An easy run towards Holne Bridge turned into a mild adventure when we chose the River Dart–Holne Woods route: the games room’s Air Hockey had no puck, and a missed turn sent us onto a nettle-choked, rerouted path whose ‘shortcut’ took twice as long. We rolled back via Hembury for a brief PC-fix social.

A summer-warm moorland ride to Widecombe set the tone, with AA signs everywhere for Widecombe Fair—only preparations for Tuesday. Lunch plans foundered at the Green’s inflated prices, so we decamped to the Wayside café before a quiet run home via Hembury Woods.

This week's Cinema Night, open only to last weekend’s riders, screened two episodes of Agents of Shield at the Crofters clubroom.

Heavy rain from 7.15pm cancelled the ride, so we switched to a low-key social: a visit to the Sainsburys Superstore in Plymouth, then a Blackadder video. A wet evening, but lifted by classic comedy.

Planned as an easy introduction for new member Nat, the ride to Holne turned into a confident debut, with café snacks polished off by noon. We kept the return short, pausing at the River Dart for a go on the snake slide and briefly while George rode back for his water bottle.

Open only to last weekend’s riders, our cinema night took us to Plymouth for Maze Runner: The Scorch Trials. A strong sequel to last week’s film, it made for a satisfying evening together.

With Dillan keen to pack the evening, we set off promptly for a super-fast dash to Staverton and back, bats skimming past as twilight fell. Back by 8.20 as planned, the early finish left time for a post-ride wander to Tesco and a Fawlty Towers video.

An ambitious ride to Lee Mill and back took the fastest route out and still finished in record time, with a Tesco café refuel. A too-full stomach made the climbs unpleasant, prompting a memorable parrot break at the Sign of the Owl, where parrots wandered the shop and climbed onto shoulders.

A simple reward for last weekend’s riders: Cinema Night with two episodes of Agents of Shield, season 2’s 17 and 18, enjoyed together and setting up plenty to discuss before the next ride.

Marking the last evening ride of the season, we tried a new route from Coypool along the Plym Valley to Crownhill Pizza Hut—2-for-1 leaving more pizza than we could finish. A waft of Wrigley’s on the climb and a herd of deer on the return gave the ride its character.

A sun-soaked meander finally took us to Berry Pomeroy Castle, where we chatted with Plymouth CTC but skipped the bacon-scented café in favour of Morrisons. The standout was the Apple and Cider weekend at the Dartington Cider Press, a live Irish band giving the ride a festive finish.

We headed to Exeter Vue for the more convenient times and joined a packed audience for the first night screening of Martian. The film fully deserved its excellent reviews.