Great Times at Greenock parkrun

The Start of the first Greenock parkrun

Another week, another new parkrun, as Greenock became the latest member of the weekly, free, 5k event. Despite still feeling a bit stiff and sore, I couldn't resist the opportunity to participate in, what would be, my ninth different Scottish parkrun. The weather looked at bit ominous, as did the forecast, as we set off down the M8, to what has been described as the UK's western most parkrun. Although this would be a new race, I know part of the course quite well, from  the Renfrewshire AAA 5mile championship, which starts and finishes with a lap and a half of Battery Park before running along the esplanade and back. Everytime I've ran the race, conditions have been testing, with the wind and the rain ensuring that what, on paper, shoud be quite an easy event, is in fact always somewhat arduous. The Greenock parkrun, would not be conforming with tradition by being held in a park but would be along the afore mentioned esplanade.

Other weel kent faces from the, ever expanding, Scottish parkrun family and a small posse of Bellahouston Harriers, had also made their way to the birthplace of James Watt for the birth of Scotland's 14^th parkrun.

After a warm up, I joined in with the other 109 runners, including some from both local clubs: Greenock Glenpark Harriers and Inverclyde AC, to be warmly welcomed by Race Director, Jo McGrattan. Jo thanked a number of individuals and companies who had made the event a reality and then revealed that the course was a little more complicated than the flat out-and-back route that I had hoped for.

Sub 21min Running

By 9:30am the weather had cleared and, in almost perfect conditions, we set set off from the Campbell Street end of the Esplanade, heading west towards the Boat Club. Garmin revealed that the 1^st k had taken me 4:07 and for a second I held those runners, already well in front of me in awe, recognising that some of them would be completing the course in less than 18mins, before returning my concentration to the task in hand. With local runner, Alan O'Rourke, on my shoulder, I upped the pace to get a better turn around the Marshal, standing just before the Boat House. Now heading eastwards, with the sea to our left, both Alan and I received shouts of encouragement from some of the runners, making their way westwards, the sprinkling of supporters and Marshals. By the time we reached the large yellow beacon pole, Alan had seized the lead over me, I had hoped to catch him after we turned, just after the half way point, and started heading back towards the Boat Club, but it took all of my effort to stick close behind him. In fact my pace had slowed to 4:17min/k.  Back around the Marshal and it was a straight forward 1.5k to the Finish. I was working hard to maintain my pace but I could sense that Alan was tiring and with just over half a kilometer to go, I made my move and set off trying to catch the group of three runners ahead.  A final 3:58 min/k took me across the line just behind them, I was delighted with my race, placing 24^th, in a time of 20:56, continuing the progress that I've been making, since returning to full training.  My wava was 74.04%, my highest ever for a parkrun :-)

After the usual post race, exchange of congratulations, I completed my warm down before heading to Lorna's Tearoom, where I advised the owner that his quiet premises had struck gold and was just about to receive an upturn in business, not just this week but every Saturday for the foreseeable future. That said, he might need to hire additional staff and extend his premises to cope with the numbers. Birthday girl Susan Clark might be able to help.......

Race Results

Upfront, Greenock Glenpark's Steven Campbell had entered the record books by placing first in a time of 16:53. with Central's Alan Hume, some 30seconds behind him and Inverclyde's Duncan MacFadyen a further 32seconds behind, in 17:55.

Inverclyde's Rachael Bushfield became the first woman winner, recording a time of 19:32 and placing 12^th overall. Glenpark's Lorna Coyle earned silver with a time of 21:54 (30^th overall) and her club mate, Lynne Rodgers placed 3^rd woman (33^rd overall) with a time of 22:13.

Congratulations to my fellow Bellahouston Harriers who all did well.

Full Results

Many thanks to all concerned in putting on the race which, with its gorgeous views and PB potential, will undoubtedly be a welcome addition to the parkrun family.

Glasgow Women's 10k 2014

I had the pleasure of supporting and taking photographs of the Glasgow Women's 10k on Sunday, it was a lovely day but unfortunately I couldn't stay as long as I would have liked. There were some great performances and hopefully I've captured some memories of the race for you.

