Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 11.8.12

Turn off, tune out, change gear. Scot Tares advocates a simpler approach to cycling.

“I thought of that while riding my bicycle.” – Albert Einstein (on the theory of relativity)

Bicycles inspire greatness. I’m sure someone great has said that at some point in history and not just in a sporting sense, although in 2012 our competitive British cyclists have pushed the pedals to a point where the momentum of their achievements will propel them and their successors to greatness for years to come.

No, what I mean is that the bike creates a sense of calmness that lets the mind flit into thoughts that are otherwise inaccessible in the gadget filled world we now live in. It’s a wonderful thing to be unleashed from the jostle of life, if only even for an hour. Even if you are riding through the city, the sublime motion of the pedals and the in your face assault on the senses in all weathers, can clear the mind and bring a focus to thoughts in a way that can never be achieved sitting in a car.

On a mountain bike a technical descent can be like a game of chess, where you are the King and each move can be the moment of progression to the end game or checkmate. Nothing else matters but the moment.

It all sounds airy-fairy stuff, but those who ride will appreciate the moments and the positive energy gained from riding a bike, but increasingly the real world is creeping into these precious moments between the rider and two wheels.

If you have a smart phone, you will likely know what I am talking about. Nowadays, there is every kind of app for cycling; a favourite, Strava, is hugely popular and is creating a new virtual competitiveness among cyclists. It’s all great stuff and far from being a two-wheeled Luddite, my phone is packed with cycling related apps that will tell me everything, from what gear inch I’m riding to the fastest time riders have ridden a local climb.

However, rather than switching off for a moment or two, we are increasingly switching on and losing one of the things that makes cycling precious. I’m not advocating that we lose such technology completely. As a coach and cycling geek, it’s great to compare and contrast figures, but this dulls the senses to the experience of the bike.

Instead, why not try riding your bike, even just once a week, without a computer telling you your power output and heart rate, cadence and relative position to virtual riders who have ridden the same route. Switch off and enjoy the bike and maybe, you will have a moment of greatness too.

Where to ride – Tenandry, Killiecrankie

For road riders this little known gem of a climb is a great little loop to add to any ride in the Pitlochry area. The views from the top across to the Beinn A’Ghlo massif are stunning.

Scot Tares

Copyright DC Thompson 2012

Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 4.8.12

Scot Tares tells why cycling need not be a pain in the backside.

“There may be a better land where bicycle saddles are made of rainbow, stuffed with cloud; in this world the simplest thing is to get used to something hard.” – Jerome K. Jerome

The one thing that puts most people off of cycling is the saddle. Excuse the pun, but it’s been the butt of jokes and the bane of many a cyclist’s life ever since the invention of the bike. Even professional riders have been laid-off due to problems with painful saddle sores. However, with a few simple points you can make your time in the saddle more comfortable.

The first point is to realise that a saddle is not a seat. It is only designed to carry some, but not all of your weight. Your legs, hands and arms should also be employed in supporting your body.

The next point to consider is that a soft saddle does not necessarily constitute a comfortable one, just as a soft mattress is not always the best for sleeping on. The key is to make sure that you are sitting on your sit bones (ischial tuberosities). They are designed to bear your seated weight and employing them will ensure that less of the soft tissue areas are used to support your weight.

Often, softer and padded saddles will compress and put extra pressure on the area between the sit bones; the softer saddle will also allow you to slouch in the saddle, often leading to lower back pains. The width of a saddle is also key here, as too narrow and your perineum will be supporting you; too wide and your inner thigh will start to chafe. Many bike shops now have the facility to measure your sit bones.

Excessively padded saddles can also cause chafing to the inner thigh, which leads to point three. Get good quality cycling shorts and don’t wear underpants. It is worth investing in padded cycling shorts that are anatomically designed to suit cycling and reduce friction. Wearing baggier clothing and / or underpants causes friction and leads to discomfort. It is also extremely important to ensure that your shorts are clean as shorts worn for more than one trip can lead to infection.

Your saddle can be adjusted in three different ways and each movement can have a dramatic impact on your comfort:

Height: too low and your knees will hurt and you will tire easily; you will also find it harder to carry some of the weight in your legs. Too high and your body will rock from side to side as you try to reach the lowest point of the pedal, again this will cause friction to the inner thigh.

