Author: The Author

Veterans WMRC, Poland, 2001

In 2001 Christine reached the age of 45, an age when most runners are retired, retiring or thinking of it.   Not her.    Why would she?  Her love of the outdoors was still there, she was still up for a challenge and she still had all her old friends.  Maybe more important she was still in very good physical condition.  The new decade started with selection for the World Mountain Running Championships in Poland.   That she did well is evidenced by the trophy above which tells us that she was third V40 in the race on 22nd September.   The report in the local paper read:

CHRISTINE IS STUNNED BY ‘POLE’ POSITION

“Old Kilpatrick runner Christine Menhennet didn’t have a clue that she was in ‘Pole’ position – until she heard her mates screaming at her.  Christine recently finished third in the World Mountain Running Championships for veterans in Poland.   But she was the most surprised person in the event when she was handed a medal for her excellent display.   

“Christine said “I was elated to finish third because I had lost sight of the other runners and thought I was about tenth.   I started conservatively on the flat land because my strengths lie on the steep hills.   It was only when I reached the steep climb at the end and I heard all the Scots guys shouting that I knew that I was in medal contention.  I’ve never won anything before at international level so I was really pleased.”

Fellow athlete Jimmy Shields made it a great double for the Bankies as he finished second in the men’s event.   

A superb performance for two excellent athletes who really deserved their success.

As we will see she was still running really difficult races over some prodigious distances in 2019.   We can’t cover every race over the next 19 years but we can give a fairly strong flavour of the period by sampling the races that she did.    The Power of 10 website lists 16 events over the 2008 to 2019 period.    It is of course not comprehensive but it gives a good starting point.   What we have below is a selection of races taken from various sources and runners chosen to show the range that she competed in which range from short relays to the Lairig Mhor and Highland Fling, there were also club events such as relays and club championships and mammoth undertakings like the Highland Fling from Milngavie to Tyndrum – 53 miles of the West Highland Way.   In short she covered the length and breadth of Scotland – from the Two Breweries to Durisdeer, and distances ranging from the short relays through to the 13 miles of the Highland Fling.

Picture from Westerlands CCC site

Having looked at the above you will have noticed that she celebrated her 50th Birthday year by running in the very tough Stuc a Chroin race at Strathyre in 3:18:27.   Furthermore she celebrated her 60th birthday year by running Goatfell in Arran in 2:03:45.    I would also draw your attention to the Glencoe Skyline on 18th September 2016.   This is named the Ring of Steall Race and is one of a series of races known as the Glencoe Skyline, it starts and finishes in Kinlochleven and covers over 13 miles with a total ascent of  over 2561m (ie over 8402 feet).   To do all that running over all sorts of surfaces without any serious injuries is really bucking the odds – not many can have as arduous a sport and come away relatively unscathed.   It is a race of which she is very proud.

But there were many such races – the Scottish Long Classics starts with Stuc a Chroin, then goes to the Isle of Jura followed by the Trotternish Ridge, the Arrochar Alps and includes the Two Breweries, the Ochil 2000’s, Ben Rinnes and the Moffat Chase.    She has done then all.   And of course there has been Ben Nevis and the HOKA Highland Spring.  Is there a challenge that Christine has not undertaken?

She says: “Winning is always fun but I think that the race I would like to highlight is the 2016 Salomon Ring of Steall Skyline Race.   I was feeling old and rickety and needed a wee challenge.   I have always loved the real big mountain races – Stuc a Chroin, Bens of Jura, Ben Nevis, Arrochar Alps and so the uncompromising route of the inaugural Ring of Steall appealed.   I paid the rather large entrance fee  and did some serious training.   I had recced the route with a club mate  in a leisurely eight and a quarter hours, but thought that with a following wind and a bit of effort, I might be able to knock an hour off that time.She goes on to describe the route, the scenery, and how she felt as the race progressed and “the group dissolved after the final summit of Am Bodach and I braced myself for the steep, rocky descent.   I glanced at my watch.   I might just beat the 6 hour mark.   How did that happen?   Well, it didn’t happen owing to a bout of calf cramp halfway down; the delay could have been much worse.   I was saved by a bag of crushed crisps.   I was nonetheless delighted to cross the finishing line in 6 hours 5 minutes and 26 seconds – knackered but buzzing  . . . . That night I partied with my partner Dave and fellow Westies in my old haunt the Clachaig Inn.” 

   Christine after the Ring of Steall, 2016

The 2000’s: Part 2

Christine after winning the Great Wilderness Challenge in 1991

25 mile race winners Martin Dean, Forth Valley Orienteers and Christine Menhennet, Westerlands CCC, receive their shields from guest-of-honour Joyce Mackenzie, Gairloch

The 1990’s was a good decade for Christine with a high level of performance coupled with many serious challenges met.   She bracketed the decade with victories in the Great Wilderness Challenge in 1991 and 1999, Island Peaks Races contested in both Scotland and Australia, international races in Snowdon and Susa in Italy and triumphs in such events as Stuc a Chroin, the Corrieyarrick Pass and the Ben Lomond race.    There were so many races that we can’t cover them all but we can pick out some of the more significant ones.

Christine (centre) with Scottish international team mates Joyce Salvona and Christine Whalley at Die in 1989.

