Marathons in Scotland 2012
Scotland has many fantastic marathons to choose from throughout the year. Big and small in participation numbers, all are the classic challenge of 26.2 miles! This is the selection for 2012, taking in Scotland's amazing scenery and hospitality.
19/05/2012 Durness Sutherland
Part of the week-long Cape Wrath Challenge, which features a week of events in this beautiful remote corner of Scotland. The week includes a road half marathon, a trail run, a multi-terrain run, a beach run, and the full marathon. You can enter the whole week of events or just pick and choose which ones you want to enter. The marathon has been measured by a UKA course measurer and has a unique feature in that it features a ferry crossing!
Website: www.capewrathchallenge.co.uk
27/05/2012 Edinburgh and East Lothian
Scotland’s largest marathon, and the flagship event of the weekend long Edinburgh Marathon Festival which also includes a half marathon, 5k, 10k and the
EMF marathon team relay, together with junior races and a Saturday breakfast run. A Runners World survey in 2008 ranked it as the fastest course in the UK. There are now dual starts to cope with the ever increasing numbers. After early miles in the city, the route heads out along the coast through Portobello, Musselburgh Prestonpans and Port Seton. After a short loop in the scenic grounds of Gosford House, the route returns to finish in Pinkie Park at Musselburgh. For 2012 they have reorganised the whole finish and reunion area, to solve some of the problems of 2011.
Website: www.edinburgh-marathon.com
10/06/2012 9:00am, Comrie, Perthshire
New race for 2012 organised by the local club Strathearn Harriers. This, like the Lochaber Marathon, should be one for marathon connoisseurs! If road running is your thing, why wouldn’t you want to go and run an event in beautiful scenic Strathearn in Perthshire? The profile looks like this will be a challenging undulating (rather than hilly), one loop course, but you will be running through such beautiful place names like Glen Artney, Drumchork wood and the River Earn valley with fabulous views at times across to the Ochils to the south, and the Perthshire hills to the north and west. The Harriers with their Famous Grouse 10k in July and the Comrie Hills relay in September, have built a good reputation for race organisation, with good solid events in the “organised by runners... for runners” tradition. You can be sure that whatever your goals or standard, you will have a great experience.
Website: www.strathearnharriers.org.uk
01/09/2012 Aberfeldy, Perthshire
Another new event for 2012, which will feature a two-lap course, from Aberfeldy to Kenmore, at the eastern end of Loch Tay. Capitalising again on some breathtaking scenery, there will also be a half marathon.
Website: www.highlandperthshiremarathon.co.uk
01/09/2012 or 07/09/2012, Cooper Park, Elgin
Like Lochaber, an event that was started in the first mass marathon boom of the early 1980s. While many events have come and gone, this will be the 30th running of this event. It starts in Elgin and takes in one large beautiful loop of the Moray countryside. It meanders out to the coast at Burghhead through quiet country roads, flanked in September by acres and acres of fields either awaiting harvest or recently harvested. A stretch along the coast to Lossiemouth and its picturesque harbour and beaches before returning inland on more quiet country roads to Cooper Park in Elgin. It has grown to include a half marathon which starts at Gordounstoun School near half way and a 10km event which starts close to the 20 mile mark. A unique feature of the event is that to co-ordinate all mile markers, they appear in reverse order, as miles “to go” rather than miles covered – i.e. if you are running the marathon, the first mile mark you see is after 385 yards, when a sign says 26 miles to go, and so on.
Website: www.moraymarathon.com
30/09/2012 Inverness
2012 will be the 11th running of the event. It is Scotland’s second largest marathon and is run on a point-to-point course on the south side of Loch Ness, from just beyond Whitebridge into Inverness. Runners are bussed to the start. Taking in open moorland, forests and of course the world famous Loch, this has to rank as one of the most scenic and beautiful courses and start locations in Great Britain. Although several thousand runners come together on the weekend in the capital of the highlands, to tackle not just the marathon but the concurrent 5km and 10km events, the organisers have managed to establish a family feel about the event.
Website: www.lochnessmarathon.com