21/09/2026
๐๐ฎ๐ง๐ง๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐๐๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ฌ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ญ๐ฌ: ๐๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ง๐ง๐ ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐ฌ๐จ๐ง
๐โโ๏ธ Marianne has been a Bella since 2018 and joined the coaching team in October 2021.
Before that, she had been training with North Highland Harriers during the weeks she was working in Thurso, but found herself missing the structure when she was back home. Bella was her nearest club and she already knew a few familiar faces from races and parkrun, including Angela Campbell and Claire McCormick, her former โparkrun nemesisโ who later became a marathon training buddy.
๐ The fact that Bella and North Highland Harriers both trained on Tuesdays and Thursdays sealed the deal.
Running-wise, Marianne likes a bit of everything. Flat road races are probably the favourite when it comes to racing, but training can mean anything from sessions at the windfarm and hard reps on the track to easy runs with friends or long solo miles.
โฐ๏ธ There are, however, limits. Big hills and technical trails are perhaps best avoided.
โ๐ผ ๐๐ ๐ก๐๐ ๐๐๐ข๐๐ ๐ฆ. ๐ผ โ๐๐ฃ๐ ๐กโ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐๐ก!โ
๐ฃ Coaching has become another important part of Marianneโs running life. Sometimes the most inspiring session is the one where she is standing still, watching everyone else work incredibly hard.
One of the biggest moments of the last year came at the Berlin Marathon in September 2025.
โ๏ธ With temperatures climbing to around 27ยฐC, Marianne admits she was terrified of the heat. Rather than chasing a PB, she adjusted the plan, slowed things down, concentrated on hydration and treated the race as a celebration of everything Berlin Marathon had given her over the years. It worked.
โ๐๐๐ค๐๐๐๐ ๐กโ๐ ๐๐๐ ๐ผ ๐ค๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ก ๐๐๐๐๐๐ฆ โ๐๐๐๐ฆ ๐๐๐๐ค๐๐๐ ๐ผ โ๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ก ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ฆ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ก๐๐๐. ๐
๐ข๐๐๐๐๐ ๐ข๐ ๐ก๐๐ค๐๐๐๐ ๐กโ๐ ๐ต๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ข๐๐ ๐บ๐๐ก๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ ๐ ๐๐๐๐ฆ ๐๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ .โ
๐ผ She was also there with a brilliant group of running and skating friends, including fellow Harriers Kathryn and Alison, who ran Berlin after completing the skate the previous year following Bellaโs Tryskating course.
Then, in 2026, Marianne tried something that might have been even more unusual for her: She did not run a spring marathon.
๐ After several years of the relentless spring marathon, autumn marathon, repeat cycle, the long runs got shorter and the legs became fresher.
There was, admittedly, some fairly severe spring marathon FOMO. But the change paid off, with PBs at 5K, 10K and half marathon, including a 10K best of 40:21, down from 41:10.
๐ฅซ The half marathon PB came in particularly glamorous circumstances: a full day in the classroom at her coaching course, followed by the drive to Inverness and a can of rice pudding eaten straight from the tin for dinner. Elite preparation.
For Marianne, being part of Bella is about much more than individual results.
โค๏ธ โ๐๐ก๐๐ข๐๐ก๐ข๐๐, ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐, ๐๐ข๐ก๐ข๐๐ ๐ ๐ข๐๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ข๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ก, ๐ ๐ค๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ฃ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐-๐๐๐ข๐๐ ๐๐๐๐ ๐ฃ๐๐๐๐ .โ
She still values her connection with North Highland Harriers too, now her second-claim club, and outside organised sessions is just as happy disappearing on a solo long run, getting into her own headspace and taking responsibility for her own training.
๐ฏ Next up is a return to focused marathon training, with the aim of consolidating or improving her time.
There is also another major performance strategy on the horizon. A new age category.
Or, as Marianne sees it, possibly the easiest route yet to improving those parkrun age-grade percentages. ๐