1990 was a good year for Christine in that she ran in two Island Peaks races which are approximately 12,000 miles apart!   She ran well in both the Scottish Island Peaks race and the Tasman Island Peaks race in Australia.    Sponsorship helped, being able to do a reconnaissance in the Tasmanian one before the race and so on all helped but the toll taken on the body was huge.   She had been organised to run both with Helene Diamantides but she (Helene) had picked up an injury after the first one and was unable to do the second but Christine and her new partner still turned in the fourth fastest running time of the 23 teams entered.  You can read some detail about these races at the  Scottish Island Peaks Races  page. 

Among the major races in 1991 were the two races on the Island of Arran.    In 1991, she was back racing starting with the two races in Arran.   Goatfell was on 18th May and she was second to Joyce Salvona in 1:35:53, and a month later on 15th June she finished second in the Glen Rosa Hill Race in 3:13:06 behind L Hope (2:56:31).  Map below of the Glen Rosa course is from the Scottish Hill Racing website.  On 9th November that year she was again second, this time in 39:03, with M Todd of Edinburgh University in 38:05.   

The really big event for Christine however was the Great Wilderness Challenge.  Like many of the hill races or challenges it started as a purely local event.   The official history of the beginnings is as follows.

In early 1986, plans were afoot to provide hospice care in the Highlands for the first time. The Highland Hospice Appeal was set in motion to raise funds for the project, and a Highland-wide campaign was launched in support of this initiative.   A small group of friends in Poolewe and Aultbea, some of whom had recently lost relatives to cancer, decided to do something to help. A sponsored walk was the vehicle chosen to raise funds, and arrangements were quickly made to organise what would become known as the Great Wilderness Challenge.   The first staging of the event took place on Saturday 23rd August 1986. It featured 178 walkers and runners undertaking the arduous 25 mile mountain trek from Dundonnell to Poolewe. It passed off very successfully, and £6,200 in sponsorship was raised for the Highland Hospice Appeal.   The event was originally intended as a “one-off”, but such was the popularity and success of the first that participants – and marshals! – clamoured for a repeat. So the GWC was destined to become an annual event and has been held every year since 1986.

This was the race for which Christine headed north in August 1991.   There were 57 finishers with Christine in 23rd place in a time of 3 hours 46 minutes 19 seconds to be first Lady, with Lesley Hope of Lochaber AC in 4:02:37 second Lady and 30th overall.   

Map from the Race website.

1992 was another good year for Christine with success at home and abroad.  She was selected the International World Mountain Running Championship in Val di Susa in Italy on 30th August, and followed the selection with a very good race in Scotland.   They were described in the ‘Clydebank Post’ thus:   “Having raced well in the Snowdon International, Clydesdale Harrier Christine Menhennet learned on Thursday that she had been picked for the World Hill Running Championships at Susa, Italy, later this month.   Inspired by this success she travelled to the Glen Trool Forest Hill Race on Sunday where she not only won but broke the course record by a full eight minutes when recording a time of 1:36:37.  Christine was the first Lady to finish and seventh runner overall.”

The International Snowdon Race referred to above was held on 25th July in 1992, was over 10 miles with a total ascent of 3200 feet.   Christine finished fourth (second Scot) in a time of 1:23:27 with the race being won by Scotland’s Trish Calder in 1:18:37.    The result for the International in Susa has been taken from The Fell Runner magazine for October 1992.

Other than the internationals, her record for 1992 includes the following results: (note the fast time for the Corrieyairrack which saw her finish 12 minutes clear of the second runner, and the two races which were timed outside 2 hours and another over an hour).   

By the end of the year  the SHRA Championships for 1992 had Christine placed third behind L Hope and T Calder.

In 1993, Christine and Helene competed seriously in the Island Peaks Race but also ran well at home when both were selected for the WMRA championships in Gap, France and were the first two Scots to finish.   Denis Bell wrote the official report on the Scottish team performance for the ‘Fellrunner’ magazine, the report on the Ladies race reads.  “In the Ladies event, Helene led up the long drag halfway through the field and held on throughout with the gaps  well established in front and behind.   Penny had a slow start and came through about 15 places and was eventually hauled in by Dawn Kenwright (Wales) who also came through and pipped Christine; the Ladies generally captured a couple of places on the descent.   A tidy bit of packing to get eleventh overall.   Elspeth put in a strong descent also to get 4 places and went on strongly to finish on the last gentle run in (1 km) (a very tough exposure to her third international event.”

Helene raced a lot that year with several impressive victories (eg Stuc a Chroin where she won by 12 minutes from the next Lady) but Christine adopted a lighter approach to racing with the following notable events.

*

In the Ben Lomond race on 7th May 1994 when she finished second behind Joyce Salvona in 1:34:40.   Christine liked the race and has a series of very good races and times in it.*

An indication of how well she ran in 1995, Christine finished the year with a double appearance in the British Fell Running Championship: third in the Veteran Ladies category but an even more impressive fifth in the Open category which was won by Sarah Rowell from Angela Mudge. In the Scottish Championships she was top of the rankings in first place with Angela Mudge second and Elspeth Scott third.   It is appreciated that the championship is decided by places gained in a series of events over different distances and surfaces and not all runners cover as many as others but the standard is very high and her performances were first class.

