Ships and giggles!

Have you ever been to the Isle of Arran?

It's quite an extraordinary place and once described to me in my youth as "Scotland in miniature" It's not a bad metaphor actually as with it's highlands in the north, lowlands in the south and it's thriving central belt it does feel instantly familiar if you've done your locational research beforehand.

This is probably why the mountain bike component company Gamut USA wanted it's UK distributor to make a short edit of a point-to-point ride featuring their products as ridden by Andy Dodds one of their training guys. As i have just made some investment in getting back into making some AV content I offered my services as an "elbow in the water" and a low stake equipment test.

In my experience it's a bit of a truism that most americans have a view of Scotland that suggests wilderness, remoteness and a general "roughness" that simply has to be experienced if you want to have stories to tell. As a young Munro bagger, the "Yanks" we used to meet had mostly one phrase they used to roll out. It came in many forms but the basic gist was "It's SO GREEN up here"

Yeah, it's green because it rains...a LOT! The day we chose to get the ferry to Arran was no exception. 7mm of rain forecast with 50-70mph gusts on the hills, and yes it was very accurate on this occasion. We got it all.

Troopers both. Andy and Chris endured some serious weather to earn these smiles.

That in mind, here was the remit: A short 2-3 minute movie featuring a local rider that would be proven to be "Scottish island enough" through the following visuals.

A ferry ride.
A mountain.
A bothy.
A cup of tea AT a Bothy.
A hike-a-bike section.
A view of the sea.
Shit weather.

Truth is that we did catch all of these at some point in the day, but there was a problem. The final edit was almost 5 minutes long. The problem was we only had 5 hours to film due to the ferry times and the irony is that the more footage you get, the shorter you can make the video, but also, telling a "there and back again" story is difficult to do in such a short space of time. (it took Tolkien three books!)

So yeah, it's a bit over-cooked and I didn't really want shorten it as I didn't really know how to tell the story in a shorter fashion. They did ask me, but I made the case for something different from the 2 minute "style-up" movies that have preceded their "at home" series of rider made movies. They took it on board and ran with it, so as my first attempt in years with software that I learned enough to use in a day I think I'm OK with it.

"Icebike" is one of the cycle trade's biggest shows of the year. the company that hosts the event (Madison) is also the UK distributor for Gamut USA and the guys were over from the US to promote their equipment at the event and also rolling the film in the background for the trade to see. I'm unsure what the reaction was in the sterile trade only environment, but I've not heard any negative feedback yet so I'll take it that it was at least a neutral response, which is fine by me for a short, barely prepared foray back into film.

Anyway, i hope you enjoy the video of Andy "At home" let me know what you think in the comments or back on facebook if you came from there?

Cheers.

Laid up, foot up, fed up... Shut up?

It's hard not to feel sorry for yourself when you had work, activity, family and friends mapped out for a few months and then TWANG! The ordinarily elastic and highly complex series of muscles, tendons and ligaments in your ankle are asked to do some involuntary acrobatics as you temporarily forget how to put one foot in front of another.

Unfortunately I'm not the type to "make the best" of a situation like this as I'm constantly imagining an alternative universe in which I've been active for the last 11 days and not just thinking about how long it's going to take to start getting around again. It's also one of those injuries that seems to get more annoying as it heals.

At this point (11 days later) the only bit that is swollen is around the "ball" of my ankle, where the foot articulates. Whilst this doesn't look very serious, you kinda need this area to work if you have any chance of walking properly. It also bears weight when you extend onto your toes, so even after 11 days, walking up the stairs is pretty damn painful! Not to mention standing on bicycle pedals.

Nope...

The constant ingestion of both anti-inflammatory and pain killing drugs is also just unbearable on the digestive system of someone who doesn't ordinarily partake. There really is nothing good about the situation at all.

The reason I'm even writing this today is that my mate was sitting in a McDonalds 20 miles away for a pre-production meeting this morning (Wednesday) only problem is I'm still on Tuesday over here and a full day behind. So sorry Andy, I'll see you tomorrow. The combination of all the above and having no reference points for the last 11 days has just tossed everything up in the air for me.

