Winter 2018 TRF Trail Magazine

Winter Annual 2018

The Members’ Magazine of the Trail Riders Fellowship

Worst Case Scenario Grown-up fun at the Triumph Adventure Experience 132-page bumper Winter Annual Handbook 2019; advice, information and reports from the Groups Sparks fly with e-bikes and Zeroes from London to Paris Trailsmart; advanced motorcycling and the TRF Hadrian Adventure Weekend and the year’s bigest events Plus; TRF Enduro Club, Photo Competition winner, Unsung Heroes and much, much more!

Would you know what to do?

TRF first-aid training courses

THE TRF TEAM Chair & Marketing Director: Mario Costa-Sa mario@trf.org.uk 07721 480000 Conservation Director: Dave Carling dave.c@trf.org.uk 07586 325260 Financial Director: Michel Sabatier finance@trf.org.uk 07801 187304 Governance Director: Stuart Bosworth stuart.b@trf.org.uk Heritage Director: Steve Neville steve.n@trf.org.uk 01474 742705 IT Director: Wil Linssen wil.l@trf.org.uk Membership Director: Carla McKenzie carla.m@trf.org.uk Northern Area Director: Doug Cartwright doug.c@trf.org.uk Technical Director: John Vannuffell john.v@trf.org.uk 07730 796215 Training Director: Chris Barrable chris.b@trf.org.uk Membership Secretary: Sharon Connor sharon@trf.org.uk 07958 316295 TRF Membership PO Box 4829 Shrewsbury SY1 9LP Press: pr@trf.org.uk IT: Adrian Allen web@trf.org.uk Equestrian & Events Liaison: Mark Holland & David Sewell equestrian@trf.org.uk 01989 566034 Creative Communications & Website Editor: Greg Villalobos greg@trf.org.uk

Editorial Welcome To The 2018 Winter Annual and TRF handbook. No, it wasn’t an idea conceived in a pub shortly before closing time – the idea was driven by membership Director carla mcKenzie, who feels strongly that the membership deserves something a bit special. So you’ve got a wall planner, okay? Seriously, 2018 has been really busy for the TRF what with rider training and the Youth Programme (which, incidentally, the motorcycle industry has picked up on as a way of achieving the holy Grail of getting young bums on seats), as well as dedicated first-aid courses and training for run leaders.

The TRF’s membership of the AcU is seen as controversial by a few but it does bring many benefits in terms of safety, event organisation (see Griffin Trial p78), additional insurance options and generally providing access to a huge amount of information and |experience not confined solely to sport, off-road or otherwise. All these aspects, and other areas like conservation, help give the TRF more clout when it comes to its core business of keeping green roads open for trail riding and other countryside pursuits. The TRF now represents a more credible opposition to cash-strapped local councils, who don’t want to end up in court over Rights of Way issues because of the subsequent costs involved.

The TRF position of influence is further enhanced by our presence at countryside events such as the Game Fair and countryfile live, see mario’s Shows Review p07, where we can explain our position to fellow countryside users and, more importantly, country landowners. Ultimately we would like the TRF membership to be regarded as an asset in the countryside, with its code of conduct, conservation awareness, first-aid training, solutions to Anti-Social Behaviour, skilled riders and consideration for other users (see handbook).

But hey, if you, like thousands of us, just want to get on your bike and trail ride, that’s absolutely fine too. For 2019 we have plans to feature more bike tests as Trail will have access to some private land and we’ll be asking members to come along and give their verdicts. on that subject, I bet you’re dying to know how the ten-year-old editorial ccm 230 (see, we don’t all run fancy Austrian-built tackle) has been holding up. Well, it’s been sat in the workshop looking at me for quite some time while I located a swingarm chain slipper that I could adapt, as ccm ones are unavailable (thanks to everyone for their suggestions and even donations of old slippers). This also meant that I missed my local Timber Woods lDT, held at canada heights this year. however, I wasn’t alone as the two-day monsoon prior to the event cut the entry somewhat. I’m still aiming to get 1000 miles on those michelin mediums and will report back.

I’m not mentioning the ‘B’ word but best ride the TeT while you can. Wherever you ride, have a great Festive Season and a cracking New Year. catch you in the Spring issue.

Rick Kemp rick@trf.org.uk Trail is published quarterly and is designed and produced by Rick Kemp Media Services, for the Trail Riders Fellowship.

The TRF is registered in England & Wales No.05884933 Registered Office, 218 The Strand, London WC2R 1AT. All advertising enquiries should be sent to rick@trf.org.uk The views expressed by individual members in Trail are not necessarily those of the Trail Riders Fellowship.

coNTeNTS

2018 ANNUAl Issue #6

The members’ magazine of the Trail Riders Fellowship 03 Director’s Report: A round up of what the Fellowship and some of its directors have been up to 06 Viewranger Progress: Project update – beginner routes 07 Spreading the Word: Public-facing activities and anticipations 16 Unsung Heroes 2018: It might be you 18 Photographic Competition: And the winner is…

20 Obituaries: Saying goodbye to Gwyn Thomas and Derek Vansittart 24 The Bigger Picture: Tiger wrestling at the Triumph Adventure experience 32 In The Beginning: Following in the tyre tracks of the first TRF ride out 38 First Aid in the Field: A doctor writes…

