March 7th & 8th 2009
March 8th, 2009Two individual performances shone out from a weekend of pre road -season training for the Harriers – those of Alice Haining and Graeme Murdoch who travelled to Nottingham and Loch Lomondside respectively to represent their region and club over the country and 13.2 miles of road.
Alice had been selected to represent the East of Scotland in the UK Inter-Counties Cross County championships held on Saturday at a breezy Woollarton Park in Nottingham. Conditions were cool and fairly firm underfoot and Alice was racing in the Under 15 girls’ 4 kilometre race around the very hilly grassy parkland course. By finishing in a very creditable 29th place in a huge field of over 300, Alice helped her East team to the bronze medal by posting a time of 15.57 as the second East of Scotland runner home. Her coach, Neil Renton described her performance as a very decent effort as she returns to the top form that Alice at her best can produce.
Graeme Murdoch took the high road to Loch Lomond for the Balloch to Clydebank half marathon on Sunday and, in what can be at best described as ‘testing conditions’ produced the time of his career of 1 hour 14 minutes and 57 seconds to finish fifth, a supreme effort.
Derek Fraser Says:
I Ran the Inverness Half Marathon on sunday, March 2008 the Capital City of the Scottish Highlands. The route for the race, must be one of the most beautiful and most scenic for any Half Marathon, running alongside the meandering River Ness and below Inverness Castle before continuing along towards the famous Loch Ness.
It would be hard to describe the conditions ‘testing@ is doing an injustice. However I still managed a 1 hour 35 minutes and 21 seconds not a shining performance as described above but still proud to wear the Gala vest.
Derek Fraser Says:
correction - Ran the Inverness Half Marathon on sunday 8 March 2009