Unbelievable though it may sound, Luke Hatherly broke another derailleur this afternoon, this time an expensive Suntour model. He said he was just pedalling along when he "heard this crunching noise" - the mechanism had doubled back on itself and sheared away from its support bracket. At least he now had the excuse he'd been looking for to buy a Shimano derailleur.

All this activity took place at Venford, which we had reached via Buckfast Abbey, Michelcombe and Holne. New rider Adam found the climb to the moor a bit tough, but like many others enjoyed the ride around the muddy banks of the reservoir - exposed by the unusually low water levels. A few got bogged down of course, but eventually we were able to enjoy the descent through Holne Chase.