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| 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 15th,
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.
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| Mary Senior sets the pace |
I was extremely pleased to
discover that I had crossed the line in 65th place (55th
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 60th overall and
10th woman.
Jim Buick, in a fancy dress outfit, placed
42nd with a time of 19:05.
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| Ever present -Jim Buick |
100 Club
Congratulations to Kenneth Wharton who
ran his 100th parkrun today, dressed as Santa!
Race Results
Men's Race
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| 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!
Pics by Christopher Quinn here
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