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Browse: Home / purpose

What motivates us?

What motivates us?

January 18, 2012

After my latest night riding session I stumbled across this fine video, which shines a great light on what motivates us. Interesting thoughts in there,…

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I look forward to work with the brilliant team fro

I look forward to work with the brilliant team from The Pierhouse Hotel in Port Apoin to offer a week of great cycling & fabulous food.

Join us from 18 -20 October - two days guided gravel riding on some of my favourite West Coast trails, two night accommodation, dinner and an evening talk on Saturday.

You”ll find more infos on the @thepierhousehotel website.

One of the corners of Scotland I have not explored

One of the corners of Scotland I have not explored enough - loved walking around Troup Head in Aberdeenshire in our spontaneous weekend in Macduff. This is the only gannet colony on the Scottish mainland, and spectacular for a walk. On our 🚴‍♂️tomorrow.

I visited Alyth this weekend to get Forillon, the

I visited Alyth this weekend to get Forillon, the @bikepackingscot House ready for the next guests. In between washing sheets & drying them I needed a nice gravel route, or at least motivation to squeeze a ride in.

As I plan routes for a living, I like plotting & perfecting routes. But sometimes it’s also nice to simply follow a route, this loop found on @komoot’s gravel planner was nice. I added some bits in I knew from riding in my home away from home, but the core route was ace.

And there’s so much more in the area to explore. If you stay with us, I’m happy to give you suggestions where to ride. Or you can find your own routes.

stay.bikepackingscotland.com

A nice new feature that @komoot has just launched,

A nice new feature that @komoot has just launched, you can now plan your own gravel adventures at the touch of a button on the app - wherever you are. I love the filter function, you can select your preferred length of ride, difficulty and find rides that start in reach of public transport options. If you want to be even more specific, you can also choose surfaces, elevation and whether one way or circular rides are your choice.

And Komoot’s smart gravel routing combines the most popular off-road trails, community recommendations, and detailed up-to-date map data to create the best gravel routes.

Worth checking out! The pics are from Great British Gravel Rides, from a summer that was a wee bit less wet, but I’m hopeful that Friday is a good day to scout the new gravel route for the Dunoon Dirt Dash. #ad

Pic 1 by @finlayanderson1 in one of my fav gravel destinations, the Lomond Hills.

On my way back to Edinburgh from a visit to @eurob

On my way back to Edinburgh from a visit to @eurobike_show in Frankfurt, my first time since 2017. This was one of a few visits to shows in Germany this year, and by far the biggest bike trade show I have been to for a while.

I was there to meet people I have worked with in the past, often the only means of communication has been email or text, so it was great to finally meet in person.

Working with @ternbicycles on a film about the new Orox was great fun, but I was also delighted to see my pictures & the film with @jennygrahamis_ on their stand. There weren’t many destinations at the public days of the event, something I would liked to see more.

That made it event more special seeing our film we produced with @morayspeyside on loop throughout the whole duration.

The bike got a lot of attention, winning a Gold Award, but my highlight was meeting the Tern crew. Bikes are so much more than just ‘things’ - they are connecting us with others, and I love meeting the people that create what I am promoting. Thanks to everyone at Tern for such a warm welcome!

And there were others - I had a great catch up with @schwalbetyresuk & @schwalbetires to discuss new projects and how we bring ‘Great British Gravel Rides’ - the film - to you soon.

I also had the chance to meet Chris and the team from @crossworxcycles - a bike builder from Rudolstadt, a town close to where I studied before moving to New Zealand and Scotland. Their aluminium bikes look great, and I can’t wait to try one out for a ride.

The show also had me thinking about how much the cycling world has changed since I last visited - originally sceptical of e-bikes I wholeheartedly embrace how they have potential to replace cars, at least the second car often owned. There were a lot of very pratical bikes on display - bikes which are not built simply for leisure rides, but more for everyday use.

All in all it was a worthwhile visit to Germany, now all my attention will be on the final preparations for the @dirtdash_cc event in Yorkshire, before working on a new film for @toutterrain & @klickfix_rixen.kaul.

You can find links to film/event in my bio - enjoy!

With only one week to go until the first @dirtdash

With only one week to go until the first @dirtdash_cc Yorkshire Dirt Dash - here is what to expect. Stunning views, nice people to ride with & we’ll have great food for you too.

Join us at dirtdash.cc/yorkshire for £95 - entries close on 10 July.

Start & finish @yhawhitby - campsite @humblebeefarm - supported by @komoot @kinesisbikes_uk @dexshell_official @routeyc

#gravel #bikepacking

A few frames from behind the scenes - taken while

A few frames from behind the scenes - taken while I filmed ‘Chasing Rainbows’ with Jenny. Although it rained a lot, there were plenty of smiles along the way. I am off to Eurobike tomorrow - please drop me a message if you are there. And if you want to watch the film - link is in my bio.
#bikepacking #orox #scotland

My new film is live now - exploring @morayspeyside

My new film is live now - exploring @morayspeyside with @jennygrahamis_ on @ternbicycles Orox e-cargobikes. We had such an amazing time exploring the coast, hills & chased rainbows along the beaches.

