Well I ran some of it, the South 1 leg of the Around Arran Relays held on Sat July 25. I was part of one of three Bellahouston Road Runners teams that took part in the Isle of Arran race organised by Irvine AC. The leg, which was approximately 7.5 miles long, started at Blackwaterfoot and finished at the Lagg Hotel. The leg started with an uphill section from the harbour over the hills for approximately three miles before levelling off, dropping down at five miles and being undulating until about seven miles and then a sharp downhill section took us to the leg finish. The sun was scorching and the hills were more than a little testing but I managed to keep going, though I did have to continuously wipe or wash the sweat from burning my eyes. I'm so glad that a couple of locals had decided to provide cups of water to those running my leg.
It was extremely difficult but also a great occasion. There were 23 teams and I finished in 8th place, in a time of 55:50, ahead of the other two Bella teams but behind two of the three Killie teams.
Bella Belles won the Women's Race for at least the fourth year in succession, despite having a completely different team from last year. The event organisers, with a little help from their Arran friends, deserve huge congratulations for not only organising the race but also for transporting some 140 racers and officials to the four starting points around the island in time for the start of their legs and also for providing such a hearty spread of post race food and drinks. A special mention is due for those who took the time and effort to provide water stations to the runners as they struggled up some of the islands testing hills in the scorching heat.
Full Results: http://www.irvineac.co.uk/Seniors/Round%20Arran09.xls
It had been about 25 years since my last visit to Arran, when I participated in the recent Half Marathon and now a few weeks later I found myself back. The Half had also started at Blackwaterfoot but had headed north, along the same route as the North 1 leg of the relay. If I manage a different leg every year I should be able to run around the entire island by 2013.