44 Vintage to Voltage: A fund-raising epic – not without its mishaps 56 Trailsmart: An exploration of the TRF and the advanced motorcycling agenda 62 Wider Access (on an e-Bike): Battery-assisted bicycles are restricted by range and not byways 68 TRF Enduro Club: If you like it fast and furious 70 TRF Events: mid-Wales meander, hafren hunt, Griffin lDT, hadrian Adventure Weekend and Dawn to Dusk

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Picture courtesy of Mid Wales TRF

Directors’ Report Chair and Marketing Director, Mario Costa-Sa reflects on the Fellowship’s achievements over the past 12 months PRoGReSS coNTINUeS IN the TRF and two large projects have progressed well. First is the Green Road map Project, the second being the TRF’s training programme. Both programmes are directly linked to the TRF’s Aims and objectives to conserve Green Roads

1. Green Road Maps

We haven’t found a single member who believes that the TRF should not ‘own’ the definitive map for sustainable motorcycle access on Green Roads. By having the national definitive map we will conserve Green Roads. In addition, we have yet to meet a member who, given time for thought, does not appreciate the need for a degree of public access to this information. our approach in making it easy to look up lanes has promoted some strong views in the TRF both for and against this project.

Sharing of Information There has never been any intention to conceal information inside the TRF. When lack of sharing happens, it is a poor reflection on an individual member rather than on the TRF as a whole.

In case it is not clear to all – the issue with downloaded gpx files is that they inevitably

Public Rights vs Common Law Nuisance We, as responsible Trail Riders, may have a right to use a lane. We don’t believe we have a right to initiate a common law public nuisance by not being mindful of the consequence of our actions. In addition, we have to be mindful of those, who over the years have fought to keep lanes open for responsible users that have signed up to the TRF’s code of conduct. It is understandable that they may have concerns

Annual 2018 Trail 03

The National Definitive Map

end up on the internet and in the hands of irresponsible users who can make residents lives a misery. Also these files cannot be withdrawn following complaints to authorities and the TRF. This inevitably shuts lanes down – something all responsible users seek to avoid.

We have looked at other TRF-supported projects such as the TeT for evidence of this where the project initiators, acting responsibly, had to name and shame certain trail riders for unnecessarily and unhelpfully downloading legacy versions of the TeT and posting old information on unsustainable routes on uncontrolled sharing sites.

J Bentman

From the last issue of Trail the project is progressing and shortly we will be opening the link to info on all the lanes in the Peak District, as well as herts and a few neighbouring counties. As more groups get on board we expect coverage to grow across 2019.

about the potentially irreversible effect of making information on the 6000 miles of green roads widely available to the less well intentioned or responsible.

Timing – some members have questioned why it has taken until now for the TRF to progress in this area. The reasons are many and various and include priorities, such as focusing on other areas of importance like holding off NeRc 2, 3, and 4 that have taken up the TRF’s resources precluding progress in this area.

If the TRF hadn’t done this, the area to map today would be much, much smaller.

The technical platforms that enable mapping are now much more accessible. The TRF has access to the same technology that the authorities use which allows us to manage information on a commercial-grade platform and not a DIY system. We can also access the definitive map information readily in electronic

Reviewing NERC The hIGhlIGhT oF 2018 has undoubtably been the success of the TRF’s work in Parliament. The effect is most visible in the outcome of the house of lords Select committee reviewing the 2006 Natural environment and Rural communities (NeRc) Act which published its report examining the progress and consequences of the Act. opponents of trail riding, GleAm (Green lanes environmental Action movement), has summarised this outcome: ‘The committee’s report was issued in march. It was a disappointment. The report accurately and fairly summarises the evidence that the committee read and heard, but it comes to the timid conclusion that what is needed is not the removal of unrecorded motor vehicular rights from UURs, but rather, using Traffic Regulation orders (TRos) “more widely and more flexibly to address some of the evident ongoing problems on green lanes”.

This is a success for trail riders. We believe that the direction of the TRF has been to support the lords’ view of the usefulness of TRos where the TRo is able to directly address the issue where evidence

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format which did not previously exist.

The effects on the TRF The effect on TRF membership of creating a Green Road map is far from clear. It may fall, it may rise. As marketing Director, I suspect that overall it may fall in the short term. For other strategic reasons, put forward by the TRF Technical Director, around the TRF’s influence which we are happy to discuss in person, I believe it is the way forward and we should progress with this project.

Getting the balance right on making definitive Green Road information readily available to the responsible users, whilst protecting green roads, residents and other users from misuse is a challenge we are now prepared to undertake.

After all, the information is all out there anyway.

We are merely consolidating it.

We have the right people, high-quality defini-

exists. In addition we have also proposed the use of Public Space Protection orders (PSPos) as a tool to address anti-social behaviour as a cheaper more effective solution instead of a TRo. Public access to (and conservation of) green roads featured, which saw evidence submitted by lARA, TRF, Kent county council (Kcc) and anti-access organisations – the latter using the review as a platform to further their ideology despite such claims being both selective, and largely unsupported by the Government’s own evidence.

