Stuc and Lomond Recce

 Having successfully signed up and paid my cash for the Lairig in June, I realised that a jaunty 50k around a pan flat course in Perth was hardly going to prepare me for the cross country challenge of a 43k hill run between Braemar and Aviemore. I had to look for some altitude to shock my rattling and decrepit carcass into action. So it's the Stuc a Chroin 5000 on the 30th April. Call me mental.

With this in mind and recognising that speedy joe (Cat) needed a recce for the uphill Ben Lomond Trial in May, we hot footed it up to Strathyre on Good Friday morning to find us some mountains to run up. Arriving in the village late morning, we were off and onto the forest tracks by 1pm. However, the map of the course we had was a bit pants and I had to stop to consult the OS map and Cat and Ant about where we were heading. The blind leading the blind. There was a lot of shrugging and chin stroking going on, I can tell you. We ended up off-course, then back on-course, but then came face to face with Ben Each. We weren't sure we could see the Stuc, which is behind Ben Each, but the second half of the race route was clearly going to be a monster quad-melting lung-buster. We picked our way down to Glen Ample and reckoned we had done about half the race route. However, it was around 3pm by then and we agreed to return down the Glen and run along road and trail back to the village. It was a quick change followed by coffee and then a prompt drive to Gartmorn where the tent was erected and we force marched ourselves the mile or so to the village to keep our reservation for dinner at the pub. A community ran affair, the pub was clean, the service good and the food hot and (glen) ample.  We mosied back to the campsite and were tucked up by 9.30pm. I won't mention the camper drying their hair at 10.30 or the bloke with the wee crackling fire going well into the evening, but its a risk you take when you go all out-doorsy. The walls are thin in a tent. Not that I was in it; I was in the car. 

Sunday arrived and we were up and out after a coffee on the stove by 8am. We parked up at the overflow car park in Rowardennan and after some huffing and puffing we reached the top of Ben Lomond in just over an hour. We passed a few couples who had set off early doors, dog walkers and one guy carrying his bike. Upon being passed by Speedy Joe, one wifey remarked 'no that's what I call skill...'. I of course lapped this up and after a few fotos at the top in the clag with Ant and Cat, I found myself grandstanding on the lower slopes to the hoardes who had appeared on the lower slopes. Shame on me. Granted some of them did look like they were kitted out for a walk to the shops to get the paper and rolls rather than several hours of ascent up Lomond, but who am I to judge?  Getting back home late afternoon, we only identified one unwelcome arachnid in the luggage; but one is one too many in my book. More TCP spray required on the tights next time.