I'd been meaning to ride the Fife coastline for years. Somehow I'd never done it. There was always a better plan. Always something which sounded more fun. I remember reading about it in an old mountain bike guide book. The route was described as a must do for every mountain biker seeking adventure.

I could never correlate that description with what I knew of the coastline from weekend outings in the car. Sure, it was nice and had some nice sandy beaches, but it always seemed a bit busy, both with people, houses and industry. How could this possibly be at the top of any mountain biker's to-do list?

Half way though a busy and stressful week at work, I decided I needed a weekend away. I wanted nothing more than to have a break from normal life and enjoy the freedom that comes from cycling with a lightweight tent and a rough plan. I also didn't want to have to drive far and at first thought I'd go for a ride straight from my house to the hills to the south or west of Edinburgh. But, I'd done that many times before. Instead, I choose to ride straight from my house north. I asked a couple of reliable friends if they'd be up for joining me.

Unfortunately, it was too late in the week, they already had plans.
There is a Fife coast cycle route, but this wasn't what I planned to ride. I was going to try the walking route. A quick trip to shop to buy the relevant OS map and I spent a happy hour examining the paths. The walking route appeared to consist of paths and track-roads following the very edge of the coastline for almost it's entire length. The cycling route mostly follows roads, slightly inland. The walking route looked like it'd be far more challenging, interesting and fun.

A meeting of leaders that quickly descends into chaos in this video from DJ Shadow featuring Run the Jewels.

'Says DJ Shadow: "We wanted to make a positive, life-affirming video that captures politicians at their election-year best. We got this instead.”'

'Says Run The Jewels’ Killer Mike: "It's such a dope video. It's what I really wish Trump and Hillary would just do and get it over with...And even in that fight I think Hillary would win - and that's not an endorsement."'

"Sometimes it's easier to start your own country than to change the one you're in."

According to the internationally recognized law of terra nullius (“nobody’s land”), if no one has a claim on land, anyone at all can claim it as their own. This is how Czech politician and activist Vít Jedlička founded Liberland, a sliver of land along the Danube River between Croatia and Serbia that went unclaimed after Yugoslavia was dissolved in the 1990s. Essentially, Jedlička called terra nullius and declared the land to be Liberland, a Libertarian utopia in the heart of Eastern Europe. Although Serbia seems okay with the idea, Croatia has been less receptive. It’s been arresting wannabe Liberlandians for trespassing — including Jedlička. But that hasn’t stopped him from pursuing recognition for his country.

An interesting documentary with a very dramatic narrator.

A mesmerising map of data from 2012 of cargo ships and their movements.

Apparently, it's very close to showing every ship on the planet at the time.

Press the play icon to get a nice narration. Or pause to see the whole map.

Comedian Billy Domineau has written a Seinfeld script as if the show had continued on past 9/11. It's good.

"It works. I don't wanna bark any more."

I went stand up paddling (SUP-ing), for the first time, in North Berwick with a couple of friends. Amazing how far you can travel in a short time. Here's a video.

Here is the Great Ball Contraption from Japan Brickfest 2016. Separate designers each built compatible modules to make this thing come together.

How The Mountain Bike Evolved. This video goes well with the short history of mountain biking included in my popular route guide book: Exposed Routes
The 1979 Cunningham prototype later in the film looks great, the same geometry as modern mountain bikes.

Did this as a solo. Pretty happy with 14th in my category and 8 exhausting laps. Was loads of fun. Not sure I'd do it solo again though. Bit more technical than I thought it would be. Billions of slippy roots and a couple of properly scary sections.

Is there any person in the world that can run high electrical current through their body and survive? Current Mohan claims he can.

A short doc about the town of Stratford, in California. Years of drought is threatening the local community.

When A Town Runs Dry from Go Project Films on Vimeo.

"Bill's fifty-two years old, has a mountain man beard, and delivers pizza on a fixie in Brooklyn. Over the course of several shifts, DELIVERY unveils an intriguing man rushing food to your door while it's still hot and fresh."