Our website news page has been a touch quiet over the last wee while, we’ve been busy at the club! Do check out our social media feeds (facebook.com/bellaroadrunner, twitter.com/bellaroadrunner) for the latest. A couple of big highlights from the last month! 2021 President’s Cup The President’s cup is a big part of the club year: It’s run as a handicap, with members setting off in time stagger relative to their estimated time. Theoretically, everybody should finish at the same time, and has a chance of winning, but there’s always a mix of circumstances to add a huge amount of fun. Last year it was run virtually, but with the easing of restrictions and group size limits for organised activities, we were able to stage it ‘for real’ on the 13th June. Organised in a couple of heats, and members who weren’t running or volunteering, were able to support everybody out on the course. Over 90 runners, spectators and volunteers stayed within Covid rules and had a fantastic time. And of course we can’t have a Bella occasion without plenty of cake afterwards!! Congratulations to our winners Joni Lindsay and Nick Windley , who collected their trophies from our President Richard Leyton 2021 AGM Tuesday 15th saw us hold our 2021 AGM, virtually on Zoom. Much as the President’s cup is a big part of the participation, the AGM is a big part of our governance. Member’s can access a recording of the AGM, the video featuring Leanne, Kevin and Richard, reflecting on the last 12 months, on the members’ forum. Our annual report is available on our public website. Key outcomes from the AGM, all of which allowed members an opportunity to question and discuss elements: Finances and Treasurers report were accepted Club annual report from the President was accepted COVID Coordinator, Emer provided an update on our Coronavirus plan Membership secretary Susan updated members on our membership A motion to formalise virtual meetings and voting (per OSCR recommendations) was passed unanimously. Membership fees were retained at present rate. Our Trustees were approved for another year. We held an open discussion about local sports facilities at Nethercraigs, and associated issues. Full details on the members forum
race reports
Danny just put together a list of ’13 Good Things about the Stirling 10K’. We needed to share, so you all know what they are…. It’s Flat It’s true to its word. My Garmin says the elevation gain is 43 metres. That means those of you who live in a house probably climb something like this going to bed. Those who live in a flat, I suppose it depends what floor you live on, but you get my point. It’s not Sherbrooke hills Van with real coffee machine Parked right near the start. It had a van with a built in proper coffee machine. We arrived early and got espressos, cappuccinos, and americanos (easier to get your heart rate up than doing strides). Richard got a snickers bar. Lots of Bellas Twenty in all. We had a great time. Where were you? You got half a pint of milk at the end (instead of a medal although see point 7) Means you don’t have to stop on the way home to get milk. Or you could drink it as the perfect recovery drink it is. (Check the ingredients of those expensive recovery drinks – they are just milk, with unhealthy stuff added). And lets face it you have too many medals hanging all over the place. Milk is better. Harry entertained us with his superhero impersonations. Kenny and Julia brought Harry. Harry is 3 years old. He is a superhero. Be like Harry. It’s the Scottish 10k championship too True. It is. It’s also in the Bella Roadrunner Club Champs. Bella ladies win Scottish medals. Again. Our ladies brought back the bounty. Louise Ross and Emer Campbell picked up National Silver and Bronze medals in the V40 category and Shona Donnelly won V50 Bronze. Bella men ran too. Bella’s got PBs Hard training pays off. Also see point 1. And in Richard’s case also see point 2. Richard and Sarah Jane both got a 10k PB. Purple arch at the start Roz liked the purple arch. Roz is mara training so she paced Sara-Jane. Be like Roz. Good weather It was a bit windy but sometimes it was behind you. (Ok, Ok, no it wasn’t. You always had a head wind even though we changed direction all the time). And it was surprisingly humid conditions. But it did not rain until we all finished. So I suppose weather was OK. Maybe fix the weather. Well organised There are no queues for the toilets (well only a small queue sometimes), there are more toilets in the sports centre, it had just the right amount of runners, there are loads of marshals and they are really nice, staff in the sport centre were helpful, you can park very close to the start, the finish line is really well organised, It’s not crowded, did I mention you get milk no medal, although Shona, Louise and Emer did. Scenery is nice There is a bit when you are running down a straight track and […]
Twenty Bellas raced this morning in windy and surprisingly humid conditions at the Stirling 10k which also doubled up as the Scottish 10k Champs. Several scored PBs and season bests, but it was our ladies who once again brought back the silverware. Louise Ross and Emer Campbell picked up National Silver and Bronze medals in the V40 category and Shona Donnelly won the V50 Bronze. Well done ladies! 🥈🥉🥉 Results available here, and our thanks to Central AC for hosting a superb event! Photos courtesy of Graeme McNay and Robert Macleod.
