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| 31.10.08
- PA Report |
There was great running weather
in Dublin last Sunday for the 29th running of the
Dublin Marathon. The 11,500 competitors included
Perth’s Kenneth Stewart and in an excellent
run, in his marathon trademark kilt, he came 1,699th
and 35th in his class to record a time of 3:36:25.
This is his fastest marathon since Edinburgh in
2006 and the 5th fastest time run by a Perth Road
Runner this year.
Next weekend sees two events half a world apart.
The popular annual Templeton Woods 10 mile race
is the last event in the Perth Road Runners 2008
club championship and the Perth runners will be
competing to grab as many last minute points as
possible. Meanwhile Linton Scarborough will be making
the long journey to compete in the New York City
Marathon where he’s hoping to break the 3
hour barrier. |
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| 24.10.08
- PA Report |
Commencing in 2006, the Aviemore
Half Marathon has become an autumnal favourite for
anyone wishing a fast time prior to the end of season.
More than 800 gathered at the highland resort where
a fleet of buses took runners to the race start
within Glenmore Forest Park. Once the forest trails
around Loch Morlich had been negotiated, it became
a downhill finish over the last 3 miles. With proceeds
going towards the Badaguish Outdoor Centre for children
and adults with special needs it was an event where
everyone was a winner. However, for Perth Road Runners,
the battle for supremacy was between Linton Scarborough
and Neil Muir with both finishing in the top 20.
Linton taking the line honours in 1hr 22mins 31secs
(10th) while Neil, close behind in 1:25:15, made
sure of the club championship title. Keri Weatherhogg
(1:28:43) was placed 5th woman and first home for
the club thus securing maximum championship points
to secure the ladies title.
Other results:
David Angus 1:35:02; Bob Brown 1:36:56 Kenneth Stewart
1:38:01 Bill Lawson 1:38:10 Colin Wilson 1:38:31;
Fiona Angus 1:39:24; Dave Norrie 1:39:36; Simon
Grieshaber 1:40:12; Angela Park 1:40:52; Ken Laidlaw
1:45:03; Robin Wombill (PB) 1:45:25; Joan Wilson
1:46:03; Fiona Manson 1:47:13; Peter Ritchie 1:47:47;
Scott Sharp 1:50:33; Julie King 1:52:53; Linda O’Neill
1:54:24; Jake Carter 1:54:53; Elaine Laidlaw 1:55:02;
Debbie Jackson 1:55:20; Karen Walters 2:17:17; Fiona
Morrison 2:21:14; Anne Wombill 2:22:26.
Closer to home, both Andrea Finlay and Nicole Soave
joined 750 runners for a 10K event at Scone Palace
raising funds for Cancer Research. Despite heavy
underfoot conditions, Andrea ran the multi terrain
course in 58.27 while Nicole was less fortunate
having to retire from the race with a twisted ankle.
The popular 5K time trials will commence on Thursday
at the George Duncan Arena |
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| 17.10.08
- PA Report |
Last weekend was a quiet one for
Perth Road Runners with the only recorded activity
being Colin Campbell’s trip to Giffordtown
by Ladybank in Fife for the Giffordtown 5k road
race. The near perfect conditions for the 107 runners
on the scenic fast, flat, out and back course saw
both the men’s and women’s race records
broken by Kevin Murray of Dundee Hawkhill in 16m10s
and Belgium road runner Louise Deldicque of CS Dyle
in 18m18s. Colin’s impressive 23m 35s saw
him come home as the 2nd male over 65.
This weekend will see the third annual running of
the Aviemore Half Marathon. The race was first run
in 2006, through some of Scotland’s most outstanding
scenery, to immediate acclaim and was voted one
of Britain’s best races that year. For the
first time this year its part of the Perth Road
Runners club championship and so they’ll be
heading north en masse and hoping the weather is
as kind for the race as it’s been for the
last two years. |
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| 10.10.08
- PA Report |
Perth Road Runners were geographically
very spread out last weekend but all enjoyed excellent
running weather for their chosen events. Maureen
Summers was one of the 52,000 runners who took part
in the Great North Run, the world’s biggest
half marathon race, to finish 11th in her class
in 2:01:46. This event will eventually raise over
£10m for charity.
