Pentland Skyline 6/10/07
Gently undulating courseAs I write it is Sunday morning, the marathoners are running and Peter is still in bed. I'm sunburned, hungover and my feet hurt. What is there to do but write a report?
There was a good turn-out of Porties at this year's Pentland Skyline. Ben was doing it for the first time which lent an air of vicarious excitement.
Ben at Scald Law (photo Ian Nimmo)
Peter at Scald Law (photo Ian Nimmo)
Graham at Scald Law (photo Ian Nimmo)
Me at Scald Law (photo Ian Nimmo)
Our friend Jane Fletcher had come up from the lake district to participate. The night before the race we resisted the temptation to have a beer or just one glass of wine...
The day dawned, sunny and still and it seemed ideal weather for a jaunt around the Pentlands. Graham Henry was at the race start, as was Lucy Colquhoun. We saw Werner but he was out of the running this year with his knee problems. I think he was delivering wine for prizes.
Peter and I both had hopes of doing better than before because we've done more hill races this year and we are reasonably fit.
Ben at West Kip (photo Alan Young)
Peter at West Kip (photo Alan Young)
Me at West Kip (photo Alan Young)
I got off to a quickish start (for me) and could tell I was further up the field than usual as the queue of people striding up to the first peak was less dense than usual. The first 4 miles went smoothly, settling into a rhythm where I passed people on the uphills and they passed me on the downhills. 4 miles in is the water station before Turnhouse hill so I took the time to have a gel and a good drink as I was already feeling hot.
The next three hills you have to take steadily as they're fairly fearsome climbs. Turnhouse, Carnethy and then Scald law. I was still feeling fine, although hot and fairly soon I was coming off West Kip to the second water station. This is the point where you can retire and get a lift back. Sitting in a deck chair was Lucy, who said her legs were sore. Given some of the mega races she's been doing recently I'm sure this was an understatement. I think my time here was about 1hr 48 mins and I was quicker than in previous years so I was still running in hopes of a better time.
Previous best was 3hrs 40mins so I guess I would have really liked something closer to 3hrs 30 mins.
On Hare Hill I decided to have a change of tactic from the last time I ran and run over its heathery, tussocky pathless top. Previous tactics had been getting off it on to the road as soon as possible, which is a bit further but at least you can run. I'm not really sure which was better. Running over Hare hill is certainly frustrating and the burnt heather that I found myself in scratched my lower legs to pieces and when I finally took my socks off after the race I think the layer of slimy ooze that had collected there came from the many bogs I ran through. Hare hill was the only hill we hadn't really recced properly this time so there was probably a better way.
Black Hill can be tricky to find the best route round but we'd done this many times so I found a fairly efficient way to the top and I came out finding myself right behind Graham Henry and some others. Graham had a sore throat before the race so I realised he wasn't having the best day - however it was heartening to see a Porty this far into the race. There is a nice descent off Black Hill which was probably the last part of the race I can say I really enjoyed. I even overtook someone - which again- this far into the race and with my rather weak descending skills felt good.
By Bell Hill which is a nasty, short, very steep, calf-burning ascent I was really feeling the heat and fantasising out loud about there being a bucket of lemonade at the top of the hill filled with ice-cubes. The lady just ahead, who turned out to be Joanna Schreiber, joined in.
At the top of the hill she started to trot again and I tried but the grassy tussocks were throwing my legs in all directions and I really couldn't get going until I was on the downhill proper. After this was really quite a painful stagger back in the heat. I managed to run over the now gentle grassy hills, but it was a painful process, I was clocking 9.35 pace on the flat, (the joys of having a Garmin) and I really had to bully myself to achieve this much. By now I was realising that somehow or other my time goals were looking less than likely and that even to match my previous best was going to be a stretch. I tried not to let this bother me too much but it did take the wind out my sails.
By this time Graham had disappeared into the distance, as had Joanna Schreiber. I overtook some guys who were looking worse than I felt over the last few hills which gave me a shameful little boost.
At last, the ski-slope was in sight and it was all downhill to the end. I came in feeling shattered and thirsty in 3hrs 48mins - 8 mins slower than the last time I'd run it. I had some orange squash and then had a lie down on the ground for 10 minutes feeling queasy and sore.
beginning to recover
Debbie Macdonald of HBT came in shortly afterwards and was exclaiming how nice the course was. I was just trying to summon up a non-churlish response when she started to bleed profusely from the nose and hurried off to the toilets.
