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I first met Malcolm McPhail some 30 years ago when I walked into the then Cunninghame District Council Sport Development Team – as his boss. We were both young, early in our careers, ambitious, and both runners.

We worked together for a few years before Malcolm left for a career in leisure management. I stayed with the organisation that would later morph into KA Leisure for another couple of decades, leaving in 2016.

When I heard that Malcolm had taken up the top post at KA Leisure – Chief Executive – I sniffed a story. And I knew it was one only I could tell.

And so, Malcolm and I find ourselves sitting across a desk at KA Leisure HQ. I get ready with my notebook and voice recorder, silently observing the worn landscape of his face. He, no doubt, is doing the same right back at me.

Malcolm leans forward. “So, are you still running?”

Erm, hold on, I’m supposed to be asking the questions here! But running is a good place to start. Malcolm’s lean frame indicates that he very much still is.

“I’m a 56-year-old guy still training five, six times a week, and it’s a shock to the system and I don’t enjoy it. But I keep going back and doing it and I can’t really explain it other than it’s who I am, and it validates my existence.”

Whoa, wait! This is a guy at the top of the tree, recognised as one of the most successful leaders in the leisure industry. But he’s on a roll…

“My plan was to retire at 58, but I’ll maybe hang on till I’m 60.” His eyes are bright now. “Rhonda caught me writing a five-year plan a couple of weeks ago and she said, you are kidding me! Only you, Malcolm, at 56, could write a five-year plan for your athletics.”

Rhonda is Malcolm’s wife. And we’ll come back to running, but for now it’s time to get him onto another track – his career, which has been extraordinary by any standards. In Ayrshire, Pool Lifeguard, PE Teacher, Sport Development Officer, then a leisure contracts role in Bolton, followed by his first ‘big gig’, Leisure Contracts Manager at Bolton Metro. After that, General Manager at the biggest leisure club in Europe, Next Generation. Within seven years, it took over David Lloyd clubs. Then, Chief Executive at Life Leisure and he was, in his own words, a ‘big time Charlie’.

Over the next four years, Life Leisure won 24 national awards, along with a range of major leisure contracts. Within the organisation, though, Malcolm brought his passion for people.

“This stuff,” he says, waving a spreadsheet in the air, “is just noise. It’s people that are important. I’ve always surrounded myself with brilliant people, and I’ve never been the smartest in the room.”

Authenticity is an overused word. But in Malcolm, here it is, shining pure.

“Everybody has a light in them. It’s inherent and it burns bright. You just have to go looking for it and find ways to express it. That energy is like your signature. It might get different as you get older, but people still know your signature.

“Emotional intelligence is big. I’m always nice to people, I never blame, and I get to know them, their lives, their birthdays.” He tells a story of one day telling a colleague, “Love your jumper by the way. Where did you get it?” And they ended up swapping jumpers for the day.

There’s science to it, though, one that Malcolm studied via a Postgraduate Diploma in Behavioural Psychology. As he talks, the central influence of emotional intelligence on his personal development and his practice as a leader is clear.

“What happens when the psychological models, the change models, don’t work?” he asks. “What matters is that people have the emotional intelligence to get to the start line.”

This insight, along with the sudden death of a close colleague and then COVID, brought a turning point for Malcolm. “I realised that actually, I don’t need to be a chief executive anymore. It was enough being an athlete, a dad and a family man. And I decided that I was going to set up my own business, coaching emotional intelligence. Let me go through your belief systems, your ego systems, your trauma bonds. I promise you, I’ll make a difference in the types of leaders you are and how your teams are.”

It’s a great story of a successful man and one who has been guided by… something. What is that, I ask?

“The driving force, I think, comes from a boy with a troubled upbringing. My dad was alcoholic, and there’s so much trauma and collateral damage for kids associated with that. I was so thin and malnourished. My nickname then was Two Scoops, because the dinner ladies would always give me two scoops to try and build me up.” He shrugs, bracing his now strong body.

“But at the age of 13, I got sick and tired of being sick and tired. I realised that I had two choices. I could dig myself out of that place, or I could play the victim. I don’t want to take anything away from people who are struggling with life, but you can be a victim or a victor… there are only two letters of a difference. The key is you have a road to Damascus moment, a point where you say I’m not going to live like this anymore. And then you have to be consistent. You have to get up every day and do the work.”

And what does that mean, for you?

“I just get up in the morning, make my bed, drink water, do my press ups.”

It sounds like a spartan routine. What about happiness?

