The start of the first race: 47: Liz Steele, 30: Janet McColl; 21: Julia Harvey

Like the ‘Coatbridge 5′,   Glasgow’s ’10K – OK’ was only held for a few years – from 1984 through to 1990 – but as a women only race through the centre of a major city with a large field ranging in ability from the very best in the country to those with less lofty ambitions, it was significant in the history and development of women’s road running in Scotland.   It started as part of the fund raising for the Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice in Glasgow and with a great deal of publicity.    The centre of Glasgow was pretty well closed down for the duration of the race (easily seen in the two pictures of the start) great crowds turned out to spectate.   In the first race Miss Glasgow started but it’s not clear whether or not she finished – she can be seen in the picture above  wearing her sash – with Mya Baker (who finished third)  just behind Miss Glasgow.

With a fair bit of sponsorship right from the start it built up over the years to become one of the best sponsored in the country.   It had a winning combination of good organisation and good cause that proved a success in anybody’s terms.   It was also an idea whose time had come: Mass participation events had been mainly marathons up till then and the new half marathon distance was now quite familiar.   10K at this point was new, easily manageable by anyone so long as they had enough time and were either persuaded or swept into it.   There was a clear end point too – helping fund the Hospice.

Not only was it a good cause that was attractive but the organisation was of the best: after the first race, the SWAAA and SWCCU became involved and their experience was more than useful but the master organiser of big races, Strathclyde University staff member Alex Johnston from Lenzie was in charge.   He had organised many such races and wrote detailed articles on how to go about it, including getting the finish arrangements right.   With hundreds of runners approaching the finish, all expecting times, brooches, Mars bars, water and whatever else was being given out  without delay it was imperative that a good team of stewards was in position when the first runner arrived.   Alex and his team ensured that this was the case.

The race programme and pre-race instructions to athletes were really detailed with the needs of the participants the main concern.   There was a page of do’s and don’ts.

Every year the programme contained a message from Dr Anne Gilmore, Founder and Medical Director of the Hospice in Glasgow as well as one of the main moving spirits behind the race in the beginning.   Her message for 1988 read as follows:

 “The first hint of summer sunshine brings with it the final busy preparations for the annual 10K – OK Race and the hope that this year’s race will, as always, bring together women of all ages and from all walks of life.   Those who have trained for months and those who have made a last minute effort will join in the fun and fund raising – thus participating in a positively healthy event and at the same time help a most worthy cause.   Since last year’s race, the work of the Prince & Princess of Wales Hospice has continued with almost three hundred patients cared for.   The Day Hospice is fairly established as a centre of excellence for the terminally ill and has become fondly known as “the club” to many patients and their families.

Attendances at the pain-relief clinic each Wednesday morning have numbered two hundred and seventy eight – with patients benefiting from a combination of modern medicine and a relaxed and pleasant environment.   Our home-care team, extended now to three nurses and two GP’s, have made nearly three thousand home visits.   Caring for patients and their families at home is a fundamental part of the Hospice philosophy and it is always gratifying to see a family manage, with help, what might be otherwise an unmanageable situation.   Expert nursing, willing volunteers, a friendly face, a night sitter – all combine to keep patients comfortable at home.  

Recently builders arrived on site at Carlton Place and work began on an extension to the Hospice which will provide much-needed in-patient accommodation.   We have had a wonderful boost of a visit to our Garden Festival Tapestry Event by their Royal Highnesses The Prince and Princess of Wales – when the royal couple again showed their interested support of Glasgow’s Hospice.   We look forward to receiving our first residential patients early in 1989 and meanwhile I take this opportunity to than all participants in the 1988 10O – OK for giving us their support for this year’s event and wish good luck to all who run for other charities.  

Good Luck and Good Running,

Anne JJ Gilmore.

The event was always billed as a ‘race’, the awards were attractive and the quality of the runners at the head of the field was undeniably high and was rendered even better by the inclusion, first of all, of the SWRRA Championships, and then higher still by the introduction of an international event.    But there always great care taken to encourage as many women as possible, whatever their level of fitness, to get moving, to take part, to raise their fitness level and raise money for a good cause.    Other races have done so too but the 10K – OK was one of the very first and, I firmly believe, did so better than almost any other before or since.     The route was basically a single loop of the city centre starting and finishing at Charing Cross.   Let’s look at it and then at the actual races.

THE ROUTE

The first 10K-OK was held on 26th August, 1984 and, as reported above, was run by Strathclyde Regional Council and the Prince and Princess of Wales Hospice.   The route started in Elmbank Street and went south to St Vincent Street, east to Renfield Street then to Glasgow Bridge via Union Street and Jamaica Street.   Over the bridge the course went along Carlton Place to South Portland Street, west on Oxford Street and on to Victoria Bridge via Norfolk Street and Gorbals Street.   Back on the North of the river, the course went west along the River Walkway, under the Suspension Bridge and Glasgow Bridge then west along the Broomielaw, Anderston Quay, Lancefield Quay. north on Finnieston Street and then west along Argyle Street and Dumbarton Road.   North on Church Street, Byres Road, east along University Avenue, south on Kelvin Way and east along Sauchiehall Street.   The run home then went south on North Street (!), east along Bath Street, south on Newton Street, east along Elmbank Crescent and south into India Street for the finish.   No part of the city was untouched by the route which the organisers divided into the Hospice Loop. Clydeside and the University Loop.

This first year had 572 finishers and of these 294 finished in under one hour.   The first 100 were given an engraved pendant on a chain and this continued for the next three years.   Sandra Branney who went on to become a Scottish Internationalist runner on road, track and over the country says that it was her first ever race and because of that it still means a lot to her – she still has all the pendant from her races.   There are interesting names all the way through the field indicating the range of interest generated.   For the record the first twenty in the first race were as follows.

Place	Name	Time
1	Liz Steele	37:32
2	Jane Walker	37:57
3	Mya S Baker	39:22
4	Janet McColl	40:25
5	Rosalind Kay	42:19
6	Fiona Murray	42:23
7	Carol Ann Hogg	42:37
8	Helen MacPherson	43:23
9	Morag K Thow	43:38
10	Anne Tait	43:47
11	Carolyn Miller	44:06
12	Kate Chapman	44:11
13	Gail Noble	44:17
14	Mairead Christie	44:21
15	Sally Johnston	44:24
16	Helen Oliver	44:32
17	Sandra Branney	44:33
18	Elspeth R Turner	44:34
19	Nicole Garmery	44:39
20	Aileen Lusk	45:21

 Liz Steele was already an established runner, well-respected for her ability, Jane Walker on the other hand was almost a total newcomer, a PE teacher from Strathkelvin she too would become an international runner.   Janet McColl too had been running since she was a girl and her name appears throughout cross-country championship lists in almost every age group.   Morag Thow was also well known and went on to become one of the country’s best physiotherapists.     Sandra we have spoken of already and Elspeth Turner from Bearsden would go on to win championships and medals as well as international vests as a Senior woman and in University competition with Strathclyde University.   Aileen Lusk was a veteran international runner who by now was running and coaching at Strathkelvin Harriers in Bishopbriggs.   Not far below them was the name of Nanette Mutrie who was a lecturer and academic in sports psychology.

The success of this race meant that it was certain to go ahead the following year and the field was even bigger and came from all over Scotland.   The Scottish Women’s Cross Country Union had become involved after the first year    Sandra Branney comments on the actual race: “It was a really hot day and the race started slowly.   I was at the stage where I was beginning to improve  and for some reason found myself at the head of the lead pack.   I was terrified – running this big race with women behind me that I’d read about in the newspapers.   Just past Central Station, I think Liz Lynch decided she had had enough and zoomed off over the horizon.   It completely broke up the pack and I could relax and run my own race.”

The improved quality of the race was indicated by the times of the athletes and placings compared with the first in the series.   Janet McColl, for instance improved her time by two minutes to 38:33 but actually dropped five places to ninth, Jane Walker improved the time marginally but fell back from second to fifth and there are many similar examples.   However there were a number of runners who achieved vast improvements on their first outing – we only need to look at Sandra Brannery (17th in 44:33 to 4th in 37:30 and Elspeth Turner (18th in 44:34 to 3rd in 36:03) to see extreme examples of that.   The runners also came from much further afield – the first two were from Dundee and Aberdeen respectively but there were runners from all over the country: from Nith Valley and St Andrews as well as from Victoria Park and Shettleston.   It was the biggest women only race in Britain.   The first twenty this year are in the table below.

Place	Name	Time
1	Liz Lynch	33:57
2	Lynda Bain	34:44
3	Elspeth Turner	36:03
4	Sandra Branney	37:30
5	Susan Crawford	37:37
6	Jane Walker	37:45
7	Celia Thomson	37:52
8	Anne Bankowska	38:33
9	Janet McColl	38:33
10	Elaine Chellen	38:35
11	Valerie Dempsey	38:49
12	Anne Ridley	39:48
13	Ulrike Simpson	39:48
14	Liz Steele	40:12
15	Janine Robertson	40:35
16	Carol-Anne Bartley	40:32
17	Carolyn Brown	41:13
18	Michelle McDonald	41:38
19	Isabel Fraser	41:57
20	Jean Sharp	42:13

 Not unnaturally the race was starting to attract attention from the press and in an article in the ‘Glasgow Herald’ Alan Campbell’s headline was ‘Girl studying in the US wins road race’.   The second paragraph read “There were more than 1500 entrants for the race, of whom 1200 materialised on the starting line in the city centre yesterday morning.   The figure more than doubled last year’s inaugural race proving that running has taken off as a sport among Scottish women.”   It certainly had. 

There were two pages devoted to the 1986 event in the “Scotland’s Runner” magazine of July 1986 and Lynda Bain (at the time Scotland’s fastest woman marathon runner) who had been second in 1986 spoke of it in her first column for the magazine.   She said“More and more ladies are taking up running.   A thousand women took to the streets of Glasgow to run the 10K OK last June.   We had a super day – a special day because we were all running together.   It didn’t matter how long you took or what age you were.   Husbands, children, friends and neighbours all turned out to give us a cheer.   Maybe you were one of those women who watched last year.   Didn’t you feel like joining in with all those enthusiastic and smiling runners?   It was a great success again this year, so come on!”   Alison Turnbull, a leading writer on women’s running had this to say in Stewart McIntosh’s article, “The first wave of women runners were mainly ‘marathon widows’ – the wives or girlfriends of male runners who decided that if they couldn’t beat them, then they might as well get out there and join them.   But newer events like the 10K-OK and the Women’s Own series of women only 10K races have tapped a new market, they have found a whole new group of runners who are joining in the sport for very positive reasons.  They are running because they associate with health and beauty, losing weight and making friends.”   And McIntosh goes on to say that she believes that restricting certain events to women-only provides a major boost to female participation in the sport.”   

The race in 1986 had 1700 runners and not only was that total the highest yet, but the quality at the front end was also superb: Liz Lynch won for the second time in 33:03, Lorna Irving was second in 34:37 and Sandra Branney progressed to third with a time of 34:59.  Then in fourth there was Audrey Sym in 36:02, Sharon Sinclair (36:09) and Gail Macdonald in 36:50.    In 1986 it also became the official Scottish Women’s Championship and continued as such for the next few years.   The following year the race was run on Sunday, 7th June in 1987, the race was won by Sandra Branney at the fourth time of asking in 33:48 – eleven minutes faster than her first ever race in 1984!    An International was now incorporated into the race and she was followed home by Sally Lynch (Wales) in 34:19, Christine Price (Scotland) in 34:25, Bronwen Cardy (Wales) 34:28, Moira O’ Neill (Northern Ireland) in 35:33 and Sharon Sinclair (Scotland) in 35:36.  This time Sandra was not racing for City of Glashow but for her country and she led the team to victory.     Seventeenth to first, Scottish 10K Road Champion and winner of the international race in just four races.   Not bad at all and no wonder Sandra looks back on the race fondly!

In 1988 Glasgow hosted the third of the five British Garden Festivals, and the only one to be held in Scotland.   It ran from 26th April to 26th September and was blessed with good weather for virtually the entire duration.   It was held on the south side of the river and the race route was entirely on the north side but the organisers did look at a plan for actually starting the race in the Festival and crossing Bell’s Bridge to join the traditional loop and finish as usual at Charing Cross.   It didn’t come to pass but it was a nice idea.

Alison Jenkins (Edinburgh AC) won the race in 1988 in a slower time than usual of 34:40.    She was followed by S Leonard (England)  in 34:48; S Sinclair (Irvine/Scotland) in 35:17; S Bentley (England) 35:21; A Sym (Glasgow/Scotland) in 35:39; C Haskins (England) 35:36; T Duffy (Ireland) 35:50 and M Smith (Wales was eighth in 36:23.   Scotland won the team race, and Glasgow AC won the club event.

If Sandra Branney liked 1987, she must have loved 1989 when she not only won the race, but was first veteran, also won the Scottish 10K Road Championships and was first in the International!   One race, four firsts!   The race result:   1.   S Branney (Glasgow/Scotland)  34:03;   2.   M O’Neill (N Ireland)  34:24;   3.   K Pritchard (Wales) 34:33;     4.   S Lynch (Wales)  35:07;   5.   L Bain (Scotland)   35:27;   6.   B Cardy-Wise (Wales)   35:47;   7.   N Haines (Wales)   36:24;   8.   J Swanson   37:12.    Teams:   1,   Wales;   2.   Scotland;   3.   N Ireland.

What proved to be the last ace in the series was on Sunday, 17th June 1990 and it was reported in the Glasgow Herald as follows:

“Janet Swanson (Monkland Shettleston Ladies AC) won the Prince and Princess of Wales 10,000m road race in Glasgow yesterday in a time of 35:13.   Marie Duthie (Fraserburgh AC) was runner-up and Scottish International Violet Blair (EWM) was third.   Carol-Ann Bartley (Glasgow AC) was the first West runner to finish in fourth place.   Renee Murray (Giffnock North AC) was the leading veteran with Caroline Fairweather (Monkland Shettleston) the first intermediate finisher.   Glasgow AC won the open team contest with Giffnock North winning the veterans’ team prize.”     No times were given other than the winner’s

The pendants were only given to the first 100 finishers and were a different shape each year

It is difficult to over-estimate the effect that the race had on the sport, the women of Scotland, and more particularly Glasgow, and subsequent events whether women only or not.  The current Glasgow Women’s 10K is a very good race but it started from a position where the 10K was a more recognised and better known distance, and when many women had already had run the distance several times before.    In addition the invitations to the top women in the world  alters the race as it was run in the 1980’s.    The race then started from scratch and a lot of pioneering work was done making the race an instant success with many really good athletes at the front, a solid mass of club runners behind them – and then even more women behind them who were basically first- or second-time runners.    Given the different starting points it is arguable that the 10K – OK was a bigger success than its successor.

