Michael was recovering from a virus this morning so he led the ride by car on a superb sunny morning. We rode to Ashburton, then down the railway track to the centre of town, although George apparently came off while attempting a jump which caused a small delay.

After taking the back lanes to Belford Mill we rode the track down through the woods. Last time the first section of the path was in a total mess as a result of extensive tree felling, but now we were pleased to find that the path had been properly tidied up – it was still a bit muddy, but everyone enjoyed it.

We returned home via South Dartmoor School and the old Ashburton road, getting back for around 12.45. There was a Minecraft social after the ride until 3.30.

Jack and one of the other lads wanted to play badminton tonight, but when we discovered that the only court available in the area was 8pm at Paignton we had no choice but to run a games evening.

We enjoyed a mix of Halo, Minecraft and Modern Warfare 3 until the club closed at 10.10.

Today’s ride took us up Dean Hill and on to South Brent where we called into the Co-op so that Lawrence could buy himself a frozen pizza for his lunch. He must have been keen to eat it as power up the hills on our return route via Lutton and Bloody Pool. We had seen a Horizon programme recently that suggested a few ten-second stints of maximum effort was as effective for fitness as a very long spell of half-hearted exercise, so he diligently followed the guide today.

Lawrence managed to come off his bike on the way down Nurston hill, but he only landed in mud so there was no real damage done. He went home to change while the rest of us got back for 1pm. There was the usual games social after the ride until 3.45 that included a few games of Halo. And of course Lawrence wasted no time getting back up so he could cook his pizza.

John and Michael worked out provisional plans for our 2013 Easter Tour, then we all played some games of Modern Warfare 3 before finishing with a music quiz. Michael had set up a new link from his PC to his AV amplifier and TV today so the music reached new levels of quality!

We were delayed at the start by Callum who arrived with two punctures to fix, so the youngsters had an hour on the computers before we finally set off at 11.10. We rode up to Cross Furzes, but the second half of the climb left us all feeling really cold in the strong wind. Some people needed hoods up to help thaw their ears, although young George remained cheerful through it all.

The descent to Lower Combe brought us down to some shelter at last, but nobody was in the mood to stay out too long so we returned home via Hawson Court for 12.55. There was the usual games social after the ride until 3.30, consisting of Modern Warfare 3 and Halo.

Lawrence explained that he had missed several recent activities as a result of a two-week illness, but he was back to full health this evening and wanted to go to Pizza Hut for the social. He was marginally outvoted, however, so by way of a compromise we did a trip to Tesco Lee Mill to stock up with some tasty refreshments.

On our return we had a mammoth session of Infected games on Modern Warfare 3 that had everyone on the edge of their seats with excitement: Lawrence enjoyed the games so much he actually offered to pay money if he could stay later! Michael allowed everyone a little extra time and closed the club at 10.15.

Those who turned out on this bright sunny morning enjoyed a great ride to Holne via Holne Road, Scoriton and Michelcombe. We stopped for soups and teacakes at the Holne café, then took the track down to River Dart Country Park which was a little harder than usual to access because of the careful positioning of a large log in the path around the gate.

The track through the woods was great fun as usual. We stopped to enjoy the Spiders’ Web attraction for a few moments, then returned home via the old Ashburton Road for 1.50. There were the usual games after the ride until 3.40.

Michael had booked two badminton courts at Newton Abbot from 9pm, so we had time for some games of Halo and Modern Warfare 3 before we left.

Everyone had a go at playing everyone else at some point during this excellent evening. Lawrence was eager to demonstrate his skills to Michael and asked him to play his best, although after losing the first three points suggested that perhaps he could tone his game down just a little. Ash and Michael later reached level at 10-10 but then Michael just took the game. We finished with a doubles game that included Will and George, then got home a little late at 10.20.

New member Alastair arrived promptly at 10am on a very cold morning and seemed happy enough to play a game of Modern Warfare 3 with the others while we waited for Lawrence, who as usual was running late.

Alastair likes off-road so we rode through Buckfast to the lower Hembury Woods track which offered us a little shelter from the bitter breeze. Half-way along we stopped at our favourite tree for a photo, then we stopped again to climb the tree at Humphrey’s Cross. The slalom track through Hembury provided a great finish on our way home, bringing us back to Buckfastleigh for just after 1pm. Alastair is quite an experienced cyclist and had no problem with the ride, so we hope to see him again soon.

There was a games and trampoline social after the ride until 3.30 or so.

Our rather noisy evening started with a music quiz, which most thought unfair as the first two rounds were 70s and 80s music which only John seemed to know much about. The game theme round redressed the balance somewhat but ended in a draw. We finished the evening with games of Infected and One in the Chamber on Modern Warfare 3 which everyone really enjoyed.