“I wouldn’t talk about happiness. I would talk about joy. Happiness is like motivation – it’s fleeting. But joy, and discipline, they are fundamental. Discipline starts off with a framework and ends up with every day you get up and work the programme, consistently. I don’t buy into the idea that you do something for three months, say, and you change your behaviour. It’s got to be for life. The older I get, I realise there’s a disconnect between what science says and actual lived experience in the real world. The tools we have involve living in the present and getting interested in other people. And that’s not taught in leadership school.

“And now I’m just turning up, Malcolm the athlete – it’s big business, Masters athletics! – Malcolm the dad, Malcolm the husband. And I’m so pleased that I don’t have to be somebody. I’m just enough.”

Ok, but now, in the ‘autumn’ of his career (his word for it), he’s Chief Executive of KA Leisure. Why? He looks at me, quiet and intense now.

“It’s really important as a leader that your legacy is that the next generation coming up is better than you. It’s a duty of care. And jeez, these young people here are good, these youngsters are brilliant.”

Perhaps he sensed a story too.

You can find Malcolm McPhail FCIMSPA on LinkedIn.

David Milloy

Clare Docherty from Ardrossan has achieved something that few people, male or female, have done, and that’s to have not only played for both Rangers and Celtic but also for Ayr United and Kilmarnock.

Now working hard, both on and off the pitch for Ayr United, Clare talks to Ayrshire Magazine about her footballing journey.

How did you first become involved in football?
I used to play football in the back garden with my (male) cousin. There weren’t many girls’ football teams around back then so I didn’t get to play in a team environment until I was selected to play for my school team when I was in Primary 5. I was the only girl in the team. Looking back, I suppose it was a bit like the film Gregory’s Girl.

What was the first all-female team you played for?
I was told that Ayr Caledonian FC had a girls’ team, so I joined them when I was 11 and played with them for three years. I left them because I’d been asked to join Kilmarnock FC, and playing for one of the big Scottish teams was too good an opportunity to pass up.

How long did you stay at Kilmarnock?
I was there for seven years. I had a very successful and enjoyable time with Kilmarnock and was selected to play for Scotland at age-group level.
That’s quite an honour. How many times did you play for Scotland at that level?
Twenty-eight times over the years. It was a great experience on and off the pitch, particularly as I got to play abroad and was given the opportunity to travel to countries such as Finland and Slovenia, that probably wouldn’t otherwise have been open to me at that time.

Where did you go when you left Kilmarnock?
I quit football for a time. I was working shifts as a firefighter and couldn’t always make training. It was a tough decision to have to make. As it turned out, though, I wasn’t away from football for very long. After moving to Stranraer because of my job, it wasn’t long before I was asked to help coach a local team. Rangers then invited me to join them. I accepted their offer and moved back to Ardrossan. I played for Rangers for a time before leaving for personal reasons.

Where did you go to next?
Celtic, for whom I played for three years. I left after I became pregnant.

That wasn’t the end of your playing career, though?
No. After I had my first daughter, I joined Motherwell, who were playing in what was then the equivalent of the SFL Championship. I helped them to win promotion but had to stop playing when I found out that I was pregnant again. I didn’t know it but I was three months pregnant when I played my last match for them.

I didn’t plan to return to football after leaving Motherwell but once again it didn’t quite work out that way. I gave birth to my second daughter in June and was back playing by November.

What made you change your mind?
I got a call from a girl who plays for Ayr United asking me if I could come and play for them in a friendly game against East Kilbride. I agreed to do it, played the game and scored a hat-trick. I was then asked to join the club as a player-coach. I felt that some of the girls weren’t taking their football seriously enough, so I was initially a bit hesitant about accepting the offer. As it turned out, however, my experience of having played for some big clubs as well as being that bit older and a mum, was very helpful in my role as a coach; the players listened to what I had to say and worked hard to improve. The club was also able to bring in some experienced players, and this was reflected in our results. A lot has changed for the better over the six years I’ve been with the club. It’s a great club to play for and there’s a terrific team spirit.

Apart from playing for the club, you’re also now the Head of the Women and Girls’ Academy. When did you take up that post?
I was appointed to the role in 2021. It’s a great job, as it gives me the opportunity – with the wholehearted backing of the club – to help to further raise the standard of female football at the club and make it an even more appealing place for girls and women to come and play football.