 

Back to The Classics

Alastair Wood

North District races were a mystery to me, when I started at Aberdeen University in 1966, but Aberdeen AAC did travel to them frequently, possibly because the club’s irascible guru, Alastair Wood, had been born in Elgin.

In late September 1967 I vaguely remember participating in the Nairn to Inverness Road Relay. This attracted four man teams, with each individual racing a stage of four miles along the fairly busy main road, past stretches of lonesome farmland, to the Highland capital. Unfamiliar runners from Elgin AC, Inverness Harriers and Forres Harriers tried and failed to outpace Aberdonians. What happened was that Aberdeen AAC had little difficulty in establishing a good lead, probably due to Alastair Wood and Steve Taylor, but they had one or two younger, slower runners. My team, Aberdeen University, were second but the leader was out of sight when I took over for the last leg. The weather had steadily worsened, with a strong headwind and drenching downpour, but I just bashed on dourly. To my amazement, just into Inverness, I noticed the inexperienced Aberdeen AAC runner (a youthful 880 yard specialist) sheltering in a shop doorway. Jolly good, I thought, unsympathetically and shortly afterwards crossed the finish line to obtain a surprise team victory. Then it was time for free tea and scones in a restaurant.

On 21^st September 1968, I finished a less-than-meritorious second on the first stage of the Nairn to Inverness. Unfortunately the first man home was Alastair Wood, and I endured the experience of being outclassed totally. The three-mile straight to the handover point took an eternity as Alastair disappeared inexorably from view. He finished a humiliating 74 seconds ahead! AU finished third team to Aberdeen and Forres.

By 1969, however, Aberdeen University had a pretty good team – we went on to finish ninth in the 1970 E to G, and we were stronger in four-man events. Running into a strong headwind, I was only four seconds down on Joe Clare (AAAC) but ‘miles’ in front of the third team. Charlie Macaulay established a good lead for us; Don Ritchie only lost a minute to Woodie; and Robin Orr held on to secure a rare victory over the city club.

On 17^th September 1970 we retained our title. ‘Gaudie’, the AU newspaper, reports: “Varsity defeated Aberdeen AAC, Forres Harriers, Lochaber AC and Inverness Harriers teams. Colin Youngson, Charlie Macaulay, Donald Mackintosh and Donald Ritchie ran well in unhelpful conditions to record a time of 1 hour 20 minutes and 30 seconds, which is only 17 seconds outside the record.” This time, Ally Wood was only twelve seconds in front of me after the first stage; Charlie shot into the lead; and the two Donalds moved well clear of the opposition. The Nairn to Inverness Relay was great fun and good training for more challenging team events in the Central Belt.

On Saturday 12^th July 1969, I took part in my very first marathon, having reached the ‘legal’ entry age of 21. The event was the Inverness to Forres Marathon part of the well-organised Forres Highland Games, which continues to flourish today. I have to laugh at my training schedule: the university track season, endless repetition sessions, a 3.58.2 paarlauf mile, PBs for one mile, three miles and 5000 metres, plus a few longer hungover yet hard Sunday runs from Woodie’s house (usually failing to hang on to the great man) and a couple of ten mile races. The final regime was an exhausting eight days totalling 100 miles in seven runs (to prove I could handle the distance!), a 6 mile grass track race the following Monday, a six mile jog on Wednesday, an inexplicable short rep session on Friday and off to the marathon on Saturday.

The start was on top of a short but steep hill on the edge of Inverness, followed by the long straight main route to Forres, running on the right hand side of the road. The only advice was that, when you passed under the railway bridge at Nairn, there were ten miles to go to the finish in the Games arena in Grant Park, Forres. A newspaper clipping shows Ally Wood striding off rapidly, followed only by Don Ritchie. Since it was a hot day, they were both sporting jaunty knotted white hankies, scout neckerchief fashion. There were only 14 intrepid starters. My diary notes: “Lots of food and drink before. Watched Wood shoot off while I ran steadily with the second pack. After 10 miles, I broke away. Passed several, feeling good, then worse. However saw the foolhardy DR ‘dying’ ahead, so passed him at 18 (he dropped out at 23). Did the rest on my own – hard but not competitive. Sponges at every stop and two small drinks of water. Okay state, considering, at the end. Sore thighs and feet but no blisters. Might have caught Hughie Mitchell if I had pushed it.” 1^st AJW (2.27.44), 2^nd Hugh Mitchell (Shettleston) 2.38, 3^rd Colin Youngson 2.41.13. Third prize was a pedestal ashtray – just what an improving young runner might have desired, not. After a holiday, the next race I contested was another ‘you have to be 21 at least’ event – the gruelling Ben Nevis race – in those days, we used to run everything!

Alastair Wood had made major headlines back in 1966 when he ran a fantastic British and European Record marathon (2.13.45) in this event. He had peaked brilliantly by the unusual method of running as many as 60 x 220 yard strides! On the 9^th of July he “was full of energy, his knees coming up of their own accord!” There may possibly have been a following breeze, but there is no doubt that he was capable of such a time, which was later ratified. It was a day on which Alastair felt he could “run forever” and local rumour has it that he claimed to be “the fastest white man in the world” (behind an African( Abebe Bikila), a Japanese (Morio Shigematsu) and a Mongolian Russian)!

Alastair Wood won the Inverness to Forres Marathon again in 1967, so 1969 was his third victory. In 1970, Alastair achieved a fourth victory and apparently broke his own course record, by winning in 2.13.44, no less than 22 minutes in front of the second-placed Duncan Davidson of Forres Harriers. However this time the distance was a little short, due to a change of start place.

On Saturday 6^th July 1974, just two weeks after finishing third in the Scottish marathon championship, representing ESH, I turned up for what turned out to be the final Inverness to Forres. I have a copy of the race instructions as well as the precise locations of the ‘refreshment stalls’. The race started now “on Longman Road at 1 p.m. sharp, directly opposite Lamp Standard on left of entrance to Brown Wooden Building, midway between Auto Sales and Ferries Garage. Runners must keep on the left side of roadway.” One official was instructed to “run and open the Canvas Gate near to the Cricket Pavilion so that runners are not hindered in getting into the Park”. However my pot-hunting attempt was doomed. At the start I met the redoubtable Sandy Keith, a training partner and major rival from Edinburgh AC. At the Scottish marathon, he had led for some time then ‘blown up’ a little to finish fourth, four minutes behind me. However his powers of recovery were far greater. I threw in several fartlek bursts during the first ten miles of the Forres race, failed to shake Sandy, and then ‘gave up’ and watched him stride away out of sight. He won in 2.26, whereas I plodded in second in 2.33.44. I have the finisher’s certificate, signed by Forres Harriers official Sandy Brander, who did a lot for North Athletics, along with Tom Mackenzie, a cheerful, charismatic Inverness stalwart.

A year later, I finally obtained a coveted ‘North of Scotland Milk Marketing Board’ plaque, for winning the Forres Highland Games Road Race, but the distance had been reduced to a hilly ten miles. In 1983 I won the event again, over a similar course measuring 11 miles plus.

On Saturday the first of October 1970, just a fortnight after winning the Nairn to Inverness Relay, AU were first team in the Alves to Forres Road Race, organised by Forres Harriers, over 6 and a quarter miles. Alastair Wood was first in 30.17, with me second (31.06) and Don Ritchie third (31.10). Our team was completed by Charlie Macaulay (5^th) and Donald Macintosh (7^th). We defeated teams from Forres, Aberdeen and Lochaber. Alves (and forty years later I learned that the ‘l’ is silent) is a hamlet situated at the bottom of a hill. There was a stiff headwind. Consequently the wily Wood left the start like a sprinter, streaked up the tough little rise over the railway bridge, and made sure that no one was capable of sheltering behind him. The route follows the main road north, past forest and farmland, lightly undulating. To my lasting shame, I ‘sat’ behind my team-mate Don Ritchie the whole way. We were very close rivals at the time: he was stronger but I was slightly faster on a firm surface. Lacking the stamina and confidence to share the pace, I simply waited until I could see the finish line and surged away before turning round and apologising to my friend, who was philosophical about the sneaky tactics.

On checking a training diary, I see to my surprise that I ran the Alves to Forres again on Sunday the 4^th of October 1987. Another headwind. The winner was Ross Arbuckle of Keith (30.07) from Chris Armstrong and Bruce Chinnick of Forres Harriers. I was fourth in 30.52, a decent run for someone three weeks short of his 40^th birthday.

As Charlie Bannerman has reported, the A to F inevitably had to be taken off the main road and its next variation was a six mile race from the village of Dallas to the town of Forres. On Sunday 1^st October 1989 I finished 1^st Vet and second overall (32.12), well behind Graham Laing (30.43). There was a dreadful downhill start and then it was undulating into a headwind. Next version featured a course involving an out and back to Grant Park, Forres plus a testing hilly loop to the left of Rafford village. On Sunday 7^th October 1990 I found myself duelling with my young friend Ian Williamson (Shetland and Aberdeen AAC). Even a final ‘sprint’ failed to separate us and we finished first equal. Unfortunately that effort caused me to rip a muscle in my backside, which took two months to heal properly – so I never did that race again! However in 2010 I did manage 1^st M60 in the nearby Dyke 10k, which is, according to Mr Bannerman, the current incarnation of the Alves to Forres. I look forward to plodding round the Forres Highland Games 10k as well, to ensure that I have taken part in all possible variations of the old-style A to F (and the shortened Inverness to Forres marathon).

Back in the 1960s and 1970s, with the Alves to Forres, the Inverness to Forres marathon and the Nairn to Inverness Relay plus the Inverness to Drumnadrochit Road Race, it was possible to have raced on almost 50 continuous miles of main road! My first attempt at the latter was on the 29^th of August 1970. The event was part of the Glenurquhart Highland Gathering and the distance was listed as 15 and a half miles. The race started in a side street near the river, and then continued out of the city, over the Caledonian Canal and through thick woods to the beginning of Loch Ness. After that it was fairly hilly and ‘Nessie-spotting’ was a popular distraction. Eventually the course swooped down past the Drumnadrochit Hotel, turned left all the way through the village, and then right and round the Games grass track to the finish. Only eleven runners turned up that day, and no ‘stars’, so I won in the modest time of 1.27.04 from Hamish Scott of Forres (and later Perth) and my AU mates Charlie Macaulay and Don Ritchie. The Mackay Challenge Cup was presented to the pleased but surprised victor.

Once I returned to live near Aberdeen in 1981, I ran the race three times in succession. On Saturday 29^th August 1981 I ended up a well-beaten fourth in 1.19.43, suffering a warm day when the constant undulations felt tough. The winner was that talented young maverick Willie Sheridan (Victoria Park 1.17.50), from marathon star Fraser Clyne (Aberdeen AAC 1.17.58) and gritty Graham Milne (AAAC 1.18.16). One year later, on a cold, blustery day into a headwind, I found another youthful star too much for me: Graham Laing (AAAC) won in 1.17.48, with me struggling for pace in second (1.19.37) in front of Ian Moncur (Forres) and George Reynolds and Peter Wilson of AAAC.

On Saturday 27^th August 1983, I won the race again, in rather unusual circumstances. Anglo-Scot Dave Clark (arguably Scotland’s finest veteran marathon runner), who had been educated at Aberdeen University, was enjoying a holiday up north. At seven miles the two of us drew away from Ian Moncur and Paul Kenney (Inverness). I tried very hard to ‘dump’ my old acquaintance after that by surging on the uphills, but he kept up with disconcerting ease. Eventually, my diary notes: “I shot away downhill into Drumnadrochit, like a scared rabbit to the finish, in 1.18.35, less than a minute off the record.” I was somewhat chagrined to learn afterwards that Dave, who had rolled in fourteen seconds behind, had been sure that we were going to run in together! 85 athletes took part that day. In the last years of the Inverness to Drumnadrochit, Graham Laing, who had moved to Inverness, won nearly every one. It was a good, scenic race with a considerable tradition and excellent training for Autumn city marathons like Aberdeen or Glasgow.

Start of Edinburgh 10, 1985

I only ever raced in this race once – a Clydesdale Harriers team went through and we actually won with Allan Faulds, Ian Donald and Doug Gemmell being the counting runners.   It was a good, hard two lap trail with an enormous climb to be done soon after the start of the lap and there was a long downhill run beside the golf course before turning into the finish at King’s Buildings.   Enjoyable race over a king of fiercely undulating trail but I didn’t go back!    Colin Youngson has written the account below.

The Edinburgh University Ten Miles Open race took place in mid-February or early March and I first ran the March 1^st 1971 version. The Aberdeen University newspaper ‘Gaudie’ reports only that Don Ritchie was 5^th in 50 minutes 8 seconds and that I managed 8^th and a PB for the distance of 51.04. However I won the handicap event with Don third. Respectively we won a coffee set and an umbrella; plus our third team place won us sets of bathroom scales! Nevertheless, this race was a serious challenge. The start was at King’s Buildings, and then you swooped downhill and over a few undulations past The Hermitage. A left turn transformed things, as you struggled up a series of very steep slopes, before emerging on the road which skimmed past the Braid Hills golf course. Then it was a screaming descent and nasty little climb before passing the start again. Nowadays the race continues as the EU Five Miles but in the past real men had to face two laps of this exhausting trail.

On Saturday 3^rd March 1973 Andy McKean won in 50.21. After a race-long contest with Martin Craven I just managed to escape before the finish. Our times were 50.43 and 50.49. My training diary comments: “Almost sick at the end. Very hard. Andy mucking about in front. At least beat five who got me in the National including Jim Dingwall.”