Oban born, Susan Partridge and Doodhamer, Hayley Haining, both marked there recent selection for the Scottish team for the Commonwealth Games Marathon by leading the almost 7,000 runners from the start, with Leeds based Susan romping home in a time of 33mins 53secs, with runner-up Hayley leading home a pack of Kilbarchan AAC runners in a time of 35mins 21secs, followed home by Elspeth Curran in 3rd place in 35:39 and Gemma Rankin in 36:00.


Link to my photos

Full results

Springburn parkrun and Ayrshire's Favourite Sons

Pre Race Mingling at Springburn

Saturday 10^th May witnessed the birth of the latest edition to the parkrun familly in Scotland and despite still being sore, tired and stiff from Wednesday's effort at Troon, I made my way to the North of Glasgow for the inaugural Springburn parkrun.

Sir James Reid

I tried a wee warm up, which only proved that I was even stiffer than I had thought and that on top of that my back was sore, so I knew that there wouldn't be any records broken today. That said, with it being a new race, I was guaranteed a Course Best. I made my way to the assemble area beside the statue of Sir Jame Reid, the Kilmaurs' man, who had gifted the park to the community in 1892. The statue had been paid for by a fund set up by the 'St Rollox and Springburn Express' to honour the former blacksmith's assistant who by 1876, had rose to become the sole partner in Europe's largest locomotive manufacturing company, Neilson, Reid & Co. of the Hyde Park Locomotive Works in Springburn. As well as the park itself, Reid had also donated the bandstand, Winter Gardens and New Mosesfield House, which all formed the backdrop to Glasgow's newest and highest parkrun. 

I chatted with numerous running buddies as some 138 of us congregated under the 1903 statue of the Ayrshire born engineer to hear John Owens and his team of volunteers warmly welcome us and describe the course. I may have been at a slight advantage, having helped test the route previously, but I'm not sure it helped too much as we made our way around the two plus lap course, with it's slight undulations, sharp bends, mud and numerous deep puddles.

There would be no mad dash along the final strait today, instead I settled for dodging the potholes and was content enough to place 40^th with a time of 21:45 (tbc) and to chalk up my 138^th parkrun.

After a warm down, I took the old body home for brunch and to listen to Kilmarnock succesfully avoiding the dreaded play offs by beating Hibernian 0-1, with a goal by Kris Boyd.  I wonder if there'll ever be a statue erected for Ayrshire's finest ever goal scorer.  

Full results (to follow)

No Tortoise at Troon

With helping Maggie to train for the Women's 10k race, I had almost forgotten that I had the challenge of the Troon 10k to prepare for. A quick look at my records reminded me that my last 10k was in Ayr on Boxing Day 2013, when I had worked hard to achieve a time of 44:42. I'm running a bit better now and I was confident of beating that, so I calculated that a pace of 4:24min/k would get me a decent time of 44 minutes.

Pic by Ayr Advertiser

After a warm up, which demonstrated just how difficult the last kilometre, into a strong head wind, would be, I joined into the 45min wave of the 29^th Troon 10k. I chatted with a number of friends before we made our way over the timing mat at the Race Start and along the promenade. ^st k, perhaps a bit faster than planned but I knew that there would be some tougher kilometres ahead. As the route took us along Craigend Road, I found myself runnng shoulder to shoulder with Henry Merryweather, as we caught first John Cunningham and then Angela Carson. The 2^nd k had taken 4:25 and the 3^rd 4:23, exactly on target. Unfortunately I couldn't keep up with Henry but it wasn't long until his fellow Road Runner, Shona Donnelly took his place. I was surprised, as I had assumed that she would have been ahead of me.
The wind was behind us and I found myself running quite fast, however it wasn't that long until we lost the benefit of the tail wind and the wide promenade became a much narrower, puddle strewn, path. Soon after Gamin bleeped to inform me that I had taken 4:08 fot the 1st Kilometre.