You’ve been doing well on the pitch too, scoring 20 goals last season and being crowned Championship Player of the Season in the Scottish Women’s Football Awards.
It’s the biggest individual award I’ve received. Four players were shortlisted for the award as the result of votes cast by both players and clubs, and I was selected from that shortlist by a panel of judges. I was greatly honoured to be given the award, particularly in view of the number of talented players in the Championship.

Finally, do you have any advice for any young girls who want to play football?
Just give it a go. It’s a lot different now to how it was when I was growing up; there are no longer any barriers that stop girls from playing the game. Playing football isn’t just good for social reasons, it’s also good for fitness and mental and physical health and wellbeing. And, of course, it’s great fun too.

www.ayrunitedfc.co.uk

Ayrshire Magazine would like to thank sports photographer, Alan Graham, for his permission to use several of his images to accompany this feature. A large selection of Alan’s excellent photographs can be viewed on his Facebook page: www.facebook.com/AlanGraham58Photographs.

The atmosphere is buzzing when I arrive at LA Bowl in Miller Road, Ayr. All 16 lanes are in use, not surprising during a busy half-term week in February.

I’m here to talk to owner and coach, Julia Claxton, who has plenty to boast about, not least the fact that her grandchildren, Isla (13) and Aaron Claxton (17), have been selected to play for Scotland at the Tenpin Bowling European Youth Championships in Helsinki.

We’re joined by Ronnie Scott whose daughter, Sarah (12), has also been selected along with Kelsi Cuthbert (17) and Ben Wallace (13).

“There are eight going to Helsinki to represent Scotland,” Julia informs me, “and five of them are from here in Ayr.”

The bowlers will be competing against 27 other countries at the tournament for under 18s which is being held at the famous Tali Bowling venue in Finland from 23rd March until 1st April.

The five youngsters, who all train at Ayr’s LA Bowl, have successfully competed in tournaments for under 18s or under 12s, receiving points which ultimately led to their inclusion in the Scottish team.

“They’re so experienced for their age,” says Ronnie. “They’ve all competed in Triple Crown events as well. The last one was an extended Triple Crown… it was Scotland, Ireland, England and Belgium.”

In fact, the youngest girls, Sarah and Isla, are the most experienced bowlers in the team.

“Sarah and Isla met each other at nursery,” continues Ronnie, “and have bowled pretty much since the age of four. But they’re all very dedicated. They practice maybe four or five times a week. They do two adult leagues and Saturday and Tuesday coaching.”

Julia’s son, James, is also a coach at the club (one of only two Level 3 coaches in Scotland) and both will be travelling to Helsinki along with other other coaches and parents.

“We’re all really looking forward it,” Ronnie tells me. “It’s one of the pinnacle events. It’s such a good experience for them. It’s a great adventure.”

He adds: “We’re actually really lucky because we’ve got such a good bowling centre with such good conditions and such good coaches. The kids are really lucky to have such a good team and a good place to come. And it’s on our doorstep, that’s a massive plus.”

Julia is nodding her agreement and must take credit for the continued success of LA Bowl in Ayr.

“I’ve been manager here for 30 years,” she informs me, “and we’ve owned it for 13 years. It’s a family business.”

She has also completed her European Tenpin Bowling Federation (ETBF) Level 2 coaching qualification, another plus for Ayr’s young bowlers. I ask her to tell me more about what is described as ‘the complete entertainment centre’ in Ayr.

“We have a club on a Saturday morning and an after-school club on a Tuesday. We call ourselves Jedi Bowling Club. The children can come between 10 and 12 on a Saturday morning for coaching with James, myself and several other very good coaches.”

The Jedi Bowling Club is supported by two sponsors: Ayr Installations and Test My Electrics. Their support allows Julia to keep entry fees low and to encourage as many children as possible to continue to play.

“We’ve got a club with over 30 children. It’s nice for the kids to have something to do and not be out on the street. It’s good for them physically and mentally.”

We talk for a while about the benefits of tenpin bowling and agree it’s a great way for kids to make new friends and to build confidence, as well as being excellent from a physical fitness point of view.

“We don’t allow phones during the coaching,” says Julia. “I think it’s good for them to have something good in their life.”

In addition to the excellent bowling facilities, LA Bowl also has a Lazerzone, pool table, amusements, a bar and diner.

“We also do a lot of birthday parties. Sometimes on a Saturday we have ten birthday parties!”

It’s obviously the place to be!

Back to the bowling, I ask Julia how competitive the five youngsters are.

“They’re competitive but not in a way where they’re not a team. Quite often you find with kids they’re not wanting their teammates to do well. I can honestly say that doesn’t apply to the kids here. They are a team and they support each other.”

