Christmas Crackers at Pollok Park

411 Xmas Day Runners at the Start - pic courtesy of Mary Senior

It's now six years since the first Glasgow parkrun Christmas event. In 2009 the 5k had to be run on an alternate, out and back route through the snow, ice and slush. Thirty hardy souls braved the winter weather and Luke Traynor and Toni McIntosh won the race, with times of 17:49 and 19:15 respectively, Toni placed second overall and Jim Buick placed third, in a time of 19:43. I made up the numbers, placing 15^th, with a time of 22:43. Only four of us have raced in every Glasgow/Pollok Christmas Day parkrun. Unfortunately Toni didn't make it this year but the remaining three of us were joined by an incredible 408 other runners.

After a sleepless night, I wasn't looking to chase a PB but checked my 2013 Christmas parkrun time, 22:39, and decided that this would be my target today.

The pre race announcements were much briefer than normal and we were sent off but not very fast, as the large numbers resulted in early congestion and those of us further back had to resort to walking a few steps. However it didn't take long for the field to open up. 

I spotted Mary Senior ahead of me, she's had a great couple of years, and I figured that if I could keep her in sight, I would do OK. Although the gap between us widened in the first half, I closed it a bit in the second half and in particular in the final kilometre.

Mary Senior sets the pace

 I was extremely pleased to discover that I had crossed the line in 65^th place (55^th man), with a time of 21:12, which was well below my target and was infact my fastest time at Pollok in over four years. 

The only downside was that I felt a ping in my groin at the half way stage, which worried me but didn't stop me from finishing the race, although it did put paid to any (slim) hopes I had of competing in the Ayr Turkey Trot - given that I didn't have a place.

Mary finished just six seconds off of her PB, with a time of 21:05, to place 60^th overall and 10^th woman.

Jim Buick, in a fancy dress outfit, placed 42^nd with a time of 19:05.

Ever present -Jim Buick

100 Club

Congratulations to Kenneth Wharton who ran his 100^th parkrun today, dressed as Santa!

Race Results

Men's Race

Six of the Best from Luke!

Giffnock North's Luke Traynor maintained his 100% Christmas record, winning the event in a time of 15:59, for the sixth time in a row! The runner up was recorded as “Unknown” (no barcode!) and Bellahouston Harrier Stuart MacDougall, earned Bronze for the second year in a row, with a time of 17:41.

Women's Race

Far travelled, Claire Somerton of Cambridge and Coleridge AC won the women's event, with a time of 18:26. Annabel Brown was runner up, with a PB 19:06 and Ruth Joss earned Bronze, with a time of 19:40.

Post Race

I exchanged Festive Greetings and mutual congratulations with various running buddies as I made my way back through the puddles to hand in my barcode. There was a wide and varied selection of cakes, mince pies, chocolates and assorted home baking accompanied by hot chocolate, coffee and tea provided by volunteers and runners alike, which added to the community spirit of the day. It all made for a great start to Christmas Day 2014. My thanks to everyone involved: runners, organisers, volunteers, photographers and supporters. Merry Christmas to one and all!

Full Results

Pics by Christopher Quinn here

Mistaken Identity Leads to PB at Victoria parkrun

Focussed Start.....

I ran my 11^th Victoria parkrun on Saturday 20^th December 2014 and I made sure that I got there in plenty of time this week. It was a bit chilly as I warmed up with Bellahouston Harrier club mates Paul Clawson and John Cunningham. A quick chat with a number of running buddies and I lined up with the other 166 runners for the 9:30am Start. 

 There were a few puddles but no ice this week as we made our way around the three lap course for the first time. It was a bit cluttered at points but I had a steady lap. I was just thinking that I would settle for beating my clubmate John, when he appeared on my shoulder. I instantly upped my pace to hold him off. I was working hard during the next lap and got a bit confused with how far was to go, a quick look at my Garmin, which said 2,77km, and I knew that I had another lap to go. In the final lap John overtook me but again I increased my pace and immediately reclaimed my lead. I continued to increase my pace hopng to build up a gap on him and started focussing more on those runners ahead of me. As I turned left, towards the Finish, I caught up with Garscube's Kieran McLaughlin, who promptly took up the challenge and we ran shoulder to shoulder until I outsprinted him in the final strait, to cross the line in 28^th place, with a time of 20:43. A PB by an amazing 10 seconds! Although the official result was 20:44, it didn't take any shine off of my performance. I placed my highest in the field ever at Victoria park and earned my highest wava of all time at 75.4%!

Look a Likes

The real John Cunningham

After I reclaimed some of my composure, I turned to see that it hadn't been John that was chasing me but Gary McLinton, who had the same vest, hat and girth as John! Gary finished in 32^nd place, with a time of 20:57, whilst the real John Cunningham still smashed his PB, crossing the line in 42^nd place, with a time of 21:24. 

