Glasgow 3 Parks 2014

One of my favourite events of the year suffered from very cold weather. It was snowing before the first race but eased off before the start. Springburn Park was venue for race 1 and I did a pretty flawless run round the very simple course. Time was pretty good.

Race 2 moved onto Glasgow Green for another extremely easy and short run. At least that is what I thought until discovering like many others that I had mispunched chosing the obvious control at a fence corner when the correct control was a short distance away behind a small slope. Very disappointed and ended up at the back of the chasing start of the last race as a result.

Race 3 was Cathkin Braes a tricky venue where I have struggled badly in the past. Control 1 was difficult and took a while to locate. 1 other major error later on meant a poor time overall.

A great event again even if the weather wasn't the nicest.

Foxtrails Winter Series Race at Dunbar

Great run this morning at Dunbar in the FoxTrail Winter Running Series. Nice course through John Muir Country Park with good marshalling and signage. Just the right number of runners - never crowded but always some-one within 30 m ahead. Pleased with my time of just under 1 hr 10 mins over 13 km of muddy trail. 21st race of the year (or 44th counting orienteering races).

SOSOL at The Hirsel

A short trek down to Coldstream for the 4th South of Scotland Orienteering League event of the year. It was nice parkland for this event which made for reasonably easy and fast running. It was cold but the sun shone making for a very pleasant event. Second last (of 9) on the longest course.

Miami

Work took me to Miami to speak at a conference so I tagged on a weekend at Miami Beach. Tough eh! 

Dumyat Dash

Nice run at Dumyat on a new shorter course. The race starts in Menstrie at the southern foot of the Ochils. The race started with a steep lung busting climb and then a section of around a km skirting the hill before a long painful climb to the summit at 418 m height. Great downhill charge back to the start again.

Results not in yet but felt I'd done reasonably well.

Everything Is Going To Be Alright

My second night orienteering event of the season was at the very challenging Dean Village. Some really tricky controls near the start with multiple levels to deal with. Got round most of them pretty efficiently. From control 8 onwards the course headed out to some much longer legs along the Queensferry Road.

Control 11 was a complex long route with a very nice route through the museum of modern art and behind it to cross the river. The glowing signage on the building and some smooth running suggested this was going to be a fine night.

Sadly it wasn't to prove to be so as the gates at the back of the museum were all locked and long alternative route via the Britannia Hotel had to be found.

The rest of the route through the West End was relatively straightforward but fairly length legs. Just over an hour long in total running time.

Tinto Twin

Did just the day event at the Tinto Twin down at Happendon Wood near Biggar. The weather wasn't nice but the small area was pretty good and challenging. Was going OK until control 11 when I got a bit lost and then dropped and lost my compass. A bit worried for a while as I suddenly realised I had no idea which direction was which. Followed a few runners until I hit a small path and followed it until I worked out where I was (finding a control I'd been to before). Navigated back to the car park. First non-finish in a very long time.

Night Orienteering in Edinburgh City Centre

The Fight With The Night orienteering series for 2014/15 started with an Edinburgh City Centre course. Decided to give the long course a go which should be fine for urban courses but may be a struggle in the forest courses.

Started from the University Infomatics building and felt pretty solid running. Having orienteered in the city many times the courses are starting to get a bit easier - even in the dark.

For control 13 however my brain stopped functioning and I headed to wrong block altogether and started heading down a very dark and narrow close only to find a group of 4 junkies making themselves comfortable for the night. Not sure who was more frightened as I'm sure they weren't expecting to see some-one in bright green and yellow O-Shirt with a head torch disturbing their activities. After a swift retreat I realised how far off course I was.

Great fun and apart from ending up on the wrong level 3 times a reasonably good run.

Glen Tilt Munros

A second day out in the hills near Blair Atholl. A reasonably early start having stayed over in Pitlochry on Monday night. Left the car in the Glen Tilt car park with the thermometer at -1.5 degrees.

A long cycle up the Glen Tilt valley up to Forest Lodge where I headed up the steep hill towards Carn a Chlamain. It looked really close on the map but as ever seemed to be much further in practice.

Hit the wrong track on the way back and headed off on the alternative route for a while before heading across rough ground back to the intended trail.

A quick sandwich and drink before cycling further up the valley for the next 2 munros. A big horseshoe to do Braigh Coire Cruinn-bhalgain and Carn nan Gabhar. I had already done Carn Liath on its own with Max a few years ago. It was pretty long and tough making it round these two and around 4.30 in the evening before I got down to the bike.

