Eildon 2 Hills 21/06/09
I'm not ready to take on the 7 Hills of Edinburgh, but I've been planning to try an 'entry level' hill race for some time. So decided to head down to Melrose and have a go at this race. Only £5 on the day entry so not much to lose...
It was raining on and off as we waited to start. As you're waiting near the Greenyards (Melrose rugby club) you have a great view of the hills you're going to be heading up (see photo - and yes, I do need to work on my T-shirt tan..). This view doesn't necessarily help the nerves of first-timers like me. Confidence also not helped by lengthy race introduction where he repeatedly mentioned the need to be careful and talked in some detail about last year's incident where someone fractured their ankle very badly...
But finally we were underway and the rain picked up again immediately. Race route pretty simple - you head through town, then up the first hill, across to the 2nd hill and then back down.
I didn't really know what to expect so didn't go tearing off at the start, just kept myself mid-pack and at a reasonable pace. First part of the race was on road so that was fair enough. Then turned off-road and uphill, pretty steep from the start. Was relieved to find out that most people actually walk up the hill. They'd cut a narrow path through the gorse and it was single-file all the way. Rain was heavy at this point, and it was pretty slippy. But got up to the top, and came into my own a bit on the way across to the 2nd hill.
Still fine going up the other side, keeping pace with others around me. This was the point at which another curiosity of hill running first came to the fore. Apart from visiting certain marshal points (e.g tops of hills), you can take whichever route you want. I was behind a couple of Gala Harriers, who took a slightly different route to the top than people ahead of them. I followed them, hoping to take advantage of local expertise, and what do you know? It worked. We overtook the 2 people ahead of us.
I should have chosen my own route down though, being a novice. They went for the steep path down, covered in loose scree. I was painfully slow as I got myself used to the constant wee slips on loose stones, and trying to pick out a cautious route rather than just running down like others around me! However, this stage didn't last too long and the rest of the way down was on a trail of grass and red mud. This was much better for me and was able to fly down and overtake 2 of 3 people who'd overtaken me on the loose stoney bit. And as we got back into town and did the final bit on the road and round the rugby pitch I overtook another couple too.
Finished in 44.34. I think I was about two thirds of the way down the field, which is much slower than I'd be in a road race. But I think if I did this race again I'd run it several minutes quicker just through the knowledge I've gained. And I enjoyed the visit to Melrose, chatting to a few other runners, and a good feed afterwards. You never know, I might be back next year. Or maybe I'll be ready for the 7 Hills by then?
Report Sandy Macdonald
Photos Sandy and Gala Harriers
Results
