Cover photo – Snow White and the 3 dwarves Bashful, Sleepy and Grumpy at Jedburgh Running Festival

Tuesday Night Training

Jog leader Bex started preparations for the Hartley Cup by putting the group through a hard series of 3 minute and 90 second interval drills at the Energy Park in Methil.

Parkruns

Nick Silcocks and Stephanie Barclay set new personal best times at Beveridge Park in Kirkcaldy.

Path of Condie Half Marathon

Chris Russell followed up his win at last week’s Nightmare race with an excellent performance at the Path of Condie half marathon on a challenging undulating course starting and finishing in Milnathort. Chris was 4^th finisher overall and was closely followed by LLV clubmate Alan Davie in 12^th place. Also taking part were Gillian Easton, Peter Rieu-Clarke and Annie Gibson.

Race results:

• Chris Russell – 4th 1:24:01
• Alan Davie – 14th 1:32:10
• Gillian Easton – 71st 1:55:16
• Peter Rieu-Clarke – 106th and 1st MV70 2:22:09
  
• Annie Gibson – 107th 2:25:48

Jedburgh 3 Peaks Ultra

A band of Leven club members travelled to the Borders to take part in the Jedburgh 3 Peaks Ultramarathon which is held as part of the annual Jedburgh Running Festival. The 38 mile course heads north from Jedburgh towards Melrose where runners traverse the three summits of the Eildon Hills before retracing their steps back to the start point. Robin Pate took on the individual challenge of completing the entire course while his clubmates Karen Capewell, Jim Dunstan, Mark McLean and Davie Hogg ran as a relay team finishing in an excellent 7^th position.

Race results (full ultra):

• Robin Pate – 66th individual 7:07:51

Race results (relay):

• Snow White & 3 dwarves (Jim, Mark, Karen, Davie) – 7th combined team 6:38:53

National Cross Country Relays

Allen Marr represented PH Racing Club at the Scottish national cross country relays in Cumbernauld. Allen was the 2nd fastest over-60 runner on the day, covering the undulating 4km parkland course in 16:18 as he prepares for the national short course cross country championship next month.

Upcoming Events

• Tentsmuir Torchlit Run – Friday 2 November
• Templeton 10 – Sunday 4 November
• Edinburgh Men’s 10k – Sunday 4 November
• Lasswade Open Cross Country – Sunday 4 November

Further ahead

• National Short Course Cross Country Championships – Saturday 10 November
• Glen Clova Half Marathon – Saturday 10 November
• Silvery Tay Trail Race – Sunday 11 November
• Livingston AC Open Cross Country – Saturday 17 November
• Largo Law Hill Race – Saturday 17 November
• Hartley Cup – Sunday 18 November
• Nightmare Series Race 2 – Friday 23 November
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 2 – Saturday 24 November
• Bob Stark Memorial 5k – Sunday 2 December
• East District Cross Country Championships – Saturday 8 December
• Loch Leven Santa Run – Sunday 9 December
• Tilli 10k – Saturday 29 December
• Indoor 3000m Championships – Friday 4 January 2019
• National Indoor Open Meeting – Saturday 12 January 2019
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 3 – Saturday 19 January 2019
• Masters Cross Country Championships – Saturday 2 February 2019
• Indoor Masters Championships – Sunday 17 February 2019
• Smokies 10 Mile (Ladies Only) – Sunday 3 March 2019

Cover photo – Allen at the East District Cross Country League match at Stirling University (photo by Susanne Lumsden) 

Tuesday Night Training

Jog leader Karen took a large group to East Links in Leven for a pyramid drill around a half mile circuit.

Nightmare Series #1 – “Autumnal Antics at Annsmuir”

The first race in the 2018/19 Nightmare Series of torchlit trail races took place at Annsmuir Woods near Ladybank with a number of members of Leven Las Vegas Running club participating. The race winner was Chris Russell, followed by Mark McLean, John Kay, Terry Cullen, Gordon Christie, Jeff Taylor, David Reynolds, Annie Gibson, Kenny Ritchie, Bex Oakenfull and Peter Rieu-Clarke.

Race organiser Chris Russell donated the proceeds from the event to Maggie’s Centre in Dundee in memory of the popular local runner Steve Peters who sadly passed away recently after illness. Here is a link to Chris’s pre-race tribute to Steve (kindly recorded by Kenny Ritchie).

