Busy time for Harriers

Jul 12 2012 by Stuart Gillespie, Galloway News

GALLOWAY Harriers have taken on a variety of events in the past few weeks with some great results to add to their already impressive achievements this season.

Chrissie Vincent was the sole Harrier to take on the tough Mabie Forest 10k Trail Race.

Organised by Dumfries Running Club, the off-road run goes through the grounds of Mabie House Hotel and Mabie Forest, with some challenging climbs and descents on uneven and loose surfaces.

Having turned towards more off-road challenges in the past year, Chrissie did herself proud to come home 33rd out of the 80 finishers and pick up third female overall and second F45 veteran.

Next was David Beattie’s strong performance in Northern Ireland’s Causeway Coast Triathlon.

The Portrush event has a scenic but challenging course, with a sea swim and undulating cycle and run designed to test the multi-sporter.

Due to extreme weather, the standard distance was shortened for safety reasons but the weather still made racing tough.

David was keen to improve on his performance from the previous year, his first foray into triathlon. This he did with merit, with 74th out of 114 finishers in 1:34:53.

Ten Harriers took part in the inaugural Dalbeattie Half Marathon, which was part of the civic week celebrations and well organised.

Peter and Marie Horsell took on the 10k and finished in 44:31 and 1:01:50 respectively.

The Harriers’ Jamie Devine ran in the half marathon, with a PB time of 1:20:19 and a third place finish.

Adrian Leach enjoyed the cool conditions with a fine run of 1:27:34 for seventh place and second male vet.

He was followed by first female Harrier, Kerry Maxwell, who scooped third female overall and third female vet with her fantastic PB finish of 1:35:40.

Completing his 99th half marathon, John Plumridge performed well with a 1:39:08 run for 24th place, with fellow Harrier Paul Cleer crossing the line just over a minute later in 1:40:28 and 29th place.

Despite completing the Causeway triathlon the day before, David Beattie couldn’t resist the urge to compete and completed in a very credible 1:44:40 for 35th place.

His wife Emer followed with a 1:58:18 for 54th and new Harrier Hollie Mitchell, from Gatehouse, did brilliantly to complete the tough course under two hours in 1:59:08 for 56th.

Three of the club’s multi-sporters then took part in the Corrieyairack Challenge.

The event, in its 20th year, is organised by the Speyside Trust to raise funds for Highland holidays for the disabled.

It features a 17.8 mile-run and 26.4-mile cycle, which includes a terrifying 2,900 feet of climbing, with the summit being at 2,500ft.

The Harriers’ King of Endurance, Rick Williams, proved in his first multi-sport competition that he has become a seriously competitive endurance athlete, taking 11th place in 3:59:43 (2:34/1:24)

David Beattie proved that his commitment to multi-sport is also paying off, with a 41st placing in 4:31:55 (3:01/1:30), with Brian Harrison completing in 4:53:38 (3:19 / 1:34) for 67th place.