Around about 2022, a wee idea started to germinate in my head. I remember on this walk chatting to Toezi about a fundraiser that I had been thinking about. It's funny how these ideas come about. At the time I'd been starting to run Munros and longer distance runs were becoming more common. I had thought about a route joining two Scout Centres - maybe Lapwing and Auchengillan, but then over the following year, I got a bit more ambitious in my planning and considered that linking Lochgoilhead and Auchengillan might be possible.
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| Crew Merch |
I had considered running it in 2023, but instead I ran the Devil of the Highlands with my Dayshape colleagues Al, Ellie and Will. This let me know that I could do a similar distance and elevation. However, you can't just do the Devil, you really have to push yourself and with the same group, we ran the Highland Fling in 2024.
Both of these races taught me a lot about my body, and especially fuelling over those distances and terrain. I found something magical about covering that distance. The pain and discomfort fades and you're left with an incredible sense of achievement.
During these last couple of years, I've twice supported Alex Staniforth on some of his bigger adventures - a Frog Graham Round in the Lakes, and what turned out to be a quite awful and premature end to his English Coast to Coast adventure at 4am on a Sunday morning on some back road near the North York Moors (he did go back and finish what he started!).
In addition, I was support crew for my colleague Al who ran the full West Highland Way race in 2024. That ended badly for me and my van with a breakdown on a long diversion in Appin.
My takeaway from all these adventures is that nothing goes to plan - but you can work around everything that goes wrong and you'll get it done one way or another. A bit of Be Prepared, and a lot of friends will get you through it.
The Reason
In December 2024, I'd found out that Erica, one of my Explorers had made it into the Explorer Belt Expedition this summer, hiking with her team through valleys in Austria and Italy. Erica and her family have been in the group a long time, and the 30th Explorers probably wouldn't be as strong as it is without them there. Another opportunity arose for a trip to the Faroe Islands, and Liv, another Explorer, was keen to go for it. I knew this idea of mine had legs, so I fired the starting gun and told both sets of parents that I was up for doing this and that I would raise them at least a few hundred pounds to help with the cost. These big international camps can cost £2000-£3000, plus extra kit and spending money.
By mid January this year, Liv had word that she was on the Faroes trip, and Christmas was out the way, so it was full steam ahead with planning.
The Plan
I had to pick a date, and the year was filling up quickly. I wanted to avoid the midge and conditions that were too cold, so I managed to get the goldilocks weekend of 3rd May in my own diary, then spread the word that this was happening.
I broke the route down into legs - Lochgoilhead - Ardgartan - Tarbet - Luss - Balloch - Auchengillan. It worked well by road for support vehicles and the distances weren't insane (8-15km per leg), except for the last leg, which was 21.6km. Long, but not unachievable.
The next step was to gather my crew. I wanted Isa to be there to wipe away my tears if they came (they did). I really wanted someone with a van to be able to carry my ridiculous rider of coke, bananas and hot cross buns. Big Jim was my man. Jim's mum was my teacher at nursery, so I have a long history with the family and I've known Jim personally since I was a Scout myself. Isa and Jim would be the safe pair of hands I'd need at each base. He also has the comfiest camping chairs I've ever sat in.
I needed drivers to pick up and drop off runners. Fortunately, Joiner Jim, Stuart and Tracy were available so they each had some missions to undertake. Stuart is also a master mechanic and previous experience tells me that you should probably have one of them on every crew...
I was keen to make an event of this at the end. Inola was one of the Explorers I raised funds for last year and has since started a Scout Network in the District. This was a great opportunity for the Network to run their first event, so we decided on a barbeque at end and she would take on the planning and running of that.
Next up was support runners. I am lucky to be flush with many running friends so I was not short of offers. Before I even asked I worked out who I needed on each leg. Al was my first choice for the first leg - I knew he would love the opportunity to come over the hill with me, but I also wanted any of the Dayshape team on the last leg specifically. Al, Will and Ellie had seen me as a shivering mess in the first aid tent at the end of the Devil and I knew they wouldn't indulge me any whinging. They also know what I'd be going through in my head. Unfortunately Will wasn't available due to a knee problem. Emily was up for it though, fresh from the Paris Marathon just a few weeks earlier. The rest of the support runner gaps filled up, with Paul D, Toezi, Chris, Calum (another Explorer), Shig, Alison and Sarah filling my roster.
Last but my no means least was my first aid cover. Alasdair was primed and ready to be on-hand with plasters but drew the line at the application of any lotions.
I met with the west coast support crew on Sunday 13th April on a sunny afternoon at the Lismore for a few drinks and a discussion about what to expect. We covered the plan in detail, pickups and dropoffs, food and medical issues I might face along the way.
