November Update

 Here’s the November newsletter – knowing that there have been loads of races over the past month I decided to email a few people to see if they would write a bit for the newsletter, so having expected most people to ignore me, of course I got great reports from  nearly everybody so lots to read this month from local race in Dunbar to our international reporters for Europe and the USA!

 Runner council – minutes from the Runners council meeting in October are on the website http://www.harmenyac.org.uk/prunners/runners%20council.htm

 New membership year

The Harmeny membership year runs from 1 Oct – 30 Sep and memberships for 08/09 have been flowing in steadily, so this is another gentle reminder. A membership form can be downloaded from http://www.harmenyac.org.uk/Mship_form.doc , but if you have problems with the pointy–clicky Word for Windows stuff, we’ll be chasing folk with paper copies at running times. Remember, club members get a 10% discount at Run & Become, Dalry Rd on running gear (excluding sale items).

 Other annual reminder: Scottish Athletics operate a separate registration Scheme. Participants in Scottish Athletics “Permit” events (eg road races etc) pay a £2 levy if they have not taken out "Athletics Scotland" registration.   When a road race entry form ask a question about "AS affiliation number" or "Registration number" etc this is what they are referring to (Harmeny does not issue membership numbers). Membership of Athletics Scotland is required far anyone competing in regional or national championships. Members who do wish to register should do so directly with Scottish Athletics.

 London marathon places

We’ve received an allocation of three places again this year, and have so far received five requests. If anyone else would like to apply for one of our places, please email by Fri 12 so we can make our own mini-draw

 Reports

 Allan Price on the Loch Ness marathon –

I think there were 3 of us in the marathon at Loch Ness. I saw Kenny briefly before the race and Karin several times. She was a couple of hundred yards or so in front of me for most of the third quarter, stopped at the bottom of the hill (anybody who's done the race knows exactly where that is), passed me again at the top, and then ran the last 10k over 7 minutes quicker than I did, which shows how well she knows her pace and how little I know mine. Thanks to Ian for his cheers at 25 miles, and he has a photo of how awful I looked by then (as does the race website gallery which has 3 versions of me staggering down the finishing straight. All the other pictures there feature Baxters almost as prominently as the runner. I guess I'll have to buy one to commemorate the first time, although perhaps without showing the disappointingly slow finish of 4h 31. At least I was (just) in the first thousand.) As Kenny says the organisation was excellent, from hotel breakfasts starting at 630, to shared taxis, the fleet of coaches to Whitebridge, the pipers at the start, the Lucozade sachets being opened by the marshals, the cakes and soup at the finish and sufficient hot showers afterwards. It was a dry day apart from when I was on the hill when we had a brief shower, although there were times in the shade of the trees when more sun would have been nice. There are two hills in the descent to the loch which are surprisingly steep and that at 18 1/2 miles is designed to upset you just when you begin to feel that you are going to finish. From the top onwards the time didn't matter, its just a question of being too bloody minded to give up or walk, and the last hill at mile 21 at least has the benefit of a visible summit when you start. From mile 20 to mile 23 I had somebody fulfilling Willie's usual role, although he let me catch and pass him while walking every 400 yards or so before running about 20 yards in front of me and then walking again, rather than Willie's usual once a mile. Already trying to work out the when to do the next one - maybe Fort William, definitely San Francisco in July. The first is flatter and may make that new PB less embarrassing. And to cap it all we saw the dolphins in the Moray Firth on the way home.

 Loch Ness Marathon  5 Oct 08 
171 Kenny Tindall         3.26.19
914 Karin McKendrick   4.24.41
993 Alan Price            4.31.57
1403 Runners 

 Chicago Marathon, Sunday, 12 October @ 8am:  (Official Red Alert conditions) by Morag Leitch

“Temperature 30C/88F – hot and sunny.  Organisation excellent:  20 Gatorade/Water Stations and misters aka hose pipes along the route.

To celebrate my 65^th year I decided to run the Chicago marathon.  I read up on required training schedules and diet advice which would help me accomplish my dream – so far so good.  However there is no manual or guidance to take me through sports injuries so it was a long journey to the start line of the marathon.

Ian, husband, and I travelled to Chicago on Wednesday prior to the race. On Thursday we returned to the airport to welcome Anne and Bob plus feather to Chicago.   Later in the evening, Gordon arrived who is my line manager and also one of Anne’s work colleagues.  We all stayed with my friends, Dan and Wendy Radakovich whose hospitality was overwhelming and who were so excited to be part of the Chicago marathon.