Over the years Christine was consistently placed highly in the Hill Running Championships.   The 1997 season was no different with Christine placed seventh and first veteran Lady in the Scottish Tiso hill running championship.

Her competitions were not all over long distances.   As an example, two of the listed races in 1998 were the shorter faster ones in Strathyre and Melrose: 

On Wednesday 17th June, 1998, she ran in the Ben Sheann race over 3 miles/1000 feet of ascent to win by a minute; and three days later

on 20th June, 1998,  in the south of Scotland the Eildon Two Hills, 4.4 miles/1500 feet was the race.  Finishing second in 37:17, Christine was first O35.

These were only two of the races that summer and at the end of the year she was ranked at Scottish and British levels.   She was ninth of the top 22 ranked athletes in her category the British Individual Fell Running Championship.   She was also second Scot.   Nearer home in the Scottish rankings she was third woman behind Angela Mudge and Kate Jenkins and first O35 veteran.

There are not many results available throughout 1999 but we know that she was in awesome form when we see the repeat victory in the North-East.   The photograph below is not one of a runner struggling gamely on!   Look at the smile on the face and the lack of pursuing runners.  Christine, pictured  en route, liked the Great Wilderness Championship so much that she was back in 1999 when she finished ninth in a field of 49 runners (4 ladies) and set a record time for the race of 3:21:36.  

Photograph by Paul Wright

Christine running for Scotland in Die, France

Christine was by 1986 a genuine hill runner and racer with many good runs behind her and one who was highly respected by the hill running cognoscenti.    She followed her second place in the 1985 SHRA championships with another second place in 1986.    Important as these championship placings are, they are the result of running in several races in a variety of categories during the season and although none of them are easy races or runs, the championships give no indication of the runner’s preferences or race schedules.   Christine had been encouraged in her early hill running days by several people.  In “Voices From The Hills” she mentions Clydesdale Harrier Bobby Shields (former Ben Nevis and West Highland Way record holder, his brother Jim, Robin Morris of Carnethy and Denis Bell of Haddington.   There were also of course a number of women who helped and inspired her – Ann Curtis and Helen Diamantides plus Pauline Haworth and Joss Naylor of the Lake District.   At this stage of her career Christine ran well but as the years went by, her interests and abilities took her into longer and more challenging events but we can start here with some of the races that she contested in 1986.   

Most of the race results have been taken from “The Fellrunner” whose report started with this paragraph:  “Snow drifts, cold and high winds contributed to this year’s winning time being 17 minutes slower than last year.   Anyone who ran this year, and managed to beat their previous best time, should lodge a claim for a prize of a year’s supply of ice cream.” 

Although Christine was running well and being highly placed in most races, Ben Lomond was the only run over an hour’s duration and as we said above, she would come to in the longer challenges than those she faced of 1986.   For instance the Great Wilderness Challenge which would be the scene of one of her best races was first run in 1986 but she was maybe not ready for it at that stage.   1987 on the other hand saw a brilliant run in the Arrochar Alps race.   Into 1987 and we see the longer races appearing.

Note that Ben Lomond, the longest tackled in 1986, was only the third on the list in 1987 and there were two of approximately 4 hours each.   Although it was early in her career, and although she subsequently broke numerous records at many venues, this Arrochar Alps one was always a bit special.    The profile of the course below shows the four Munroes and the steepness of the climbs and descents.

She is quoted in “Voices From The Hills” : “The record run that I enjoyed most and which stood for the longest was the 1987 Arrochar Alps Race (there was no duck-boarding over the bog in these days).”   Her record was broken by Andrea Priestly in 2010 by three minutes.   It had stood for 23 years.    The “Fellrunner” magazine report of the report from the Winter 1987 issue is below.

Given the quality of the run, and its significance in the development of Christine as a hill runner, the map of the trail is also shown below.

1987 was indeed an important year for her since, as well as beginning a series of massive challenges in terms of distances and heights, she was ranked sixth equal in the British Fell Running Championships and was first Scot.   Christine included more and more of the longer races into her programme and by 1989 she added the Bens of Jura race where she was first Lady in 4 hours 16 minutes 15 seconds.    A 16 miles race with 7,500 feet of ascent, held on 27th April with “a blazing hot sun” to contend with as well as the boggy underfoot condition with knee deep heather.   Second Lady was Ruth Pickvance, timed in at 4:28:24, with P Gibb (4:29:00) and Ann Curtis (4:35:38) in third and fourth.   The next big one was the Glen Rosa Horseshoe on the Isle of Arran on 24th June which she won in 2:51:08.   This was a 12 miles race with 5,500 feet of ascent with 37 runners from all over the country taking part.     These no doubt helped her gain selection for the World Cup Mountain Races at Die, France on 16th and 17th September 1989.   Christine ran well to finish 37th of the 53 finishers and was fourth scoring runner in the fifth placed Scottish team.   She did of course run other races in ’88 – eg Dumyat where she was first Lady in 42:07 in May and the Broad Law (uphill only) where she was second to Trish Calder who was running very well indeed that year – but the trend was to the more challenging, longer and more difficult technically events.

Christine is pictured below with Scottish team mate Brian Potts in Die.

1989 finished with Christine ranked sixth in the British Championships.   It had been a good year in which she had confirmed her position as a formidable competitor on any hill at any distance. 