An hours cycle back to the car.

Total distance around 33 miles in 8 hrs 45 minutes and 7000 ft of ascent.

Beinn Dearg 1008 m

A very remote munro indeed. I started from the Glen Tilt car park in Blair Atholl and got on the mountain bike for a long cycle out into the wilds. The track was good and the cycling pleasant on what was generally a steady and fairly manageable incline.

Reached a remote bothy after about an hour and a half and left the bike to start the serious climb on foot. An easy enough ascent with paths most of the way and as always somewhat further than expected to finally get to the summit.

The cycle back was fast - there must have been more ascent than I realised on the way up.

Total time for the journey was 4 hrs 47 min covering 19.75 miles and 3300 ft of ascent.

Walk from Milngavie

Nice walk along part of the West Highland Way and then back through Mugdock Park. Around 9.5 miles in total.

SOSOL 2 at Tentsmuir

Tentsmuir is a fabulous forest on the coast between Dundee and St Andrews. A nice sunny day and nice clean forest with enough paths to make navigation relatively easy. Very runnable throughout. Very enjoyable.

Les's Birthday Walk & Dinner

Les was celebrating his 60th birthday. Headed out for a walk in the Pentlands with Les and a group of his old university friends. The weather was kind and the rains disappeared and gave us a clear sunny afternoon.

Later in the evening we went out to Charwood for a very nice dinner. Steaks and Cranachan recommended.

I Origins

Really enjoyed I Origins at Cineworld.

SOSOL 1 - Loch Ordie

A new area for me to the North of Dunkeld on high rough moorland. We had a really beautiful day for it with clear skys and 16 degree temperature. The ground underfoot was very rough though and in spite of no forest the navigation was tough. Around 2 hrs 15 mins on the Brown course in last position.

Craig A Barns - Scottish O League

Nice day out orienteering. Long and difficult.

Walk in the Ochills

Walk up into the hills from Tillicoultry. Proved to be a little too steep and long for Cherry. Still a nice 2 hour walk even if not quite as far as planned.

Ben More and Stob Beinein

Grabbed a days holiday on the back of a favourable weather forecast and headed out towards Crianlarich for a bit of Munro bagging. The weather was nice at the foot of the hill but turned cold and windy from around 1000 m upwards. It was a bit of a long hard slog straight up the 16th largest hill in Scotland but I seemed to make pretty good speed with it. Very nice day out.

Richard Thompson

Last event of the Festival this year was another trip to the Queens hall to watch guitar legend Richard Thompson. I've a few of his records but none of the songs played this evening. Overall a little disappointing.

Pentland Hill Walk

A practice walk for Les in preparation for his 60th birthday walk in October. It didn't start well with two major road diversions meaning we couldn't get to our planned start point. After a major rethink of walk we started at a new location for me and enjoyed a fairly flat path and trail on the Northern flanks of the hills. It turned out quite a pleasant route of around 5.6 miles in 2 hours that was pretty comfortable going or everyone.

Feral & Lands of Glass

Cherry and Hannah went to see Feral which was very good and Colin, Cherry and Hannah went to see Lands of Glass later in the day. This was not so good!

Carnethy Red Moss Handicap Race

My second outing at a handicap race and it quickly clear that the handicapper had been less than kind with a number of runners passing me in the first mile. Later on there appeared to be many shortcuts taken by other runners whilst I stuck firmly to the proper course. Came in very near the back but enjoyed the pleasant run and at least it should help with the handicap for next time.

Rachel Sermani

Thursday night at the Queens Hall for a a show by Rachel Sermani playing thoughtful Scottish Folk Music. Good show and a talent that should develop over the years to come.

Philiphaugh Hill Race

A trek down to Selkirk for another race by the team who put on a similar but longer event in January. Once again a fabulously well organised event with ample marshals along a route that might otherwise have lost quite a few runners. No big climbs in this just a steady ascent over 3 miles and then gently down over the next 6. Form wasn't great but really enjoyable race.

Went out for a couple of hours on the mountain bike afterwards. Very heavy rain meant this wasn't much fun!

Alba Flamenca and Alex Horne (Monsieur Butterfly)

First two shows in the Festival this year.