Friday morning, we had a wee run round the houses to see how fit/unfit we would be for Sunday.  After the run we decided we would all be at the starting line. Friday and Saturday saw us all take in the sights of Chicago and at the same time watch the temperature rise higher and higher. 6.15 Sunday morning, we set off to Grant Park.  Taking up a wee tip from one of my friends who has run Chicago many times, we arrived at the Chicago Hilton to check out their plumbing which is definitely an upgrade to standing in line for the “portapotties”.

Fifteen minutes after the start gun we crossed the line and off we went.  It is difficult to articulate the experience but for me, and I think for Anne, it is one never to be forgotten.  We ran through 29 different neighbourhoods to crowds of cheering supporters, bands, singers and DJs.  Our first glimpse of “the feather” and rampant was on LaSalle about three miles into the run then again 20 miles  in Chinatown so we had our very own supporters.  After 10 miles Anne ran on and Gordon stayed with me.  Without Gordon’s constant encouragement that I make it, I would not have finished the race.  I did a very long time of 6.10 but it was a P.B. as I had never run longer than 3.45 in training.  Words cannot describe the elation and joy of crossing the finish line and having my medal put round my neck. 

My special thanks and appreciation go to Anne, Carol, Janis and Norma for taking time to run with me on Saturday mornings.  It has been an amazing journey and a dream fulfilled.  Now I wonder what New York looks like???”

 And Anne’s report:

The feather mentioned above is the same orange feather that began its life supporting the Harmeny runners in Paris last year, I must say I was very glad to see it at 13 and 21 miles in Chicago and would not have spotted Bob and Ian without it.  Although a ‘personal worst’ time for me in Chicago it was definitely an American marathon experience to remember, the crowds and the water station volunteers were brilliant at shouting and cheering you on and I loved some of the handwritten signs some people were holding, one of them was as far as I can remember, ‘ Keep on kicking ass until your feet hurt’  and another’ You are all so awesome!!!’ ( pronounced aaahsome of course!). I was also very glad to get that medal round my neck but didn’t feel up to drinking the free pint of beer on offer, however Bob seemed to enjoy it after all that walking he’d done.  Sadly the orange feather didn’t quite make it to the streets of Amsterdam but it has been safely packed away to maybe reappear at some future date?!

 Anne Douglas 5:31
Morag Leitch 6:10

 Chris Morgan on the Dunbar 10 mile multi-terrain race held on 4^th October.

 Despite Sunday runs in the Pentland Hills being excellent training for the mainly off-road and hilly Dunbar 10 Mile Multi Terrain Race, surprisingly there weren’t many Harmeny participants in this race.  However, I braved the wind and rain to bag the summit of Doon Hill and my first 10 miler.  If the weather the day before was anything to go by we would have been bathed in Indian summer sunshine, but typically the day of the race saw gale force gusts which we generally ran against in the first half of the race.  In addition the first 5 miles were also mainly uphill.  There was a short respite as we turned a corner for the last steep couple of hundred metres to the summit and the wind was directly behind us to literally push us up.  It was difficult to actually remain on your feet!  Once past the trig point at the top we turned 90 degrees to head downhill.  At this point, on an exposed ridge, the cross-wind did its best try and blow us off the hill sideways but I don’t think there were any serious incidents.   With the second half of the race generally downhill and with the wind behind us, for once I had a decent negative split and felt myself gliding with the wind just like Bob tells us to do down the home straight at Saughton during westerly winds!  Being my first 10 mile race I achieved a personal best, but the best bonus was the excellent post-race homemade soup and sarnies.

Results:
32 Andreas Wilhelm 1:14:17
71 Chris Morgan 1:28:42
 101 Runners

 Report from Boab Turner (aka Robert Turner)  (one of our faster members of Harmeny) - Jedburgh Half Marathon - 19th October

 I've avoided writing for the newsletter up until now, mainly because my literary skills are....well...void, but the prompt from Anne got me thinking: since very few at the club know who I am due to my worse than very poor attendance at club runs/events (I work away from home, so weekends are usually filled up with 'other stuff'), I thought it may be an idea to introduce myself virtually!!  Anyway, enough rambling and onto the race report.

 I woke up on the Sunday morning with a slightly dry mouth and a little bit of a sore head, looked out the window to see the trees in Edinburgh struggle in the wind and thought, oh not today!!   Unfortunately, I was due to fly out the Monday morning on holiday from Newcastle and had arranged for many weeks that we (we being Mrs Boab and I) would stay overnight in Newcastle as the flight was early.  So with much hesitation I loaded the car and we set off for Jedburgh.  We arrived quite early and I collected my number and returned to the car for some coffee and water in an attempt to see if it would quench my drouth.   Eh...no was the answer I got!

