Hi all,
I've taken a couple of days off work to go to Glasgow where my (very supportive and understanding) girlfriend's parents live. We decided to drive up so I strapped my newly-borrowed bike rack to the back of the car and brought my bike with.
I went for a fantastic ride today in nice sunshine and pleasant temperatures. I started off in Newton Mearns, a leafy suburb south of Glasgow. My root took me to Eaglesham, a quaint conservation village and from there a 10-mile uphill slog to Europe's largest windfarm. The ride was great, even though up hill with unrelenting headwinds (no wonder they built the windfarm up there) but it was on a pleasant B-road crossing little streams, flanked by sheep and deer. I passed a number of cyclists, hikers and fishers; all of who stopped to say hello.
At the top of the hill, after a short break to gaze in wonder at the scale of the wind turbines I started coasting down hill. The route I took back was either downhill or completely flat along the A77 which had a properly segregated cycle lane - separate from the main road by a kerb and was very pleasant.
In under an hour I'd completed the 15 mile circuit back to Newton Mearns so decided to do it again. This time slowed down by a puncture (which using my training from Ken and spare inner tube from Warren I was able to fix) but still made it round and home in time for lunch.
I'm now looking forward to the Scottish leg of the trip even more.
