Boundaries of Edinburgh 2013

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Boundaries of Edinburgh 2013

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		The runners agree over directions
Report part 1	The cycling 6, or cyclists tenuously connected to bicycles. The trouble started in Cammo, as the first of the serious mud appeared. My front wheel slid away and somehow I caught my pinkie on the bars twisting it viciously back. I nearly fainted as Keith applied a big bandage and from then on my glove just perched oddly on the ends of my fingers. After a couple of trial falls where Keith veered left and collided with various things he finally achieved a near perfect forward roll on a descent in the very boggy Pentlands, fortunately with a soft landing. John & Eric both tried out the quality of the ground as the steering became a random act, and Nick fell elegantly sideways into the mire as he tried to cross something bottomless, coincidentally rendering his brakes useless, so the last of the ride was with one leg scraping along the ground. I didn't see it but Jonathan MUST have fallen off too. Very enjoyable, well nearly, and I'm having trouble typing now. Digby

Report part 2

The runners
Great that this event is continuing after Mike O’Connor and I set this up more than 5 years ago, and thanks to Andy Millard for taking up the reins and Keith as always for organizing the bikers.

Uneventful run East from the Steading, though the area between Danderhall and Newcraighall is a right mess with new constructions (the Council has promised to keep a through trail). Down to Joppa and then Portobello to enjoy the promenade before bacon rolls at Izzy’s café. Not quite uneventful, the brambles this year are lethal, as Andy found with a deep calf wound, see bandage on photo.

Then the long trek to Cramond. Back in the country after the chills of Moscow, and bearing in mind the adage that “hill-runners should exploit the resources of the natural landscape to the full”, I spotted a number 26 bus and detoured via Princes Street to avoid miles of tarmac between Portobello and Cramond – but only arrived at Cramond 2 minutes before the runners - and that was only due to the fact that the hourly number 41 from the centre was 15 minutes behind schedule - otherwise Lothian buses would have taken an hour longer than the runners. Conclusion, save £2.80 and run it! Likely to be faster.


Cramond Inn, Keith has sat on something very painful. We think it is an umbrella stand. The mild is, as always, beautiful.	Tiny Pentlands in distance, from Cammo	Erstwhile organizer Mike O’Connor’s favorite sign is still there!

Then onwards, where completion of works by the roundabout now lets runners (and some bikers) get over the railway bridge by the airport (as we used to, years ago), and giving a good view of aircraft landing and taking off.

“You’re joking, there is no bridge there” (Keith and Nick)

There was also some debate about the mysterious bridge at Maybury tram station. Keith, Nick and the cyclists deny its existence, and led the bikers into no-mans land of treacherous mud where Digby was bandaged up after suffering a painfall fall in Cammo. Here is a photo of the bridge, that nicely cuts off the trek to Maybury corner and back. Ed council assured us it would be reinstated, and it has been (thanks Council). Can anyone see a bridge?

[turns out we did find it; we just didn't realise we were on a bridge, distracted as we were by my fainting fit - Digby]

[...also turns out the main body of runners bypassed all this by going around the perimeter to the left! Zoom in on main map to see]

Someone seems to have lost a major train-set around there, and little trains go round and round. Not quite full-scale. Wonder who it belongs to. It's very realistic.

Strangely, the 2013 circo had no snow, no gales, no torrential rain, no fog. A change from previous years. The mud and brambles made up for it. Instead some lovely late-afternoon sunshine as we got into the Pentlands – where, as usual, the bike versus run race from Heriot-Watt to the Top of White Hill was won easily by the latter.

Ta Andy for taking on this year’s organisation. Next year we’ll need another organiser.
Any volunteers?
One risk of helping with the circo is that foreign travel looms: Mike O’Connor is now in Australia, I head off for Russia, and Andy Millard has a one-way plane ticket to New Zealand in the next couple of weeks.

Richard Lathe

And finally back to the Steading