TRF – represented by chairman mario costa-Sa and supported by Technical Director John Vannuffel – demonstrated motorcycle use of the green road network to be infrequent and of no greater impact than that of horse riding. TRF reaffirmed its support of the use of proportional Traffic Regulation orders to deal with irresponsible behaviour and public use during periods of unsustainability – such as when soft ground is waterlogged. lARA – represented by Alan Kind and representing four wheel vehicles – made the case that the Act had been a ‘blunt instrument’ which had harmed public access by creating a network inconsistent with historical and legal purpose. Alan joined TRF in advocating a new,

tive data and a commercial-grade platform in place. Finally, we also have the strategies and forethought required to be mindful of the possible effects of this bold strategic action.

Training enables us to act professionally in our trail riding. By acting professionally and responsibly we increase our influence and by increasing our influence we conserve Green Roads. 2019 will bring about a sea change in training in the TRF. We have been gifted a web-based training system by TRF member, Kurien Philip.

The TRF Training Director chris Barrable has been busy mapping the courses that the TRF could implement on this platform. Within the space of one hour chris identified 24 courses that cover the framework of legal, Social and environmental responsibility, Safety and

Riding Skills that make up Trail Riding.

Another important area is training on our Duty-of-care responsibilities at all levels; members, Run leaders, event organisers and TRF officers in addition to the AcU accreditation that many TRF members have taken up as AcU coaches and clerks of course.

There are, of course, still many areas where we need to train in person. Riding skills is one and first aid and scenario management is another. In this issue of Trail Dr Alcuin Wilkie, chair of central Bristol TRF shows how his 30 years of medical expertise has been enhanced by the courses the TRF is promoting in the interests the safety and wellbeing of all trail users.

For many TRF members every day is a school day, should you choose to participate in the many learning opportunities available across 2019.

flexible system for public routes to be temporarily closed during periods when unsustainable for public use.

Kent county council made the case that the Act fell short with its provision to prevent criminal misuse of the green road network, as bollards could not be used to deny access to routes located within National Parks.

By implication, this affirms the TRo process to be effective in regulating use by responsible members of the public, with disregard to legal orders (unsurprisingly) being the preserve of criminals. Kcc also drew attention to how the Act had concentrated motor vehicle use within a smaller network, citing it as an ‘unintended consequence’. TRF et al warned of this at the time of enactment, though were unsuccessful in convincing Parliament of the legacy of a diminished green-road network.

The cost of this defence was a few

thousand pounds. The non-financial volunteer contribution of time donated to the TRF by the Team involved, led by John Vannuffel, has been estimated at 400 man hours and would have cost us around £100k in professional fees if we had to do this externally without the gift of volunteers’ time. We should be thankful for the work done by the Association of Peak Trail Riders (APTR) particularly at the motoring Stakeholders Working Group (mSWG), and all the TRF members particularly from Devon and Wilts Groups in gathering evidence.

We are now preparing for a potential NeRc 6. After the original NeRc in 2006, we had NeRc 2 in the form of Stakeholders Working Group (SWG), NeRc 3 - Deregulation Bill, NeRc 4 – motoring Stakelholders Working Group (mSWG), NeRc 5 the house of lords enquiry.

As a follow-up, we the TRF membership, should simply keep doing more of what we are doing so well: safe, lawful, courteous, responsible trail riding and increasing the influence of the TRF at every opportunity and especially at a local and national level.

Summary of NeRc Review https://trail.trf.org.uk/2018/04/03/trf-welcome-nerc-act-review/

2. TRF Training

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Viewranger Progress eARlIeR ThIS YeAR TRF member David Blackhurst embarked on a project to get more TRF sustainable routes on to Viewranger. We caught up with him for an update.

The objective of the project is two fold, firstly to help new members to access beginner routes in their areas and secondly to share some routes with prospective members while simultaneously promoting the responsible use of legal green roads. In addition TRF members visiting different locations around the country would have access to simple trails without the need to be guided. each TRF Group was contacted my email and/or telephone to request a beginner route for their area. So far we have had routes from: east Yorkshire, herts/essex, hertfordshire, Norfolk, Northumbria and Peak District. members and non-members can access (and download) the routes from https://my.viewranger.com/user/details/4123259. The goal is to add at least

06 Trail Annual 2018

one beginner route for each area to promote the responsible use of legal green roads and attract new members too.

“I am hoping to chase up some more routes to upload in the coming weeks, I aim to have at least half the country covered by the end of the year and have the task complete (50 routes across the land) by spring of next year.”

David Blackhurst Routes@trf.org.uk

Spreading the Word marketing Director Mario Costa-Sa outlines the bigger picture 2018 AlReADY looKS like being a record for TRF events. Through the national Facebook page alone, we have planned 49 events countrywide with circulation to 135,000 people with 12,000 responses and 216 ticket responses. All of this is in addition to the majority of interaction with riders which is at local group level. currently showing over 60 events and growing, the updated 2019 list can be seen here http://www.trf.org.uk/events/ for 6 months in advance with the whole schedule (up to 12 months ) available https://www.facebook.com/TrailRidersFellowship/events. For those interested, a Facebook report on the key statistics for 2018 has been sent to all TRF Group officers.