So what to do? I did get on my feet for a few hours to go over to Sprockets and catch some footage to test the new camera gear and my chops with Premier Pro, the results of which you can see below. It's a bit rough around the edges but if you've ever tried using a steadicam, you'll appreciate that the results are actually pretty good for a first time user.



Another thing that really grates is just the sheer amount of reliance on other people. It's brutal to watch your loved ones running around after you, insisting that its all OK for them and knowing that you're the cause of them having to out in that extra effort and screwing up their schedules and arrangement. At the risk of sounding a bit self indulgent, I feel pretty bad for my wife and my in-laws, they really are the best people I've ever known.

On an even MORE depressing note, whatever happened to daytime TV? I'm sure it's like many things in that nostalgia and the loss of "youth" to the ravages of time kind of skews your opinion of what was good and what was not, but crikey! Rip off Britain, Cowboy builders, Wanted down under, Loose Women, Judge Rinder. I mean come on! It's easy to see why people who may choose to "apply themselves less" could sit and watch this sugar coated nonsense with no real motivation to leave the house, but it's not for me, it's terrible.

What else then? I don't really play video games these days, with the exception of GTAV if I'm just in the mood to cause some carnage on the streets of Los Santos. But in a weird course of action my wife & son bought me Battlefield 1 for Christmas.

I was a little confused at the time, but having played it a few times it really is quite a masterclass in every sense of the word and pays a very real homage to the horror, romance, cost and importance of the Great War. The story modes in particular are very poignant. Its actually hard not to relate to some of the characters as well as finding it double hard to watch increasingly realistic digital humanoids die over and over again in the most horrible ways ever invented. (sorry depressing I know)

The game play is amazing, the graphics and textures are stunning and of course getting killed is easy as there are folk all over the world that just spend all day playing games like this, with the express intention of kicking your ass.

Chaaaaaaaarrrrge!!!!

Even worse is the fact that I got to ride my new bike for the first time at the start of the year, only to watch it become a literal clothes horse over the last fortnight. In fact it was in the act of putting my bike in the van for a trip that I sprained my ankle in the first place.

Quite a bitter pill to swallow as I was ready to go to Innerleithen for a proper big ride to start the year and of course my journey towards the Cairngorm Loop this year. I guess this is the main reason I'm so down on this last 11 days.

I promise that the following photo is not set up. It's now like a chameleon, blending into its sad familiar background...

Literally the worlds most depressing picture.

Anyway, I think I'll quit this one just now as I initially did it to cheer myself up.

Buh.....

The creative drought and near write-off of 2016.

So where to even start?

There's a quote from "Of mice and men" that I could use about "great plans" but all I'll say is that I started this wee blog with the best of intentions right when life in general was about to throw me a finely tuned curve ball. A curve ball that would stop me in my tracks long enough to set aside my specific goals for 2017 and potentially move them over a year.

In March I was made redundant. Along with 7 members of staff that were also my friends, the Tiso group that was also in charge of Alpine Bikes decided that our branch in Glasgow's St Georges Cross Glasgow had to go. After years of questionable upper management decisions, poor foresight and an unwillingness to respond to staff and store management concerns, yet another branch of one of Scotland's first independent bike shop chain bit the dust. I could have stayed but I had no faith left in the company at large, so I found myself without a job.

Luckily I have some friends that thought highly enough of me to send me some work and eventually give me the confidence to start my own little business in my hometown. After a wee bit of summer trading, I think it may just work too. So we'll see how it goes? I'll probably keep a "real job" too until i get a full year under my belt just to be safe?

Just after that I was dealt a health blow which put me on my arse for 2 months during the summer. Anyone who knows me will remember my right hip giving up last summer (2015) which prevented me from doing pretty much anything. Well this year, the left one gave me the same trouble. This time it wasn't as debilitating as the last, but I couldn't ride my bike, was in great pain so had to rest, meaning a put half a stone on over a few months and just got rather lethargic along the way.

I did a fair bit of wild camping too. In October the Aonach Eagach Ridge Glen Coe.

