On an already hot, cloudless morning we had a fast ride to the day’s pickup at Avonwick, where Colin turned back in company with Phil Burrows and some Plymouth compatriots, including Iris Buckler.

Eight of us headed along the ridge to drop down to Ivybridge, thence into Sparkwell via pleasant lanes. At the Wildlife Park we negotiated a reduction for parties - 60p per head can’t be bad, and that included old codgers like John, Kevin and myself who should have paid £1.80.

The animals had to wait for our “inspection”, food was our first need and we flopped down in the midst of foxes, eagles and peacocks. By the looks on some other visitors’ faces, we ravenous cyclists, always a strangely-attired bunch, needed peanuts to supplement our sandwiches.

Our wanderings among the wide variety of animals was punctuated by the shovelling-down of cold drinks and ices in the tea rooms where we stocked up on Mars bars to help us survive our newly-decided route back over the moors.

Cadover Bridge was heaving with grockles, but the water was too good to miss. We all got our feet wet, some got everything wet - a bathing run at last!

On to Burrator Dam for more ice-creams and photography before getting stuck into the superb track that climbs past Crazy Well Pool. Normal people don’t go that way, so we simply ran riot in the Devonport Leat. I didn’t know Y-Fronts came in so many colours!

Eight wet riders steamed into Princetown for, yes, you’ve guessed, more ice-creams, tea and the ubiquitous Mars bars. I assured Duncan that this was a typical Torbay Section club run, although I don’t think he was convinced.

Dartmeet has two rivers so this scored extra points for those famous water babes Kevin and Matthew, but the rest of us started the long grind upwards. They caught up only to say goodbye near New Bridge - they fancied a swim! John went his way also, so Duncan, Martin, Matthew, Richard and me descended on Ashburton at 7pm and flew through the lanes to Compton to part company at the end of a surprisingly satisfying day.

(Robert Spence)

[The attendance list for this event is currently incomplete]