“They encourage each other, that’s for sure,” adds Ronnie. “And they blow me away with their focus and determination. The team spirit is unbelievable.”

Despite their differing ages, all five team members get on really well and are obviously extremely proud to be going to Helsinki. It will, however, be an expensive trip. Julia elaborates: “Scottish Tenpin Bowling, our governing body, do contribute. They pay for their entry fees and the coach’s fees, but the children’s parents have to fund hotels, flights, transport, and food for the ten days.”

Needless to say, they are all busy trying to raise money for the trip. Fundraising events have included a bingo night, bag-packing and raffles and, at the time of our conversation, they are looking forward to a night of musical entertainment at The Balgarth Pines. But Julia can help in other ways too.

“The ones that are old enough, I try to give them a job. That way they can help fund themselves. And there’s nothing better than someone who’s good at bowling working at a bowling centre, because they care.”

They are also perfectly placed, as ambassadors of the sport, to attract other youngsters to take part. But tenpin bowling is for everyone of all ages and abilities, as Julia confirms: “We have groups that include adults with special needs. James coaches them… I love that!”

And all 16 lanes are fitted with bumpers, lightweight balls and ramps which means that every member of the family can join in the fun!

For those who take it more seriously, like the five Ayrshire youngsters who will be representing their country, the equipment is of particular importance.

“They have their own balls,” confirms Ronnie. “Again, we’re very lucky because James can actually drill all of the equipment to the specifications of each individual. It’s very technical.”

“James runs our comprehensive Pro Shop and is actually the only qualified ball driller in Scotland,” adds Julia, clearly very proud of her son, and also of the fabulous service they are able to offer at Ayr. This service, together with the excellent facilities and dedicated coaches has no doubt helped each of the five youngsters on their journey to Helsinki. Not forgetting their own talent and commitment.

“I think I can probably speak for most of the kids,” says Ronnie when I ask what it means to Sarah to be representing her country at tenpin bowling. “They just love bowling. They would bowl all night. They just want to bowl, bowl, bowl.”

That’s because it’s fun, fun, fun!

“Sarah and Isla became friends and started bowling at such an early age,” says Julia. “We still have videos of them bowling when they were tiny. It’s amazing.”

Soon there will be videos of them bowling for Scotland in Helsinki. How great is that?

LA Bowl is open from 10am until late Tuesday to Saturday, from 11am on Sundays and from 1pm on Mondays (or 10am during school holidays).

Ryan Murray

Plenty of youngsters have designs on becoming a professional footballer, but few have the required talent, drive, and determination to realise their lofty ambitions. However, for fifteen-year-old Jack Lavery, this boyhood dream is now well within his grasp.

Hailing from the East Ayrshire town of Stewarton, Jack has already reached several key milestones in his promising early career. Picked up by eagle-eyed St Mirren scouts at just seven years of age, the creative midfielder has plied his trade in the elite section of the Club Academy Scotland (CAS) league for some time, and is on the cusp of representing his country at youth team level.

We asked Jack a few questions about his footballing journey to date.

When did you start playing football?
I joined local side Stewarton Annick when I was just five years old, and was then scouted by St Mirren whilst competing at a festival in Kilwinning. Football has played a huge part in my life, and it’s something I’ve always been passionate about from a very young age. Fortunately, I’ve been able to develop my game in a really professional environment, as St Mirren have incredible facilities and a superb coaching team.

What is your preferred position?
I actually started out as a striker, but have since transitioned into a central midfielder. Coaches such as Fraser Murray and Craig McLeish spotted my quality on the ball and believed I’d be better suited to a midfield role. I tend to operate quite far up the pitch, so would probably describe myself as a number ten. Although my footballing idol is Liverpool midfielder Thiago Alcântara, my on-field position is more similar to the one in which Bruno Fernandes plays for Manchester United.

What is it like to play in the elite section of the Club Academy Scotland (CAS) league?
The standard is really strong, with most teams being really well set-up and organised. I would say Celtic and Hearts are perhaps currently the best sides in the division, but each and every fixture is extremely competitive.

How did your call-up to the national team come about?
Scotland scouts frequently attend CAS league fixtures, and I’ve been playing consistently well for St Mirren in recent months. I understand that I was watched on a few occasions, and later selected to advance to an official training camp from a shortlist of 90 players. I’m really proud of this achievement, and desperate to make my first appearance for Scotland.

