The Sting in Stirling
At Bruar Falls
Rob Howard / 21.08.2012
Bruar Falls and the House of Bruar retail store are one of the most visited tourist sites in Scotland. Right beside the A9 trunk route, with an easily accessible and impressive canyon, it’s a stopping off point for most passing coaches. Today however there were some visitors with a different intention; they had no interest in shopping, and were going to descend the falls, rather than take pictures of them.
The first team to arrive for the canyoning stage were race leaders adidas TERREX and they were just coming back out of the canyon before second placed team, Mountain Hardwear arrived. As one team changed out of their wetsuits and the other changed into them they chatted briefly, joking about their spills in the river Tay during the morning.
Mountain Hardwear are still pressing on with a spoke missing from one of Anthony Emmet’s wheels but on the ride to Bruar the 3rd placed FGS Nectar had a problem they could not fix. The freehub on Liam Drew’s bike seized and the team had to freewheel from a CP high in the hills into the town of Pitlochry and buy a new wheel – slipping down the ranking. (The other FGS team now also have their broken gear hanger fixed.)
The leading two teams are in such a strong position that it was a while until any others came into the transition, set discreetly across the road from The House of Bruar. (The races have been asked not to wander in there - in their race clothes or dripping wet suits they would not fit in too well!) On arrival the teams were kitted out with buoyancy aids and wet suits by ‘Nae Limits’, the company running the canyon descent, and each team was accompanied down some of the way by one of their guides.
The race was using the lower part of the canyon and the best spectator spot was around the ‘lower falls’ where the visitors were astonished to see the teams down in the canyon, jumping, sliding and abseiling. The viewpoints and bridges were full of international visitors to Scotland, all wondering what was going on!
The biggest jump was just above the falls, a 10m leap into the pool, after which the teams roped up to move under the bridge, then abseiled down behind the main part of the falls into a cave and out via a natural rock arch. There was more rope work lower down, and a lot more scrambling and floating down among the rocks, to reach the exit at the back of the shops.
This activity breaks up the longest MTB stage (and later on at Mar Lodge there will also be an orienteering challenge) and teams have until 8pm tonight to complete it and be on their way. Which way they go to get to Mar Lodge is once again a route choice. Either the long route up into the Cairngorms, or a more direct short route up the impressive Glen Tilt, one of the great rides in Scotland. They really are spoilt for choice!
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