A Guid Dookin' at the Yetholm Shepherds Race

 

I’m a week behind the times. Looking around at most of the blog sites written by my peers, I find that very few have had the stamina to continue to keep their blogs up to date. I’m not sure what that says about me. Saddo. Anyway, I digress. Me and Speedy Joe travelled up to the Yetholm Show last weekend for the Shepherds Show Race. It's just over an hour's drive and just over the border. It was a Scottish Championship race this year, so we expected the field for the hill race to be swollen, a little like the burn crossing that had filled with the previous days rain. Around 80 turned out including Wild, Douglas, Marwick, Marshall, Mudge as well as the local Norham, Gala, Wooler and Teviotdales that frequent the annual races held in the Cheviots. We paid our 10 quid for entry and returned briefly to the car to change. After a good heavy shower, it began to dry, and the temperature rose. I was happy that we were going to stay dry and discarded my t-shirt, going for the vest-only look. I had dug out my old Canon sureshot which is light enough to run with and still had a good lense. I had decided that I wasn’t going to flog myself mercilessly up 'yon big hills', but, instead, take the arty photos during the race that no other photographer could possibly manage. As the course leaves the show ground it takes you up one hill to a turn, returning the way you came, back through the show ground, across the burn, then up Staerhough with a wee loop at the top before returning. If I played my cards right, I could photograph the whole field, or at least most of them, at some point.  A woman arrived with two dogs just before we were about to go and she hurriedly pinned her number on her pink t-shirt. I wondered who she was. But soon we were off with me click, clicking to my left and right, then running on. 

The first hill was short and not too steep, and I got a few decent shots, as Wild and Douglas hoofed past me on their first return leg. I put the camera away on the way down, but on reaching the stream crossing, I stopped and dug it out again and let a couple of lads go past so that I could get the ‘shot’ of them splashing across. After the second guy crossed I thought I’d better get on with it, and began to cross, while at the same time stowing away the camera. However, I was not concentrating and tripped, falling headlong into the gushing rapids. There was a hoot of glee from the onlookers, one or two who had their camera phones out. I got up, got to the opposite side and shook the camera. It never stood a chance. I battled on and passed a couple as I ascended Staerhough. It was super windy at the top, but we were not there long enough to get cold, and an Edinburgh Uni girl passed me, before I re-passed her on the way down. At the second crossing of the stream I took it canny and Edinburgh Uni waded past me with confidence and at the finish line she had taken a couple of seconds out of me. Les, the organiser said he would have liked to have witnessed my dooking, and I guessed I was going to be able, at some point, to see the photo taken by one of the on-lookers. What if one had video footage…would my fall from grace go viral. No matter: dispensing with the warm down I got back to the car and changed and poured myself a hot coffee. What a plonker. It was fifty something placing and forty something minutes for the race. 

Surf n' Turf

Speedy was second to the pink shirted runner from down south who goes by the name of Emily Cowper Cowles…look her up. Holds the solo record for the ascent of the UK 3 peaks, including cycling in between them. Crackers.

Getting home, at least the memory card hadn’t been ruined and I stuck the photos on google.

 (link  https://photos.app.goo.gl/p2eSa8GSewasDzp9A )

 The photo of my 'baptism' was found on the Norham facebook site.  The next morning I was off early to Dundee to ride with the Thistle. It was a fine day out for the 7 intrepid riders as we contrived a 55 mile ride that included 3 climbs around Kinnaird and Abernyte. It was the Taybridge and Speedwell bars and a house special chow mein in the evening and an earlyish night before a 25 miler to Errol in the morning gloom. Not a bad weekend all told.