I could just about see another Bellahouston Harrier's vest in the distance but I didn't know who it was, however as I met Shona step for step we closed the gap until I could see that it was Bellahouston Harrier's President Erica Christie that was ahead. The 4^th k had taken 4:20 and the 5^th 4:21, as we approached the water station, I managed to catch Erica but as I was struggling a little with a dry throat, I decided to grab a cup of water, and both Erica and Shona took the opportunity to pass me. It wasn't long though until I was back in front, the 6^th k taking 4:25. Erica showed the mental and physical strength that has made her such a succesful runner over the years and we played leap frog a few times before I settled in behind her and Shona.

The Route

The 7^th k had taken 4:21 but I was tiring and I was kind of glad to let the two women take a turn of doing the hard work. I had never beaten Shona and I was pleased to be so close to the two of them in the latter stage of the race. However there were a couple of other runners in the pack, including Ayr's Gael Riddle, and I was in danger of losing touch with them. I had heard a number of people shouting my name and this helped to spur me on. We were now battling against the wind but I approached the hill, just before the 8k mark, with confidence and I managed to recapture the lead once again. The 8^th k had been my slowest, taken 4:28 minutes.

As we reached the 8k point, Shona made her break and shot off, opening up a gap on the rest of the pack. I tried to keep as close to her as possible and assumed that we had, at last, lost Erica but at the 9k mark, as I made my way back along the narrowish path towards the promenade, she came busting through on inside, leaving me in her trail as she succesfully chased after Shona. The 9^th k had taken me 4:25 and I was still confident of reaching my target.

Battle of the Bellas in the Final Strait

I could hear the Bellahouston Harrier's supporters shouting Erica on and congratulating her on her strong finish. The same supporters and others were soon shouting my name and somehow I found another gear and pulled a sprint finish out of the bag, giving it my all, I managed to catch Shona and Gael and one or two others before catching Erica just as she was about to cross the Finish line.

It took me a few metres over the line to slow down and I was delighted but shattered as I filled my lungs with air as I made my way along the finishers' funnel to receive my well deserved t-shirt and water. My Garmin had indicated a time of 43:15.9, which was well beyond my expectations, representing an average pace of 4:20.

It was great to chat with so many running friends and to compare and contrast our race experiences. As usual, some were happy and some were dissapointed, I was very much in the former camp. My legs were however starting to seize up and I decided to do a warm down, where I saw Sandra Hunter battling against the wind as she made her way along the final kilometre, I joined in with her, giving her encouragement to keep going and get the time which she was chasing.

The Goudie Crest, Tortoise and all!

I had placed 119^th out of 881 finishers and 2nd Male Vet 55, although my chip time of 43:16 wasn't a PB, it was a Course Best and a Season Best too, moreover it was my fastest 10k in three years and may well have been my best race ever, as I achieved my highest wava of all time  at 74.55%.

Many thanks to Troon Tortoises for putting on such a great event and to the supporters who braved the elements to cheer us around the course, although I may have been too focussed on my race to acknowledge many of the shouts, believe me, each and everyone of them was appreciated.

Full results here:  

Happy Times at Tollcross parkrun's Birthday

I couldn't resist the opportunity to join in the celebrations in the East of Glasgow to mark the first birthday of the Tollcross parkrun.  I had participated in the first event a year ago and had completed the hilly course in a time of 25:18. I had been happy with that, as it was part of my recovery plan, after being laid low with illness for around seven months.  It would take me more than six months before running the ten hills again and I was happy last November with a time of 23:14 followed by 23:20 in December.

Some 93 of us had took part in the inaugeral Tollcross parkrun and although the record turnout was 109, the average attendance is around 50-55 runners.  The birthday bash was to blast that record into smithereens as some 149 runners descended on the 5k race, including 47 first timers.

Off we go.......Pic by David Lockhart

After giving a hand to set up the impressive array of picnic donations, I made my way to the Start Line where, after the pre-race announcements Katy Smith set us off at 9:30am.  I had thought about coaching Maggie around the 10 hills but decide that it would be best or both of us to run our own races.  It wasn't long until I noticed Emma Kay pass me on her way to winning the women's race and a little later Rodger McEleney.  I know that Rodger's been racing well and decided that if I could keep him in sight, then I'd be doing OK.  Easier said than done as he steadily increased the gap as we ran up and down the hills around the course. I know that Rodger is usually a slow starter and finishes strong and although I decided to up the pace after 2 miles, I could see him, in the distance, overtaking other runners.  However I was feeling strong and I started working my way up the field catching a number of runners and closing the gap on Rodger, who, in my mind anyway, was showing signs of tiredness.  I kept to my task and managed to finish one place, and tn seconds behind him, with a time of 22:18.  I didn't realise it at the time but this was 56 seconds faster than my last outing and exactly 3mins faster than my time last year.