It would appear that I also finished second in the 1976 version but now I can only guess that it was Doug Gunstone who was well in front, probably in 49 minutes or so. Certainly I never beat 50 minutes in this race.

1979’s race on Saturday 3^rd March was a bad one for me – only 7^th in 52.34. Aberdeen’s Graham Laing won in 50.43, from Doug Gunstone, Don Macgregor, Dave Clark, Fraser Clyne and Martin Craven. ESH finished second team, and each of us won sixteen Mars bars!

The reason why prizes had become more acceptable to typical carbo-loving beer-drinking runners was that the eccentric Robin ‘YP’ Thomas (future founder of that zany but successful club Hunter’s Bog Trotters) had taken over the race organisation, although the course remained as formidable. (YP’s nickname was coined by Don Macgregor when he could not remember the name of the bold 18 year-old who turned up for long Sunday runs, so he referred to him as ‘Young Penicuik’, since Robin’s family home was near there.)

The programme (costing 5 new pence) for the 1980 race proclaimed that “the Edinburgh University Hare and Hounds 10-mile road race (8.87 Scots miles, since a Scots mile is approximately a furlong longer than an English mile) has grown to become the SCCU’s biggest and most prestigious 10-mile road race. It now attracts Olympic and Commonwealth Games stars, British Internationalists, Scottish Internationalists, English Internationalists, SUSF and BUSF representatives and droves of runners of lesser ability.” (On reflection, if Don Macgregor and Fergus Murray had turned up, along with a good runner from Newcastle and a jogger or two, all of the above categories would be covered.)

The course is covered in pedantic detail. “The race starts on K.B. Campus (to the west of the Chemistry Building), heads westward through Blackford, up Midmar Avenue and Midmar Drive and along Hermitage Drive. There follows a steep climb up Braid Road, before the course heads eastward along Braid Hills Drive. Thereafter it’s down Alnwickhill Road and Liberton Brae, up Mayfield Road and onto West Mains Road. Then comes the bad news – there’s still another lap to go before the finish back on K.B. campus.” Then the programme goes on about Andy McKean being the most prominent past winner; about the unfortunate clash of fixtures with the Hyde Park Relay in London; and about the lack of cash which has meant that “as club funds are habitually less than zero, we have had to charge exorbitant entry fees (ten shillings – Ye Gods! What’s the world coming to?) and scrounge minor sponsorships in order to provide everyone with a meal and to offer our usual ‘utilitarian’ prizes.”

“Slugs (i.e. people who are not members of EUH&H are invited to take part. Top prizes will be awarded to the First Slug and to the First Team of Slugs. As indicated above, all members of the Hare and Hounds, not being slugs, do not qualify for these prizes (we also reserve the right to disqualify EU Athletic Club and Orienteering Club runners, so that genuine fat slugs can take part and win). So, stub out your Capstan Full Strength, drain your pint of Export, and look out a pair of training shoes. You could win our start prizes – a keg of Export and half an ounce. Spectators will also enjoy the pie-eating contest and a refreshment session after the race.”

On Saturday 1^st March 1980 I fought hard but failed to beat Sandy Keith of EAC. He handled the downhills much better than I did and in the end was well clear (50.47) to my 51.05. I only just stayed in front of my ESH club-mate Alec Robertson (51.11). At least this let me retain my club championship, and with the assistance of Martin Craven we won the team prize. I received four cans of beer, a homebrew kit and a jockstrap!

Next year was a classic. On Saturday 14^th February a really good field turned up – because Robin had made it known that there would be malt whisky prizes. Consequently luminaries like Nat Muir and Jim Brown made the trek eastwards! I possess a photo of myself leading both of them – but naturally not for long, although my diary notes with incredulity that I stayed in front of the great Nat for two whole miles. Muir set an impressive new record of 48.37 to win his choice alcoholic prize, with Jim Brown only eleven seconds down. Other fast times were set by Jim Dingwall (49.19) and EAC’s Yamada (49.24). I managed 50.32 to secure the ESH club title and a distant fifth place, in front of several good Scots and Northern English runners.

That would seem to have been my last attempt at this unusual yet testing race. However I remember that a year or two after that there was heavy snowfall and cunning Evan Cameron defeated Don Macgregor in this ten-mile “road” race, because he had the sense to wear spikes!

The EU 10 miles seems to have started in 1965, and there is a set of results from10th June 1967 when Jim Wight (EU) finished in 50.55, in front of Gordon Eadie (Cambuslang) 51.14 and Dave Logue (EU) 52.11. EU won the team race. The present course was adopted in 1970 and I am not sure what the 1965-69 course might have been. Below are the top two and winning teams from 1970 to 1981.

7/3/70 Gareth Bryan-Jones (ESH) 49.48

Andy McKean (EUH&H) 50.37

Team: Clydesdale H

6/3/71  Andy McKean (EUH&H) 49.06

Alastair Johnston (VPAAC) 49.11

Team: EAC

4/3/72  Andy McKean (EUH&H) 49.55

Martin Craven (ESH) 52.12

Team: EUH&H

3/3/73  Andy McKean (EUH&H) 50.21

Colin Youngson (VPAAC) 50.43

Team: EUH&H

2/3/74  Don Macgregor (ESH) 51.08

Nigel Bailey (ESH) 51.08

Team: ESH

1/3/75  Martin Craven (ESH) 49.56

Nigel Bailey (ESH) 50.44

Team: ESH

28/2/76 Doug Gunstone (EAC) 49.57

Colin Youngson (ESH) 50.19

Team: EAC

26/2/77 Andy McKean (EAC) 49.14

Jim Dingwall (Falkirk Victoria H) 49.58

`           Team: FVH

11/2/78 John McGarva (FVH) 55.42

Willie Day (FVH) 56.28

Team: FVH

3/3/79  Graham Laing (AAAC) 50.43

Doug Gunstone (EAC) 50.51

Team: Fife AC

1/3/80  Sandy Keith (EAC) 50.47

Colin Youngson (ESH) 51.05

Team: ESH

14/2/81 Nat Muir (Shettleston H) 48.37

Jim Brown (Clyde Valley AC) 48.48

Team: ESH

I would hope that you noted the quality of the athletes who took part in the race – and there was a significant depth to the fields as well.   As Colin said at the top of his article, it was not a fast tail but the runners all knew they would have a good hard race and learn a bit more about themselves – as well as having a good time. 

 

The very first race: note Tom O’Reilly, Davie Simpson, Bill Ramage, Jim Alder, John Poulton, Alex Brown, Willie Drysdale, Ian Harris, Jim Sloss … and many more

In the late 1950’s and early 1960’s road races typically had a couple of dozen runners, often a lot fewer – I once ran in a race with five runners and three prizes plus three handicap prizes – and sometimes maybe three dozen.   They were usually very good, competitive races.    And then along came the Tom Scott Road Race from Law to Motherwell.     You can read about the start of the event at the race website at www.tomscottroadraces.co.uk .   I ran in the first fourteen or fifteen and it is a race that encouraged loyalty.   Note that two officials, Molly Wilmoth and Anna Poulton, received awards from the organisers for 50 years of officiating at the event.   As far as the race itself was concerned, it was different from others to runners for several reasons – first the genesis  of the race with Tom being killed in a road accident on his way to a race, the fact that he was well known and liked in the running community and the fact that his club was keen to make it a big occasion.   Sure enough, the numbers in the event were always big, bigger than any road race of the time.     The old trail was better than the new one – that much is certain.   Point to points always have an aura about them.   However, Joe Small has collected the ‘Glasgow Herald’ reports of all the Tom Scott Races up to 1984 and they are reported below, starting with the first race in 1962.

 NEW ROAD RACE

1.    1962.   A.H. Brown (Motherwell Y.M.C.A.) the most consistent long distance runner in Scotland, won the first Tom Scott Memorial Trophy road race over ten miles on Saturday in the fine time of 50min. 33sec. beating a team-mate J. H. Linaker, by 180 yards, with R. McKay, another Motherwell runner, a similar distance farther behind, in third place.

As only the first three runners in each team counted, Motherwell had minimum points and easily won the team contest.Alder (Morpeth), the Scottish cross-country champion, quickly went into the lead from the start at Law village and after a mile was a dozen yards ahead of Brown. After three miles however, Brown led the Anglo-Scot by almost 30 yards, with McKay, Linaker, G. Eadie (Cambuslang) and R. Coleman (Dundee Hawkhill) grouped together about 100 yards behind Alder.

Thereafter Alder, finding himself too tired to challenge Brown, lost interest and dropped right back. Brown was more than 120 yards ahead of McKay and Linaker after six miles had been covered and steadily increased his lead over Linaker, who soon broke away from his clubmate. Placings:-

1. A .H.Brown (Motherwell Y.M.C.A.) 50min. 33sec., 2, J. H. Linaker (Motherwell Y.M.C.A.) 51min. 6sec., 3, R. McKay (Motherwell Y.M.C.A.) 51min. 41sec., 4, G. Eadie (Cambuslang) 51min. 55sec., 5, R. Coleman (Dundee Hawkhill) 52min. 18sec., 6, D. Simpson (Motherwell Y.M.C.A.) 52min. 50 sec., 7, M. Ryan (St. Modans) 53min. 4sec. 8, J. M. Kerr (Airdrie) 53min. 26sec.

1963

SCOTT MEMORIAL 

1. J. Linaker (Motherwell Y.M.C.A.), runner-up last year, won the second annual Tom Scott Memorial 10-mile road race from Law school to Motherwell (A.E.I. Works) on Saturday.

Linaker’s 47min. 59sec. was 2min. 34sec. better than the winning time last year by A. H. Brown, another Motherwell Y.M.C.A runner, who on this occasion was beaten by more than 100 yards.   H. Barrow (Victoria Park) was third and, as the first junior to finish, won the Turnbull Trophy.  With Linaker and Brown in the first two places and D. Simpson in seventh place, Motherwell won the team race with ten points. Victoria Park were second with 17 points.

Linaker and Brown went to the head of the field of 87 starters shortly after the start, and, shoulder to shoulder, they ran for nine miles. Thereafter Linaker found extra speed to shake off his rival and won by 18sec. The first three in the race beat last year’s time of 50min. 33sec.

Leading times:-   1, J. H. Linaker (Motherwell), 47min. 59sec.; 2, A. H. Brown (Motherwell), 48min. 17sec.; 3, W. H. Barrow (Victoria Park), 50min. 24sec.; 4, A. F. Murray (Dundee Hawkhill Harriers) 50min. 34sec.; 5, I. Harris (Beith Harriers) 50min. 34sec.; 6, R. C. Calderwood (Victoria Park) 50min. 40sec.

SCOTT ROAD RACE 

Wood’s Success

A.J. Wood (Aberdeen A.A.C.) won the third Tom Scott Memorial Trophy 10-mile road race from Law to Motherwell on Saturday when, after a fine duel with A. H. Brown (Motherwell), who was second, he finished 30 yards clear in 49min. 27sec. J. R. Johnstone (Monkland) was third.

Wood and Brown remained more or less together until the six mile checkpoint where the winner began to nose his way in front. Brown, however, was not easily shaken off and he cut Wood’s lead by producing a strong finish.

Details:-   1, A. .J. Wood (Aberdeen A.A.C.) 49min. 27sec.; 2, A. H. Brown (Motherwell) 49min. 33sec.; J. R. Johnstone (Monkland) 50min. 19sec.

ALDER WINS ROAD RACE

 J. Alder (Morpeth Harriers) justified expectations by winning the Tom Scott Memorial 10-mile road race on Saturday from Law to Motherwell in 47min. 34sec., 25 seconds’ improvement on the existing record set by J. H. Linaker (Motherwell) two years ago.

A.H. Brown, winner of the first race four years ago, put in his best performance with a time of 47min. 40 sec., inside the previous record by 19 seconds, and third was J. L. Stewart (Vale of Leven), 30 yards behind Brown.

At the first three mile checkpoint Alder was running strongly fully 50 yards in front of Brown, Stewart, and I. McCafferty, who were together at that point, and the time of 13 min. 40 sec., 38 seconds faster than the previous best time at that stage, gave rise to the prospect of a record. Over the next three miles the gap opened out to more than 90 yards between Alder and Brown, and Stewart, McCafferty having meantime dropped back to fifth place, 50 seconds behind the leader.

Rally

During the next four miles, Brown rallied so well that he cut Alder’s lead to less than 40 yards at the finish – a great effort by one who came to prominence 16 years ago and has stayed there since that time. McCafferty disappointed by slipping back to fifteenth place.

Motherwell still proved masters of this race by taking the team honours for the fourth year in succession with a total of 21 points. Victoria Park and Shettleston finishing second and third. The handicap race was won by R. Cox (Glenpark Harriers) with R. Wedlock and A. P. Brown second and third. Results:-

1, J. Alder (Morpeth), 47-34; 2, A. H. Brown (Motherwell), 47.40; 3, J. L. Stewart (Vale of Leven), 48-45; 4, A. .P. Brown (Motherwell), 49-7; 5, A. J. Wood (Aberdeen A.A.C.), 49-14; 6, D. Wedlock (Motherwell), 50-19; 7, J. R. Johnstone (Monkland) 50-29; 8, H. J. Summerhill (Shettleston) 51-14; 9, J. Reilly (Victoria Park) 51-18; 10, R. Coleman (Hawkhill Harriers) 51-27

1966

A.H. BROWN WINS RACE TO MOTHERWELL   A.H. Brown (Motherwell) now in his seventeenth year as a regular performer in distance events, is a dedicated athlete whose methods for the attainment of the retention on fitness might be copied. He outpaced a field of 87 starters in the fifth annual Tom Scott memorial 10 mile Road Race from Law to Motherwell, beating J. Alder (Morpeth H.), last years winner and the record holder by as much as 49secs.

Third was J. Brennan (Maryhill H.) who must be heartily congratulated on having as a junior overcome many experienced distance runners in this race.

