L’Infer d’Ecosse if you like 🙄

Not fussed one way or the other by the Rapha affiliation (or their ‘official’, virtually cobble free, routes) but do like the idea of planning your own wee Paris-Roubaix tribute ride.

We did it last year, mostly around Edinburgh city centre, and had good fun but all the inner city navigation got a bit tedious, as did the shockingly cold deluge we got caught in mid-way round.

This year I’m thinking of a two castles route taking in Stirling and Edinburgh castles, with a quick visit to the Culross cobbles which are truly like riding over broken bowling balls! Skinflats always feels like Flanders Fields, and there’s even some very fine gravel in the Dalmeny estate for some bonus dusty faced Strade Bianche impressions.

Now just have to find the legs for my first century in two years 🙄

https://www.strava.com/routes/2943885018110356648

I might give my Sheffield version another go, 78km & 149 sections of cobbles, broke me last time, mainly the navigation as it’s a lot of dead ends and hidden back streets.

mainly the navigation as it’s a lot of dead ends and hidden back streets.

Yeah ditto Edinburgh, navigation got a bit dizzying! Could make for the mother of all closed road events 😎

I put together a bergs and cobbles tour of Glasgow city centre. Was actually fairly good fun but some of them cobbles were fairly savage on 25mm road tyres…

For anyone who fancies a go:

https://www.strava.com/routes/25442903

Open to suggestions for missing Arenbergs in the Southside I don’t know about!

A wee detour to Inverkeithing would give you another secteur – https://goo.gl/maps/bYCQa5JC29ZkQknG9 (although it’s more RvV than P-R in character).

I thought Alloa had some cobbles on the high street as well…

Stirling – you want to climb to the castle via Kings Street and Spittal Street to maximise your cobble quotient.

Stirling – you want to climb to the castle via Kings Street and Spittal Street to maximise your cobble quotient.

Hmm, I did wonder, Google Map is a bit confusing with the one way system.

I figured going up Broad Street gave you one last relatively spectacular push on cobbles, whereas Kings Street to Spittal street had a long stretch of non-cobble in the middle (most of Spittal Street until it becomes St John Street?).

Last time I rode cobbles in Stirling was a loooooooong time ago, and whatever cobbled climb we took to the castle turned out to be one way and we got a bit of a telling off 😆

(I’ve been leaving the thread alone as an opportunity to ride with my favourite Gravel youtuber arose on the same weekend, so not sure I’ll be doing a ‘Day in Hell’ the same weekend, oops!)

Enjoyed the Edinburgh route last year and had a nice day for it. Not many cobbles, but a good varied route 👍