Author: The Author

 

Scottish Athletics statistician, Arnold Black posted the following:

 “ATHLETE OF THE DAY – MARK MITCHELL

 When Mark Mitchell won the 800m/1500m double at the 2012 Scottish Champs, he was the first athlete to achieve that feat since Duncan McPhee in 1923. Mark won 5 Scottish track champs, 1 indoor title, 1 road and 1 cross country title. He was a finalist in the 800m at the Euro Juniors and semi-finalist at the World Youths and Juniors. He gained the qualifying standard for the 2014 Commonwealths but unluckily missed out on selection. Representing Forres Harriers and Birchfield, he set career bests of 48.90 (400), 1:48.42 (800), 3:41.48 (1500), 4:01.23 (1M), 7:59.00 (3000) and 30:23.13 (10,000).”

Twice, in 2012 and 2014 Mark raced 3000m on the track as a Senior for Scottish International teams.

Mark Mitchell was born in 1988 and had great success from early on, securing many Scottish titles.

Under-13:  2001 Scottish Short Course; Scottish Schools Group D 1500m;

Under-15: 2002 Scottish Schools Group C 1500m.

Under-17: 2003 and 2004 Scottish Schools Group B 800m; 2003 and 2004 Scottish Championship 800m; 2004 Scottish Indoor 800m. In 2003, at Belfast, Mark raced cross country for Scotland.

In 2004, Mark travelled with the Scottish team to the Commonwealth Youth Games in Australia. Could that be him kneeling in the middle of the front row?

 Under-20: 2005 Scottish Schools 800m; 2005 and 2006 Scottish Championship 800m; 2005 and 2006 Scottish Indoor 800m.

As a Senior, Mark Mitchell won the 2013 Scottish Short Course XC Championship; and finished an excellent third in the 2016 Scottish Senior National XC Championships. On the road, he won the 2016 Scottish 5 km Championship. His Scottish track titles were: 800m in 2008, 2010 and 2012; 1500m in 2011 and 2012; Indoor 1500 in 2014. In addition, he secured a bronze medal in the British 2012 Indoor 3000m Championship.

Mark won many North District XC Championships: under 13 in 2000 and 2001; under 15 in 2002 and 2003; under 17 in 2004. As a Senior, he was North District Champion in 2011, 2012 and 2015.

Scottish Athletics reported:

“Despite severe forecasts, the atmosphere at the 2015 North District Championships could not be dampened and the event was a massive success with increased numbers in most age groups and a high standard of competition with lots of close finishes. The talk was all about Inter-district selection as well, so there was a lot to play for.

It was also a day when the Senior titles delivered success which can aptly be described as ‘his and hers’ with Mark Mitchell taking the Men’s race in a great finish as his partner (and future wife), Eilidh Mackenzie, won the Women’s gold for the fourth time.”

                                     Top four in the Men’s race – with Mark Mitchell champion again

                                           Left to right: Kyle Greig, Mark Mitchell, Kenny Wilson, John Newsom

“The Senior Men’s race had a field packed with high standard athletes and internationalists, which delighted the spectators. Mitchell won it from John Newsom, of Inverness Harriers with Kyle Greig, Forres Harriers, in third and Kenny Wilson, Moray Road Runners, fourth.

The Senior Women did not disappoint with an exciting battle between eventual winner Eilidh Mackenzie, Stornoway RAC from Sarah Liebnitz, Inverness Harriers, with Rhona Grant, Highland Hill Runners taking the bronze place.” 

*

It has been a remarkable career with several highlights but what does Mark himself think of his athletics career so far when he looks back at it?   We asked him to complete the questionnaire to give us some insight into his own thoughts and feelings.   The other thing that runners want to know, is about the training that other, often more successful runners are doing.  It is covered in these replies and are really worth inspecting.

MARK  ANSWERS  THE  QUESTIONNAIRE

NAME

Mark Forbes Mitchell

CLUBs

Forres Harriers

Birchfield Harriers

DATE OF BIRTH

23/05/1988

OCCUPATION

Physiotherapist, NHS Eileanan Siar (NHS Western Isles)

HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN THE SPORT?

My Auld Boy (Dad) used to play squash and someone advised him to take up running in order improve his aerobic fitness for squash. He took himself along to train with Forres Harriers and he would do all of the local road races up to half marathon distance. I’ve got some relatively early memories of him running races in Forres, Lossiemouth and Elgin. I am unsure of his PBs but he tells me he got close to breaking 1 hour 40 minutes for a half marathon at one point. He’s got all the results written down on the back of an A4 envelope in a drawer somewhere. I am unsure whether his squash performances benefitted from these endeavours.

My older brother and older sister then followed him along to the club training on Tuesdays and Thursdays. At about the age of nine I did the very same. I think it was essentially a cheap way to keep three kids entertained and get us out of the house in order to give my Mum a bit of peace – the same reason we were “made” to attend Sunday School. My older brother, John, represented Scottish Schools at the British Schools Cross Country International at Chepstow in Wales in 1997. He was in the same team as Andrew Lemoncello, in the intermediate boys’ race, which was won by none other than Mo Farah. Chris Thompson won the senior boys’ race that year.

I commenced competitive running almost immediately on going along to Forres Harriers training nights and I think my first taste of action would have been the under 11 division of the North District Cross Country League. The league stretched from Peterhead to Lochaber and as far North as Caithness. Everything else followed on from there.

HAS ANY INDIVIDUAL OR GROUP HAD A MARKED INFLUENCE ON YOUR ATTITUDE OR INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE?

I think the biggest influence on my performance/mindset came once I started being coached by Lewis Walker in around early 2011. Lewis essentially rejuvenated an ailing 800m performer (me) into a much more rounded runner capable of competing from 1500m up to half marathon.  Under Lewis’ tutelage I was able to produce results and training sessions over much longer distances than I ever thought I was capable of. It gave me a completely different trajectory and some of my best individual successes.

I would also mention a good friend here – Dan Mulhare of Portlaoise, Ireland. Dan was a contemporary of mine in that we both worked together in a running shop in Edinburgh and that we were also training and competing pretty seriously at the same time in circa 2010. With his attitude, work ethic and devotion to training he got himself picked for both the Euro Cross Country Champs and Euro Indoors (over 3000m) in the same winter season (2010/2011). His approach to running led to a period of introspection in myself and I tried to be more like Dan thereafter.

WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU GET OUT OF THE SPORT?

This has changed and evolved over time and (at time of writing) I haven’t run a competitive race since representing Scotland and running a distinctly average half marathon time in Denmark in 2017. My mind and thought processes are in a completely different place to where they have previously been during my younger, much more competitive years.

Having been involved in competitive running from a young age my sole focus was competition from the outset – specifically to win, run as fast as I could and compete at the very highest level. There is a buzz about competing that is quite difficult, if not impossible, to replicate in “normal” day-to-day life. I would find it difficult to articulate exactly what the group of emotions are when it comes to competing but, depending on how the preparation has been, probably includes a combination of nervousness, anxiety, excitement, anticipation, fear, relief and either ecstasy/agony (or somewhere in between, although not often).

I remember listening to an interview with Stephen Hendry once and he was asked whether winning a snooker tournament made up for all snooker tournaments that he’d lost. He simply answered “No” which sounds miserable but I think I understood where he was coming from. For me there were many, many low points and self-designated poor performances when I was competing. I often wondered whether the highs that I experienced from competing made up for the lows. I think that, despite myself, I am maybe a bit more optimistic than Hendry.

Highs can be high and the lows are definitely low and I think that probably showed how much I was emotionally invested in competitive running. At times I often thought that investing all my time in training and racing was, in a way, a pretty selfish and indulgent endeavour. I’m also not sure it was always the healthiest pastime and during periods of being unable to run due to injury it can be a very lonely, depressing place to be. Losing your identity as a “runner” when injured is complete and abject misery. However, all in all, and despite the previous sentiments, I think almost all of it was time well spent! I remember listening to the legendary Bobby Quinn of Kilbarchan AAC talk about how, in running, if you set yourself a goal and then achieve It, then the feeling you get from that fulfilment is unrivalled. Verbatim he said “You cannae whack it” and I can only agree with him on that.

Thankfully, I’ve grown out of the mindset and opinion that running had to be undertaken with the sole purpose to compete and win. At present I generally enjoy being active and use running as a form of exercise with a view to staying fit and healthy. My mind and productivity generally function better if I have been active and running is a very time-efficient and cost-effective method of releasing the body’s natural chemicals to achieve this. At present I’m managing to run most days and can cover up to 50 miles a week without making the runs too much of a chore or too arduous. It keeps the body weight down and allows me to be a bit more liberal with my diet and alcohol intake. A win-win situation as they say.

WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER TO BE YOUR BEST EVER PERFORMANCE OR PERFORMANCES?

One performance that always comes to the top of my mind is finishing 3^rd at the UK Indoor Champs 3000m in 2012, running 7:59.00. On paper it is the single best result I had at a senior UK Champs and it was also a PB I was very happy with (and still am). There is also some subtext here which is key in my own mind as to why I rate it higher than all others. I’d only decided to “move up” from 800m the year before (2011) and had managed to make the UK Champs final over 1500m that year (finishing 8^th in a PB of 3:44.44 – won by James Shane in a rapid 3:36.22). My own perspective was that I was still essentially a novice at anything longer than 800m on the track. As previously mentioned, Lewis Walker was coaching me at this stage and had gone about reinventing my physiological system and I had trained really, really well that winter. I ran 8:07.90 in Cardiff, essentially on my own, two weeks prior to the UK Champs. I was, at that time, unemployed and had been “signing on” for a couple of months. Between going to the Job Centre every two weeks I was training on my own in Forres as well as looking after my parents, who were off work having both had surgical procedures at roughly the same time (they recovered well are both totally fine). I saved up the weekly £52 that I was receiving from the State to travel down to Sheffield for the Indoor Champs.  Before the race Lewis advised me to “not come 4^th” and “don’t not break 8 minutes” or words to that effect. You regularly hear Michael Johnson using the word “execute” when talking about racing and, to borrow that cliché, it was probably a race that I “executed” to perfection. I hit the front in the last lap but couldn’t quite hold off Jonny Mellor and Stephen Davies. I finished 3^rd (not 4^th) and I also didn’t not break 8 minutes so I was delighted. For an “800m guy” this was a really, really pleasing result. To quote Bobby Quinn, “You cannae whack it”.

On reflection winning the 800m/1500m double at the Scottish Champs in 2012 was also pretty good – but only truly with the prism of hindsight. At the time this venture had been planned purely as a training session for a BMC race in Watford the next weekend. The prevailing vibe was that the Scottish Championship had sort of lost its appeal and wasn’t considered as the pinnacle of Scottish summer competition (in complete contrast to the National XC in winter of course). Loads of the faster Scottish middle-distance guys were out in the US and had pretty much finished their collegiate seasons and I always had the feeling that our Anglo-Scots didn’t really see the point in coming up to compete. So, with that in mind, I used it as an opportunity for a bit of a workout (essentially treating it with the same level of derision, for want of a better term, as the aforementioned others). However, looking back, “the double” is something that hadn’t been done since 1923, which is an interesting statistic if nothing else. I ended up running a 1500m PB of 3:42.52 the next weekend which was much more meaningful to me at the time.

I’m also very at ease with my Scottish National XC bronze medal performance in 2016. In my opinion The National XC is the biggest race in Scotland, bar none. Back when it was over 12km, I caught a really good late February afternoon with Callendar Park in great condition for me personally (i.e. not that muddy). Lewis had reinvented me again at this stage and my focus all winter had been to train for the Inverness Half Marathon, a couple of weeks after the XC in March. I had thought I was in good shape to try and feature at the Nationals – a race and a distance I didn’t think I could really ever compete at only a few years earlier. I was somewhat surprised that I was able to keep up with Andy Douglas and Andrew Butchart over the first 4km lap. They eventually started to move away a bit thereafter but I felt really aerobically strong and was really satisfied to finish 3^rd. Butchy went on to finish 6^th in the 5000m final of the Olympics only a few months later! I finished behind Andy Douglas again a couple of weeks later in my half marathon debut, running 66:07 which I was also happy enough with. I reflected at the time that I had managed to win Scottish national level medals at distances ranging from 200m (bronze at the U13 Boys Champs in 2000) up to 12,000m over the cross – another interesting statistic, if not too trivial and esoteric.

YOUR WORST?

Almost innumerable. Where to start eh? One that still rankles (although less so with the passage of time) is the Memorial Leon Buyle in Oordegem in 2014. I went all the way over to Belgium to race in a 1500m and got shafted into the “after programme”. Anyone who’s been to a Flanders Cup event will know the ignominy of being in the “after programme” and the treatment I was given could only really be described as a shafting. I watched my namesake and 1500m contemporary Steve Mitchell of Bristol get dragged round to a time of 3:38.27, finishing in 11^th place, in the A race. This is absolutely nothing personal with regards to Steve, I really like the guy, but I couldn’t believe it – he hadn’t run quicker than me that year (in fact he’d run considerably slower) but he had been seeded into a much faster race. Needless to say, once the “after programme” came round at about 10pm at night, the weather had taken a massive turn for the worse and was it chucking it down – the conditions during the A race had been perfect of course. The organisers also didn’t bother to put a recognised pace maker in the field – which was the whole point of travelling to Belgium (get dragged round to a fast time, in a fast race). All thing considered, I was in a bad place mentally and dropped out after 800m when we went through in outside of 2 minutes, which was way off the pace for anything resembling a good performance. Very petulant and uncharacteristically aggressive, I horsed (read tipped) a table over on the infield and uttered multiple swear words (some children were very much within earshot). I’m not proud of it but at that point I felt that, for some mystic reason, the whole world was against me. I’d travelled over with my good friend Jenny Tan (now Selman) and it must have been a pretty long trip back for her to Edinburgh in my company. Apologies Jenny.

 WHAT UNFULFILLED AMBITIONS DO YOU HAVE?

Learn to speak French. Learn to play a musical instrument. But in terms of running, it could theoretically be endless. Every single runner must think that when they run a PB that they could have gone quicker. It must be evident in almost every immediate post-race self-analysis – the “more to come” belief. It almost takes away a bit of the joy from a good performance – the big “what if?”. That’s the thing with running – you could, in theory, have gone faster. I’ve got loads of PBs that are stuck on times that (in my own head) I would be more satisfied with if they were a just bit faster. The truth, of course, is that I’d still not be happy with those times. It’s an almost insatiable appetite to run faster that motivates some runners, if not all, and I was completely sucked into that. Spare a thought for high jumpers and pole vaulters though – they’ve got to perform until literal failure. What a mixture of feelings that must be.

