Club News
August 29, 2007 Medal honours for MAC athletes
A
group of young athletes returned home from the Nithsdale AC Open Graded
meeting in Dumfries on Sunday with a clutch of medals.
Lewis Gibb scooped gold in the under-15 boys' 100m and 200m.
Ilona Clark took silver in the girls' under-15 200m and 600m events.
Scott Dickson and Lewis Donnelly picked up bronze in the boys' under-15 and under-11 600m respectively.
Ross Park and Gregor Donnelly performed very well in the under-11 and under-13 competitions, just missing out on medals.
Congratulations also to six-year-old Caitlin Donnelly (a future MAC member) for a brave effort in the under-nine girls' 80m and long jump.
See pictures from the day here.
August 26, 2007 Jill picks up Paisley prize
Another
"well done" to one of the club's young athletes, Jill Cherry.
Jill ran the Paisley 3k today and came second in the primary school girls' age group.
Her result was more significant because she was up against a lot of older girls.
Our picture shows Jill with her prize.
August 25, 2007 Wright on for MAC pair
More
top-notch performances from the club's Track & Field members.
Lewis Gibb and Mhairi Hendry (right) were among the medallists at the Lanarkshire AAA championships at the John Wright Sports Centre in East Kilbride today.
Lewis took gold in the under-15 100m, this a week after he won bronze in the same race at the Scottish championships in Grangemouth with a time of 12.14.
Mhairi landed bronze in the under-13 800m. She put in a fantastic last 100m, coming from seventh position to third.
With another 20 metres she might even have caught the leader.
Very well done to both athletes.
August 24, 2007 Cumbernauld race deadline near
The
deadline for entries for the Cumbernauld 10k, which marks the 50th anniversary
of Cumbernauld New Town, is on Friday August 31.
The race is at 10am on Sunday September 9 and starts and finishes at the Broadwood Stadium.
There's also a 1k fun run for children.
Full details and a registration form are available here.
August 19, 2007 Wet, wet, wet weekend on Bute
It rained ... and it rained ... and it rained.
That's
how best to describe Saturday August 18, the day of the Bute Highland Games
and the Rothesay 10k.
An advance party arrived on Bute the night before and it was a blessing that people had access to a hotel on the day of the race because it meant everyone could huddle into the lounge until the afternoon.
Joe and Mags provided a picture quiz to while away the time - "Girls Allowed" running out the winners but the "Tash Bandits" taking the honours for the best team name.
And still it rained.
While the road runners were pitting their wits against each other, the club's two track and field representatives turned in excellent performances on the sodden showground.
Ilona Clark was first in the under-15 800m and third in the 200m while Scott Dickson took top spot in the under-15 800m.
Of course no trip to Bute is complete without John Hughes's putting competition although the weather dramatically reduced the number of entrants.
John emerged victorious and the triumph must have spurred him on come 2.30pm and the race he clocked a great time of approximately 39 minutes.
And what did it do? It rained.
Amazingly
for the conditions, there were five PBs. Alan Tait was fourth overall and
during post-race drinks in the Black Bull, he was presented with an award
for "the most deserving MAC athlete".
His time of approximately 36 minutes gave him a new PB. The others were Michael Wedlock, Margaret Lawrence, Wendy Kerr and Alistair Kerr.
Another notable performance came from Jessie Miller, who was second woman despite running a short distance past the turning point at Port Bannatyne.
And of course, the rain kept falling.
You can see pictures from the weekend here.
Many of those who stayed over on Bute on the Saturday night might have taken part in the Hamilton 5k the following day but the club still managed an excellent turn-out (picture above) and the organisers praised MAC for supporting a local race.
Both races earned runners points in the club championship and the tables will be updated soon.