Results

Up front, Paul was only three seconds off of his PB, placing 3^rd, with a time of 17:33. The winner, Del Young crossed the line in 17:12 and Sean Reid placed second in 17:27.

In the women's race, Sharon Muir took Gold, placing 13^th overall, in a time of 19:05. Making her debut, Bristol and West AC's Penny Gardiner was runner up, 21^st overall, with a time of 20:18, whilst Marian Kelly's PB of 20:37 earned her third place, 26^th overall.

Well done to everyone who participated and, once again, many thanks to all the volunteers for ensuring another great event.     

Main pic courtesy of Mark Rodger, processed by Ian Goudie Photography.

Full results here

Running with Depression

What is depression?

Depression is a very common problem - affecting about one in six people at some point in their life. Depression can describe a range of moods and behaviours, from low spirits to a severe problem that interferes with everyday life. People who are depressed often lose their appetite and have difficulty sleeping, feel guilty or worthless, become anxious and tired, and find it difficult to concentrate. Some may also have thoughts about death or suicide.

Sometimes it can be difficult to decide whether you are responding normally to difficult times, or have become depressed. A rough guide in this situation is that if your symptoms significantly interfere with your life and last for two weeks or more, then you may be experiencing depression and should seek help.*

How can depression be treated?

There are several different treatments for depression. The most common treatments include prescribed antidepressant medication and certain forms of counselling, which can help people explore different ways of thinking about and coping with their problems.

Another treatment option is physical exercise. Several scientific studies have shown that a regular programme of exercise can help people to recover from depression - lifting their mood, reducing anxiety and improving self-esteem and concentration.

There's a wide range of reasons why running and exercise can help with depression:

• Exercise is believed to increase the release of the brain chemicals that affect our mood and make us feel happier.

• Exercise helps us to get active and meet new people. This stops us from feeling isolated

• Exercise can give us new goals and a sense of purpose. We have something positive tofocus on and aim for.

• Exercise can boost our self-esteem - it can improve the way we look and how we feel about ourselves.

Exercise is one of the most popular treatments for depression - one survey found that 85 per cent of people with mental health problems who had tried exercise found it helpful. Often people say that exercise feels like a very 'natural' way to respond to feeling down - it gives them a sense of achievement and control, which can help counter the feelings of hopelessness.  Furthermore exercise doesn't produce the unpleasant side effects often associated with antidepressants - in fact, it has positive 'side effects', including lower risk of heart disease, strokes, some cancers and obesity. Once the exercise habit is learned, it can become a part of an overall healthy lifestyle.

My doctor signed me off of work with depression in September and since then has prescribed a number of antidepressants, counselling and exercise. I also practice cognitive behavioral therapy and mindfulness.  A broad-ranged and balanced plan with a range of different strategies can often be the best way of coping but I must admit that every day is still a struggle and nights are even worse. However I'm condident that I'll recover at some point.

*If you think that you may be suffering from depression then PLEASE contact your local GP asap.

Marrakech Photos

Here's some photographs that I took on a recent short trip to Marrakech in Morocco, taking mostly in the Medina, or old city.

More photos here

My Sixth Anniversary at Pollok, ...sorry Victoria parkrun!

Six years ago, to the day, I ran my first parkrun and today I headed back to Pollok Park to run my 151^st. Unfortunately, and unusually, the event was cancelled, due to the icy and dangerous underfoot conditions. I made a quick decision to cross the city and run the Victoria parkrun instead. I knew that I would be lucky to get there in time and it was no great surprise to see the runners making their way around the course as I reached the park. I quickly parked the car and sped through the gates and past the Start line. I pointed out the situation to the marshals as I set off after the other runners, almost two minutes late.

Playing Catch Up!

There was a young lass who had also started late and she was my first target, after her it was the tail runners but it took me one kilometre to reach them. I began to work my way up through the field. At the end of the first lap the Marshals were all enthusiastically shouting my name as I continued my task. Another couple of laps of steady progress and I was making my way towards the Finish line. Having overtaken some 76 runners, I crossed the line in 62^nd position.

My watch time was 22:15 but with no warm up, icy conditions and having to work my way through the field, I was happy enough with my time, of course my official time was somewhat slower at 24:09 but I was pleased to mark my sixth anniversary of parkrunning and to bag my 10^th Victoria parkrun.

Many thanks to all the volunteers and my fellow runners for their hardwork and support.