In terms of other running-related unfulfilled ambitions – the big one was to compete at a major athletics championship. In consecutive years I went to Commonwealth Youth Games, World Youth Champs, World Junior Champs and European Junior Champs. Come senior level it was a different story – I went to zero major champs. In 2014 I actually did as much as you can do without getting to go to a major championship. After being injured almost all of 2013, I managed to run the Commonwealth Games qualifying time for 1500m a total of 3 times in the summer of 2014 but I didn’t get picked to run at Hampden.  I had even filled out the requisite media biography questionnaire and given staff my sizes for the team kit. However, I was 4^th fastest over 1500m (just) prior to the team getting picked and there were no trials or selection race – I don’t think anyone had really predicated that there would be more than 3 folk qualify for any event in Scotland. I have solidarity with Kimberley Reed, in the women’s hammer, who also hit the qualifying mark multiple times but missed out as a 4^th ranked athlete. In the end, unfortunately for me, my best metric mile performances coincided with the Scottish 1500m landscape moving up a gear (if not multiple gears), kickstarted primarily by Chris O’Hare (a former training partner of mine) with Jake Wightman, Josh Kerr and Neil Gourley following him. After the summer of 2014, the real world was catching up on me. I had finished my post-graduate physiotherapy degree and I now needed a job. I managed to get one in Raigmore Hospital in Inverness and moved away from Edinburgh with my now wife Eilidh. Realistically any ambitions to qualify for a major championship essentially ended at this point but it was something that I took a while to come to terms with. I remember Michael Crawley (international runner, author of the Ethiopian running culture book “Out Of Thin Air” and friend) saying that it took his coach Max Coleby a long time (measured in years) to come to terms with not being a genuinely competitive runner any more and I experienced the same feeling.

OTHER LEISURE ACTIVITIES?

I remember someone describing a strange phenomenon that happens to folk in Scotland when they reach 30 years of age and said phenomenon is thus – have an urge to start walking up hills. I can only say that this phenomenon very much took a hold of me. Since first running up Ben Wyvis in 2018 I have gone on to scale 90 (out of 282) Munro classified hills. I’ve run up and down some but I’ve mainly walked them. As a form of activity, I could extol the benefits of hill walking at length. I’ve made this pastime a bit more challenging now that I live on the Isle of Lewis which has a sum total of zero Munro classified hills, although height is not always the be-all-and-end-all when it comes to hills. Generally being outside and walking in remote landscapes is a form of activity that I am very much enjoying at present.

I’m persistently trying to read more, with a specific interest in Russian and Scottish histories. I’ve got a great book by Peter Drummond, titled “Scottish Hill Names: Their Origin and Meaning”, which ties in the etymology of the hill nomenclature with the history of the land. As a subject, I absolutely love it.

I’m also in the process of a pending 2.37 acre croft assignation. So hopefully it all goes through with no objections and I can get stuck into that.

Listening to vinyl LPs could also technically be classed as a leisure activity. I’ve recently upgraded my speakers and the collection of LPs continues to burgeon.

WHAT DOES RUNNING BRING YOU THAT YOU WOULD NOT HAVE WANTED TO MISS?

I had some absolutely brilliant times through running. The places I’ve been, the characters I’ve met and the relationships I’ve formed wouldn’t have happened without the medium of running. Very top of that list being that I met Eilidh (née Mackenzie), my own wife, through the sport.

One of the things I really miss, when looking back, was training in a group with my mates Dougie Selman and the Brothers Gauson (Darren and Kris). The crack that was had in my first years at Meadowbank in Edinburgh, under legendary coach Dave Campbell, was unbelievable. We trained hard and session-to-session wanted to absolutely bury each other. If you had a sniff that someone was flagging or not on top form the knife would be stuck in and twisted. We were all guilty of it and were all very much susceptible to it as well, but the friendship we formed over those years stands the test of time today. These were halcyon days for me, in terms of having a brilliant group to train with regularly.

Generally, I’ve met an amazing amount of folk from all walks of life, all thrust together by the love of running. I think, for a bloke from Forres, that’s given me a wider world outlook than I would have necessarily had if I hadn’t been involved in the sport. That’s definitely something I wouldn’t have wanted to miss out on.

When I reflect back, I also got to compete against some of the most iconic athletes in the history of the sport of running.  The principal figures being: David Rudisha (raced him in the heat and the semi-final of the 800m at the World Junior Champs in Beijing in 2006); Mo Farah (raced him indoors over 2 miles at the NIA in Birmingham in 2012); Eliud Kipchoge (raced him twice – in the same 2 mile race as Mo and at the 3km XC race in Holyrood Park in 2012 as well); Kenenisa Bekele (was also in that 3km XC in 2012); and Bernard Lagat (raced him indoors over 3000m at the Emirates in Glasgow in 2014). There’s a video of the indoor 2 mile race in Birmingham in 2012 on YouTube and (after a quick check there) it has had 7.5 million views. Outside of Mo’s brief foray into marathon running, I’m not sure how many times he raced Kipchoge and I think that’s why this video has so many views. Kipchoge beats him, which at the time, I think, was an upset. This is probably why it has been viewed so many times. Anyway…rather surreally, I’m on the start line wearing the red vest of Forres Harriers – a brand new one donated by the club for that matter – given to me because the one I was wearing on my previous TV appearance was somewhat dated (it was actually my Auld Boy’s one from “back in the day”).  I suppose this is the sort of thing I can always look back on and, potentially (at some point) show the grandbairns.

 CAN YOU GIVE SOME DETAILS OF YOUR TRAINING?

I thought I would post from a couple of different eras of my career here. I thought I had stuff written down somewhere in a diary when I was primarily running 800m races but I can’t find it unfortunately. I’ve put in the training which went along with some of my aforementioned best performances.

Below is, firstly, the build up to running 7:59.00 and finishing 3^rd at the UK Indoor Champs in 2012.

WC 02/01/2012 (5 weeks out from target 3km race)

Monday

am – 4.5 miles easy

pm – 7 miles easy

Tuesday

am – rest

pm –  interval session: 6 x 600m with 3 minutes (Garmin measured on the road)

Average for 600m reps = 1:43.4 (reflected at the time I wasn’t feeling great that day)

Wednesday

am – 5 miles easy

pm – 7 miles easy

Thursday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – 5 miles easy with short 60m hill reps in the middle

Friday

am – rest/travel to Edinburgh for XC race

pm – 2 mile “shakeout”

Saturday

am – race: Great Edinburgh XC – 3km – finished 9^th (1 place behind Brimin Kipruto and 2 places behind Kenenisa Bekele).

pm – 5.5 miles easy

Sunday

am – long run: 13 miles

pm – rest

Weekly mileage = 67.5 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 09/01/2012 (4 weeks out from target 3km race)

Monday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – 7 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 6 miles easy

pm –  track session: 12 x 200m (40s rec), 3 mins, 6 x 200m (75s rec), 3mins, 4 x 200m (120s rec).

12 x 200m av time = 30.68s
6 x 200m av time = 28.70s
4 x 200m av time = 27.15s

Wednesday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – 7 miles easy

Thursday

am – 6.5 miles easy

pm – threshold/tempo: 25 mins moderate, 15 minutes fast

25 mins mod @ 6:02/mi
15 mins fast @ 5:03/mi

Friday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – hills session: 3 mile easy, 2 sets of 10 x 15s hills with 45s & 3 minutes (combined with 2 sets of 4 exercises after each hill set – squat jumps/A-skips/calf bounce/sagittal split squat jumps), 3.5 miles easy

Saturday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – 6 miles easy

Sunday

am – track session: 5 x (2 x 600m with 2 mins rec) & 4 mins between sets. 1^st rep of each set at 3km pace, 2^nd rep quicker – 1^st rep av = 99.25s, 2^nd rep = 93.83s, session av = 96.54s

pm – 4 miles easy

Weekly mileage = 97.7 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 16/01/2012 (3 weeks out from target 3km race)

Monday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – 6.5 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 6 miles easy

pm –  track session: 8 x 300m (60s), 3 mins, 5 x 300m (90s), 3mins, 3 x 300m (180s)

8 x 300m av time = 46.79s
5 x 300m av time = 44.21s
3 x 300m av time = 41.83s

Wednesday

am – rest

pm – 6.5 miles easy

Thursday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – threshold/tempo: 20 mins moderate, 20 minutes fast

20 mins mod @ 6:07/mi
20 mins fast @ 5:13/mi (diary states conditions were poor)

Friday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – hills session: 10 x 30 sec with 90 sec recovery

Saturday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – 6 miles easy

Sunday

am – track session: 5 x (800m, 2 mins, 200m) with 4 mins between sets.

800m av time = 2:15.8
200m av time = 29.34 (done on Morriston cinder track in Elgin – which the diary states was in a poor state)

pm – 4 miles easy

Weekly mileage = 85 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 23/01/2012 (2 weeks out from target 3km race)

Monday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – 6 miles easy

Tuesday

am – track session (binned Morriston and went to Queen’s Park, Inverness):
6 x 500m (90s), 3 mins, 5 x 400m (90s), 4 mins, 3 x 200m (180s)

500m av time = 81.14s
400m av time = 62.09s
200m av time = 28.41s

pm –  4.5 miles easy

Wednesday

am – rest

pm – rest

full rest day – diary states I was feeling “lethargic and weird”

Thursday

am – threshold/tempo: 20 mins moderate, 10 minutes fast

20 mins mod @ 5:58/mi
10 mins fast @ 5:02/mi

pm – 5.5 miles easy with 6 x 60m hill sprints

Friday

am – 4.5 miles easy

pm – rest/travel to Glasgow

Saturday

am – rest/flight Glasgow to Cardiff

pm – 6 miles easy

Sunday

am – race: Welsh Indoor Champs, Cardiff, 3000m – finished first in PB of 8:07.90 – pleasing

pm – rest/travel home

Weekly mileage = 55 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 30/01/2012 (1 week out from target 3km race)

Monday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – 6.5 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 6.5 miles easy

pm –  hills session: 3 miles easy, 6 x 80m hill sprints (60s rec), 2.5 miles easy

Wednesday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – track session: 8 x 400m (60s), 3 mins, 5 x 400m (90s), 3 mins, 2 x 400m (180s)

8 x 400m av time = 63.71s
5 x 400m av time = 60.72s
2 x 400m av time = 60.36s

Thursday

am – 6.5 miles easy

pm – rest/travel to Aberdeen to visit my new born nephew – Magnus

Friday

am – threshold/tempo: 20 mins moderate, 10 minutes fast

20 mins @ 5:58/mi
10 mins @ 5:02/mi

pm – hills session: 3 miles easy, 6 x 80m hill sprints (60s), 2.5 miles easy

Saturday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – 6 miles easy

Sunday
am – track session: 5 x (600m (120s), 400m (120s), 200m) with 4 minutes between sets

600m av time = 94.68s
400m av time = 60.82s
200m av time = 27.77s

pm – 4 miles easy

Weekly mileage = 85 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 30/01/2012 (week of target 3km race)

Monday

am – 6 miles easy (recorded my lowest resting heart rate, at that point, of 32 bpm on waking that morning)

pm – 6 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 6 miles easy

pm –  track session: 4 x 500m, 4 x 300m (with 3 minutes recovery throughout)

500m av time = 81.45s
300m av time = 44.70s

Wednesday

am – threshold/tempo: 20 mins moderate, 10 minutes fast

20 mins @ 5:57/mi
10 mins @ 5:05/mi (diary says it was windy)

pm – hills session: 3 miles easy, 6 x 60m hill sprints (60s), 2 miles easy

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 7 miles easy

Friday

am – travel to Sheffield

pm – 4 miles easy

Saturday

am – 2 miles easy pre-race “shakeout”

pm – target race: UK Indoor Champs, Sheffield, 3000m – finished 3^rd in PB of 7:59:00 – “feel great with the result, Lewis delighted” to quote the post-race analysis in the diary

Sunday

am – 7.5 miles easy

pm – rest/travel back to Forres

Weekly mileage = 70 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

Threshold/tempo sessions have average pace noted from my Garmin which is maybe not entirely accurate but I thought using the same watch all the time, at similar locations, meant that I could keep tabs on the intensity of that side of things. All track session splits were all taken by me, while I was doing the sessions.

I did all of this running (apart from the races) on my own. It was as much out of convenience rather than being purely anti-social. I got really, really used to training on my own (or as I used to think – “just me and the Garmin”) and I’m not sure if that made me a bit stronger mentally than I had previously been. It may have made no difference, I’m not sure, but I didn’t feel like it was detrimental or necessarily bad in any way.

For the 8 weeks leading up to that 6 week build up I’ve written there I had averaged a consistent 80 miles per week (some weeks at 70 miles, if racing a XC, and some at 90 miles, if not racing) – this was significantly more volume than I had ever previously attempted and the type of training was also all pretty new to me. I still felt like an “800m runner” or, at a stretch, a “1500m in transition” during this period. However, after this block of training and races, I believed that there was no “type” of runner based on event alone. I wasn’t willing to be defined by a race distance any longer. In my mind there were now only race distances and runners – two separate entities. Moreover, I militantly shunned the idea of a “5km runner” or a “1500m runner” and would be quite brusque if I heard my peers give out such labels (I can’t have been a barrel of laughs to be around at that point).  I was fully bought into the notion of “moving up” and I was excited by the prospect of running faster over distances from 1500m up to 10km that year. I did indeed manage to post a 10k m road PB of 30:33 at the Nairn 10km in March and a 1500m PB of 3:42.52 at a BMC in Watford in June. I went on to post the quickest mile race of my career that year at the Meeting voor Mon in Leuven, Belgium – the time was 4:01.23 – which, annoyingly, was as close to a sub-4 minute mile as I got. On the plus side I was given €200 and a Leffe beer gift set as a reward (2 glasses, 1 bottle of Leffe Blonde, 1 of Leffe Brune). However, those Leffe-branded beer glasses still sit in my house, providing a constant reminder that I never ran a sub-4 minute mile.

This is the build up to a series of 1500m races, culminating in the fastest time I ran at the distance – 3:41.48 – in the summer of 2014. I was frantically chasing the 1500m Commonwealth Games Qualifying time (3:42.20), with the selection criteria requiring you to post the QT twice before the cut-off date of 08/06/14. I was living in Edinburgh so sessions were invariably done at Meadowbank (which was right next to my flat) or around the perimeter of The Meadows (which I absolutely love as a training venue).

