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TTRfan · Super Guru

Trail ride from Exeter - Wednesday 22 May

TTRfan · Super Guru

Run Report at last!

I had originally planned a day's riding in North Devon with Dave Gunning aka Lostboyscout but Dave managed to tear some shoulder tendons on a big off on a Salisbury Plain trail ride with the Surrey TRF Group at the weekend so was out of action.

I decided to simplify things and start the trail ride locally but rather than do my usual East Devon lanes, pop across the River Exe and sample the delights of some South Devon lanes instead.

Steve Attfield had booked the day off for the North Devon ride so bravely decided to ride the 40 miles from home to the new Exeter start point.

So we had four TTRs on the ride: my 325, Trev, Bob and Steve all on OEs.

Riders at start.jpg

Everyone was on time so we started promptly at 10am and were soon into our first easy level lane with just a few overhanging branches to duck under whilst watching out for slippery mud at the same time.

My brother Trev bravely volunteered to lead the run having got confident in using his GPS. However, he was tricked into missing the entrance to the next lane. Completely understandable as the entrance is up a steep hedge bank and it had completely grown over. Knowing where to look I was able to get the group back and ride it. Short but sweet.

We meandered through the countryside riding all the lanes through to the lovely Exe estuary village of ****wood with its olde worlde pub and harbour. A couple of little used lane in the village have nice steep climbs and are worth deviating for.

The next tricky lane required a bit of momentum as it starts steeply off the road and water running down it has cut a deep channel and the TTR footpegs were making excellent brakes in the sides of the rut. It gave Bob a bit of trouble see here

We stopped at the top for a breather and to admire the view.

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 001.jpg

We then had a series of nice easy lanes to our early lunch stop in Dawlish (famous for its black swans) but not without mishap as Trev hit a rut wrongly when he was checking the GPS for where to go at the junction

Steve and Bob were quick to lift the TTR off him whilst I chuckled and took pics biggrin

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 005.jpg

We had pasties and bacon butties at Gays Creamery in Dawlish followed by clotted cream ice creams - lovely!

From Dawlish we laned across to Teignmouth where I stopped to take some pics over the town and toward the Shaldon Bridge. Steve had been craning his neck to see the view as we drove up out of Teignmouth so it was safest to stop for him anyway.

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 007.jpg

We only crossed a few fords and they were very low following our long dry spell but you will see in the background of the pics below that the floods had caused a lot of damage and a lot of earth and stone had been cleared out of this river bed.

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 009.jpg

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 010.jpg

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 011.jpg

We stopped in Chudleigh to take on liquids and happened to stop outside a very nice tea room and it would have been rude not to have stopped for tea and tiffin wink

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 016.jpg

Whilst parking his TTR, Steve made friends with a passing yummy mummy and her lad had his first sit on a dirtbike - start 'em young! smile

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 013.jpg

Over tea it was decided that we would try a local bike breaker lane and it turned out to be the best lane of the day and a credit to the TTRs and riders to fight our way through biggrin

The bottom of the lane has been washed out to a depth of between 3' to 8' in places and was also very narrow with some drops that could have ended with the rider going over the bars.

The pics don't do it justice!

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 017.jpg

Halfway down.jpg

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 018.jpg

The next lane was a lot more restful and ran along the bank of the River Teign - all very lush and green at this time of year.

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 019.jpg

Dawlish trail ride - 22 May 2013 020.jpg

I am hoping Trev and Steve will add their pics and videos to the thread biggrin

In summary we rode 43 "green lanes". We only covered 49 miles in 6 hours but the snack stops did take up a bit of time disbelief

A great day and good to meet Steve who fitted in real well with the rest of us old codgers.

Brian

Trev McRev · Member

Here is my dearly beloved OE, all ready for a day out on the Devon lanes.

Keeping thinking I should get one of them fancy blue models, but then I remind myself that there is nothing wrong with this one which I have had since 2004 as its first UK owner. Bought it showing 276k and in 9 years I have only added another 6000k. Mmmm, need to get out more!

