The first cycling event of its kind to be held in the north-east took place in Westhill on Saturday.
Donna Morrison planned a route for cyclers and walkers around the town using an app called Turf.
The location-based app allows people to compete against each other to collect as many “zones” as they can and earn an “income”.
The more zones you collect, the higher your income grows.
The event attracted 22 active “Turfers” who enjoyed a group meal after two hours of activity.
“We just made a day of it,” Mrs Morrison said.
“People travelled from Edinburgh, Dunblane, Montrose, Stonehaven and Elgin to take part. Everyone had a great time, no hiccups or anything. It was a great afternoon.”
‘The first of many’
Although a keen cyclist herself, Mrs Morrison was not able to take part as she had organised the event and knew where all the zones were located.
Instead, she stayed at the base in Denman Park with a bicycle pump and first-aid kit – which she luckily did not need to use.
“I’m so relieved everything went well,” she said. “One of the local guys came first, he covered 10.5miles all over Westhill, and a local boy, Scott, who is only 12 did really well – he came 12th on foot.
“I went out in the morning to some of the zones with Easter eggs, so they were all grabbing a little bit of chocolate as they went round. And there was an Easter egg for the winner.
“This was the first event in the north-east, so it’s quite exciting. It will be the first of many, I hope”.
Bringing people together
Mrs Morrison has already planned a second Turf event to take place on June 11, which will be followed by a picnic in the park where she’ll be taking donations for Friends of Anchor.
She hopes the events will encourage more people to download the app and try it out for themselves.
“It’s great motivation for all abilities – it doesn’t matter if you’re chasing one zone or 100 zones,” she added.
“It really brings people from all walks of life together. It’s a really feel-good way of getting out to see your local area and beyond, and a great way to meet people as well.”