More local to home was the Strathcarron Hospice
10k at Denny. This is on a tiny scale compared to
the Great North Run but again the hospice uses the
event to raise funds to continue with its work.
At least three Road Runners were present with Stephen
Ferguson coming home in 38:12, Debbie Jackson in
50:15 and Isobel Duncan in 64:50.
Then it was up to Inverness for the annual marathon
and 10k races. In the 10k Angela Park finished in
44:07 and Linda O’Neill in 48:55. For the
marathon light rain, while the runners waited for
the bus to take them from the finish in Inverness
to the start near Fort Augustus, cleared away and
the sun came out. The organisation gets better every
year and as the runners lined up prior to the start
a pipe band marched down the middle of the road
between the runners. Running in their first marathons
were Keri Weatherhogg and Julie King. Keri ran a
brilliant 3:08:06, the fastest marathon run by a
female Road Runner since Erni Hamilton set the record
at 3:06:27 in 2004. Julies speedy 4:12:18 was the
result of her dedication and months of training.
Susan and Bernt Cederstrom ran together for most
of the way with Bob Brown just behind. Unfortunately
Bob suffered cramp at 22 miles and had to walk for
a short distance. Kenneth Stewart just dipped under
the 4 hour mark and Karen Walters was delighted
to complete the distance without training - apart
from the 500 mile cycle trip she did on her holidays
shortly before the event! Other times were Bernt
Cederstrom 3:35:27, Susan Cederstrom 3:42:37, Bob
Brown 3:54:45, Kenneth Stewart 3:58:15 and Karen
Walters 5:10:18 |
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| 03.10.08
- PA Report |
There aren’t many towns
as busy as Pitlochry was last Sunday where the main
street was closed to traffic for the start of a
running race and the competitors got their own dedicated
lane down to the finish line, so Perth and Kinross
Leisure, in the form of Richard Pearson and a large
band of volunteers, must be thanked for the excellent
10k multi terrain race that they put on.
The race started and finished outside Fisher’s
Hotel on a bright day. The race ran north out of
town and along the old road for nearly three miles,
up to and beyond Garry Bridge, where the course
took a u-turn and did an anti-clockwise off-road
loop to get back to Garry Bridge from where it returned
back to the start. The race attracted 208 starters
of which 23 were from Perth Road Runners and this
time the Road Runners really brought home the gold
stuff with six of their number coming home with
prizes. The race had a good finish with the last
third of a mile plunging 50 feet and fast finishes
were commonplace. Neil Muir used the downhill slope
to his advantage as he outsprinted Derek Phillips
to the finish line coming home in 37:06 two seconds
ahead of Derek with the two of them claiming second
and third places in the male vets category. Only
twelve seconds behind Derek was Stephen Ferguson
who was first in the male supervet category. It
was the Perth ladies who really came up trumps with
Keri Weatherhogg first female in 39.10, Erni Hamilton
first female vet in 41:12 and Fiona Hair first female
supervet in 51:14. On this occasion the ‘gold’
for the category winners was in the form of bottles
of Bells whisky.
Meanwhile across in sunny Germany Jean Wainwright
took part in the Berlin Marathon. Set on a very
fast course the race always attracts the big names
from the running world. Haile Gebrselassie of Ethiopia
set a new world record at the event in 2007. This
year he took 27 seconds off the time to set a new
world record of 2:03:59. Jean wasn’t in Haile’s
league but she still managed to finish 7th in the
female over 70 class in a time of 5:27:53 out of
a field of almost 36,000 runners who had travelled
from all over the world for the race. |
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| 26.09.08
- PA Report |
The new Dundee Running Adventure
Marathon last Saturday was tackled by two Perth
Road Runners with Erni Hamilton coming home first
female in 3:28:02 and Claire Frulloni finishing
in 4:10:37.