Angle: the saddle should be as close to horizontal as possible. Extreme angles again cause friction, pressure and lack of support.

Fore and aft: basically how far forward or back the saddle is positioned, this measurement can be hard to judge, but a good rule of thumb is that the lumpy bit, below your kneecap (the tibial tuberosity) should  be above the pedal axle when the pedals are horizontal.

All of this is just a toe-dip in the deep water of saddles and I could fill the pages of the Courier with more and more information, but it’s important to remember that cycling doesn’t have to be painful. If you are unsure then speak to someone in your local bike shop, or a qualified bike-fitter. Also bear in mind that the more you ride, the more accustomed your derrière becomes to the saddle, so what more reason do you need to get out and ride?

Where to ride – Lochore Meadows, Fife

Scot Tares

Copyright DC Thompson 2012

Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 28.7.12

Scot Tares finds some style over speed on his bike.

 “I was style-conscious, because how the bike looked and how you looked on the bike were very important. They probably weren’t, but it felt like they were.” – Sir Paul Smith

In a previous column I spoke of classic bicycle design, but this innovation and style is not just relevant to the bike; design and fashion is becoming big business in the cycling world. This is great news for commuters and leisure cyclists as no longer do they have to choose between functional, sport-styled cycling garments and every-day, but impractical, clothing.

The term cycle chic is becoming common parlance as top designers and fashion brands, such as Paul Smith and Dolce and Gabbana, design cycle-specific apparel for the growing numbers of people who are turning to the bicycle as a means of transport and looking for a different style. Gucci and Chanel have even designed their own bicycles. Adverts in magazines such as Vogue now commonly feature bikes like the classically designed Pashley. Cities such as Paris, Copenhagen, Amsterdam and Portland all have thriving bike cultures. 

With an anticipated opening in 2015, the Victoria and Albert (V&A) is set to cement the name of Dundee as a centre of culture, creativity and design, and what better way to get round a city of culture than on that classic of transport design: the bicycle. Not only is it quick and easy, but it opens up views that are just not seen from inside a car. Dundee has an impressive architecture at eye level, but on your bike you get the chance to pause and look up and appreciate the ornate architecture above you.

If you don’t currently commute or travel in the city by bike, for whatever reason, the lack of something practical to wear shouldn’t be one of them. A quick online search for cycle chic will throw up a mass of sites all related to riding your bike while looking good. No longer is cycling a sub-culture and cycle-chic is offering cyclists a new way to express a unique individuality and have some fun at the same time.

If cycling to work is something that you would like to do, then check if your employer runs a bike to work scheme. This successful government initiative will allow you to purchase a bike and accessories tax free with potential savings of up to 32% giving you plenty of affordable options to get yourself kitted out for some stylish city cycling.

Cycle route: Invergowrie to Dundee city centre

Last week we looked at an on-road commuting route into Dundee city centre. This week we look at an off-road option for the same journey.

Copyright DC Thompson 2012

Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 21.7.12

In the last of his Tour de France retrospectives, Scot Tares considers whether Mark Cavendish is the greatest sprinter of all-time.

As I write this, the 2012 Tour de France has hit the Alps and battle has commenced between the main protagonists. By the time you read this it will be fairly certain whether or not Great Britain will have its first ever Tour de France overall winner in Bradley Wiggins. For the moment however, let us look back a few years to the 2009 Tour.

Cavendish takes 2nd place in the British Junior Championships in Perth, behind Matt Brameier and ahead of Geraint Thomas

The 2009 Tour de France was a breakthrough year for Bradley Wiggins. Riding for Garmin-Slipstream, he was showing he was making the transition from a World Champion track pursuit rider to a road-man with real potential. He finished fourth overall in Paris and during the following off-season he signed for the newly formed Team Sky, albeit under a cloud of protracted contract wranglings between Sky and Garmin. The show of class in 2009 was just a flash of the potential he had, but it would be a few years before he would be able to show that again in the Tour.

