Brian finishing the Aberfeldy Half Marathon, 18th Sept, 1994.

Brian was now, after being a runner since 1983, a member of Clydesdale Harriers.   A member of a club has  many advantages – having a variety of training partners, and the allied comfort of having others whom you know well lined up with you on the starting line.   It also bring some responsibilities such as representing the club in county, district and national championships.    He now had the company of such as Scottish internationalists Brian Potts, Ian Murphy and Christine Menhennet, and others who played a part included Jim Shields, Marjorie Small, Shelagh King, Paddy Bonner and Andy Dytch.     It also puts a structure on the competition year which means more racing and at different distances than those to which he had become accustomed. 

For Brian, the normal winter cross-country and road running pattern starting in October 1990 contained the following annual events.    

• Short two or two and a half mile four man relays at County, Western District and National levels followed each other at the start of October.
• These were followed by longer club and open races spread through to the end of February.   One relay the Allan Scally Relay – is over approximately 5 miles and was for many clubs a selection race for their Edinburgh-Glasgow eight man relay team.   Open events included the Glasgow University Open Road Race, the Bellahouston Harriers Cross-Country Race in Bellahouston Park, the East Kilbride Road Race, the Nigel Barge Race on the first Saturday of the New Year organised by Maryhill Harriers and the Clydesdale Harriers Dunky Wright Race in Clydebank.   These were all winter season races.
• And of course there were championship races.   He raced in club championships and handicaps, District Championship and National Championships.   All held over a variety of courses with challenges of differing natures and all containing a team element.

The winter seasons before this had only limited open competition whereas for club runners it was the time for cross-country running and racing including a great deal of team running.    We will look at his running in  the club over the winters until 2000 first.   There are three major Clydesdale Harriers trophy races held annually – the Sinclair Trophy for a 5 mile individual and handicap race, the Hannah Cup which is a cross-country handicap race in which the runners start at intervals with awards for the first three handicap finishers and the fastest time, and the Club Championship Race 

 His first complete winter as a club member looks like this with all races listed.

Some Comments on the season

This was by far the busiest winter of racing that he had tackled and he stood up to it well  and it would be his typical winter racing as a club runner. There were only two relays that he missed in October.  How did Brian perform in the club events?   His first run in any club race was on 15th December 1991 when he was a creditable fourth in the 5 mile road race in 31:52.   This was followed by the Hannah Cup which is run in the form of a yacht handicap – ie the runners set off at intervals according to their fitness and competition record.   Brian was second veteran in the handicap with a time of 37:13 behind Hugh Watson (37:12)   and in front of Bob Young (37:26).   This was run on a good day for cross-country running, unlike the snow that prevailed on the course for the club championships in February.   This time he was second veteran in 49:05 behind veterans internationalist and Scottish champions Bob Young (47:17) and in front  of top hill runner Jim Shields (54:25)   The 249th place in the National Cross-Country was in the first half of a field of 569 finishers.   

John Hanratty, Brian, Jim Shields at the Scottish Veterans Championships in Elgin on 24th February 1996

The table below covers his running in the three club championship races mentioned above over the next few years.   All were run in Clydebank.  It can be seen that he threw himself right into the club activities right from the start -6 Hannah Cup races, 5 Sinclair Trophy and 4 Club Championships.   Equally telling is his number of appearances in one of the top social events on any club calendar – the Christmas Handicap – where he appeared 6 times.

The club races are the ‘bread and butter’ events in the winter with everyone including next summer’s road racers and track runners both taking part.   We’ve seen how Brian tackled these so now we can have a look at the District and National Championships.   As a comparative novice in these events, he performed well.   He took part in the West District Championships in 1992 (138th),  1993 (8th of 10 Harriers), 1994 (93rd), and 1995.   Unfortunately there were some gaps in the results which are available for both District and National Championships.   He travelled to the National Championships in 1992, 1993 (278th of 604 finishers), 1996 (272nd of 488 finishers), 1999 (169th of 406) and 2000 (261st of 386).    

Finishing well up among the veteran runners, invariably in the top half of the huge fields that were invariably the norm at the time, and over varied courses at a variety of venues such as Irvine, Cupar, Dundee and Elgin, Brian was a solid and reliable club runner.   Like most runners, Brian missed the occasional District or National event but he was in action a lot every year and it is maybe appropriate to point out that he was not idle away from the race days – he had not stopped the Munro-bagging though: he completed his fourth round of Munros in 1994, having done complete rounds in 1972, 1982, and 1986 and would have completed his fourth round 1994.

There is one aspect of winter racing and championships that we have failed to cover so far and that is the Scottish Veteran Harriers Club events – ie. the Scottish Veterans Relay and Individual Championships held every year.  Brian had joined the club early on and enjoyed taking part racing against his peers possibly more than with all Senior age groups.   How often did he compete?   All races below are exclusively for veterans, ie men over the age of 40.  His record from 1991 to 1999 is here.

** Veterans International Fixture

A notable appearance on the above list of fixtures is his run in the Edinburgh to Glasgow Relay in November 1998.   The biggest event in the winter calendar other than the national Cross-Country championships, only the top 20 clubs in the land (plus on occasion a guest team), Brian was invited into the team at very short notice and ran well on the last stage to maintain the club’s twelfth place.

A winter’s day in the Kilpatricks

Jim Shields, Ian Murphy, Brian Edridge, and Willie Cairns, with Christine Menhennet in front.

Given the number of non-championship vets races on the calendar – and the exact number varied a bit from year to year – we have omitted some other veterans races both cross-country (eg 3 in 1995) and road, as well as the annual Christmas Handicap.   There is enough here however to tell us that Brian was an enthusiastic member of the veterans club as well as a stalwart of Clydesdale teams.   In addition to his running and his brief spell as Assistant Treasurer and Committee member, he did contribute to the club in other ways.   For instance along with Christine Menhennet and other club runners he was part of a Come and Try Day for hill runners which went well.   It was reported in the SHRA magazine –

The report in the SHRA magazine was enthusiastic.   It read:  Report on “Come and Try Hill Running: An Introductory Day to the Sport.   Date: Sunday 18th April, 1993.   10:30n – 3:00 pm.   Organisers Christine Menhennet, Denis Bell and Brian Edridge.   Sponsor: Scottish Athletics Federation.”   There is more about the Day on this sheet.   

 

More about the Come and Try days  here  .

Brian is however a noted hill runner, particularly over the longer and more rugged races, and we will have a look at that separately.

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