Scottish Islands Peaks Race
Team Fettes completed the Scottish Islands Peaks Race on Sunday. This hardcore adventure race is really for adults. The course is:
• Run a hill route in Oban, sail to the island of Mull and run 18miles up Ben Talladh (Angus R, Sam W and SJW)
• Then sail through the night to the island of Jura to run a 14mile hill route on the scree and open hillside (Ewan M, Sarah M and MGD)
• Then sail through the night to the island of Arran and run 19 miles up Goatfell (David M, Christian S and AGM)
• Then sail to the finish at Troon.
The weather was fine for running on Mull and the team completed this in 4 hours. The voyage through the islands against the tide to Jura was bitterly cold and the runners had to keep eating in preparation for the route ahead. By the time the good ship Lydia reached Jura, the weather was improving and the run took place in dazzling sunshine… but by the time we sailed for the Mull of Kintyre, the wind had gone. Nevertheless, it was a rough passage motoring through the tidal overfalls and the darkness to reach Arran at sunrise on Sunday.
Our decision to start the engine means that we do not count as finishers this year – in common with many of the fleet – but we did all the runs and we completed the course. Huge thanks go to Chris Carver of Great Glen Holidays and Donald Fraser of Tomish Holidays. They brought Chris Carver’s magnificent yacht Lydia to the team and used all their years of experience to sail us safely around the Western Isles.
Only three schools competed in the Youth Race in 2012. This means that the six Fettes runners are part of a very elite squad of young people indeed – fewer than 20 youths complete the course each year.
IJL
Photos from the SIPR can be found here