KIRKCUDBRIGHT HALF MARATHON 29TH MAY, 2010
I run this race every year as Kirkcudbright is a pleasant wee toon and I can stay overnight with friends, which means no hectic drive from Edinburgh for the 1pm start. Also, it's a virtually traffic-free rural course on a coastal route and I usually manage a half-decent time for some reason.After the previous week’s sweltering Edinburgh marathon it was cool and rainy, not so nice for the people at the school fair by the start and finish, but pretty good for runners.
Not much to say about the race - it was flat, then up non-stop for 3.5 miles, then flat again, then down, then flat to the finish. I felt ok and I was hoping for 1:45 but came in about three minutes slower than last year, at 1:47. This was pretty much on the cards since I haven't had an uninterrupted period of hard training for months.
Unusually, there were no other Porty runners taking part this year - at least not in the flesh. On a jog around town in the morning I went into a baker's to pick up some treats for coffee and saw that "Half-Marathon Muffins" were selling like, well, hot cakes. By some miracle of technology the baker had printed an edible picture on top of the cream showing the start of last year's race and featuring a mystery Portobello runner. Any guesses?