Meanwhile, another British rider was making history and laying down the gauntlet to the world. Many saw, and some still see, Mark Cavendish as precocious and arrogant. To my mind his character reflects an utter dominance in his sport, the like of which has never been displayed by any other British rider. Cavendish does not just win; he often destroys the rest of the field with a sprint so ferocious he looks like he is riding for his life and often the emotional outpouring at the end demonstrates that he has put every ounce of his being into winning.

Cavendish’s sprinting finesse had been proven in other races over the previous few years, but it was in 2009 that he opened his account for Tour de France stage wins. By the time the race reached Paris after 20 gruelling stages, Cavendish had already raised his arms in victory as he crossed the finish line on no less than five occasions. However, if his rivals were still in any doubt as to who was the best, Cavendish was about to kick that notion into the stratosphere.

As the teams lined out on the Parisian roads on the closing minutes of stage 21 of the 2009 Tour de France, Cavendish’s team, HTC-Highroad, had paced him to the front of the peloton. The speed was close to 40 mph and Cavendish tucked in behind two of his team-mates, George Hincapie and Mark Renshaw, who led the race round the final corners.

The television camera sped alongside the riders on the final straight and Mark Cavendish jumped out from the wheel of Mark Renshaw and exploded into his sprint. The commentator, Paul Sherwen exclaimed, as Cavendish crossed the line first, “I don’t think we need a photo-finish for that one as there was nobody else in the photo.” Indeed the overhead shot of the sprint finish made it look more like a solo attack, rather than a closely fought sprint finish, as Cavendish was clear of his nearest rivals by metres, rather than centimetres.

In Mark Cavendish, a new superstar of not just British cycling, but world cycling, emerged from that 2009 Tour de France. With his Tour de France stage win tally mounting every year and an Olympic Gold medal in his sights, Cavendish has already started carving his name on the wall of the greatest cyclists of all time.

Scot Tares

Copyright DC Thompson 2012

Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 14.7.12

Scot Tares looks back to a sad day in British cycling history.

In 1967 Barry Hoban won the 14^th stage of the Tour de France, his first, under tragic circumstances.

During his 11 year career, Barry Hoban won eight stages of the Tour de France and this record for a British rider was held until Mark Cavendish surpassed it in 2009. Hoban’s first stage win came on stage 14 of the 1967 Tour de France and should have been a celebration of a new force in British cycling. Instead, it was as an emotionally charged win as a result of the tragic death of his Great Britain team mate, Tom Simpson on the slopes of Mount Ventoux. Simpson collapsed on the ascent of the Giant of Provence and, despite the efforts of Dr Dumas, he died where he fell, 3 km from the summit.

Born in Wakefield, Barry Hoban rose quickly through the amateur ranks and moved to Northern France in 1962 to follow his dream of racing as a professional. He set himself a target of achieving his dream within two years. After winning 35 races in those years, he was rewarded with a professional contract with the Mercier-Hutchinson – BP team. His salary was £20 a week which, he remembers, “… was more than a Manchester United player earned.”

However, the French teams that the British riders tended to race for would pick French riders above others for selections in the Tour de France. This meant Hoban missed selection for the race in 1966 and that might have been the same situation in 1967, but for the Tour organiser’s decision to revert temporarily to national teams, rather than the recent trade team format. This meant that Hoban raced alongside Tom Simpson and Vin Denson among others in the British team.

The evening after Simpson’s death, the peloton agreed that stage 14 would be a tribute to the popular Tom Simpson. They decided that a British rider would win. However, even today controversy surrounds whether that British rider was meant to be Barry Hoban, or if the peloton had agreed it would be Tom’s close personal friend, Vin Denson. On the day Hoban crossed the line first, his tearful eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses.

Hoban went on to win many more races including several more Tour stages and was a dominant force for British cycling on the continent throughout his career. In a strange twist to his story, Hoban later married Tom Simpson’s widow, Helen, and brought up his children Joanne and Jane.

Scot Tares

Copyright DC Thompson 2012

Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 7.7.12

In 1958 Brian Robinson became the first Brit to win a Tour de France stage.

Today is stage 7 of the 2012 Tour de France and it holds special significance for British cyclists.

