Human & Machine

A Dumfriesshire blacksmith, Kirkpatrick MacMillan, is credited with building the first bicycle in 1839. A wood and iron machine known as a Velocipede. So the 2023 rally destination, the South of Scotland, is the birthplace of the bicycle. MacMillan’s bike weighed 26kg. My 11kg Shand Stooshie has lightweight steel tubes and fancy gravelly components. It gives me the sort of comfort unimaginable to Kirkpatrick’s rear end.