This time though, the physio referral came through while I was actually laid up, making it easier to get to the bottom of it, so through good movement, common sense and rest, I was back up and at it as Autumn came round. I got weaving and lost the weight I put simply by watching my calories. Turns out that I had a spasm in a back muscle that was giving me chronic sciatic pain. Luckily no mechanical problems then, but pretty damn painful none the less.

But there were some positives. This year I passed my Bikeability training, did my level 3 Mountain Bike Leader training and got out on my bike more than ever in September and October.

I slept in more Bothys in that 2-3 months than I ever had all year. Rode more big day rides and overnight rides than I've ever done and at any opportunity just went biking. I also got to work at Ridelines Mountain bike tuition, leading kids and young adults round the trails at Glentress. This simple gesture of trust by the Tweed Valley coaching team was probably the highlight of my working year.

I also managed to sneak into their new promo video that was filmed over a few days at Glentress. It was honestly such a privilege to be included in their work this year. Also we had a pretty great Christmas dinner at Number One Peebles Road too.



So At this point I'm behind the goals I'd set when I wrote the description of this Blog, but I'm still on mission. Cairngorm Loop this year and the HT 550 next year. So just a year behind schedule :)

As I write this however, I'm sitting with a badly sprained ankle. I had a "program" all set out with my training in place for January, but when loading my van yesterday morning to head to Innerleithen, I lost my footing and went over on my ankle. It's pretty much the worst pain I ever felt in my life and I really thought I'd broken it for sure. In and out of Hairmyers A&E inside 2 hours told me that I'd sprained my ankle and most likely torn a few fibres of my ligament, so I'm actually counting myself lucky in the context of what could have happened.

Crutches again... I don't look impressed do I?

I also ditched my Santa Cruz Bronson in favour of a Santa Cruz 5010. It has less travel and a longer top tube which makes it a more efficient machine for long days in the saddle and riding more akin to fast trail and aggressive XC riding. I've only ridden it once but it feels good so far. I plan many a trip on it's back. I've already decided the the Cairngorm Loop is probably best done on this bike too.

Thanks to the guys at Sprockets Cycles for the help with the build. I didn't scrimp on the spec and their help in building it made it a very easy project. I'll get into the bike as I get more experience on it, so if this is your kind of thing then check back to the blog for an update on how it rides for me. Danny Macaskill seemed to think it was OK or his "Wee Day Out"anyway?

I've been at Sprockets a lot this year helping them to launch their new store in Kilmarnock. It's almost certainly the biggest bespoke independent in Scotland at the moment and has seen stupendous growth and support from Scotland's cyclists since it opened in September. I'll no doubt continue to be part of that endeavour at some level, so expect some references to them along the way.

Ready for a "Wee Day Out"

Ahead is a busy few months personally and some great opportunities professionally. I'm also looking forward to completing a media project with a friend that may lead to other similar work and some other stuff I can't really get into right now. So despite starting 2017 with a crook ankle I'm determined to make the best of it. I'm also determined to share my experience with more people. Be it on line by writing about it or actually getting out to ride with people that I usually wouldn't ride with, or just old pals I haven't seen in a while.

I'm also determined to make more of a balance of all this stuff Vs family time. Those of you who have kids will know that they just grow up at such a rapid rate that you could easily miss the best days of your family life. This may be the biggest challenge of all!

I'm not really much for lists apart from the couple of goals this Blog was based on, but here's what I learnt in 2016

• I actually do like Gin. But I need to drink more whisky.
• I'm always fitter than I think I am.
• Scotland is without question the most beautiful country on earth. (I knew this before 2016)
• Electorates in any country are almost universally uninformed.
• I can sleep almost anywhere outside.
• Vans are best, cars suck.
• I injure easier and it takes longer to heal.
• Rogue One was perhaps the best Star Wars Movie so far.
• I don't see how other people have bother fitting tubeless tyres.
• Gary's WHW attempt on a CX bike was nothing short of awesome.
• My friend Velda Weir thought I was "35 or something".
• My clothing is going down in size.
• I need to eat (or drink) more vegetables.
• Not sure I like Ae forest as much as I used too. I'll go more in 2017.
• It's hard to watch other people lose people.
• I miss being in a band.
• I posted less rides to Strava than ever before.
• My son is the funniest person on earth.

