Sunday 29th Janary 2023 saw a clash of options for the “verteran” athletes at Greenock Glenpark Harriers. The Masters indoor 3,000m was on at Emirates Arena in Glasgow, and the annual Scottish Veteran Harriers Road Relay was in it’s usual slot at Strathclyde Park. The club had a good turnout on the day, and some success at both.
Paul Monaghan and Gavin Morrison took to the track in the v50 and v55 categories respectively. Paul secured a silver medal in his category, just being out ran in the last 200m (9.43). Gavin ran brilliantly, and narrowly missed out on a medal in 4th place in 10.25. The ‘boys’ did good, and will probably still be feeling that lung burn now! There are opportunities for running indoor for all age categories each January, so one to look out for next year if you are interested.
In Motherwell, the annual 6k, 3 and 4 stage relays returned to its winter spot and our vets were greeted with typical blustery weather to contend with. Female teams consisted of 3 runners, and male teams of 4, each taking on one full lap of Strathclyde Park. If the weather wasn’t enough to contend with, there was a sausage dog walking convention on, with over 30 of them getting walked on the course!
The A team of ladies consisted of Marian Monk, Jennifer Telford (running in club colours for the first time) and Jill Knowles. On the anchor leg, Jill ran a stormer to finish in the second fastest female time of the day. A tough ask in the often solo run last leg, and was only 25 seconds off of the fastest time (also ran in the third leg). The team came in 5th overall, just a minute off of the podium positions. In the other teams there was a first outing for Sharon Docherty in club colours, and a really good run from Lynne Harrison.
On the mens side, there was a 35-50 and 50+ category, with the 50s finishing in 4th spot and just outside the medals. For the A team in the 35-50 category, Chris Moony opted to send “youngsetr” Stephen Hanley out first for his first masters race having just turned 35. Chris Sent himself out first for the B team to give him a good chase, and it worked, with Stephen getting round ahead of Chris and putting the team in a good spot. The second leg was in the hands of club president Andy McCall and he went and smashed it, with the 4th fastest time f the day, he launched the team into 3rd position. Neil Lafferty, off the back of illness held the position well with a great run and left it for Kev Craig to bring home a medal. With a 45s lead on the next runner, Kev ran the leg to perfection and secured the bronze medal for the boys!
Sadly the B team only had 3 runners, but Chris, Kevin O’Donoghue and Gordy Hepburn ran well. As did the v50 team, with Campbell Cromar narrowly taking the bragging rights from Danny McLaughlin. The 6k route always test the runners, setting off at your 5k pace and hitting a couple of nasty short hills in the 5th kilometer, and then holding on for dear life until the finish!
Full results:https://scottishmastersathletics.webnode.page/products/lsk-road-relays/