BELLA MEN WIN SCOTTISH VETERAN HARRIERS ROAD RELAYS! LADIES FINISH THIRD! The men’s team of Bruce Carse, Bruce Carmichael, Graeme Paterson and Andy Campbell ran out of their skins to become Scottish Champions at the SVHC Road Relays, beating 51 other teams to the trophy. Our ladies team of Romy Beard, Emer Campbell and Claire Wharton won a fantastic bronze medal! Congratulations to you all, the club are very proud of you! Well done to everybody who took part and supported our members on the day. Well done!
(I’d thought of this title before acknowledging the third sport and watching the Cubs win the play-off, Go Cubs!) Chicago trip was off to a good start, sat behind Scott Overall on the plane (retrospective hats off to Scott for finishing 13th overall in 2:18). Electric atmosphere upon arrival, runners welcomed with open arms. Pre race preparations had been interesting, whilst training may not have gone to plan I’d nailed the carb loading; living off little other than rice & pasta since leaving home 5 years ago. Expo negotiated, secret service closed down the city for Obama’s arrival as we attempted to leave the convention centre, American efficiency at its finest. Race morning arrived, with the stunning Chicago skyline as the backdrop I lined up in Corral A alongside fellow Bella Michael Lancaster. Rendition of the National Anthem and the gun was fired, 52 seconds later the Bellas were off on their comprehensive tour of the Windy City. Through the loop and headed north to the zoo before returning downtown and completing the first half, surprising lack of congestion and through without issue in 1:32. Headed west and things started to become troublesome, cramps from ~15m put any ambitious hopes of GFA to bed. Worth a shot and still, this was a marathon debut in Chicago and absolutely nothing was going to spoil it. On we continued through little Italy and towards China town, heading south and through 20m. Came to a halt with hamstring cramp at 21m, soon back underway and the crowd density increased dramatically towards the finish. A 2.5m straight took us to 500m to go, up “Mount Roosevelt” (we should show them the Sherbrookes) and along the finishing straight with arms aloft, proud to be wearing a purple vest and bringing it home in 3:24. I’ve watched my parents run a lot of marathons and, with the exception of seeing Kev smashing it at the mighty Wrecsam Marathon, little compares to Chicago. Phenomenal race, thoroughly enjoyed and one for your bucket list. A heartfelt thank you to the club for the support, advise and reassurance over the summer months, especially to Louise. There’s nothing quite like running in a Bella vest. Post-race celebrations continued long into the week, taking in all the city had to offer. The thought of a marathon terrified me, now impatient for the next one. DH In the days leading up to the race I found this from @coachbennett on Instagram, one worth pondering: This was never about the Marathon. The true marathon was the journey to get here. Getting on those daily starting lines. To start another Recovery Run. Another Home Run. Another Speed Run. Another Long Run. Over and over again. Day after day and week after week. You don’t need a race to prove you are a Runner. You need a race to celebrate you are a Runner. So, enjoy your Party. I hear they’re going to shut down the streets of Chicago for you. And you deserve it. […]
As I am currently training for my first ultra in April (Glasgow to Edinburgh) I figured I really should do a marathon first. So in December I decided to sign up for Glentress Trail marathon, having never really run on trails either. Due to take place 5 weeks before Ultra race day I figured I should be in a healthy enough state to manage such a tough event as long as I never got carried away and entered into a race or set any target times,which could ultimately jeopardise my #1 goal which is G2E. Up at 6:30am to make the journey down to Peebles, it was a pleasant -3 degrees rising to -1 at the start(should have been 9:30am but delayed until 9:40am due to crowd disturbances also known as long queues at registration). There were three separate races 10k, half and full marathon, and this being the inaugural event nobody was too clued up on how it would pan out. Of we went and immediately into an ascent, and this carried on for around the first 6 miles with the odd mini descent for variation. Sticking to my plan of no racing and with no target in mind I casually took in the sights of the Tweed Valley national park from high up the mountain we had just climbed. Once at the highest point, snow became part of the obstacles that apparently come naturally with rail running ie.. razor sharp rocks, tree roots and with it being February ice, lots of slippy ice, that only