Alba Flamenca was trying something a bit different this year with a blend of dancing styles with a bit of Flamenco, Belly Dancing and Indian dance with a taped story setting the context. It didn't quite work but some very impressive dancing nevertheless.

Alex Horne was good fun with a show build around the creation of a Rube Goldberg style machine.

North Berwick Law Hill Race

A beautiful summer evening for this fantastic little race from the harbour of North Berwick to the top of the Law and back. Great crowds cheering you into the finish.

Ran reasonably well but quite a lot slower than my last effort at the race.

Holiday in Italy

A great 2 weeks spent at a house in the Euganian Hills roughly half-way between Venice and Verona. Lots of sightseeing and some lazy days as well.

Greenoch Cut

A big day out with Hannah. Got up very early for a train to Glasgow and then a second train out to Drumfrochar Station. From there we walked up into the Muirshiel Park and found the Greenoch Cut a long, now disused aqueduct that supplied Greenoch with water in its industrial heyday.

It was a nice flat walk with stunning views that eventually made its way up to the Greenoch Cut Visitor Centre near the large reservoir. 

We finished a circular walk for a total distance of around 10k within the park and total distance during the day of 9 miles.

Pentland Walk

Gentle walk with Hannah on Thursday evening. Just over 3 miles in length.

Lairig Ghru 2014

This was my fourth run at the Lairig Ghru Hill Race and it remains one of my favourites. With my form having been very mixed this year I didn't go into the race with a lot of confidence and aim was really just to make sure I beat all the cut-off times and finish within the maximum of 6 hours.

Alarm woke me at 6 am and quickly into the car for a long drive up to Braemar. The weather was pretty nice at the start. Running in my inov8 mudroc 290's. Plan was to head off at a good pace and keep going as long as my legs would carry me before the rough terrain would bring me down to walking pace.

Nice smooth run through from Braemar to Marr lodge along the road. The last time I'd run I had tucked in at the very back but this time was pushing along at 160 bpm heart rate and had people behind me. The terrain moves to runnable trails for the next section through to Derry Lodge. I was beginning to feel a bit of fatigue after an hour and was glad to fill up my water bottle at the river as it was getting hot. Was at the checkpoint at 1 hr 20 just ahead of the 1 hr 30 cut-off.

Kept moving at a modest pace over the next section through the Luib river crossing and did the first walk up the steep section immediately afterwards. The terrain starts from this point to become rougher but is runnable until you approach the boulder fields. Tiredness meant I moved into intermittent run and job mode for this section. In my fitter days I would have still been going right up to the steeper ascent to the boulders.

Got shouted at/encouraged by Charlie Ramsay to keep running and photo is courtesy of this hill running legend.  http://www.ramsaysround.com

After a bit of walking I reached the boulder field and made some quick progress here passing around 6 runners who were struggling with the slippery rocks. The weather changed for the worse at this point. It seems to always be raining on this high mountain pass. Coat on and slow progress over the rough ground over which I couldn't have run even if the legs were able.

After some great views emerging over towards Aviemore and Rothiemurchas I reached the downward    

trails through the forest. Struggled here to move at any pace even with the help of gravity. Reached the bottom of the slope and the final trail home at around 4 hr 50 mins and a tight but achievable final section. Set off at a fast walk in the hope that this would let legs recover. Made occasional efforts at running pace but was toiling. Was finally helped along by running the final section with a couple who helped me get into a reasonable rhythm. I finally fell off their pace a half mile from the finish but after a short break gritted my teeth and pushed on the finish and a happy arrival to cheering crowds in Aviemore.

A tough but really enjoyable journey. Nice soup and cakes to celebrate at the end and then a scenic bus drive lasting around 90 minutes through Boat of Garten and Tomintoul before getting back to Braemar at 6.30 pm and arriving home by around 9pm.

Whilst the time was slow I was never particularly uncomfortable and feet and legs recovering reasonably quickly from the battering. Definitely one to do again.

Traprain Law Hill Race

This is one of my favourite hill races. It takes place at the pretty village of East Linton on the day of their annual village fair. The race is very scenic along the River Tyne then through the river and a steady climb up to the Law where there is a short rope assisted climb to the top. A short grassy run down the hill then tracks back to the river and return the village. The conditions were hot this year and whilst I felt I was running fine the time was very slow at something over 57 minutes.

