About Ian

“One way or another, I have been running all of my life, from primary school cross country to big journeys in the mountains.

I was lucky to have an active, outdoor childhood so we were always on the go. This led me into a career in the outdoors. Primarily this was as a climber and mountaineer. Working as an instructor since 2006 this has taken me to some really cool places across the world and into some pretty extreme environments. Throughout this time running was what I did to keep fit, and to explore my local mountains, moving faster and further than I could with clients. In 2017 I founded Trail Running Scotland to fuse the two worlds together, guiding, instructing and coaching runners of all abilities in all environments, from local trails to big mountain adventures.

I have completed a round of the Munros, all of the Scottish peaks over 3000 feet (282 in total). I ran a Bob Graham Round for my stag do. A Lakeland round of 106km with 8300 meters of ascent in 24 hours is a great way to find out who your mates really are!

I competed in the Lowe Alpine Mountain Marathon (LAMM) 8 times, with my best result in 2017, second in the Elite class. Our team were 4th in class for the Scottish Islands Peaks race in 2017 and I completed the Glencoe Skyline race in 2016. For a different sort of challenge I entered the Celtman extreme triathlon in 2015, taking 50 places on the run to finish 16th and finished 4th in the 2017 Loch Gu Loch swim-run event in Loch Ness. In 2018 I completed the Cape Wrath Ultra, which I hobbled to the end of in 7th place, then in 2019 I achieved a 20 year dream by finishing the Berghaus Dragon’s Back Race. Needing my own adventure for 2020 I made the most of my local hills to run Rigby’s Round and complete a Cairngorm Parkrun, the first time anyone has completed a continuous link of the 58 munros within the Cairngorms National Park. In 2021 I added a Charlie Ramsay round to the collection of big adventures and in a return to the Cape Wrath Ultra I was amazed to come away with 1st place. A Paddy Buckley Round in 2022 completed my collection of Big 3 24 hour rounds.”

Ian’s Favourite Sock
Lightweight Merino Ankle Socks – Black

“As the saying goes, ‘your feet are your most important piece of kit’. I’ve learned this the hard way, so now only give them the best, this means Moggans for comfort, warmth and protection.”