Who is your biggest inspiration?
My biggest inspiration is my dad. I’m immensely grateful for all the support he’s provided so far, and want to repay him by fulfilling my potential. He drives me to training and matches, gives me feedback on my performances, and is a constant source of encouragement – I wouldn’t be where I am now without him.

And finally, what are your career aspirations?
I’ll hopefully sign my first professional contract within the next twelve months and start to think about breaking into St Mirren’s first-team squad at some stage after. One or two clubs have shown an interest in me, but I’m just focused on working hard and improving my game. My ultimate dream is to play in the English Premier League, and know my Dad will help me in whatever way he can to help me reach the highest level possible.

Ayrshire has produced a number of world-class footballers; could Jack Lavery be the next to join this esteemed group of gifted individuals? Based on his current trajectory, this remains a possibility…

David Milloy

There are two things that are remarkable about John Hope’s lovely 1924 Humber 11.4HP All-Weather: firstly, the fact that it’s 100 years old this year and, secondly, that it’s the only one of its kind left in the world.

Built at the Humber factory in Coventry by a company founded in 1887, John’s car was one of 190 examples of the 11.4HP series built as an All-Weather model, with a full-length leather roof which could be folded away when the weather permitted, thus allowing its occupants to enjoy al fresco motoring. Today, we’d call it a convertible.

It has spent all of its life in Scotland, being first registered to a Mr. Manclark from Leith. It remained in his ownership until his death in 1956, whereupon it was sold to a local scrapyard. It was saved from oblivion by George Oliver, a writer and vintage car enthusiast, who paid £14 for it and then spent a further £25 on a new hood and petrol tank for it.

Mr. Oliver used the car as his everyday vehicle for the next 18 months until it sustained a broken differential, a common fault with the model. The Humber’s next destination was the Sword Car Museum near Irvine. Mr. Oliver had hoped to loan it to the museum but his offer was declined on account of the museum’s strict ‘no Humbers’ policy. The reason for this policy seems to have been that the first car owned by the founder of the museum was a Humber which caught fire whilst he was driving it home. Following that experience, he vowed that he would never again own a Humber, and this policy was later extended to the museum!

Some measure of compromise was, however, reached, in that the museum allowed the Humber to be displayed outside. It remained there for a time, its condition deteriorating due to the twin ravages of the Ayrshire climate and curious visitors to the museum. In 1960, the MOT test was introduced for cars of 10 years and older, and it once again looked like the Humber’s days were numbered.

Salvation was, however, at hand. A young aircraft engineer from Prestwick, John Hope, first saw the car at the museum in 1960, and in September 1961 he purchased it from George Oliver for the sum of £20. As John explains, cars were cheap then!

After freeing its seized handbrake, the Humber was then towed to a friend’s house in Ayr, and what turned out to be a decades-long restoration commenced. The engine, gearbox, and differential were removed and the body/chassis unit was towed to Skeldon, where the chassis, axles and loose body parts were removed over time and taken to John’s home in Prestwick for storage in his garage.

A house move enabled John to build a new garage, one large enough to store the Humber in its state of disassembly. Indeed, the garage, which stands to this day, is just as interesting as the car it was built to house; its walls are built from bricks salvaged from the Miner’s Row at Glenburn, its roof is covered with slates salvaged from a defunct smithy, and its doors and window frames are fashioned from wood which had previously adorned the decks of the last British battleship to have been built, HMS Vanguard.

Family, work, and other projects meant that the restoration of the Humber was put on the back burner, and it wasn’t until 2003 that John was able to finally return it to the road. John did most of the work himself, fitting a new floorpan, bulkhead, and windscreen header rail, in addition to replacing worn parts and retrofitting safety glass and indicators. He left the brakes as standard, meaning that braking is to the rear wheels only – Humber didn’t fit front brakes to their cars, believing them to be dangerous! The only jobs that John didn’t tackle were re-grinding the crankshaft and big end bearings, these tasks being carried out by an engineering firm, and replacing the upholstery and the roof, both of which had taken something of a beating during the car’s time sitting outside the museum; a local vehicle upholsterer tackled these jobs.

In the 20-plus years since its return to the road, John has replaced the Humber’s gearbox pins and layshaft, the latter being a remanufactured item commissioned by the Humber Register. That apart, only routine servicing has been required, a task John undertakes himself.

John’s Humber has won many cups and trophies at classic car meetings, including the Scottish Vintage Vehicle Federation’s prestigious Champion of Champions trophy in 2009. Indeed, so lovingly is it cared for that it probably looks better today than when it rolled out of the Humber factory in 1924.

