Away to Ardrishaig for the weekend, it was only right that I had a look for any local races. I was in luck as Sunday 10th July saw The Great Carradale Canter return for its second year.
The Canter features two races, a 10k and 5k, starting five minutes apart from Carradale Harbour. It was only 36 miles from where I was staying but the single track roads meant it was over an hour’s drive away. On any other weekend it could have been a beautiful drive, however the grey sky didn’t lend itself to the stunning views across the Kilbrannan Sound to Arran. The rain started to fall just after I had registered and waited around for the start; not so great for the spectators but nice, cool running conditions
Having looked at last year’s finishing times, I thought if the hills weren’t too bad I could try for top five and placed myself near the front. It was uphill right from the start, for about 500m, then I settled into 3rd place as we headed down onto the beach. I kept 2nd place in my sights for a while but the gap between the first three grew as we ran along a great mix of road, beach, trail, forest tracks and a lap of a football pitch. The big challenge was to come at the Carradale Network Centre around the 6-7k mark, where I headed back into the forest and up the beast of all hills. I slowed to a walk at the top and was grateful for a slug of water as I regained the feeling in my legs. It was great fun then flying down the rest of the forest before heading back into the village and onto more trails where I caught up with some of the 5k runners as we approached the finish.
I crossed the line in 3rd at 41.11. Well chuffed!
The race was won by Campbeltown’s Stuart McGeachy in 37.20, followed by Inverclyde’s Nicholas Gemmell in 39.14. First female was Campbeltown’s Jennifer Reid in 43.59.
Full results available at www.kitst.co.uk/carradale-10k
This was a great race and I can’t recommend it enough. The route, the locals, the marshalls and the would be gorgeous scenery. I was absolutely buzzing on the way home.