Tweedlove Skinny Sportive

A very early start this Saturday to get down to Peebles for this 45 mile cycle. Really nice route in the Scottish borders on mainly very quiet but scenic roads. A few decent climbs to do. Nice stop for coffee and cakes at the half way spot in Biggar. Total time of 4 hrs.

Beinn Bhuidhe

Weather was a bit mixed for this munro. A long 5 km run in was good training for my upcoming ultra at the end of June. Went fairly well with a reasonable run in and a reasonably strong run back at the end. The climb was mainly grassy until the summit ridge and nice for running back down. Total time taken 3 hrs 50 minutes.

SOSOL at Culteucher & Dron

Nice event just south of Perth in some of the medium sized hills. Mainly open hillside with just a few bits of plantation and the odd tree. Navigation was pretty good but didn't have a lot of energy in the legs. An interesting hill fort and some nice views.

Did a quick cycle round Loch Leven to try out the new path which now offers a traffic free path all the way round. It's a little bit dull at times and probably wouldn't recommend as a walk. For a leisurely 2 hr cycle quite nice.

Dreghorn Handicap Race

It turned out to be quite a nice evening for a fairly easy run in the Pentlands. Did reasonably well coming in the top 5 or so. Good route taking in a few minor summits and finishing with Allermuir and a sharp descent back to Dreghorn.

Selkirk Mountain Bike Orienteering

Travelled down to Selkirk for some mountain bike O. Pleasant start along the river along some pleasant single track trails. Later hit a very muddy section and further on made a long assent to hilltops around 500m high. A tough slog pushing the bike up. After this it was a case of making it back as quickly as possible to complete just within the 3 hour limit. Pretty tiring effort after the run yesterday. The usual generous selection of cakes was again available.

Penicuik 10K

Nice run on a hilly road race in Penicuik. Good well marshalled event. Ran pretty well coming in faster than last years 10k times but a few minutes worse than my PB on this course. The rain (and hail) came down at around the half way mark.

Stuc A Chroin Hill Race

After recent dreadful performances I was very nervous about this long tough race. 22 km and 1500 m of ascent with a lot of the course over very rugged terrain. Having failed miserably at the Lochaber Marathon with a planned slow steady pace I decided to head off at a good pace and try to maintain myself at a 160+ heart rate for as long as possible.

Things went well in the early stages feeling confident on the long 2.5 miles track at the start. Got a real high on the next rough segment and the first downhill which I took at speed.

This was followed by a very tough ascent straight up to Beinn Each and then a long technical section to the summit, after many false summits. Still pretty strong on the way back and the grassy decent off the main hill went pretty well, passing a couple of runners.

The next ascent was tough and I really slowed down. A few runners ahead accelerated away but others were in a worse state than me. After reaching the high point I was able to keep going over the rough terrain and also managed a good pace on the track back finishing feeling very strong at the end.

Delighted with the performance. About 15 mins better than in 2012 and around 10 mins worse than 2010. Really enjoyed it.

SOL3 at Dunrod Hill / Greenock Cut

Nice orienteering event near Glasgow today. Dunrod Hill is a high area above Greenock with lots of large reservoirs and former water power sources. Did the short blue course today and tried hard to go as fast as possible. Plan almost worked apart from one dreadful leg when headed way off course.

Nice cycle in the hill afterwards. Great area and worth visiting again for a walk.

Ben Lui and Beinn a Chleibh

Set out early to arrive at the mountain around 10 am. A tricky start with a river and railway line to cross and not the most of obvious path to follow. The early part of the trail was very wet and muddy and not very pleasant going until we got out of the forest. The higher ground was better and a good hard slog up the grassy slopes to Ben Lui. There was still a fair bit of snow near the top and it was a bit of challenge to find a safe way through. The descent to the second top was fairly straightforward and a very easy quick ascent to tick off the second munro. We needed to get back to town by 5.30 so it was a fast decent back to the car. Weather and views absolutely stunning. Great day out. About 6 miles of walking, 1200 m of ascent and completed in 4 hrs 53 mins.

North Berwick Law

Gentle walk from North Berwick shore and harbour up to the law and back. Nice spring morning.

Milngavie Again

Headed out on the mountain bike to do the other half of the orienteering course that I didn't get to on Saturday. Really nice day out with lovely weather and great scenery.

