Whinney Hill

Club night tonight and only Steph up for a run up Whinney Hill. Or whiney hill?The others opting for 5 miles or intervals with JR, star of the other local papers coverage this week. Steph and I were following the route of one of the club cross country races, one that I have yet to run in due to my previous hatred of all things cross country, but from the club it turns into a long test of 8.8 miles according to Garmin or 9.5 by G-map. It starts with just under 3 miles of road and path before hitting a well used but rough trail. I was setting a fairly brisk pace, one that was too brisk as I suffered badly on the trail after we crossed the Boturich Road and hit the steeper part, being reduced to a walk by screaming quads. A breather was called for at the top reached in 46 minutes and then we hit the return ,mainly downhill but what is probably the part I have most difficulty with as it is difficult to find footfalls when running down. No doubt I'll improve with practice, but when running with Steph I feel as if I'm walking. Back to the club via Balloch station and Argylle park so not quite as far on the return. Very slow return at that.
URL for this route is: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=2103425

A short working day tomorrow with just one car to be picked up and delivered in Glasgow so I'll make jogscotland for an easy run tomorrow night. Might try a swim or a cycle in the afternoon.