You can watch the film on YouTube - search for ‘Chasing Rainbows’

Final day today in Canada - Montreal has been fun

Final day today in Canada - Montreal has been fun to explore! #cycling #quebec

My journey around Gaspesie will finish soon, but I

My journey around Gaspesie will finish soon, but I look forward editing this all into a new film. Bike & bags have done an amazing job! Tested in all weather except frost & snow, maybe there is a winter trip incoming soon!

#bikepacking #gaspesie #gaspesiejetaime

The longest day of the year in the saddle - 170km

The longest day of the year in the saddle - 170km & 2650m up, about 85% off-road. It took me two days for the same route last year, this year I felt like doing it in a long day. With my arms swollen from various mosquito bites the downhills felt tough, but this was one of the most amazing parts of my trip so far.

I have also included a few pics from my bike & bag setup - tested over 750km now & working well. A Tout Terrain Scrambler with Pinion internal gear hub, Gates carbon drive, Schealbe G-One Overland tires & Rixen & Kaul bags.

#bikepacking #quebec

A few more impressions from #bikepacking Quebec. W

A few more impressions from #bikepacking Quebec. With the hottest day recorded yesterday in some places, it wasn’t easy to move yesterday, but frequent breaks, sheltering in the shade & loads of liquids got me to a lovely gite to wash off dust & salt.

The day started at 5am with an amazing sunrise over the St Lawrence River - and I finished just before 9 after 169km & 2,000m climbing.

Back in the saddle on an adventure in Quebec. Afte

Back in the saddle on an adventure in Quebec. After a slow drag at the start yesterday in Mantane I quickly got my mojo back. As working against the wind slowed me down massively I decided on a late shift and arrived at 10pm at a beautiful campsite at Parc National du Bic.

After exploring the National Park it started raining - and now I am cooling down as the temperatures soared to almost 30 degrees. The riding today so far was magic, on quiet roads & cycle paths through mostly coastal forests with so many ‘belvederes’ I stopped counting.

I look forward to 8 more days of this, and to make this adventure into a film for @toutterrain & @klickfix_rixen.kaul - for now I am super happy to simply enjoy cycle touring.

A walk up Mont Saint Alban at Forillon National Pa

A walk up Mont Saint Alban at Forillon National Park - such an inspiring place. The sea fog made this pretty special - but I imagine the views in clear weather are awesome too.

This, for me, is one of the most inspiring places in Quebec - and that’s why I named the @bikepackingscot House in Alyth after it. No doubt there’ll be a few more photographs on the walls from this special place. I am setting off on a new #cycling adventure here on Sunday.

Testing the Scrambler & Vasco gravel bikes from @t

Testing the Scrambler & Vasco gravel bikes from @toutterrain in Quebec. Yesterday we had proper mud - and both bikes worked superb.

I am a big fan of the simplicity of the Pinion gear box already, but will tell you more once I have ridden it for at least 1,000 km.

#gravel #quebec

One of the best place to ride gravel bikes - Gaspe

It’s #worldbicycleday - here’s my ride on the

It’s #worldbicycleday - here’s my ride on the Yorkshire Coast Dirt Dash, which takes you on a great journey on @routeyc.

You can find out more about the route in a brilliant new feature from @suvituulia_l on @road.cc - and join us for the first ever @dirtdash_cc on 13/14 July - £95 incl camping at @humblebeefarm, starting & finishing @yhawhitby

#bikepacking #yorkshire #gravel

I enjoyed test riding the Yorkshire Coast Dirt Das

I enjoyed test riding the Yorkshire Coast Dirt Dash route yesterday & combined my ride with testing the Term Orox - curious if the bike would make it around the route with the two batteries mounted. It did!

The first Dirt Dash in Yorkshire will be a nice mix of great riding (no pushing), scenic views & nice places to fuel along the way. And with some of the best gravel I have yet found in Britain.

Next visit will be 13/14 July to experience this with others - join at dirtdash.cc/yorkshire

A wee recap of our #bikepacking tour on the Tern O

A wee recap of our #bikepacking tour on the Tern Orox bikes from Inverness through the Cairngorms & along the amazing Moray Coast. Route & film soon - both bikes & scenery delivered for yet another fun adventure with @jennygrahamis_

Yesterday’s final day of our bikepacking tour in

Yesterday’s final day of our bikepacking tour in the Tern Orox Bikes in Moray was everything a good adventure should be. The weather was much kinder than on the previous days, and the riding along the Moray Coast was simply beautiful. We met very welcoming locals that made amazing coffee & shuttled us across Findhorn Bay, and finished in Inverness at 11pm with a takeaway pizza.

Yesterday was a proper test for those bikes. We loved riding along the empty beaches so much, that we did a massive detour, but still had around 25% left in the batteries when we arrived without recharging along the way.

Route & new film coming soon! Thanks to @ternbicyclesuk @ternbicycles @morayspeyside @alpkit @jennygrahamis_ for an adventure that will stick in the memory for a long time!

The template for our route is ‘From Coast to Barrel’ featured in ‘Bikepacking Scotland’ from @vertebrate_publishing

#bikepacking #morayspeyside #scotland #ternbikes #ternorox

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