June Extra this coming Saturday

We've got the second of this year's Extra rides coming up on Saturday (28th).

For this ride, Alan will be leading us to one of our most popular destinations: the Silver Sands beach at Aberdour. This is officially known as "Scotland's Riviera", and while that's undoubtedly an exaggeration, there's no doubt that it is a delightful spot - a sandy beach with extensive views over the Firth of Forth. Much of the route will be on pleasant coastal paths, but these will include a few rough stretches that might be muddy. There will be a few moderate-to-steep hills - all fairly short. The total distance will be about 35 miles.

Please keep in mind that these Extra rides are longer than our usual runs, with a faster pace and fewer stops, although we still aim for a sociable atmosphere. If you manage our usual 20-mile rides with energy to spare, you should be OK with this one. But if you sometimes struggle to keep up on our usual runs, you will probably want to give this one a miss.

Lunch

For this ride, you can either bring a picnic lunch or visit the Sands café which is right on the beach. This offers a range of sandwiches and other snacks, but it can get very busy, especially on a nice day. If you want to avoid a long wait for lunch, I suggest you go for the picnic option. There are plenty of places to sit on the beach, and there are also toilets there. (And we'll have toilet breaks on both the outward and return legs.)

Time and place

The ride will start from our alternative meeting point at the Craigleith path junction - see here if you need directions. Please get there in time for a prompt 10:30 departure. Because of the length of the ride, we will probably not get back to Craigleith until after 4 pm.

As always, there is no need to let us know in advance whether or not you plan to come along. Just turn up if you have a mind to.

And, as always, please remember to bring a spare inner tube plus whatever tools (if any) would be needed to remove your wheel in the event of a puncture.

Looking ahead

Our next "second Saturday" run will be on 12 July. We 'll also have another Extra later in July. I'll post the usual details here in good time.