History
Stonehaven Cycling Club was
formed in May 2015 and became
the fastest growing cycling
club in the UK, with more than
200 members signed up in its
first year. The idea came after
the town’s triathlon club, Fleet
Feet Triathletes, relocated to
Aberdeen, meaning riders didn’t
have any organised winter turbo
sessions “for the first time in 30
years”, according to founder and
chairman Willie Tulloch.
Despite what Tulloch calls its
“meteoric rise”, the club has no
intention of resting on its laurels.
“We have to strike a balance
between those who want us to
get more involved in racing, and
those who want something more
sustainable, such as encouraging
kids to get involved,” he says.“There is a great junior club in
the town — Grampian Tigers —
but we need to be ready to pick
them up when they reach the age
of 14 or 15 and are faced with the
typical teenage distractions.”
The club’s motto is ‘Cycling For
All’, and Tulloch wants to make
sure this objective isn’t lost.
“The community aspect is
very important to us. We’ve
raised money for the Sandpiper
Trust which places defibrillator
units in rural communities, often
locations where club cyclists pass
through on weekend outings.
“But we are also about the
family aspect and getting parents
on bikes, which will encourage
their kids to do the same.”
Echoing the community
theme, the club is supported by
Marine Hotel owner and keencyclist Robert Lindsay. He runs
an annual beer festival, and
three years ago decided to add a
sportive to it. The Mid Summer
Beer Happening Sportive is now
one of the most original in the
UK — “What other sportive has
free entry to a beer festival at the
end of it?” says Tulloch — and
Stonehaven CC helps organise
three challenging routes, all of
which include at least one ascent
of the notorious Cairn o’ Mount.
The club’s jersey is so popular
it has been shipped to expats
living in France, Kuala Lumpur
and Australia.Achievements
J Myles Woodwards, Ali
Cameron and Euan Grant all
qualified in their respective age
groups for this year’s UCI GranFondo Worlds, in France.
J Cameron, Woodwards
and Grant finished first,
second and third in this
year’s King of the
Mountains Sportive.
J Grant finished 12th in
the Cat 3/4 at the Aberdeen
To u r S e r i e s 2 01 7.
J Linda Mills completed
the London-Nice cycle
challenge 2017.he market square in
the Aberdeenshire
coastal town of
Stonehaven is a sea of red
and white at nine o’clock on
a November Sunday morning
as more than 50 members
turn up for the local cycling
club’s social ride.
This presents several
challenges for club officials
Willie Tulloch and Mo
Howard. Tulloch, the ride
captain, has to divide us
into four groups of varying
abilities — “not a problem, as
we have so many members
there is a level and a speed for
everyone,” he says — while
Howard may need a bigger
envelope for the charity
collection she is making.“We are very community-
orientated, it’s not just
about the cycling. Members
nominate their favourite
charities,” she tells me.
With her envelope bursting
at the seams, we set off
into the Aberdeenshire
countryside under clear skies
on a crisp, cold morning. I’ve
started with the fast group
who have failed to warn me
it’s an eight-mile uphill slog
straight from the start.
Margaret Anderson offers
me encouragement of sorts
as I try to keep on the wheel
in front: “I’m a GP, and I’m
always selling the benefits
of cycling to my patients. It’s
as good for mental health as
physical — it’s better to beworrying about the next hill
you’ve got to climb than your
job or your finances.”
At the top of the climb we
regroup and I get the chance
to speak to the club’s racing
core of Ali Cameron, Myles
Woodwards and Euan Grant.
“Before joining the club, I
rode on my own, but it’s nice
to have other people to suffer
with,” laughs Grant.Setting a good example
At the club’s midweek
meetings, the trio will spend
time helping the novices —
“showing them how to use
their brakes and gears,” says
Woodwards — before heading
off on their own to do training
circuits at speeds nudging
40kph. “It’s not just about the
satisfaction of helping others,”
says Woodwards. “We want
more fast people to ride with!”At the foot of the next
climb, I find myself next to
David Howard, another of
the club’s three GPs (“We’re
never short of cover in case
of accidents,” smiles vice
chairman David Morrison).
Howard, a former triathlete,
says it has been great to see
an increase in people cycling
in Stonehaven since the club
was formed 18 months ago.
“And if one of my patients
says, ‘I saw you riding or
running past my house the
other day,’ that’s obviously a
good thing,” he says. “I’mAberdeenshire is home to a new
group of public-spirited pedallers
Club facts
Based: Stonehaven, Aberdeenshire
Members: 250
Formed: 2015
Meets: Club ride with groups
of different abilities leaves
Market Square, Stonehaven, 8am
Sundays (9am winter); winter turbo
sessions at Stonehaven Community
Centre Tuesdays 6.15pm and
Thursdays 6.45pm; summer
midweek training (all levels),
Kirktown Garden Centre (just off
the A90), Wednesdays 6.15pm.Words: Trevor Ward / Photos: ABOYNEIPhotographics LTD
50 | December 7, 2017 | Cycling WeeklyStonehaven
Cycling Club
Ride with