Coast to Coast!

Here in Scotland the cyclists are blessed with a relatively small country. I decided to take advantage this on a spur of the moment this past weekend. I said to myself "Self, how far do you reckon it is to the west coast?" I answered myself via mapmyride.com and saw that it could be as little as about 75 miles from the east coast to the west coast of Scotland. If I added in a few really great climbs and a dirt road here or there I could have a really killer 90 mile cruise with rewarding views and great roads. Word!

So here I am in the North Sea (rather here are my feet):


And here I am on the way to the Atlantic: (Resplendent in my new 29er Crew team kit of course)


And here I am (90 miles later) in the Atlantic:



Another great thing about Scotland is that there are about a bazillion little towns on any given ride in which you can stop and take a load off for a while. Here I am at the "Lanark Tea Room" enjoying a little Cafe Americano and a sandwich:


All in all the ride was a huge success and I have a killer cycling tan (burn) to prove it. When I stopped for lunch I think my kit frightened the little old lady, I promptly informed her that the weapons on my back and leg were not in fact real. She seemed relieved.

And as always, because one can't get enough of the Scottish scenery here are a few of those shots:







I even spotted the alleged home of one of my favorite JK Rowling characters:




All in all it was a great trip. When the sun is shining and the wind is calm (both more the exception than the rule in Scotland) even a 90 mile coast to coast cruise isn't all that tiring. Hope all is well back home, see y'all soon! I look forward to heading home next month to begin my off road season and enjoy some dirt as opposed to all of this tarmac I've been on lately. It looks like the rest of the crew has been having a great season; great job boys and girls.