seemed to be there on descents where stopping was not too much of an option. I was joined by a runner from Edinburgh who kept me company until the halfway point (back at the start). He stopped for refreshment but I decided to carry on as I was carrying my own nutrition as a test for the Ultra marathon. I didn’t see him again. However, after a mile back into the climbing I realised having the guy with me was a boost, I was now running alone up the cruel ascents for a second time and it wasn’t easy. Its amazing how chatting rubbish with a complete stranger can distract you from the total elevation of just under 6000ft. Coming down the final descent tired legs and A tired mind, I lost my footing 3 times on the aforementioned ice and razor sharp rocks. No cuts just bruise after bruise after bruise. If nobody broke a bone that day I will be surprised. Finally after 4hrs23mins and 26th place the finish line came and and I had survived a very cruel unforgiving training run. Although it was painful with the falls, the scenery once up high was amazing the people were very supporting toward each other and the organisation for the first ever Glentress Trail marathon, in my opinion was a success. I would obviously recommend as a training run for and aspiring ultra runners and definitely as a race to any avid […]
I have it from a good source that this race was described on Monday, in a Spanish newspaper, as a ‘ great race in windy conditions’.The journalist has obviously never been to Greenock !!! This is a fairly flat, well organised race (apart from the number of porto loos !) but who cares when there is a local park nearby. Don’t know how many runners there were but it wasn’t too congested at the start with the run taking the shape of a figure 8 through the wide boulevards of the city, finishing where we started. I made the trip with three ex Bellas – Anne Marie, Frances and liz and we all thoroughly enjoyed it. The only incident was me tripping over a bollard at 12k, falling flat onto the road and completing the race with blood pouring down from both knees, hands and elbows- it is the first time I have done a negative split in a race- well worth it !! Shona Photo https://www.flickr.com/photos/ok-apartment/12844126063 by www.flickr.com/laiabuira
A great way to add an extra element to running is to give races, events or challenges a shot that you’ve not taken part in before. The Kirky 12.5k is certainly a unique – as far as I can tell – race distance. Having heard many great things about this event, I figured it was high time to give the event a shot last Sunday, 14th Feb. Number collection at the primary school had me briefly pondering how good it’d be if all running events used primary schools for registration: The fantastic posters and art projects on the walls a pleasant start to the day, and reminder of primary school times, and then the small tables, chairs and facilities offered a pre-run comedy experience: I’m sure parents attending PTA meetings will probably feel differently! To the event itself, and the main challenge was going to be the underfoot conditions on this undulating course. A sharp dip in temperatures on a clear night meant lots of scraping to get cars ready, and snow on the hills as we approached pretty much told us what to expect. Sure enough a large expanse of ice in the start area outside the school. But the sun, and vigorous attempts to clear away the worst of it by volunteers made it safe to start, but out on the course itself constant vigilance was required by participants to avoid expanses of ice mostly caused by runoff from fields where the sun hadn’t quite reached. For me, with the Balloch to Clydebank half marathon my principle target just now, I’d decided I’d aim for Half marathon effort (if not pace; I had no idea what the hills would be like!). Largely managed to stick with that plan, and settled in with a group of runners running from Springburn and Maryhill Harriers for the first 6k or so, but – surprisingly for me at least – started to build out a bit of a lead on them after the large hill (reminiscent of the gradient on the steeper parts of the Sherbrooke Hill loops, just several times longer!) coming out of Kirkintilloch for the return leg. I was myself soon passed by Michael Lancaster running an excellently paced, and surely negative split effort: he quickly eased away I and only just managed to keep him in my sights through the second half, even as I struggled to remember whether there was an uphill or downhill section around each corner as we traced our route back to the start. A total of five Bella’s took part. Michael was first Bella home in 54:26. I was pleased with my time (55:17), pretty much spot on my HM target pace, then Paul McGunnigle (57:18), Terry Nimmo (69:16) and Lynn Reid (75:50) completed the Bella field. First runner home was James Stewart of Victoria park, City of Glasgow in a time of 45:41, and first lady Joanna Murphy of Carnegie Harriers in 49:28. Full results online at kirkintillocholympians.co.uk. A Strava segment for the […]