 Outside it was cold and very windy and there was always the threat of rain lurking in the clouds, this was not good racing weather.  My hat, gloves and three layers for warming up were testament to that.  I don't work well in the cold, my cross country performances are proof of that!   So, I ventured out for an easy couple of miles warm up, reaching the 12 mile marker I turned around to head back to the start and was hit by the wind, it almost stopped me in my tracks.  In order not to waste too much energy I was reduced to almost a walk getting back to the car.  It was here I bumped into Mr Tindell and his better half and I wished them a good race and then headed for the start line.

 Before I knew it we were off and the course took us through the north east side of Jedburgh and then out onto some undulating country roads.  The support was very good considering the inclement weather, with small groups of people dotted all over the place, usually huddled together but still managing to clap and cheer.  I got stuck with a small group in the first few miles but over the first half of the race they dropped off and I was pleased to see half way at Eckford in just over 37 minutes, at this point I felt really good.   However it wasn't long before all that changed.  Coming out of Eckford and back onto the A698 it was as if someone had switched on a wind tunnel and turned it to "full pelt".  I was on my own, so nobody to share the wind with and it was relentless.  I was glad to see the hill between 10 and 11 miles as it offered a slightly different direction to run and a wee relief from the wind with the surrounding trees taking the brunt.  I have no idea what this section of the race was like scenically as the crown of my head was pointing forwards for most of it in a vain attempt to make myself more aerodynamic.

 It's a traffic free route until you come back onto the A68 at Bonjedward, but by that time the race would be so strung out it makes no difference and it's all downhill into Jedburgh to the finish.  However, with the wind ploughing up the hill the benefits of downhill running were somewhat negated!!  I was glad to see the finish.

 I managed 14th place in 1:17:03, so almost a full 3 minutes slower than the first half and more than a minute over my PB.  Most of the lads in front of me were quite a bit slower than their best including the Shettleston Harrier Eritrean triplet who took 1st, 2nd and 3rd place so I took comfort from that and in the end I was quite pleased with my performance.

 The race was superbly organised, and I even had personal phone calls from the race secretary (who I am sure would be run off his feet in the lead up to the race) due to some technical difficulties with the on-line entry system on the Scottish Athletics web site.     There was great spectator encouragement throughout the race and the goody bag was also pretty good.  No t-shirt though, you had to pay for that.

 I'll be back to run it again, but I am not sure about these race reports though, it has taken me an age to get this one written!!!!

 Happy running,

 Boab

 ( Anne & Bob say thanks Boab and as you very definitely do have literary skills we look forward to some more reports in the future)

Jedburgh Half 19 Oct 08 428 Runners
14 Robert Turner        1.17.03
202 Bev Dodgson          1.45.45
406 Louise Tindall       2.18.10
  407 Kenny Tindall        2.18.10

THEN THERE WERE FOUR ( the supporters report from Amsterdam)

Originally 9 club members planned to run the Amsterdam marathon on 19^th October. Anne Douglas ran Chicago instead, Lindsay Boyle had not done enough training as she had a special safari holiday and did the half marathon instead, Norma Bone was stuck in Spain due to a non functioning van, David Syme had not done enough training and yours truly was injured and to be honest had not done enough training prior to the injury anyway. So it was left to Paul Houston, Carol Blamire and Tom and Pauline White to uphold the honour of Harmeny AC.

Johanna and I arrived on the Friday, had a nice afternoon and visited 2 museums on the Saturday before meeting the runners and other supporters in the evening for a meal and a considerable amount of wine. Anne and Bob had intended being part of the support team but last minute illness prevented this. I had only been to Amsterdam once before in 1975 and then only for a few hours. We enjoyed it thoroughly and we did not even visit the famous red light district…. unlike some others. On Sunday we walked a few hundred yards from the hotel to cheer the runners on in Vondelpark about 4 kilometres from the finish. The locals were not great cheerers and some seemed underwhelmed.. Paul Houston is incredible! He was up among the elite and still had the energy to walk back to thank us for our encouragement. Tom and Carol looked in good form though both said they were not, but still put in very credible times. Sorry we missed you Pauline but also an excellent time. Lindsay reported that the half marathon was well organised and also did an excellent time. We left everyone on Sunday drinking champagne and understand that a great time was had by all on the Monday although Tom took a wrong turning and ended up in a sex supermarket. We hear he was in it for a considerable period of time.

I leave it to others to describe the actual races but Lindsay pointed out that, as there are 3 races on the same day namely marathon, half marathon and 7.5k, it might be an idea to have a club outing on race day next year. I would recommend the Piet Hein Hotel.