The Training
I had run up to about 40km in a single run in training with 50-70km a week for some time, which had been quite a load on my body. I had picked up a bit of calf pain, which wasn't really slowing me down, but was overall making me feel more tired. I'd been doing regular speed sessions which definitely improved my pace and resilience, but I dropped those off in the month leading up to the race to favour more distance at a slower pace and in more challenging terrain.
My favourite little hills in the Kilpatricks proved again to be a great training ground, with some decent trail runs up to about 20km, and on the longer runs I went further afield. One particularly memorable March day was a 30km run from Arrochar to Helensburgh right as a huge rain-bearing front passed over Scotland. I had the wrong socks on and ran in full waterproofs along the Three Lochs Way in some of the grimmest conditions I've ever faced. I ended up with enormous blisters too which were painful to run on. I remember taking this photo and thinking that the weather can't be worse than this in May. Always trying to find a positive!
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| Glen Fruin in intense rain |
I also ran around the Ardgartan peninsula, four Munros up at Loch Mullardoch, and from Balloch to home via the West Highland Way. I also did some longer recces on my bike.
Eating plenty was important too and I was really encouraged to see that I'd actually been gaining some weight despite the large amounts of calories I'd been burning off.
In the week approaching the event, I had eased off all running - using lots of ice on my calf to make sure I didn't have any issues with it. I did a lot of cycling to keep the cardio up. Taper is torture!
The Article
Erica's Mum, Vonnie is very well-connected and had managed to get in touch with a journalist who was interested in writing a piece on the challenge in the Glasgow Times. I had a
fundraising page but I had been struggling to express the scope of the challenge - I found that beyond a marathon people can't generally be expected to understand what you're trying to do. The article made me realise I'd been going about it all wrong. It told my story of growing up in the 30th, the Explorers during Covid and the girls I was supporting. It's a
great article and the pictures are pretty smashing too. In the week leading up to the run, it really helped the donations roll in.
The Day Before
I had a meal plan from my nutritionist for the Fling which I just recycled and was pretty stuffed when I left the house for Lochgoilhead about 6pm in the van. That weekend just happened to be Live at Loch Goil so the village was really busy with people. As I rolled up the little road to the Scout Centre I spotted my rock star mate, Stephen, who is the guitarist with Wrest. Wrest were headlining that night so we had a quick chat and then I headed to park up near the Arboretum. I wandered to the Scout Centre to catch up with Chloe and we went for a wee stroll around the Community Gardens on a really nice evening. I headed back to the van and we arranged to head to the gig at 9. Stephen had put me on the guest list, so Chloe and I picked up our Artist Passes and watched a bit of Wrest.
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| Wrest on stage |
I headed off after a few songs, back to the van where I could still hear them playing. I scoffed some rice pudding and headed to bed. I didn't really sleep, because I knew Al and Paul would be appearing sometime around midnight. They appeared pretty much bang on. Al headed into the top bunk of the van and Paul put his wee tent up. With everyone in place, I thought I might get some kip, but unfortunately, after the pub shut, a load of people went to the house behind the van and had a nice party in their hot tub till about 3am. I put my ear plugs in but I was scared I would miss my 0500 alarm. Turns out First Aid Aldo's mates were on a stag do in Lochgoilhead and had a hot tub so it's pretty likely to have been them.
Race Day
The Start
The alarm did go off at 0500, and it was a shock to the system. I got dressed, then out the van to see Paul and Al, then we had breakfast, got lots of kit ready, did our last minute checks and then headed to the flagpole at Cranstoun House. It's my challenge, so I decided the start would be the door handle of Cranstoun House and the end would be the door handles of the Providore at Auchengillan.
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| Clean laundry to start |
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| With Erica at the start |
Erica and her Mum, and Stuart and Shig had come to see us off. Early start for them, but I was grateful to have some kind of fanfare and at 0700 exactly Al, Paul and I headed off up the slope and onto the Cowal Way for leg 1.
Leg 1 - Lochgoilhead to Ardgartan
I recced this in April and the weather wasn't great. There were a few trees down but all negotiable. I had envisaged us leaving Lochgoilhead in sunshine passing between two Corbetts and it turned out even better than I had hoped. The morning was perfect, and climbing was easy with Al and Paul loving it just as much as me. Plenty of stories were shared and we event got a few pics on top to the bealach, the highest point of the day at 500m.
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| What a morning |
The descent was great fun, really feeling good, no niggles and just enjoying being out for a run that early in the morning. We were going a bit fast at one point, so we slowed it a little and we rolled into Ardgartan right on time to cheers. This was my first crew stop and everyone was super supportive. I ate, had some water and slapped on some suntan lotion.
