There must be something in the Nith water

Gilbert West

Oct 3

Dumfries's Summer of Cycling is over and numerous replica Kirkpatrick MacMillan bikes can finally have a well deserved rest after all their public appearances.

One standout appearance was Endura's sponsored replica built by Steven Shand and Tim Loftus as a rideable replica, not just a lookie-likie. A relay of cyclists took the bike on its original journey from Thornhill to Glasgow.

After so many summer outings, few people in the south of Scotland have been left in doubt that the first pedal bike was created in Dumfries and Galloway.

But few know that, Steven Shand, one of the builders of this latest replica, was born and raised in Dumfries. There really must be something in the waters of the Nith valley as Steven Shand has continued the thread of invention from Kirkpatrick MacMillan, setting up his own world leading bike building brand, Shand Cycles. He has built bikes for olympians and world record holders and his bikes have traversed the globe.

He's now starting a new venture, Willow, returning to his love of handbuilding bikes from scratch and he's coming back to Dumfries on Thursday to take part in a panel event at Crichton Central in the morning and give a talk on the craft of bikebuilding at the Frothy Bike Cafe in the evening.

You'll have an opportunity to meet Steven at both. Tim Godwin, builder or cargo bikes at Ariel Bikes near Lockerbie will also be on the panel at the morning event. Registration details below. Both events are free.

Morning panel event looking at careers for people who don't want to destroy the planet.

Evening event at Frothy Bike. A practical talk on frame and bike building at the Frothy Bike.

If you can't make it to either of the events, you can enjoy this short video of the KM bike under construction and on the road from Thornhill to Glasgow with some lovely shots of the Mennock Pass.