Race results:

• Chris Russell – 1st 28:05
• Mark McLean – 12th 32:11
• John Kay – 21st 33:20
• Terry Cullen – 39th 37:16
• Gordon Christie – 40th 37:55
• Jeff Taylor – 42nd 38:30
• David Reynolds – 43rd 38:35
• Annie Gibson – 46th 44:04
• Kenny Ritchie – 49th 46:00
• Bex Oakenfull – 55th 47:25
• Peter Rieu-Clarke – 59th 50:08

Parkruns

At the weekend parkruns there were PBs for Matt Holden at Stretford and Mark McLean at Loch Leven.

East District Cross Country League

The first of three events in the East District Cross Country league took place on the campus of Stirling University on Saturday 20 October. LLV’s Allen Marr was representing PH Racing Club at the event held over an undulating 3 lap course totalling 5.5 miles which Allen completed in a time of 43:15.

Upcoming Events

• National Cross Country Relays – Saturday 27 October
• Path of Condie Half Marathon – Saturday 27 October

Further ahead

• Tentsmuir Torchlit Run – Friday 2 November
• Templeton 10 – Sunday 4 November
• Men’s 10k – Sunday 4 November
• Lasswade Open Cross Country – Sunday 4 November
• National Short Course Cross Country Championships – Saturday 10 November
• Glen Clova Half Marathon – Saturday 10 November
• Silvery Tay Trail Race – Sunday 11 November
• Livingston AC Open Cross Country – Saturday 17 November
• Largo Law Hill Race – Saturday 17 November
• Hartley Cup – Sunday 18 November
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 2 – Saturday 24 November
• Bob Stark Memorial 5k – Sunday 2 December
• East District Cross Country Championships – Saturday 8 December
• Loch Leven Santa Run – Sunday 9 December
• Tilli 10k – Saturday 29 December
• Indoor 3000m Championships – Friday 4 January 2019
• National Indoor Open Meeting – Saturday 12 January 2019
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 3 – Saturday 19 January 2019
• Masters Cross Country Championships – Saturday 2 February 2019
• Indoor Masters Championships – Sunday 17 February 2019
• Smokies 10 Mile (Ladies Only) – Sunday 3 March 2019

Cover photo – the start of the Mad Hatters marathon with Robin in the pack

Tuesday Night Training

Jog leader Ross took the group to Lower Methil for a series of hill reps.

Mad Hatters Marathon and Half Marathon

The Mad Hatters marathon and half marathon trail races were held in the Lomond Hills on a wet Saturday morning with Robin Pate completing the marathon in 11^th place and the veteran Peter Rieu-Clarke finishing as first over-70 in the half marathon.

East District Cross Country Relays

Allen Marr competed for PH Racing Club in the East District Cross Country Relay Championships at Glamis Castle.

Lochore 10k

Five Leven Las Vegas members participated in the Lochore 10k trail race around Lochore Meadows Country Park. First to finish for LLV was Kevin Hughes in an excellent top 20 position. Kevin was joined at the event by Gordon Christie, Terry Cullen, Nick Silcocks and Susan Halliday.

 

Race results:

• Kevin Hughes – 20th 42:37
• Gordon Christie – 66th 50:11
• Terry Cullen – 67th 50:26
• Nick Silcocks – 98th 54:44
• Susan Halliday – 144th 62:20

Aviemore Half Marathon

Annie Gibson travelled north for the Aviemore half marathon where she set a new personal best time for the distance.

Race results:

• Annie Gibson – 794th 2:12:54 PB

Upcoming Events

• Nightmare Series #1 – Friday 19 October
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 1 – Saturday 20 October
• Nutcracker Trail Race #2 – Sunday 21 October

Further ahead

• National Cross Country Relays – Saturday 27 October
• Path of Condie Half Marathon – Saturday 27 October
• Tentsmuir Torchlit Run – Friday 2 November
• Templeton 10 – Sunday 4 November
• Men’s 10k – Sunday 4 November
• Lasswade Open Cross Country – Sunday 4 November
• National Short Course Cross Country Championships – Saturday 10 November
• Glen Clova Half Marathon – Saturday 10 November
• Silvery Tay Trail Race – Sunday 11 November
• Livingston AC Open Cross Country – Saturday 17 November
• Largo Law Hill Race – Saturday 17 November
• Hartley Cup – Sunday 18 November
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 2 – Saturday 24 November
• Bob Stark Memorial 5k – Sunday 2 December
• East District Cross Country Championships – Saturday 8 December
• Loch Leven Santa Run – Sunday 9 December
• Tilli 10k – Saturday 29 December
• Indoor 3000m Championships – Friday 4 January 2019
• National Indoor Open Meeting – Saturday 12 January 2019
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 3 – Saturday 19 January 2019
• Masters Cross Country Championships – Saturday 2 February 2019
• Indoor Masters Championships – Sunday 17 February 2019
• Smokies 10 Mile (Ladies Only) – Sunday 3 March 2019

Cover photo – Chris, Alan, Mark, Andy and Bryan of the Scottish Long Coastal Relay team 

Tuesday Night Training

Jog leader Allen led the group through a fartlek drill at the Energy Park at Methil Docks.