Pic by Donald Petrie

Full Results here

My 150th parkrun

I couldn't resist the opportunity to bag my 150th parkrun at the sixth anniversary of the Glasgow (now Pollok) parkrun.  I missed the first Glasgow parkrun but I took part in the second one, on 13 December 2008. There's been a big change in the parkrun since those days, when only 24 of us ran the free 5k event, to today where there are numerous events over Scotland, including four in Glasgow itself, all attracting much more than 24, In fact the Pollok parkrun now regularly attracts 300 more runners per week than when it first started.

Not many of the 23 others that joined me in December 2008 are still regular attendees at the south of Glasgow event, in fact only one other ran the event on the 6th of December and that was  Dan Maher, who has now completed a massive 240 parkruns, hence his nickname "Dan, Dan the parkrun man"!

Happy Birthday!

Richard Leyton who set up the parkrun in Scotland is standing down and the running community in Scotland owe him a real debt of gratitude for his endeavours over the years in spreading the phenomenon north of the border.

I tend to tour the local parkruns these days and have completed 112 of my runs at Pollok but others
chose to run the same course most weeks and the annual Pollok parkrun awards were presented on Saturday to those that had amassed most points during the previous 52 weeks.  Congratulations to Al MacLachlan, who retained the male points competition prize and to Pamela Joss, who won the female points award.

Many thanks, as always, to all the volunteers and fellow runners for making another Saturday morning so special.

10,000 Miles On

Today's run was cold and wet but I loved it, as it took me through my target of running 10,000 miles since my 50^th birthday on 9^th June 2007. To be honest, I wasn't sure if I'd ever run again after being injured for some 18 months but I was determined to mark my half a century by racing and although I struggled around the hilly Bearsden and Milngavie Highland Games 10k Road Race in the heat and humidy and recorded a Personal Worst of 53:59 the main thing was that I was back running. There's been a number of set backs along the way but there's been more than a few high points too and I'm still running now, some seven and a half years and 10,000 miles later.

I've competed in some 329 races since my 50^th birthday, ranging from one mile to 26.2 miles and I've made a lot of friends along the way. Here's looking forward to making many more along the next 10,000 miles.

Records Smashed on Glasgow Green

I struggled a bit on my long run on Sunday, both psychologically and physically too, as I managed to get lost and picked up an injury too, that said, I was delighted to have run 15.34miles, (my longest in over a year) at an average pace of 5.15k/min, and clock up my 1500^th mile of 2014 in the process.

The injury, combined with sore and tired legs, had curtailed my training during the week but I had planned on doing the November 3k on the Green and decided to give it a try. A quick check on Run Britain reminded me that my PB, earned more than four years ago, was 11:50. After my warm up, I was asked what my target was for the race “11:49” I replied, knowing what was required to beat my PB. I had run 11:51 in October, in perfect conditions and knew what was required.

Epic finish with Keiran in January 2011

With a tremendous turnout of 79, as compared to 52 at the corresponding fixture 12 months ago, and loads of running buddies, there would be plenty of competition to aid me around the course, not least of all Keiran Morgan, who I had a great race against at the Edinburgh parkrun in January 2011.

I had a chat with Central AC's Lyndsay Morrison who has recently started working in Glasgow and, despite making her 3k debute, was my clear favourite for the women's race.

We assembled under the McLellan arches and I noticed that my Garmin had lost GPS connection, so I quickly changed it to timer mode just before the Start. My legs were sore and I was a bit dissapointed to be overtaken after around 1k by Eddie Carr, who I had held off until the final strait in the October race. I did hold off a runner in a white top for a while but he caught me after the turn a couple of runners up front seemed to be tiring and I was confident that I could at least narrow the gap on them in the final kilometre. Encouragement from some of the faster runners, who had completed their race, gave me a lift and I found another gear for the last 100m or so, I knew that every second was a prisonner, and I was delighted to cross the line in a time of 11:48.8. I had done it, a new PB! Only by one second but that was my target and I'd achieved it, my fastest 3k race ever!

Back to my best.............

I managed to get my breath back before exchanging congatulations with my fellow runners and encouraging others across the line.

Record Breaker Lyndsay Morrison

Up front, the first five finishers had dipped below the 10 minute bar, with Shettleston Harrier, Kevin Brydon, storming to victory in a great time of 9:16, whilst Lyndsay Morrison continued her fine form, which has seen her clock up 10k victories at Balfron, Bellahouston, Giffnock, Helensburgh and Palma de Mallorca! The Central AC athlete took four seconds off of Lesley Chisholm's record, to earn Gold in the women's race, finishing in a superb time of 10:04! (8^th overall).