At three miles Alder was in front – timed at 14min. 4sec., with A. H. Brown and Brennan just behind him. Fifty yards further away was A. J. Wood (Aberdeen A.C.), and behind him, just a few yards were L. McKenzie (Aberdeen A.C.) and A. Wight (Edinburgh University).

At the half distance checkpoint Alder and Brown were together, now steadily pulling away from the rest of the field, and at six miles Brown led Alder by a few yards with a time of 28min. 22sec.

Brown pulled on evident reserve of power from the eight mile point and broke away quickly from Alder, who now looked tired and totally unable to resist the inevitable. He failed by nearly 280 yards to hold Brown, who won the inaugural event in this series.

Details:-

Individual race – 1, A. H. Brown (Motherwell) 48min. 6sec.; 2, J. Alder (Morpeth) 48-55; 3, J. Brennan (Maryhill) 49-24; 4, A. J. Wood (Aberdeen A.C.) 49-46;, 5, G. B. Jones (Edinburgh University) 49-55; 6, A. Wight (Edinburgh University) 50-3; 7, J. Robertson (Hawkhill H.) 50-27; 8, F. Whitley (Wellpark H.) 50-36; 9, L. McKenzie (Aberdeen A.C.) 51-1; 10, R. Coleman (Hawkhill) 51-23; 11, C. Martin (Dumbarton) 51-37; 12, R. Fulton (Ailsa A.C.) 51-48

Team Race – 1, Hawkhill 31pts; 2, Edinburgh University 34pts; 3, Aberdeen A.C. 43pts.

1967   Stewart breaks course record by 53 seconds

It took J. L. Stewart less than half distance to make it clear to a field of 96 in the Tom Scott Memorial Road Race from Law to Motherwell on Saturday that he had gone there to win. And, going on to emphasise his superiority, he broke J. N. C. Alder’s two-year-old record for the course by 53 seconds.

For four of the 10 miles, it must be admitted; he had company in the shape of  I. McCafferty, who before the race said he would put in an honest challenge if he felt good. Clearly he did, for after three miles, run in a record 13 minutes 36 seconds, he and Stewart would have needed a set square to settle who had passed the mark first. Already accepting their minor roles behind were Andrew Brown, L. Young, Alex Brown and – out to surprise pundits it seemed – G. M. Brown (Edinburgh Southern).

From four to five miles Stewart gained a yard, two yards, and then it was five. This was the start of the rack for McCafferty, and try as he might the spirit of retaliation was crushed from him by the time Stewart passed the five mile sign with 20 yards of freedom behind him. To add to McCafferty’s troubles, he was misdirected in Motherwell, but by that time Stewart was about 150 yards ahead and the only effect of the error was to add maybe 20 seconds to McCafferty’s time.

Brave effort

For a long time Young looked as if he might push Andrew Brown into fourth place, but with here miles to go Brown shrugged of that danger and latterly was getting very close to McCafferty at times. Alex. Brown after a bright start, lost his place somewhere in the middle of the race, and only a brave effort towards the end brought him back into the first 10. G. M. Brown must have astonished many by filling tenth place – that comes of staying with the respectable group early on and becoming educated to their pace.

The team race was easily won by Motherwell Y.M.C.A., and Aberdeen A.A.C.’s enthusiasm in making such a long trip was rewarded with third place.

Results:-   1, J. L. Stewart (Vale of Leven) 46min. 41sec. (record); 2, I. McCafferty (Motherwell Y.M.C.A.) 47-23; 3, Andrew Brown (Motherwell Y.M.C.A.) 47-39; 4, I Young (Edinburgh University) 48-1; 5, A. J. Wood (Aberdeen A.A.C.) 44-44; 6, A. Blamire (Edinburgh University) 48-48; 7, P. MacLagan (Victoria Park) 49-3; 8, Alex. Brown (Motherwell Y.M.C.A.) 49-10; 9 D. P. McGregor (Edinburgh Southern) 49-17; 10, G. M. Brown (Edinburgh Southern) 49-23

Team race – 1, Motherwell Y.M.C.A. 13pts; 2, Edinburgh Southern 31pts; 3, Aberdeen 43pts.

1968   Splendid win for McCafferty

After the Tom Scott Memorial Road Race on Saturday from Law to Motherwell I. McCafferty made one of those decisions brought on by physical discomfort, that seem permanent at the time but could very well change later. He would run in no more 10-mile road races.

He had just won the event convincingly from G. Bryan-Jones after nine and a half miles of close company from Jones and a group that lessened in numbers as each mile rolled by. But the price McCafferty paid for breaking in new shoes was the formation of two throbbing blisters, the bruised blood underneath shouting out to be released.

With his big toe nails trimmed intentionally to half their size his feet wouldn’t have held the gaze of the aesthetically minded for too long, but his running was worth watching. No attempt was made to break away from the leading group of five – Andrew and Alex Brown, I. Young, K. Grant and Bryan-Jones – until the last half mile when he scampered away from the last named. His time, 48min. 39sec., was nearly two minutes outside the course record set last year by J. L. Stewart, but a strong wind in some measure contributed to that.

 Rough justice

 The wind gave me another chance to see the kind of justice that road runners dispense to each other when no officials are at hand. One of the leaders was hugging so close to those in front for shelter that his feet and elbows were making unwelcome advances. A combined reproach from the others and a quick thump from an elbow put paid to any further interference.

Special mention ought to be made of the fourth place of Young, whom I seem constantly to overlook in Edinburgh University’s team. He ran courageously throughout, never losing sight of the leading bunch, and finished only half a minute behind the winner.

Law and District, with their three counters in the first six places, ran away with the team prize, 19 points ahead of Edinburgh University.

Results:-

1, I. McCafferty (Law) 48min. 39sec.; 2, G. Bryan-Jones (Edinburgh University) 48-49; 3, Alex Brown (Law) 48-55; 4, I. Young (Edinburgh University) 49-9; 5, K. Grant (Dundee Hawkhill) 49-14; 6, Andrew Brown (Law) 49-22; 7, N. Morrison (Shettleston) 50-24; 8, A. J. Wood (Aberdeen) 50-50; 9, W. Mather (Teviotdale) 50-55; 10, A. Johnston (Victoria Park) 51-4

1969

Convincing win for McCafferty 

Ian McCafferty, who vowed last year after having won the Tom Scott Memorial road race that he was finished with 10-mile events, returned on Saturday and duly covered the distance for another convincing victory.

Blistered feet caused the trouble last time and so on Saturday he took it as easily as was possible in a field of 110 that included such notable opponents as Lachie Stewart, Dick Wedlock, and Gareth Bryan-Jones.

Before the start McCafferty appeared unconcerned about the outcome, saying that his track commitments in the next few weeks must take priority over a 10-mile road race, but it’s hard to subdue the competitive element in most athletes once the gun goes, and the Carluke man is no exception.

A group containing most of the above plus Harry Gorman set the pace in the early stages out of Law and along the main A73 road heading for Wishaw, but it was clear that Stewart, Wedlock, McCafferty, and Bryan-Jones were going to be the principle actors as they passed the Motherwell boundary.

McCafferty, having played doggo all the way, decided the time had come to put the others through the hoop with less than a mile to go. He changed gear so smoothly, put his head down just that fraction lower, always a sign of added determination from him, and left the others to settle the minor positions.

His winning time, 49min. 14sec., gave him a lead of about 80 yards at the finish over Stewart, who in turn was comfortably ahead of Wedlock.

Team race

The team race was Shettleston’s, finishing their leading men in second, third, and sixth positions. Edinburgh Southern, although they totalled the same points as Aberdeen A.A.C., 33, were given second place under S.A.A.A. rules (their last counting man was ahead of Aberdeen’s).

The junior five miles from Wishaw to Motherwell went to J. Dingwall (Edinburgh University), whose 26min. 4sec. was four secs ahead of W. Burns (Larkhall). Larkhall took the team race with 14 points.

Results:-

1, I. McCafferty (Law and District) 49min. 14sec.; 2, J. L. Stewart (Shettleston) 49-26; 3, R. Wedlock (Shettleston) 49-38; 4, G. Bryan-Jones (Edinburgh Southern); 5, J. Brennan (Maryhill); 6, W. Scally (Shettleston); 7, W. Ewing (Aberdeen); 8, Andrew Brown (Law and District).

Team race – 1, Shettleston, 11 points; 2, Edinburgh Southern, 33; 3, Aberdeen, 33

Junior five miles – 1, J. Dingwall (Edinburgh University), 26min. 4sec,; 2, W. Burns (Larkhall), 26-8; 3, J. Sorbie (Larkhall), 26-15.

Veterans’ prize – H. V. Mitchell (Shettleston).

1970

STEWART WINS COMFORTABLY 

By RON MARSHALL

The Tom Scott Memorial road race the official opener to the S.A.A.A. track season, brought much encouragement to Lachie Stewart (Shettleston Harriers) when he covered the 10-miles from Law to Motherwell in 47min. 46sec., the fastest since his 1967 course record of 46min. 41sec.

That he is shaping into a superb state of fitness was evident from his condition as he crossed the winning line. Within seconds he was breathing normally and talking about the race, his only complaint being the bout of catarrh that constantly attends his long distance efforts.

In second place, 200 yards behind, came his clubmate, Dick Wedlock, and after a similar gap was Donald MacGregor (Edinburgh Southern), doing a spot of short-distance build-up for the Scottish marathon championship on May 16.

It was he who set the early pace through Law and out onto the A73, but after about a mile and a half Stewart forged ahead, closely followed by Wedlock. The latter, with as low a heel-lift as Stewart’s is high, always offers him a dour challenge, but usually can always watch as the yardage between grows maddeningly into an irretrievable gulf.

That was again the pattern on Saturday, but finishing second to such a determined, talented runner is not worth the disappointment Wedlock sometimes endures.

Ian McCafferty did not, after all, decide to run. His father, who watched Saturday’s proceedings, thought Ian was probably fit enough but was anxious to avoid a recurrence of the leg twist he received last month in Vichy. Mr McCafferty had no idea when his son’s first competitive appearance this season would be.

The senior team race went to Shettleston Harriers, who totalled 24 points, four fewer than Clydesdale, with Edinburgh Southern third on 58.

The junior five miles from Wishaw to Motherwell was won by Douglas Gunstone (Dundee Hawkhill) in 24min. 32sec. Ronnie MacDonald (Monkland Harriers), the Scottish youths cross-country champion was second, ahead of Colin Falconer (Springbrn), the Scottish and English junior champion. Larkhall won the team race with 22 points.

Tom Scott Memorial race results:-

1, J. L. Stewart (Shettleston) 47min. 46sec.; 2, R. Wedlock (Shettleston) 48-17; 3, D. F. MacGregor (Edinburgh Southern) 48-52; 4, A. F. Faulds (Stirling A.A.C.) 49-33; 5, H. Gorman (Springburn) 49-45; 6, E. Knox (Springburn) 50-4.

1972   Burst on incline gives Downie victory

 Sam Downie, on the threshold of what he calls an experimental season in track athletics, gave himself the best possible start on Saturday by winning the Tom Scott Memorial Road Race from Law to Motherwell.

The 21-year-old Falkirk Victoria Harrier, a probable entrant this September at Borough Road College, where Alan Pascoe among other notable athletes studied physical education, is limbering up, so to speak, as a labourer at a local foundry. He has no misgivings about possible ill-effects on his training.

“My speedwork is coming along amazingly well (he trains in a local Falkirk public park), I’ve never really buckled down to track work, preferring cross-country the last couple of years,” he said.

Downie, winner of the Eastern District cross-country title earlier this year, agreed his form took an alarming dip just after that win but all signs on Saturday were of a startling and successful recovery.

He was always comfortably with the leading group in the first few miles of the 10-mile trek, sharing the pace with Douglas Gunstone, Willie Day, the Wight brothers, and Colin Martin. Inevitably cliques emerged, the one that mattered most consisting of Downie, Day, and Gunstone.

As mile after mile was devoured, the leaders having deserted the relatively clean air for the pale orangy hue that hangs about parts of the Motherwell-Wishaw area, Day began to find the pace uncomfortable and the battle for the impressive Tom Scott statuette was now between Downie and Gunstone.

Half a mile from home a tactical burst from Downie on an incline sealed the issue. He carved out a 10-yard gap in as many seconds and maintained the pressure to the finish, clocking 47 minutes 45 seconds, which was eight seconds better than Gunstone. Day was third.

This was only Downie’s second run in the Tom Scott – he was thirty-first last year – and although it must be pointed out that McCafferty, Stewart, and Wedlock and one or two others were missing on Saturday, this performance, just over a minute outside the series record, promises a worthwhile 1972 on the track for Downie.

The junior five miles, from Wishaw to Motherwell, was a comprehensive win for Jim BrowN in 22 minutes 30 seconds. His Monkland clubmate, Ronnie McDonald was second 15 seconds behind.

Senior result:-

1, S. Downie (Falkirk Victoria), 47min. 45sec.; 2, D. Gunstone (Dundee Hawkhill) 47-53; 3, W. Day (Falkirk Victoria), 48-1; 4, J. Wight (Edinburgh A.C.) 48-8; 5, A. Wight (Edinburgh A.C.) 48-17; 6, C. Martin (Dumbarton), 48-42.

1973

Dingwall wins Law race

Jim Dingwall (Edinburgh University) won the Tom Scott road race on Saturday over a slightly altered route from Law to Motherwell.

His time, 48min. 8sec., gave him a lead of about 100 yards over Douglas Gunstone in what was one of the weakest Tom Scott fields for years.

Senior result:-

1, J. Dingwall (Edinburgh University), 48min. 8sec.; 2, D. Gunstone (Edinburgh A.C.) 48-22; 3, R. Wedlock (Shettleston), 48-28; 4, J. Wight (Edinburgh A.C.) 48-28; 5, A. Wight (Edinburgh A.C.) 48-32; 6, M. Craven (Edinburgh Southern), 48-37; 7, C. Martin (Dumbarton) 48-38; 8. W. Day (Falkirk Victoria) 48-58

Team race – 1, Falkirk Victoria (W. Day 8, S. Downie 9, W. Sharp 20) 37 points, 2, Dumbarton (7, 13, 26) 46; 3, Law 67.