Scottish Long Coastal Relays

One of the most testing events on the local running calendar, the Scottish Long Coastal Relays, took place last week around the Fife Coastal Path where teams of six runners set out to complete the full 116 miles from Culross to Newburgh. Leven Las Vegas Running Club had achieved an excellent third place at the 2017 event and the team of Chris Russell, Alan Davie, Robin Pate, Mark McLean, Andy Cargill and Bryan McLaren were looking to do well again this year.

Starting at midnight and running by torchlight, Chris Russell gave the team an excellent start by equalling his own record time from 2017 for the first stage and handing over at North Queensferry to Alan Davie in first place. Alan continued his run through the darkness to Dysart where Robin Pate took over for the next stage to St Monans. As dawn broke Robin passed the baton to Mark McLean for the longest stage of the race around Fife Ness to St Andrews where Andy Cargill set off for Wormit Bay with the LLV team still holding on to second place overall.

On arrival at Wormit Bay, Bryan McLaren took over with a small lead of around 5 minutes over the third placed team. Unfortunately the long distance racing experience of the final stage runners in third and fourth place allowed them to overhaul Bryan on the way to Newburgh, leaving LLV in fourth place overall by a slim margin of less than three minutes when Bryan crossed the finish line at Newburgh in mid-afternoon.

Team results:

1. PH Racing Club 14.36.34 (Record)
2. Carnethy 15.42.59
3. Fifi & the Pixies 15.53.03
4. Leven Las Vegas 15.55.40
5. Carnegie Harriers 16.31.35
6. Corstorphine A 17.13.42
7. PAACE Hillies 17.23.12
8. Scald Law 17.36.45
9. Corstorphine B 17.40.07
10. Team Loads 18.04.27
11. Beacon Runners 18.21.20

LLV individual stages:

• Chris (Kincardine to North Queensferry) 1:50:34 (equalling his own record time)
• Alan (North Queensferry to Dysart) 2:37:26
• Robin (Dysart to St Monans) 2:47:40
• Mark (St Monans to St Andrews) 3:14:39
• Andy (St Andrews to Wormit Bay) 2:54:09
• Bryan (Wormit Bay to Newburgh) 2:31:12

Parkruns

Teresa Guild, Susan Kirkcaldy and Luke Whittaker achieved new personal best times at Beveridge Park in Kirkcaldy.

Giffordtown 5k

Allen Marr continued his return from injury by setting a season’s best time at the Giffordtown 5k road race.

Race results:

• Allen Marr – 57th and 3rd V60 20:04

Upcoming Events

• East District Cross Country Relays – Saturday 13 October
• Lochore 10k – Sunday 14 October

Further ahead

• East District Cross Country League Meeting 1 – Saturday 20 October
• Nutcracker Trail Race #2 – Sunday 21 October
• National Cross Country Relays – Saturday 27 October
• Path of Condie Half Marathon – Saturday 27 October
• Tentsmuir Torchlit Run – Friday 2 November
• Templeton 10 – Sunday 4 November
• Men’s 10k – Sunday 4 November
• Lasswade Open Cross Country – Sunday 4 November
• National Short Course Cross Country Championships – Saturday 10 November
• Glen Clova Half Marathon – Saturday 10 November
• Silvery Tay Trail Race – Sunday 11 November
• Livingston AC Open Cross Country – Saturday 17 November
• Hartley Cup – Sunday 18 November
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 2 – Saturday 24 November
• Largo Law Hill Race – Tuesday 27 November
• Bob Stark Memorial 5k – Sunday 2 December
• East District Cross Country Championships – Saturday 8 December
• Loch Leven Santa Run – Sunday 9 December
• Indoor 3000m Championships – Friday 4 January 2019
• National Indoor Open Meeting – Saturday 12 January 2019
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 3 – Saturday 19 January 2019
• Masters Cross Country Championships – Saturday 2 February 2019
• Indoor Masters Championships – Sunday 17 February 2019
• Smokies 10 Mile (Ladies Only) – Sunday 3 March 2019

Cover photo – LLV at the Great Scottish Run in Glasgow

Tuesday Night Training

Jog leader Bex treated the group to a pyramid fartlek drill at the Energy Park at Methil Docks.

