The summer may be officially over but the off-road running season continues with one of the biggest races in the Scottish Hill Running (SHR) calendar taking place last weekend in Fort William. The Ben Nevis Race attracts the cream of British hill and fell runners every year and Shettleston’s CJ Macphail continued her good form to claim a fantastic podium place with a silver medal in the ladies’ race in a 2.13.44. Congratulations CJ! The race was won by Lochaber’s Findlay Wild for the 11th year in a row!
First across the finish line for the club was Ross Cruickshanks in an excellent time of 2.03.01 (56th) followed by Peter Mackie 2.10.15 (85th) and Matty Low in 2.17.56 (125th).
Across the water in Ireland Walter Henderson was the lone Shett competing in the World Masters Mountain Running Championships. He finished in 19th place in the V50 category in a time of 55.19. Walter is also flying high in the SHR Long Classics Series. After 6 races he’s lying in 5th place overall and 1st Vet 50.
The ‘Bog n Burn’ series (12 midweek hill races) came to a close last month with 2 Shetts well placed before the final race at Caerketton on the 10th August. Harry Pulham came away with 2nd place on the day to clinch the series overall and Chris Grant Pantrey just one place behind to take 2nd overall and 1st Vet 40. Excellent work gents and nice to see long time member Matt Sullivan sneak over the line to take 5th on the night. Well done to everyone from the club who managed to take part in the series.
Harry (10th) and Chris (14th & 3rd V40) also performed well at the penultimate race in this year’s SHR Champs at Meall a’Ghiuthais on 16th July. Dan Dry (24th), Iain Pender(26th), Walter Henderson (43rd & 1st V50), Matty Low (53rd), Ross Cruickshanks (54th), Alex Clarkson (55th) & Rod Reis (94th) also made the long journey to Torridon on the north west coast. The final race, Yetholm Shepherds Show, takes place on the 1st October in the Borders. Dan currently sits in 5th place overall and Walter 3rd in the V50 category.
Mike Deason toed the line at the Devil o’ the Highlands trail ultra-marathon race on the 2nd August, all 42 miles and 2000 meters of ascent from Tyndrum to Fort William along the West Highland Way. Mike had a superb race to come home in 2nd place in 6.03.46 only 7 minutes or so behind race winner Billy Gibson from Dundee Hawkhill.
Ross Gollan returned to top form in Wales at the 45th International Snowdon Racein July. In a high-class field of international athletes Ross took the win in 1.09.21 ahead of Italy’s Luca Merli in hot conditions. Congratulations Ross!
Last but absolutely not least…our very own ‘Fat Malky’ Patterson was in vintage form as he took on one of his own home-made challenges to raise money for the Beatson Cancer Charity. Many of you will remember, at great physical and mental cost, the series of local off-road routes he devised to entertain us all during lockdown! A mixture of mostly wasteland, crime scene, road, bog, golf course, tunnel, cemetery and the occasional section of runnable trail. In true maverick style Malcolm stitched them all together to create a monster cuddly toy of epic proportions…all 93.89 kilometres and 1475 meters of ascent. Like the Pied Piper he was joined by many of his ever-growing legion of admirers, young and (very)old, for various sections of the challenge. It began (and finished) at the flagpole in Queens Park at 5.03 am on the 7th August and 16 hours and 15mins later he emerged enthusiastically out of the bushes to vigorous applause. As if that wasn’t enough, he manged to raise £2637 for the Beatson. Chapeau Malcolm…Lang may your lum reek!
Report by Bill Breckenridge who had his own hill adventure this summer with fellow hill runner, Alistair Pringle, and ran the full length of the Pyrenees Haute Route from the Atlantic Ocean to Mediterranean Sea. They were raising money for Venture Trust