Junior (5 miles) – L. Spence (Wellpark H.), 24min 34sec.; 2, J. McLuckie (Larkhall) 25-5; 3, A. Hutton (Edinburgh A.C.) 25-29; 4, A. Gilmour (Law) 25-43; 5, J. Thompson (Law) 26-5; 6, J. Lawson (Springburn) 26-10 Team race – 1, Larkhall (McLuckie 2, Gilmour 4, G. Young 16) 22; 2, Wellpark H. (10, 12, 17) 39.

1975

Brown’s record time 

 The capricious nature of sporting form was well illustrated on Saturday when Jim Brown (Clyde Valley) won the Tom Scott road race from Law to Motherwell; not only by a wide margin but in record time as well.

Only three weeks ago the same man was languishing in seventy-fourth position in the International Cross Country Championship, a race in which he had been fourth the previous year. With that weighing on his mind, then Brown had approached the Tom Scott with more than a degree of apprehension. He sorely needed a morale booster.

For a long time he would be deprived of satisfaction. Andy McKean (Edinburgh AC), the national cross-country champion, set a fearsome pace over the first four miles, dragging what appeared to be a reluctant Jim Brown in his wake at least 40 yards behind. Jim Dingwall, going for his third successive win, was already showing signs of distress, and his “triple” bid was latterly no more successful than Red Rum’s at Liverpool. He finished third.

Punishing Pace 

Through Wishaw’s main street, McKean sagged a bit. Brown sensed the lapse and swept past, not gradually but punishingly fast. Within seconds he had 30 yards on the other and the race was over. The net three miles to the finish only served to allow Brown to build up an ultimate winning lead of 175 yards, and he crossed the line in 46min. 33sec. This beat Lachie Stewart’s 1967 record by eight seconds.

The winner had two main concerns after the race. The first was to retrieve his front plate of teeth from the bus carrying the athletes’ belongings. He never runs with it fitted, but demands of a radio interview made it essential. His second worry was the appearance of some raw blood blisters on both feet. A complete rest yesterday, he imagined, would be required to let them subside.

Brown returns this week to his physical education studies at that breeding ground of sporting prowess, Borough Road College in London. His first big race, apart from student fixtures, is on June 11, when he runs against Brendan Foster and Ian Stewart. You cannot choose sterner opponents than that.

Saturday’s result:

1. J. Brown (Clyde Valley), 46m. 33sec.: 2. A. McKean (Edinburgh AC), 46-59: 3. J. Dingwall (Edinburgh AC), 47.51: 4. D. Gunstone (Edinburgh AC), 47-57: 5. L. Spence (Strathclyde University), 48-11: 6. J. Wight (Edinburgh AC). 48-14

Alan Puckrin

1980   Leg work pays off for Brown

Jim Brown retained his title in the Tom Scott Memorial Road Race from Law to Motherwell on Saturday.  He was in excellent form, just failing to break his own record by one second, and finished 400 yards clear of Allister Hutton (Edinburgh Southern Harriers), who was running over the 10-miles distance for the first time.

Brown, whose winning time was 46min. 34sec., has been doing high-mileage training of 120 miles a week preparing for the AAA marathon championship at Milton Keynes in three weeks time.

This heavy schedule is paying off for Brown as he looked and felt very fit. He said after the race that he intended waiting until the seven-miles mark before making his effort but felt so good that he decided to go at three miles after he had been in the leading bunch along with Hutton, Dingwall, Martin Craven (Edinburgh Southern), and Colin Farquharson (Clyde Valley).

1. J. Brown (Clyde Valley) 46min. 34sec.: 2. A. Hutton (Edinburgh Southern) 47-56: 3. J. Dingwall (Falkirk Victoria) 48-43.

Jap pips Brown for treble

 Despite a brave effort to score his third successive victory in the Tom Scott Memorial 10-mile road race from Law to Motherwell on Saturday Jim Brown (Clyde Valley AC) was outpaced by Japanese 10,000 metre champion Yasunori Hamada of Edinburgh AC.

The race quickly developed into a two-man affair, with the leaders breaking clear of the 185-man filed early in the race. Each took a turn of leading and they were under the course record at half-distance, but the hot afternoon took its toll of the tiring runners and the pace dropped on the hilly approaches to Motherwell.

As the runners turned into the final 200-meter straight Hamada was fractionally in front of Brown. The Scot sprinted, to be repelled by the leader, and the lead changed hands as the rivals passed each other. Hamada’s final lunge gave him the verdict in the closest finish in the 22-year old history of the race.

Results:

1. Y. Hamada (EAC) 47min. 39sec.; 2. J. Brown (Clyde Valley) 47-40; 3. C. Farquharson (Clyde Valley) 49-46. First veteran R. McKay (Clyde Valley) 54.43.

Team – 1, Edinburgh AC 14pts.; 2, Cambuslang 33; 3, Bellahouston 36.

1982

Athletics 

Allister Hutton (Edinburgh Southern Harriers) smashed the course record by 28 seconds in winning the Tom Scott Memorial 10-mile road race in a time of 46mins 5sec. Jim Brown (Clyde Valley) came second in 46.27

Palm Gunstone, first woman, 1985

1983

Athletics

 Though there was a record field of 437 for the Tom Scott Memorial 10-mile road race from Law to Motherwell on Saturday, Scotland’s top road runners were missing – preparing for next Sunday’s London Marathon.

Lindsay Robertson (Edinburgh AC) who will be representing Scotland in London won in 49 min. 12 sec, a time which would not have placed him in the first dozen last year.

Terry Mitchell (Fife AC) was runner-up in 49 min 31 sec, and his clubmate Donald MacGregor took third place in 49 min 40 sec, so winning the Scottish veteran’s championship by almost three minutes from Roddy McFarquhar (Aberdeen AAC).

Fife AC won the team prize from Edinburgh AC and Bellahouston Harriers.

Athletics 

John Graham (Clyde Valley AC), who now lives in Birmingham, returned to his home town of Motherwell and won the twenty-third Tom Scott Memorial 10-mile road race from Law to Motherwell.

Graham led from the start and finished unpressed in 47min. 09sec., more than 300 yards ahead of his nearest rival in a field that exceeded 300.

Yvonne Murray (Edinburgh AC) won the women’s prize, finishing sixty-fifth overall in 54min. 49sec., the fastest time ever run by a woman in Scotland.

The top ten in 1985.  Still a very high quality field

*

You can see from the results how popular the course and race was among the runners – due in no small way to the organisation and effort put in by Tom’s club mates at Motherwell YMCA and by his former employers.   The times are also an indication of how fast a course it was – although it was said and believed to be downhill, it depends on what is meant by downhill!   Read what the statisticians at www.arrs.net have to say about downhill and what it means.  The coverage went from good to excellent to poor to downright disgraceful (note the last two!) and then it was excellent again when Scotland’s Runner covered it in the mid-eighties to early nineties.    It carries on, and for up to date results plus those missing above, have a look at the race website at the address above.

Since the above was written, Mick McGeoch of Cardiff has put together a marvellous list of stats for the event: all the winners, men and women, all the men’s times inside 50 minutes, and all the women inside 60.   See it  here     Colin Youngson followed this up by compiling a comprehensive list of men’s veteran trophy winners and you can get it   here

The original programmes and most of the results are also now available:

The first Tom Scott race   Races 2 – 4   Races 5 – 8

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Although run in England, the Brampton to Carlisle Road Race is very popular with Scots and Scots have done remarkably well in the event.   One of the problems over the years for men wanting to run in the race, was that it usually coincided with the Edinburgh to Glasgow Relay.   That meant that most of the top runners could not run if their club was in the major domestic race of the winter season.  Even if their club was not in the relay, then the atmosphere at this wonderful event persuaded many of those to go along and watch.       The first Brampton was in 1951 and 2011 saw the Sixtieth Anniversary of the event.    As an event outside Scotland, we will cover it from a Scottish point of view with notes of their performances where known rather than in a strictly chronological fashion.

The race was over eight and a half miles when it was first organised in England when it was organised by Border Harriers in 1951, and the first five were won by Bill Boak of Elswick.   Bill is now in his eighties and lives only a few miles from the finish.   Border Harriers still organise the race but it has been long established as a ten mile event.   The race starts in a village, follows the B6264 for most of the way and finishes in a city and usually attracts upwards of 600 runners.    Originally, in the days of Bill Boak, it went straight from point to point but by adding in a loop it was easily made into a ‘ten’ which is advertised as the oldest ten mile race in England.   The picture above gives an idea of the course and there is a short video clip posted by Tyne Valley Striders of their runners crossing the bridge at http://wn.com/Brampton_Carlisle which includes some (very) brief clips of some Scottish runners.

 Only two men have ever won the race three times and both were Scots.   Jim Alder of Morpeth won the race in 1963, 1964 and 1965 and Alan Murray of Edinburgh University won in 1966, 1969 and 1970.   Several English athletes have won it twice – Gerry North (Blackpool & Fylde) in 1959 and 1960, Nick Sloane of the same club in 1973 and 1974, John Calvert of Blackburn in 1977 and 1978, Steve Cram in 1984 and 1987 and Mike Scott of Border Harriers winning the club promoted event in 2001 and 2005.   Ron Hill won in 1974 in 46:40 which was a course record but it only stood for a year with Sloane breaking it a year later with 45:50 which still stands.    It is clearly a top class race and well supported by athletes of the highest quality which makes the successes of the Scottish runners all the more impressive.   Scots have always run well in the race, and Ian Elliot of Edinburgh Southern won it in 1976 in a time of 47:50.    It is hard to understand why there is no easily available list of winners from the start of the race either in print or on the net.   Sandra Branney tells the tale of Alex Robertson going down to the race and entering on the day.   He ran wearing a Barney Rubble T Shirt and went off fast.   The rest of the field let him go thinking he would be back: he didn’t and went on to win.   It was at a time when those entering on the day were not eligible for any award so he was off home without his deserved and earned reward!    One of the best runs that I have noted was that of Andy Brown who won it in 1962 in the superb time of 48:37.    In 2011 the local Brampton newspaper reported that only four men in the last 20 years had been sub-49 minutes for the race.

The Scottish women have possibly done even better than the men though.  Hayley Haining is the only woman to have won it three times (2004, 2005, 2006) with Lorna Irving (1983 and 1986), Lynne Harding ((1994 and 1996), Sandra Branney (1997 and 1998) and Lynne MacDougall (2000 and 2001) all winning it twice.  Between 2001 and 2009, Clydesdale Harriers supported the race and the women won several individual and team awards with the veteran women taking first place no fewer than five consecutive years (2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009).  Not only did they win the Lady Vets and Ladies races in 2006, but in 2008, Scotland provided all three award winning teams in the Ladies and Lady Veterans races.

Only Scots have won the race three times – two men and a woman.   What’s the attraction of the Brampton?   Hayley Haining says that she really likes the race for several reasons: first, the course is flat and scenic as it winds through the little villages outside Carlisle; second she has found that with a lot of men running at around her speed, she can get a good race instead of being in a “no-man’s land” for most of the race.    She adds that ironically the course is registered as being a downhill course but it has a long killer hill at the end as you climb up into Carlisle.   We can start with Hayley’s three wins and two course records.

Hayley Haining only ran in the race three times and won all three.   In 2004, she was twenty second in 56:27 which saw her two minutes and eleven seconds and twenty seven minutes ahead of the second woman.    Then in 2005, she was eleventh overall in 54:50 with second Lady 24th in 56:35.   First Scottish man (Blair Matthew, Calderglen) to finish was one place and three seconds behind her.    Finally in 2007 she was timed at 54:31 for eight finisher overall.   At the time she was a Lady Vet 35 and the next Lady was 24th in a time outside 57 minutes.   Not only that but she was first Scot to finish with the first man (Marcus Scotney) being two places behind in 54:59.   A quite remarkable record and she is still (in 2012) still the only three time winner of the women’s race.

Sandra Branney won the race in 1997 and 1998.   On one of these occasions she arrived at Brampton, did her usual pre-race strides and went to change into her race shoes only to find that she had brought the wrong shoe bag!   Her racers were back in Carlisle leaving her with no option but to run in a cheap pair of old trainers.   So annoyed with herself was she that she took off at the start like a rocket – not at all her usual start.    But she won which is what counts.   Another memorable race was in 2004 when she turned 50.   Pete Mulholland kept age-group records and pointed out that Paula Fudge had the ten mile record at 60 minutes +.   Sandra really wanted the record so targeted the Brampton.   Race day, perfect weather, no wind.   She ran 59:06 and was highly delighted.   Pete confirmed that the course was legal despite the alleged drop mentioned by Hayley above.   Third Lady and of course first in her category.

The British veterans website writes up the record as follows: “Branney became the first British W50 athlete to breach the 60 minute barrier.   This run by Branney was over the much debated Brampton to Carlisle course and the argument as to whether it should be classed as downhill.   Tim Grose the statistician who supplies the official British middle and long distance statistics, admits “After a study of the Ordnance Survey 1:25000 map by John Falvey, the course appears down as it exceeds a drop of 1m/km.”   However the Association of Road Running Statisticians (ARRS) sets a limit of 5m/km before a road race can be categorised as downhill.so Grose feels that these figures cannot be ignored.”

Lynn Harding was born in Milngavie but lived in the Newcastle area doing most of her racing in the North of England.   Lynn won the Brampton to Carlisle in 1994 (Commonwealth Games year where she ran in the Marathon) and 1996.

Lynne MacDougall won twice  –  in 2000 and 2001.   In the latter race she won in 55:28 when finishing 22nd, which was seventeen places and one minute fifty seconds ahead of the second women.   The first Scottish man to finish was Allan Adams of Clydesdale Harriers in third place in 50:54.   Lynne’s comments on the race the first time she ran, she was very close to her pb for the distance which was well outside the course record of 51:51 and belongs to Angie Pain/Hulley.   Like Hayley  and Sandra, she liked the event because “even in the noughties it seemed quite ‘old school’.    It takes place on a Saturday afternoon, on pretty much the same course, with mostly club athletes and a lot of very good runners have won in the past.  There are very few 10 mile races around now as well – I hope it never becomes a half marathon!  The course: it is very fast overall, but there are some uphills as well and although point-to-point, it isn’t boring.   There is usually a good group of men to run with to keep the pace going.   I hope the race continues!”

