Manny seemed a little suspicious that so many Westies had made the journey up to Newtonmore and the Creag Dubh hill race (part of the Highland Games). I reminded him that every year he usually emailed folks to encourage a visit and maybe that was the reason. The real reason was that Brenda had organised a celebration BBQ to mark his awesome Corbetts run.
Due to the ridiculous roadworks at Bankfoot, I made the start of the race with only a few minutes to spare (only one guy was behind me at the race registration) and the warm up had been across a couple of fields from where I abandoned the car. The early part of the race was a hoot – jumping fences, wading a river and another fence or two before actually getting to the hill! Heading up the narrow track was interesting – if you wanted to overtake someone, it took a huge effort in the heather. Any time I did this, it took so much out me that whoever I got past …did the same to me. After a while I figured it was easier just to sit in position and save the legs for the way down. The problem with this was that fellow Westie Dave Rodgers was very close behind so a huge effort on the descent would be required to stay ahead since Dave is normally a far better descender than me. Round the cairn and time for the fun to begin. Managed only to lose one place on the way down but only just – on the farm track I squeezed past a guy who looked to be in a bit of pain only for him to recover and we had a bit of a sprint for the line.
Race over, a few of us headed to the Glen Hotel for a wee refreshment. Manny definitely looked surprise to find Charlie Campbell sitting in the pub but to give a veneer of respectability, I made an excuse about being nightshift and said cheerio.
An hour later the Suie Hotel at Kincraig was full of Manny’s pals – a fact that took a bit to sink in once the bold chap arrived himself! The rest of the evening is history but was a fantastic way to celebrate. We had some food …some speeches and maybe even a wee toast or two.
Next morning, I got up early and headed back down towards Laggan – I had a date with a couple of Corbetts !
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