WC 28/04/2014 (5 weeks out from 1500m PB)

Monday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – 5.5 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm –  interval session: 5 x 5 minutes (60s recovery) (av pace = 3:06/km)

Wednesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 5.5 miles easy

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – interval session: 6 x 3 minutes (60s recovery) and 6 x 60m hill sprints (with walk back recovery (WBR))

av pace of 3 minute reps = 3:03/km

Friday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – rest

Saturday

am – track session: 10 x 200m (30s), 6 minutes, 6 x 200m (60s), 6 minutes, 4 x 200m (120s)

10 x 200m av = 30.08s, 6 x 200m av = 27.95s, 4 x 200m = 26.31s

pm – rest

Sunday

am – 8 miles easy

pm – rest

Weekly mileage = 60 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 05/05/2014 (4 weeks out from 1500m PB)

Monday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 4 miles easy plus 6 x 60m strides

Tuesday

am – travel to Manchester

pm –  race: BMC Gold Standard, Stretford, 1500m A race – finished 3^rd in 3:47.06 – thoroughly disappointed with this performance – way off where I wanted to be. I had a similarly bad performance at a BMC Gold Standard at Watford two weeks prior to this (23/04/14) when I ran 3:48.43. I thought I’d be much closer to the CWG QT – I really thought that might be it for my chances of running the QT.

Wednesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 4 miles easy

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 10 x 2 minutes (60s recovery) – av pace = 3:00/km

av pace of 3 minute reps = 3:03/km

Friday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – 5.5 miles easy

Saturday

am – track session: 3 x 60m flat out (2.5 min), 2.5 minutes, 10 x 400m (60s), 7 minutes, 5 x 400m (120s)

10 x 400m av = 62.20
5 x 400m av = 59.86

pm – 5 miles easy

Sunday

am – 10 miles easy

pm – rest

Weekly mileage = 60 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 12/05/2014 (3 weeks out from 1500m PB)

Monday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – 5.5 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm –  track session: 2 x (800m/400m/300m (all with 60s recovery)) and 15 minutes between sets

Set 1 = 1:59.52/58.97/43.12 (which adds up to 3:41.61)
Set 2 = 2:00.55/60.30/43.30 (which adds up to 3:44.15)
Average cumulative 1500m time for session = 3:42.88

Wednesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 5.5 miles easy

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – track session: 7 x 500m (90s), 6 minutes, 2 x 200m (4 minutes), 500m av = 80.61s, 200m av = 25.41s

Friday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – rest

Saturday

am – travel to Watford (early morning flight)

pm – race: BMC Grand Prix, Watford, 1500m A race – finished 5^th in a PB of 3:41.96 (previous PB 3:42.52 from June 2012 at the same venue/meeting). 1^st CWG QT nailed. Felt like a phoenix rising from the ashes of a 3:47 performance only 11 days earlier. An absolutely brilliant feeling.

pm – rest

Sunday

am – travel home

pm – 8 miles easy

Weekly mileage = 60 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 19/05/2014 (2 weeks out from 1500m PB)

Monday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – 5.5 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm –  track session: 3 x 60m flat out (4 minutes), 4 minutes, 8 x 500m (75s), 6 mins, 4 x 500m (2.5 mins)

Session didn’t go to plan at all. 8 x 500m was switched (mid session – by me) to 2 x 4 x 500m (with 2.5 mins between sets). Then only managed 2 of the 4 x 500m (2.5 mins) before jacking in the session. Likely still physically and emotionally tired from the “big” result the previous Saturday.

Wednesday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – 5.5 miles easy

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – interval session: 6 x 3 mins (with 2 mins) followed by 6 x 60m hill sprints (WBR)
3 min reps @ 2:59/km av pace

Friday

am – 5.5 miles easy

pm – 5.5 miles easy

Saturday

am – track session: 4 x (600m/400m/200m) with 2 minutes between reps and 4 minutes between sets
600m av = 91.70s
400m av = 58.83s
200m av = 27.64s

pm – 4 miles easy

Sunday

am – 10 miles easy

pm – rest

Weekly mileage = 80 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 26/05/14 (1 week o out from 1500m PB)

Monday

am & pm – 5.5 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm –  track session: 1000m (75s), 400m (30s), 200m, 15 minutes recovery, 1 x 600m

1000m = 2:28.21, 400m = 58.50, 200m = 28.35 (adds up to 3:55.06 for 1600m = 58.77s per 400m pace)
600m = 86.62 (57.75m per 400m pace)

Myles Edwards came down from Aberdeen and stayed with Eilidh and me for a few days to help out with this session. He led out the 1000m, 400m and 600m reps and I tucked right in behind him. He did a fantastic job and made sure I got the most out of myself. Myles was rewarded with as much food as he wanted (he is known for having an insatiable appetite) and he didn’t even complain about having to sleep on a blow-up mattress. An all-round great guy is Myles.

Wednesday

am & pm – 4 miles easy

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – interval session: 6 x 3 mins (with 2 mins) followed by 6 x 60m hill sprints (WBR)
3 min reps @ 2:59/km av pace

Friday

am – travel to Charleroi, Belgium on an early doors Ryanair flight.

pm – 4 miles easy post-travel

Saturday

am – easy 2 mile pre-race “shakeout”

pm – race: IFAM, Oordegem (Belgium), 1500m B race – 3^rd in PB of 3:41.95. A PB by a full 0.01 seconds. 2^nd CWG time achieved. Objective achieved. 2 CWGs QTs, essentially out of nowhere. Really satisfied with how it had all come together. News filtered through prior to the race that Jake Wightman had run 3:41.40 at a BMC in Manchester so I was 4^th ranked in Scotland (outside of the top 3 for CWGs). I had one more week to try and run quicker before the 08/06/14 selection deadline.

Sunday

am – easy 4 miles

pm – rest/travel home (Weekly mileage = 55 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs))

WC 26/05/14 (1 week o out from 1500m PB)

Monday

am & pm – 5.5 miles easy

Tuesday

am & pm – 4 miles easy

Wednesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 1 x 600m flat out (in lieu of an 800m race) followed by 10 x 200m fast, 100m job – described as a “lactic flush” (I actually have no record of the 600m time! Although the instruction was to “commit through 400m” – I must have run alright…)

Thursday

am & pm – 4 miles easy

Friday

am – travel to Munich, Germany

pm – 2 mile post-travel “shakeout”

Saturday

am – easy 2 mile pre-race “shakeout”

pm – race: Sparkassen Gala, Regensburg, Bavaria (Germany), 1500m A race – 4^th in PB of 3:41.48. A PB again, a third on the bounce, by about half a second only though. A 3^rd and final CWG QT. Close but no cigar – 0.08 seconds short of Jake Wightman’s time. I’d managed to get into this race at the very, very last opportunity and given it my all. Conditions were absolutely amazing in Regensburg and the race was won in 3:38.63 by Florian Orth (who, incidentally, is from Regensburg so was at his home track). I actually finished ahead of Zane Robertson of New Zealand in this race (he wasn’t 100% on the day) who went on to win bronze at the 5000m at the Commonwealth Games that year.

Eilidh ran a 1500m PB of 4:24.11 that night (which still stands as her PB). She’d lived and worked in Geisenhausen as a translator, which is just down the road (50 minutes by car) from Regensburg. She’d actually sent the email, in German, to get me into the race. We celebrated the PBs that night with more than a few Weissbier from the local brewery along with Central AC’s Tom Watson (Bischofhof is the brewery if anyone’s interested – really, really good stuff).

Sunday

am – rest – was given the call that I wasn’t going to be selected for the CWG later that summer, disappointing, obviously, but not surprising. I’d given it one last roll of the dice and I don’t think I could have given it much more.

pm – rest/travel home (didn’t bother counting the weekly mileage that week)

I tried to keep the season going after that point – Lewis and I were convinced a big PB was going to drop – sub-3:40 was surely just round the corner. It never materialised for whatever reason and, as I mentioned earlier, the real world was, unfortunately, catching up on me.

I was at the end of my 2-year post-graduate Physiotherapy MSc and I had 10 weeks of consecutive physiotherapy placement to crowbar in – that I’d rearranged due to the summer track season. I left Edinburgh and went back home to Forres for placements in Inverness and Nairn. At the time I didn’t know if that would be “the end” of my track “career” but, in the end, at age 26, it sort of unceremoniously was (unless you count my 10,000m track effort from 2016 (30:22)).

My dissertation massively got in the way too. I’d put it off all summer so I had to squeeze out 12,500 words of a systematic review into the effects of gait training to reduce falls in populations with dementia. That dissertation almost killed me, no exaggeration. I did, eventually, end up ticking all the boxes for the MSc and landed a job almost immediately at Raigmore Hospital in Inverness (initially on a temporary contract). After a period of adjusting to life as a full-time worker (and securing a permanent post) I then decided to shift the focus to 10km/HM training and racing, primarily on the road.

Here is the build up to National XC 3^rd place and Inverness HM debut (66:07) in 2016. Easy runs done at or around 4:21/km (7:00/mile). Sunday long runs done a bit faster. All average pace times from my trusty Garmin Forerunner 310XT (grey & orange coloured huge thing) – again, I’m not sure how accurate it was (probably always measured things a bit quicker than they were) but it was always the same watch for my training so useful to monitor but not get carried away. Almost every single steady run and session was done within the confines of the University of the Highlands and Islands campus at Beechwood, Inverness (1.5 miles from my house at that time). Most easy running was done to and from work (going via UHI campus). I did A LOT of running in that UHI campus.

WC 01/02/2016 (5 weeks out from HM)

Monday

am – 5 miles easy

pm – 5 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm –  session: 3 x (4 min, 2 min recovery, 2 min) with 4 min between sets (av pace 4 min reps @ 2:50/km, 2 min reps at 2:45/km)

Wednesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 6 miles easy

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – session: 5 miles at cruise/threshold in 25:13 (3:08/km)

Friday

am – rest

pm – 8 miles easy

Saturday

am – session: 3 x 9 minutes with 4 minute recovery (at 2:57/km average pace)

pm – rest

Sunday

am – long run: 15 miles

pm – rest

Weekly mileage = 82 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 08/02/2016 (4 weeks out from HM)

Monday

am – 9 miles easy (on annual leave)

pm – rest

Tuesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm –  5 miles easy (in possession of emergency respiratory physio on-call bleep = no session)

Wednesday

am – 2.5 miles easy (tail end of overnight on-call)

pm – session: 6km/5km/4km/3km with 5/4/3 minute recoveries (6km @ 3:06/km, 5km @ 3:06/km, 4km @ 3:05/km, 3km @ 3:02/km)

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 4 miles easy

Friday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 4 miles easy

Saturday

am – rest

pm – race: North District XC League (Grant Park, Forres – home turf) – finished 1^st (8.8km). Added on a 4 mile hilly fartlek after (run fast up the hills).

Sunday

am – long run: 15 miles

pm – rest

Weekly mileage = 80 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 15/02/2016 (3 weeks out from HM) – on annual leave all week

Monday

am – 9 miles easy

pm – rest

Tuesday

am – session: 5 x 1km with 3 minutes (av pace 2:42/km)

pm –  4 miles easy

Wednesday

am – 6 miles easy

pm – 4 miles easy

Thursday

am – 10 miles steady (@3:15/km – 52:20)

pm – rest

Friday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 6 miles easy

Saturday

am – session: 2 x 10 minutes with 10 minutes recovery (on canal tow path) (at 2:54/km and 2:55/km average).

pm – 4 miles easy

Sunday

am – long run: 15 miles

pm – rest

Weekly mileage = 82.5 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 22/02/2016 (2 weeks out from HM) – week of National XC Champs

Monday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 5 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm –  session: 5 x 4 minutes with 60 seconds recovery, then 3 minutes recovery, followed by 1 x 1km as fast as I can. 4 minute reps @ 2:59/km average, 1km rep @ 2:35

Wednesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 4 miles easy (on call)

Thursday

am – 2.5 miles easy (tail end of overnight on-call)

pm – session: 2 miles steady, 2 miles cruise/threshold (2 miles steady @ 3:13/km, 2 miles threshold @ 3:04/km).

Friday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 3 miles easy (post travel Inverness to Stirling)

Saturday

am – 2 mile “shake out”

pm – race: Scottish National XC Champs (Callendar Park, Falkirk) – finished 3^rd (12km)

Sunday

am – rest (travel back to Inverness)

pm – long run (15 miles)

Weekly mileage = 77.5 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 29/02/2016 (1 weeks out from HM)

Monday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 5 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm –  6 miles easy

Wednesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 6 miles easy

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 10 miles steady @ 3:13/km (51:47)

Friday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 6 miles easy

Saturday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – session: 3 x 3km with 4 minutes rest, then 4 minutes rest, followed by 1 x 1km fast (3km reps at 2:57/km, 1km rep @ 2:41/km)

Sunday

am – 5 miles easy (working weekend respiratory shift and then on-call)

pm – 4.5 miles easy (on-call overnight)

Weekly mileage = 80 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

WC 07/03/2016 (week of HM)

Monday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 4 miles easy

Tuesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm –  session: 6 x 5 minutes with 60 seconds recovery (3:04/km av pace)

Wednesday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 4 miles easy

Thursday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – session: 2 miles steady, 2 miles cruise/threshold (2 miles steady @ 3:13/km, 2 miles threshold @ 3:06/km).

Friday

am – 4 miles easy

pm – 4 miles easy

Saturday

am – rest

pm – 5 miles easy

Sunday

am – 1 mile pre-race walk

pm – race: Inverness Half Marathon – finished 2^rd – HM debut in 66:07

Weekly mileage = 73 miles (including session warm ups/warm downs)

I think some of my training was arguably better the next year in the build up to the Inverness HM in 2017 although, ultimately, my performance on the day wasn’t as good as my debut – I ran 68:11 to finish 2^nd to Weynay Ghebresilasie of Shettleston in 2017. On race day I was, unfortunately, feeling a bit under the weather and I had been suffering from a flare up in a persistent tendinopathy of my right tendo-Achilles (which has plagued me most of my adult life). Actually, looking back through my training it just doesn’t look quite as consistent as the previous year – even though some individual sessions were of superior quality.

The thoughts of Lewis had been that I had actually responded quite well to the aerobic side of training and I’d maybe missed out on not doing some higher volume sessions in the build up to my previous HM. During the 2016 Inverness HM race I had definitely started to feel I was going into the unknown in the last couple of miles of the race and I suppose, on reflection, I was. I think I had essentially been doing 10km training with a little bit of HM stuff thrown in – it was all new to me so I had no idea how I’d respond.  Therefore, Lewis added in some Renato Canova-type stuff into the 2017 HM build up and I actually think some of these sessions were the hardest sessions (of any training) that I’d completed. I’ll list a few favourites:

28/01/17

5 x 3km/1km “wave run” (a continuous run – 3km fast, 1km less fast but not jogging – I’ve seen it described as a “float” but I didn’t necessarily feel like I was floating during it, also finishing on a “float” 1km)

Splits (pace/km): 3:07/3:35, 3:06/3:35. 3:07/3:35, 3:07/3:41, 3:08/3:32

3km sections av pace = 3:07/km

1km sections av pace = 3:36/km

I remember being absolutely gubbed after this. A genuine HM session – 20km in volume.