I mentioned the women from Clydesdale Harriers earlier and would like to expand on that – mainly on the veteran women.   Five firsts, two seconds and a third in five years is not bad going.   There had been several men from the club going down with Allan Adams the most successful, having a best time of 49:35 when finishing third in 2003 before the club started to send a group of runners to the event.   In 2004 Pamela McCrossan was second LV 40 and the vets team was fifth.   Possibly encouraed by that the team made a point of sending a good team down and in 2005 they had two team awards.   The Lady Vets team of Ann Murray (3), Pamela McCrossan and Aileen Scott won the race and were second in the open ladies team race where Ann was eighth, Pamela tenth and Aileen sixteenth.   In 2006 they did even better by winning the overall women’s team race (Melanie Douglas in fifth, Pamela thirteenth and Aileen twenty first)  and the vets as well with the counters being Pamela, Aileen and Marina McCallum with Pamela third LV45.   2007 saw the hat-trick in the vets race when Pamela (9), Ann (11) and Kath Scott (12) won the vets race and were second the open race.   Pamela was third L45 and Ann was third L40.   In 2008 they did it again – first Lady Vets team and third overall with Pamela, Ann and Kath being the heroines this time.   Better still, Pamela was the first Lady Vet to finish and Ann was the third L40.   They went back in 2009 but without the same degree of success – the Lady Vets team on Marina McCallum, Aileen Scott and Kath Scott was third and the trio were fifth in the overall race. Pamela reckons that she won a vets prize and a team prize every time she went to the race and her 10 miles pb was done in 2008 when she was clocked at 64:27   They haven’t been back since but the series of first places and fine individual runs kept up the Scottish tradition of doing well at Brampton.

Hugh Barrow travelled down in 1959 and won the Junior race by ten yards in the one and a half mile race: see the picture and story above.   .

The men have been much harder to find information on.    We know that two men as noted above have won the event three times each but beyond that it is difficult.   I contacted Border Harriers twice but there was no response to the query but we do have information from individuals about the race.   For instance, David Donnet, ex-Springburn Harrier now living and working in Holland, tells us that in 1991 the race was won by Carl Thackeray in 46:21 and he was followed by three Scots – David himself in 48:48:19, Mike Carroll in 48:21 and Graham Crawford in 48:48.    Graham Crawford was also Springburn but they had no third counter so they were nowhere in the team race.   Not only that, but they were in trouble back at home for doing it when the club needed them in the Edinburgh to Glasgow which was on the following morning!    The Scots presence was certainly felt that year.    We can however have a look a Scots in Brampton over the past ten years or so.   In 2001 and 2002 Allan Adams of Clydesdale Harriers flew the Scottish flag when he was third in 50:39 and 49:35.   Teams?   Calderglen was third in 2002

Race Start in 1940’s: is it Andy Forbes in the front row?

The Beith New Year’s Day race was a fixture when I started running in 1957 but the problem was that, being on 1st January, and in Scotland, there was only skeleton public transport running.   It being the 1950’s not many had cars of their own – so if you wanted to run there you needed a car of your own, you needed to know someone with a car who would take you or you had to hit it lucky with trains and/or buses.   The thing is though that despite all those disincentives, the race was supported by international runners, Scottish champions and even Olympic athletes!    Local international runners like Ian Harris and Tom Cochrane ran there, Olympians such as Lachie Stewart, Ian McCafferty, Suttie-Smith, Alex Breckenridge and more recently Lynne MacDougall, cross-country internationals like Lawrie Spence, Eddie Bannon,  Andy Forbes, Jimmy Flockhart and Pat Moy, all travelled to Beith for the event.   Started in the late 1920’s it is still going strong.

I first ran in it when it was a cross-country race and remember one point in the trail where the path ran straight into a burn – but to get back out required getting up on to a raised bank on the other side.   Not easy.   I remember once when it was a road race, Andy Brown seeing brother Alex doing some strides away from the start line when the field was getting in order.   He called his young brother back and pointed out that they would not start the race if Alex was 50 yards down the trail in the direction of the race but they might if he were 50 yards behind the start line!    Only the wording was more direct.   I remember sitting beside Ian McCafferty in the changing room and him showing me the new shoes he had just got from Puma with things like suckers on the sole.    In those days it was a men only affair but like most races now, it incorporates races for women and younger athletes are also catered for.   Information below came mostly from Kenny Phillips and stats are mainly from Alex Wilson who has posted all the winners on the Association of Road Runners website at .    https://arrs.run/HP_Kilbirnie4.htm.

Other than the Red Hose race at Carnwath in Lanarkshire it is said to be the oldest race in Scotland, being slightly ahead of the Balloch to Clydebank race in Dunbartonshire.   Alex Wilson says that he thinks the race dates from 1926 but the results start at 1929

  It was always held on 1st January except when that fell on a Sunday when the race was run on the 2nd January.      What I would like to do is look at the winners and show how the standard that was high at the start has been maintained – the Emsley Carr Mile in London has a book in which the winners write their name.   Had such a book been started for the Beith races, then with all the signatures that would have been collected in it, you would have had a very valuable document.

Pre-War Race Winners

Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance
1st January 1929	J Suttie Smith	Dundee Thistle H	40:48	6.5 Miles
1st January 1930	S Tombe	West of Scotland H	39:40	6 Miles
1st January 1931	CP Wilson	Irvine YMCA H	38:42	“
1st January 1932	Maxwell Stobbs	Catrine H	33:35	“
1st January 1933	J Flockhart	Shettleston H		5 Miles
1st January 1934	J Campbell	Bellahouston H	25:50	5 Miles
1st January 1935	J Flockhart	Shettleston H	25:35	5 Miles
1st January 1936	J Flockhart	“	33:34	6 Miles
1st January 1937	P Allwell	Beith H	32:56	6 Miles
1st January 1938	P Allwell	“	12:35	2.5 Miles
1st January 1939	M Barr	Beith H	24:35	4.5 Miles
1st January 1940	A McGregor	Plebeian H	20:15

The first of these, John Suttie Smith was an OIympic 10000m runner who ran in the Amsterdam Games in 1928 where he finished tenth in 31:50.  He had best times of 14:41.2 for Three Miles, 15:22.6 for 5000n, 20:24.8 for Four Miles, 30:47 for Six Miles and 51:37.8 for Ten Miles (set in 1929).   An Olympian in 1928 who set a personal best for Ten Miles in 1929, he was clearly at the top of his game when he won the Beith New Year’s Day Race.  He also won the Scottish Cross-Country title five times (1928, ’29, ’30, ’31, ’32).  The other notable in the pre-war victors list was of course Jimmy Flockhart of Shettleston Harriers who won the World Cross Country Championship in 1937 and the Scottish championship four times (1934, ’34, ’36 and ’37).   Of the others, Sammy Tombe ran in the International Cross-Country Championships in 1928, 1933 and 1934, CP Wilson ran in them in 1928 and 1931, Stobbs in 1930, 1931 and 1932,   Campbell in 1935 and 1936 and Allwell in 1936 and 1939.

The distance was much longer prior to 1937 than it has been since and the following report from the local paper in 1934, received from Kenny Phillips,  maybe explains its early popularity.   “Beith Harriers open ballot team race was held on Monday.   This event is now recognised as a means of identifying form for the Scottish National Championships in March, and this year it was of particular interest at the International Championship is being held in Scotland, the venue being Ayur Racecoure.   Conditions on Monday morning were all against the prospect of a good entry or a good race.   However the weather cleared a bit in the afternoon and fully 35 runners faced the starter, Mr Wm Johnstone.   These runners were balloted into nine teams comprising four to run, three to count.   The ground conditions were none too good, but as it subsequently showed, this did not deter the keenness of the runners or spectators.   That this race is a much-looked-for one on Ne’erday can be taken for granted by the number of people who were present at the start, and who followed the race from advantageous positions on the course.   The trail, which was laid and marked out under the careful eye of TJ McAllister, differed from the one usually used for this race but which was excellently laid out from the spectator’s point of view, as one could see almost three-fourths of the race.   This is an unusual thing in a cross-country race and was fully appreciated by the spectators, who took advantage of the many viewpoints to follow the course of the runners.  

The runners were got off to a good start by Mr Johnstone, and J Campbell (Bellahouston H) quickly took the lead, followed by G Ferguson (Beith and Gala H), J Gifford (Victoria Park) and HW Davidson (Eglinton H).   After almost a mile had been covered, J Campbell had established a lead of 30 yards from Gifford with Davidson and J Anderson (Lochwinnoch H) close behind.   Then came DE Thomson (Victoria Park),  J Millar (Beith H) and G Hunter (Bellahouston H).   On completing the first circuit, J Campbell had increased his lead on Gifford, while Davidson had also lost ground, although still lying third.   These were followed by J MIllar (Beith) who was beginning to move up and who was receiving plenty of encouragement on passing the crowd of interested spectators.   At the four mile stage, it was easily seen that that it was going to be Campbell’s race unless anything unexpected happened.   He was now leading by about 100 yards from Gifford with Jack Millar 30 yards further behind.   The field was still strung out by this time and there was a difference of almost five minutes between first and last.   At the finish there were no chages in the first three positions although J Millar made a valiant effort to get the better of Gifford but just failing.   J Campbell (who is a previous winner of this race) won easily and proved to be a popular victor with the spectators who had followed his forcing race with interest and he was given a warm reception on finishing as were second and third.”

The report is of interest for several reasons, not least being the fact that the Ayrshire spectators were so interested or so appreciative of the winner’s efforts.      The fact that it was used as a guage of form for the National is of interest as there was not nearly as full a calendar then as there is now and there were many inter-club runs to fill the gaps.   A race over the approximate championship distance on the country would prove fairly popular.    The fact that it was a ‘spectator friendly’ trail is well ahead of the time too – even in the 1960’s trails often consisted of one large nine mile loop with the officials watching the runners disappear into the distance before going to shelter in a building or car and having a cup of tea!

*

There was a wee hiatus between 1941 and 1949 for obvious reasons and Kenny Phillips has this to say about the restart of the race in ’49:

“At the Committee Meeting on 5/2/48 it was proposed to re-establish the New Year Day race to celebrate the 25th Anniversary of the club.   The race would be a Ballot Team Race to give everyone a chance of a prize over 2.5 miles of road with three sets of team prizes.   At the AGM on 7/9/48 the Secretary reported on the successful road race of 2.5 miles for Novices won by H Fenion of Lochwinnoch  in the fast time for a Youth of 13 mins 03 secs.   Harry went on to become Scottish marathon champion and Beith were disappointed that he did not join Beith Harriers instead of Bellahouston Harriers. 

In the first postwar 1949 Ballot Team Race over 2.5 miles, there were 35 runners with Andy Forbes first in 13 min 24 sec, 180 yards in front of R Climie, Bellahouston, second, J Reid West Kilbride third, and the novice T McNeish, Irvine, fourth.   The first ballot team was W Ritchie Victoria Park, B Hainey, Doon, and J Ellis of Victoria Park 11th.   The first prize was an oak occasional table donated by the Co-operative Furniture Factory in Beith, and the first team prizes were three mahogany tea trays made by Jack Millar, the 1929 Novice Champion.”

Kenny also believes that the race was probably cross-country until about 1990 when it was changed to road     After the war it was planned as a two lap, four mile cross-country course.   However in 1949 due to severe frost, it was dangerous underfoot and the course was changed to a 2.5 mile road which Andy Forbes won wearing spikes on the slippy road surface.

Andy went on to win the race in 1950 and 1951.   The Ballot Team format was fairly popular at the time.   It was meant to address what was seen as a problem, or if not a problem, a basic case of fairness in the winning of team prizes.   In all the main races – National, District and County as well some open races, the same clubs won every time out with other good standard athletes missing out time after time.   The solution was to place the names of all entries into a hat and draw out three or four names at random, these to form Ballot Team 1, then three or four more to form Ballot Team 2 and so on.   Even when I started in the sport in the 1960’s I ran in several events where the format was used – Garscube was one such, but the biggest race of the type that I competed in was the Balloch to Clydebank 12 Miles Race.   By winning the race three times, Andy was one of several multi-winners.

Post War Race Winners

Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance
1st January 1949	Andy Forbes	Victoria Park	13:24	2.5 Miles
1st January 1950	“	“	20:57	2.5 Miles
1st January 1951	“	“		4 Miles
1st January 1952	–	–	–	–
1st January 1953	Alex Breckenridge	Victoria Park	20:17	4 Miles
1st January 1954	Eddie Bannon	Shettleston H	20:37	4 Miles
1st January 1955	Andy Brown	Motherwell YMCA	20:46	4 Miles
1st January 1956	“	“	19:38	4 Miles
1st January 1957	Pat Moy	Vale of Leven	20:34	4 Miles
1st January 1958	Alex Breckenridge	Victoria Park	20:40	4 Miles
1st January 1959	W Thomas	Irvine YMCA	21:34	4 Miles

Andy Forbes was of course a Scottish and British Internationalist on the track with multiple Scottish selections on the country to his credit with the high spot maybe being the silver medal in the Empire Games in 1950.   He also won the Scottish Cross-Country Championship twice.   Alex Breckenridge was also a Scottish internationalist who emigrated to the United States and represented them as a marathon runner.   Andy Brown, Scottish track, road and country Internationalist who was one of the most inspiring of captains and was in fact Scottish International team captain for many years.   Eddie Bannon was a superb athlete on every surface and won the Scottish championship four times (1952, ’53, ’54 and ’56) and had seven appearances in the International race.     Pat Moy from the Vale of Leven  represented Scotland in the International CC Championships in 1956, 1957 and 1958 so he too was clearly a top class man for a considerable period  with the Beith win being right in the middle of his three year purple patch.   Clearly the race had some status when men of such high calibre came year after year on New Year’s Day to contest it.

