BIKE-LOVING Borderers will be spoilt for choice when the Peebles Outdoor Film Festival returns to the Eastgate Theatre later this month.

And a familiar face in and around the Tweed Valley, world champion mountain biker Tracy Moseley, will be making an appearance on Saturday, January 28.

In the morning, a dozen lucky riders will join one of the most successful female riders of all time on a special ride out, led by local guiding company Swift Trails, before Tracy presents on the main stage as part of a bike-themed session later in the afternoon.

Her Life on Top session at the Eastgate begins with a selection of short films – from Innerleithen to Rwanda – before she takes to the stage to reflect on her riding career, how the sport has changed during that time and what she plans to do next.

Tracy’s appearance will also follow a presentation on the opening day (Friday, January 27) by a local riding legend, Crawford Carrick-Anderson.

He will talk about an amazing sporting life that began with skiing before two wheels took over and his deafness, which has added to the scale of his many accomplishments.

Pushing hard on two wheels will also be a feature of a much-anticipated headline appearance by Sean Conway on the Friday evening.

In his Going to Extraordinary Lengths session, which opens with a programme of inspirational short films, the extreme adventurer shares tales from his recent self-supported 4,000-mile continuous ultra-triathlon around the coast of mainland Britain.

The Herculean achievement, which recently featured in a documentary series on Discovery Channel, saw Sean use a special lightweight bike made from bamboo on the cycling leg.

Having taken 85 days to swim, cycle and run around the coast, Sean described the circumnavigation as “without doubt, the hardest thing I have ever done”.

Another local rider Ed Shoote will celebrate the joy of bikepacking. In Ride Fast, Travel Far on Saturday, January 28, Ed will explain how he got into lightweight touring and will talk about some of his most memorable trips, including recent adventures in Scotland, Iceland and Tibet.

And the bikepacking theme will continue with a final short film selection and live speaker session on the Sunday evening headlined by Markus Stitz, who recently returned from a year-long, 21,000-mile ride around the world on a singlespeed bike. 

Markus will talk about his bikepacking life, which began at nearby Glentress a decade ago, and his development of the Capital Trail – an overnight bikepacking adventure from Edinburgh to the Tweed Valley and back.

The Peebles Outdoor Film Festival runs from January 27–29 at the Eastgate Theatre.

Copies of the festival programme are available from Box Office, or online at www.eastgatearts.com. Tickets available, 01725 725777 or online.