As the Tour De France comes to the North of England, a different type of cycling is taking hold in the South of Scotland.
A national centre for mountain biking has recently opened in the Borders, aiming to help businesses cash-in on growing enthusiasm for the sport. As Joe Pike reports:
Two of the things most celebrated in the Scottish Borders are being brought together in a brand new event.
They're a type of fabric synonomous with the area and the region's favourite sport. Jenny Longden went to the launch of the Tweed cycle ride.
Cyclists in the Scottish Borders are being urged to don their tweeds for a new biking event.
The Tweed Ride launched today as part of the annual TweedLove festival, in association with Homecoming Scotland.
The 10-mile ride will take place on 8 June, and will start in Peebles town centre and finish up at Traquair House, where there will be a mini-festival.
Organisers are encouraging those that want to take part to come decked out in tweed or period clothing.
The latest cycling event to be included in the programme for the TweedLove festival has got the approval of former national mountain biking champion, Andy Barlow.
Tweed Ride is a 10-mile route through the Tweed Valley, and cyclists are encouraged to wear tweed.
Barlow said: "TweedLove is not just about the mountain biking, there is a lot of decent road cycling, there is a whole vibrant scene on the go just now, and the festival just celebrates all of it.
It's the finale of the two week TweedLove biking festival.
He continued: "Whole families can get involved, everyone takes something away from the day and it is just a great way to get involved with the countryside and the area."
The Tweed Ride, an event celebrating cycling and tweed, has officially been launched
Organisers hope hundreds of riders will come dressed in their finest clothes for the event in June.
It will follow a 10 mile route through the Tweed Valley, ending at Traquair house.
The event will be the finale of this years Tweedlove bike festival.
Entries open this morning for the first Tweed cycle ride.
The event will see hundreds of cyclists of all ages and abilities dressed in tweeds and quirky period clothing, riding their bikes through the Borders.
The new Tweed Valley Railway Path between Peebles and Innerleithen will be officially opened today by Scottish Environment Minister, Paul Wheelhouse.
The path, which follows the former railway line, will provide opportunities for walking, cycling and horse-riding.
A bird of prey that was near extinction is being helped back to healthy numbers in the Scottish Borders.
The Tweed Valley Osprey conservation project looks after ten nests in secret locations near Innerleithen.
For the tenth year running a pair have returned to the same spot to breed.
Three chicks have been tagged this morning, to prepare for them flying the nest.
Three six-week-old osprey chicks are being ringed in the Tweed Valley Forest Park as part of a conservation project.
Around 160 chicks have been ringed since the Tweed Valley Osprey Project began in 1999.
"Every year, we ring the new osprey chicks so that we can track them for years to come and this helps us monitor the success of the project. We can get an insight of where they travel to and where they nest back in the UK.
– Diane Bennett, Osprey Information Officer"During the ringing process, Forestry Commission Scotland's conservation managers also take the time to give them a thorough health check, making sure they are a good weight and show no signs of ill health.
"The Tweed Valley Osprey Project is proving a great success and we are thrilled also that members of the public can watch the birds closely at our two live viewing centres at Glentress forest and Kailzie Gardens, near Peebles.
"It's a great advert for the Year of Natural Scotland."
A festival for bike enthusiasts is now underway in the Tweed Valley.
TweedLove is a 10 day event and includes guided rides, demonstrations and competitions.
The two day POC King and Queen of the Hill Enduro challenge gets underway on Saturday May 25.
Organiser Neil Dalgleish said: "Tweedlove bike festival has been growing a lot in the five years it has been running. We now reckon it is worth half a million pound to the local economy.
"We bring lots of visitors in. Over the ten days of the festival I think we will have about 2,500 people actually riding bikes in events and a good number more watching and spectating and taking part."