People to thank in 2016 in no small measure or particular order. Andy Weir, Craig Paton, The Ravens, The Goldie Oldies, Gary T, Chris, Lewis, Niall, Adam and the rest of the Alpine Bikes redundancy support group. Dave MacDonald, Andy Dodds, Richard Kidd and probably loads more (sorry)

Most of all however, my awesome wife Donna, who herself has reached and surpassed some personal goals of her own. All whilst attending to our family's needs while I go about at least trying to make us a better life. 

It's been a tough one! What will I learn this year I wonder?

A very quick word on bikepacking luggage (very quick)

This week shit got real!

My luggage arrived and I could not be happier with it. As the Stache is a bonafide trail mountain bike, choosing luggage was actually quite tricky due to the compact nature of the frame and the tiny dimensions of the internal front triangle.

Firstly these dimensions are not friendly to big frame bags. With 2 water bottles in place there was no way that any type of frame bag was going to fit, so one was going to have to be sacrificed and there was no way to avoid it. With only 40cm of top tube to deal with inside the top tube area of the front triangle, my original plan of staying uniformly with the Apidura brand immediately fell to pieces. The frame bag I wanted to use from their range was 6cm too big in overall length, far from a huge measurement but these are finite dimensions and if there's no space then theres just no space.

So the search was on and one name kept cropping up as good value and great construction and so began the search for objective reviews of the Alpkit Possum frame bag.

Now the historic problem with Alpkit direct is that stock is always terrible in popular sizes and colours. This product was no different as my first choice (silver) to match the Apidura stuff I had already ordered was out of stock then Black (out of stock) both of which only said they were out of stock when I had gone to checkout. Very frustrating indeed! In the end I settled for the red colour as my bike has some red detailing on it which actually looks very cool when attached. The possum is well constructed and exactly the dimensions that were advertised so it fits under my teensy top tube perfectly. With deep full capacity access on one side and a thinner side pocket on the other its as simple as it is easy to access via the very good quality zips that can be opened and closed with one finger.

There will be plenty of time for colour shots. Here's some moody black and white for now.

The apidura stuff was a lot simpler but for one problem, the distance between the seat rails and the tyre. The seat pack I ended up with was the "small" version. You can see in the picture above that there is just a few inches between the tyre and the bottom of the pack. This just has an old jacket inside as a test so I expect when its fully loaded that it may be a little tighter in this area. I suspect that Apidura themselves knew the score here as the bottom of this pack is made from a different textile that seems to be a lot tougher than the material, easily 3 times as thick to take some serious abuse. But it fits, so panic over!

Lastly we have the handlebar roll; Apidura again for this one and it did not disappoint. The quality is fantastic and capacity is excellent for what is supposed to be a "medium" sized unit. It mounts at three points; two on the bars and one behind the fork cathead or steerer tube, depending on your frame. It doesn't seem to bounce around or inhibit any brake or gear operations.

I still have the bar roll accessory pouch to buy and a feeding bag for the top tube. These will both be from apidura as the accessory bag directly mounts to the bar roll and they feed bag seems like it will be a perfect fit.

I'll get round to taking better pictures and reviewing these products individually, but I just wanted to go over the basics in a quick blog entry as I'm off into the Highlands on Saturday to give the bike its first backpacking adventure along with my shiny new luggage!

Olaf the Lesser wide

Truth be told I was already writing this entry when a impromptu text conversation took place with an old friend about hardtail mountain bikes and the subject of the Stache in particular. So far from writing it because of him, I think I'll dedicate this entry to my old riding pal Phil Thomson. He's underway on a challenge of his own right now raising money for Cancer Research UK following the loss of Jean, his lovely late Mother who was a cancer survivor and a supporter of the same brilliant charity.