Back to The Background

Picture from Westerlands CCC website

Any athlete who ended their career with National Championship victories in four different age categories over an incredible 30 years would be  reasonably happy with their achievements.  These successes were not, it should be remembered, for a single race, but for a series of races at varying distances, in different conditions and over all sorts of  terrain.   The calibre of opposition faced included, in Christine’s case, such as the legendary Angela Mudge, the quite outstanding Helen Diamantides, the very talented Tricia Calder,  Elspeth Scott and Ann Curtis, plus the others mentioned below and a host of superb women hill runners in what was a golden age for the sport.   

If we add to that a catalogue of international and invitational races across the globe including all the home countries plus most of Europe from France to Poland and even round the world to Australia, we have a picture of a very talented athlete indeed.   Nor was she one of the athletes who have a good career in their chosen sport but put nothing back in – Christine also did her share of committee work and race organisation when starting out at a time when women’s place in ultra distance running, and particularly on and over the hills and mountains was in its infancy.   Before following her sporting career, we should have a look at her sporting background.   This page will look at the background to her running and the start of her career as a serious runner before looking at the different aspects separately.

Name: Christine, nee Taylor, was born in Bolton in Lancashire.   

Date of Birth: 15th October 1956.   

Clubs: Bellahouston Harriers, Clydesdale Harriers, Westerlands CCC.

Family background: The Taylor family had an active lifestyle and are described in Steve Chilton’s book “Voices from the Hills” as a hill walking family.   Her father used to tell Christine and her sister “Don’t sit down, you’ll get stiff.”   As teenagers they ‘struggled through wind and mist up numerous Welsh and Lakeland hills when, as she says, they would rather have been on the beach.    She emphasises though that “Without a doubt, I owe my love of mountains and adventure to my parents’ early encouragement and passion for the outdoors.”   

Sporting background:  Although her school did not include track and field athletics but concentrated on team sports, she did represent it in the lacrosse, netball, tennis and rounders teams.   Plus 

(1) competitive dinghy sailing crewing at various events.   

(2) As a student she enjoyed squash at university, 

(3) She did some jogging to keep fit and had an occasional run up Winter Hill which was not far from the house she grew up in.     (NB: Winter Hill is 1496 feet in height and a hill race in its own right).

As a student she did some work in the Clachaig Inn in Glencoe which allowed her to indulge in hill walking and climbing during the day.   The buzz in the Bar in the evenings, with all the hill walkers’ tales and stories which all helped her decide to move to Glasgow after finishing her university studies.

Christine, on the left, at the WMRA Championships in Die, France

These all meant that she was a very fit person indeed with a love of the hills when the Glasgow Marathon appeared on the scene in 1984.   She first ran in it in 1985 as a member of Bellahouston Harriers.   That first run was timed at 3 hours 08 minutes 08 seconds.    In a field of 11, 492 runners, men and women combined, she finished 1303rd.   She ran in Glasgow again and had faster time and also a bit further afield.  eg in Snowdonia (2nd Lady finisher), Lochaber, Windermere and Moscow.   The experience of running Moscow where she was part of a tour party, was a bit different from the others .   When asked how she got roped into that one, she comments:  “Restless by nature and saw it advertised in Running Mag I think. Pete and I just decided to go for it; we wanted to run together but there were separate starts. Didn’t find him until ww met in the foreigners finishing chute and got bundled into a gym for caviar, eggs, black bread and tea – just what no one wanted at that point!!! Later our gang wenr hunting for beer ( within our allowed zone) and ended up in a weird hotel ‘night club’ drinking the only thing they had – champagne – by the bottle!   Got in very, very late, we didn’t bother sleeping – just packed our bags and waited in the foyer to be picked up for our very early flight to St Petersburgh ( Leningrad); most of us fell asleep on the coach tour of the city!!!”   As for the race itself – “Moscow was very hot and humid – black bread, pear juice and milky tea were the en route refreshments; streets lined with soldiers, women who stared you up and down for your good kit and trainers (gave away post-race).Great memories of the wee tour group of which Pete (ex hubby) and I were a part and saw some amazing pre -perestroika Russia.”

Back at home, training consisted of running on the roads around the south side of Glasgow and when she got married her husband took her ice climbing in the winter – not a pursuit that recommended itself to her as something she’d want to pursue but nevertheless we have an image of a very active lifestyle encompassing a variety of sports and activities  and all the while managing to obtain not only a university degree but also a post graduate qualification too.   It is surprising that these were not her only activities at this point.   She tells us via Steve Chilton’s book that back in the early 1980’s  her good friend Ali Coghill who worked at the Inverclyde Sports Centre encouraged her to enter the Scottish Island Peaks Race as part of an all women team using he mountaineering skills, marathon running experience and sailing experience.  1984 was a year of hard training and they used Christine’s father’s boat – a Contessa 32 footer.   Her running partner was Lesley Kirkwood who also worked at the Clachaig.  They competed at that time in several SIPR’s.  She says that they competed well and a passion for the race that was to last – as we will see – for three and a half decades.

She was still a member of Bellahouston Harriers and running for them and her career as a hill runner was just starting.   “The Fellrunner” magazine for November, 1985, listed the winners of the Scottish Hill Running Championship for that year as follows:  1.  A Curtis, Livingston;  2.  C Taylor, Bellahouston.   Among her races that year was a fourth place in the Bens of Jura race on 25th May – a 16 miles 7,500 foot of ascent race which was won again by Ann Curtis. 

