Finally, I ran to the top!

The first time I took the G-Force to run Dumgoyne hill, near Strathblane, I was fairly confident that I'd at least keep up with him. After all I've summitted this 1400ft scenic icon several dozen times and almost always as fast as I can go. Never, though, have I managed to run All The Way.

I believe that the G-Force was aware of this Dumgoyne Holy Grail but I didn't think he'd actually go ahead, on his first attempt, and tick it off. Of course, he was the perfect gentleman runner for all of, erm, about 10 minutes, before he made a bid for the top, running all the way - and, yes, you guessed it, Totally Trashed FionaOutdoors.

Surprisingly I wasn't really that bitter about it. Fair nuff, I thought. He's a fit bloke, he's an obsessive Munro bagger and he's very determined. I just posted away the memory with a wry smile in the part of my brain that is labelled "I'll Get Him One Day".

And yesterday was the day! I wasn't feeling particularly fit and I didn't feel that energetic but I was going to give Dumgoyne my all. To begin with I actually thought I was going to be able to run the hill (and there is a very steep, long section for most of the hill) non-stop. But even the G-Force had not done this. While he'd run it all the way he'd had to stop a number of times for a breather. I think I took five "breathers" in total and I can't describe my running as anything more than jogging very slowly at times but I still did it. I ran all the way from the top to the bottom without ever slowing to a walk.

Better still I had started at Strathblane and take in a two or three-mile undulating warm-up run before even getting to the bottom of Dumgoyne, followed by the same run on the way back.

I have to say that the G-Force took the news well. Although, when I causally mentioned the run from Strathblane first he did splutter a little. I can't see it being long before he's missing a day of Munro bagging for another go at Dumgoyne.

A little healthy competition certainly ups the training regime!