He's riding 1000 miles over 4 events to try and raise the hefty target of £3000! So please click THIS LINK for more details and to his just giving page and drop a few quid on the boy for a worthy cause.

Now, bike stuff...

2016 Trek Stache 5. "Olaf the Lesser Fat"

Pretty isn't it! This is the bike I'm planning on riding on these adventures over the next year or so. Its a 2016 Trek Stache 5 and it may be the most versatile (and prettiest) bike I've ever owned. Now I'm not saying that something better won't come along over the next year or so, but as a segway between an all day "mountain bike" and a bike that could potentially take me round these large rides, its where I've found myself for now. 

Standard talk about "spec" is pretty boring so I'll just post some pictures, describe them and move on to some closing Rhetoric about the bike itself. If you want the corporate blurb about the Stache then click the link to Trek's product page here.

Now don't adjust your set by the way, the colour is "Miami Green" and is notoriously difficult to photograph in varying light conditions. Hence the official Trek picture above.

2016 Stache 5 my weapon of choice.

Non drive side.

So the "only" thing I've really done to this is changed the drivetrain. I'm a big fan of 1x11 so I had bought another bike alongside this one at the same time, stripped the SRAM GX off it and transplanted it to the Stache giving it a huge climbing range despite those huge wheels and tyres. It came with 1x10 Shimano and a 34t front ring which would never take me where I need to go, so this type of upgrade was always going to happen.

It's still not the best super steep climber but grinding out fire roads and longer rides are gobbled up by the new drivetrain, friendly geometry and super compliant wheel set up.

Super cool 1.1/8 tapered to 1.1/5 front end with Trek Bowie carbon fork.

Boost 110 front fork spacing with 15mm bolt through axle.

The clean lines of the Stache continue all the way to every part of the bike.

So keener readers will notice that there are no mudguard or luggage bosses on this bike. I've decided to forgo these often expected features in favour of a lighter package using suspended luggage from Apidura and Alpkit rather than the traditional rack and panniers. I have to ride this bike as my only or "first" bike for the majority of this year, so a lighter, robust mountain bike was preferable to a big Surly, Salsa or similar steed. So far I have not been disappointed and trail centre style MTB performance is actually very good. No-one is leaving me behind so far!

The raised drive side stay is not for show. Its moved further up so as to maintain a standard BB width and fit the tyre width into the frame. So no wide stance width, no fancy BB standards, specific cranks or crazy Q-factors going on. Every drivetrain bit that fits your old bike pretty much fits this bike which offers peace of mind for replacing components.

The raised chain-stay is to accommodate the 3" tyre and as short a wheelbase as possible.

Moveable wheelbase via the Stranglehold dropout and adjustable brake mount.

More beauty around the head-tube area.

Simple, serviceable Shimano Deore brakes with sintered pads fitted are ideal for all types of riding.

I'll be experimenting with a few different wheel set ups too. I've already decided on a set of Hope Pro-4 Boost hubs for the actual ride as the reliability is assured. Some triple butted spokes will also be fitted as a preference for weight versus strength with the only sticking point being the rims. With 29+ in its infancy, the options are very limited in this format, so I'll take my time making up my mind and see what becomes available in the meantime.

The Sun Mule rims seem adequate and the wheels with tyres are actually very light despite the aesthetic of "fat" tyres. The Bontrager Chupacabra tyres are also super light but also super fragile, so these will probably go when an ideal tyre is introduced to the market. One problem right now is that there is no integrated tubeless "system" on the bike like Bontrager's famous TLR making it a bit hit and miss for reliability. Again, solutions will no doubt present themselves.

Remember the name...

Ok, so a short run-down of the bike that I at least intend to use for my attempts at these rides. Nothing to deep as I'll get into the guts of the bits and bobs as I find my way around it with component changes and logistical "portage" problems with luggage etc.

No doubt you'll see a lot more pictures of this bike "leaning on things" in the coming months. Meanwhile here's a picture of it leaning on a shed...

My bike leaning against a shed.

Nothing required, nothing prohibited.