We have now followed Christine from her school days where she competed for the school in four different sports and spent a lot of time on the hills with her family to the point where she was starting out on a career as a hill and mountain runner that would show her as a top class international athlete.   It is appropriate to look at some of the many challenges and races that she undertook during her 30+ year career in the sport.

 The Background   Hill Runner 1986-89      The Scottish Island Peaks Race      To The Top:1990-99    The  2000’s Pt 1    The 2000’s Pt 2   

Photographs taken at Die 1989    

This collection of cuttings, photographs and memorabilia from Hugh Barrow begins with Herb Elliott and Gordon Pirie after a cross country race in England.

These are entitled simply     “A Famous Victory!”

And, as member number one of the British Milers Club, the following has significance for Hugh over and above that for the future of British Middle DFistance running.

The historian in Hugh shows with this clipping of a football match between Clydesdale Harriers and Rangers FC.

Whatever became of Shawfield (below)?   A venue for athletics from way back in the 19th century with pro athletes every week to start with, then when we knew of it after the War as the place where the Lanarkshire Constabulary Sports were held.   Sad, sad pictures.

Maybe the Celtic FC Sports???

Cars on the actual track.   As Hugh says, during the half time races at cup finals and Ne-erday matches the track could get a wee bit crowded at times.

Frank Horwill, one of the founders of the BMC and a name synonymous with the club, was never slow to voice an opinion.

An unusual angle of the start of the first 4 minute mile (NB Alan Gordon, a Scot, the forgotten man!)

.

The fifth annual Junior International took place on 13th August, 1983 and was previewed in the ‘Scotsman’ in the lead-in the week before as follows:

Given their form in the senior ranks since the international the previous year, the nomination of McDougall and Parsons maybe didn’t need a crystal ball but the other names had been well selected.   The Scottish team was a very strong one with Elliot Bunney 3rd in the 100 and 2nd in the 200m, Jim Nicol 2nd in the 400m,  Geoff Parsons 1st in the high jump, Craig Duncan 2nd in the Long Jump, and Carol Candlish (400m), Lynne McDougall (800), Karen Hutcheson (1500m) all winning their events.   

One year later on 4th August in 1984 the 4 nations faced up to each other at Meadowbank.   The following preview was printed in the ‘Scotsman’ on Friday, 3rd August.

As far as the highlight predicted above was concerned, Jayne was second in the high jump but her best clearance on the day was 1.82m which was a bit short of the record.   As for the others, Elliot Bunney won the 100m, Dawn Flockhart won both 100m and 200m, Alistair Currie won the 1500m and Craig Duncan won the long jump.   There were many seconds and thirds with the team result being a win for England with 335 .5 points, Scotland was second with 222.5, Wales had 174.5 and Northern Ireland 125.5.   

In 1985 the date was 17th August when, although he was still eligible, Bunney was advised not to accept the invitation to run because the meeting was only five days before a GB international for which he had been selected.   However he did agree to run but only in the relay as a gesture of support. Sandy Sutherland gave the meeting more coverage in the ‘Scotsman’ then the ‘Glasgow Herald’ sports editor did and his report is below.

When the meeting was held on 16th August 1986, it was not realised that it would be the last in the series.    It had been a good meeting, one which helped young athletes progress in competition against the best of the rest of Great Britain as well as a target for new Junior athletes in their first season in the Junior Ranks.   Several clubs had their first athlete ever ‘capped’ in these fixtures.   For example, the following extracts from regional papers indicate how significant the fixture was all across Scotland.  First, from the ‘Galloway News & Kirkcudbrightshire Advertiser’ of 21st August:

‘Arbroath Herald’ 22nd August –

From the Fife Free Press 8th August

From Falkirk Herald, 15th August

From the ‘Perthshire Advertiser’

That was just a small selection of reports found in fifteen minutes; from Edinburgh, Falkirk, Fife Perthshire, Arbroath, Glasgow and Galloway.   A big event which was good for the athletes, the clubs, their home areas and for Scotland which ended all too soon.   

The performances of all Scots at all meetings (except for 1983 where p

Bells  Junior International: Scots Positions 1978-86

The pages below indicate the finishing positions of the Scottish competitors in the above competition along with the team results.   They were kindly supplied by the official Scottish athletics historian Arnold Black.

Graham Williamson winning an invitation race at Meadowbank

Bell’s Junior International meeting was an annual competition between Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales and was sponsored by the Bell’s Whisky company and held at Meadowbank.  Bell’s, under the chairmanship of Raymond Miquel, were enthusiastic sponsors of sporting events and supported the annual Tennis Championships of the Highlands, the Junior Athletics International, the Bell’s Badminton Championship of the Highlands and in 1983 they extended their sponsorship of golf (which included the PGA Cup and the Ryder Cup) to include sponsorship of the PGA Junior Championship.   Individually they provided 66 individual Outward Bound scholarships at Loch Eil in Inverness.    The event began in 1978 and went on through the 1980’s.   

The first meeting was held on 29th July, 1978.   Ron Marshall’s take on proceedings for the ‘Glasgow Herald’ are reproduced below.

