Towpath Talks

Cat Magill loves riding her bike and using it as a means for travel and adventure. She has toured in West Africa, Japan, South America and India and more recently participated in ultra races including Highland Trail and Silk Road Mountain Race. Locally she helps to coordinate rides with Edinburgh Gravel Cycling Club and helps out at Edinburgh Tool Library’s Cycle Kitchen. Join Iza as she discusses Cat's history of trying to get people to sleep outside, and why she's still in this cold, wet and boggy country...

Chris, Trans America Bike Race 2018 finisher, was inspired to create an ultra-endurance race here in Scotland. Together with his friend Jack Driver, they created TransAlba and in October of the same year they opened registration for the first edition to run in summer 2019. Join Iza as she chats to Chris about the race, the highs and the lows and the future for TransAlba.

Iza talks to Neil about "Ultra"

Kerry talks to Iza about Gaelic and bikes, and everything in between.

Join Izabela Murtagh, Scotland's most enthusiastic commuter, for May’s talk at the Towpath Café at Biketrax. In the fifth talk of the series, we bring you three amazing guests: Jane Dennyson, Matt Finlayson, and Stu Allan. Stu Allan created the Badger Divide, a 210-mile bikepacking route from Inverness to Glasgow, that follows a mix of mostly unpaved estate Rights of Way, Heritage Paths, long-distance trails, and forestry gravel roads.

Join Izabela Murtagh, Scotland's most enthusiastic commuter, for May’s talk at the Towpath Café at Biketrax. In the fifth talk of the series, we bring you three amazing guests: Jane Dennyson, Matt Finlayson, and Stu Allan. In Part 2, we talk to Matt - owner and operator of Rothair Cycles out of Glasgow. Every bicycle is created in partnership with the rider – from start to finish, you are there making the decisions to create the perfect bicycle that rides and looks the way you want.

Join Izabela Murtagh, Scotland's most enthusiastic commuter, for May’s talk at the Towpath Café at Biketrax. In the fifth talk of the series, we bring you three amazing guests: Jane Dennyson, Matt Finlayson, and Stu Allan. In part 1, Jane, one of the Directors of Shift, talks about a movement that has brought together the cycling industry to tackle sustainability. She will tell us more about this and what their community of brands, many of the largest, are doing to try to transition to more sustainable models.

Listen to Jon Pavelin, audaxer, physiotherapist and all round good egg as he discusses the science of riding long distances.

Join Izabela Murtagh, Scotland's most enthusiastic commuter, for the next installment of the Towpath Talks series at Biketrax's Towpath Cafe In the fourth talk of the series, we bring you three legendary cyclists: Jon Pavelin, Fraser Maxwell, and Gary Cameron.  For this episode, listen to Fraser and Gary st they describe the creation of an iconic fixture on the Scottish cycling calendar – Ride to the Sun. This event simply entails riding 100 miles through the night from Carlisle to watch the sunrise at Edinburgh’s Cramond Beach for the summer solstice. Every year it attracts hundreds of participants, and this year marks a decade since its first edition.

Join Iza as she discusses the importance of finishing last with local hero Sandy Scally, with some edgy stories of racetime mishaps. *Contains some spicy language, listener discretion recommended!

Join Iza, Jerome and our live audience for the first part of our March Towpath Talk

Join ⁠Izabela Murtagh⁠, Scotland's most enthusiastic commuter, for the second of the series Talk at the ⁠Towpath Cafe⁠ at ⁠Biketrax⁠. With her guests, ⁠Naomi Freireich⁠, ⁠Ruby Boyce⁠, and ⁠Adna Dumitrescu⁠ they'll be delving into their distinctive experiences within the cycling world—navigating the challenges of 24-hour MTB racing, venturing into ultra-endurance riding and bike packing. The cyclists have an array of incredible stories to unfold, and the added intrigue comes from their role in establishing a ⁠Women led Cycling community⁠. Tune in to discover the camaraderie, obstacles, and triumphs woven into their cycling journeys. It's undoubtedly an evening worth tuning in for!  In part two, meet Naomi Freireich as she talks about the joys and despairs of 24hr MTB racing at the elite level. Check out our Podcasts page for here slides and more details. If you missed Part 1 - with Ruby Boyce⁠,& ⁠Adna Dumitrescu retelling the stories of setting up an inclusive cycling club, you can check it out at the podcast link above.

Join Izabela Murtagh, Scotland's most enthusiastic commuter, for the second of the series Talk at the Towpath Cafe at Biketrax. With her guests, Naomi Freireich, Ruby Boyce, and Adna Dumitrescu they'll be delving into their distinctive experiences within the cycling world—navigating the challenges of 24-hour MTB racing, venturing into ultra-endurance riding and bike packing. The cyclists have an array of incredible stories to unfold, and the added intrigue comes from their role in establishing a Women led Cycling community. Tune in to discover the camaraderie, obstacles, and triumphs woven into their cycling journeys. It's undoubtedly an evening worth tuning in for!  In part one, meet Adna & Ruby as they talk about Edinburgh Institution, the Queens of Pain, one for any of you #cyclingcurious. Check out our Podcasts page on our website for the powerpoint slides to follow along! Stay tuned for part 2 - with Naomi Freirich retelling the stories of joy and suffering in the world of championship 24hr MTB racing.