Leg 2 - Ardgartan to Tarbet
We added Toezi as a third support runner from this point and so the four of us crossed the A83 and headed up a little zigzag track. Chat was good and the morning was warming up. Before we knew it we were on the track that comes down off the Cobbler and saying hello to the walkers heading up. We whizzed through the car park then off on a path before the petrol station. The path behind Arrochar was all bluebells, oak woods, sunshine and lots of little climbs and descents. We were all loving it, both Pauls discussing Paisley and the law. From Arrochar station it's just a short distance to Tarbet pier, where everyone was waiting for me again. This time, a couple more Explorers were there - Jess and Calum had joined. I gave the first badge and sticker to Paul D since he was off to see St Mirren that afternoon. Al would rejoin for the last leg and I'd see Toezi again soon enough...
Everyone was cheering me on but I knew the 30km of Loch Lomond would be a test of the mind. However, my focus was on the next stop, Luss.
Leg 3 - Tarbet to Luss
I know this part of the route really well, it's flat and for some sections it's quite adjacent to the road. Other bits are really close to the loch and you get a completely different experience than driving along. For this leg, I had Calum, one of my Explorers and his Dad Chris, as well as my old friend Shig who got me into running in the first place.
We were ticking along quite nicely, enjoying looking at all the big houses and the sunshine. There was a cool breeze but I remember quite a few bits where there was a hot blast of air from the loch. This was the longest run Calum has ever done and he managed fine. My pace was a little slower but we were still on track. The patter was friendly and cheery so I was feeling alright by the time I rolled into Luss, 31.5km into the run.
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| North Loch Lomond Crew |
I got a seat in Big Jim's camping chair at Luss and had some food; a banana, and another teacake, but I did clock that food was a bit harder to eat. I felt cold as well, so Stuart Nealis popped a blanket over me and that sorted me out. Everyone was fussing over me.
It was time for another crew shakeup - Toezi rejoined, Shig stuck around and Alison came on board.
Leg 4 - Luss to Balloch
The day was heating up a bit by this point - it was pretty much midday and all the cloud was disappearing. I made sure to be drinking plenty, getting my water bladder replaced with another at each station from Tarbet onwards and drinking most of it. Isa was preparing 4 scoops of Tailwind in 1.5l of water to ensure I had enough electrolytes to replace the sweat I was losing.
Alison was chief chatterbox and I could tell she was trying really hard to keep that conversation going. Shig and Toezi hadn't seen each other in a while so they were catching up. There were a few points where I could have gone quiet but Alison kept it going and I knew it was working.
There was some more road-adjacent parts, but soon we passed through the quiet opulence of The Carrick golf course.
We discovered a locked gate at the Arden Scout campsite, so we ended up taking a shortcut through the Cruin where we briefly ran on a small beach and grabbed some photos. There was a lot of chat about the Sycamore Gap.
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| At the Cruin |
We passed Duck Bay with all it's caravans, open water swimmers and paddleboarders, and then the old road to Balloch. By this point I was slowing, definitely walking the uphills but I couldn't get into my head too much, mostly because Alison was talking to me. (Thanks Alison!)
Just before Balloch I got the dreaded tingles in my arms and so I slowed right down, told the crew what was happening and scoffed a few dextrose to get me into Balloch. We were still running when we got there. I started recognising people and realised there were quite a few folks out to see me. I spotted Simon, Karen, Cooper and Donna-Rose as well as Olivia, some other Explorers and Erica's Dad, Bob.
Up ahead I could see Ellie, Emily and Al on the bridge. I wasn't feeling all that cheery and the rest of the crew had parked a wee bit further on than expected. It was a bit overwhelming, so I just put the head down, didn't speak and ran and everyone just followed on.
I got sat down and it was a wee bit much.
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| Isa ready to wipe away the tears |
I got some soup, a roll, a banana, and some sweeties to keep me going. Eating was hard but I knew it was what I had to do. Ellie and Emily kept the sun off me by holding a blanket over my head.
I sat there much longer than I should have, but that time did replenish the energy. The idea of another half marathon on top of nearly 50km wasn't all that appealing, but I had some excellent support and Alison was keen to do a bit more running so we agreed she would join to Caldarvan Station. It was time to get out of that chair and finish this thing.
Leg 5 - Balloch to Auchengillan
Despite the distance already covered, I was looking forward to this leg. It was lovely quiet roads out of Balloch but there was a lot of hills. I had slowed down a lot, but everyone just went with my pace, no questions asked. That's what I needed. There was a silent understanding that I would do whatever it takes to get this finished and the support crew were happy to be there for the rest of the day if that's what it took.
