Border Tweed Valley

Members of the Tweed Valley Mountain Rescue Team have been learning life-saving skills today during a training exercise at the River Ettrick. The Scottish Border based volunteers have been learning how to search rivers safely and rescue people drifting downstream. Jenny Longden reports

A fundraising campaign has been launched to replace the control vehicle used by Tweed Valley Mountain Rescue Team.

The charity, which is made up of on-call volunteers, are asking members of the public to buy a 'virtual pint' online, by donating the cost of a pint to their cause.

They want to buy a new £60,000 state of the art vehicle, equipped with technology such as a satellite data connection, touch screen computers for search planning and the most up to date communications equipment.

The current vehicle is 15 years old.

More information can be found here.

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.