Outdoor Countryside events We go to country shows to inform the wider countryside community about what we do. last year we attended countryfile live and Game Fair both looked after by Tom carnell.

These were great team events where we managed to both have fun and promote the TRF engaging the whole family.

Next year, at these wider countryside user shows, we expect to see a change of emphasis away from trail bike bikes and trail riding to sharing the trail with other users and Green Road conservation. To go with this there will be a new look and physical presence with more of a visitor experience – possibly building on our team and building on our existing volunteer catering skills to include the wider public.

Annual 2018 Trail 07

Outdoor Bike events last year we attended many major bike events such as the Weston Beach Race managed by martin Burman a Bristol based TRF member. of these, the ones involving riding seemed to attract most engagement.

What we will need in 2019 1. Event Trailer: A full-size TRF event Trailer is needed to act as a quick set up base at outdoor shows. We are actively looking at purchasing a used trailer if anyone knows of a good one for sale.

They were: The ABR (Adventure Bike Rider) Rally managed by martin Welch and an oxford and Wilts based TRF team.

Horizons HUBB managed Simon Gaze and a Hereford TRF Team Overland event managed by manuela Beis and oxford TRF For 2019 we aim to build on the organisation of rides with ride leader and safety training. We aim to increase recognition with certificates given to both run leaders and participants Also for 2019, we have been invited to manage the trail riding around a new 2000 rider ABR event at Ragley hall on 12-14 July.

All the major manufacturers of adventure bikes are now engaged in this event. We will need a tremendous number of TRF run leaders and a local project manager in this new location in Alcester.

2. Event Project Managers: Tom carnell will continue with countryfile live in oxford 1- 4 August. We are looking for a Project manager for our presence at the Game Fair hatfield. We may also have the opportunity to attend the countryfile live North show at castle howard 15 -19 August which also need a Project manager

Indoor Events major indoor events are supported by Rupert Trigg. Setting up a professional marketing stand to the quality we had across 2018 at motorcycle live typically would cost around £40k, Rupert has donated this to the TRF and transformed our presence at this and the london mcN show. These shows have been project managed by Robin hickin, WmTRF and Alcuin Wilkie, cBTRF. Robin managed a team of over 50 volunteers who worked on TRFs presence at motorcycle live at the Nec. Alcuin Wilkie will be working on project management of roughly 30 TRF members for the london motorcycle show in February.

Smaller, local events are of course looked after by the Groups. marketing material is being sent direct to each Group in a goody bag as soon as annual returns are done.

Graeme collins of loddon Vale TRF has produced pop up banners for use at local talks to IAm groups and other related organisations.

5. Equipment: We are looking for some equipment to help volunteers with sign ups at the shows and then for use at our Summer shows.

08 Trail Annual 2018

3. Riding Event Organisers and Run Leaders: At each of our riding events we will need competent Run leaders and Tail enders with appropriate first-aid qualifications.

4. TRF Volunteers: Thank you again to literally hundreds of TRF volunteers who came to sell responsible trail riding with the wider public. Those who can cook a meal outdoors at the show for the team are particularly welcome.

Laptop computers – for sign ups direct to the membership system Tablets – to demonstrate Viewranger and green road maps Old Smartphones – eg Samsung or iphone that we can set up on Viewranger Garmin Montana – incl. broken units for display purposes Paddock stands /Pit stands/ MX stand for a variety of bike applications.

If you can help with any of the above either by donating or selling to the TRF at a reduced price please let mario know at marketing@trf.org.uk.

Thank you again for your contributions in 2018 and we look forward to building on this programme across 2019.

Membership Matters Director Carla McKenzie reports on what has been a hugely active period for the membership The TRF memBeRShIP team would like to wish all our members and their families a very happy and peaceful New Year. christmas is always a good time to reflect on the past year and start planning for trail riding in 2019. In rounding up the news for the year, here are some of the headlines.

Our Numbers In November 2017 we were a fellowship of 4,864. In october 2018 our numbers had swelled to 5,251 – an 8% growth, year-on-year.

Since my last report in the summer we have seen a growth of over 5% in the following regions: South West Wales Somerset Tyne & Wear/Teesside cornwall Worcestershire Shropshire Dorset

Georgina Mason of Wiltshire TRF completed the MCC’s Edinburgh Trial on her Beta Alp 200

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A huge thank you to all our volunteer group officers who work tirelessly to make the fellowship a welcoming place to be.

I would like to give a special mention to Rob William, chair of South West Wales TRF. The group only formed six months ago but already has 30 members and is growing monthly, a terrific achievement. our female membership has grown by 21% this year, from 144 in 2017 to 175 in 2018. It has been great to see the ladies of the TRF out and about over the year enjoying trail riding and all that the Fellowship has to offer.

Bravo to Georgina mason of Wiltshire TRF who completed the mcc’s edinburgh Trial on her Beta Alp 200, a challenging event and a fantastic achievement.

The TRF youth movement has started to gain some traction and following in Josh costa Sa’s footsteps is 17-year-old Simon Austin who has joined the TRF riding a KTm 125 eXc. Simon’s dad is clifford Austin and both are members of east midlands TRF. A belated happy Birthday to Simon and a warm

welcome to the TRF. our public facing profile is all-important when it comes to attracting and retaining members. In August/September the technical and marketing team launched a crowdfunding appeal to help the TRF fight for the Stonehenge byway. Not only was money raised but the membership team saw a flurry of new members in the wake of the appeal.