It’s no garage queen, though; it’s used every summer. And unlike some prize-winning cars, it’s driven to events rather than being trailered. It’s a much-loved member of John and his wife Pat’s family, but more than that it’s a living, breathing tribute to the people who built it and those who twice saved it from destruction.

David Milloy

It’ll soon be spring, time when a car enthusiast’s thoughts turn to… car shows. So with several shows on the horizon, we thought we’d mention a few that are bound to be of interest.

Ayrshire Classics, Burns Birthplace Museum, Alloway,
5th May
The annual ‘Cars on the Campus’ classic car show organised by Ayrshire Classics and held each May at St. Joseph’s Academy in Kilmarnock will not be taking place this year. Ayrshire Classics will, however, be holding a smaller-scale event on Sunday 5th May outside the Burns Birthplace Museum in Alloway. Up to 70 classic cars belonging to members of the club will be on display from 10am onwards, and a good spread of vehicle types, makes, and ages is expected.

Visitors to the show can make a day of it by paying a visit to the adjacent Burns Birthplace Museum and/or partaking of some food and drink in its cafe.

www.ayrshireclassics.com

Millport Classic Car Event, Great Cumbrae, 11th May
Millport hosts its popular annual Classic Car Event on Saturday 11th May. This year marks the tenth anniversary of the inaugural event, which was organised by local man, Jimmy Newton.

Eighteen cars were displayed at that first show. The event has grown in size since then, and it’s expected that around 150 classic cars will be on display at this year’s show, which will be held in the grounds of Garrison House in the centre of the town.

The event prides itself on having something to offer visitors of all ages, and attractions for younger visitors will include a bouncy castle and a children’s fairground roundabout. There’s no admission charge and there are cafe and toilet facilities on site. The show runs from 10am to 3pm.

Millport is a pretty little town that’s easily accessible from the mainland, with at least two ferries an hour making the short hop to Great Cumbrae from Largs, but you needn’t take the car over with you – a regular bus service runs between Millport and the ferry slip.

www.millportclassiccarevent.com

Ayrshire Motor Show, Ayr, 25th May
The Ayrshire Motor Show returns to Ayr Racecourse on Saturday 25th May.

A diverse selection of modern, classic and modified cars will be on display, in addition to which there will be a variety of trade stands, a motorcycle stunt show, and, in keeping with the family-friendly nature of the show, a children’s entertainer.

Admission charges are £15 per adult on the day or £10 if booked in advance through the show’s website. There’s no entry fee for children under 14 when accompanied by an adult, and there’s free on-site parking.

Oh, and if you or your car club fancy displaying your car(s), entries are currently open – contact the show’s organisers for details.

www.motor-shows.co.uk

Dylan Welsh

If you’re responsible for running a website, or paying someone to do so, there are some key checks that should be done periodically to monitor the health status of your site. Just as you’d visit your doctor for an MOT every so often, it’s important to pay attention to some vital elements of your website, to get an actionable prescription for how to aid and improve it. In the spirit of this being the ‘Health’ edition of AM, our digital marketing specialists at Big Pond thought we should outline some critical health checks that will set your website up to thrive.

Website Usability: Adapting to Mobile Supremacy
First things first, is your website mobile friendly? Google actually judges your site’s user-friendliness primarily through its mobile version – via ‘Mobile First Indexing’ to be jargony. The overall amount of mobile visits versus those on desktops continues to rise and dominates online conversions. If your site is badly designed and hard to navigate, these are massive red flags for the vast majority of users who will quickly go elsewhere to shop if they’re having a bad experience.

Imagine your website as a chameleon, seamlessly adapting to any screen size. A mobile-responsive design ensures that whether your visitors are on a smartphone, tablet, or desktop, they’ll have a smooth and engaging experience. Mobile-friendliness is non-negotiable, so here’s what to do: use a tool, like browserstack.com/responsive, make a free account and paste in your site’s URL. This will show you what it looks like across different mobile devices.

Page Speed Tests: Racing Against Time
There’s nothing more irritating than clicking on a website and the page takes ages to load. Each millisecond is an infinity in that moment and frustration builds – we’ve all been there. In fact, you quite literally have three seconds max before 40% of users, and counting, start to bounce off and go elsewhere and this is clearly not positive for Google to observe when it’s deciding how highly to rank you online.