I really wanted to do the Dublin marathon. Seeing as it is the home city and I remember being brought in as a child to watch my Dad and uncle run it, I thought if I only do one more marathon, that’s the one it’ll be. So I signed up. With only three months to go. Not ideal preparation time. But I had an ok base and looking at the calendar, I could just about fit in the long runs and a few build up races. But then life got in the way and as it happened, by the time it came to taper I had only done 16 miles as my longest run. Eek! So I was a bit anxious heading into it not properly trained. Lining up at the start, I was helped keep calm by a man’s voice over the tannoy. I don’t know who he was but I was enthralled by his ramblings over motivation, pride, inspiration, personal bests, descriptions of the crowd, such as people wearing “high-falutin lycra suits”, musings over what brought people here, in all shapes and sizes, the great and the good, the veterans and the first-time, on and on like a priest saying mass. Such a lovely experience and in stark contrast to the usual high energy pop that’s belted out at race starts. He called it “an emotional experience in a material world”. We got an indian blessing of “Namaste” then a garda sang the national anthem. It was all very surreal and I loved it. Off we went through the streets of Dublin and it was wonderful to see city landmarks and old haunts from this perspective. The route starts on south side of city centre, heads past Christchurch cathedral and onto the quays of the River Liffey. Crossing over to the north side and into the Phoenix Park. A great expanse of autumnal views across Europes largest city park. All along was great support and crowd energy. There are some gradual hills but nothing severe. The route exits and enters the park again, down into the liffey valley and back across south side. It crosses the canal and loops through residential areas, taking you back to the city centre finish. It was a very well organised race with plenty of water stops (flip top bottles) and Lucozade and energy gels at the latter stops. Easy bag drop and start area, but not so easy to find travel information on the website. The crowds were really amazing. I have never experienced anything like it. Very funny shouts and signs. Lots of “Fair play to ye” and “yizzer great” and my favourite “Yer not really bollixed, ye only think ye are!” I optimistically thought I might get 3:45 if I kept it under 8 and a half minute miles, which I did easily for the first half, then I slowed down after that and struggled to get back up to pace. I was scoffing the energy gels too which I […]
Good weather and running conditions made for a smashing day for Carnethy 5 hill race on Saturday 14th Feb. With a field of 500+ runners the atmosphere and camaraderie was great. Grant MacDonald, David Stakes and I tackled the hills, heather and scree. Grant and David came in with a time of 1:00:57 and 1:19:47 respectively and me 1:19:23. The school dinner after was a long forgotten culinary experience right enough! Great race, would thoroughly recommend it. by Elaine Race info:Carnethy 5 Hill race – 6 mile hill race with 2500 feet total climb over 5 summits, Photo: Descending Carnethy, Pentland Hills (Jim Barton) / cropped from original CC BY-SA 2.0
So, Sunday 15 February was the final race in the Borders Cross Country Series. This was the day the boys finally got their hands on the coveted horseshoe. You see, Greig had promised us the best momento of any race possible and given it was the 25th anniversary series excitement was tangible as to whether the horseshoe would be polished silver this year to mark the date. Graeme had mentioned that he had already cleared a space in the living room to exhibit the prize. The final race was at a place called Conundrum near Berwick. Now, I have never been good at the conundrum on Countdown, possibly because I am so focused on Rachel Riley. I was hoping today, in the town of Conundrum, and as a disassociation tactic, to solve the ultimate conundrum. A question so tough that even Stephen Hawkins has failed to resolve: “Why is Davy’s hair more orange than oranges?” My race tactic was to focus on that question and maybe it would spur me on to success in the race too? The weather was as usual tropical. I arrived slightly late and realised I’d lost my number. Not to worry, the tattoo parlour in Conundrum was delighted to scribe my number on my chest and after a quick change I was ready to go. During