Retention of members is important. It takes far more effort and cost to attract new members than keeping existing ones. The team have recently been looking at our churn rate to see how we are doing. In 2010, with just 3000 members, our churn rate was 43%. During 2018, with over 5000 members, our churn rate was 30%. one or two events disproportionately affected this figure which otherwise would have been closer to 22%.

Thank you to all the TRF Group officers and ordinary members who make the fellowship

a vibrant and enjoyable organisation to belong to; from organising newbie rides, sharing technical expertise to social evenings with some of the most experienced speakers from the world of adventure motorcycling, there is never a dull moment.

If you are a new member and would like to get more involved with the fellowship, your regional meetings are a great place to start.

The Fight Must Go On. The TRF was formed to protect our rights to ride our motorcycles responsibly on green lanes. The TRF technical teams and political lobbyists have done a fantastic job across 2018 to preserve our rights, but it all costs money and volunteer time. The long and the short of it is that the size of our bank accounts and the skill of our technical teams contribute substantially to success in court.

Annual 2018 Trail 11

Charity oUR memBeRS RAISe thousands of pounds for charities up and down the country. They provide support for the most vulnerable in our society.

Well done to mid-Wales TRF who have raised over £1,500 for the local mountain rescue who also co-ordinate the coastguard helicopter evacuation in the areas where members ride.

The Welsh members did a fabulous job promoting the good work of the TRF. As this issue goes to press the mid Wales TRF team will be running their Santa Ride to raise money for rural mental health charities.

Graham hutton and the members of the hereford TRF, whose hereford hospice Trail weekend raised £1,836 for St michael’s hospice. Brilliant efforts by all involved.

Please let members know if you are planning any fundraisers. The money raised at these events makes a real

difference to the communities in which we live and ride our bikes.

In the last edition I talked about our planned charity ride, Vintage to Voltage – london to Paris by1926 Triumph and 2017 electric Zero. As with all great adventures, there is a story to tell which lifetime TRF member and motorcycle journalist Paul Blezard has done in this issue. much of the last quarter was taken up with fitness training and ride training. Special thanks to the TRF members from Wiltshire, Surrey and Sussex who helped with support at shows, run leadership and fundraising.

The journey would not have been possible without you.

We raised over £2,000 for three charities: the DDmT Dougie Dalzel memorial Trust, Kent Surrey Sussex Air Ambulance and the Joan Seeley Pain Relief memorial Trust, founded by the famous motorcycle racer and frame-maker colin Seeley.

I was delighted to present colin with a cheque at the Ardingly classic Bike Show.

Now 83 years young, he has a great motorcycling heritage; his earliest races were on the dirt in 1957, riding a Triumph Trophy 500 twin

The Brecon Mountain Rescue Team was gifted £1500 earlier this year by the Mid Wales TRF

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www.cambrianway.com Tel: 01550 750274 email: info@cambrianway.com Carla and Paul Blez handing over funds to the DDMT Dougie Dalziel Memorial Trust Sharon Connor

in both scrambles and grass track races, and on tarmac in the Ramsgate sprint! our electric journey from london to Paris was recorded on video and is being incorporated into a documentary about the electric motorcycle scene by Irish film maker and electric vehicle enthusiast Andy marsh. once it is released, we will put it on the TRF social media platforms. Blez spoke eloquently about the work of the TRF in conserving our lanes.

As the year draws to a close, I am looking forward to seeing the continued growth of the membership across 2019 and riding more of the country’s trails with our regional groups.

Thank you to all our members for all you do to make the Fellowship what it is, and a special thank you to our hardworking diplomatic membership secretary Sharon connor.

Annual 2018 Trail 13

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Check out RUST’s other media feeds You can find RUST on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube

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New membership Card

The PhoToGRAPhIc comPeTITIoN has now concluded and the winner is Wiltshire’s own James higgs, (fanfare, applause etc.) who will receive a year’s membership and a ride shirt in appreciation of his efforts. The winning photo also appears on the 2019 membership card.

The photographs will be used to demonstrate our positive impact and relationship with other users of the lanes.

Christmas is coming!

Back on christmas gift ideas; this year we launched a new ride shirt. You can order yours at membership@trf.co.uk. £10.00 from every shirt sold is donated to the TRF fighting fund.

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TRF National Raffle Inside this edition of Trail is a book of raffle tickets. The tickets cost £2 each. The money will go towards the fight for the Amesbury 12 byway, also known as Stonehenge Drove, and any residual funds will be placed in the TRF fighting fund.

Buy some tickets and you could win: 1st prize – A brand new Kawasaki KlR 250 2nd prize – A one-day course at the Yamaha off-Road experience in Wales 3rd prize – A set of michelin medium tyres So please rev it for our first national raffle. The tickets make terrific christmas presents for the trail rider who has everything.

A huge thank you to the vintage motorcycle club The Vmcc who have kindly agreed to share their administrative expertise and manage our raffle payments.

