COURSE MAP

WHERE ARE WE?!

“Scotland in miniature.” That’s the Isle of Arran in a nutshell. With human history dating back waaay past your slightly smelly great-grandmother, a lot of folks have rambled these coastlines and hills scouting race terrain and colonizing potential Grinduro village sites. It’s been a geologists paradise since James Hutton found some cool rocks here in 1787, and 230 years later people finally have gotten around to taking advantage of that awesome geology and holding a sweet bike race.

DOES PREHISTORY COUNT AS HISTORY?

The Isle has been continuously inhabited by humans since the early Neolithic period, perhaps as far back as 7000 BC. ‘History’ technically began when societies developed writing systems about 5300 BC, so Arran was home to groups of prehistoric cultures. Yep, you’ll be riding in the footsteps of dinosaur people. The Isle has a particular concentration of early Neolithic Clyde Cairns; tall rectangular stones that mark gallery graves and served as places of ritual and internment. So ride hard, but don’t put yourself in the grave.

ROCK ON

At the northern tip of the island sits an important example of Hutton’s Unconformity, one of the most famous and significant sites in the study of geology and the history of the earth. Before Elvis and The Beatles made rock ’n roll big, James Hutton spent years traveling Scotland scouring for a very particular kind of rock. In 1787, he came to Arran and found his first example of an unconformity, a place where the junction between two types of rock formations can be seen. These geological phenomenons mark the location where rock formations created at different times and by different forces adjoin, and served as evidence for Hutton’s groundbreaking and earth shattering theories about the age and formation of this big space rock of ours. Point is, there’s some rock here on Arran, so we’d recommend carrying a tube or two.

MODERN TIMES

Today, the Isle of Arran is home to about 5,000 souls who are lucky enough to enjoy its rich and lengthy history, stunning natural beauty, and laudable reputation of being home to one of the world’s greatest bicycle races. Tourism is vital to the modern economy of the island, and the Arran Trust is an important Isle organization that enables conservation and sustainable tourism. With an understanding of both the importance of tourism to the community and the rich heritage of Arran, the Trust provides valuable fundraising for conservation and community projects across the Isle. So thank you, Arran Trust, for your part in conserving and improving this beautiful bit of rock for us all to enjoy.