The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
Edwards victorious
BA cross-country meeting results
Myles Edwards made his name on Scotland’s super-fast all-weather running tracks, winning Scottish 1,500m titles indoors and out, but on Saturday the Aberdeen AAC stalwart showed no less of an aptitude for tackling the altogether different challenge offered at the inaugural BA cross-country meeting.
The event, well organised by Insch Trail Running Club and JS Kintore Running Club, attracted a healthy turnout of athletes for a fixture which seems destined to be repeated next year, with the possibility of junior races being added to the programme.
Edwards zipped around the rollercoaster 8km course, covering the grassy fields and woodland trails near Lyne of Skene in Aberdeenshire, in 28min 56sec to leave his rivals gasping in his slipstream.
Ben Ward took second position in 30:16 after being pursued all the way by his Metro Aberdeen clubmate Sam Milton, who finished five seconds behind.
Edwards was delighted with a performance which he hopes will set him up for more success in the weeks ahead.
He said: “I wanted to run here for two reasons. Firstly because I have a lot of friends at JS Kintore so I wanted to support their event.
“Secondly, I wanted to get some hard efforts under my belt before competing in the East District cross-country league meeting next weekend and the national championships in February.
“So this race was perfect for that.
“I set off fast because I wanted to really hammer it and make it hurt. I really needed to get out of my comfort zone.
“I felt good on the first lap, then it was a lot tougher on the second lap.
“But it’s a great course with a lot of variation to it.
“It was tough but fun and I’d really love to see bigger numbers of people taking part in future. I’ll certainly be recommending it.”
Rachel Little was a clear winner of the women’s race when navigating around in 38:52, but the Insch Trail Running Club member had to work hard for her success.
Deeside’s Abigail Mason made the early pace and led through halfway before dropping back to finish second in 40:00, while Julie Hoyle (JS Kintore) was a further 38 seconds behind in third position.
Little said: “It’s the first time I’ve run here. It’s a lovely area and I really enjoyed the section where we ran through the woods.
“I was lying second for quite a while but I could see the woman ahead of me.
“I tried to reel her in slowly and, thankfully, I as able to do that. Once I got past her I was able to get a big enough gap to hold on to. I was looking behind a few times to check where she was and I pushed hard to keep my lead.
“I could see my family, who were out supporting me, so that gave me a boost every time I passed them.”