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Category: Bike Rides 2009
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Lucky to Ride a Bike

"I used to work in a bank when I was younger and to me it doesn’t matter whether it’s raining or the sun is shining or whatever: as long as I’m riding a bike I know I’m the luckiest guy in the world." ~ Mark Cavendish, after the second of his four stage wins in the 2008 Tour de France.

Twenty people turned up for the July Spokes Ride. A cloudy morning, and a drenching, before a quite wonderful trip to the Scottish Borders. As we headed up to Whitheouse Loan, it started raining and we all rushed for waterproofs. Good job too as a few seconds later the heavens opened, and it was like having a big bucket of water on us as we cycled through Morningside. Torrential doesn't even begin to describe the rain, but it didn't last long. By the time we got to Greenbank, the rain was just spits and spots, and at Fairmilehead, stopped completely.

Wonderful Views

At Bush, waterproofs were discarded, we headed along through Milton Bridge. given the downpour, I wasn't going to risk the wrath of stuck in the mud cyclists. One person had a near accident experience with a bus coming in to Penicuik, fortunately no harm done, not even to the bus driver. Wrath having been dispensed, we headed through, then out, of Penicuik, before turning right onto the Moor Road.

Thankfully, the wind was really light and cycling really pleasant, the road did not live up to its windy reputation. We had excellent views of the Pentland Hills, loads of sheep and plenty of winged wildlife to spot. Once we had passed Deepsyke Forest, the road headed down to West Linton. I did feel a bit worried as the sky had clouded over again, but I needn't of worried. We had a pleasant lunch on the banks of Lyne Water.

More Wonderful Views as the blue sky is revealed

After lunch we carried on south. The sky continued to clear, and the ride was providing some stunning views of the Border Hills. In places, the purple heather was starting to bloom, and tractors were busy mowing grass for winter feed and straw bedding. We carried on following Lyne Water along the A72, a wonderful twisty, winding road, which with hardly any traffic is a lovely road to ride. At Lyne station, it was time to head north, through the Meldon Hills towards Eddleston.

On the way up, the temperature seemed to rise with altitude, in fact rising to 28deg C. The Public convenience was inconveniently closed, but I don't think anyone was desperate, apart for a need for water. We waited for two people to arrive, quite a long time. Very worried I was about to go back down the hill when they turned up with a slightly damaged bike. Unfortunately the person had hit a patch of soft tarmac and slid off their bike. Fortunately they were OK and able to carry on, although the STI levers were a little bent (fixed later without spending much money) and limited gear changes.

More down than up

Once over the top, we had excellent views of the Wind Turbines on the Moorfoot Hills. Then the descent, wind whistling through helmets as we floated downhill for 3km. At Eddleston, we discussed the merits of cakes at the Tea Rooms. A birthday boy made a decision of cakes at his house, so we headed on to Leadburn. Although this bit was uphill, and a couple of people were struggling, that was the last hill of any note. A couple of people managed to blag some water from a friendly resident. From here it was downhill to Auchendinny. Then to avoid the horror of Ikea, we headed east. The beer gardens of the hotels and pubs in Roslin were full of people. It was like passing a Zoo exhibit. The stationery exhibits gawping at the us with glazed eyes as we passed through, taking the back route to Loanhead.

At Bilston Glen we stopped on the viaduct, admiring the view, then carried on. Loanhead was very quiet, so to Straiton junction, and the road back in to Edinburgh. At Kaimes crossroads we all went our separate ways (except those of us who went in search of cake!)

Warm Regards,
Explore, Dream, Discover

Ride Statistics

Distance:       84.2km (52.3 miles)
Average Speed:  20.8km (12.9 mph) Max 51.5 km/h
Total Climbing: 785m (2575 ft) Max 283m
Time:           4 hours 13 minutes
Max. Temp.:     28 deg C (82 deg F)

Route Description

Start:  Usher Hall
Out:    Tollcross, Morningside, Greenbank, Fairmilehead, Bush, Milton Bridge, Penicuik, Hare Moss, West Linton
Return: West Linton, Romanobridge, Lyne Station, Meldons, Eddleston, Leadburn, Howgate, Auchendinny, Roslin, Loanhead, Straiton
End:    Kaimes Crossroads

Interactive Route Map

The map below shows the route that we took on the July 2009 Spokes Ride.