This was not an easy decision for Michael. Martin Rushworth lay face-down on the ground, his limbs splayed out awkwardly. For the fifth time Michael had asked him to try to move his right leg, but he was still unable to do so. The symptoms all seemed to suggest the possibility of a broken or fractured femur, and yet how could this possibly have happened? Martin had been riding with the club along the forest track in Houndtor Wood, about 800m from Becky Falls, and had fallen from his bike. The track had been wide, relatively smooth and only gently sloping where he had fallen. He must have been riding a little too fast, hit a root or small stone and lost control. It seemed unlikely that he could have sustained serious injuries, and yet his inability to move was inescapable.

Access would be difficult to say the least, but expert opinion would have to be sought before Martin could be moved. Paul Hamlyn-White stayed with Martin while Michael rode on towards the Becky Falls cafe. The winter storms had, however, left their mark on the woodlands: the path was obstructed by a series of fallen trees, and the wooden bridge had been boarded off. When Michael eventually reached the cafe, he discovered that it was closed for the winter.

The proprietor, who was busy redecorating his lounge, had to get a bubble out of a piece of wallpaper before he would escort Michael to the telephone. He turned out to be quite helpful, and the ambulance was soon on its way: the other members of the group were rounded up whilst it travelled from Newton Abbot.

Michael had explained the situation quite carefully to the emergency operator, including the access problems. When the ambulance finally arrived, the situation was explained again.

"Do you think the helicopter would be able to get through?" said the ambulanceman.

"I'm not sure," replied Michael, amazed that he would even have considered such an option at this early stage. "I'm not even sure he's badly injured. I think the best course of action is for you to have a look at him first."

"Well, I only asked because the chopper is in the area," replied the ambulanceman. And with that, the police helicopter flew over the nearby trees with a sudden rush of noise and hovered overhead!

The other youngsters in the group suddenly realised that the afternoon had quickly turned into a real drama. The pilot landed the helicopter in a nearby field, spoke to one of the ambulancemen and then took off again to locate Martin and attempt to land nearby. Meanwhile the two ambulancemen and Michael lugged several items of equipment back along the tortuous route through the woods, climbing over the bridge and crawling under numerous fallen trees.

When they finally reached Martin the police were already there, having landed a few metres to the north in an open field. The ambulance crew confirmed the diagnosis as a "suspected fracture" and proceeded accordingly. Martin was carried back to the helicopter on a stretcher and airlifted to Torbay hospital casualty unit.

Suddenly everything was quiet again. Back at the cafe, two parents had arrived to take the younger riders home. The rest set off for an energetic return to Buckfastleigh via Haytor, arriving just after 6.30pm.

This was an unexpected end to an interesting ride - which got off to a late start because Marcus and a few others forgot to put their clocks forward.

During our customary stop at the Primrose cafe we met fellow cyclists Alasdair Robertson and friend, who agreed to meet us at the Cleave for lunch. This they did, and our members spent some time admiring his £1179 Roberts mountain bike - and getting each other wet in the river. Ï

The track through the Cleave was rough, but older mountain bikers derived considerable pleasure from the initial descent. Younger riders needed some assistance with the climb after lunch towards Manaton. Once they had reached the top, there was plenty of downhill riding through the woods ... but you already know the rest of the story.

And what of Martin? X-ray examination of his leg confirmed that he had only a bad bruise. He went home that evening, and was back at school after three days. It is comforting to know, however, that no expense is spared by the authority when our health is considered to be at risk!