After a while I began to revive and chatted to some of those around me. Peter and Ben arrived, all showered and clean. I was comforted to hear that they'd found it really hard too. Peter, who both times previously went under 3hrs and was assuming he would again, had taken 3hrs05mins, while Ben had come in in a respectable 3hrs 01 mins where we would have expected quicker. Ben told me he also had to have a longish lie down after he got over the line. I was still waiting for our friend Jane to cross the line. She's not done much running this summer so we knew she'd be slower but now I was worrying that she was having a horror of a race and I'd persuaded her to do it! She arrived soon enough and although she was slower than previously she was reasonably chipper.
Jane arrives in
Judging by the thick crust of salt on my face, the difficulties in the latter part of the race came from dehydration. As it turned out much of the field was slow and I therefore lucked 2nd lv40 and got a prize of a bottle of wine.
feeling much better
Jane, Peter and I went home and had cups of tea, toast and some wine to try and restore ourselves and then later went round to Ben's where Mrs Ben had made us the nicest pie for dinner. We made up for the dryness on the hill by drinking plenty, but I can't have drunk quite enough cos I'm still thirsty now.
Thanks to the organisers for a great race. Particularly liked the clear and crisp instructions at the start, no unnecessary preamble, some helpful course marking and the quick processing of the results.
Thanks also to Alan Young and Ian Nimmo for permission to use some of their photos.Funny report from Westerlands Cross-Country Club here
Ben Kemp 3:01:59 (15th)
Peter Buchanan 3:05:56 (18th)
Graham Henry 3:42:44 (71st)
Mary Hunter 3:48:54 (80th)report Mary Hunter
results hereGrahams response to the weekend...
Three in a Row – Hello, Hello
It is a football chant if you know the tune. It marks the 3 races our troops did at the weekend and the fact that the club picked up a winners prize in every event. Politicians use the phrase “we are a broad church” in times of strife within their camps but hey we can use it in times of victory. Some good going and we have to start with the first race to finish down at Dunbar. Met one of the victorious girls on Tuesday; Tracy Lazenby and to my surprise she was walking funny. I thought has this winning gone to her Canadian Heid? Na, turns oot she decided to wrap her legs around a petrol tank after the race and her hip flexors are sare. Now come on Tracy, after a 10 mile race with a hill in it there are better things to wrap your legs around. Much to my surprise since the like of Ben Kemp and Peter were missing we managed to keep our run going down there as regards the team prizes. Gerry put in an outstanding performance, maybe fuelled by the Tic humping Milano.
Next race was the one I did; the Pentland Skyline. Fantastic sunny day and just a bit too warm for the 16 miles but thankfully the marshals had some water on the latter hills so I got round unscathed but a shocking performance for a personal worst on my 8th consecutive go at this one. My previous worst was the first time I ran it in 2000 so well down this year as I have done 3.10 before but I gave it 100% and that is all you can do in a race. The cut off point was the Drove Road in 2hrs 15 and I left the station bang on 2 hrs so did not have a lot of time spare but kept it going to the end. HBT’s Ian Campbell was out on the course at Castlelaw and at Bonaly and was grateful for the extra water. All of us under performed in various degrees but I win that prize nae bother. Ben is capable of sub 3 but it was his first attempt at the race so did well and Mary saved the day by being first female vet* which was good going in a large field.
Then we had our marathon runners and 10k runners putting in some cracking performances. I can remember giving Sally a lift up to Aberfeldy Half Marathon 7 years ago about this time of year and Sally was a bit scared of the distance etc and ran it around 1.48. Big change nowadays with a sub 3 marathon now a possibility. Same goes for Amanda and Scott who are knocking on that door. Julia Henderson also getting a prize in the 10k. I was one of the people who told Alan Aitchison not to run. I didnae fancy carrying his coffin before he has got under 3.15 for a marathon.
So plenty of prizes and photos from three great races in the greatest country in the world. We were the only club to win something in all 3.
Vive PRC, Vive EcosseGraham Henry
* Mary actually came 2nd lv40 though has been promoted on the Carnethy website to 1st lv40 which she is basking in until someone realises.