Results from the Sixties

Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance
1st January 1960	Pat Moy	Vale of Leven	20:31	4 Miles
2nd January 1961	Ian Harris	Beith Harriers	21:03	4 Miles
January 1962	–	–	–	–
1st January 1963	Lachie Stewart	Vale of Leven	22:56	4.5 Miles
1st January 1964	Ian McCafferty	Motherwell YMCA	20:59	4 Miles
1st January 1965	Andy Brown	“	20:25	4 Miles
1st January 1966	Ian McCafferty	“	21:33	4 Miles
2nd January 1967	“	“	18:58	4 Miles
1st January 1968	Alastair Johnston	Victoria Park	24:48	4.5 Miles
1st January 1969	Dick Wedlock	Shettleston H	19:58	4 Miles

Ian Harris was a first rate athlete who won the SAAA Marathon in 1963 as well as being a cross-country internationalist and – unfortunately for Scottish athletics – did most of his running in the colours of the Parachute Regiment all over the world.   Lachie Stewart and Ian McCafferty were both multi SAAA champions and Olympians too.  Lachie won the first ever SCCU Boys championship and won the Senior race in 1967 and 1968 while Ian won the Senior event in 1972 and had as one cross-country high point the third place in the international championship at Clydebank in 1969.    Alastair Johnston won several Scottish International representative honours and would undoubtedly have won many more had he not been involved in the dreadful accident with the stray hammer at Meadowbank.   One of the interesting features of the 1960’s was the introduction of age-group races in 1967.   Although the quality of runner was high, the numbers were not fantastic at this point and this move proved a success.   Lawrie Reilly of VPAAC won the junior boys race with Lawrie Spence fifth.

Winners from the 1970’s

Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance
1st January 1970	Dick Wedlock	Shettleston Harriers	19:48	4 Miles
1st January 1971	Henry Summerhill	Shettleston Harriers		4 Miles
1st January 1972	Dick Wedlock	Shettleston Harriers	19:56	4 Miles
1st January 1973
1st January 1974	Lachie Stewart	Shettleston Harriers		4 Miles
1st January 1975	Jim Thomson	Law & District AAC	21:39	4 Miles
1st January 1976
1st January 1977	Jim Golder	Ayr	30:37	6 Miles
1st January 1978	Hugh Forgie	Law & District AAC		6 Miles
1st January 1979

It is not just the Beith races that have some gaps in the results for the 70’s and 80’s – I find a similar story in several other well-established races and I don’t know why this is the case.   There are also a number of Classic Races where the actual trophy has ‘disappeared’.   Results to fill in the gaps would be welcome.   The standard remained high though.   Dick Wedlock with three wins (1969, ’70 and ’72) was also a track internationalist (10000m at the 1970 Commonwealth Games) and won the Scottish Cross-Country title in 1969.   Jim Thomson was a very good runner but one whom many people thought could have been a great talent had he stayed with the sport.   Hugh Forgie and Jim Golder were in the main track runners who both gained Scottish selection for their preferred events of 800m and 1500m

Winners of the 80’s

Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance
January 1980
January 1981
January 1982	Lawrie Spence	Shettleston H
January 1983	Lawrie Spence	Shettleston H
January 1984	Lawrie Spence	Shettleston H	23:07	4.5 Miles
January 1985	Lawrie Spence	Shettleston H	22:06	4.5 Miles
January 1986	Tommy Murray	Greenock Glenpark H	23:41	4.5 Miles
January 1987	Chris Robison	Spango Valley AAC	22:34	4.5 Miles
January 1988	Graeme Croll	East Kilbride AAC	23:33	4.5 Miles
January 1989	Paul Larkin	England	23:53	4.5 Miles

If we concentrate on the winners from this decade, Lawrie Spence of Greenock Glenpark, Shettleston Harriers, Spango Valley and Inverclyde stands out as one of the all-time greats of the sport.   A sub-four miler he also ran well under 2:20 for the marathon and captained the Scottish International Cross-Country team after Jim Alder ended his reign in that post.   One of five brothers, there seemed to be no event to which he could not turn his hand and he is now a very good coach indeed with Inverclyde AAC.   Graeme Croll was perhaps a bit unfortunate that he was steeplechasing at the same time as Tom Hanlon but he won more than his share of SAAA titles including the steeplechase and 10000m on consecutive days!   Tommy Murray and Chris Robison were two thirds of a triumvirate that was to dominate Scottish long distance running in the 90’s – both represented their country on the track, over the country, on the roads and in World Mountain Running championships.  Chris also represented England in the world event before he transferred allegiance to become on of the Scottish stars of the 90’s.    Paul Larkin was a member of Wolverhampton and Bilston AAC who could also turn his hand to most events on the track, road and country and represented England in the World Cross Country Championships.    The standard was still incredibly high for the Beith New Year’s Day Race.

Winners in the 90’s

Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance
January 1990	Tommy Murray	Greenock Glenpark H	22:35	4.64 Miles
January 1991	Tommy Murray	Cambuslang H	23:30	4.64 Miles
January 1992	Chris Robison	Spango Valley AAC	21:55	4.64 Miles
January 1993	Glen Stewart	ESH	22:57	4.64 Miles
January 1994	Glen Stewart	“	23:02	4.64 Miles
January 1995	Tony Johnston	Irvine	22:23	4.64 Miles
January 1996	Colin Brash	Girvan AAC	23:57	4.64 Miles
January 1997	Alan Puckrin	Kilbarchan	23:11	4.64 Miles
January 1998	David Gardiner	Racing Club	24:08	4.64 Miles
January 1999	Jamie Reid	Law & District AAC	24:10	4.64 Miles

Glen Stewart is the son of Lachie Stewart – the only father and son double act to win the Beith race – and was a very good track runner being the first British athlete to finish in the Commonwealth Games in Manchester in the 10000m as well as representing Scotland in the 5000m.    Glen ran for many clubs but as a senior he ran in the main for the various incarnations of Racing Club in Edinburgh after a short spell with ESH.   He has won the National Cross-Country title twice – in 2002 and 2004.      Tony Johnston was another track runner – English and so unable to represent Scotland but a credit to himself and his club in every race he turned out in.   Alan Puckrin was one of the few Scottish cross-country runners to get his picture on the front of Athletics Weekly.   A cross-country and track internationalist of some stature he was friendly and outgoing and a popular winner.   David Gardner won many medals as part of the Racing Club in Edinburgh and had the international championship been open to Scotland as it had been before the world body forced the amalgamation, he was one who would probably have gained selection.   Jamie Reid of Law & District was a very good marathon runner (see his profile on the Marathon Stars page) who could also run on country and track and who represented his country.

Winners in the 00’s

Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance
January 2000	Jamie Reid	Law & District	22:49	4.64 Miles
January 2001	Tommy Murray	Inverclyde AAC	22:46	4.64 Miles
January 2002	Billy Richardson	Irvine AAC	23:31	4.64 Miles
January 2003	Mark Pollard	Inverclyde AAC	24:34	4.64 Miles
January 2004	Jamie Reid	Cambuslang Harriers	23:06	4.64 Miles
January 2005	Chris MacKay	Greenock Glenpark H	23:25	4.64 Miles
January 2006	“	“	23:20	4.64 Miles
January 2007	“	“	22:44	4.64 Miles
January 2008	David Millar	Irvine AAC	23:12	4.64 Miles
January 2009	Ross Toole	Kilbarchan AAC	23:00	4.64 Miles

Tommy Murray is still in there – his first victory was in 1986 and there he is winning again in 2001.   Tommy is also a very friendly guy but does not suffer fools gladly and has had some run-ins with authority in his career – he gets on fine with fellow runners though.   Tommy also has four wins in the National Cross-Country Championship – in 1989, ’91, ’92 and ’93.    Jamie Reid has two more victories here and if you look at his profile, you will see that he is indeed a worthy winner.   Billy Richardson is another who is unfortunate not to have been racing when Scotland was a separate country in the world championships because he would have had several vests.   As it was, he was unfortunate to have been running at the same time as the Quinn, Robison and Murray group.   This decade in the results of the race, as indeed all of them, reflects the situation in Scottish athletics.   The dominant clubs are no longer Victoria Park, Bellahouston Harriers or Shettleston Harriers – it’s the clubs from South of the Clyde that are coming to the fore.   Tommy Murray is a Greenock boy and Mark Pollard and Chris MacKay are two of a wonderful group of young distance runners at Inverclyde AAC coached by Lawrie Spence and Norrie Hay.    Mark has won the Scottish Cross-Country title twice already (2007, ’08) and Chris has been a close-up member of National winning teams.   These guys still have a lot to give the sport.   Ross Toole is an excellent young prospect from Kilbarchan who seem to specialise in whole dynasties of athletics talent – the Hawkins brothers are as famous as the three generations of the Toole family.    I’ll bring the results up-to-date but reserve the comments until January 2019!

Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance
January 2010	Race	Cancelled	Snow &	Ice
January 2011	Chris MacKay	Inverclyde AAC	22:43	4.64
January 2012	Stuart Gibson	Cambuslang Harriers	23:55	4.64

 

It is a popular race and whatever its secret, lots of runners keep coming back and several have been multi-race winners.    Most prolific was Tommy Murray with four (1986, ’90, ’91 and 2001) as had Chris McKay of Inverclyde (2005, ’06, ’07 and possibly 2011), Chris MacKay (2005, ’06, ’07 and’11) and Lawrie Spence (1982. ’83, ’84 and ’85) with several on three each – Jim Flockhart (Shettleston) in 1934, ’35, ’36), Ian McCafferty (1964, ’66 and ’67) and Dick Wedlock (1969, ’70 and ’72) while on the women’s side Susan Finch (City of Glasgow) won three  in 2006, ’07, ’08 and Ann Ridley (McLaren City of Glasgow) in 1987, ’88 and ’89.

The Women’s Race 

 

Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance		Date	Winner	Club	Time	Distance
January 1984	Carol Devlin		18:30	2.5		January 1999	Shona Hughes		29:04	4.64
January 1985	Marcella Robertson	ESH	18:11	2.5		January 2000	Jill Cox-Knowles	City of Glasgow	28:42	4.64
January 1986	“	ESH	25:54	4.5		January 2001	Ann Hay	Greenock Glenpark Harriers	24:28	3.48
January 1987	Ann Ridley	McLaren Glasgow	27:01	4.5		January 2002	D Sancil	USA	23:47	3.48
January 1988	“	“	27:35	4.5		January 2003	Liz McGarry	Irvine AC	24:34	3.48
January 1989	Elspeth Turner	Glasgow AC	27:54	4.5		January 2004	Claire Gibson	Kilbarchan AAC	27:51	4.64
January 1990	Ann Ridley	“	26:37	4.64		January 2005	Claire McCracken	City of Glasgow	27:15	4.64
January 1991	Helen Morton	Irvine	22:01	3.48		January 2006	Susan Finch	City of Glasgow	27:54	4.64
January 1992	Lynne MacDougall	City of Glasgow	25:34	4.64		January 2007	Susan Finch	City of Glasgow	27:48	4.64
January 1993	S Kennedy	Victoria Park	28:22	4.64		January 2008	Susan Finch	City of Glasgow	28:04	4/64
January 1994	Sharon Hatch	Irvine AC	13:09	4.64		January 2009	Kara Tait	Kilmarnock HAC	29:45	4.64
January 1995				4.64		January 2010	Race	Cancelled: Weather
January 1996	Helen Morton	Irvine AC	30:41	4.64		January 2011	Claire Whitehead	Deeside Runners	28:01	4.64
January 1997	Jackie Byng	Irvine AC	31:22	4.64		January 2012	Kara Tait	Kilmarnock HAC	29:21
January 1998	Alison Higgins	JW Kilmarnock H	27:56	4.64

As with the men, runners came from all over Scotland, and beyond in 2002.   From Aberdeen in the north to Edinburgh in the East, from Greenock in the West but mainly from the Glasgow area with no fewer than 11 of the 27 races heading for the conurbation.   Five from Irvine and three from Kilmarnock were the top clubs apart from that.   Olympian Lynne MacDougall’s outstanding time of 25:34 for the 4.64 mile trail was clearly the performance of the series although the weather at this time of year can have a lot to do with watch times!   Lynne was a real quality athlete with Scottish titles on the road, track and country and latterly as a marathon runner who only missed Games selection through injury.   She would add lustre to any list of race winners.   There are ,many well known names on this roster: Claire Gibson cruelly denied really major selections as an 800m track runner through unfortunate injuries at the wrong time, Marcella Robertson was also a well known orienteer as well as a top flight runner, Alison Higgins from Kilmarnock was a really good all round endurance runner who showed talent on the track and road as well as over the country.   Jill Knowles was the daughter of Hammy Cox of Greenock Glenpark and grand-daughter of Bertie, a well-known road runner in the 50’s and 60’s who was a class runner in her own right.   Many of the girls above could have won national cross-country titles but for the overwhelming dominance of Freya Murray who has won the Scottish Cross-Country Championship seven times in nine years!   Susan Finch, running at present as a veteran has best times of 17:25 and 36:30 for 5K and 10K on the roads and 10:22.8 for 3000m indoors; Ann Ridley who equals Susan’s three victories was one of the best cross-country runners of her generation, and won the Scottish Cross-Country title in 1990.   Elspeth Turner was a very good athlete who went on a scholarship to the University of Alabama and developed her talent even further – she has best times of 5000m on the track and 5K on the road of 16:11.09 and 18:25 and for 10000m track and 10K road of 33:05.43 and 37:43.   Kara Tait has a range of personal bests ranging from 64.3 for 400m to 36:47 for 10K on the road – and she is still only 25 years old.   All the women who have won the race in its short 28 years existence have been at least very good athletes at best of the very highest calibre.