It was a busy day on Sunday with two races to choose
from with four members contesting the East Neuk
10k at Anstruther. Bob Brown was first Road Runner
home in 44:27 followed by Angela Park in 45:30,
then Nicole Soave in 55:23 and finally Angela Park’s
sister Vicky in 59:26. For those not at Anstruther
it was the Linlithgow 10k road race that attracted
them. It started in the High Street and followed
an undulating figure of eight course that crossed
the M9 four times. At the halfway point the runners
were afforded views of the ruins of Linlithgow Palace,
birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots in 1542, as they
ran around the North side of the loch and the race
eventually finished on the grass to the east of
the palace. It’s was a popular race with over
500 starters and the twelve Perth Road Runners were
not only fighting for position against the other
runners but most especially against their fellow
club members as the race was one of those selected
for the 2008 Road Runners club championship. Neil
Muir (39:05) and Keri Weatherhogg (40:59) were first
male and female home for the club and both gained
the maximum 100 points in the championship. Other
results were Derek McIntosh 39:23, Fiona Angus 44:01,
Simon Grieshaber 44:18, Peter Ritchie 44:39, Scott
Sharp 45:02, David Norrie 45:05, Bill Lawson 45:27,
Bernt Cederstrom, 46:07, Julie King 50:44 and Fiona
Morrison 62:48.
The next club championship race is this Sunday’s
Pitlochry 10k starting at 1 pm outside Fishers Hotel. |
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| 19.09.08
- PA Report |
The Perth Road Runners can’t
get enough races run during the day so they’re
now resorting to running during the night as well.
The daytime events started with the Glasgow Half
Marathon where Debbie Jackson finished in 1:57:04
and Linda O’Neill in 2:00:56. Then it was
on to the annual Stirling 10k road race where seven
members attacked the fast flat course. Four of them
were rewarded with new personal bests for the distance
despite 1,000 runners fighting for position in the
early stages of the race. The Perth results were
Fiona Angus 43:11 PB, Danny Ternent 43:57, Angela
Park 44:37 PB, Robert MacDonald 44:50, Debbie Jackson
50:12, Nicole Soave 54:40 PB and Andrea Finlay 55:29
PB.
Then it was on to the night time event. Ultra running
is a minority sport within the running scene and
involves runners competing in events either over
long distances or by set times. Scotland hasn’t
hosted an Ultra event since 1997 and with an ever
decreasing number of similar races in the UK it
has been frustrating for Scottish ultra runners
to find the opportunity to race. The two big problems
are finding the right course and getting together
the funding and manpower support for an event. A
chance ‘discovery’ of Perth’s
North Inch by somebody wanting to stage an event
started the ball rolling and with the support of
Perth and Kinross Council, Scottish Athletics and
Run and Become of Edinburgh an event was conceived.
Perth Road Runners assisted by providing 13 members
to assist in lap scoring throughout the night and
other vital tasks to ensure the smooth running of
the event. They also managed to provide two 6 person
teams for the overnight 12 hour team relay. The
whole event was run very professionally and it all
went off smoothly. Hilary Walker, the general secretary
of the International Association of Ultra runners
was in Perth to assess the events possibilities
to hold a future world ultra championships and she
was very impressed with what she saw.
The big event was the 24 hour race which started
at 10:00 am Saturday which attracted 22 entrants
from places as diverse as Surrey and Orkney. The
music and a commentary provided must have inspired
and motivated because the results were amazing.
In first place was Stephen Mason of Dundee Hawkhill
Harriers who, in only his second 24 hour race covered
148 miles 1328 yards. He was followed in by Pauline
Walker of Carnegie Harriers who covered 130 miles
607 yards and in the process broke three records.
Pauline is the new Scottish champion for the farthest
distance run in 24 hours, fastest 100 miles and
fastest 200 kilometres. Then came Lynne Kuz of Carnegie
Harriers with 125 miles 576 yards beating William
Sichel of Orkney AC after 24 hours of running by
26 yards. The third female home was Pauline’s
twin sister Fiona Rennie with 116 miles 837 yards.
Talk about ton-up girls.
