We discovered some really interesting, cycling tour stories and routes last year through our customers and tourers who kindly popped in while they were passing through Dunbar.
Swann Tour
A lovely chap called Swanny dropped in after being recommended by one of our local customers as he needed a bike repair. He was on a tour of the UK raising money for 3 cancer charities which are dear to his heart. He set off in March and returned home in September to Aberswyth, well done Swanny! You can check out his journey here Funnily enough, after Swanny’s visit one of our local customers, while on holiday up in the North of Scotland, met Swanny and noticed the Belhaven Bikes sticker on his bike trailer…small world!
Lighthouse to Lighthouse
We also helped out some enthusiastic, touring cyclists who were doing an interesting lighthouse to lighthouse trip, Lowestoft-Ardnamurchan. So from the most easterly lighthouse to the most westerly. They had an unscheduled stop on their way North with broken spokes but we soon fixed their wheel and they were quickly on their way again.
Berwick Wheelers
We have some brilliant customers from the Berwick Wheelers road cycling club. One of our regular customers Gill completed lejog in 2012 and tackled Dover to Cape Wrath last year. You can read all about her journeys on her blog A club colleague of Gill’s, Alison, also completed the recent RideUK 24hr cycle from Newcastle to London, here’s our message about it on Twitter We sure have some inspiring women as customers!
North Sea Cycle Route
A great, Belgian couple popped by for a repair and they sent us this email after they returned home…
“We have 920 miles (1481 km) cycled. This was a part of the North Sea Cycle Route. Next year we do the Netherlands, Germany and a part of Denmark and then our NSCR is finished.
The ride went well without a lot of bad luck and we are safe and sound back in Belgium.
Thanks again for your hospitality and help”.
Pleased we could assist them on their journey and it was great to hear their tour went so well.
Chapeau!
Another European tourer popped in during the Autumn, Geoff from Brest in France en route to Edinburgh. He’s already toured Canada and was on a tour of Europe when he stopped by with us to get a new wheel built. So far Geoff has covered 29,000 kms on his tours. Allez…Geoff! Chapeau!
Bristolian Visit
To finish the year off we had a chap from Bristol who unfortunately had to make an unscheduled stop for a repair in Dunbar. He very kindly sent us this email after he had returned home…
“Just wanted to thank you again for putting stuff down and helping me on my way through Dunbar by fixing a spoke on my bike wheel at short notice a couple of weeks ago.
I had no further trouble and had a great time through to Stirling.”
He’s hoping to come up again from Bristol this year to try out some new routes.
2014
We have plenty of routes to choose from in Scotland, have a look at the links to routes and maps on our website. A local route of significance and for those who wish to tackle some trail cycling, is the John Muir Way. This route will be extended in April 2014 and will stretch from John Muir’s birthplace in Dunbar to the waters of the Clyde at Helensburgh. There will be a week long Festival commemorating John Muir held 17-26 April 2014 and the celebratory opening of the extended John Muir Way will take place on 21 April in Dunbar.
Please contact us if we can assist you with your visit to Dunbar, East Lothian. Check out our routes and road/touring section on our website, alternatively drop into the shop , send us a message or give us a call – we have hire bikes available too if this is of interest!
We are now already looking forward to the stories which will be created and the new cyclists we will meet in 2014!
