More Cycling on TV

This week it’s racing from Manchester. In a couple of weeks there’s an unprecedented(?) four part documentary on the outstanding/record breaking (194 days 17 hours) “World Cycle Challenge” recently completed by Mark Beaumont.

It’s made by BBC Scotland so may only be shown (initially?) in Scotland – and then presumably on BBC iPlayer.

Its called ‘THE MAN WHO CYCLED THE WORLD’ and is on BBC2 on Mondays and Tuesdays – 7th/8th and 14th/15th of April at 7pm.

It promises to be more impressive/interesting than the programmes about another Scot who jumped on his bike (motor) with a mate and film/support crew and travelled through Africa – and then came back to advertise aftershave!

Watch the shows and see Mark’s beard grow….

The programme could also have been called ’round the world on 14 gears’. His bike was fitted with the superbly engineered Rohloff hub. It’s reckoned that after the 18,000 trip it will now be ‘run-in’ and ready for use….

Mark is now ’somewhere in Edinburgh’ writing a book of the trip. He says that later this year he will be “planning the next major expedition”!

Active Travel Photo Competition

There’s a great chance to win a Dahon folding bike for your organisation – just by taking a photo.

ACT TravelWise is running a competition with two ‘pool bikes’, and a year’s free membership of ACT TravelWise as prizes. All you have to do to enter is email a photo and caption of “someone where you work commuting without a car, or car sharing” to competition@acttravelwise.org. Full details at acttravelwise.org/ competition. (Closing date April 4th)

If your photo was taken in Edinburgh you might like to add it to the “Edinburgh cycles to work” Flickr group. If the image is from elsewhere (or doesn’t involve a bike) you could go to the “Commuting WITHOUT a car” group.

ACT TRAVELWISE is a new organisation combining the Association for Commuter Transport (ACT) and the National TravelWise Association. Its ‘mission’ is “to have a serious impact on the harmful effects of transport. The association members seek in particular to reduce the economic costs of congestion, the environmental damage of traffic pollution and the personal health consequences of car dependency. Our members do this through the promotion of all sustainable alternatives to travel . The association’s approach is to reduce unnecessary car trips through supporting our members in their business of encouraging behavioural change through travel planning and mobility management.”

Membership is for “any organisation or person that is either developing or delivering a Travel Plan, a marketing campaign for changing travel behaviour, advising on sustainable travel initiatives or providing sustainable transport services to others.”

Historic Free Entry to Lothians

A view from Craigmillar Castle

Once again Historic Scotland is offering a weekend (12th and 13th of April) of free entry to 268 of its 345 properties which span “over 5,000 years of Scotland’s history and culture”.

There was a time when cyclists were notoriously ‘careful with their money’ – or was it that ‘only poor people cycle (or take public transport…)’. Now, cyclists are just sensible…

You could just visit Edinburgh Castle, but how about Craigmillar Castle – and then travel east to Dirleton Castle and Gardens and on to Tantallon Castle.

Or cross the Forth and visit Dunfermline Palace (lunch at Abbot House) – and check out Pittencrieff Park (aka “The Glen”). (Last two not HS properties.)

Maybe try a tour of West Lothian taking in Blackness Castle (movie star), Cairnpapple Hill and Linlithgow Palace.

You could organise a ride and make it an official Bike Week ‘preliminary event’. All venue pages on the Historic Scotland site have links to the appropriate part of the Sustrans NCN map.

EDINBURGH AND LOTHIANS properties included in the Free Weekend.

Opening times over the Free Weekend are 09.30 to 17.30 (last admission 17.00) unless otherwise stated. Some of the smaller properties may close over lunchtime.

Blackness Castle
Cairnpapple Hill
Craigmillar Castle
Crichton Castle
Dirleton Castle and Gardens
Edinburgh Castle – open 09.30 to 18.00; last admission 17.15
Linlithgow Palace – last admission 16.45
On Saturday 12 April some parts of the Palace will have restricted access between 11.00 to 13.30 due to a wedding taking place. There will be no car parking at the Palace on that day. To fully enjoy exploring the Palace, visitors are advised to come on Sunday 13 April instead
Seton Collegiate Church
Tantallon Castle
Torphichen Preceptory – open 13.00 to 17.00
Trinity House, Leith – open 12.00 noon to 16.00; last admission 15.30