There was also a 100 kilometre event attracting
14 entries again with runners from as far afield
as Germany and Hampshire. Again it was the Scottish
runners who came up trumps with David Gardiner of
Kirkintilloch Olympians getting through the 62.5
miles in just 07:36:14 he was followed in by Paul
Hart of Dumfries Running Club in 07:44:58. For the
ladies Gail Murdoch of Carnegie Harriers in her
first 100k event finished in 09:03:59, with 4.5
miles to go Gail only had a lead of 30 seconds but
she really dug deep to lead Elaine Calder of Strathaven
Striders over the line by 3:41.
The 12 hour team relay which started at 8pm Saturday
evening was won by a superfast team from Carnegie
Harriers who completed 133.23 miles, followed in
by the Perth ‘A’ team with 97.76 miles
and then the Perth ‘B’ team with 87.72
miles. |
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| 12.09.08
- PA Report |
Last weekend saw the 27th running
of the Moray Marathon. The race was first held in
1982 and since then it has developed into a 3 in
1 running event incorporating the Marathon, Half
Marathon and 10K Road Races through the picturesque
landscape of Moray.
To enable this masterpiece of organisation to work
all 3 races followed sections of the same clockwise
circuit with the Marathon starting in the Cooper
Park, Elgin, Half Marathon in the spectacular grounds
of Gordonstoun School, Duffus and the 10K in the
outskirts of Lossiemouth. The finishing line for
each was in the Cooper Park, Elgin with the 13th
century Elgin Cathedral forming a dramatic backdrop.
It turned out to be a very successful day for Perth
Road Runner Neil Muir who ran a brilliant 2:55:32
to finish in 4th place and 1st vet runner and gain
a fistful of points in the ever competitive Road
Runners club championship in the process. Peter
Ritchie finished in 3:46:19. In the past Peter’s
dipped under 3:30 but he’s still getting back
to full running fitness after heart surgery early
this year. On this performance the 3:30 barrier
will soon be broken again. Finally Bob Brown finished
in 4:00:12, not a fast time for Bob but he did stop
to aid another runner who’d taken a tumble.
Meanwhile there was also representation from Perth
in the half marathon, with Jean Wainwright finishing
in 2:18:52 and Isobel Duncan in 2:31:26.
The next club championship event is the Linlithgow
10k on 21st September. This coming weekend sees
the Perth Ultra Fest taking place on the North Inch
between 10:00 am Saturday 13th and 10:00 Sunday
14th. There are four races in all, a 24 hour race,
a 100km race, an under 15 12 lap 6 person team relay
race and a 12 hour 6 person adult team relay race.
The entry list for the two big races reads like
a who’s who of the finest ultra athletes in
the UK and the event will be in a pilot format to
see whether the venue could host an IAU 24-hour
World Championships in the next few years. |
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| 05.09.08
- PA Report |
Last week saw Perth basking in
its nicest run of fine weather for a couple of months
and then it all came to a wet end just in time for
the start of the towns 10k road race. This year
was the 25th time the race had been run and after
a ‘gap’ year in 2007 it came back under
the new management of Councillor Bob Ellis and Perth
and Kinross Sports Council. The race followed a
new flat scenic route, avoiding the roads and city
centre, starting finishing at the George Duncan
Athletics Track and used the paths along by the
Tay and the North Inch.
For the first event, by a new team, on a new course,
in wet weather it still attracted an excellent field
with 346 runners completing the race. Perth Road
Runners rose to the occasion to support their local
event with a record turnout of 45 runners. Yes,
the road runners took second places in the male
and female categories in the form of Tony Jackson
and Keri Weatherhogg but there was also a whole
bunch of them who set new ‘personal bests’
at the distance, including four new female members
Nicole Soave, Amanda Nicholson, Andrea Findlay and
Vicki Park. The biggest cheer at the finish line
though was reserved for Dougie Hooper. He was in
his mid fifties when he ran his first Perth 10k
and has run all 25 of them, culminating in his successful
completion of Sunday’s event in a time of
66m 43s at the age of eighty, he was presented with
a well deserved special award.
With any event this size with new organisers there
were bound to be glitches, and there were, but Bob
Ellis isn’t a man to rest on his laurels and
next years event will be back bigger and better.
On the day the real winner was the city and people
of Perth who, thanks to Bob, now have a 10k race
again for them to enjoy and to put them back on
the Scottish running map. |
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