SATURDAY 25 APRIL 2009
53 MILES 7000 FEET
On Saturday I danced the 53 mile/7 000 feet Highland Fling for almost 11 hours and had a merry old time with my 3 Westies dance partners and another 300 or so light footed nutters. Like Graham Kelly and Craig I had misgivings about this, based on my last long run being the 32 mile Wuthering Hike over a month ago, but more worrying being my 300 miles/30 000 feet cycling in the Lake District just a week previous. My legs were worryingly tired and heavy all week after slogging up the infamous passes of Hardknott, Kirkstone etc. on my bike and I really was pretty negative about 53 miles of the West Highland Way so soon afterwards. However a nice easy jog on Friday lightened my mood and legs and persuaded me to toe the line and treat it as a big day out, with the sole aim of getting to the finish in time to get my pre-booked bus back home from Tyndrum. I needed no excuse to carbo-load on pizza, rice pudding and cake on Friday and a reasonable night’s sleep had me feeling relaxed and a bit apprehensive at the 7am start in Milngavie. This well organised race requires no supporters to be dragged out to help you and they take food and drink for you to collect along the route at checkpoints. I took this opportunity to heart and had 3 nice goodie bags of prawn/ bacon/chicken sandwiches and iced fruitcake to supplement the usual gels and bananas.
The weather couldn’t really have been much better for me and the race was ran almost wholly in a T-shirt, with moderate temperatures and a lovely tailwind. I decide to carry a Camelbak for my hydration and this proved a good move in the mild conditions, though weighing me down a bit. I took the pace real easy at first, just enjoying the fact that the pace had to be easy, walking anything remotely hilly, knowing that in this length of race it really started only after a good 5 or 6 hours of effort had already been expended. The familiar Mugdock tracks led us out to Drymen with Conic Hill providing a good opportunity to power walk up the hill and break up the running rhythm nicely for a wee while. It was nice wee steep descent down into Balmaha for a food drop and then that gorgeous stretch in the woods along Loch Lomond to Rowardenan. I was still trying to run easy and enjoy the event and in the lovely weather and fine views this wasn’t too difficult. I caught fellow Westie Graeme Reid on the wide track to Inversnaid, where another sandwich and cake prepared me for the difficult section of tree roots and rocks up to Beinn Glas farm at the head of the Loch. The views were simply stunning in the sunshine and took the mind off the hours done and the hours yet remaining.Westie Stevie Bell was manning the checkpoint here when I arrived in just over 8hrs and he assured me I had much less than 3 hours left to Tyndrum which cheered me up no end as I contemplated a sub 11hrs finish. I was running well here even on the uphill gradient, but after we crossed under the A82 to approach Crianlarich I had my first bad patch. It was undulating, twisty and never ending and with a queasy stomach I struggled to remain focussed and strong for a few miles. However, emerging from the forest to re-cross the A82 I caught a fellow Flinger up and now realising I was actually going to make it with approx 3 or 4 miles I thought to go, I attempted to pick up the pace and get that emergency tank of adrenaline to kick in. With the finish line mentally in sight I pushed on strongly feeling mentally and physically on top of the world and hared up the finish line feeling fantastic.
I managed 10hours 47minutes, 94th of approx 240 finishers. I blubbed a few tears of joy to myself as I hadn’t felt that great for a long time about a race and just shows that sometimes you need the confidence to get a bit out of your comfort zone to reap great rewards. Subjective rewards that is, of course, since I was over 3 hours behind the winner Jez Bragg and well behind former Westie Sarah Ridgeway who had a great run to win the women’s’ race, but what the heck, I won my personal race and I felt fantastic, especially after the free bottle of beer and massage. Many many thanks to the organisers for a fantastic event, superbly organised and great value for money – Think I clocked in at almost a pound per hour and twenty pence per mile! Days later I am still on a high, despite the aches and pains now emerging, and thinking that if I can put some proper training in for it next year that maybe 10 hours could be cracked – or maybe I’ll follow Craig’s advice, as sometimes less is more, who knows? Well done fellow Westies and all you other Flingers, you were great.
DRYMEN ROWARD BEINGLAS FINISH
Jez Bragg 01:27:00 03:28:00 05:33:00 7:19:09
Richie C 01:29:00 03:41:00 06:14:11 8:18:50
Sarah R 01:38:00 04:07:00 06:48:59 9:19:01
Craig D 01:40:00 04:10:00 07:03:00 9:37:25
Graham K 01:54:00 04:39:00 07:52:00 10:34:26
John Donnelly 01:57:00 04:49:00 08:10:00 10:46:56
Highland Fling
Winner's report
Billy "The Shoe" Minto's report
Richie's report
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