Ever since my dad passed at the end of May I have been waiting for the right day to cycle all the way to St Andrews and back from home in his memory, it was a special place for him and our family as we holidayed there almost every year in my younger days! Dad continued to visit every year until he was no longer able to, he just loved the place! I last cycled there from home back in 2018 and that time I travelled down the coast from St Andrews, this time I cycled up the coast and I couldn't have picked a better day! It wasn't luck or anything, it was meticulously planned and it was just a case of hoping the weather forecast was close to being right....
I had recently purchased a third battery so it made sense to take it along for peace of mind and I always had the option of extending my ride, I actually completed the run to St Andrews on my original battery with 83 miles covered! I used eco mode all the way and with very litttle wind to speak of and not a lot of climbing it wasn't too difficult! When I switched to my second battery the wind had picked up and the climbing was beginning so I stayed in level 2 assist which worked perfectly and I managed just over 50 miles when I switched to battery 3, I actually still had 31% left but with only 20 or so miles to go now and lots of climbing I knew it was time to go to level 3 assist and give my legs a break!
I set off just after 5am and it was a chilly 7C, no problem as I was dressed for it and it was rather refreshing! I started off on my local back roads with nothing else in sight, the local loch was shrouded in the morning mist and the sun was just rising!
I was heading for the Forth bridges which lead to the coastal road, the morning commuters were starting to arrive so things were getting a little busier on the road! No such problems crossing the bridge though, only a few cyclists and a couple of walkers!
As I was riding along the coast I spotted a photo opportunity at Pettycur Bay, I had a nice view of the bridges across the Forth!
As I was taking the photos I heard a tractor starting up and looked round to see it pulling this static caravan up the hill, I was worried for the white car parked there! The caravan was scraping the ground at times, the noise was truly deafening! I wouldn't fancy this guys job taking those caravans up those hills....
I said earlier that I only used eco assist all the way up but I forgot about this hill, I had to use level 3 assist due to all the weight I was carrying...this is at the top! Ridewithgps was showing my maximum gradient as 13.9%
Onwards towards Kirkcaldy and one of my favourite roads, especially going up the coast!
On the promenade at Kirkcaldy!
A few miles up the coast I arrived in Elie where I stopped for a picnic, no photos of said picnic sorry...
@DiggyGun 
but I had 2 rolls containing cooked ham and tomatoes followed by a chocolate bar! My bike was looking on in awe and probably envy!
Not a bad view to enjoy lunch! On a side note, you can see my bags are well strapped down, I purchased Rok straps and I have to say they are excellent and so easy to attach and remove!
Onwards up the coast to Crail where some brave souls were sampling the very cold waters of the north sea in Crail harbour!
Only around 10 miles to St Andrews now and I could see some nasty dark clouds in the distance, I looked at the latest forecast and it was showing possible light showers around noon! Just when I was arriving, looking at those clouds didn't make me think of light showers though...luckily the clouds were just inland of the town and I never saw any rain at all! I was really surprised to see the town so quiet as its normally very busy at this time of year, the beach was sparsely populated! It may have been down to the bitterly cold wind blowing off the north sea though!
St Andrews harbour!
It was now time to set off home and I knew I was in for some busy roads, the road out of St Andrews can be pretty hectic and being a weekday there was sure to be lots of trucks! Thankfully there is a good cycle path just as you leave the town and it takes you down to Guardbridge a few miles away, I only saw another 2 cyclists on the path and no walkers so it was perfect! Once I reached Guardbridge it was time to join the main road again but thankfully it wasn't too bad, until I reached Dairsie where it started to get busy so I stopped for some photos and waited until the traffic cleared a bit!
I was now heading for Cupar which is notoriously busy, it didn't disappoint...I was passing through when I remebered about a back road I had to take once when the main road was closed! It was my best decision of the day, virtually no traffic to speak of and some amazing roads and some nice views!
That was the last of the photos, it was time to concentrate on the roads and enjoy the rest of the ride! In 2012 I cycled a similar route on my standard road bike and I covered 154.7 miles, I later discovered it was just short of 250km! My goal today was to pass that and maybe go a little further, after my last battery change I was getting pretty tired so I cranked up the assist to level 4 for the big climbs and it certainly made them so much easier! Recently I had to climb them in eco mode and it was a struggle, having that extra battery sure puts a smile on your face!
What a fantastic ride that was, it will live long in the memory! Rides like this only come along very occassionally, it would be stupid to attempt them regularly but I just love a challenge! I will rest now and recharge my batteries (not the bike ones) and look forward to August riding now! I have only ridden 8 times this month but my average is 84.75, best month of the year so far with 678 miles!