08/02/17

13 miles steady @ 3:10/km (13 miles in 66:27)

We’d progressed the “10 mile steady” from the previous year to 11 miles and then 12 miles over the month before and this was as far as the steady ever went. I should have just rounded it up to the full HM distance on the Garmin – the time would have been better than what I managed on race day.

15/02/17

4 x 4km/1km “wave run” (same idea as the first wave run but a more frightening and unknown prospect with the fast sections pushed out to 4km and there ultimately being one less float/recovery section – still at 20km volume)

Splits (pace/km): 3:05/3:34, 3:05/3:36, 3:05/3:36, 3:06/3:31

4km sections av pace = 3:05.25/km

1km sections av pace = 3:34.25/km

I nicknamed this session “The Revenant” (named after the film Leonardo DiCaprio won a best acting Oscar for the previous year). There’s a scene where DiCaprio’s character (Hugh Glass) gets mauled by a bear and left for dead. And that was exactly how I was feeling after this session. The exact same feeling. It was a pretty dreadful February night in Inverness – dark, cold and also snowing at times – not too dissimilar to the conditions of the unchartered wilderness Hugh Glass found himself getting mauled by said bear in. I don’t think you could call my run home a warm down, I shuffled back at a snail’s pace, after lying about on a paved section of the UHI Campus for a few minutes. One of those sessions where you have to sit down in the shower afterwards. If I mention to Eilidh, my wife, that I feel like I’ve “just done The Revenant” the reference doesn’t have to be explained to her – it’s crossed over into our common parlance.

Scottish statistician Arnold Black wrote:

 “ATHLETE OF THE DAY – JOHN NEWSOM

John Newsom has excelled both on the track and the road since first breaking into the Scottish rankings as an 18-year-old in 2003. He won the Scottish national 10.000m title in 2011, one of 9 track medals gained between 3000m and 10.000m. On the road and trail running, he has won 6 silver medals and 3 bronze and has also collected 2 medals over cross-country. Career bests of 8:20.44 (3000), 14:31.62 (5000), 30:58.02 (10.000), 29:57 (10k), 66:35 (HM) and 2:24:42 (Mar).”

John Newsom (278)

John NEWSOM (born 20.10.84) Pitreavie AAC, Central AC, Inverness Harriers.

In 2008 John’s 10,000m time of 30.58.3 ranked him first in Scotland.   His Scottish Championship record was as follows:

•  First in the 2011 10,000 metres; second in 2010 and 2012; third in 2008.
• Second in the 5000m in 2006; third in 2004, 2005 and 2011..
• Second in the 2015 Marathon Championship
• Second in the 2005 Indoor 3000m.

 Scottish International appearances:

• One Senior track vest: 2004 Loughborough 3000m
• Under-23 2004 Cross Country vest:  Celtic International, Ayr. John Newsom finished 2^nd Scot in 5^th place and Scotland won the team contest, beating Wales and Northern Ireland.

Cross Country: two Senior vests:

• 2008 Home Countries Edinburgh. John finished second Scot in 5^th place. The Scottish team was second to England but beat Wales and NI.
• 2010 in Drogheda, Ireland. The Scottish team finished third to USA and Poland, but in front of Ireland, Wales and Finland.

World Mountain Running Championship

2003 – U20 – 23rd Individual and 4th team (Scotland) Girdwood Alaska.

2004 – Senior – Sauze d’Oulx, Italy

Road one Senior vest: 2018 Cardiff, Commonwealth Half Marathon Championship

National Young Athletes Road Races

1998 – U13 – Individual Gold 

2002 – U20 – Individual Gold

2003 – U20 – Individual Gold

2004 – U20 – Individual Gold

                                                                                 John winning the Baxter’s 10k in 2013

In the Scottish 10km Road Championships, John won: silver in 2004, 2005, 2006. Bronze in 2011, only 7 seconds behind the winner.

10 miles Championship: silver in 2013, again only 7 secs behind the winner

Half Marathon Championship: bronze in 2012.

Marathon Championship: silver in 2015

Scottish Cross Country Championships:

Racing for Pitreavie in 1999, John won  Under 15 Individual Gold.

In 2004, John became the Scottish Universities Cross Country Champion.

In 2004 and 2005, he won individual gold in the under-20 Scottish Junior XC Championship.

In the Senior National XC, John secured silver in 2007; and bronze in 2008, only 8 seconds behind the winner.

                                                                                  Near the finish of the 2008 Senior National XC

John Newsom has been very consistent not only as an individual but also as a team contributor. In the 2011 National Cross-Country, he finished 8^th and Central won team gold. 2012: 15^th and team gold. 2013 11^th and team gold; 2014 12^th and team gold; 2015: 15^th and team gold.

With Central AC, he also won team bronze in the 2011 and 2012 National XC Relays; and team gold in the 2012 6-Stage Scottish Road Relay Championship.

In the Scottish Inter–District Cross Country Championships, racing for East, John Newsom won the Inter District title as a Senior on two occasions in 2005 and 2008

Running for Inverness, he was North District XC Champion in 2017, 2018 and 2020.

Scottish Mid Trail Championship

2017 – Senior – Individual silver and team silver (Inverness Harriers)

2018 – Senior – Individual bronze and team gold (Inverness Harriers)

What a varied and successful running career! And there may be many more successes in future.

QUESTIONNAIRE

NAME: John Newsom

CLUBs: Pitreavie AAC, University of Stirling, Central AC, Inverness Harriers AAC,

DATE OF BIRTH: 20/10/84

OCCUPATION: Estates Management

HOW DID YOU GET INVOLVED IN THE SPORT?

I’d say there are three significant factors in why I got involved in athletics.

My dad was involved with the Hash House Harriers, every second Sunday they meet at a different location for a run over mixed terrain following the trail set in advance by the hare for that particular run. There were quite a few families that went along at the time, often the kids would join in for the first few minutes of the run and over time with the help of a few shortcuts could eventually get round the route and back to the start for a can of coke!

I grew up in Aberdour, Fife. As part of the village’s annual weekly festival there is the Donkey Brae Run, this is a 7-mile approx. race with a 2-mile approx. fun run. Gradually I progressed from running (walking) round the 2-mile with my friend and our dads at 4 years old; on to giving absolutely everything in a full-on race and eventually winning it when I was 14! I can vividly remember my muscles being so sore for days afterwards as I had worked that hard! I then moved on to win the 7-mile run when I was with Pitreavie AAC.

Probably most significant however was the influence of Pauleen Norman. Pauleen lives in Aberdour with her family just slightly above me at primary school and members of Pitreavie AAC. Pauleen organised training sessions for Aberdour Primary School leading up to the local schools running events. Pauleen was incredibly encouraging and the reason I eventually made the step up to joining Pitreavie AAC.

 HAS ANY INDIVIDUAL OR GROUP HAD A MARKED INFLUENCE ON YOUR ATTITUDE OR INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE?

I would say my time at Pitreavie AAC has shaped my athletics career most significantly. Having progressed through junior groups with Allan Ward, George Kirk and Mike Greeley in my early years with the club, I then progressed up to the endurance group coached by John Wands and Bill Lindsay. John Wands was able to push what I thought were my boundaries and open my eyes to what could be achieved.

 WHAT EXACTLY DO YOU GET OUT OF THE SPORT?

I enjoy being competitive and with that comes the feeling of moving fast over the ground. In recent years this has largely been through competing in the North District Cross Country League for Inverness Harriers where I have had some great head-to-head racing with Kyle Greig (Forres Harriers) and Kenny Wilson (Moray Road Runners).

 WHAT DO YOU CONSIDER TO BE YOUR BEST EVER PERFORMANCE OR PERFORMANCES?

My 2^nd and 3^rd place finishes at the Scottish National Cross-Country Championship as a Senior in 2007 and 2008 behind Mark Pollard (Inverclyde) are performances that come to mind. Although not quite on the top step, I ran the best possible race I could on both occasions in what is the most prestigious race in the country.

Dipping under 30 minutes for 10K at the Great Manchester Run in 2006. Through my first real injury, I had missed this first cross–country season for myself as a Senior in Scotland and returned early in 2006 in far better shape than I could have hoped. From memory, at that point I believe it had been quite a number of years since the last Scot had broken 30 minutes on the road.

13^th at Inter Counties / World Cross Country Trials at Nottingham as a Senior in 2005. Everything fell into place that day, competing at UK level.

YOUR WORST?

There have been a few! Most recent in my memory was representing Scotland at the Commonwealth Half Marathon Championship in Cardiff in 2018, when I really struggled. The high from gaining this selection after quite a number of years out of the frame was quickly dashed.

WHAT UNFULFILLED AMBITIONS DO YOU HAVE?

My early ambitions have somewhat changed: but that’s just sport! The unfulfilled ambitions are likely to stay just that. However, I’m always setting myself new targets.

OTHER LEISURE ACTIVITIES?

I’ve always been into mountain biking and during the last few years have branched out into road cycling too. Now that I live in Nairn, there are endless possibilities for quiet cycling routes.

WHAT DOES RUNNING BRING YOU THAT YOU WOULD NOT HAVE WANTED TO MISS?

Many highs and many lows, I wouldn’t swap it though! I like having goals and working towards them. The process is fairly simple and the mental strength to stick to it is what I’ve always felt I’m quite good at. I’ve competed in a wide range of disciplines – track, road, cross country, hill running and Highland Games. Each has brought great satisfaction at different times of my career.

CAN YOU GIVE SOME DETAILS OF YOUR TRAINING?

My training has changed over the years. I’m conscious of age and injury history and my goals have moved because of this. My coach Chris Robison has been a tremendous help to me, particularly when going through periods of injury.

In my early athletics career with Pitreavie AAC I was very track focused in training. This continued when I moved to Stirling and competed for Central AC. Since moving to Nairn in 2012 I have enjoyed training on the trails and beaches. I have always enjoyed group training and the benefits that brings.

For me, the big step up in my achievements came when I started University. This coincided with the introduction of regularly running twice a day and managing my own routine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scottish Athletics statistician, Arnold Black, has posted the following:

ATHLETE OF THE DAY – FREYA MURRAY

Freya Ross was twice UK champion at 5000 metres and represented GB in the marathon at the 2012 Olympics. She has won 3 Scottish track titles, 6 cross-country championships and 1 marathon title, representing Scotland at the 2010 Commonwealth Games at Delhi in the 5000 (7th) and 10,000 (5th). Her career bests: 2:09.03 (800), 4:15.85 (1500), 9:08.97 (3000), 15:26.5 (5000), 32:23.44 (10,000) and 2:28.10 marathon, topping the Scottish rankings 3 times at 10,000, twice at marathon and once at 5000.

The photo is from the 2002 Scottish championships which, as you can tell from the track, were held on a summery June day.

Freya Murray had considerable success as a Young Athlete. In the under-17 age group, she gained a silver medal in the 2000 Scottish Cross-Country Championship and, representing Lasswade AAC, won the title in 2001. Running for Edinburgh Southern Harriers, Freya secured the under-20 Scottish XC title in 2003 and 2004. In that category, she also won the Scottish Short Course Cross-Country in 2003.

On the track, Freya won the Scottish Schools 3000m title in 1999 and 2000. In 2001 and 2002, she finished first in the Scottish under-20 1500m. Her Senior Scottish Championship victories were: 10,000m in 2009; and 5000m in 2010 and 2016.

Apart from her Commonwealth Games appearances, Freya Murray gained 3 other Scotland Track vests between 2004 and 2008 – racing 1500 and 5000m.

In addition, she secured two International Cross Country vests: in 2003 at Liverpool (where the Scots defeated the English team); and 2008 at Edinburgh (where England gained revenge, despite Freya being first Scot in third place but her team beat Northern Ireland and Wales).

Three of her best road racing results were: when she won the Great Ireland Run in 2009; and the Great Yorkshire Run in both 2009 and 2010, setting the course record in 2009.

Her Scottish Marathon win was as Freya Ross (Edinburgh AC) in 2016 at the London Marathon, where her time was a fine 2.37.52.

Freya was an invaluable team runner, who contributed to several EAC triumphs.

She won the East XC title in 2006; and in 2009, when EAC won the team event.

She finished first in the Scottish Short Course XC Championships in 2003, 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2009. EAC won the team title in 2008, 2009 and 2016.

Another team victory was in the 2016 Scottish XC Relay Championships.

Freya Murray became Scottish National Cross Country Champion in 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011 and 2012. EAC won the team title in 2008, 2011 and 2012.

It is well worth looking up the Wikpedia page for Freya Ross. She also has her own website.

Taking part in the 2012 London Olympic Marathon was such a highlight in Freya’s illustrious career.

BBC online news reported:

Freya Murray says she is ready to race in the Olympic marathon on 5 August after being called up to replace the injured Paula Radcliffe

The 28-year-old Scot has been training as a reserve since April and says she is “fit and healthy”.

“I knew I was reserve and wanted to be ready to race if the opportunity did come up,” she told BBC Radio 5 live. 

Murray was the second fastest British woman at April’s London Marathon, clocking 2 hours 28 minutes 12 seconds.

Radcliffe was ruled out on Sunday because of an osteoarthritis problem in her foot.

“It’s such a sad time for her and it must be horrible,” said Murray, who runs for both the Chester-le-Street and Edinburgh clubs.

A structural engineer in Newcastle upon Tyne, she becomes the first Scottish woman to represent Britain in an Olympic marathon since Liz McColgan at Atlanta in 1996.

“Paula sent me a message once she made the decision to pull out so it was really good of her and I really appreciated that.

“I’m gutted for Paula and it’s horrendous, what she’s had to go through in the last few weeks, but I’m really looking forward to the opportunity of taking her place.”

Team GB chef de mission Andy Hunt added: “We are proud to welcome Freya to Team GB. We know she has been training hard and preparing, and will arrive fully ready to compete.”

Eminent Scottish sports journalist Sandy Sutherland reported in the Edinburgh Evening News on Monday 6^th August 2012

Last-minute replacement Freya Murray (Edinburgh AC) did herself and Scotland proud by finishing first Briton in the Olympic Women’s Marathon in London yesterday

Beginning slowly but gradually working her way up the field over the four laps, Murray, who came in for the injured icon of the sport Paula Radcliffe, finished more than three minutes clear of Claire Hallissey, the English woman who beat her for the one vacant place available in the British team from the official trial at the Virgin London Marathon last April.

Mara Yamauchi, the other pre-selected British runner along with Radcliffe, had a tragically short outing, being forced to drop out before the 10 kilometres mark with a bruised heel.

