Inverness Harriers' Macdonald just happy to be back racing after finishing Back To Basics 10k as top veteran
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Donnie Macdonald continued his comeback from injury at the Back To Basics 10k last weekend by crossing the line as the top veteran in the field.
The Inverness Harrier, from Muir of Ord, was racing for just the second time after recovering from an ankle issue – with his first race back the previous month’s Back To Basics event at Forres.
Macdonald clocked in at 33:48, which was an improvement of 32 seconds on his previous outing.
Despite claiming top spot in the over-40 standings though, he still does not feel as though he is anywhere near his best.
“I’ve been coming back from injury, it was only my second race, so I was quite happy to get it in,” he said.
“I’m just delighted that a couple of races have managed to get going in the north. My time wasn’t great, but I don’t think too many had great runs on Sunday, for whatever reason.
“It was quite humid, but it wasn’t too windy, just a bit of a breeze really.
“Hopefully the times will come in future races. It’s going in the right direction.
“I think I had only been able to train for about three weeks before the last one. This time I had another four weeks in the bank, and hopefully over the next couple of months I can get back to where I was before.”
There was no lack of Highland interest, with several athletes taking part.
Although it was Moray Road Runners Kenny Wilson (32:11) and Ewan Davidson (32:41) who claimed the top two spots, East Sutherland’s Blair Mackay was a close third, finishing just four seconds behind Davidson.
Shaun Cumming, representing Highland Hill Runners, then finished in fourth, one place ahead of Macdonald.
Cumming’s clubmate, Kindeace runner Gordon Lennox, finished 31 seconds outside of the top 10 in 14th, where he was closely followed by Inverness Harrier Catriona Fraser, who claimed second in the women’s race behind Metro Aberdeen’s Virginie Barrand.
Another Harrier, David McColl, was next across the line after Fraser, just missing out on a top-three veteran’s place with a time of 36:45.
Highland Hill Runner Ryan McKenzie claimed a top-20 overall finish in 18th, but Ross County Athletics Club’s Stan MacKenzie was the other side of that cut-off in 23rd.
Another familiar face in the women’s race, Caroline Marwick of the Highland Hill Runners, finished sixth in those standings and 25th overall.
Harriers favourite Alex Sutherland made sure of another podium place for his club though, finishing second in the over-60 race in just under 45 minutes.