Mountain Bike Orienteering at Milngavie

An early start at Milngavie with some early cold rain to make the start quite challenging. The ride through town and towards the first control didn't go very well with it being really hard to locate myself on the map. After finding the first control things were looking up a bit and started to make fairly steady progress. The weather brightened up and enjoyed some really nice scenery with some great views out towards Conic Hill. The map was split into two halves and I think I must have gone for the wrong half needing to head back to base though the middle of the map rather than pick up more controls within the 3 hour time limit. Points wise it was a very poor performance but really enjoyed it. May head back and do the other half of the map some time.

Lochaber Marathon

Headed up to Fort William for my second attempt at this marathon. The last effort was back in 2006 when I got a time of 4 hrs 21 minutes. The weather was poor this time with rain for most of the time I was out. Started off slow and steady with a plan to take it very easy to conserve energy. Going reasonably well at half way but feeling a bit of strain. By mile 16 starting to struggle with mile pace dropping back and then hit the wall and couldn't move my legs. Last 8 miles were mainly walking with occasional spurts of energy. Finished in the dreadful time of 5 hrs and 19 minutes with just 3 finishers behind me.

Not sure what went wrong. Not enough specific training and perhaps a bit too long a run the week beforehand. Feet and joints not feeling great afterwards so will need a bit of a rest.

Deuchary Hill Canter

A cold mist hung over Scotland making for cool but fortunately dry conditions for this tough little race. Got off to a really nice start in the trails of Craig A Barns but then followed a confused group of runners in the wrong direction adding at least 15 minutes to the run. Should have stopped and looked more carefully at map and compass. Thought about finishing early and taking a short cut back but stuck with it and finished in second last place in around 2 hrs 45 minutes. The running was pretty strong though and was able to keep going in the long run in to the finish.

SOL 1 - Devilla

Took on the Black course at Devilla. Really rough ground that I found impossible to run through. Navigation was pretty good though and no major mistakes. Slowest by a good margin but a nice long bit of exercise.

Hannah and Cherry came along for a walk in the forest and a visit to the walled garden.

INTrepid Weekend

A busy weekend orienteering racing and helping out with the events. 2 urban races in Livingston on saturday and then a longer event in woodland and parkland on Sunday.

Night O Braids

Night O at the Braids. A very complex map with lots of intricate contour and next to no paths. Did surprisingly well to find all the small plastic tubes on the ground. A few errors and time spent relocating. Very close to one of the controls but needed to be right on top of it to spot it.

Meadows Half-Marathon

A nice sunny morning for a 7 lap circuit including the Meadows and Bristo Square. I didn't have very high expectations of my fitness so set off easy and was very pleased to still be going strong at the end. Time of around 1 hr 54 minutes which is far from personal best but not my worst time at the distance.

Alicante Again

We didn't have much time on Sunday before our flight home but Cherry and Colin went for a quick walk along the sea front while Hannah did some Maths revision.

The Med

On Saturday we hired the bikes again and head down the river all the way to the sea and cycled a bit of the way along the sea front. Really nice cycle ride and a nice coastal area. Enjoyed cycling round the Formula 1 course ! 

Later in the afternoon we got the train back to Alicante and then enjoyed watching the city night life get into swing.

Aquarium

On Friday we went to the aquarium - another of the new futuristic buildings in the old river bed. It was a bit of disappointment given the space they had with everything feeling a bit cramped. The penguins were particularly sad - Valencia isn't really the place for them! 

Bioparc

On Thursday we headed off to the Bioparc - again just by the old river bed. Some great urban landscaping in this part of the river bed.

The zoo was very nice. A good size and lots of space for the animals. Another day of great weather.

Ciudad de las Sciencias

We walked on Wednesday morning to the area with the new modern science and culture buildings in the dry river bed of the Turia river. The buildings look fantastic from a distance and are very photogenic. They're not quite so impressive close up but still very interesting structures.

 We went round the science museum exhibits which was faily typical of science museums with some interesting stuff and lots of exhibits not well maintained and working.

We then walked back up the river bed to visit some gardens. First stop was the Jardines de Monforte. Small but very nice.

And then on to Los Viveros which were OK and nice place to stop for an ice cream.

Valencia

Tuesday was a day for a tour around the Valencian old town. Saw the Bull Ring and the intricate ceramics at the Estacion del Norte before strolling through the old town and the various churches and cathedrals. Our progress was eventually stalled by an official event with lots of police meaning the gallery we were visiting was closed. Instead we hired some bikes and had an excellent trip along the old dry river bed which was really nice.