Brian Robinson’s first stage win in the Tour de France was a triumph for road cyclists in Britain. In the late 19^th century the National Cyclists Union (NCU) had banned road racing in theUK and it took the concerted efforts of many, including Percy Stallard, to encourage regional groups of clubs to affiliate to the newly formed British League of Racing Cyclists (BLRC). Under the BLRC, these clubs started organising road races against the wishes of the NCU and a bitter feud began that was to last for many years. Under this schism the NCU was asked to send a British team to the 1955 Tour de France and this team featured Brian Robinson, who had already been prominent in other Continental European road races. It was a tough race for all, and Brian Robinson and Tony Hoar were the only British riders to complete it.

After the 1955 Tour de France, Hercules, the main sponsor of the British team, ceased to exist and it shows the tenacity and determination of Brian Robinson that he continued to race in Europeá la musette, without a contract and unpaid and relying on prize money to pay his way. By 1958 he was firmly established as a racer and earned enough to make a living, though he never made it to the top end of the earning hierarchy.

Robinson’s stage win in 1958 was unusual as he never climbed the podium to receive his sash and flowers. Earlier in the day Robinson had been in a breakaway group with Frenchman Jean Dotto and the Italian Arrigo Padovan. Robinson felt strong and as the chequered flag approached he wound up his sprint only to find that Padovan left his sprinters line, obstructing Robinson into second place. It wasn’t until Robinson was back in his hotel having dinner that he learnt that a “stewards enquiry” had relegated Padovan to second place, thus giving Robinson the first ever Tour de France stage win for a British cyclist. Although he missed the glory of the podium appearance, Robinson went home “chuffed, because I knew I’d got my contract safe for the next year and probably the year after.”

Brian Robinson retired in 1961 after a seven year professional career that saw him take 11 professional wins, including a second Tour de France stage win in 1959.

Scot Tares

Copyright DC Thompson 2012

Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 30.6.12

Chris Boardman crashes in the 1995 TdF Prologue

Today sees the start of the Tour de France and all eyes will be on Brit, Bradley Wiggins who is on the verge of an historic first British Yellow Jersey win. In 1995 it was another Brit who was feeling the pressure.

The 1995 Tour de France will be remembered for the last win in the reign of the Spanish rider Miguel Indurain, who had dominated the Grand Tours for several years and this would be his 5^th overall victory in the Tour de France. It would also be the last Tour de France that a young Lance Armstrong would complete prior to his diagnosis of cancer, (he rode in 1996, but pulled out on stage 7 after becoming ill). In the 1995 Tour he won stage 18 in honour of his team-mate Fabio Casartelli who had crashed on a descent of the Col de Portet d’Aspet in the Pyrenees and later died as he was being flown by helicopter to hospital.

For British fans though, all eyes in the 1995 Tour were on Chris Boardman as expectations were high that he would pull on the coveted “Yellow Jersey”. The faith was grounded in stunning results: the previous year, Boardman had won the Prologue Time Trial after posting the fastest time over the 7.3km course with an average speed of 55.182kph and became only the third ever Briton to wear the Yellow Jersey in the Tour. Since then, only Scotsman David Millar has been added to this list, which also includes Tom Simpson and Sean Yates. Boardman was well known as a track rider, having broken the world hour record and also as a time-trial specialist.

Boardman took to the start as the leader of his team, wearing number 81 and also proudly displaying the “Rainbow Stripes” of the Time Trial World Champion, a jersey he had won the previous year. The conditions had steadily worsened as the later riders set off, and by the time Chris took to the start ramp the TV pictures showed a dark and dank evening, with camera flashes and car headlights reflected off the rain soaked tarmac, giving the viewer the impression of an ice rink rather than a road. A few minutes into Boardman’s ride and commentary from Phil Ligget gave early indications that Boardman was riding strong; then the reports that Boardman had crashed were broadcasted. No news or TV pictures followed and it wasn’t until later that the TV cameras replayed the accident that had befallen Boardman and the picture quality betrayed the atrocious conditions the riders were racing in. In the replay, a circular graphic is used to pick out Boardman as the darkness and rain make it almost impossible to see him. What is visible however is Boardman descending at speed and then at a left hand corner, his wheels disappearing from under him as he slides across the road and into the barriers, with his team car skidding behind to avoid driving over the top of him. The initial reports were that he had broken his collar bone, but it was later confirmed that it was his ankle that he had broken, thus bringing his 1995 Tour to a sad and painful end after only a few minutes.