Though Murray’s time of 2:32.14 in 44th place was over four minutes slower than the time she accomplished in her brilliant debut at the classic distance in the Virgin London event, this was not the same London course but a tougher, hillier one described as “challenging and technical” which, however, took in most of the leading London landmarks and was lined throughout by cheering crowds despite frequent heavy showers.

“That was the most amazing experience I’ve ever had. I just went out there to get the experience and I was so excited. I enjoyed every bit of it, even the hard parts,” gasped a mud-spattered Murray at the finish.

“The crowds were absolutely fantastic and for them to come out in this weather was just amazing. I didn’t know what to expect as I only had a week’s notice that I was definitely in the team. It wasn’t till I had a call from Paula a week last Thursday that it really dawned on me that maybe I might be in the Olympics,” said the Scottish deputy for the world’s fastest ever female marathon runner who was forced to withdraw due to osteoarthritis of a leg joint.

A big contingent of Murray’s family and friends made the journey south.

Thanking them all for their support, the 28-year-old Beeslack High former pupil paid special tribute to her coach, former London Marathon winner Steve Jones, who flew over specially from the USA to watch the race.

“Steve’s a great coach,” said Murray who has clearly benefitted from the altitude training she has undergone in the past at his Colorado base. In fact, she was due to fly to Colorado for another stint when the call came through that she was in the team.

Murray revealed that she had been sharing a room with Yamauchi and had known of her potential problem. “It’s a horrible way to go out of the Games – I really feel for her.

“After hearing I was in I was so terrified that I tip-toed around thinking ‘what if I trip!’

“I was so gutted after the trial that I didn’t want anything else to go wrong.”

Yamauchi, who was sixth in the marathon at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, explained her problem: “I had a heel bruise which I was able to run on and I was managing it.

“It’s not the best situation to be in going into the Olympic marathon yet I was more than confident I could give it a good go, but it started to hurt after the second corner.”

Murray’s former coach Ian Whyte, who also travelled to London from Sunderland specially to watch the race, praised her performance.

“She started steadily, looked positive but relaxed and ran the type of race the occasion demanded, careful and paced.”

“I hope it encourages younger Scottish athletes to believe that diligence, patience and perseverance against adversity, such as injuries, can be rewarded.”

                                                                                       Freya in the 2012 London Olympic Marathon

Freya Ross has written and self-published a recipe book called ‘Food on the Run’ detailing what her diet is like as a runner. It is a collection of some of her favourite recipes and gives an insight into the kind of food an athlete eats. It demonstrates that recipes do not need to be complicated and include obscure ingredients to be nutritious.

Freya lives in Larbert, Scotland with her husband and daughter and works as an Event Coordinator. She previously worked as a structural engineer for Cundall LLP, before a spell as a full-time athlete.

Freya received an Honorary Doctorate from Heriot-Watt University in 2014. 

Pat (16) and Brian (18) Devine training at Morgan High School, 1948

This page should be read in conjunction with the one on the Q Club

The story of the track at Caird Park starts with a quote from the ‘Courier’ –

“16-year-old Pat Devine, daughter of Dr J Bernard Devine, 22 Forfar Road, Dundee, was second in the long jump in an Olympic trial at Hampden Park, Glasgow, last night.   Her jump of 16 feet 6 1/2 inches was beaten by two inches.”

Dundee courier, Saturday, 12th June, 1948

There had been talk of a cinder running track in Dundee since 1936 at least but nothing had come of it.   But when young Patsy Devine of Morgan Academy showed her athletic talent in schools events and then at the Olympic Trials in Glasgow at the age of 16, her father became interested and added his voice, his drive and his talent for publicity. the campaign moved up a gear.   

On 12th July that year, there was a short article in the ‘Courier’ under the headline “DUNDEE NEEDS A SPORTS GROUND” which was a quote from MP Tom Cook and read: 

“”A decently equipped sports ground for Dundee was urged by Mr Tom Cook, MP, at the close of the sports and gala day in Baxter Park on Saturday.   The event, organised by the Trades and Labour Council, was attended by Mr John Strachery, Minister of food who earlier had paid a visit to the Industrial Estate.   Mrs Strachey presented the prizes.   Mr Strachey officiated as starter for one of the races.   Trophies for the 100 yards for Youths and Ladies were won by brother and sister.   Brian JB Devine (18) won the ED Morel Cup and  Patsy the Latto Trophy. ”    

Having brought the campaign to the attention of the local MP who could be a key figurehead, the next step was to get some councillors on board and on 9th November, 1948, the following article appeared in the ‘Dundee Courier’.   

Dundee Parks Committee last night sympathetically received the proposal for a cinder track for athletes training.   Dr JB Devine led a deputation comprising Mr T Baptie (Union of Boys Clubs), Mr L Runcie (cyclists) and Mr R Rennie (athletes).   The doctor said the request was simple it was for a 440 yard oval track to official specification for training young people of both sexes.   Dundee undoubtedly had a vast reservoir of latent talent.   If there was only the opportunity to develop it by proper tuition, it might go far in the sport.   

“If you could see your way to grant this very humble request,” said Dr Devine, ” not only will we see to the training of young people’s bodies, but it will be helping to make good citizens.   Dundee is rather unique in Scotland as we are the only big town without proper facilities for training.   Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen all have fine tracks, and I am informed that even Monifieth has a track.”   Dr Devine said the National Council for Physical Training was to appoint a national coach who would visit Scottish towns to coach young men in the training of athletes.   It would be no use if Dundee had no place where the coach could coach his coaches.   

WELCOME CROWDING

Answering questions about possible overcrowding, enclosing of the track and dressing accommodation, Dr Devine said they hoped it would be overcrowded, in which case they might have to appoint special  nights for various sections.    They would be very pleased just to get a track at the beginning, at Camperdown or any of the public parks.    The only place not very suitable would be Riverside Park, because there was nearly always a high wind there.   That would rather dampen enthusiasm.   In reply to questions that children and others might not respect an unenclosed track, the doctor said that if one section of the community was anxious to do well, and it was to be penalised for an unruly or hooligan element, he was afraid it was going to be a bad social order.   

Dressing rooms were almost a necessity, but if they could not be provided, that could be surmounted.   The track should be eight yards wide, with about 80 yards space within the oval.   A sub-committee would consider the request.   The Parks Superintendant (Mr RA Brown) will report on his ideas and site suggestion, along with probable costs.”

It is almost a minute of the meeting and there was not a lot of doubt about who was driving it.   The various tasks were carried out and the headline on a very brief report in the ‘Courier’ of 18th February, 1949 was “CINDER TRACK APPROVED.”  The article: : “The long talked of cinder track for athletes received the approval of the Dundee Parks Committee last night.It will occupy the north east corner of Caird Park where the football pitches will be re-sited.   Mr William Luke, the convener said work would be started as soon as possible.”   

Nothing in local government planning ever goes smoothly and from experience I can say that the maxim holds particularly true for planning for minority sports.   The ‘Evening Telegraph’ on 18th June 1949 reported  “SITE CHANGED FOR RUNNING AND CYCLING TRACK”.   “Dundee Parks Committee this afternoon accepted the recommendations that the proposed running and cycling track at Caird Park should be moved to a site south of the one chosen originally.   The cost of levelling and preparing the latter was estimated at £14,170.    Ex-Lord Provost Adamson deplored the delay in getting a running track.   Quite a dew young people he said had designs on the Olympic Games in Helsinki in 1952.   They were having to do their training privately.”

That there was a need for a track in Dundee there was no real doubt – there were two thriving athletic clubs in  Hawkhill and the Thistle as well as several smaller clubs in and around the city as well as schools championships (individual, county and national, and athletes of talent such as the Devine runners highlighted already.   The photograph below from June 1949 speaks for itself.

That was in June, 1949 and there was still no action.   In February “work would begin as soon as possible” and it took until 19th September, 1950 before this headline appeared in the “Evening Telegraph’ above a lengthy article.

“Dundee sportsmen have been successful in their efforts to get a new track.   A new one will be built at Caird Park.   By the beginning of next summer runners and cyclists may be lapping the quarter mile cinder circuit to their hearts content.    The scheme was approved by the city councillors some time ago, but was turned down by the Scottish Secretary because of financial difficulties,    Now the Scottish Office have given their blessing to the scheme saying the position has recently changed following a review of the capital expenditure programme.   Sports and athletic clubs have been pressing for this action for some time.   When the city MP’s were in their constituencies they were interviewed and said they would make representations to the Scottish Secretary as they considered the scheme a worthy one for Dundee.   

The new track will be sited near the north east corner of Caird Park  opposite Morgan Academy grounds.   It is being built in the centre of a hollow, and the slopes will help to form a natural amphitheatre   The estimated cost was over £4000.   Work is likely to start as soon as contracts can be placed.   But winter is a bad season for track building, and the speed with which it can go forward depends on the weather.

“Kept Plodding Away”

A joint committee of the SAAA and the SCU was formed in 1936 to see what could be done about providing a track.   Mr Dickson Hogg, District Officer of the SAAA, said today, “I am very pleased because there has been a lot of work behind the scenes .   We have never lost sight of our aim.   We kept plodding away and now our efforts have borne fruit.   The next Olympics are in 1952and we hope to encourage local athletes if we have anyone up to Olympic standard.   Elspeth Hay is outstanding in Scotland just now over the 100 yards and 100 metres and she will have all the facilities that she requires.”

Shilling Fund Not Affected

Mr Jack Qusklay, Chairman of the Dundee Civic Stadium Development  Committee, said the good news would not affect the inauguration of the Shilling Fund, by which it was hoped to raise £5000.   That money would be collected to ensure that the scheme went ahead in the early stages.   “In the later stages of course,” said Mr Qusklay, ” almost the whole cost would fall on municipal funds, but at the moment we realise that municipal funds are very tight.   For that reason, we are asking Dundee folk – Dundee folk in all parts of the world – for their help.   We are sending circulars to the various Dundee Associations in Calcutta, Canada and the United States.   “Our point is that we want the track available for the spring of 1951, and unless we can subsidise the preparatory work to some extent that would be impossible.   We want to buttress the municipal funds with our own collected moneyso that the scheme won’t be interrupted.”

Mr Qusklay stressed that the money would be handed over unreservedly to the Town Council .”

Evening Telegraph, 20th October, 1950

The track was not ready for Spring, 1951 as Jack Qusklay had hoped and there was a short report in the ‘Courier’ of 26th January 1951 of the need for a good rugby pitch and Jack was suggesting that the infield at the track when it was complete could be a ‘switch pitch’ which could be used for rugby and football.   Came |June, and in the ‘Courier’ for the 25th of the month it reported that “Sunday Work is speeding up constructionof the sports track on Caird Park, Dundee.”    

However, despite the decision to go ahead, the picture of work being done and Sunday work (workers being paid double time for Sundays) things were not looking hopeful for  summer 1952 and there was growing concern over the rising cost.   (18/1/52below)

Reading this it is clear that Dr Devine’s simple request for a 440 yard cinder track had morphed into a 440 yard cinder track, all the field events facilities, a banked tarmac cycling track round the outside, a football pitch in the infield, possibly a switch-pitch with rugby facility) and possibly dressing rooms.   The original estimate of £4000 had risen to approx £15,000.   Concerned with the councillors concern, Dr Devine and T McRobbie , president of the Cyclists Union accompanied them on their site visit on 20th February, 1952.   It is interesting that the doctor is not described as representing athletics but as president of the Q Club although he filled that capacity.    

The council meeting took place on 22nd February and the result was favourable – the ‘Courier’ reported as follows.

The cost mentioned here was only £2000 for the track and £900 for the cycle track.   There is no mention of the £15,000 estimate from January.  There were letters from members of the public both for and against by readers of the Courier, some using nom-de-plumes like Pro Bono Publico.   Time passed and the demands of the facility users increased and the cost started to rise again.   The Committee Meeting on 17th April 1952 discussed the topic again.   An interesting comment was the one by the city quantity surveyor that internal tracks would be put down “to accommodate the runners”.   The initial moves had been made for a running track and everything else had been woven around that and it was the others who were being accommodatee rather than the runners.   \however, the cost was now estimated to be about £7000.   It had been variously £4000, £3000, £15,000 and was now £7000 and the Shilling Fund was not being spoken of any more in the ‘Courier’.

The work went on but by August there was some kind of cycle track but no cinder track for the runners.   The picture below is from the ‘Courier’ of 11th August 1952 and it would be over a year before the running track was available to those who were pushing the campaign in the beginning.

The forecasts of a year or two earlier about ‘children and others’ not respecting the track was borne out when the following report appeared.  [Only the first column applies to the track].   The lengths to which they would go to keep unauthorised use to a minimum are eatraordinary – wires stretched across the track is mentioned  but the same councillors who objected to the cost of the facility while it was being created were happy to spend £1211 to build a fence round it.   The fact is the track which they hoped to be in use in spring 1951 was still not functional in August 1952.

 

The ‘Courier’ of 29th June, 1953 reported on a special athletics  exhibition held in Dundee Central Museum.   It said:

“In my opinion, this is the finest young generation this country has ever produced.” said ex-Lord Provost JC Adamson in Dundee Central Museum last night, refuting ,the argument that all the great sportsmen were in the past.   “We have great people yet,” he said, opening a special athletics exhibition arranged by the Public Libraries, Art Galleries, and Museums Committee in conjunction with the North-Eastern Athletic Coaching Committee (SAAA).   The exhibition consists mainly of trophies and medals won by local athletic clubs and individuals.   Mr Admason paid tribute to the city’s great sportsmen of the past who had attained their achievements with few facilities.   He would press for more facilities for this generation, and instanced the need for dressing rooms at the Caird Park track.   This he thought might be provided through the Sir James Caird Land Acquisition Fund.   The coaching and training of young people was of the greatest importance.   They had to provide counter-attractions to cinemas and dance halls.   He commended the object of the association, founded last February – raising the standard of the city’s present athletes; enabling boys and girls to begin their athletics with the correct techniques and increasing the number of coaches in the district, presently six.   

The representatives present from athletics bodies in the city were shown the German film of the 1936 Berlin Olympic Games which was captured by British troops at the end of the war.  Mr Brian Devine, Q Club, chairman of the coaching committee presided, and Mr RC Buist, Q Club, proposed the vote of thanks.” 

There was a very brief para in the ‘Courier of 8th July that year which simply read – “The sports stadium at Caird Park opened for training last night.   About 50 members of athletics clubs attended.   Mr Alex S Dow, sports superintendent, told a ‘Courier’ reporter “the running track was still soft in places but with plenty of rain it will soon bed down.”   He is to have tents erected as temporary stripping accommodation.”