our warm up I was scanning the other runners to see if I could see Deep Sea Diver. They either had decided to take the day off or were having problems with the replacement canisters of helium strapped to the suit rather than the oxygen. An inspired feat of psyching your challenger out ( well kind off!). It was during this process that I saw The Terminator. This beast was truly magnificent…..a real professional. Dressed in matching shoes, socks, shorts, racing vest, hat, gloves and sunglasses, he looked mean and ready to kick ass. When I grow up, I thought, I want to be just like you! I mentioned to the boys that he was clearly the winner and that Grieg was now racing for the lower places…….no problems for me as I am always in that position. The whistle summoned us to the start line. This gave Greig just enough time to take his last sip of EPO. I stared in awe as the majesticness of the Terminator muscled his way to the front. The starter gave us precise directions: “You run up there, across there, through there, across the road, down there, up there, through a few fields, watch the electric fences, run down there, it’s quite muddy over there and you finish right there” Brilliant….where can we go wrong? The race started. We ran across a very flat section for about 100 metres and then bang…up a big hill. I settled in behind a group of boys watching Greig, Davy and Graeme running into the distance ahead. I just thought dig in…..oranges, oranges, oranges. At the top of the hill I noticed I was right behind […]
Report from Peter B. The day started early with an early morning text message from Australia to wish me luck, at 6:30am, it was appreciated but not necessarily the greatest timing. Although I have done various races in different locations, the Great North Run will always be special to me, since it is in my “home” city. Once the car was parked and bag dropped on the bus, I made my way down towards the muster points, still an hour until the race starts at this point. I stood and watched our very own Bryan Burnett interviewing various celebrities and Olympic athletes, Mo Farah was a notable high point, although he may need some development if he wants to excel as a motivational speaker! With half an hour to go before the race I was in my muster pen, soaking up the atmosphere and watching nearly 40,000 people doing the Mo-bot during the warm up. The elite runners were announced and set off and it was only a matter of time… Usually these race reports talk about being at the front of the race and judging pace well and managing to overtake the leader in the last half a mile. My race was similar to that, but in a way different. My pace was all over the place, as I was through 8 miles the leaders were already finished and even a third rate X Factor winner beat me. That said the reason I was there was not to win, I decided to do this race so that I could enjoy the atmosphere and run a steady race and still have something left at the end to produce a finishing burst, whilst enjoying the whole occasion. I got part of what I aimed for. The atmosphere was fantastic, and I made sure that I was always aware of the crowd around me and watching the faces of people shouting my name all the way down the course, I watched the red arrows fly over-head at 3.5 miles and I even chatted to a couple of Premiership referees, both wearing Newcastle United vests… First celebrity spot was Sian Williams from BBC Breakfast, closely followed by Sophie Rayworth, also from Breakfast. You will notice I have not mentioned the race or the running much thus far, I think the medical term is selective forgetfulness. I made good progress up until 10 miles, despite the undulating course and wet weather and I was still on target for a sub 1hr 40 time, however, at 10 miles someone had built a rather large wall, which it appears only I ran into. The next 3 miles were torture, I actually felt like I was running backwards. I fell in behind Iwan Thomas and tried to match his stride pattern, which I did for a mile and a half, but still things were not going well. The last 3 miles were probably at the right pace for 1hour 50 minutes or slower, but thankfully the first […]
