Warm gloves and woolly hats were essential items of clothing on this freezing January morning, the first of the New Year. There was plenty of frost-adorned scenery to admire along the river Avon from Avonwick to Diptford, but the most treacherous riding conditions were reserved for the second half of the ride. Approaching a notorious corner on a back lane near Blue Post we encountered a huge sheet of ice stretching from one hedge to the other. Near the bottom was a Volvo that had lost all grip and turned 90 degrees to completely block the lane. A tractor soon solved the problem for the driver, but ours continued as we negotiated a river of ice that stretched all the way down the hill from Pennywell Farm to Dean Prior. It certainly was an eventful ride!