The track was now ready for training purposes approximately 4 years after the first moves were made to have such a facility in Dundee.  By September the cycle track was in good enough condition to host meetings –  eg Dundee Roads, Strathmore, Thistle and Forfarshire were all holding their club championships on the track.    Training went on and 1954 was the first full season with the track available for training and racing.   After all the work done, time spent, meetings held, money raised and spent, it was ony appropriate that there be a proper formal ceremonial opening of the track.    Accordingly the public were notified on the front page of the ‘Courier’ on 8th May, 1954 as follows:

 

The advert above appeared in local papers, and in the ‘Scots Athlete’ and was publicised by word of mouth.The local athletes responded to the challenge and the track was well used for training.   The photograoh appeared in the ‘Courier on 20th May, 1954.

Publicity for the meeting tells us that then four cycling events (half mile, 1000 yards Scottish championship, eight lap double harness pursuit race and a de’il tak’ the hindmost were being well supported by Scottish and English champions.   In the athletics events, local heroines Pat Devine and Elspeth Hay would both be running as would Eileen Seeley and Margaret Taylor, Scottish girl champions.   It was a 5 laps to the mile track, and at the opening meeting the prizes would be presented by world famous cyclist Beryl Burton.

The ‘Courier Report read: 

“Athletes and cyclists were full of praise on Saturday for Dundee Sports Stadium’s fast tracks.   Despite the cold, the crowd of over 3000 was quick also to appreciate the clockwork manner in which the meeting was run.   The opening ceremony was by Lord Provost William Hughes.   He reminded the gathering that the stadium was intended to be used by young people.   Some 160 young people and coaches were already using the facilities.   There was room for three times as many.   

Saturday’s meeting lasted for three hours.   Only in the final event – the De’il tak’ the hindmost’ was there a mishap.   Five cyyclists piled up.   All w ere treated at the infirmary, but Alexander Speed (QAC), Leven, was detained with a badly torn leg.” 

Dundee had a track – fit for training and for racing; praised by competitors and spectators alike.. 

Graeme leads Phil Mowbrey (Hunter’s Bog Trotters) – 350) and Glen Stewart  (Mizuno AC) en

route to National victory in 2003

Graeme started running in 1994 when he and his twin brother Alistair made up the Balfron High School team with Clydesdale Harrier David Moore.   They soon joined the club but while Alistair found other outlets for his energies, Graeme worked at his athletics and developed his talent more than most others I have ever coached.   By that I mean he came nearer to realising his potential.   In 1995 in his first season in the sport and with virtually no training he won the Scottish Schools 3000 metres event in 9:12.8 which placed him fourth on the Scottish rankings where he was also ranked at sixteenth in the 1500 metres with 4:15.1 and he also placed third in the West District Cross Country Championships.   Working in a squad which had seven Scottish internationalists including three British representatives, he had role models as well as company for the high level training that he was able to handle.   You can see from the pictures that he was physically very mature for his age.   He progressed rapidly with every year that passed.

• In 1996 as an Under 17, he won the Scottish Schools 5000 metres in 15:46 which placed him third on the rankings.   He was ranked seventh in the 1500 in 3:58.3 and third in the 3000 in 8:42.87.

• In 1997, as an Under 20, he won the West District 1500 metres in 3:38.3 which had him third in the Scottish rankings where he was also second in the 3000 with 8:44.04 and seventh in the 5000 metres in 16:06.27.   Over the country he was third in the Scottish Championships, second in the Celtic International in Ireland and thirteenth after a poor run in the BAF Cross Country Championships.

• In 1998 he won the Scottish Under 20 Cross Country Championship by 20 seconds as well as the Scottish Senior Indoor 3000 metres in 8:25.52.    On the track he was ranked seventh in the 800 with 1:56.6, third in the 1500 with 3:57.3, first in the 3000 with 8:25.52 and first in the 5000 with 14:40.40.

At this point he left Scotland to take up a scholarship at Iona College in New Rochelle, New York.   He had gone to visit a training partner, Des Roache, who had been invited over to have a look at the college.   Des didn’t stay but Graeme did.   When training with Des and the college team he so impressed the coach that he was offered a scholarship that he grabbed with both hands.   The 14:40 for 5000 metres that he recorded at Scotstoun was his last race in Scotland before moving to the United States.

This is a short profile that I enjoyed writing.  Graeme was a good athlete to coach – a hard worker but not an unintelligent worker.   He often asked questions like “what is the point of this?”   “Why am I doing this session?”   He also asked about  or commented on the opposition.  

His home was in Buchlyvie and I stayed in Killearn so I used to drive him back and forth.   We had many a good conversation about athletics and his questions were often very perspicacious He was a man of strong opinions.   He knew he was good and had very high standards.   For example he never ran for Great Britain when many less able athletes did.   This was entirely down to Graeme himself though.   At Bedford in July 1998 I was told that there was a British Junior team going to a match in Spain and there would be a 3000 metres race and also a 5000 metres on the programme.   Graeme was guaranteed a place and the question was which event would we like him to run.   I stated a preference for the 5000 but said we’d be happy with the 3000 if it made selection easier.   He would run well in either.   When he was phoned, he turned down the selection because he thought he was not running well enough to represent Britain.   I had coached my first GB athlete in 1986 and it was agreed by all (selectors, officials, coaches, etc) that no one turns down their first selection.   Graeme did.   He had his own standards.   

The opportunity did not come again – a few months later he went to New Rochelle and almost all his running was done in the States.   It was very good running too.   Training with a squad including a group of Irishmen such as Vinnie Mulvey and later with English Internationalist Peter Riley of England he recorded a superb series of race results and times.  

• In his first year abroad (1999) he was mainly settling in but nevertheless recorded 3:48.95 for 1500 to take over 8 seconds from his best and be ranked eighth; there was also a 3000 best of 8:20.37 (7^th) and 14:59.73 for 5000 (19^th).

• In 2000, 3:48.41 placed him seventh in the rankings, a slow mile in 4:14.6 saw him second only because only one other Scot raced the distance and his best 3000 metres in 8:19.08 was the fifth best by a Scot.  
• 2001 had times of 3:55.6 for 1500 (17^th), 8:19.43 for 3000 (7^th), 14:04.79 (4^th) and 32:34.20 for his first 10,000 metres (13^th).
• 2002 had bests of 4:06.6 for the Mile (1^st), 13:52.6 for 5000 (2^nd) and 30:22.82 (6^th).

Graeme Reid running in van Cortlandt Park, 2002 (Note the club vest)

He graduated in 2002 and came home in October and at the start of 2003 he won the Scottish Indoor 3000 metres Championships in 8:23.44 from the talented AC Muir by two seconds.   So with the National Cross Country at Linwood two weeks away, he was a past Junior Cross Country Champion, the second fastest 5000 metres runner in the country and 3000 metres winner.   Going in to the race we all thought he had a chance of a medal – although Doug Gillon of the Glasgow Herald who didn’t mention him in the race preview printed in the paper on the morning of the race.   With a good field forward including Glen Stewart, Phil Mowbray, Steven Wylie, Don Naylor and many others it was a good race for the first of three laps then Graeme went to the front and just kept moving away to win by nine seconds from Steven Wylie.   It had been exactly 80 years since Dunky Wright had won the event for the club.  Typical of Graeme, when he was interviewed by Doug after the race he mentioned the fact that he had been omitted from the preview and unjustly at that!   This was a hugely significant win from the club’s point of view – we had last had an individual winner of the Senior National since 1923 when Dunky Wright brought the vest home in first place.   We had produced individual Scottish champions in three consecutive centuries: something no other club could do until after 2100!

After winning the National he  moved to live with Peter Riley in Manchester.   They trained hard and when he was down there he ran for Peter’s team and then Peter came up to Scotland to run for Clydesdale in the McAndrew Relays in October 2003 helping the club to second place with Allan Adams and Mark Rudzinski  making up the team.   Came the 6 stage relays the following year and Graeme showed his determination again and asked to run the 5000 metres short stage when the club really needed him on a long stage – with Graeme, Allan Adams and Ian Murphy on the long 10000 metres stages the club might have won medals of some sort and after the race, typically Graeme, he admitted that he had probably been wrong and it might have been better for him to do the long stage.  

On the 18th of April 2004, Graeme ran for a Scottish International team in Brussels, Belgium. The road race was an Ekiden Relay – over the marathon distance (42km 195 metres). Jon McCallum, Christian Nicolson and Graeme ran 5km stages, Martin Graham and Glen Stewart each covered 10km and Andrew Lemoncello finished with a race over 7.195 metres. Team time was 2 hours 9 minutes 53 seconds.  

However, jobs were as hard to get in Manchester and when an old college friend invited him over to the States where there were two jobs going using his accountancy degree he went.  He settled in America.   He is now living in San Diego and is a partner in Ernst Young.

He had done a lot and a lot with his win in the National being the tops but there was enough in his athletics career to indicate that had he had longer in the sport he could have been a really formidable runner on the world stage.   He ran well on track road and country, over distances from 800 metres to 10,000 metres and despite the victories, trophies and times his potential was still huge.  

 Above : Graeme winning the National Cross Country on 22^nd February 2003

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On the grounds that it takes one to know one, we asked Denis Bell (above) to look at Finlay’s results as shown on the next page.   The principal ones are listed there, year by year.   Short 45 minute races right through to extended rounds and challenges taking the best part of a day’s running.   Denis made contact with Finlay and looked at his races and reports on it below.

Finlay Wild Analysis of Race and challenge results.

To compliment this young man’s impressive career palmares at the age of 36 (2020) we need to understand several things..   Finlay is a mountaineering and ski-ing guy who came into running at Aberdeen University whilst studying in the Doctorate (medical)…back in 2006.   He then joined Lochaber AC.   His ‘ordinary hill-racing career’ was light through to 2009.   From 2010 he has made BEN NEVIS his own.  10 consecutive wins, never matched previously.   

From 2012 he raced his favourites regularly.   These were:

Carnethy 5;   David Shepherd Memorial Glamaig    Goatfell;     Bens of Jura;    Arrochar Alps;  n  ½ Ben Nevis;    Stuc a Chroin (and a few ‘others’ earlier on).

As a sign of things to come maybe, he did the Round of Glencoe in October 2010, setting the record.    This was followed by the Chris Upson managed ‘Long Classics Championship’ back in 2012, winning it (10 races to be targeted and ‘Five best to count’)..he won 3 and placed very highly in his other 2 to give him a victory.

In 2013 his great mountaineering skills came to the fore in the Cuillin Ridge route, running it in June then October to go SUB 3 hours!! (2.59.22).   In 2019 and 2020 Finlay has moved on by default and of course a passion for ‘in the real mountains (hills!)‘, setting absolutely marvelous times as completely unsupported solo runs. FOUR of these still need to be ‘ratified’ before the books can be updated…

What next….? This year it appears Finlay will still be improving and no doubt committing to FKTs(Fastest Known Times) which is another aspect of a developing approach to the old sport of Hill Running. You choose a route and specify what you do and you throw your time on the table (as your  fastest) and see how it stacks up against others who commit to do the same….’rising to the challenge’. We must be certain Finlay is going to be throwing down some pretty fierce gauntlets!!!

Thanks Denis, now we can look at the record of his main races between 2006 and 2020  at this link.  and his ten Ben Nevis triumphs.

 

 

There is not a lot to say about this page – it is simply the official top ten finishers in the ten Ben Nevis Races that Finlay Wild has run, starting in 2010.   All extracts are from the official finishers lists

 

Finlay’s rounds and traverses are noted on previous pages but are really something to marvel and wonder at so they will be dealt with on this page as a topic in their own right.   Remember that these are not races, he has more than shown his ability as a racer, these are runs against the clock.   For some of us they’d be against the calendar!

The Cuillin Ridge Traverse  was done twice in 2013, on 16th June and again on 12th October.   The traverse includes 7000 feet of ascent and covers 8 miles.   It had previously been done by Dan Stewart in 1950 in 6 hours 45 minutes, then by Es Tressider on 4th May, 2007, in in 3:27:18 and by Martin Moran on 2nd June, 1990, in 3:33:00.   Given that the weather can change and that there are bound to be small changes in the route chosen, Finlay’s times of 3:14:58 in the June run and 2:59:22 in October are remarkable. 

He came back to it three years later on 14th February, 2016.   This run was in winter – many consider February to be the worst of the winter months for running over the country and this is much more severe on the hills.  For the winter round of the ridge he went round with Tim Gomersall in 6:14:27.

Clach Glass/Bla-Bheinn Round covers 4.5 miles and has 3800 feet of ascent.   Finlay ran it on 7th July 2013 in a time of 1:31:53.

Tranter’s Winter Round.   The Tranter Round is one of the real classic rounds of the British hill runner’s calendar.  Covering 36 miles it takes in 20,600 feet of ascent.   Arduous enough but on 26th February, 2018, Finlay ran it in the winter.   As pointed out above, the winter version of any round makes it a completely different race.   Finlay ran it solo in 14 hours 24 minutes 48 seconds.

The Tranter Round out of the winter season is a different kind of proposition.   Distance and ascent is the same as for the winter version and he ran it on 17th July 2020.   Phil Tranter first  ran the course in 1964 and the current ratified record of 10:15:39 was set by Finlay himself in 2016.   This time he recorded 9:00:05 – ie nine hours and five seconds!    Given that it was set during the conditions of 2020 coronavirus restrictions, it still has to be ratified.   He was asked after the run what made this one so fast and his response was that he knew his previous split times and tried to chip away at them, he knew the course very well and in the end it was all down to lots of small, cumulative factors.   The last remarks tell why experience matters so much in hill running.

 Cairngorm 4000 foot-ers is run over 25 miles and has 7,600 feet of ascent.   This one had previously been run by 9th July, 1979, by Mel Edwards of Aberdeen in 4:38:08, and also by Eric Beard (the famous ‘Beardie’) in 1963 in 4 hours 41 minutes.   Finlay’s time was 3:52:59.

Lochaber Traverse was tackled by Finlay on 30th June, 2020, and involves 8 Munros and i ‘top’.   His time of 3:22:25 is the fastest known time.

Tour of the Mamores record was held by Colin Donnelly for 37 years with his time of 7 hours 02 minutes.   Finlay had a go on 8th July 2020 and recorded 4:49:58.   There could be many reasons for the difference in times.   The very big difference between the times of two superb hill runners can be explained by the many variables involved in this most intriguing of sports.  The weather of course is always influential, the choice of route might vary, the relative navigational skills of the runners are all components is determining the relative timings of any runners.   