A disappointing result written in a tell-it-like-it-is fashion by the Herald’s top athletics reporter.   With hindsight, there are a couple of interesting names in the English team.   First Neil Black who won the 1500m was a very good athlete who would later join Bellahouston and be a top member of their very good team before going in to the administration of the sport; second the English winner of the men’s shot putt was Andy Vince who would become Scottish National Coach in the 1990’s and coach several very good Scots athletes.   Graham Williamson was of course always a very good talent and thoroughly deserved his victory after being very badly treated when omitted from the Scottish team for the Edmonton Commonwealth Games.  

Despite the disappointing result first time round, the second match took place on 31st July, 1979 again at Meadowbank with increased sponsorship from Bell’s.+   It was previewed in ‘The Scotsman’  by Sandy Sutherland on 24th August under the headline of  ‘More Cash for Junior Match’  as follows.

The accommodation arrangements as described by Sandy do seem rather strange with athletes from the east travelling between Edinburgh and Glasgow four times in a couple of days.   Graham Williamson was missed but he had very good run in the World Student Games where he won the 1500m.   With an international match in Dresden and the women’s British League match final taking place on the same day, space in the Monday papers was at a premium but the ‘Glasgow Herald’ gave the Bell’s match only a passing reference while the ‘Scotsman’ (Sandy Sutherland again) was a bit more detailed and did include the results.

There is a disjointed sentence which refers to the 1500m which should have read that Fiona McQueen won the women’s event with a strike from halfway enabling her to win easily, and in the men’s. the tactic was almost copied by Steve Cram.    At the start of their careers, Williamson won 21 out of 22 races with his rival but missed out on the CG in Edmonton while England took Cram along.   Not a good move by the Scotland selectors – but in ’79 while Cram was at the Junior International, Williamson was to win the World Student Games 1500m   Lots of very good names in this list of results with many Scots who were to shine in years to come including Linsey, Fiona, Dawn Kitchen, Chris McGeorge and Paul Mardle for Scotland and others like Eugene Gilkes and Ossie Cham spread through the field. 

Linsey McDonald winning at the British Airways Games

The decade ended with the meeting being held on 26th July in 1980 when it clashed with the Olympic Games in Moscow which grabbed all the attention and almost all the space available in the Press.   The ‘Sunday Post’ gave us this on the day immediately afterwards.

One day later, the ‘Herald’ gave slightly greater coverage when it said  “England won the Bell’s Junior Home Countries International at Meadowbank on Saturday.   They scored 349 points, Wales were second with 198, Scotland third with 190 and Northern Ireland fourth with 124.   The English team was so strong that in many events they took maximum points.   Scotland badly missed Linsey McDonald.   In her absence England’s Jane Parry took the sprint double in 11.95 and 24.17 but Kaye Jeffrey proved to be an able substitute for Linsey in the 100 metres finishing second in 24.34 seconds.”

And that was it as far as coverage went.   

27th July, 1981 saw the fourth in the series and a new star took the headlines in the ‘Scotsman’.

Again many very good athletes – and that was a part of the attraction: spotting the stars of the future.   The Scotsman gave us Sandra (pictured below in the Commonwealth Games of 1986) and Ann on the women’s side and Paul Mardle (AAA’s champion whose father Des was a Scottish Staff Coach) but others who would prove to be quite outstanding were Peter Elliott of England in the 800m, his team mate Paul Davies-Hale in the 3000m and Roald Bradstock in the javelin, and Nigel Walker for Wales in the sprint hurdles.

A year later, 7th August in 1982 was the date of the now firmly established annual Meadowbank fixture.   It continued to showcase some really high quality up-and-coming talent.   For instance Lynne McDougall, a future Olympic finalist running for Scotland defeated another future Scottish and British internationalist in Elise Lyon for a Scottish 1-2.  It was another Commonwealth Games year with the team not yet selected. The ‘Herald’ report on Monday begins with comments on that and 9th reads –

Complete results are not available at this point but we do have all the Scottish athletes performances, courtesy Arnold Black at the link below.

Bell’s Junior International: Scots Positions 1978-86

The photograph above – not quite the same as the one on the earlier pages (note the marathon runner here who is missing from the other) – shows John and the team with which he is most associated in Scotland – the 1986 Commonwealth Games team – but it is not the only Scottish team that he worked with.   We will have a look at various aspects of his work with GB teams and Olympic Games squads in this look at his athletics career, but let’s not forget the 17 (yes, seventeen) times he worked with Scottish teams.   The list is impressive.

*Bell’s Junior International and was sponsored by Bell’s Whisky Company.   It was an annual match contested by Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales with the first having been held on 29th July 1978

**Flora is in Ireland. 

Below: Another version of THAT picture! 

17 matches and meetings with 12 different venues.   Frequently with two internationals in a month in two different countries eg July and September 1985!   It is quite a record.   After 1986 he was selected as admin officer and at times team manager for GB teams or squads through until his retirement from international duty in 1992.   