Sadly I didn't get many photos, but that is what happens when you are enjoying yourself

This pic shows Brian helping Steve get his TTR down into the start of the rut

This one is of the 3 OE TTR's in the bottom of the lane with Bob in the distance having been to check what's further on, which of course is another half mile of the same.

Amazing what the heavy rain fall has done to some of our lanes.

A very pleased looking Brian after having got through this rather deep rut.

I tried all ways to get a photo that showed how low we were to the original lane surface, but kept getting the bright sunlight cutting through the trees

At the end of the lane we were met with a shallow river, which was easy to drop into, but a tad tricky to get the bikes out the other side as we had to duck under a tree branch at the same time as we had to negotiate a big root. All got through ok, to find another sunken lane up hill to the road.

This was my first run as the leader...

Took some getting used to watching what was coming up next on the sat nav. Lost count of how many times I missed the start of a lane, only to hear a toot from Brian which was the signal for Steve, Bob and I to turn around and come back to where he was pointing. I swear he has forgotten more about our Devon lanes than I will ever know. Me thinks that you learn more about your area by using good old maps, but mixing map reading with pasty stops when would we get to ride the lanes.

Another fabulous day out with the TTR's

TTRfan · Super Guru

Here are some great little video of you bravely going first down the tricky bit Steve wink

Part 2:

Part 3

ttr steve · Super Guru

Had a great day out with Brian, Trev and Bob. Thanks for showing me some lanes and making a newbie feel welcome. Good sports and you boy's know how to ride them thing's too!!! Much more sophisticated in your part of Devon, all I get round here is a Pint of Cider and a pack of crisps. LOL. Seriously great day out, and as Arnie say's, i'll be back (if you let me)!

I have been trying to upload video and stills from my phone, but my laptop is not reading my phone. Aggggh techno techno.

Lostboyscout · Veteran Member

Wow I did miss a good ride out ....good effort guys , nice to see so many OEs

TTRfan · Super Guru

A few more short videos of "that" lane:

TerryK · Super Guru

Aussie Paul wrote:
Is that what green lanes are. It looked like you were in the jungles or Borneo . In the second video you can tell he is happy he has the e button.

I love watching this stuff.

Was thinking the same, bit different to what we ride in Australia & that electric start is a big bonus !!!

-- Edited by TerryK on Friday 24th of May 2013 09:48:00 AM

ttr steve · Super Guru

Some more piccy's

Steves pics 1.jpg

Steves pics 2.jpg

Aussie Paul · Veteran Member

Is that what green lanes are. It looked like you were in the jungles or Borneo biggrin . In the second video you can tell he is happy he has the e button.

I love watching this stuff. aww

Paul13 · Veteran Member

Trev McRev wrote:
Here is my dearly beloved OE, all ready for a day out on the Devon lanes.
Keeping thinking I should get one of them fancy blue models, but then I remind myself that there is nothing wrong with this one which I have had since 2004 as its first UK owner. Bought it showing 276k and in 9 years I have only added another 6000k. Mmmm, need to get out more!

I bet your bike looked nothing like that after that ride. biggrin

TT-R250M · Super Guru

Very nice report all involved.

It was disappointing to see that some of Brian's pic's did not work. hmm

Maybe it is just me (can't be my computer lol)?

Jarrah

TT-R250M · Super Guru

TT-R250M wrote:
Very nice report all involved.
It was disappointing to see that some of Brian's pic's did not work.
Maybe it is just me (can't be my computer lol)?
Jarrah

Cancel that, they all work now. Pressed F12, cache, clear for this domain, BINGO! aww

Jarrah

Mike Wright · Veteran Member

Thats certainly green laning off road. Looks like it was great fun and you all came out of the undergrowth like adventurers! I rode that ford in the first clips last week its a nice lane. The holes look a bit deep but the commentary is classic biggrin

Trev McRev · Member

Steve drops into the washed out rut at Ruggadon and shows the rest of us the way

Best fun I have had for ages

Bob follows Steve into the darkness of Ruggadon

-- Edited by Trev McRev on Monday 27th of May 2013 02:54:52 PM

-- Edited by Trev McRev on Monday 27th of May 2013 10:55:53 PM