Alex the Bruce

Saturday 20th August saw the return of the Stirling Highland Games after a two-year Covid hiatus.

All the usual highland games events were present, but one event is unique to Stirling – The Bruce Challenge. An event not for the faint-hearted as participants will need to walk with two Scottish Whin and Granite boulders (weighing 164.5kg), over a grass field, over the longest distance for a champion to be found. It is known that The Bruce visited many highland games to keep an eye out for which clan members were the fastest, the strongest and most agile. Stirling Highland Games pays tribute to that by including this challenge.

Alex Dunnagan of Taxwatch, one of Blueprint Workspace’s Stirling clients, was one of the brave souls to take up the challenge.

Alex has been a keen weightlifter for 16 years but decided to take up competitive powerlifting in 2021 and attends Dodge City Strength gym run by competitive strongman Chris “The Beef” Beetham. It was Chris who suggested Alex enter the Challenge.

The competition fell on the weekend of Alex’s sons second birthday, giving him the motivation to push himself and show Max that hard work pays off! It was a highly competitive field with seven other experienced campaigners, but with family and friends watching and cheering him on, Alex smashed the event, carrying for 101.5m, breaking the Games record and bagging himself first place! In Max’s words “Daddy strong”.

Alex donated half his £400 winnings to charity and treated himself and some friends to a few well deserved pints on Saturday night.

Congratulations Alex, a very well-deserved victory!

Photograph courtesy of Bryan Robertson Photography.