With just two of us on the ride today we had a perfect opportunity for a car-assisted ride. Parking the car at Crafthole on the south Cornish coast we explored the picturesque villages of Portwrinkle, Downderry and Seaton before tackling the major climb to the Monkey Sanctuary. A steep and interesting track brought us to the beach at Milendreath, and from there we had to carry the bikes up a long and steep set of steps to Plaidy and the coastal path into Looe.

The village's maize of narrow, old-fashioned streets were packed with people despite the lateness of the season. We ate lunch overlooking the river, plagued by some sea birds intent on getting as much of our food as possible. After browsing several of the fascinating shops we enjoyed ice-cream deserts in the Tasty Corner cafe and then headed back to the large expanse of beach for some Frisbee throwing. A strong wind made the activity slightly more difficult than usual so we quickly moved to rock pool exploration before continuing on our journey homewards. Cornwall always offers an exciting day out, and today had been no exception.

The juniors once again insisted on a trip to Staverton cricket field. Today we rode out via Colston road and, after evading the best attempts of a motorist to run us down, proceeded the park for the usual Frisbee games. Harry managed to throw the pink ring so hard and so high that it flew right out of the park, across the road, over the electric wires and into the nearby field! Fortunately he was able to retrieve it before fading light forced us to return homewards via the track to Hole Farm.

There was a good attendance for our final evening ride of the season, but as Jordan hadn't been out for a couple of months we decided to keep the ride fairly local with an excursion through Hembury Woods to River Dart Adventures. Darkness fell before we were half-way along the track, so Michael's powerful front light proved essential for safe navigation of the many fallen tree trunks and the required detour across two streams caused by a path blockage. It was all very entertaining, and a new experience for many of our younger riders.

Harry's ever-quickening puncture required an increasing frequency of pump stops on the route home through Pridhamsleigh and Green Lane, so it was close to 9.30 when we finally arrived home.

The weather looked promising and Gage and Joe were keen to do a good ride, but before we could actually start we had to sort out Joe's brake problem which required a trip to the local bike shop. We eventually set off at 11.15 for Totnes, stopping at Safeways to buy many exciting items for refreshments and lunch. The long climb up Totnes Downhill brought us eventually to Bow Bridge, where Gage considered but finally declined the challenge of riding across the river.

We were running somewhat later than planned so we had to make good progress through Tuckenhay and East Cornworthy to Dittisham. The steep climb didn't matters, but soon we were on the track from Bozomzeal to Old Mill Creek that we haven't ridden for many years. Things had changed slightly but we managed to find the bridle path and followed it down the long and challenging track to the Creek. This was a perfect spot for lunch, with plenty of ancient boats to examine and tranquillity all around.

It was getting on for 3pm when we set off again up the final hill to Dartmouth. Having travelled so far we decided to enjoy ice creams by the riverside before boarding the higher ferry for Kingswear. This was apparently the first time Gage had been on a ferry with his bike, and only the second time he'd ever been on a ferry at all!

The route back to Buckfastleigh was busy for the next few miles, taking us through Churston, Paignton and Marldon before we finally hit the quiet lanes to Red Post. This had been long and hard, but both lads coped well with the strain.

Our first social of the season was inaugurated with an evening of computer games and Babylon 5 DVDs at Crofters. Things were a little cramped because Michael's lounge refurbishment was well underway, but we still managed to have a very enjoyable evening.

The weather was so bad this morning that we managed only a short ride around Buckfast before we headed back to Crofters. Badminton was selected as the most appropriate social, and having booked a court at Ivybridge we spent an enjoyable hour playing some excellent games between 12 and 1. New member Sol turned out to be a good player. There was time for refreshments in the cafe before we returned to Crofters for an afternoon of computer games.

Our AGM made some key decisions for the coming year. Michael and Tao continue as Section Secretary and Section Delegate respectively, Oliver takes on the role of Treasurer and Joe becomes the new Publicity Officer. Keir, Louis and Will are local publicity reps whose function is to help Joe putting up posters all over the region. We agreed to publish adult leaders’ names on the website for each ride to help ensure we have at least two adults on as many rides as possible. The flexible winter social programme was approved, allowing all socials to start from Crofters and special socials to be arranged the week before. Joe was challenged to get posters up in as many bike shops as possible, and a general plan was laid down to run at least one major tour next summer.

The remainder of the evenings was spent enjoying Michael's newly-refurbished lounge - and the usual computer games of course.

There was a surprisingly good turnout this morning considering the rather wet and windy night that had just passed. We set off bravely with the forecast not ruling out further showers, but as the ride progressed it became clear that the showers were over. We rode up Dean Hill, then cut across to Marley Head and down to Avonwick via the cobbled lane - fortunately nobody managed to fall down any of the gullies, although Louis did have some difficulty making his pannier stay on his bike.

The ride along the Avon River would have been straightforward if Joe had kept his eyes open and not turned left with Louis after everyone else had ridden past. Twenty minutes later they finally re-joined the group, with Joe looking distinctly sheepish about his mistake. Everyone was doing well today though, including new rider Chris, so we had no difficulty returning via Rattery by the usual 1.30 deadline. As usual, an afternoon of computer games was enjoyed by nearly all those present.

There was so much interest in our first cinema trip of the season that we needed two cars to get everyone to Plymouth. The computer-animated film, telling the story of the relationship between a colony of fish and the nearby shark mob, was well received by everyone with its witty script and comical dialogue.

Our largest ride turnout since May included no beginners so we were able to tackle an ambitious morning ride to Haytor. Some of the youngsters didn't like the hill from Belford Mill near Ashburton up to Birchanger cross, but the autumnal appearance of the many woodlands along the route made the whole journey very enjoyable. We detoured through Haytor Vale on the way up the big rock and rested there for twenty minutes while buying refreshments and making friends with the local pony. Ben and Chris had never ridden this far into the moor, and the panoramic views to the sea emphasised the magnitude of their achievement.

A couple of showers and a stiff breeze left some with cold fingers by the time they reached Cold East Cross - no doubt warm gloves will feature on a few Christmas lists this year. The high speed descent to Ashburton made a memorable end to an excellent October ride.

Several Western Power Distribution vans were parked outside Crofters when we returned. Apparently a squirrel has short-circuited a three-phase overhead line in Michael's field while we had been out, causing a loud explosion and leaving half of Buckfastleigh without electricity. Sadly the squirrel will no longer be visiting Michael's bird table.