So I thought I'd pick apart the rules and begin to check my understanding of them.. I have a good few anecdotes for most of them through searching peoples experiences online and of course Gary's tales.

Both the CGL and the HT550 share these rules apart from a single reference to National Park etiquette in the Cairngorms list which should apply to the majority of your trip anyway.

I think when I'm out there I'll unnecessarily worry about whether I'm unconsciously breaking any of them. Not the ones about the environment, or support etc. Just technicalities like finishing on time (over 8 days is an DNF) not breaking the route by leaving it and returning in the same place, navigational mistakes and that kind of stuff. The rules aren't rocket science, but they are rules none the less.

So here they are, in bold with some of my own commentary following.

• Complete the entire route, under your own power - no drafting. Because sitting behind a tractor for 550 miles is definitely an unfair advantage. I guess this primarily refers to "teamwork" of any sort as its technically an individual time trial. This could innocently happen of course just by riding with others, but setting off with a plan to work together seems like what's being discouraged here. Personally I cant see for the life of me even the long term benefits of this would be on a primarily off-road ride of such length.
  

• Adhere to the law and codes of conduct for mountain biking and wild camping in the Park:
  No Buckie or Frosty Jack bottles left behind for anyone else to find! Seriously though, there is a lot to be said for leaving a minimal footprint. Tho whole reason there is a debate about the recent new laws passed in the Queen Elizabeth Forest Park is (in a nutshell) the very reason above. You can find some resource on the recent wild camping ban here and make up your own mind. Stick to the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. And specifically the guidelines for cycling.
  

• Be completely self-supported throughout the ride - absolutely no support crews, absolutely no gear sharing.
  From what I here, even having your family meet you on the way round to give you a hug 250 miles in is viewed with nothing but contempt. If you take a sip of Coke from them that's counted as support, so best to just not take the chance at all. The idea is to be self sufficient at the end of the day.

• Only use commercial services that are available to all challengers - no private resupply, no private lodging: Shops, massage parlours, the local Chippy. All good to go as far as resource is concerned. You can't stay at your mates house or even pitch your tent in their garden. Again, a level laying ground is the idea. Wait, if your mate says everyone can camp in his garden, then I guess you're ok?

• If you have to leave the route, you must re-join it at the exactly same spot:
  So there's actually a fairly major river crossing just south of Ullapool. Depending on the prevailing winds and recent weather it can apparently be a bit crazy too. On competitor last year took 20 hours to make the decision to cross, eventually she crossed slightly further up and rode back the couple of hundred metres to join the route proper and everything was awesome.
  
  The point to this anecdote is that the alternative to crossing this river at all was almost a days road ride to a point roughly 120m in front of the rider. Perhaps some reading on river crossing techniques like this one for the Cape Wrath Ultra, Another competitor was disqualified for doing a similar thing, but there was a fundamental difference in his actions. This paid him no real physical advantage, but was a BIG rule break. I'll elude to it in a later rule.

"Shenavall" The river crossing in question. You really don't want to go around this!

• No third-party sag-wagon offering an easy bail-out option:
  If you bonk, you have to find your way out by yourself. So no Top Gear Challenge style VW beetle or Star Spangled forfeit bike within rescue range.

• No caches of any kind, including postal drops.
  On a challenge of this is size, comfort it sure to be at a minimum, so driving ahead and dropping a few food parcels an certain points would be something perhaps considered by those who are slightly less discerning. Posting yourself stuff is genius too, but when weighed up against the individual nature of the challenge its an obvious non-starter and can turn you a serious advantage.

• No pre-arranged support, which means before you begin your ride - e.g. booking a B&B: I though this was harsh to be honest but then realised that its worded very cleverly. Before the race you cannot book ahead. As soon as the start gun goes, you can get on your mobile and book anything you like, as long as its commercial and available for anyone else to speculatively book. One or two nights in a hotel during a ride like tis would actually do you the power of good I imagine.
  