Report from Grant Apologies in advance, this race report may be a bit on the long side. Since the race I have been putting my feet up resting a temperamental IT band so if I can’t run I might as well type about running. However if your time is precious the short version is- I ran around for 24 hours, it hurt quite a bit, it was surprisingly good fun. Long Version: (warning contains more toilet detail than really neccesary) I entered this race on a whim back in January after chickening out on entering the West Highland Way race. The idea of running for 24 hours seemed slightly ridiculous but the idea got stuck in my head and I figured why not give it a go- I’m not getting any younger. Cut to September the 1st and the idea didn’t seem any less ridiculous but at least I had had a pretty solid 8 months training including a pretty pleasing run at the Lakeland50 in July. Despite this I couldn’t get past the nagging thought that my longest run to date was under 9 hours and couldn’t really fathom how I would manage another 15. So I thought best not to think about it too much and just run. Elsie and I headed up to Inverness on friday night where we had a bit of a slap up meal courtesey of Elsie’s sister, and then a short drive over to Aviemore for the race on saturday morning. Pre race was was a bit hectic, getting weighed, prodded and various bodily fluids extracted for the research study that was being conducted at the race, so I was a bit flustered on the start line and it was a bit of a relief to finally get going. I set off at what I hoped was a comfortable pace chatting for a bit with Mike who I figured would be one of the front runners. However about halfway round the lap I had to drop back as my stomach started gurgling with the warning signs of an imminent bottom explosion. Fortunately there were portaloos at the end of the lap which saved me having to fertilise the beautiful Glenmore forest. Unfortunately the stomach problems didn’t end there and for a while I thought Ada might be counting my toilet visits as well as my laps. (4 poos in 4 laps, possibly a course record?). After the 4th lap things settled down and I managed to get into a nice rhythm. The course itself was lovely and varied. The 1st mile being a nice undulating twisty bit of single track which opens out into an open forest track for a mile, before turning on to a longish climb which was perfect for taking on food and then a nice descent back to the start. Plenty of variety meaning I never felt bored on the loop. About 6 hours in I caught back up with Mike and found myself in the slightly uncomfortable position of […]
Report from Greig The challenge is to complete at least three of the five Western Isles Half Marathons – Stornoway, Harris, Benbecula, Barra or Skye in any one year. This is the longest running series of half marathons in Scotland and 2012 saw the 23rd event. It is a hugely popular race series, with increasing entries every year. In particular, the Barra race, which is only able to support limited numbers, sells out the day entry is opened every year. The series starts with the Stornoway half marathon and ends with the Harris half marathon, which traditionally involves post race celebrations, both locally and on the ferry! 3 Bella runners completed at least the minimum 3 races Myself, Nea MacInnes, John Sandbach. First up for the Bella challenge was the 2nd race in Benbecula. Despite it being a circular route it had the usual stiff headwind for about 12 miles (always described as “perfect running conditions” in the local press) and talk of a strong challenge from the Heb 3 host club Stornoway, I did enough to grind out my 3rd Benbecula Half win followed by Nea clinching 2nd with a fine PB after a good race with a couple of runners from the previously mentioned local club. John Sandbach picked up a “Heb PB” for his first counter and the bravest run of the day was from Sandra Houldsworth who with a couple of miles still to run had a nasty fall and despite the blood oozing from numerous wounds still managed to finish and was then promptly whisked to hospital where she discovered she’d also broken 3 toes. 7 days later in Skye it was the heat that took its toll on the runners, I finished 3rd followed by Nea 4th and Robbie Hayman 5th to win us the Skye team prize and John in 85th adding another time towards the series. Next it was onto Barra where Nea and John were joined by Louise Gray. Nea had another fine race on Barras famously brutal undulations, battling so hard with a runner for 2nd place to his surprise he almost caught the leader finishing just 10 seconds behind. Louse also ran well coming in 3rd v40. Finally it was to Harris for the fifth and final race in the series. Nea was series leader having already completed his 3 races, I had to finish my final counter in under 1.27 to overtake him and at last win the thing after being runner up 3 times in the previous four years. And with John Sandbach (like Nea) having already completed his 3 races we were also in with a chance for a first ever Bella series team win breaking the usual Edinburgh stranglehold (Portobello, HBT, Corstorphine). On the day it was pretty grim. You get taken on a fleet of buses out to Borve and run back the 13.1 miles in an easterly direction back to Tarbet. The theory is despite the first 10 miles being almost constant climbs, […]