Annual 2018 Trail 15

Unsung Heroes 2018 Thank you to the Group officers and other members who have nominated heroes this quarter. And to all the Unsung heroes who were nominated in 2018 Tom Carnell – National TRF over the past two years, Tom has planned, managed and delivered the TRF stand at countryfile live and the Game Fair. Tom, your contribution has been outstanding.

Hywel Thomas – Mid-Wales TRF hywel has worked hard to develop the mid-Wales TRF group; the numbers have grown substantially, from 3 to 4 members attending meetings to 27 plus. hywel, a massive thank you for all you do.

Chris Hurworth – Loddon Vale chris has made an outstanding contribution to the group’s Rights of Road work and has also made valuable contributions at a national level. he continues to work hard as a member of the loddon Vale committee and is greatly appreciated by our members. chris fully deserves recognition as an unsung hero of the TRF.

the Teesside & North Yorks TRF group. leo is simply our ‘go to’ guy.

Marianne Walford, Mid-Wales TRF: marianne Walford has made an outstanding contribution to trail riding and the TRF for many years. her work in promoting considerate riding of the trails as well as substantial rights of road work in Wales is legendary and greatly appreciated. marianne is a brilliant ambassador for the TRF and also for motorcycling in general.

I was delighted to be able to present Keith Johnston and Steve and Becky Burbridge from the Wiltshire Group, and Technical Director John Vannuffel with their awards.

Peter Wildsmith, Southern TRF This award is in recognition of your extraordinary contribution to the TRF. As a founder member of the Southern Group in 1975, you became a group officer, holding the

Dick Brew, Teesside & North Yorks: Dick was nominated because of his dedication and commitment to the TRF. he is committed to our aims of conservation and safety and successfully led the charge on the reopening of Seggimore lane and organised work parties for lane repairs. Dick is the driving force behind the moors event and is key to our relentless approach to training and safety.

Leo Crone, Teesside & North Yorks: leo is known to everybody in the TRF, highways, National Parks and the Police! leo is our RoR guru and freely advises members where to ride. he is currently our local RoR committee member but has held and undertaken just about all of the roles within

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Steve and Becky Burbridge receiving their Unsung Heroes award back in the summer

posts of secretary, chairman and rights of road for over 25 years.

The work done by you and other founders of the TRF sets an example to us all. on behalf of the members who ride the trails you helped to keep open, a massive thank you.

Rupert Trigg, Norfolk TRF For creating, in his own time and at his own expense, a great TRF stand for the 2018 excel london motorcycle Show.

Mike Mant, Bristol TRF A long-standing member of the Bristol TRF, mike has consistently arranged and organised trips for all members over the years, keeping the club vibrant and diverse in its operation. Bristol has become an exciting club to be a member of and it has grown with the times.

Peter Wildsmith

Trevor Brooking, Bristol TRF Trevor has consistently given discount to all TRF members, ever since he started his classic enduro business. In addition, he has always provided advice and helped members out in their times of need. Trevor has also been the driving force behind the Bristol TRF web page and forum. he consistently attracts and enrols new members through the ‘potential new members’ section.

Ian Abram, Bristol TRF For many years Ian has arranged and organised the Bristol TRF ‘Santa cruz’ (Santas on bikes) where money has been raised to support the RDA (Riders for the Disabled Association). This is a very popular event, not only with the riders but also with local people, who are happy and willing to donate. This year’s ‘Santa cruz’ raised £250 for RDA.

Any member can nominate an unsung hero, just send an email to carla.m@trf.org.uk

Photographic Competition The 2018 comPeTITIoN for budding and veteran lens-smiths was judged by award-winning photographer and TRF member Philip lee harvey. Philip selected a submission by James higgs from Wiltshire TRF as the winner and had this to say this to say regarding his choice.

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“Its a great example of a clear and simple message about sharing the lanes. I like that fact that its from one of the riders point of view. It has a strong composition and a striking yet minimal colour palette.�

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Gwyn Thomas: a Life Along the Ancient Highways An appreciation by Dave Giles & Alan Kind

DAVE: The decade of the 1980s were good years for Trail riding with the Bristol group as steadily, year on year, we expanded our knowledge of the ‘forgotten lanes’. They had always been there of course; it was just that with disuse and neglect ‘mother nature’ had reclaimed them for herself; or alternatively the farmer had ploughed them out.

We looked for them on O.S. maps; do you remember the red T depiction for RUPPs (roads used as public paths)? And we looked for them as we went about our everyday lives and who better to do that than Gwyn as he went about his job as the South West Fleet rep for the Goodyear Tyre company.

Having found them, we then went about establishing their status and, if appropriate, reclaiming them. Gwyn led the way when he spotted a completely over grown lane within the boundary of his own Mendip village of Priddy. ‘Dark Lane’ was its name: it was on the O.S. map and recorded as a RUPP on the Definitive Map in the Taunton records office.

Armed with this information in the autumn of 1983 Gwyn spent five days clearing it. But he

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was beaten to a ‘first’ in using the re-claimed lane by a fox, pursued in turn by the local hunt, the last of whom called out: ‘Fine Job – keep up the Good Work’. The irony of which was not lost on Gwyn who described himself as becoming something of a pariah for some within the village. As we were all to learn with our lane clearing not everyone appreciated the reintroduction of a public amenity for the benefit of all.