• No travel by any motorized means. By all means do so if necessary, but understand if you do your attempt is over:
  This is the disqualification I alluded to earlier. Very briefly: This guys bike breaks down and needs a part. He phones an LBS (local bike shop) leaves the route, catches a bus to (Fort William I think?) gets the bike fixed, catches the bus to the exact spot he left the route and proceeds on his way. He is disqualified as a result. Again, no real advantage in the speed of his completion time, but if someone had the same problem in the middle of nowhere, where there is no bus, the playing field is not equal. the idea is that everyone has an equal shot at every aspect of the ride regardless of how lucky or unlucky the potential location of any breakdown.

• No ditching or stashing of any gear to pick up later. I guess you can bin your litter or any gas canisters or spent inner tubes, but shoving your sleeping bag and rucksack in a hedge on the last day and coming back for it tomorrow is right out the window. Star with all your equipment, end with all your equipment.

• Gear: Nothing required, nothing prohibited: Not strictly true, but I'll get to that in my next entry.

Coming up in other Blogs. I've ordered my luggage, I have my Spot Tracker and I'll take you round my bike, the weapon of choice for my next year or so!

Getting ready to play Rocket Man...

Welcome humans....

I don't want to be deliberately cryptic about the title of this blog entry, as I'm aware that a deliberate attempt at being cruelly vague whilst appealing to some, may just hack off anyone else that might be reading. I won't explain it fully only to point you in the direction of Colonel Chris Hadfield's book "An Astronaut's guide to life on Earth" wherein you can search for this line "Getting ready to play Rocket Man" and its context. You can dismiss it, or align it with anecdotes of things already achieved or things that may yet happen in your own life, whether you know about them yet or not?

First up, some housekeeping; I've spent many years blogging in my industry (bicycle retail) so I know that your attention can be hard to keep, so please don't be discouraged by the length of my first few entries as I have a scene to set. I promise these blogs will get shorter, more informative and more specific as they go on. So here I go in earnest...

Part one: Allan Doyle. For more years that I can remember I have loved cycling, Mountain biking specifically. I have always done it on my own terms, never joining a club in any real way, never overtly following any real trends in bikes or fashion, though in my role as a cycle industry professional I have always been acutely aware of everything happening in the world of bikes.

When I was young I would snaffle my Dad's Raleigh Olympic out of the shed and ride it for miles when he was at work and return it with him being (I still assume) none the wiser. When I was really young I used to bomb around on the then standard collection of Raleigh Budgies, Strikas, Grifters and Choppers that used to litter the small street of council houses in the tiny Scottish village where I grew up.

Over the years I've tried road riding, BMX, trials, hill climbing, Cross Country MTB, Downhill and all kinds of other disciplines of cycling on my journey to discovering that I wasn't especially outstanding at any of them, instead discovering in the last 4 or 5 years that I am happier riding my bike on my own terms with no real mind to the achievements or goals that I would set for myself when I was younger. Truthfully, I don't really think I cared about them back then if I'm honest. They were all a bit superficial.

Outside of all this idealism I have had a varied life that has contained some sublime experiences right through to personal tragedy and a million other bite size moments that have shaped who I am today. No different I suspect to the vast majority of people who populate the planet, its all relative I guess.

However, whenever I pulled through though, whenever I found my feet and found "normality" there was always bikes. Always!

Doune Byre (bothy) in winter last year. Places like these are where I feel I belong.

Part two: Waiting for a sign...

"You may not believe it, but I don't believe in miracles anymore. And when I think about it
I don't believe I ever did for sure"

I had a crisis of confidence at some point in my late 30's in that I realised I was not 25 anymore, had put on a few stones and just generally resigned myself to being a bit of a lightweight when it came to appearing equal in ability to the people I found myself riding with. But I didn't really care enough to do anything about it as I felt I had nothing to prove having been such a prolific rider in my earlier years. My wife Donna is famous for being understanding about my cycling and has never prevented me from stepping out the front door to do anything let alone riding bikes, but still the motivation to make a change to the status quo was lacking. Bad weather, feeling crappy, no-one to ride with... all common excuses. And work, oh yeah we all have work to do right?