A Young Brian Potts in action in the Carnethy 5

Clydesdale Harriers has had good hill runners from at least the 1940’s.   Men like twins Jim and Bobby Shields, Ian Donald and many others created a legacy.   The hill men and women of the 1980’s and ‘90’s were also quite superb with internationalists like Brian Potts and Ian Murphy, like Christine Menhennet, and with race winners like Cathy Farrell with of course Jim and Bobby featuring strongly.   Brian Potts was one of the best, albeit with a short career in the sport.  Born in 1962, he was 25 when he joined the club in 1987 but he retired from the sport comparatively early.   Why did he, a successful athlete and an internationalist to boot, retire from the sport?   The reply is simply that he was injured and could not continue.  Diagnosed with anterior compartment syndrome for which the treatment was to have the leg operated on, Brian reluctantly refused the operation and left the sport.   He returned briefly in June 1997 when he turned out in the Kilpatricks Hill Race.

 He was introduced to the club by John Hanratty who says, “Brian and I worked for Babcock in Renfrew in the1980s. We were both into running and I suggested he came to Clydesdale Harriers. He would leave work and do a training run up Ben Lomond. His preference was hill and country. “

He spoke of his love of the hills and respect for those who took part there, and for all who helped ‘make the sport tick.’   Born on 9^th June in 1962, he says he came into the sport initially to keep himself fit.    He credits the Shields brothers as having a very positive effect on his running and attitude to the hills.      He liked the mountain running scene but how good was he?  

A good way of assessing any hill runner’s summer racing season is to look at their performance in the Tiso Championship decided over performances in a set number of races.   In 1987 Brian was in fourth position after 4 races with just A Curtis (61 pts), G Kerr (75), and P Marshall (53) ahead of his 44 points with such as D McGonigle, R Morris, D Bell and  J Maitland behind him.  By the end of the season he was fifth, Alan Farningham having slipped into third place.

1. A Curtis 116 points
2. G Kerr 113    “
3. A Farningham 103 “
4. P Marshall 86   “
5. B Potts 80   “
6. J Maitland 60   “

He was mixing it with the big boys there.   Maitland, in sixth, was included here to illustrate that: he was a world class hill and fell runner, orienteer, duathlon and triathlon competitor who became head of the Triathlon High Performance Centre at Leeds Metropolitan University.   He may not have run in as many nominated races as Brian in 1987 but it indicates the calibre of athlete with whom he was competing.

He had a good run at Criffel on 15^th March to finish seventh behind six very good athletes, on 9thh May he was ninth in the Ben Lomond race and in the Bizzibery run on 20^th June he was second in 16:04 over the 3 miles with 500 feet of ascent course, and on another short course   Third at the Falkland Festival 3 miles/1200feet on 28^th June in 21:10.  

The Scottish Hill Runner magazine said after he won the Kaim Hill Race on 15^th May, 1988, that “Solid performances in both uphill and downhill sections brought a well-deserved victory to Brian Potts.”  Result:  1.   B Potts 27:59; 2.  A Farningham 28:07; 3.   D McGonigle 28:17.

1988 was another good year for him.   He ran in and won the Tiso Campsie Race on 29^th May leading the Clydesdale team of Andy Dytch (5^th), Jim Shields (8^th) to first place.  On 26^th June he won the Falklands Festival run of three miles and 1200 feet.   Two days later, 28^th June saw him run in the Eildon Two Hills Race and finishing sixth.   The Fell Runners magazine reported on the Falklands race: “Heavy overnight rain made the top part of the course fairly slippery.   Nevertheless Brian Potts was only 11 seconds outside the course record set by Dermot McGonnigle in 1987.”   His winning time was 19:35, one minute and 35 seconds clear of second.   On 3^rd July he ran in the Moffat Weavers Chase over 18 miles and with 5000 feet of ascent to be fifth finisher.   It was a much longer race than the others noted above and he emerged with credit over this distance too.  

Brian with Christine Menhennet at Die where they both represented Scotland

1989 was a good year for him on the Hills.   The high spot was when he was selected to run in the World Mountain Running Championships at Die-Chatillon-en-Diois in France when he was a member of the team that won third place medals.   The team of Colin Donnelly, Brian, John Wilkinson and Ian Davidson was placed on the Scottish Athletics Roll of Honour for this performance in a world championships.

  At home he ran well and although not all results are available, the following list, while not comprehensive, gives a picture of the year.  

And then we add in one of his favourite races, the Tinto Hill race in Lanarkshire, which he won on 1^st November in a time of 31:37.   It is one that he wanted to win well before it was due to be run and it was as much a triumph for determination as for ability.  Three firsts, a second and a third in eight races is pretty good for someone as new to the mountain running scene as he was then.  

Brian Potts, second from left, finishing in the National Championships at Irvine.   This picture solved a problem for the SCCU because there was quibble about whether the Dundee runner had finished in front of the man in the white vest.   This photograph, provided by John Hanratty, solved the problem for them.

1991 saw some very good results starting with his sixteenth place in the Snowdon International on 25^th July bringing a  third place team medal.     Other excellent results that year were victories in Criffel on 10^th March where he was 5^th, the Kilpatricks Hill Race on 16^th June which he won in 52:12, the Half Ben Nevis on 14^th July in 52:07 was another victory, and the ‘Fell Runner’ commented on the fact that of the three races that weekend (Cow Hill and Melantee) two had been won by Lochaber runners with the remark that Brian Potts of Clydesdale broke the Lochaber stranglehold on the weekend.   There were also second places in the Cairngorm race in 73:26 and the Blisco Dash in Cumbria on 17^th July where he was beaten by G Bland with Brian’s time being 38:30.  

