One of our most regular riders from the 1990s, Julian Duquemin, made a surprise return to the club this evening whilst taking a week's holiday from his London job. Tao and Matt got to hear of it and turned out too, so the ride became something of a reunion! It was also a chance for Julian to show off his new Specialized road bike and for Matt to show off his very expensive new off-road bike! Tao and Michael were very content with their normal mounts.

All that was needed to make the evening perfect was to do one of their favourite rides. It had been too wet recently to consider the Avon Dam, but Totnes cycle path certainly qualified as an excellent evening ride. Our youngsters rose to the challenge of what was a longer evening ride than usual, completing the ride along Colston road in double quick time. Julian, having a road bike, avoided everything that looked even remotely like a track, and Matt, whilst taking every opportunity there was for off-road riding, proceeded with caution to avoid the possibility of anything chipping his new paintwork. The youngsters wanted to try it, but he refused unless they were prepared to pay a cash deposit that exceeded £1000.

The cycle path was fun and the weir had a good flow after the recent rains. When Julian had met up with us on the bridge at Bridgetown we popped down to Vire Island for a short exploration then headed home via Dartington and Rattery. The youngsters performed remarkably well on what they saw as an unwelcome climb, particularly Ashley who is now showing real ability at his new sport. A final downhill past Pennywell Farm brought us back to Buckfastleigh for 9.35, but the senior members were keen to continue their evening at Crofters with a pre-release viewing of the 2006 Switzerland DVD.