There’s a whole host of reasons why your website and its individual pages may be extremely slow to load. Pop your URL into this free tool (pagespeed.web.dev) and see how it judges your site. It will help identify any performance bottlenecks and advise you how to speed up your loading times through things like image optimisation; browser caching; and minifying clunky CSS and JavaScript code.

Security Scans: Safeguarding Your Site & Its Users
Now, let’s talk security. Just like you lock your doors at night, your website needs protection against digital prowlers and malware troublemakers. A security breach can take a massive blow to your reputation and trust in both your visitors’ and Google’s eyes. Invest in up-to-date SSL certificates, implement strong passwords, and regularly update your website’s software to keep security threats at bay.

Use a free checker like Sucuri’s (sitecheck.sucuri.net) to see if you have any of the following: malware; viruses; blacklisting statuses; website errors; outdated software; or malicious code. If anything shows up in this triage process, take action on the most severe issues and prioritise the rest.

Content Quality Check: Maintaining Your Relevance
From compelling copywriting to captivating visuals, your content is the proverbial heartstring that resonates with your audience. Just as an instrument needs fine-tuned every so often, so does your content. Perform a wee content audit to weed out any stale, outdated information and ensure your messaging aligns with your brand’s voice and values. Remember, quality outshines quantity – prioritise relevance, authenticity, and engagement to keep your audience coming back for more of what you’re serving.

A tool like answerthepublic.com gives you some free daily searches and maps out countless ideas for you to write content on, based on what people are actually searching for in your niche.

Also, if you have the monthly budget for a subscription, the likes of SurferSEO (surferseo.com) lets you focus on one page at a time on your site and scores how well your existing content on it will allow you to rank on Google for specific keywords. Importantly, it’ll advise you how to improve the score.

SEO Checkup
Last but not least, let’s talk SEO, what we specialise in at Big Pond. All of the previous checks we’ve mentioned encompass SEO. Without intentional and careful optimisation, your website risks getting lost in the vast expanse of the internet.

To make sure your website is robust for fighting through the competition on page 1 of Google, there are fundamental SEO things to consider. One of which is your meta-tags (title and description) which form the wee snippet of your webpage that shows in Google’s results. This is your chance to win the user amongst your competitors, so they must be compelling and click-inducing, and each page on your site should target a set of keywords that you’ve identified from keyword research. A platform like SERanking (seranking.com) is great for this research and auditing your SEO against that of your competitors.

So, to round things up, maintaining your website’s health is essential for sustained online success. We hope we’ve given you lots of food for thought here.

David Milloy

At the age of 16, Lucy Cree from Kilmarnock is about to enter her third season of competitive rallying. In doing so, she’s following in the footsteps of her father, Ross, who rallied at clubman level and later worked for M-Sport, the motorsport company which builds, prepares, and runs the Ford cars in the World Rally Championship. As we shall find out, however, her path into rallying was somewhat unconventional.

How did you get into rallying?
It started a couple of years ago when my mum and dad gave me a Skoda Citigo rally car for my 14th birthday. I literally woke up to find it sitting in the drive with a pink bow around it!

That must have been quite a surprise.
I was more confused than anything, as I had no interest in cars or motorsport. My dad took me and the car to the Kames circuit the following day and started to teach me how to drive; I’d never driven a car or even a quad bike before that day. I didn’t know what to expect but I enjoyed my day at Kames, and I had several more lessons there before I did my first rally.

When was that?
It was in March 2022, two months after my birthday. By this time, I’d got the driving ‘bug’ and was keen to do the event, which was held at Ingliston near Edinburgh. First, though, I had to get a competition licence, which involved taking part in three autotests and then passing a BARS test at Knockhill. I also had to find a navigator.

So you’re not in the car alone when competing?
No. My navigator, Chloe Fleming, and I work as a team. I do the driving and Chloe reads out the pace notes to me, giving me information such as the distance to the next bend, whether it goes left or right, and how sharp it is. It doesn’t matter how good a driver you might be, you need to have a good navigator sitting beside you, and I’m very lucky to have Chloe.

Is Chloe the same age as you?
No, she’s a bit older. The regulations that govern the Championship in which I compete allow people to drive at 14 but their navigators have to be at least 21 and have at least three years’ experience. Chloe also comes from a motoring background and her dad rallies a Subaru Impreza. So although we’re not the same age, we’ve got a lot in common and get on very well with each other.

How did you get on in that first rally?
I finished last but I enjoyed it, didn’t crash and was keen to do more rallies.

