Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Highland Cross ‘in crisis’ after bus company pulls out at 11th hour

The major charity event has been let down at the last minute and needs to find a way to replace a fleet of five buses.

The Highland Cross has been running since 1990. Image: Sandy McCook/DC Thomson
The Highland Cross has been running since 1990. Image: Sandy McCook/DC Thomson

A major Highland charity race has issued a desperate plea for help after a bus company left them in the lurch.

The Highland Cross is due to take place on Saturday but has been put in doubt after it lost five buses that were due to take participants to the starting line.

The organising committee has been reaching out to companies all over Scotland to find a replacement – but without success.

A message has been sent to competitors from the committee, outlining the “crisis” facing the race.

The statement said: “This is an appalling situation we find ourselves in, but we are desperate to make the event happen for the charities that are depending on us.”

What is the Highland Cross?

The Highland Cross is a 50-mile duathlon that takes place every June.

Competitors tackle 20 miles on foot and 30 miles on a bike. It starts in Kintail and goes through Glen Affric and Strathglass to Beauly.

It raises a significant amount of money for Highland charities.

With no answer to the transport problem in sight, the race’s organising committee has asked its competitors to let them know immediately if they can make their own way to the starting line in Morvich.

Crowds applauding competitors as they cross the finish line in Beauly. Image: DC Thomson

But if not enough people come forward, the race may not go ahead.

The committee said: “For the event to go ahead, we have to ask 44 teams or 132 individuals to find their own way to Morvich.

“Or we will have to ballot for cancellation of teams from the event.

“If you have been doubtful about attending, please let us know now as every bus seat is vital in this current situation.”

The ballot will take place tonight.

Event has been a mainstay for more than 30 years

Entry to the Highland Cross is by invitation only.

A total of 795 people – 265 teams of three – were due to take part.

Each team must pledge to raise a minimum of £500 for the Cross’s nominated charities.

The event returned in 2022 after a two-year absence because of the pandemic.

A Highland Cross competitor

Ross Gollan was last year’s winner. He completed the treacherous course in three hours, 21 minutes and 14 seconds.

The first race took place in 1990.

Anyone able to assist the committee getting competitors to the race is asked to email info@highlandcross.co.uk.