The accident put paid to the rest of the season’s racing for Boardman, but he was back in 1996 on the TdF start line. In this year however, due to wet roads and perhaps a nagging doubt in the back of his mind, he rode conservatively and finished second behind Swiss rider Alex Zulle. In the following years Boardman again won the prologue in 1998, the year of the infamous Festina affair, before pulling out after a crash on stage 13. In 1998, he again won the yellow jersey, but crashed on stage two. Boardman’s riding career came to an end after the 2000 Olympics when he retired from professional cycling altogether; he had been diagnosed two years earlier with Osteoporosis but was unable to take the required hormone replacement therapy as this required testosterone, which was against the sport’s doping rules. He is still part of the British cycling scene though and now runs a successful bike business and commentates regularly on the ITV Tour de France and Track cycling events.

Scot Tares

Copyright DC Thompson 2012

Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 23.6.12

Scot Tares finds that cycling to work doesn’t have to be taxing.

 “There has been no direct relationship between vehicle tax and road expenditure since 1937.”
Policy and External Communications Directorate, Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA)

Why don’t cyclists pay Road Tax? It’s a common misconception ingrained into our culture and psyche, and even MPs and the national media have got it wrong. The concept of road tax does not now actually exist after a process, instigated by Winston Churchill in 1926, led to motorists making the last “Road Fund” payments in 1937. Indeed, the maintenance and development of the road infra-structure is now paid for by general and local taxation that we all contribute to and the “tax disc” on a car is actually a Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) and cars are graded from Band A (up to 100g per km of CO2 emissions) right up to Band M (over 255g per km). A vehicle in the Band A grade is exempt from VED and according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders there are currently 65,000 such vehicles on the UK’s roads and this is rising quickly; because of this it is likely that the government will reduce the threshold limit further still.

Certainly this puts the claim that cyclists should pay “road tax” in a different light; producing 0g CO2 per kilometre a bicycle would be eligible for Band A, making it exempt from charge, along with the two million other exempt vehicles (including disabled drivers and police cars amongst others). Furthermore, the cost of registration and duty compliance would be borne by motorists who currently fall out-with Band A as they picked up the tab for the 25 million exempt bicycles that would need a VED disc under such a scheme.

Commuting by bike may not seem like an option for many of the Scottish population, but for a vast number of people the use of a bike, even out-with the larger population centres, makes a lot of sense. Scottish Development International estimate “the average commuting distance across Scotland is between five and six kilometres with almost 90 percent of workers living within 25 kilometres of their workplace.”

Just think of the knock-on benefits of even 5% of that number commuting by bike at least once a week: the roads would be less congested, less traffic would mean less wear and tear on the road infrastructure and people being more active would lead to a healthier population. Across the world, major cities are embracing the bicycle as an essential mode of transport in their efforts to develop and grow while keeping one eye on the environmental impact of expansion. This further enhances the culture and lifestyle of the people who live there, and with Dundee looking towards a vibrant future it would be remiss if the bicycle did not become part of a confident, sustainable and progressive growth of the city and have a positive impact on the lives of those who live there.

Over the next few weeks I will be discussing the benefits of commuting to work by bicycle and looking how it has become part of everyday life for millions. This week’s route looks at a commute from the western bounds of Dundee, right into the heart of the city.

Scot Tares

Cycle Route – Perth Road, Dundee

Copyright DC Thompson 2012

Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 16.6.12

Scot Tares gives the heads up on bicycle helmets

“Let me first say that I didn’t start wearing a helmet regularly until AFTER I WOKE UP FROM THE COMA… Helmets can’t save you from every accident. Nothing can. But they can save you from a lot of accidents, maybe even most of them. If I had been wearing one on Dec. 2, 1988, I might not be taking anti-seizure pills every day, twice a day, for the rest of my life.” – Lloyd Alter

To wear or not to wear, that is the question; and the answer is a contentious issue. From the age of two until I was 32, I rode my bike “topless”, that is, without a helmet. It is only in recent years that racing regulations and club event protocol have determined that I now wear a helmet and it has become a habit. It is, however, not a legal requirement that a cyclist wears a helmet in the UK unlike say, Australia, where it is mandatory. Numerous reports, arguments, counter-arguments and emotive stories have been given for the pros and cons of helmet use and for such issues as whether it puts people off cycling or if they will actually protect you in the event of an accident, the space here is too confined to even dip my toe into such waters.  However, I now wear a helmet and ensure my children also do so and if you choose to do so too, you should ensure that the helmet that is you use is safe.