Full Results

1 Kevin Brydon Senior M Shettleston 00:09:16

2 Craig Reid Senior M Bellahouston Roadrunners 00:09:31

3 Iain Stewart Senior M Westerlands 00:09:50

4 Steven Prentice Veteran M Bellahouston Harriers 00:09:53

5 Rob Mclennan Super VeteranM Garscube Harriers 00:09:59

6 Mark Gardner Senior M Lancaster & Morecambe AC 00:10:02

7 Brian Douglas Veteran M Bellahouston Harriers 00:10:04

8 Lyndsay Morrison Senior F Central AC 00:10:04

9 James Stewart Senior M 00:10:07

10 Mark Alexander Senior M Kilmarnock Harriers 00:10:15

11 Ted Gourley Super Veteran M Giffnock North 00:10:17

12 Alan Heron Senior M Dumbarton AC 00:10:25

13 ? ? ? ? 00:10:29

14 David Mackintosh Senior M Kilbarchan 00:10:36

15 Ian Thurlbeck Super VeteranM Westerlands 00:10:38

16 Darren Murray Veteran M Bellahouston Harriers 00:10:39

17 Alastair MacLachlan Super VeteranM Bellahouston Roadrunners 00:10:40

18 John Gilhooly Super VeteranM 00:10:40

19 Neil Farnell Senior M Bellahouston Roadrunners 00:10:47

20 Andy Law Super VeteranM Victoria Park 00:10:49

21 Kevin Cameron Senior M 00:11:03

22 Rob Mussett Super VeteranM Central AC 00:11:05

23 Ewart Gray Super VeteranM 00:11:17

24 Gordon Gallacher Veteran M Bellahouston Harriers 00:11:20

25 Tony McGale Veteran M Springburn Harriers 00:11:22

26 Allan Mooney Veteran M Clyderunners 00:11:25

27 Madeline Robinson Senior F Helensburgh AC 00:11:28

28 David Mooney Veteran M 00:11:30

29 Craig Torgersen Senior M 00:11:33

30 John Brown Veteran M 00:11:34

31 Stephen Scheuerl Veteran M Wee County Harriers 00:11:34

32 Eddie Carr Super Veteran M Ronhill Cambuslang 00:11:37

33 Keith Gibb Super Veteran M Bellahouston Roadrunners 00:11:38

34 David MacIver Veteran M 00:11:39

35 Ian Goudie Super Veteran M Bellahouston Harriers 00:11:49

36 Christopher Doak Senior M Bellahouston Roadrunners 00:11:51

37 Paul McGunnigle Senior M 00:11:54

38 Iain Crawford Veteran M 00:12:02

39 Richard Leyton Veteran M Bellahouston Roadrunners 00:12:08

40 Alasdair MacKay Veteran M Garscube Harriers 00:12:09

41 Kieran Morgan Super Veteran M Carnegie Harriers 00:12:10

42 Caroline Cochran Veteran F Bellahouston Harriers 00:12:12

43 Alan Dempster Senior M 00:12:19

44 Erica Christie Super Veteran F Bellahouston Harriers 00:12:22

45 Iain Boyce Veteran M 00:12:25

46 Graeme Pert Super VeteranM 00:12:25

47 Carlos Campos Senior M 00:12:26

48 Alan Strang Veteran M 00:12:28

49 Michael Young Super VeteranM 00:12:32

50 Scott Fergus Veteran M 00:12:36

51 Claire Gilchrist Veteran F Ferranti AAC 00:12:38

52 Richard Filippi Veteran M 00:12:48

53 David Edelman Super Veteran M 00:12:51

54 Joyce Allardice Super Veteran F Clyde Runners 00:12:51

55 Tony Breslin Veteran M Bellahouston Roadrunners 00:12:59

56 James Curry Junior M Central AC 00:13:14

57 Keith MacKenzie Veteran M 00:13:26

58 David Stirling Veteran M 00:13:30

59 Amy Beckett Senior F 00:13:41

60 Paul Chapman Senior M 00:13:42

61 Michael Lithgow Senior M 00:13:53

62 Laura Ritchie Senior F Bellahouston Harriers 00:13:54

63 Ken Cunningham Senior M 00:14:01

64 Julie Docherty Senior F 00:14:16

65 David Sutherland Senior M 00:14:17

66 Alison Curry Veteran F Central AC 00:14:41

67 Red T shirt F 00:14:54

68 Tom Keenan Super VeteranM Bellahouston Harriers 00:15:07

69 Carol Keenan Super VeteranF Bellahouston Harriers 00:15:07

70 Catriona Gourley Super VeteranF 00:15:19

71 Ellen Curry Junior F Central AC 00:15:24

72 Carole Spy Super Veteran F Bellahouston Harriers 00:15:34

73 John Softley Super Veteran M Bellahouston Harriers 00:15:36

74 Celia Thompson Super Veteran F 00:15:51

75 Heather Angelopoulos Super Veteran F 00:16:06

76 Lynsey Williamson Senior F 00:16:12

77 Victoria Devoy Senior F 00:17:22

78 Paula Petersen Senior F 00:17:43