The Mullardoch Round is 12 Munros, 35 miles and 1500 feet of ascent.   Previously, the fastest known Mullardoch Round was Donnie Campbell’s clockwise and unsupported 9 hrs 52 mins 18 secs on 12th July 2019  Previously Andy Fallas and Helen Bonsor had recorded 10 hours 7 minutes on 16th July 2018 running clockwise together but carrying their own individual kit to better Alec Keith’s solo 10 hours 24 minutes of 20th May 2001.   On 6th August 2020 Finlay ran the circuit and was timed at 7:40:26.   This has still to be ratified but like his other 2020 runs, the Scottish Hill Runners website knows all about it.

Charlie Ramsay’s Round is a development of Tranter’s Round and incorporates 28,000 feet of scent into its 56+miles of running.   Set by Charlie Ramsay8th/9th July, 1978, it is one of the top four hill running challenges in Britain and maybe even further afield.   Jasmin Paris on 18th June 2016 ran the course in 16 hours 13 minutes which was not only a woman’s  record (which still stands) but an OVERALL record which was only narrowly beaten by Es Tressider on 6th July 2019 with 16 hours 12 minutes.   Finlay’s time of 14:42:40 took a huge chunk from the record when he ran it on 31st August 2020.   Like his other 2020 times, it is still awaiting ratification although the stats and splits are well known.

 

 

Finlay (62) leading right at the start of the Glamaig race: in addition to all the fine races below, he won the SHR Championships in 2013 and 2017, and the British Championship in 2017.

After stewarding in the Arrochar Alps race twice or three times, a friend and I decided that it would make a good two or three day walk.   It did.   For runners to do it in three hours plus or minus is quite astounding.   It is a tremendous feat of endurance but it is not the toughest of races for hill men and women, it is far, far from the biggest challenge that they set themselves.   As a runner in the fifties, sixties, seventies and eighties I heard it repeated often that the Ben Race was the hardest in Britain – that’s the same race that Finlay Wild has won ten times in succession.   It is a quite amazing statistic.     But maybe a bigger test of an endurance athlete’s fibre is doing one of the many ‘rounds‘ against the clock and here again Finlay has done many of them, often as solo runs.   He is probably Scotland’s, possibly Britain’s, best distance runner.   What we have on this page is a run-down of his 14 year career so far interms of his best and favourite races and it includes a record of his trails and rounds over a 14. year period    

Finlay’s first race in the Ben Nevis was in 2006 when he finished 13th while running in an Aberdeen AAC vest.   There were two more before he started on his winning streak.   These first races are in the first table.   

Year	Race	Winner	Time	Comments
2006	Ben Nevis	R Jebb	1:29:31	F Wild (AAAC) 13th 1:45:23
2007	Ben Nevis	I Holmes	1:32:57	F Wild (LAC) 4th 1:34:11
2008	Ben Nevis	A Roc	1:29:12	F Wild DNR
2009	Ben Nevis	R Jebb	1:32:33	F Wild 5th 1:37:38

 

Finlay had run three races in four years and finished thirteenth, fourth and fifth.   Other runners over the years had done as well but it was what came next that marked the man as special.

Year	Race	Winner	Time	Comments
2010	Ben Nevis	F Wild	1:35:39	2nd Robbie Simpson 1:36:09
	Round of Glencoe		6:35:35	19 miles, 12, 750 ft ascent; query route; previous R Shields 5 Munros in 7h05m.
2011	Ben Nevis International	F Wild	1:29:21	2nd Lloyd Taggart 1:31:54
2012	Ben Nevis International	F Wild	1:29:56	2nd Ron Jebb 1:30:53
	Arrochar Alps	B Bardsley	3:07:19	F Wild 6th 3:19:37
	Glamaig (David Shepherd Mem)	F Wild	44:27	2nd Brian Marshall 50:26
	Glen Rosa Horseshoe	F Wild	2:18:20	2nd Mark Harris (M40) 2:34:36
	Two Breweries	S Whittle	2:51:54	F Wild 3rd                         2:53:24

There was one other notable thing about that year.   Elsewhere on the website we remarked on the thirst of hill runners to continually seek new challenges.   Whether it is one of the many ’rounds’ in the country or a national or regional championship, new challenges are always being sought.    One of these was the Long Classics Challenge.   All runners know what a classic race is and the Long Classics was the runners top five races out of ten.

Race	Slioch	Glen Rosa	Arrochar Alps	Ben Rinnes	Two Breweries	Average
1st	F Wild 1000	F Wild 1000	F Wild 938	F Wild 1000	F Wild 991	986

Finlay went into 2013 with three consecutive victories in the Ben Nevis race under his belt – two of them against international opposition.  

Year	Race	Winner	Time	Comments
2013	Ben Nevis	F Wild	1:30:06	2nd S Tosh 1:37:27
	Carnethy 5	F Wild	49:46	2nd R Jebb 50:47
	Glamaig	F Wild	45:57	2nd B Marshall 55:30
	Goatfell	F Wild	1:15:56	2nd A  Fallas 1:19:12
	Stuc a Chroin	H Haines	2:11:11	2nd F Wild 2:18:30
	Cuillin Ridge Traverse on 16/6/13*	F Wild	3:14:58	8 Miles, 7000 ft of ascent
	Cuillin Ridge Traverse on 12/10/13*	F Wild	2:59:22	Previously M Moran, 2/06/90, 3:33:00
	Clach Glass- Bla-Bhein Round on 7/7/13	F Wild	1:31:53	4.5 miles, 3800 ft of ascent
2014	Ben Nevis	F Wild	1:34:43	2nd R Jebb 1:34:56
	Carnethy 5	O Edwards	51:27	2nd F Wild  51:41
	Bens of Jura	H Haines	3:06:30	2nd F Wild 3:18:05
2015	Ben Nevis	F Wild	1:30:56	2nd R Jebb M40 1:36:10
	Glamaig	F Wild	48:16	2nd B Marshall (M40) 54:05
	Goatfell	F Wild	1:14:22	2nd G Stewart 1:20:24
	Half Nevis	F Wild	54:21	2nd C Fraser 57:43
	Bens of Jura	F Wild	3:13:27	2nd A Anthony 3:28:40
	Lochaber Canal Bank	F Wild	27:00	2nd S Burns 28:58
	Stuc a Chroin	H Haines	2:08:33	2nd F Wild 2:12:51
2016	Ben Nevis	F Wild	1:28:45	2nd T Owens 1{34:15
	Carnethy 5	P Prasad (M40)	54:08	F Wild 4th 54:17
	Glamaig	F Wild	47:17	2nd B Marshall (M40) 56:40
	Half Ben Nevis	F Wild	53:47	2nd James Espie 67:14
	Bens of Jura	F Wild	3:09:53	2nd S Tosh 3:13:58
	Meall a Bhuchaille	F Wild	1:04:39	2nd T Gomersall 1:07:06

Year	Race	Winner	Time	Comments
2016	Cuillin Ridge Traverse Winter 14/02/16	F Wild and Tim Gomersall	6:14:17	U Hawthorn 4:57:03*
2017	Ben Nevis	F Wild	1:31:37	2nd B Desoulier 1:1:37:22
	Carnethy 5	F Wild	52:20	2nd T Addison 53:57
	Glamaig	F Wild	46:18	2nd R Macleod 57:15
	Half Ban Nevis	F Wild	52:05	2nd J Espie 54:48
	Bens of Jura	F Wild	3:05:14	2nd H Haines 3:10:32
	Meall a Bhuchaille	F Wild	1:06:36	2nd J Manson 1:10:41
	Goatfell	M Strain	1:12:11	2nd F Wild 1:13:35
	Stuc a Chroin	F Wild	2:08:44	2nd A Fallas 2:12 16
2018	Ben Nevis	F Wild	1:27:45	2nd S Tosh `:32:30
	Glamaig	F Wild	44:22	2nd Y Mason 47:54
	Stuc a Chroin	F Wild	2:11:22	2nd J Clickmore 2:22:00
	Tranters Winter Round	F Wild SOLO 26.2.18	14:24:48	36 miles,20,600 ft of ascent
	Cairngorm 4,000 footers	F Wild 4/8/18	3:52:59	25 miles, 7,600 ft Preveiously E Beard 4:41:00 1963
2019	Ben Nevis	F Wild	1:32:05	2nd J Yells  1:39:52
	Glamaig	F Wild	46:46	2nd A Gilmore  55:07
	Stuc a Chroin	F Wild	2:06:20	2nd A Fallas 2:11:36
	Arrochar Alps	F Wild	3:07:39	2nd A Fallas 3:16:54
2020	Lochaber Traverse FKT	F Wild, inaugural 30/06/2020	3:32:25	8 Munros+ 1 top  FKT=fastest known time
	Tour of Mamores	F Wild 8/07/20	4:49:58 TBC
	Tranters Round	F Wild 17/07/20	9:00:05 TBC	Current ratified record by F Wild 10:15:30
	Mullardoch Round	F Wild 6/8/20	7:40:26 TBC	12 Munros, 35 miles Current record 9:52:19 Donnie Campbell 2012
	Charlie Ramsay’s Round	F Wild 31:08:30	14:42:40 TBC	56+ miles, 28,000 ft ascent. Current record 16:12:00 by E Tressider 6:07/20

 

2020 was a dreadful year for the entire population when thanks to the covid-19 virus the whole country’s life was massively disrupted.    You will note from the above that Finlay’s solution was  to challenge himself and there was a series of established routes that he tackled successfully –  the Lochaber Traverse, the Tour of the Mamores, Tranters Round, Mullardock Round and Charlie Ramsay’s Round

 

 

..

The Q Club was formed by Dr J Bernard Devine when he was pushing hard for a running track in Dundee in the late 1940’s and early 1950’s.   A short lived club, and entirely track & field oriented, it was part of the movement and should be read in conjunction with the account of the struggle for the Caird Park facility which will appear shortly.

A spot of running practice at the school grounds by sister and brother, Pat and Brian Devine of Morgan Academy, Dundee.   Pat holds the intermediate championship.   Their father is Dr J Bernard Devine.

 

Arthur Lydiard said quite frequently that there are champions everywhere, they just need to be found.   He proved his point when he turned out first class athletes in New Zealand, Mexico, Finland and anywhere he went.   The claim is supported by the performance of the short lived and little known Q Club in Dundee which only lasted from 1948 to 1958.   A man not previously involved in athletics wanted to improve facilities for his son and daughter and following a campaign for the facilities, formed the Q club which produced two Olympians, as well as several British and Scottish Champions, record holders.   The man in question was Dr J Bernard Devine his daughter was Pat )initially Patsy, occasionally Patricia, but usually Pat) and his son Brian.   The story starts when Pat was a pupil at Morgan Academy, Dundee as was Brian, two years older.

The story starts with a short article in the Dundee Courier of 12^th June 1948 reporting Pat Devine’s success in the Olympic trial Long Jump two days earlier.   She was noted as the daughter of Dr J Bernard Devine of 22 Forfar Road, Dundee.   Her father always had his title and almost always had his address when mentioned in the Press.    There followed a campaign to get a running track and athletics facility in the town with Dr Devine playing a leading part.    The story of the track is elsewhere on this website but it should be noted that there were meetings with councillors on 12^th July (Dundee Needs a Sports Ground), 9^th November (Devine Urging …) and 14^th February 1949 (Doctor Takes Athletics Lead) with the whole story at this link.

The Doctor meant business and he was to keep on at the council and the Press about a track for the young athletes in the town.   Morgan Academy had a record of turning out good sports people so there were more parents who were interested in such provision and of course there was a supply of potential users of such a facility. 

He went further and at a meeting in February 1948 at a meeting addressed by Dunky Wright he announced that he had applied for the SAAA to recognise the establishment of a new club to be called Q Club.     Why the Q Club? – It still seems an unusual name.  To the best of our knowledge, nobody has ever said.   The coach at the club however was Jack Quisklay from the University College of Dundee who was also a well-known official and there me be a clue there. 

The young athletes had been performing well for Morgan Academy before the club was set up.   For the first time ever, the school defeated George Heriot’s in a competition with names like David Findlay, Brian Devine, Norman Kane and JB Sclater all on duty.   Patsy Devine had been second in the Olympic Trial on 12^th June, Then David Findlay won the Scottish Schools 440 yards 52,3 and in the School Championships, Patsy won the high jump with a 4’ 8 ¼” clearance and Findlay won the Discus with a throw of 123’ 8” which broke a record which had stood for 12 years.  

The youngsters all joined the new club in time for the major championships of the summer.   Norman Kane who was to go on to great things as a high jumper won with a5’ 10” jump and Jim Johnston won the 440 in a time of 52.0 seconds which was a championship best performance.   There was reference to the fact that Kane had ‘topped his own height’ in the high jump and comments about his short stature for a high jumper would continue for as long as he was a serious competitor.    

In the Senior Championships at the end of June, RC Buist who had joined the club from Dundee Thistle Harriers was third in the Shot Putt and he would go on to win gold in later years for the Discus.   There was no complete SWAAA Championships but there were women’s championships with limited events and Patsy was third in the 100 yards.  

Norman Kane’s 1949 season got better with every passing week – having won the SAAA’s high jump, he won the AAA’s high jump in August 1949 and then, in open competition leapt an astonishing 6’ 0”..   By the end of the year he topped the British Junior rankings.   

In an article headed GREAT SCOTS IN AAA JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS in the magazine in August 1949, Farrell said “Norman Kane (Q Club) again cleared 5’ 10” as he did in the Scottish Championships, an exceptional leap, especially by a lad of middle height.”   Further through the same issue the headline was “KANE CLEARS 6 FEET”   and the article was as followsL “In the meeting promoted by the SAAA at Ibrox on the Tuesday following the Rangers Sports, on behalf of the Empire Games Fund, there were some grand exciting contests.   Dual Scottish and AAA’s junior champion Norman Kane put up his greatest performance by clearing 6 feet in the high jump which, with his handicap, made him the winner of the event.”

The photograph below from the Dundee Courier shows Kane second from left.

The only Senior Man to win a medal at the Scottish Championships in 1949 was Robert Buist who covered the unusual double of half mile and throws events.   He won medals of gold, silver and bronze at one time or another at all three of 880 yards, discus and shot putt and was ranked in the top ten for both shot and discus over a period of years in the 1950’s.   When the club eventually ceased to exist in the late 1950’s he switched to the Field Events Club.   The article below, from the ‘Dundee Courier’, gives more detail on the man.

More information about the club and its ambitions appeared in the ‘Dundee Courier of Tuesday 3^rd January, 1950 in the following short article:

.