Castle of Santa Barbara Alicante

We headed out on Monday morning for a long and interesting climb up Castle Santa Barbara. It was a winding path to the top and we were never quite sure if we were going the right way. Got their eventually and enjoyed a free visit round the really interesting Castle with great views over the city.

A nice walk down through a very old quarter of the town and nice views back up to the Castle. Definitely recommend Alicante and the castle for a day or two visit.

Later in the afternoon we got on the train to Valencia.

Holiday - Alicante

Hannah, Cherry & Colin got the bus to the airport and were again delighted by the lack of queues and hassle free check in with Jet 2. After a reasonable flight we were in Alicante by late afternoon and went for a quick stroll before the sun set. Nice city centre and harbour and beach.

Carnethy 5

Conditions were pretty tough for the Carnethy 5 race with slippy snow in many parts and water and mud on others. It felt like a downhill skeleton event at times as I slid front ways or backwards down the hills. Time was pretty poor at 170% of the winning time.

ESOC Sprint O at South Queensferry

Weather was very mixed this morning. One minute sunshine and the next freezing rain. Sprint O this year was on the streets of South Queensferry with bits in old town and cycle ways but mostly in modern housing estate. Good event. The Prologue was tricky with a few early legs having multiple height levels to negotiate. Did OK with a couple of mistakes making up around 2 minutes.

Made up some ground on the Chase which I did pretty much error free.

Tri Trail at Dunbar

Very early start for a race at the very scenic John Muir Country Park in Dunbar. The weather was surprisingly nice with clear sky and even a bit of sunshine. There were a number of CaniCrossers out running with their dogs - I got beat by 4 or 5 of them ! Felt fairly heavy legged over the 14 km course but the time wasn't too bad coming in at 1 hr 16 mins against a winning time of around 50 minutes.

Great event.

Mogwai

Max and Colin went to see Mogwai at the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall. RM Hubbert warmed up with a nice set and cheery chat. He was joined on stage for the last song by Aidan Moffat.

Mogwai then played a mix of old and new at high volume. Great venue and good concert.

EUOC Big Weekend

3 Orienteering events over the weekend. Friday night was night orienteering round the King Buildings university campus. Pretty decent effort with generally good navigation.

Saturday was the city race in pouring rain. Took about an hour round the MV course finishing 30 of 41.

On Sunday with the forecast for 4 degrees temperature, strong winds and heavy rain I headed out in my waterproofs and with lots of food in my bag. Conditions started bad but improved later on. Finished in a dreadful time of around 1 hr 55 minutes and feeling very tired.

That's 9 races completed in January !

War Horse

Went to the Festival Theatre to see War Horse as Cherry's birthday treat. Very good indeed - especially the horses ! The pleasure was slightly reduced by some chattering neighbours in the seats behind us.

Feel the Burns

A trip down to Selkirk for a fabulous race in the Scottish Borders hills. 21 km with 800 m of ascent the course took in several summits with a highest point of 524 m. Some nice long trails near the peaks and some lovely long downhill stretches.

I was feeling pretty tired at the 2 hour point but seemed to cope better than those around me with the final steep ascent to Foulshiels Hill. Managed a wee sprint at the end to pick up two places and complete in a reasonable 2 hrs 30 mins and 160% of the winning time.

Orienteering at Greenhead Moss

A new area near Wishaw. Very boggy and fairly rough area. Did the long brown course and was out running for 1 hr 47 minutes. Very near the slowest runner but good fun once I got into it. 1 big mistake with all the other controls fairly accurate.

Dropped Max back to Uni afterwards.

Great Winter Run

5k Race round Holyrood Park on a cold Saturday morning. Nice, well organised race. Came in 275th of around 1900 runners.

Night O at Mary Erskine

A quick 30 minute run round the short course. Not too much time in the forest so didn't get too lost !

Greenmantle Dash 2014

Another active start to the year with a trip down to Broughton for a short sharp dash up Trahenna. The weather was nice at the start but by the time of the ascent the freezing rain was coming down making it very cold. Lots of mud and water on this one. My worst ever time at this race :(

Portobello Promathon 2014

I started the new year with the annual 4 mile race along the Portobello promenade. This was the first year at a new earlier time of 10.30. The weather was kind for the big crowd. My time was fairly slow at 30 mins and 5 secs.