Pentland Mile - 2008

On a windy but bright Saturday morning, locals in Thurso were entertained by the sight of 56 young athletes competing in the annual Pentland Mile race. The race at Thurso Harbour and Esplanade has become a well supported part of the busy athletics schedule for the Caithness Amateur Athletic Club and marks the transition from the track and field season into the winter's cross country programme.

The conditions on the day made the outward half of the course easy going for the athletes who ranged in age from 8-17 years. However as they turned at the end of the Esplanade, the return leg proved tougher as athletes turned into a strong head wind.

The race for the top positions saw 13 year old Emma Dunnett dictating the early pace of the race as she opened up a 20metre lead on the rest of the field. With her endurance base, Emma paced the race well but her lack of pure strength showed as the leaders turned for home.

17 year old Andrew Raeburn who had made a more conservative start to the race, worked his way through the pack and showed the strength which has won him many national accolades in sprints. He clawed Emma back with 400m to go and won the race by 6 seconds in a fascinating race that pitched strength and speed over endurance and stamina.

Andrew and Emma were well clear of the rest of the field with 23 seconds separating Emma from her twin sister Oonagh Dunnett who took 3rd place. Despite the challenging conditions, many athletes recorded time that would have shamed many senior runners.

Of note was Iona McLachlan and Rachel Cowie, who despite their concerns over managing to complete the distance, crossed the line together in 16.15min with the support of some of the older athletes who had accompanied them along the final leg of the race. The course record (4.58min) which was set last year by Graeme Taylor was not under threat on this occasion although some 20 personal best times were set by athletes who have previously competed in this race.

The full race results follow with all personal bests (pb) indicated:-

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