A full round of Golf

Tales of derring-do have emanated from the Tweed Valley for thousands of years; from the brutal, lawless Border Reivers, to the fisherman who travelled the globe to sample Scotland’s finest Salmon river or the hardy, stoic mill workers of the 19th and 20th century, there have always been tales to tell, and a spirited bunch who would happily undertake acts to place themselves into folklore. The Valleys laid back ebb and flow of everyday life, mixed with a topography that alights a sparkle in any two-wheeled pilots eye has seen mountain biking thrown into the mixing pot of it’s future history and tales.

Mark Scott is a fixture of this valley - well liked, well known, fast-af, fit-af and stoic-af. If you were to hand pick a candidate for this challenge, he's your rider.  

Riding 44 technical trails in one go is a logistical, physical, and mental challenge. And, how many people actually know where to find all these trails, or how you get to them? How long will it take? What about food? And.....how on earth do you film it in a way that does it justice?

Using our in-house production capabilities, coupled with a long-established contact base of riders (25+ years) in Scotland allowed us build a compelling story and bring in characters that simply would not have participated were it not for their trust in us. 

As mentioned above, the community of the Tweed Valley is welcoming, but trust must be earnt if you want to dig deep. These characters were central to building not only the story, but also the trails and culture of the riding scene in Innerleithen. This was an important part of developing this concept - which started as a hair brained idea - into something that both honoured those who've played an important role, but also appealed to an international audience. 

Added to the creative challenge was that the brief landed 2 weeks before production, and no-one knew how far it would be, how long it would take or if Mark would even complete it. The odds were stacked against this even happening. 

With a team of four roaming camera operators on the hill, and a well developed plan of how to find, keep up, and capture Mark the 03:00 am start didn't seem to daunting - yes, everyone was dedicated to making this happen.

One of the elements that was discussed at length with Mark is the potential tension that arises with fatigue and camera's getting into your face. Everyone understood that emotions will ebb and flow, but ultimately these moments can help create outstanding pieces of documentarian film and beers would be shared afterwards no-matter what. Again, these oft-overlooked conversations can only happen if trust and respect is involved. 

After spending 23 hrs roaming the hills of the Golfie, we had a tight post-production turnaround. The off-line edit was developed in house, before being tweaked, perfected and coloured by one of our long-term collaborators. Everyone, from the bands who supplied music, to animators and camera operators, was invested in this project. In total, the project was conceived, produced and delivered in just under a month. 

Not bad for a hair-brained idea. 

To add the film production and photography, we also drafted the PR for international endemic media:

"Tales of derring-do have emanated from the Tweed Valley for thousands of years; from the brutal, lawless Border Reivers, to the fisherman who travelled the globe to sample Scotland’s finest Salmon river or the hardy, stoic mill workers of the 19th and 20th century, there have always been tales to tell, and a spirited bunch who would happily undertake acts to place themselves into folklore.
The laid-back ebb and flow of everyday life, mixed with a topography that alights a sparkle in any two-wheeled pilot's eye has seen mountain biking thrown into the mixing pot of its future history and tales.
The trail builders saw potential, the racers raced, and many unsung heroes spent countless hours amongst the blocks of Sitka Spruce; slowly chipping, trimming and sculpting their artwork onto the slopes that surround Innerleithen.
So it was that the “Golfie” and its world-class network of trails, or Caberston Forest and Cairn Hill if we’re being official, entered the nomenclature of every aspiring rider or trailer creator in Britain as a standard to aim for.

A short ride from the village centre, The Golfie, located above Innerleithen’s Golf course, is in a constant state of flux. Trails appear, then slowly fade from memory, only for others to emerge and alight the forest with sounds of joy. It is a dynamic place, shaped by those who care.

To ride every trail on this hill is a task few have attempted, let alone completed. Rising to over 600m, to do so requires an insane level of fitness and commitment. Then you need the “knowledge”. Knowing every trail on this hill, some dating back to the 80s, requires a local’s eye and the support of those who have traced this expanse. "
The trails range from mellow-ish, through to EWS hard and too-hard for EWS, challenges.
In short, it isn’t simply about fitness. You must be good. You must be liked by the community. You must be… mad.