Scotland is home to many races and events, from The Cape Wrath Ultra, a largely pathless 250-mile ultramarathon fom Fort William Cape Wrath, to the Subcrawl, a largely pissed circuit of Glasgow pubs. But what races should exist that don't? Here's a few that come to mind:
The Royal Mile Mile.
A mile race uphill from Holyrood Palace to Edinburgh Castle. The winner gets to activate a plunger in the castle grounds, which sets off a spectactular firework display to mark the end of the Edinburgh Festival.
The Royal Mile:
The Pilgrimathon.
A race commemorating the spread of Christianity across northern Britain. It starts at Iona Abbey and ends at Lindisfarne Priory, with racers chosing their own route. Will they follow the Tay to Dunkeld and down the east coast? Will they take the West Highland Way to Glasgow and the Forth-Clyde canal / St Cuthbert's Way? It's up to you! The twist is that water transport is banned except for a coracle, which competitiors must carry on their backs between the start and end points. (Or swim the Sound of Mull.)
On the Pilgrimathon in Mull:
Taste of Orkney Gourmet Half Marathon.
There's already the Dramathon in Speyside, but what better place to sample the best of Scottish produce than Orkney? There's the best fish and seafood, beef and North Ronaldsay lamb, local cheeses, two distilleries at Kirkwall and Scapa and two amazing breweries. There are already two half marathons in Orkney, Kirkwall and Hoy, so just upgrade one with tasting stations and job's a good one :)
St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall:
The Lothian Skies Walk.
A walk from Wishaw to West Lothian (or, maybe, to Leith). I wrote ages ago about this route in commemoration of the Proclaimer's song The Joyful Kilmarnock Blues. The important thing is that the walk has to be done overnight, after having first watched Hibs play Kilmarnock in Kilmarnock. How you get to Wishaw from Kilmarnock is up to you, but the rest of the way has to be done on foot.