Note that the ‘sports doctor’ did not hope that the club would win the Scottish championships (whatever that means) but expected that they would.   He also expected work and assistance from all quarters.   In February the newly appointed National Coach Tony Chapman came to Dundee and conducted the examinations for the appropriate coaching awards and on the first day, Norman MacLeod (Thistle Harriers), G Neil, (Hawkhill  Harriers)  and Brian Cloag and Gordon Campbell of Q Club and J Stevenson of Training College all gained their awards.   Cloag was also a member of the YMCA Fencing Team so the net was being cast far and wide.  There were three more coaches presented with their awards the following day – Mr AW Campbell, director of physical education, St Andrews, Andrew ???, Carnoustie and CPO Robertson, HMS Cressy; in the afternoon Mr Derrington of University College, RC Buist of Q Club.  V Lyons of Thistle Harriers, JC Pont, unattached and H Brankin, NCR and Q Club all passed.  

 There was a new club member for the season who would serve the club well for several years – Elspeth Hay came from Bridge of Earn and had been chosen for the 1948 British Olympic team.   Injured in the training for the relay team, she could not take part however and in 1950 she joined the Q Club.

 

In the SAAA Championships held at New Meadowbank on 23^rd and 24^th June, 1950, JC Buist qualified for the final of the 880  yards where he finishedfourth and just out of the medals in 2:02.   He also took part in the Discus where his best for the day was over the 110’ mark which was the qualifying distance for the Association’s standard award.   On the same day at the same venue the club Junior Men’s team was third in the 4 x 110 yards relay.  Earlier in June, the first official SWAAA Track & Field Championships since 1939 were held, and Pat Devine and Elspeth Hay did the club proud in their respective events.   Elspeth won the 100 yards in 11.6 seconds with Pat a close-up third.   Pat then won the long jump with 17’ 9 ¼” .   Elspeth Hay had been a good signature for the club and when she joined, the ‘Courier’ reports with a photo and a short caption.

“Elspeth Hay, Bridge of Earn is the latest recruit to Dundee’s athletic Q Club.   She ran at the Hampden Park Sports Meeting last season and specialises in the 220 yards race.   It is the intention of the girls section of Q Club to build up a strong relay team next season and with runners like Elspeth Hay, Pat Devine and Ann Brown of Arbroath, they should take a lot of stopping.”

In August, 1950, the European Championships were held in the Heysel Stadium in Brussels on the 24^th and 25^th, and Elspeth Hay was there.   Second in the second heat of the 100 metres in 12.5, she qualified for the final where she was fifth against a very good field –

1. F Blankers-Koen  7;  2.  Y Sechenova (Russia) 12.3; 3.June Foulds (GB) 12.4; 4.  Z Dukhovic (Russia) 12.4;  5.  E Hay  12.5;  6.  C Aitelli (France) 12.5

Note that second to fifth were covered by 2 tenths of a second!   Two days later Elspeth ran in the 200m where she was third in her Heat (25.5) and did not qualify for the final.   Her big moment of triumoh however came on 27^th August when she ran the first leg of the sprint relay followed by Jean Desforges, Dorothy Hall and June Foulds to be part of the winning team.   Q Club had a European gold medal.   It was a close run thing: Britain won in 47.4, Netherlands was second, also in 47.4 and the Soviet Union was third in 47.5.   Pat Devine had also taken part in the championships but could only finish 14^th in the long jump, well below her best – her typical form would have seen her as a contender for a medal.

In June 1951 writing in his column in The Scots Athlete, Emmet Farrell said that “RC Buist  ‘should again be a strong challenger in the half mile” and noted that “Elspeth Hay is a grand performer.”   They showed this in all their competitions that year and in the SWAAA Championships at New Meadowbank on 9^th June the report in the Mid-Summer issue of the Scots Athlete said “Miss E Hay (Q Club) gained the narrowest of victories from Miss M Carmichael (Bellahouston) but I feel from what I have seen that Elspeth has yet to find her best form this season.   Miss P Devine, also of the Q Club, was a very good third in a thrilling final.”   Pat also won the long jump where, into a headwind, she cleared 16’ 7”.

1952 was to be the top year for Pat Devine and Elspeth Hay with major international selections for both.   But what of the Q Club.   It had been doing well and had proved that it could spot talent and help develop that talent but many of the very good athletes who had represented the club were nowhere to be seen a mere three years after the club came into existence.   Norman Kane, Scottish and British High Jump champion just disappeared the following year, the young hurdler David Findlay we know went in to the army, possibly on National Service but nothing was heard of him subsequently and others also disappeared.   Society was different then, but there seemed to be difficulty in retention.

 In August, 1950, the European Championships were held in the Heysel Stadium in Brussels on the 24^th and 25^th, and Elspeth Hay was there.   Second in the second heat of the 100 metres in 12.5, she qualified for the final where she was fifth against a very good field –

1. F Blankers-Koen  7;  2.  Y Sechenova (Russia) 12.3; 3.June Foulds (GB) 12.4; 4.  Z Dukhovic (Russia) 12.4;  5.  E Hay  12.5;  6.  C Aitelli (France) 12.5

Note that second to fifth were covered by 2 tenths of a second!   Two days later Elspeth ran in the 200m where she was third in her Heat (25.5) and did not qualify for the final.   Her big moment of triumph however came on 27^th August when she ran the first leg of the sprint relay followed by Jean Desforges, Dorothy Hall and June Foulds to be part of the winning team.   Q Club had a European gold medal.   It was a close run thing: Britain won in 47.4, Netherlands was second, also in 47.4 and the Soviet Union was third in 47.5.   Pat Devine had also taken part in the championships but could only finish 14^th in the long jump, well below her best – her typical form would have seen her as a contender for a medal.  

They had been the first Scottish women to compete for GB in a major Games meeting with Elspeth being the very first since her Heat of the 100 yards was 45 minutes before Pat’s long jump.   

The club men put up a better show in 1952 in that there were medals in the SAAA Junior and SAAA Men’s Championships (one in each) and another was ranked among the best at the end of the year.   In the SAAA Championships on 6^th and 7^th June, RC Buist was second in the Discus with a throw of 123’ 9 ½” and in the Junior Championships AR Donaldson was third in the long jump.   In the rankings of best Scottish performers that year Buist was sixth in the discus with his championships throw and JL Donnelly was fifth in the Putting the Weight lists with 40’ 9”as his best.   Only Elspeth won anything in the SWAAA event being second in the 100 and third in the 220 yards.   But 1952 was important as an Olympic Year and as a Britih Commonwealth Games year.   Pat was selected for them and ran in the 200m where she was third behind Marjorie Jackson (Australia) and Catherine Hardy of the United States in the third Heat and failed to make the final.   She had now competed in both European and Olympic Games for Great Britain.

Yjere had been major Games in 1950 and 1952 but 1953 was a fallow year as far as International Games Meetings were held although there were both British Commonwealth and European Games in 1954.   1953 was a time when serious work could be done and also a chance to catch the selectors’ eye early.   Again it was a year when the men’s side of the club performed poorly in terms of track and field championships were concerned although at the end of the year both Buist (4^th, discus) and Donnelly (3^rd Disuus, 5^th shot) were ranked nationally.

In the SWAAA Championships, however, the ladies performed well.   This time Pat Devine won the 100 yards in 11.5 second with Elspeth second a mere couple of feet away.   Both women made the final of the 229 yards but neither was placed.   Pat was also third in the final of the80m hurdles and then in her specialist event, the long jump, she was second.   The club members were competing all summer of course and in the Glasgow Police Sports Pat was third in the invitation long jump behind the English and Dutch jumpers and in the Edinburgh Highland Games, Pat was third in the 100 yards and Elspeth was third in the 220.    

In the SAAA Junior Championships, another young Q Club member, NR Buist, won two medals – first in the 120 yards hurdles in 17.5 seconds and third in the high jump with a clearance of 5’6” he was the only male athlete from the club to win anything in either the Junior or Senior Championships that year.  

One month later, in the Triangular International in Dunoon, Elspeth Hay was third in the 100 yards behind two very good English women while Pat Devine won the long jump with 17’ 7 ½”.   Scotland also won the 4 x 110 yards relay with a team of M Carmichael, Hay, Shivas and Devine.  

1954 was the big year for Pat Devine and for Q Club with all the usual open meetings plus the national championships in all age group and the big target for the top athletes, the British Empire Games in July and the European Championships in August.   The names of Devine and Hay were well-known throughout Britain – hadn’t they both competed at European and Olympics?   The Courier in May carried an article

The new Caird Park track was officially opened on 5th June with both cycling (on the tarmac outside track) and athletics on the cinder track.   Most of the local athletes took part and the meeting was a great success.   Given the work done by several of the club committee it was particularly gratifying to the Q Club.

The year progressed with both men’s and women’s national championships held in June and both at New Meadowbank.   In the SWAAA event on 12th June, the ‘popular Q Club member, Pat Devine was the winner of three events@ yje 100y in 11.1 from Elspeth Hay, the 220y in 25.1 from Elspeth, and the long jump with 17’ 3 1/2″, Elspeth was second in the Shot Putt and a third club member, I Smith, won a standard award in the discus.   In the SAAA championships on 25th and 26th June, J Johnston was sixth in the 440y in 51.6, LKA Duncan was a finalist in the 880y, NRM Buist ran 16.4 in his heat of the 120y hurdles and won a standard medal, JL Donnelly was second in the discus and fourth in the shot and RC Buist was third in the discus and fourth in the shot.

By the end of the 1954 season, Donnelly was ranked number four in Scotland for the shot putt with RC Buist seventh;  a,d in the discus Donnelly was third and Buist fifth.

Pat had done well in the AAA’s championships being runner up in the 100 yards and fourth in the 220 and long jump.   It was a time when the British women’s sprinting was on a high with athletes like June Foulds, Heather Armitage, Jean Desforges (later Pickering) running consistently well.   Following the championships, the team was selected for the British Empire Games held in the Vancouver between 30th July and 7th August and Pat was selected for the 100 yards, 220 yards and long jump.   In the 100 she was 5th in Heat 1 in 11.1 seconds and did not qualify, third in Heat 2 of the 220 in 25.7, and did not turn out in the long jump.   Came the European championships in the Berne, Sitzerland, and Pat was part of the GB team that was competing between 26th and 27th August.   She performed noticeably better here than in Vancouver.  In the 100 metres she was third in Heat 3 in 12.5 and in the 200 metres she won the first Heat in 24.9 and progressed to the semi-final where she was narrowly run out of the final.  There were three to qualify for the six runner final and the finishing times of the first four in order were 24.3, 24.4, 24.8, and 24.8.   She had the same time as the third placed runner, four tenths behind second.   Most unlucky.

She was a bit of a celebrity when she returned and along with Elspeth was a guest of honour at local functions.  eg Pat along with Joe McGhee were invited to the Aberfeldy Meeting but the plane home was too late for them to attend. The picture below shows Pat and Elspeth at one of the least glamorous of these!

 

In the Scottish Men’s championships on 25th and 26th June, 1955, only one Q Club members won any medals.   JJ Donnelly was second in the Shot Putt and third in the discus.  No Juniors or Youths were noted in the Press as taking part.   But the women’s championships produced a surprise – or two.   In May of 1955 the following article appeared in the ‘Courier’ and, in addition to the information about the two sprinters contains the information that the club did not have enough members to compete in an inter-club match.   Given the recruiting possibilities in the town and the apparent enthusiasm of Dr Devine and his coaches, it is perhaps surprising.

The local paper, the ‘Dundee Courier’ announced “Pat Flies North To Take Three Titles”  before an opening paragraph which read “Three records were set up in the Scottish women’s championships in Edinburgh on Saturday.   Pat Devine (Q Club and Spartan Ladies)who flew up from London for the championships along with Elspeth Hay, did 17′ 11” in the long jump beating the previous record by half an inch.!

The ‘Courier’ may have said Q Club and Spartan Ladies but almost every other paper as well as the ‘Scots Athlete’ magazine simply had them as ‘Spartan Ladies’ which was a London ladies athletic club.   In the event, Pat also won the 100 yards in 11.6, and the 220 yards in 26.4.Elspeth was second in both sprints and third in the shot putt.   Away from the championships, Pat had also been trying her hand at the 440 yards distance and ran in it at the Cowal Highland Games.   The Glasgow Herald reported on the event on 25th August, saying  “The women’s 440 yards was arranged specially for Miss JG Herman (Edinburgh Southern Harriers) but she found Miss P Devine (Q Club) too much for her at the crucial stage of the race.   The Dundee girl, a sprinter of repute, produced a better finish and beat Miss Herman by a couple of yards in the fine time of 58.5 seconds, or .2 seconds behind the native record made by Miss Herman at the national championships.   Miss Herman made the mistake of going too fast over the first furlong.   Miss Devine was as much as five yards behind at the first half of the race.”       Would we see a move up in distance for Pat.

Pat and Elspeth had however really decided that if they wanted to progress their athletics, they had to move to London.   This appeared in the ‘Courier’ on 13th June.

The last sentence is an interesting one regardless of the rest of the article!

One of the the first meetings in 1956 was an eight club match at Caird Park organised by Hawkhill Harriers on Wednesday, 23rd May when the star sprinter was Doris Tyndall of Tayside AAC and the only Q Club athlete mentioned was sprinter M Mitchell who won the 100 yards.   But even if none of their athletes were named in the very brief report the Q Club was second team behind Tayside.   The Tayside Club, part organised by Andy Coogan who had been a member of Maryhill Harriers before the War and was a Japanese prisoner of war , won both men’s and women’s competitions and Q was second in both.   In mid-July there was another six-sided competition with Hawkhill, Tayside, Q Club, Arbroath , Perth Strathtay and Broughty Ferry.   Q qas fifth club this time out and the only athlete from the club to finish in the first three was M Mitchell (2nd in 100, 1st in 220).

In between were the national championships and there were no athletes from the Q Club in among the medals in the SWAAA championships, and in the men’s championships RC Buist at last won the gold medal for the discus with a best of  137′ 7″ with  J Donnelly fifth’ in the shot putt, Buist was fourth .   There was no athlete from the club in the Youth or Junior events.    

There was a similar pattern to events in 1957.   The inter club on 18th May featured only M Mitchell of Q Club with Doris Tyndall of Tayside being the star runner.  Tayside AAC held a meeting at the start of July in Carnoustie and again the only Q Club runner was M Mitchell and the club finished last of the six teams competing.    Sports were held by Dundee North End FC on 20th July, and only Maureen Mitchell represented Q club with any success.   There were no women or young athletes in either of their national championship meetings, and only one (former) Q representative in the SAAA Championships at New Meadowbank on 22nd /23rd June.   RC Buist was third in the Discus throw – but this time he was entered as a member of the Field Events Club.   

Q Club seemed to have gone from a national club to a local club. On its last legs in 1957, it had ceased to exist by 1959.   A purely track and field club, organised pretty well by one man who had two talented children it was allowed to decline after the two top women athletes moved to London where they ran for Spartan Ladies AC.   It was a pity that it went.

 

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