An evening ride to Totnes was shaped by water: Michael’s stern safety warning curbed corner‑cutting, then high river levels submerged the riverside path, sending most back while Neil and Matthew rode hub‑deep. The laugh of the night came when Edward stepped off the leat and splashed in.

In glorious weather, a moorland traverse over Hameldown was defined by a quiet pause at the RAF memorial on Remembrance Day, poppies bright against the stone. Midges drove lunch from the East Webburn, and the steep, rough drop to Widecombe tested skills.

A calm evening ride to Avon Dam was defined by nature at full voice: rhododendrons in bloom, midges in force and a sunset over a near-full reservoir. Andrew, who had only come to say hello, joined on the spot before we sped back over the moor to Cross Furzes.

A wet, breezy evening cut our second Junior ride to the bare minimum: only Kim turned up, so we took a short circuit of the two Hembury tracks before heading to Crofters for computer games.

In rain the group planned a short ride then a long session at Crofters, but Michael quietly turned it into a full tour via Hembury, Holne, Michelcombe and Scoriton, finishing with the Cross Furzes climb. The rain eased and there was still time for computer games.

A fast run to Lannacombe set the tone for a lively day: beach time became fully clothed paddling for Tao, Keir and Eliot, and later a toppled Land Rover on Corkscrew Hill halted us briefly. We finished tired and cheerful, with Philip earning praise for staying the course.

An evening ride up Green Lane to Abham and through lanes to Knowle finished with a push along overgrown tracks between Parkfield Cross and Pridhamsleigh. Keir fell three times, the day’s lone mishap on an otherwise steady outing.

A ride defined by a newcomer’s early detour and a rough descent mishap: after the climb past Shuttaford, new member Eric Pouney headed for the Old Forge at Holne while the rest reached the Venford ice cream van; later Philip Oakley overshot on the drop to Michelcombe and hit a stone wall, bruised but fine.

An evening ride became a test of patience on the overgrown track from Furzeleigh to Priestaford, where Michael's 'nearly there' proved only halfway. Spirits lifted on a steep, unfamiliar line from Knowle Cross to Ashburton, its views over Peartree sparking an idea for the next Friday ride.

An evening of trail-hunting quickly became awkward: our chosen track towards Headborough Farm vanished behind barbed wire by the Ashburton reservoir, forcing a fence crossing and a muddy delay behind cows, but it ended with the welcome discovery of the calm, rideable Whiddon Scrubs path.

On our hot bi-annual Burrator loop via the Plym Valley cycleway, the viaducts and unlit tunnel framed a day of steady miles and a tough Goodameavy climb. A garage’s engine oil cured a squeaky chain, and two speedsters overshot the Meavy turn before ice creams and Foxtor Cafe.

A glorious evening on the moor set the tone as we dropped to Chalk Ford and Scoriton, Michael rolling proudly on his newly restored Mercian. With time in hand we looped via Michelcombe and Holne to the River Dart Country Park, where the youngsters raced down the twisty tubes.