Like the folks we all know all patiently waiting to win the lottery, I was having the "water cooler discussion" with myself about what I was going to do with the money, when in fact I hadn't even bought a ticket to win it. I was hoping for something to come along, a moment of clarity, a kick in the ass, a bolt from the blue with no effort or input from myself. A cosmic convergence where the universe would suddenly intervene and force me to act, to again become the 10 stone trail skilled endurance machine that is 20 years my junior. I waited and waited resigning myself to its improbability.

On the couch one night, (probably with my hand deep inside a bag of those sweet chilli Walkers Sensations) an old family friend (Melissa) sends me a text "Wanna do Tough Mudder?" without really thinking about it, I said yes. Several months later after hitting the gym together, encouraging each other with another friend John Clarke, we crossed the line at Dalkeith, in 2013 with me 2 stones lighter and a new outlook on what I could actually still do if I put my mind to it. Although not particularly "tough" Tough Mudder gave me something to shoot for, which made the difference. Not for any huge achievement or goal, but just as a waypoint to move forward to and ultimately to move on from, perhaps to another "thing".

After Tough Mudder I stayed fit, entered a few MTB events, qualified as a Mountain Bike Leader, outdoor first aider, made some career changes and generally took up a better outlook on my health and wellbeing. I also got myself a few new industry retail qualifications and am currently cramming for my level 3 Mountain Bike Leader award.

Melissa and John. after Tough Mudder. Me in the middle.

At this time I also got to know another positive influence on my life, Gary Tompsett. A veteran of every outdoor pursuit imaginable and a freelance adventure consultant responsible in part for more events than you'd imagine, many of which are now household names.

 It really can't be underestimated what having positive like-minded people around you can do for your confidence and outlook on life and whilst Gary can be relied on to further expand on every point ad-infinitum, I always look forward to hearing about his latest or indeed his legacy of personal capers in the great outdoors. Always encouraging, honest, constructive in his criticism and open to all of my opinions and questions, Gary is a constant source of knowledge and inspiration. So you should take me at my word when I tell you what follows next is entirely his fault...

Part 3: Bored yet? Here's the point...

The HT550 (Highland Trail 550) is probably the biggest adventure you can have in Scotland without actually crossing onto the islands. In 2014 Gary took part in this and as I watched his progress online via his Spot Tracker GPS unit thinking that I had missed my opportunity to do such a thing, that I wasn't fit enough, my mind-set wasn't right or any amount of reasons not to seriously consider my own attempt. Soon after that I began to compare this to my Tough Mudder experience with Melissa in that if you commit to something, pay for it, tell enough people you're doing it and start to buy equipment to do it, then you pretty much have to do it!



The Highland Trail 550 route (anti-clockwise)

So whilst I am committed outside of this area in cyberspace to attempting a completion of this monster ride, this first blog post is a marker for me to look back and remind myself that I told the world that I was going to set off on this ride in a late summer window in 2017.

Wait, 2017, why not this year?

2016 will be the year of the Cairngorm Loop, (CGL) a 189 mile independent time trial around the Cairngorm national park. Whilst I have bikepacked, camped, bivi'd and bothied before all on bikes, I have never done it against "the clock". Also 550 miles unsupported on the bike is a HUGE  undertaking that requires proof from the organisers of at least the distance of the CGL has been done with reasonable success. The CGL is a shorter, but very challenging and sometimes remote ride taking in some epic scenery and some of the best trails the country has to offer. I'll be taking on some parts in bite size chunks as a recce over the coming months before making my attempt in the late summer. An ideal place to test myself and my equipment.


The Cairngorm Loop route.

So there's a bit of background for you, a bit of reasoning and not much else to be frank. Over the time this blog is live I'll be writing about everything from training, my kit, the weather, my mental approach, other peoples experiences and generally anything I feel is relevant to my preparation and ultimately the experiences I'll have on both of these amazing rides. Oh yeah, and the Ravens, I'll get to them down the line...

You can check out the websites below for more information, the routes, the rules and what it might take to actually go through with these rides.

http://www.highlandtrail.net/
http://www.cairngormsloop.net/

Cheers for reading and please add me to your follow list and come back.

Allan