Isle of Skye half marathon

Ok, it is technically a race but since it’s always the week before the WHW I haven’t given the Skye half loads of welly for years. It’s just a good excuse to go up and have great weekend and a leg stretch. This was my 14th Skye half and it is my favourite, we’ve been going up for it since 1993. I only do two halfs a year now, Skye and Glen Clova. The most I’ve done in one year is 17 in 1993 starting with Inverness in March and finishing with Glen Clova in November. This years Skye was my 107th half marathon.

It’s a lovely route, not an easy one though, a bit of steady climbing in the first few miles, some downs, flats and undulations until the long climb at 10 but it’s all open stunning scenery and the finish is all down hill. Since last year it’s now a standard 13.1 miles but it used to be 13.8 miles, I liked that unique quirkiness and was a little disappointed that it conformed.

Pauline and I ran together, a nice controlled pace finishing in 2.03.07 hrs, about 40 seconds faster than last year, we’re nothing if not consistent! The weather was beautiful, clear blue skies, hardly any wind and not a midgie! It couldn’t have been better… but it was! This year’s race memento was a wee engraved glass and a miniature of Talisker, my favourite. (It’s going in my hip flask to share with an Angel at the top of the loch next week.)

In the afternoon Pauline and I bought a picnic at the Co-op and headed off to Kilt Rock and The Quiraing and had a wee stroll, we weren’t planning anything big, Pauline was wearing pavement shoes!

In the evening it was lovely to catch up with the Sheffield crew, we meet up regularly… in the Tongadale, Skye half weekend.

Sunday was a slow drive home, the weekend was over already, but we stayed in holiday mode for a bit longer, a wee leg stretch at Sligachan, then a detour for an ice-cream in Plockton and another short walk to a viewpoint above the village.

“Kemosabe! It’s a short arse female with size 7 Saucony and very little intelligence!”

Well, if I had a bit more sense I would’ve been watching where I was walking!

Here's more photos, I did get a few good ones, even if I say so myself.