A helmet that is either too big or too small will mean that it does not protect the head properly; both expose parts of the head that the helmet wearer is trying to protect. Even a correctly fitting helmet can be dangerous, if the straps and buckles are not adjusted properly. Often this results in helmets slipping back on the head and leaving the forehead vulnerable.

Here’s a quick question: how old is your bicycle helmet? If you are not sure then most helmets will have a “date of manufacture” sticker inside. Most helmet companies advise replacing your helmet between three and five years from the manufacturing date. The Snell Memorial Foundation – a non-profit organisation set up in 1956 after the death of racing driver William Snell – are dedicated to the research, education, testing and development of helmet safety standards and recommend you change your helmet about every five years.

It is clear from the evidence that UV light can cause degradation in the structure of the moulded Expanded Polystyrene foam (EPS); also general deterioration can be caused by hair products, sweat and general wear and tear. This can cause the EPS to split, which isn’t easily noticeable, unless you are specifically checking your helmet on the inside.

If you do wear a helmet on your bike, but are unsure about whether it is fit for purpose, then please speak to your local friendly bike shop staff who will be able to give advice.

Cycle route – Forfar Loch

Copyright DC Thompson 2012

Taken from the Blazing Saddles Column in the Tayside Courier Weekend Supplement 9.6.12

Scot Tares gets all fired up as the Olympic Torch comes to Courier country

“There is something in the Olympics, indefinable, springing from the soul that must be preserved.” – Chris Brasher

I am starting to get very excited about the Olympics; come the 27^th July 2012 I will be glued to my television set. Cycling has a long history with the Olympics. Indeed it is one of a few select sports that have appeared in every Olympic Games of the modern era that were first held in Athens in 1896, but I would happily watch dominoes if it was an Olympic sport; there is something about the spectacle that lures me in and I know exactly where Chris Brasher is coming from in the quote above. To whet my appetite, my family and I will be heading out to see the Olympic Torch as it passes through Tayside on Tuesday 12^th June. My kids are very excited and I feel quite proud, despite our family not being able to get tickets for any events, that they will still be able to partake in a little bit of history being made and they too may feel that “indefinable, springing from the soul”. My daughter is particularly excited about seeing Chris Hoy winning Gold again. She sat on my knee, four years ago, aged two, not quite understanding, but getting caught up in my excitement as the British cycling team swept the board of medals.

The Great Britain Team has become an indomitable force in the sport of cycling, and not just on the track; our female and male cyclists lead the world in all Olympic and Paralympic disciplines and it would take a brave person to bet against the GB team taking another hefty haul of medals on home soil in 2012. However, don’t expect our cyclists to medal more than once in each event. The Union Cycliste International (UCI), who are the sport of cycling’s governing body, have taken the unprecedented step of only allowing one athlete from each nation to take part in each event, even if that nation has two or more of the top riders in the world in that event. This is particularly frustrating for the British team, with their strength in depth. It is a move that would be similar to the International Association of Athletics Federations (IAAF) saying to the 100 metre sprinters that only one sprinter was allowed to compete; could you imagine the athletes from Jamaica and the USA swallowing that one? Furthermore, it would also detract from the spectacle of the event as you would not have all the world’s best sprinters in one race. So the spectacle of the cycling events may be tarnished slightly, but I’m not going to let that dampen my enthusiasm for what I’m sure is going to be a stunning Olympic Games.

The Olympic Torch will be heading from Aberdeen, down through Angus, Perth and Kinross and into Dundee and Fife on the 12^th and 13^th of June. Many of the roads in these areas are worth cycling, but the route below is a good steady ride, suitable for all. Why not give it a go to get into the spirit of the games?

Scot Tares

Cycle Route – Forfar to Perth

Copyright DC Thompson 2012