to see the senior women race (6.4km) which I used to warm up by jogging to different bits of the course and check out the route. Keeping the tape to your right seemed to be the thing to do. Cambuslang had 3 runners in the field of 102, making history as our first ever full senior women team in this event. One aim as captain achieved. First year under 20 Katie Bristow ran very strongly throughout, finishing in an excellent 16th place and 6th under 20 behind some very capable runners. I didn't know anything about our second runner other than her name, Vicky Semple. She looked familiar though then I finally recognised her as one of the bar staff in our sports club. She was engaged in pretty much a race long battle among 3 Calderglen Harriers, Frances Maxwell, Karen Sturgeon and Joanne McEvoy, eventually beating all 3 of them to sneak into the top 50 in 49th. Kirsty meanwhile must have seen her life come full circle. The race not only marked her (ahem) 21st birthday but also took place in her town of birth. Considering her serious health problems this year (see my post on the Bella Belter 10k in August for more), watching Kirsty competing and holding her own was very humbling. She finished a competitive 84th, nowhere near the back of the field and well in touch with the main pack of runners. The 3 women earned Cambuslang 12th out of 19 teams.

After shouting on our women, it was time to practice what I preached. Sensible head today so no face paint. 18 Cambuslang runners took to the start line for the senior men race (9.6km). The course took a sharp, narrow left after about 100m so I ran hard from the starter's whistle through a sea of arms and legs to get there unhindered. Unlike the weather outside as I write this, the initial pace was hot. A group of 8 or so broke away going at a considerable lick. I was sprinting to stay on their coattails before realising I couldn't run this hard for 6 miles and, by implication, neither could they. I contented myself with the pace I was doing and got into my stride. Sure enough, barely halfway through the first of 3 laps of 2 miles each, I could see stragglers drop off. I passed Luke Traynor (Giffnock) early on who faded into the 20s. I saw David Vernon (VP City of Glasgow) and Tewoldeberhan Mengisteab (Shettleston) coming back to me.

In the first lap, Jack Hamilton, one of our under 20s, overtook me on the flat after a downhill. I initially muttered a four letter word as he did before giving myself a mental shake, digging deep and catching up. Jack has improved a lot and was having a great race. I came beside him and did something uncharacteristic- spoke during a race. I glanced at him and gasped "let's pull them in." He replied something like "eeugh" which I took to be agreement. Thereafter, all through the first lap into the second, we battled neck and neck, taking turns at having the edge, me tending to fall back any time I stepped on anything passing for mud. Don't get me wrong, we were racing but also helping each other. During the second lap, we caught and passed David Vernon who immediately withdrew from the race, clearly suffering for the folly of the early pace.

I was feeling relatively strong as we came to the sharp right turn leading into the final lap. Andrew Douglas (Inverclyde) was running a blinder, well on his way to winning ahead of club mates Craig Ruddy and Mark Pollard. Taking the turn, Jack and I closed in on and overtook a totally spent Mengisteab and forged on in 5th and 6th respectively. This wasn't for too long though as another Shettleston man, Michael Gillespie, came by us. I couldn't believe he had been behind me for two thirds of the race. For a spell it was a group of 4, Jack, myself, Mengisteab and Gillespie. Mengisteab gradually dropped off and eventually withdrew while Gillespie created some daylight for himself. With 4th placed Lachlan Oates (Shettleston) further in the distance, Jack and I had a straight shootout for first Cambuslang finisher. I tried everything to shake him off- taking advantage of the firmer parts of the course, even surging up the hills. Anything I gained uphill, he reclaimed downhill.

Eventually, on the final hill, I moved ahead and, encouraged by Colin Feechan, "let myself go" on the descent. So did Jack with more success than me. On a flat stretch, he had the advantage. Coming into the home straight, I decided to show I can sprint as well and stole a yard with 100-150m to go. The course was totally ploughed up here though. I stepped on a thick piece of mud and my feet slid sideways as I pushed my upper body forward. Jack found a firmer course, grabbed his moment and pushed on to go through the finish funnel 6th in 31:12. I got there 7th, 2 seconds later. Michael Gillespie took 5th place 5 seconds ahead of me. Douglas, Ruddy, Pollard and Oates took the first 4 places.

Jack received just reward for his run with an under 20 silver medal and team silver. Myself, Iain McCorquodale (11th), Robert Gilroy (17th), Jamie Reid (18th) and Kerry Wilson (19th) were our other counters. Kerry was also second veteran and part of our medal winning veteran team. We had numerous course and personal improvements throughout our senior male ranks, e.g. Gordon Robertson, Scott Hunter. Plenty to build on.

The day was a success for Cambuslang as a whole with our under 13 boys and under 17 men winning team bronzes and our under 13 girls and under 15 boys and girls just missing medals  in 4th. Overall, I'm satisfied with my own efforts. Lots of athletes have upped their games. I need to find a way of matching them. As Jack has shown, sometimes the big threat comes from your own club.

Above: silver medal winning team, left to right- Iain McCorquodale, Jamie Reid, Kerry Wilson, myself, Jack Hamilton.

As a footnote, Gavin Harvie (Kirkintilloch Olympians) bet me a bacon roll he would beat me, a bet he lost spectacularly. Make it a square sausage and we'll call it quits.