Pic from Tollcross parkrun facebook

A number of other runners benefited from the strong field, with some 46 others earning PBs, including regular winners Shaun Butler and Shaz Hakeem, who placed first and third respectively with times of 17:25 and 17:39, sandwiching first timer Stephen Allan (17:31).  Emma crossed the line with a PB of 21:07, placing 21st overall, with Bellahouston Harrier Kristina Greig giving her all to earn Silver, on her first attempt, with a time of 23:24 and Karen Foster placing 3rd woman, in 24:22.

As usual, I shared mutual congratulations with the other runners before cheering the remainder of the runners over the final strait.  Using the run as a training session for the forthcoming Women's 10k Maggie did fantastic and is well placed to reach her target time on Sunday.

Eventually we headed back to the Bandstand to have our barcodes scanned, before enjoying some of the variety of assorted sandwishes, pastries and cakes and congratulating the event's first annual point winners: 

Males
1st Davie King
2nd John McCluskey
3rd Martin Lademann

Females
1st Heather Angelopoulous
2nd Caroline Findlay
3rd Lesley McArdle

Who all received nice bright yellow Tollcross parkrun ‘King/Queen of the hills’ running buffs with a special  gift being presented to the Volunteer of the Year, Brian McLachlan.

Another great day being part of the Scottish running community, huge thanks toall concerned and in particular the core team who have performed a sterling job over the last 12 months and more. 

Full Results

David Lockhart's photos

Carcassonne – A Tale of Two Cities

Carcassonne has been on my list of 'to do' places since I first saw a picture of the massive medieval citadel sitting on a hill like something out of a fairytale. I wasn't surprised to hear that it was reputedly the inspiration for Walt Disney’s Sleeping Beauty. I was surprised, however, to discover how many of my friends and colleagues had never heard of Carcassonne, especially not only is it France’s second-most visited tourist spot after the Eiffel Tower but it's also one of the few places you can still fly direct to from Prestwick.

A two and a quarter hour, cheap flight, from Ayrshire to Southern France, a 5 euro bus trip to the railway station and a five minute walk, reminiscent of a scene from Kate Mosse's Labyrinth, took us to our apartment in Rue Barbes, just off of Place Carnot, where the Thursday market was taking place. We left our bags at the wine shop below the apartment and were soon exploring the market before sitting in the sun and enjoying our petit déjeuner.

Place Carnot

Place Carnot is not within the old Cite but in the 'new town' which sits below and over the river from its more famous sibling. Known as the ‘Bastide Saint Louis’, Carcassonne’s new town actually dates back to the Middle Ages. it features typically French bars, shops, cafés and restaurants as well as a few charming boutiques, several great places to eat and, being less aimed at the tourist market, is a great place to soak up the friendly, local, atmosphere and practice your French whilst enjoying an authentically gallic experience.

Rue de Trivalle

A short walk from Place Carnot takes you over a choice of old or new bridges over the Aude river, via the lovely Rue de Trivalle and uphill to 'La Cité', with its atmospheric cobbled streets, which was added to the UNESCO World Heritage list in 1997. Encompassing no less than 53 towers, strung together by two enormous concentric walls, surrounded by a moat punctuated by heavy barbicans, portcullis and draw-bridges.

Inside La Cite

Within these fairy-tale fortifications sits a castle, a basilica (church), and a small town with a few hotels and numerous restaurants, as well as unforgettable views of the Bastide to the west, the Aude and Canal du Midi to the north, and the often-snow-capped Pyrénées to the south.

Snow Capped Pyrénées

Like Edinburgh Castle and the Royal Mile, La Cite might be a bit too tweeie for some but combined with the, more authentic, Bastide and the Canal du Midi, provides more than enough variety for a great long weekend and of course some amazing photography opportunities.

Photos here: iangoudie.com