Having started the year in the Snowdon International, he ran in the World Mountain Running Championships at Zermatt on 8^th September where he finished 49^th over the short course 11.3 km with 805 metres of ascent.  

*

In 1992 he won the Midweek League decided for points won over five races – the Whangie Whiz at Strathblane, Dumyat at Blair Logie, Kilpatricks in Clydebank, Ben Shean at Strathyre and Cort Ma Law at Lennoxtown.  

He won the Criffel Hill Race in Dumfries on 15^th March, Ben Lomond on 9^th May and Ben Sheann on 17^th June.   (Results from Fell Runner magazine)  

There were many other good races that year but nor quite as many as is shown in his 34^th place in the 1992 Championship.    

Over the country he ran in club, District and National championships and relays including the prestigious Edinburgh to Glasgow eight stage.   Brian also represented the club in track and field competitions as part of one of the best teams in the land specialising in the steeplechase which he ran in 1988, 1989, 1992. In 1989 he also ran over the 400m hurdles.  His best time for the event was recorded in 1988 when his 9:50.7 ranked him in the top 30 in Scotland.   A good club runner?  He ran one steeplechase with racing flats on instead of spikes.   Landing on and then taking off from a wet steeplechase water jump with wet shoes would indicate that he would not do that by choice but he did it for the club team.   Note also that he ran the 400 metres hurdles once, saying it was as a warm up for the ‘chase when really the club needed the points.

When asked what he got from running, he said he liked the feeling of achievement and of meeting people from far and wide. He thought his personal bests were finishing 28th in the world mountain championships in a team which achieved third team bronze medals   His general attitude to the sport was that you got out what you put into it.   His best ever performance was winning Ben Lomond  in 1992 in 1:0854 from Dermot McGonigle in 1:09:06 in afield of 194 runners.   When asked what was his worst race, his reply was short and succinct: “None!  If I finished down the field there was always a reason.”    The only race that he wanted to win but didn’t manage to was the Ben Nevis – but he’s not alone in that one where you are racing the hill and the weather as well as the other runners.

Getting a bit philosophical we asked what running brought him that he would not have wanted to miss and there was no hesitation here either.   His response? The people that make the sport tick.   Brian is an endurance runner and the question that other runners always ask is about the training that he did to get the results that he got and we asked if he could give some details of his training?    “I was doing 70 miles a week which meant running morning and night.  Before I won Ben Lomond, I ran it six times prior to the race day , on the race day I turned at the summit and the marshal shouted out 45 mins at that I nearly stopped for a second as I had turned at the summit in 42 minutes in training.”

A Clydesdale Harriers club group after the Dunky Wright race.   From right: Charlie McIntosh, Brian Potts, Derek Halpin, John Hanratty, Willie McCoo and Peter Rudzinski

There was more to Brian than the running.   Although he was never a committee man, he did help at the ‘Come and Try Hill Running’ days held in Old Kilpatrick run by Christine Menhennet and Denis Bell.   Denis says : “Chris Menhennet had the great idea for ‘Come & Try’ and I helped her carry it off at Old Kilpatrick Bowling Club.   As I recall about 15 ‘turn ups’ and about 6-8 of us worthies.   We did basic introductory stuff and explained the concept of hill running and the organisation in place to assist…I cannot remember if it was still Scottish Hill Running Association, or Hill Running Commission (the fully affiliated SAL organisation).   We covered stuff like essential equipment, shoes and bumbag, top coverings, then maps and compass etc…and a few countryside craft hints and tips (eating and drinking etc) all very low key.

We were trying to enthuse ‘new runners’ to hill running, and I recall ‘most’ had some jogging running experience, though generally ‘little’.   We set off in small groups to do easy runs up into the Kilpatricks and those were very canny ‘social’ groups,  I remember in mine I got them to do a wee scree run descent for fun).”

Picture below from one of these days shows Denis Bell (second left), Christine Menhennet, Brian Potts and Ian Murphy second from right.

CoPilot says about him: 

“Brian Potts, a talented runner, made his mark both on the track and the hills. Let’s delve into his achievements:

1. Track and Road Running:
   • Brian was a good runner on the track and road. He excelled in cross-country races and was particularly outstanding on hilly terrain.
   • His favorite hill race was Tinto, where he secured numerous victories and set records.
   • Brian represented Scotland in hill running events.
   • He also participated in the Island Peaks Race, showcasing his versatility as a competitor.
2. Island Peaks Race:
   • The Island Peaks Race is a unique event that combines hill running and sailing. Teams consist of both hill runners and sailors.
   • The sailing course spans 160 nautical miles along the stunning West Coast of Scotland, including challenging areas like the Corryvreckan and the Mull of Kintyre.
   • While sailors navigate the waters, runners cover 60 miles and ascend a total of 11,500 feet during the race.
3. Legacy:
   • Brian Potts left a lasting impact on the Scottish running community, especially in hill racing.
   • His dedication to both track and hills made him a respected figure among fellow athletes.
   • Brian’s achievements continue to inspire runners and adventurers alike.

Remembering Brian Potts, a true enthusiast of Scotland’s rugged landscapes and challenging races”.