Peter

Paul’s report on the ING Amsterdam Marathon - 19 October 2008
As the unofficial club overseas race, and my former home-town marathon, I decided to give Amsterdam a go. The big attraction for me was the start and finish, being a half lap of the old Olympic stadium with what must have been a couple of thousand spectators cheering us on.
 The course consisted of a 10K loop around the 'oude Zuid' region of Amsterdam and through Vondelpark, before heading out of the city following the olympic marathon route along the amstel river for a few miles and then turning to run back into the city down the other side of the river. There was then a rather horrid few miles through a huge random industrial estate before again finally reaching the familiarly-Dutch streets and canals, and heading directly back to the Stadium via Vondelpark (which I was sure had somehow doubled in length second time around! - thanks have to go to Peter and his wife for magically appearing at this point to lift the spirits!). The race itself was well organised and marshalled, although the pen-marshals were overly regimental about making sure everyone started in the correct pen according to their predicted time.
 Overall, it was a nice fast course with a surprising number of little hills to deal with. We were very lucky with the weather although I read that the top athletes were complaining about the wind throughout the whole race which i personally didn't think too much of...they obviously hadn't had much running time in Scotland recently!  There was a sizeable crowd throughout the whole course and the final goosebump-inducing 200m in the stadium with thousands cheering you home was something I'll never forget. Definitely one to consider doing again.

Amsterdam Marathon  19 Oct 08
116 Paul Houston          2.49.52
Carol Blamire                 3.56.58
Tom White                     3.59.19
Pauline White              4.47.17

Amsterdam Half Marathon  19 Oct 08
Lindsay Boyle 1.56.23

 And finally from Norma  - Ronde Les Damps (near Rouen) 17k

Due to a sick motorhome I didn’t make it to Amsterdam. Typical as it was my suggestion we went there in the first place.  Infact injuries really took it’s toll on the original entries from Harmeny – but those that made it enjoyed the weekend . 

Anyway, we were stuck in France and spotted a notice in a shop window for a local 17K on the same day through the forest a mile or so from where we were staying. 

So, off I cycled to find the race, with very little French,   to see if I could enter on the day.  I arrived and all the runners looked like ‘professional’ runners and were predominately male.  If I said they all looked like Iain Morrice you’ll get the idea.  

Needless to say I was worried they would all be incredibly fast and leave me behind to get lost in the forest - with the hunters and wild boar to contend with... 

After the snakes (adders) and wild dogs in the mountains of Spain it seemed like I was on an adventure holiday. 

M le mayor set us off ... all 27 of us, from the village hall and up into the forest  following a well signposted route. All was well till the main pack missed an arrow and seemed to make it up from there. We were following two runners and all was fine ‘till they came to a junction and one went left and the other right! Much shrugging of shoulders and arm waving followed.

We eventually rejoined the track and completed the race – I even managed a sprint finish.

 What I didn’t know was that I was the first female home and was awarded a very large trophy.  Not only a trophy but the village have their own podium too.   Never did I think I would be standing on the top place of a podium and photoed by the local press, in my Harmeny top! 

All in all a superb consolation prize  and almost made up for missing the Marathon – especially as Pauline brought back my teeshirt!

Iain Morrice on the Temp Woods 10 mile Road race.
Another great run around the picturesque area of the Temp Woods and Auchterhouse areas.  It was a brilliant Autumn day, very cold, ice on the road and glorious sunshine. As usual this race was well organised and is a marker for other clubs to follow. The route really is special and if you have never done this race before you should stick it on your calendar for next year. Its not an easy 10 mile route, in the words of the Dundee Road Runners who organise the route it is undulating bordering on very hilly, the later is the truth.There was field of 302 runners, I did it in 1 hour 9 mins and came 63rd with a placing of 9th for the Old Super Veteran class. Some of the times for the old Super Vets are impressive so check out the Dundee Road Runners Web site. At the end you get, bottled water, special Bennie hat and Lucozade hydration drinks. There are also buses provided to and from Dundee Sad to see that I was the only runner from Harmeny AC especially as a lot of local clubs had a big turnout (Porty, Lithga and Fife AC), maybe next year we can muster up a team.