However, after the introduction of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, our laissez-faire approach of riding local lanes based on local knowledge no longer sufficed: we needed to be able to demonstrate historical vehicular rights and, for a greater insight into rights of way work, we attended early Byways and Bridleways Seminars. They had the legal knowledge to partner our willingness to act in the countryside.

I recall one such seminar at Exeter where at the break Gwyn collected his coffee and then headed purposefully in to the centre of a cadre of Ramblers with the words ‘I’m from the TRF and I have come to talk with the

enemy’: they simply didn’t know how to respond: with his clean fingernails, guardsman’s stature, and confident manner, he was so obviously their social equal.

Gwyn believed the TRF should not hide its light under a bushel, and to that end, he made and wore a striking TRF tabard when he rode, telling the rest of us that we ought to smarten up our act. He even tried to civilise us further by declaring at the end of a pub lunch break ‘I think I’ll just have a coffee, cognac and perhaps a cigar’. And he did.

It became part of the Big Man’s image.

With his professional marketing and sales background he made a natural TRF PR Officer and he represented us well. As underdogs the members of the TRF (and the nascent Byways and Bridleways Trust) needed someone able to stand up for them.

ALAN: Gwyn’s busy time with the Trail Riders Fellowship, and the local equestrians and cyclists, ran mainly from the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000.

The 1981 Act required archive research, the making of ‘modification order applications’, and seemingly endless engagement with national and local government; for Gwyn that was Somerset County Council.

Gwyn saw the bigger picture, and for a while Somerset was one of the busiest, most proactive, areas in Rights-of-Way work, and that energy continues to this day.

Back then, we all thought that the result of all our hard work would be a significant, valuable and prompt increase to the number of recorded bridleways and byways, but local government inertia was like a sea anchor, and I know that later on Gwyn sometimes felt let down by the system.

There were some standout moments too, and it is often an aspect of an otherwise run-of-the-mill case that resonates for years afterwards. Gwyn and colleagues were for a while catching the ricochets from Somerset County Council’s attempts to stop New-Age Travellers occupying minor roads as unofficial campsites. The council proposed to close permanently part of the old Shepton Mallet road to keep the NATs out. The TRF

intervened and got a promise that when the NATs problem went away, the road would be reopened. As far as I remember, this did happen, and the idea of traffic management tailored to deal with a problem, with as little collateral damage as possible, has developed widely in the quarter-century since.

Gwyn and friends pushed hard to get Dursdon Drove (his local road, really) properly recorded as a byway in the face of physical threats and some extreme nastiness. Similarly, Gwyn and friends refused to back down from further threats and obstruction on a road at Maperton (about 20 miles from Priddy, towards the southeast), and that case in the end went through the High Court and Court of Appeal, and is frequently referenced today.

Gwyn was an active outdoor man: a genuine cannon ball, personally salvaged from a channel ship-wreck sits on the gatepost to his Mendip cottage as testimony to this. Gwyn was not just a trail rider: he had a touring motorcycle, which he sometimes took to Spain on the ferry, and was an early mountain biker. It is hard now to think that just 30 years ago the mountain bike was still in its infancy, and some councils and national parks were looking to ban them as inappropriate in the countryside. Gwyn had been a good track racing and time-trial cyclist in his youth, and he retained a lot of his power and fitness: for a man of his size he could hammer along the Ridgeway, or up the hills of the North Pennines, with the best of them. And he could ride a horse. In later years he went back to cycling and took up gliding. He never sat still for long.

About the man: he was a thoroughly decent bloke; regarded with affection and respect. A big man, he had presence: he was direct, forceful, suave and persuasive; but above all resilient. Dave had many a debate in car journeys together (Gwyn’s faithful Ford Sierra), often from diametrically opposing viewpoints, but they never fell out.

But he did have strong views often trenchantly expressed. Good company, we enjoyed being with him and we are saddened by his passing.

Gwyn Thomas (06/12/34 - 30/09/18)

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In memory of Derek “Muddeevee” Vansittart “Unsung hero” and driving force of the SL&S Group DEREk WAS PASSIONATE about the TRF. He was one of the most active members of the South London and Surrey Group, putting huge amounts of energy into all its members and the wider TRF. The list of what he did for us is endless. He got involved in Rights of Road such as reporting back to the Group on developments in Parliament. Derek was a regular run leader and helped members new and old get out on the trails. On more than one occasion Derek organised trips for large groups of members at the Sweetlamb Complex in Wales for training.

Derek will be remembered for his business Simply Trail, going out of his way to get members’ bikes sorted with new tyres. Upon receiving their bills, his customers would be left puzzling as to how Derek was making any money out of the enterprise. Derek wore his TRF riding shirt with pride and led efforts to get everyone else in the group sporting one too. However he will perhaps be best remembered for his successful Longest Day event where Derek plotted not one but two route books for members to follow and which was followed by barbeque and campfire at a fellow member’s home.

The Group look forward to rerunning this, this coming summer.