Here are the club finishing positions:
1. Alan Tait* 2. John Hughes 3. Brian McLinden 4. Stuart Riley 5. Stan Kavanagh 6. Michael Wedlock* 7. Gordon Murray 8. Jim Riley 9. Donal McCaffer 10. Mark Coyle 11. William Martin 12. Alister Kerr* 13. Jimmy Mullen |
1. Jessie Miller 2. Elaine Jamieson 3. Jane Wedlock 4. Jill Strachan 5. Elizabeth Martin 6. Margaret Lawrence* 7. Pat Allan 8. Wendy Kerr* 9. Anne Hughes 10. Gayle Tait * = PBs |
August 15, 2007 Marathon time for Jo
Say
hello to Oliver Clark, who was born last Friday.
Mum Jo describes Oliver, who weighed in at 9lbs 2oz, as "an absolute stunner".
"He'll have all the girls chasing him in years to come – but of course he’ll be a MAC runner by then so will outrun them all," she says.
It was a 30-hour labour, meaning Jo won't be back running for a bit longer than she'd originally hoped.
As our picture shows, dad James is proud to have been handed the baton!
August 12, 2007 Lunch crowns latest guest run
A
great run, a superb lunch later ... but some pretty ropey senses of direction.
That's probably how the latest guest run will be remembered!
Twelve road runners joined in the trot from Strathyre to Callender, a distance of 9.5 miles. The weather forecast was for torrential rain but thankfully it stayed away until afternoon.
After dropping off cars in Callender, there was a prolonged debate and a considerable amount of counting fingers to reach a decision on how many vehicles were needed to be driven to Strathyre to accommodate all the runners.
Once this weighty decision was reached, the cars set off ... but the debate about directions continued in the front of the Hughes mobile, with Mr and Mrs H locked in earnest conversation about the right way to Strathyre.
In the event, the wrong way was chosen and an about-turn was required.
The run set off in blazing sunshine with John Hughes at the head of the pack. Several juddering halts, a seeming dead end, ankle-high dubs and knee-high grass later, the pack found its way onto the trail back to Callender.
The local leisure centre provided some welcome relief in the form of showers and in a friendly gesture above and beyond the call of duty, the chap on reception not only recommended a place to eat well away from Callender but also rang ahead to pave the way for the group's arrival.
The Crown Hotel in Thornhill was the target and it's highly recommended if any members ever find themselves in the area. They'd set aside a table and the food was excellent.
There was some more discussion about the quickest way back but in the end everyone got there.
Another top guest run ... and the appeal is going out now for the next one, hopefully in September.
MAC relay teams give it some stick!
Nine of the club's Track & Field members competed in the National 4x100m Relay Championships at Scotstoun with two teams, under-13 girls and an under-15 boys, taking part.
The girls were were Sara McDonald, Hannah Ferguson, Mhairi Hendry and Gemma Park with Jade Williamson as reserve.
The boys were Lewis Gibb, Scott Dickson, Richard Martin and Chris Watson.
The girls ran well but didn't do enough to make the final.
They were 7th in their heat.
The boys' race was a straight final and again, they came 7th.
Both teams did well to pass the baton cleanly, unlike some of the British teams recently!
Coach Joanne Nicoll reflected: "We had a really good day out with some parents coming along in support.
"Six out of the eight athletes that competed are still eligible to compete in those age groups next year so hopefully these young teams will continue to improve and return to next year's competition ready to win places in the final."
New role for MAC chairman
Club chairman Mark Coyle has been voted onto the new strategic board set up by Scottish Athletics.
The board is part of a re-structuring plan by Scottish Athletics.
More details about its work will follow.
August 1, 2007 East coast outing on offer
It got rave reviews last year from the MAC members who took part so here are details of the British Energy Dunbar 10 Mile race on Saturday October 6.
The multi-terrain course takes in quiet country roads, farm tracks and the odd climb and makes ideal preparation for the cross-country season.
The race starts and ends at Hallhill Healthy Living Centre in Dunbar. There are changing and showering facilities at Hallhill.
Soup and sandwiches are provided at the end.
Jo Clark and Elaine Jamieson were among those who competed last year and the race also comes highly recommended by Karen Stockton.
Entry details and an entry form can be found on Dunbar Running Club's website here.