17th June 2006

Firth Gala Day
Sponsered Half/Quarter Marathon

The first Island Games half and quarter marathons took place on Saturday 17 June to coincide with the Firth Gala. 45 runners and a dog started the races which took place over courses around Firth. There were a few wrinkles but overall the committee was very pleased with the day. The committee hope this will become an annual event and that the association with the Firth Gala can be maintained. The organisers are very grateful to the Firth Community Association for their support and look forward to a long and fruitful relationship.

Tony Trickett has been advising the committee during the build up to the event and was on hand to start the first races. His experience has been invaluable and, on the day, was just the same. Someone who has been involved with marathons on Hoy for so long understands what is required and how things have to be done. Tony will be continuing to advise the committee after the event and making suggestions as to how the event could be enhanced for next year. However on the whole he was pleased with the event as a whole and only suggested that a tent or marquis at the start and finish would have helped because of the rain and the organisers would certainly agree with that.

In keeping with the location for the races, 2 Finstown businessmen put up the shields. These were awarded as follows:

Winner of the Quarter marathon

Shaun Tait (42.38)

Shield presented by
Calum W Kirkness Ltd

Others who contributed to the success of the day were:

The Rendall Hall (tables)
Frozen Food Centre (cups and bags)
Scottish Water (water)
Alfred Flett Ltd (transport and barriers)
Gornsport (prizes)
Merlin Business Systems (website)

And of course the race marshals who were provided by some of the OIGA team members and stood out in the weather for up to 2 hours to man the watering stations around the course and were not sponsored!

The main sponsor of the event was buyorkney.com and Patricia Long representing the company was on hand to present the prizes along with T shirts printed specially for the occasion by one of the company’s suppliers. The sponsorship enabled the committee to acquire all the race signs, competitor numbers and other bits and pieces that will be used at future events organised by the OIGA. Gornsport also donated prizes for the 1st man and woman home in each event and these will be sent out with the winning runners’ certificates.

The next such event will be the 100 mile sponsored cycle in August and planning is already well advanced, although OIGA will also be at The County Show. Fundraising is firmly on the agenda of The Orkney Island Games Association these days.

The day started wet and Ross Donaldson and Graeme Christie were out in the rain from 7am setting out the course. The rain continued until shortly before the start of the races and the weather remained largely dry although grey and cool. Registrations had been coming in for some time but, despite the rain on the day there were still others who braved the weather and turned up on the day.

Helen Long was on hand at the start to help with registrations and collecting money. The paperwork got wet and not being able to set out tables because of the weather was an administrative nightmare. After registration, Helen then moved to the finish where she and Phyllis Sutherland, who was on hand in case any first aid was required, undertook the recording of runners’ times along with a number of other younger helpers. Linda Donaldson was also on hand to help cope with minor crises at the start and to hand out participants medals and water at the end.

No-one turned out in fancy dress and that is perhaps understandable in view of the weather, but the organisers are still hopeful that next year, if the weather is better, the less serious runners will compete for a different prize, dress accordingly and make this a truly fun event.

Although Graham Harcus dominated the half marathon from the start the other runners were still trying to beat their own personal times. There were some good performances and at the end some sprints for the line as competitors vied for position.

Half Marathon Results

The quarter marathon had been labelled as a fun run but the leaders took it very seriously. There was a sprint for the line between Shawn Tait and Craig Shearer, but Shawn took the shield by a narrow margin. At the other end, there were those who just walked the course and they may perhaps have preferred slightly better weather. However, the dog enjoyed the walk and appreciated the water stops along the way.

Laura Drever perhaps deserves a special mention. She was registered to do the half marathon. However unbeknown to her she was to be blackened the night before. A little the worse for wear and only attempting the quarter marathon, Laura was still there doing her bit for the Volleyball Team and the OIGA. What a star! As there was no-one in fancy dress and in recognition of her commitment the race organisers decided that she should be awarded the remaining £20 voucher form Gornsport.

Quarter Marathon Results

To see photos of the event, click the link below:

OIGA Half/Quarter Marathon Photos

The whole organisation of the day was handled with near military precision by Graeme Christie and without his detailed planning the day would not have been such a success. He was also out on the course during the event as the safety car in case of any accidents.

Ross Donaldson, current chairman of OIGA, was leading from the front (or was it the back) by competing in the quarter marathon. However, as he had already been out setting the course early that morning in the rain, he joined the walkers on the course along with his dog. The dog beat him to the finish. Amongst the walkers were people nursing injuries that would otherwise have run but there were others who just decided to walk the course.

There were a number of minor wrinkles on the day but nothing too serious. This was the first such event run by OIGA and has provided invaluable experience to take to future events. OIGA established a dedicated fundraising committee to focus specifically on this part of its operations and they have been actively scheming and planning over the winter and the results will be seen during this summer and beyond They are not just planning the raising of funds for the team to go to Rhodes next year but also putting in place events that will run annually and be part of an ongoing fundraising effort for future Island games events.

The road to Rhodes may have started in Finstown on Saturday but it is just the first stage on a long journey to get Orkney sports men and women to the Island Games for years to come.