Great Scottish Run Half Marathon & 10k

Just over a year ago, on 8 August 2017, Lynsay Bell and Dawn Watson joined the Leven Las Vegas Running Club Couch to 5k program as complete beginners to jogging. Over the 10 week period of the program they successfully completed the objective of running a 5k distance without stopping and they have quite literally kept going ever since. The intrepid ladies took on challenging cross country races during the winter months, and moved on to road running events while progressing in distance beyond 5k to 10k and on up to 10 miles. Then last weekend at the Great Scottish Run in Glasgow, in the company of a group of their Leven clubmates and many thousands of other participants, the two ladies took part in their first ever half marathon race. They acquitted themselves extremely well and the inspirational pair will no doubt be extending their running plans to include even longer distance events in the future.

Among the other Leven club members running the half marathon, first to finish was Mark McLean followed only seconds later by Robin Pate. Ross Johnstone, Davie Hogg, Teresa Guild, Karen Richards, Claire Doak and Bex Oakenfull also took part with Ross, Karen and Claire all setting new personal best times.

In the companion 10k race Douglas Clews was first LLV to finish followed by Grant Stevenson and Lorraine Davie who both set new personal best times for the distance.

Race results (Half marathon):

• Mark McLean – 581 1:31:26
• Robin Pate – 595 1:31:44
• Ross Johnston – 3993 1:56:38 course PB
• Davie Hogg – 4280 1:58:08
• Teresa Guild – 4703 2:00:32
• Karen Richards – 6141 2:11:59 PB
• Claire Doak – 6595 2:15:59 PB
• Lynsay Bell – 6799 2:18:10 First half marathon
• Dawn Watson – 6801 2:18:13 First half marathon
• Bex Oakenfull – 7377 2:25:45

Race results (10k):

• Douglas Clews – 1490 51:15
• Grant Stevenson – 1939 53:16 PB
• Lorraine Davie – 3234 58:34 PB

East Neuk 10k

The husband and wife pairs of Lynda and Stewart English and their visitors from Canada Jan and Brian Soutar, along with Peter Rieu-Clarke took part in the East Neuk 10k hosted by the Anster Haddies. Stewart was the first Leven club member to complete the course which starts near Waid Academy in Anstruther and runs into Balcaskie Estate to the halfway point where the runners turn and retrace their steps to the finish line. Lynda was awarded a spot prize.

Race results:

• Stewart English – 117th 52:12 PB
• Brian Soutar – 127th 54:02
• Peter Rieu-Clarke – 130th 54:49
• Lynda English – 174th 61:39
• Jan Soutar – 204th 72:51

Upcoming Events

• Scottish Long Coastal Relays – Saturday 6 October
• Livingston AC Open Cross Country – Saturday 6 October
• Nutcracker Trail Race  – Saturday 6 October
• Giffordtown 5k – Sunday 7 October
• Linlithgow 10k – Sunday 7 October

Further ahead

• East District Cross Country Relays – Saturday 13 October
• Lochore 10k – Sunday 14 October
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 1 – Saturday 20 October
• Nutcracker Trail Race #2 – Sunday 21 October
• National Cross Country Relays – Saturday 27 October
• Path of Condie Half Marathon – Saturday 27 October
• Templeton 10 – Sunday 4 November
• Men’s 10k – Sunday 4 November
• Lasswade Open Cross Country – Sunday 4 November
• National Short Course Cross Country Championships – Saturday 10 November
• Glen Clova Half Marathon – Saturday 10 November
• Silvery Tay Trail Race – Sunday 11 November
• Livingston AC Open Cross Country – Saturday 17 November
• Hartley Cup – Sunday 18 November
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 2 – Saturday 24 November
• Largo Law Hill Race – Tuesday 27 November
• Bob Stark Memorial 5k – Sunday 2 December
• East District Cross Country Championships – Saturday 8 December
• Indoor 3000m Championships – Friday 4 January 2019
• National Indoor Open Meeting – Saturday 12 January 2019
• East District Cross Country League Meeting 3 – Saturday 19 January 2019
• Masters Cross Country Championships – Saturday 2 February 2019
• Indoor Masters Championships – Sunday 17 February 2019
• Smokies 10 Mile (Ladies Only) – Sunday 3 March 2019