A 37-strong CAAC squad travelled to Dundee’s Camperdown Park for the second league fixture of the season, delivering eight top-10 finishes across the age groups, including a superb U20 win for Charlotte MacPhie. Firm(ish) ground and a flowing course made for fast racing and a brilliant club showing.
Date: Saturday 22nd November 2025
Venue: Camperdown Park, Dundee
Report by: Scott Jenkins, CAAC Publicity Officer
Ask road runners what they dislike about cross country, and it won’t be long before they mention the mud, icy conditions, gale-force winds, and frozen fingers. None of these were on display in Dundee at the weekend. After last week’s cold snap, conditions turned much milder, offering perfect conditions for fast racing. The real winter slog will have to wait.
This year’s routes included a 1.5 km loop around the open field with a longer 3.2 km circuit that carried athletes into the trees. The wooded section, with its tangle of roots and slightly slick undergrowth, provided just enough technical challenge to keep the field honest without tipping the day into a slip-and-slide. It was, in short, the kind of cross country that rewards rhythm and pacing over pure grit.
From our youngest U11s to our most seasoned masters athletes, CAAC was well represented across Camperdown’s open slopes and forest trails. The atmosphere was superb: athletes warmed up in groups, races overlapping and plenty of encouragement being shouted across the field.
One of the Mum’s even managed to miss the start of her own race whilst congratulating our juniors, and had to sprint up the opening hill to rejoin the pack. Despite this, she still finished comfortably inside the top half!
CAAC athletes delivered a set of excellent results, with eight top-10 finishes across the programme:
- Roi Lopez-Porras (9th U13 Boy)
- Tymek Chmielowski (2nd U17 Men)
- Kirsten Maxwell (8th Senior Women)
- Charlotte MacPhie (1st U20 Women)
- Alice Mourao (4th U20 Women)
- Iain Hutchinson (4th Masters Men)
- Tom Ferrington (9th Masters Men)
- Jack Eykelbosch (4th Senior Men)
Beyond these top finishers, CAAC showed real strength in depth: three senior women in the top 15, four masters men in the top 15 (in a field of over 120), and an incredible eight senior men in the top 30 (in a field of nearly 90). Fantastic signs for the remainder of the season.
Our thanks as ever to club photographer Stephen Jack, whose superb images captured all of the action from another excellent day of cross country racing.
The team will next be in action in Stirling on December 6th. Check out our full calendar of upcoming events.