 

 

 

The start in 1984 – winner Martin Coyne is Number 35

When I started out road running in about 1958 the Scottish Marathon Club was the group you had to join.    Organised by Jimmy Scott, Dunky Wright and an excellent committee. it produced a fixture list every year on which the Edinburgh to North Berwick (then a 22.6 miles distance) was an annual feature.   In 1962 I set out to do as many races on the SMC programme as possible – the Balloch to Clydebank, the Clydebank to Helensburgh and the Springburn 12 were all easy to get to with manageable distances, the Strathallan and the SAAA Marathon were also easy to get to because so many folk travelled to them although the distances were starting to get difficult.   Edinburgh to North Berwick was more difficult – a student with no car could maybe get there by train but how on earth did you get back from North Berwick?   Travel was at times a real difficulty but Jimmy Scott came to the rescue and took several of us through in his minivan – as indeed he did to many other events (Dundee ASA, Spean Bridge to Fort William, the Ben Nevis, the Derwentwater 10 for instance – including myself and Jack MacLean of Bellahouston.   The weather was fine apart from a headwind for about 20 of the 22.6 miles and the race started outside St Andrews House with a long downhill run past Meadowbank and on down the coast to North Berwick.   My memory is of a race that should have been down hill seeming to involve a lot of running up long drags!   The drops were short and steep and appeared to be followed by long gradual gradients.   It was one that I wanted to do and looking through the Scottish Marathon Minute Books its history was long and noble.    It has gone through many metamorphoses since then with the distance varying up to and including the marathon and the whole history is on Brian Howie’s admirable website  (http://www..b-howie.demon.co.uk) referred to below.   There have been many double winners – Alex Wight, David Wyper, Martin Coyne, Robin Thomas, Lindsay Robertson and James McMillan but only one man has won it three times – Colin Hutt about whom more can be read on the Two Bridges pages of this website.

Colin Youngson ran the race in 1979 and 1980 and reports on it as follows:

“The Edinburgh to North Berwick is miraculously still going nowadays.  If you Google ‘Edinburgh to North Berwick Race’ this will link you to Brian Howie’s website which includes a list of winners going right back to 1958 when Scottish marathon champion Harry Fenion won the first event.   The race distance, which is now 20 miles has varied considerably over the years.   In 1971, 1972 and 1973 it was a full marathon.   Taking slight advantage of the downhill start from Meadowbank, Alex Wight and his brother Jim ran brilliantly for Edinburgh AC in 1971, with Alex recording 2:15:27 and Jim only 16 seconds behind.   In 1973 Rab Heron of Aberdeen AAC was almost as impressive with 2:17:07.   When I tried it in 1979 and 1980 it had been reduced to 21.8 miles.   My diary for Saturday, 5th May, 1979 states, “Eased away from the pack after four miles, 43 seconds up  at 13 miles.   Then relaxed too much and was shocked to find Sandy Keith closing fast.   Eyeballs out up the hill and through Gullane, etc.   Tired on last downhills.   Sore feet but best run for a long time.”   My winning time – a new course record until EAC’s Lindsay Robertson took over a minute off it in 1982 – was 1:52:13, with Sandy 26 seconds back and Dave Lang a distant third.   54 ran and Maryhill’s world class veteran Gordon Porteous was congratulated on finishing 30th in 2:26:15 at the age of 65!   In 1980 I was rather fatigued from previous races and, despite trying to drop Tommy Wiseman into a strong, gusting headwind, this was to no avail.   He broke clear and strode off to an easy victory in 1:59:48, a minute clear of me with Martin Craven third.

I have the complete Scottish Marathon Club results sheets for the 1958 to 1972 races, inclusive, for the North Berwick to Edinburgh.   According to the SMC Minutes, the race was suggested after the Glasgow-based SMC gained some Committee Members from the East.   The energetic and confident Harry Curran of ESH was the organiser of the only North Berwick – Edinburgh.     Later that year Harry Curran emigrated to Canada (though he seems to have returned by 1964) leaving the organising to Hugh Phillip.   The 1959 to 1962 Edinburgh to North Berwick races were actually promoted by the SMC leaving it all to the Eastern members such as Jackie Foster, Neil Campbell, DB Brooke plus SMC officials like Joe Walker,  George Aithie and Jimmy Scott.   Prizes came from donations and tea afterwards was provided by North Berwick Town Council, who also presented a cup.   The Provost presented tha prizes.   For the 1959 event it was suggested that a message be sent from Edinburgh to North Berwick.  

1958: Inaugural NORTH BERWICK TO EDINBURGH 22 mile.   Winner, on 17th May, was Harry Fenion, the reigning Scottish marathon champion, who had been Scottish distance runner of 1957.   The field included most of the bests current Scottish distance runners.

1959: 16th May: was won in a new record by Hugo Fox who won the SAAA Marathon in both 1958 and 1959.   This time it was actually run from EDINBURGH TO NORTH BERWICK!

1960: EDINBURGH TO NORTH BERWICK was billed as 22.6 miles.   The winner was K Pawson well clear of John Kerr who won the Scottish marathon in 1961.

1961: EDINBURGH TO NORTH BERWICK: Terry Rooke from the North of England was one of a growing number of runners from South of the Border who were attracted by the event.

1962: EDINBURGH TO NORTH BERWICK: Charlie Fraser, ESH, in front of John Kerr (Airdrie) and Clark Wallace (Shettleston) all medal winners in the SAAA marathon.   By now the organisers were the new Edinburgh AC.

1963:  was won, according to the SMC Minutes, by Jim Alder in a new record.

 1965 did not take place so the date was given to the Shettleston Marathon.

Presumably the 1966 race was cancelled too – only the old Edinburgh AC would know that.

1971 was held on 8th May and was the full marathon distance.   Alex Wight won and that season set records for this race plus Clydebank to Helensburgh (16 Miles), the Two Bridges (36 Miles) and the Edinburgh to Glasgow solo (45 Miles) and was awarded the SAAA Trophy for Scottish Road Runner of the year – this was the Donald MacNab Robertson trophy that you can read about in the appropriate section of Marathon Stars.   Result here:

1. A Wight EAC   2:15:27; 2.   J Wight   EAC   2:15:43;   3.   Donald Macgregor   ESH   2:19:00;   4.   G Bryan-Jones   ESH   2:23:47;   5.   Tommy Coyle   ESH   2:26:39;   6.   Gordon Eadie (Cambuslang)   2:27:45;  7.   John MacDonald (Lewisvale Spartans   2:29:43;   8.   Duncan Davidson   Forres   2:35:10;   9.   Donald Taylor   EAC   2:42:10.

It was again a full marathon in 1972.   Held on 13th May, 1972, it was won by Donald Ritchie of Aberdeen in 2:24:26.   Other places were filled by David Wyper (West of Scotland Harriers) second  in   2:24:35; third place runner is unlisted; fourth was Jimmy Milne (Edinburgh AC) in 2:2549; fifth Alisdair Reid (Glasgow University)   2:32:31.

On 12th May 1973, it was another full distance marathon but the organisers at Edinburgh AC were disappointed at the poor entry.   Only eight finished but a very fit Rab Heron (Aberdeen AAC) aided by a very strong tailwind ran very fast to win in 2:17:07 which topped the Scottish marathon rankings for that season.   Steve Taylor (AAAC) was second in 2:23:17 with Graham Milne (AAAC) in 2:24:18; Jimmy Milne (EAC) 2:34:51; Ian Mackenzie (ESH) 2:40:56 and Ian Trapp (EAC) 2:34:51.

Joe Small was a good class runner who competed for Monkland Harriers and Clyde Valley who ran in the race twice – the first time was in 1978 and he says – This was my first attempt at a long race.   Having decided to try the marathon and only having raced 12 to 15 miles, I thought that the 21.8 miles would be a good stepping stone.   Starting from Meadowbank Stadium I sat in the leading pack gradually moving up as others fell off the pace.   The group held fairly tightly together as there was a fairly strong headwind until around the ten mile mark when it was whittled down to three – myself, Davie Wyper and Jim Russell.   I pushed the pace from there and Jim was quickly dropped leaving me to do all the work as Davie sat in.   I tried everything to get clear – speeding up, slowing down, even inviting him to go in front but he didn’t take up the offer!   We came into North Berwick, still together and previous knowledge (he’d won the race two years before) allowed him to sprint clear.   I hadn’t a clue where the finish was!   Dave beat me by 6 seconds with 2:01:50 but I was quite pleased with my first effort at the distance.   A couple of years later, in better conditions, I had a really fast run – 1:55 – to finish fifth I think.  

Brian Howie, the event historian, organised a full-length marathon version on the 5th of May 1991 – and won it in 2.40.19. The famed English ultra-marathoner Eleanor Robinson was first woman home in 2.54.11.

The race remained in my memory for a couple of things – one was Jack Mclean saying to Eddie Campbell of Lochaber that if he wore shorter shorts he would take minutes off his time, to which Eddie retorted that “If you lived where I live, you’d wear shorts like mine!”   The other is a runner telling me after the race that he had dropped out with exactly one mile to go.   He got into a car belonging to one of the race officials and spotted the ‘Spangles’ on the dashboard.    “Can I have one? was the question, and before he got an answer had unwrapped two and they were in his mouth!

It was a good race, very well organised with certificates issued by the SMC and a fine meal afterwards in North Berwick.   I was surprised but delighted to hear that it was still being run.

Brian Howie now has most of the race results up on his website and they can be found at http://www.b-howie.co.uk/history.html 

and Alex Wilson has a history of the early years of the race which is up at   this link. which Alan Lawson has brought up to date with a paragraph on the revival of the race in 2022 as a twenty mile event.

 

Jim Brown, winner of the Coatbridge 5 in 1974

(Photograph taken winning the National Junior in 1973)

The Coatbridge Five is not really a classic as already defined – it didn’t last long enough, it wasn’t a regular high spot in the calendar.    But when it appeared on the scene in the early 1970’s it had everything – good quality runners, a fast trail with a hair raising descent to the finish, good quality prizes and big fields of real runners.   It used to be said that the value of the first prize mattered but if you wanted a really good field the second prize mattered even more!      Almost everybody wanted to run in it and Joes Small, who is from Coatbridge, has done a short profile of the event.

The Coatbridge 5 mile road race was a short-lived but very high profile race attracting very high quality fields.   The main reason for this was the very generous, for that era, prizes on offer, together with invitations being extended to top road runners from south of the border, whose expenses were paid.

The inaugural race was held on 15th September 1973 as part of the Coatbridge Festival: a music, culture and sport event.   Mainly through the efforts of Tommy Callaghan of Monkland Harriers, sponsorship was obtained from the then Burgh of Coatbridge.   Later, as Monklands District Council, athletics, road and cross country running were all backed financially by the council for a number of years.

The course for that first race consisted of a very fast, flat, three lap circuit around the centre of the town, run on a Saturday afternoon – in the years before the police decided that events couldn’t safely be run on the roads, unless a the crack of dawn on a Sunday morning.   Details of the event have been difficult to come by, but the prize fund for the 1973 race was advertised as being “£200:00, equivalent to £2000:00 in today’s money.   The race was won by GB international Ian Stewart running in the colours of Birchfield Harriers, reportedly breaking clear of the field after two miles and building up a large lead to win comfortably by 150m.   Andy McKean of Edinburgh University finished second with local runner Jim Brown in third.   First Junior was Graham Laing of Aberdeen AAC with Bill Stoddart of Greenock Wellpark Harriers taking the veterans award.

With the remaining top ten places being filled by Lachie Stewart, Fergus Murray, Jim Dingwall, Don Macgregor, Doug Gunstone, Frank Davies from Liverpool and Willie Day, the quality was undeniable.

The team race was won by Edinburgh Southern Harriers from Edinburgh University and Liverpool Harriers.

Result:    1.  Ian Stewart (Birchfield Harriers)   24:32;   2.   Andy McKean  (Edinburgh University)   25:03;   3.   Jim Brown (Monkland Harriers)   25:24.

Bert McKay during the 1973 race.

1974 saw the second coming of the race on September 14th.    The race saw the return to athletics of last year’s winner, Ian Stewart.   After a disappointing Commonwealth Games, Stewart had announced that he was retiring from athletics and taking up cycling.   This was to be his comeback race and was eagerly anticipated by athletics followers.   In the event he didn’t figure in the race and finished down the field.   A fast early pace was set by Jim Dingwall before Jim Brown of Monkland Harriers opened a 100m lead in the third lap to win easily in 23:41.    Dingwall finished second with Steve Edmunds of Sale Harriers third.   John Graham of Motherwell YMCA showed good promise to take the junior prize in eighteenth place with Alastair Wood of Aberdeen first veteran.

Result:   1.   Jim Brown (Monkland Harriers)   23:41;   2.   Jim Dingwall (Edinburgh University)   24:00;   3.   Steve Edmunds (Sale Harriers)   24:13.

1975 saw the race move to an October date with a revised course.   Following the opening of the new all-weather track in the town, the route was changed to allow a finish on the track.   The early pace was set by Lawrie Spence, along with Jim Dingwall, Doug Gunstone and Colin Youngson.   However competing in the race for the first time, local Coatbridge runner  Ronnie MacDonald pulled clear on the second lap to record a good win.   Second, again, was Dingwall, with Spence in third.   First junior for the second year was John Graham in seventh.   Charlie McAlinden from Paisley Harriers picked up the vets award in twenty sixth.   MacDonald (1st), Graham (7th) and Joe Small (16th) won the team race for Clyde Valley.

Result:   1.   R MacDonald (Clyde Valley)   2.   Jim Dingwall;   3.   Lawrie Spence.

1976’s race saw the runner-up for th past two years, Jim Dingwall record his first win.   Reportedly “storming past” the rest of the field with 600 metres to go he won by 50m from Jim Brown and Frank Clement.   Starting to make his mark in fourth place and winning the junior prize was Shettleston’s Nat Muir.   Jim Irvine from Bellahouston Harriers finished 48th and first veteran.

Result:   1.   Jim Dingwall   24:03;   2.   Jim Brown   (Clyde Valley)   24:11;   3.   Frank Clement (Bellahouston Harriers)   25:08.

Although the race doesn’t qualify as a classic due to the fact that it only lasted a few years, in terms of the calibre of competitors and the performances produced, it certainly made its mark on the Scottish road running scene.

I would add that it also serves as an indication of the fact that the top men raced each other, head to head, willingly: not for a good time, although if you beat these guys a good time was guaranteed, but to win.   A race with very valuable prizes now would almost certainly not see invitations go to the best of the English northern brigade.   Scottish distance running was at a high level at that time and it remained so because the best would race the best – and often!