And you did several more that year?
Yes. I competed in nine rounds of the Junior 1000 Ecosse Championship and did a few other events, competing against other drivers in the same age bracket as me. It was a learning year and I really enjoyed it.

So you came back for more last year?
Yes. There were more drivers in the Championship than in 2022 but with a year’s experience behind me I was getting better results.

Were there many other girls competing in the Championship?
A couple. Most of the other drivers are boys. That doesn’t bother me, though. I just see them all as competitors.

Have you competed in rallies outside of Scotland?
Yes. I’ve rallied in both England and Wales. I’ve had my best result to date, sixth, on one of the English rallies, and I really enjoy rallying at Anglesey in Wales.

On what surface do you rally: tarmac, gravel, or a mixture of the two?
Tarmac.

And you’ll be competing again in the Junior 1000 Ecosse Championship this year?
Yes, but with a new car. It’s the same type of car as the one I drove in 2022 and 2023 but is a bit lighter and with better suspension. It should hopefully be a bit quicker than my old car.

Who prepares your car for you?
My dad and Tommy Brown, a family friend, do most of the work on the car. My brother Ben, who plays rugby for Ayr, also helps out with the car, both in the garage and at events, and AM Motorsport Services also provide on-event support. I’d also like to say a word of thanks to my sponsors, without whom it wouldn’t be possible for me to compete.

What are your aims for this season?
I’d like to finish at least one rally in the top three.

Aside from competing in rallying, I’m told that you raise money for Cash For Kids.
Yes, we hold an auction every year and the winners get to sit in the passenger seat of my rally car whilst I drive it round the Kames circuit. We raised £1200 in 2022, and £1800 last year. We’ll be doing it again this year.

Is there a way that people can follow your rallying and fundraising exploits online?
I’ve got a Facebook page – Lucy Cree Rallysport – that’s regularly updated with news and photos.

Lucy is too modest to say that she’s finished as the top female driver on all of her rallies in England and Wales, and that she’s also been the highest placed female in the Junior 1000 Ecosse Championship in each of the two years that she’s competed in it. So although Lucy presently competes mostly for fun, don’t be too surprised if she goes on to make a splash in the world of rallying in the future.

Clifford Wilson’s shipping career has taken him all over the world. He is now a skipper for Caledonian MacBrayne, primarily sailing the Largs to Cumbrae route. He also owns a small fishing company, supplying fresh shellfish caught on his fishing boat, Boy Rory, operated out of Maidens Harbour. Clifford (known as Cubby) takes time off his duties to tell us about his role as a skipper.

How long have you been a skipper?
I passed my first skipper’s ticket when I was 20. I’m 50 now so I’ve been a skipper for 30 years. I was one of the youngest skippers at that time, also owning my own fishing boat at the age of 20.

What training did you need to do?
I went to Banff and Buchan Nautical College (this later merged with Aberdeen College to form North East Scotland College) for five months for my first skipper’s fishing ticket. Then I went offshore before going back to college in Liverpool where I sat my second master’s ticket to skipper tugs and multipurpose vessels. I went all around the world including Papua New Guinea, South Africa, Dubia, Saudia Arabia and all over Europe. I then came home to fish Boy Rory in 2017 from Maidens. I started working with CalMac in 2020 skippering vessels all around the west coast of Scotland. I’m now full-time sailing Largs to Cumbrae on the Loch Shira.

What do you like best about being a skipper?
The everyday challenges.

Do you dislike anything about your job?
The paperwork, but it needs to be done. It’s a big part of our job now.

How many hours a week do you normally work?
74+

What time does your working day usually start?
I leave home at 5am and I’m on board for 5.40am at Largs. I do the necessary start procedures and pre-departure checks prior to service at 6.45am. I get home 17.30.

Can you briefly describe what a typical day involves?
Keeping the vessel clean and tidy, making sure all safety equipment is in good working order, and keeping daily paperwork updated. Drills must be carried out and it’s important to keep good morale between the crew. Also looking after the passengers, making sure they have a good experience and giving them any local information.

Sometimes, with the weather, it can be challenging to keep the service going for islanders, and berthing the vessel in high winds. It’s important to keep the crew and passengers safe.

One piece of advice for someone looking to become a skipper?
Be positive. Every day is a school day.

What would you be if you weren’t a skipper?
I can’t imagine not being a skipper so I have no idea! I’ve been a skipper most of my career, it’s all I know.

Career highlight so far?
Passing my first skipper’s ticket.

If you had to sum up how you felt about your job using only one word, what would it be?
Lucky.