Other Results                                                                                         

River Ness 10k  5 Oct 08  2112 Runners                     

11 Robert Turner         34.13                                         

East District Relays  4x4k   11 Oct 08  46 Teams Ran

Paul Houston                 14.54
Gavin Orr                       16.43
Alan Kerr                       16.19
Robert Turner              14.20                                         

Total                             1.12.16  24th Team

 Whilst the top places were filled by the usual suspects (Central AC, Edinburgh AC, Fife AC, Lothian Running Club etc) it’s worth noting that the guys finished in front of many clubs with a long established tradition of x-country, including Lasswade, Gala Harriers, Portobello and Ed Univ amongst others.

Aviemore Half  18 Oct 08  874 Runners                     

41 Alan Kerr                  1.28.00
199 Ian May                  1.42.50
209 Willie Cummings   1.43.42
247 Frank Tooley        1.45.50
400 Christina Morgan 1.54.12
657 Sybil Gray              2.10.45

Did anyone else run this? Please let us know as it’s a handicap event.   -Thanks          

East Dist X/C  18 Oct 08

ladies
64 Verity Missen          33.05
70 Lorna Broadhurst   34.17
71 Kirsty Stoddart      35.27
73 Runners                                         

We should also add that Lorna and Kirsty brought along their daughters to run in the junior races, as did Gail who was team managing the juniors.

Men  
89 Mark Seymour        37.09
101 Kenny Tindall          38.09
107 Gavin Orr               38.33
134 Richard Grey          40.37
136 M Hyslop                40.51
161 Johnathon Page    45.04
178 Runners                                        

Great North Run   5^th October 08

15579 Monica Evans          02:04:30
2764 Beverley Dodgson    01:40:34                                

Future races

A note about entry for the 2009 Edinburgh marathon

Closure for running club entries is 15th January 2009 www.edinburgh-marathon.co.uk

 Lift available to Buchlyvie Half, 16 Nov

David Syme:  “I am entered for the Buchlyvie Half Marathon, starting at 1100hrs on Sunday 16 Nov, and will be leaving the area at 0800hrs.  I have 3 empty seats for anyone who would like to join me. 
Buchlyvie is 15 miles west of Stirling, and the course is a flat "out-and-back" along the old railway track to Callandar.  It can be easily googled.” Contact David at  01506 884 988.

E District X-c Championships Sun 6 Dec, Cupar (Bell Baxter School)

Tom is co-ordinating the adult entry, so grab him at training with your £4.00 entry fee. The closing date for entries is Thu 20 Nov.  Entrants must be SAL registered.

See the club website for more local races coming up this & next year. http://www.harmenyac.org.uk/prunners/events.htm

 The full Scottish Athletics fixture list for the season is at http://www.scottishathletics.org.uk

Saughton Track out-of-use

As a few of us discovered on Thursday, the electrical system supplying the floodlights has been condemned, and the track will be out-of-use after dark for the foreseeable future. As the estimate for repair is about £46k I wouldn’t expect it to be sorted soon. In the meantime there is still the Monday speed-fartlek sessions, but I’ll look into alternatives and contact the “trackies” with options as soon as possible. (Bob)

Monthly Club Handicap

The last run for the club handicap prizes was the Aviemore Half on 19^th october

The Final Handicap Meal race for 2008 will be the East District league race at Broxburn on Sat 22 Nov, so we’d like to see a big turnout (which also helps our team score).

Next Bog & Burn run will be Sunday 30th November

The Next Coffee & Cake trot will be Sunday 7 December

 Cross Country dates are:

Sat 15 Nov     Univ of Edin Harriers Braid Hills CC: Braid Hills Golf Course http://haries.eusa.ed.ac.uk  (Entry on Day)

Sat 22 Nov     East District League (ie club pays entry fee) : Broxburn Academy

Sun 6 Dec       E District X-c Championships (Must be SAL registered), Cupar (Bell Baxter School)

Sun 21 Dec     Queens Drive X-C races (Holyrood Park – Entry on Day)

 Social events – note from Ali Gordon

For those of you who have not yet discovered  Glentress, you may not know that "Scotland's  Biking Heaven" is on your door step! We are organising a morning of mounatin biking on  Sat 29th Nov at Glentress (near Peebles), meeting  at the lower car park (next to the Hub) at 9am. Everyone is welcome - there are trails for ALL abilities. Hugh will be on hand to offer helpful  tips and welcoming words of encouragment! Please let me know if you intend to join us,   there's no charge (except £3 to park your car),  but do bring some money for lunch at the Hub if you plan to stay. If your bike is a bit ropey you can hire   excellent mounatin bikes for not too much money -  contact
<http://www.thehubintheforest.co.uk>www.thehubintheforest.co.uk for more info.
Ali G johnandaligordon@yahoo.co.uk

 Well done if you have read to the end! – next newsletter will be before Xmas.

 Anne & Bob