We checked out the big houses with tennis courts and had some amazing views back up Loch Lomond. Emily enjoyed the lambs and we were all really loving the sunshine and the butterflies on the hot roads. If I'm being honest, I was glad I was away from all the fuss at Balloch and moving again, albeit slowly.
I had some stomach issues which was pretty horrible but that passed and at Caldarvan station Alison finished her stint and Sarah joined us. I've known Sarah since I started doing hill training with Scouts and she was keen to get involved in this when she heard about the challenge. Her concerns about not being able to keep up disappeared quickly when she saw the pace we were going at.
Pretty soon we were off the tarmac and onto the dirt road section of the John Muir Way that goes through the Kilpatricks.
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| Delighted to be back in my local hills |
It felt like a really long way from that point to even get to the Burncrooks reservoir, but off we went. Not that fast but we were moving, with the occasional run breaking out.
It was getting quite hot and I was making sure to drink plenty. I think the extra electrolytes might have been starting to mess with my kidneys.
We got to the Burncrooks and after a few sections of uphill, I had become a bit queasy. My original planned route took us round the south of the reservoir but that would have meant another 50m at least of ascent and I just wanted it done, so we headed on the flatter northern side. This meant I was off the line on the tracker and loads of people have since asked me about this. Given how I felt on the ascents, I just didn't want to feel sick.
Then it was along the road and before I knew it, we were crossing the main road right outside Auchengillan. We got some photos on the way in. I knew we were nearly there, so I savoured this moment before the madness that was to follow.
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| It's where the action is! |
As we got up to the junction, Stuart and Joiner Jim were waiting to see me. That was great to see and I broke into a wee jog for the last bit. My aim was to touch the Providore Building door handles and that had kept me going for a long way. My welcoming committee was a bit further round with a ribbon, but the end to me were those handles so I went there first.
The End
Cheers erupted and I headed for the ribbon, then straight through to give Isa a big hug.
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| The non-official finish line |
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| Sweaty hugs |
Liv and Erica were right there and they presented me with a medal that they'd had made up. I had held it together until that point, but that was too much and I was away.
Inola's barbeque was going a wee bit further down the path, so I just walked towards that and I had managed to recompose myself until Big Jim put his arm around me and said "well done son", then we were both in tears.
I needed a sit down and some tea, so I got myself sorted a bit, then got the big home-made emergency blanket on and had some food. It was very emotional, but also very wholesome. I was really impressed with Inola's barbeque efforts and I was really encouraged to see Lloyd, Ryan and Thomas, some of my ex-Explorers come along to support. Thank you Liv, Erica, Andy, Calum, Jess, Olivia, Taylor and associated parents for taking the time to come and support, I really appreciated it!
There was a cake as well and the party at the end was very well organised. I have Tracy to thank for that. Tracy has done a power of work for the group in the last few years and when she decides to get on board with something, she gives it 100%. The whole day just brought everyone together in a way that we haven't seen at the 30th in a long time, crossing generations of people from the group and bringing in others that just wanted to be involved in the madness for a day.
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| Dishing out badges |
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| Cake! |
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| Lovely messages of support |
I had made up some special badges and stickers for the crew, so I dished out a load of those.
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| Stickers and Badges |
At the end, Joiner Jim gave Isa and I a lift home and it was all over. Getting out the car was a struggle, but I was glad to sit down with a beer and get to my bed.
Epilogue
The goal was to raise lots of money, and we did. We managed to get £2,834 and that will go a long way to making sure that Liv and Erica have a great time at camp. I feel incredibly proud to have had the privilege of being able to organise and execute an event like this, but it takes a lot of people to get on board with a crazy idea and then run with it. I am a very lucky man to have such good friends and although I am pretty sure I thanked everyone personally, I might as well do it again. Thank you everyone who helped. Not only did you help raise lots of money, you've made me feel that there's nothing I can't do with the right people around me. You're the best!
Recovery has been weird. I was hungry for a couple of weeks, but that has settled now. I feel like my normal running pace hasn't quite come back yet, even a few weeks later. I will need to get out on some speed sessions again.
People asked me "what's next" as I was doing the run. I think they were really asking how I am ever going to top this. I don't know! I am running the Dunoon Ultra in August, the OMM in October and beyond that, we will see. I also just want to finish the Munros over the next few years.
It's time to hand the baton over though - I was the first, but I am sure I won't be the fastest to run the Goil to Gillan Challenge. The gauntlet is down and there's a pre-made route for anyone that wants to do it. So it's over to the next generation to show me how it's done. One thing's for sure though, I will be there to support you.
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| My Medal from the girls |
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