When everyone had assembled at the Totnes pick-up we made an impressive sight for the locals - a huge throng of cyclists that filled a large portion of the Plains.

Our favourite route to Ashprington is along the Sharpham Drive track, but this doesn't suit everyone, especially in the winter period when the track is muddy. Today, just nine of our number opted for the road alternative, and paid a penalty with a prolonged half-hour wait at Ashprington. It wasn't that the trackies were being unusually slow: the track boasted several muddy patches, much to the excitement of many younger riders who managed to get filthy, and there were a number of styles to be negotiated - not an easy matter with twenty bikes! Then there was the gate which looked like a barbed wire fence: several had struggled to carry their bikes over the top before Neil pointed out that it could be opened. And then Christian broke a chain in the middle of a particularly muddy patch - quickly repaired, but causing slight delay nevertheless. To round off the fun there was a steep-sided field to climb (with an awkward style at the top of course), at which point Andrew Walker would have lost his new cycle computer had Dave Robinson not spotted it lying in the leaves.

We returned swiftly to Totnes via Bowden, and thence to Paignton and Buckfastleigh by our separate ways. The Buckfastleigh contingent were feeling so energetic that they opted for the hard return via Rattery. Joseph B had chain problems along the way, but these were eventually fixed when Neil returned to find him.