It was with some pride I saw Derek receive his unsung TRF hero award at the 2017 AGM. In my nomination I noted, ‘the list of Derek’s contributions goes on and on. Derek’s events have provided members of all abilities with a massive range of opportunities to get together and to get out there exploring trails the length and breadth of the Uk. Derek is the essence of what our Fellowship is all about’.

In the words of his widow Laura, Derek would have been chuffed at his send off. A motorcycle hearse was hired and some 50 or 60 bikers accompanied Derek as he led us on his final run. With the impatient traffic held in

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its place by his outriders, his motorcade was a sight to behold as it progressed up the A3 dual carriageway. The ceremony to celebrate Derek’s life was standing room only and we all learned so much more about what a very special man he was.

Parting note – in Derek’s own words: “now bugger off – have a drink for me!”.

Steven Taylor, South London & Surrey Group Chairman, chairman@surreytrf.org.uk Tributes to Derek can be read and left on the South London and Surrey TRF Forum in the Off Topic / General Discussion section (https://forum.surreytrf.org.uk)

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TRF Heritage Director Steve Neville gets to grips with the big stuff at the Triumph Adventure Experience in Wales – but is there any point?

I’vE oFTEN WoNDERED what it would be like to ride a large-capacity adventure motorcycle, never having had the opportunity to try one out. Adventure motorcycles often seem to be a contradiction in terms being an uncomfortable cross between a tourer and

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enduro bike with a bit of sports bike thrown in. Their “off-road” capabilities are arguably severely compromised by their sheer bulk and power, are they not? Certainly, true for the average trail rider rather than Paris-Dakar hero. Why bother when you could simply

The Bigger Picture

trailer your dirt bike behind your car or use a van, to get wherever you wanted to go and avoid those boring motorway or main road miles? It also allows space for spare kit and it’s always dry inside! Am I missing the point and is this blasphemy to the hardened adventure biker?

This changed at the Adventure Bike Rider Magazine (ABR) weekend near Banbury in July 2018. Ducati were there offering one hour training sessions off road on the

enormous (and expensive) MultiStrada Enduro. This was a very basic introduction but it gave one an opportunity to ride this huge machine around a field, in and out of cones and across some artificial obstacles.

Nice suspension and electronic controls as well. However, the bike is intimidating for the inexperienced and it goes like a sports bike on stilts.

Next to the TRF stand was the Triumph motorcycle display with their “Adventure Bike” range. They were offering test road rides on an assortment from the Scrambler to the Triumph Tiger adventure bikes. There seem to be quite an assortment of models to choose from. Having spoken to the people running the stand it appeared that the dirt-orientated 800 XC models fitted my needs the best. The 1200 cc Tigers on offer seemed too huge for the sort of riding I would ever do.

Closer inspection showed that the 800XC had a 21-inch front wheel with White Power suspension. There are also six programmable riding modes, which allowed different degrees of traction control and permitted the anti-lock brakes to be partially or fully deactivated at one or both ends. This is contrasted with the 800 XR versions, which were more road orientated having a 19-inch front wheel and Showa suspension offering less travel. So far so good.

The test route was guided over about 20 miles of tarmac back roads with a smattering of faster A roads. The Triumph was surpris-

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26 Trail Annual 2018

ingly good. It had a nice comfy riding position, good saddle and smoothed out potholes commendably well. There was plenty of power throughout the rev range with no glitches. This 2018 model had had several improvements since 2015 which itself was a significant improvement over the original Triumph Tiger triple, which first came out in 2010. However, I was unaware of all of this, never having ridden a Triumph Tiger of any sort.

The bike I had taken for the ABR weekend was my electric Zero DS. I used this to guide other adventure bike riders on green-road ex-

peditions in the area. Many adventure bike riders had never seen a green road, let alone ridden on one. The conditions were very dry although some of the byways I chose were very rutted, which gave the less-experienced riders some problems. I was impressed with the Zero, which handled the more gentle green lanes with no problems. It would’ve been a different story for everybody, including me, had it been wet. The Zero is equipped with Pirelli MT60s, which are hopeless in slippery conditions. Something I’ve now rectified by fitting mainly dirt trail orientated Mitas E-09 tyres. People were

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fascinated by it since absolutely everything else was powered by petrol (okay, so I had to recharge it from the diesel generator) – surprisingly quick, and was virtually silent! once home I thought about my adventure bike experiences. Should I trade in my trusty Kawasaki ZX9R? As a sports bike the riding position is not as radical as the latest litre

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British Superbike (BSB) replicas, but you still have to be riding at over 50 mph for it to be comfortable. Whilst it handles bumpy back roads fairly well, it is nowhere near as good as the Tiger 800 XC or even the XR were.

But even after all the years of owning it I still ďŹ nd it enthrallingly ballistic.

Before I committed myself I looked up the

details about the Triumph Adventure Experience in South Wales. They offered beginner off-road experiences but I decided on the two-day experience. It is led by Nick Plumb, an ex-Paris-Dakar rider, plus half a dozen other instructors all of whom have considerable dirt bike experience – and just as importantly one or two are ex-teachers.

Just because someone is an expert does not mean they are necessarily any good at teaching others. For myself, I’ve been riding dirt bikes on green roads for decades; but not 200+ kg of adventure bike! The purpose was to find out how different they are and whether I could cope with a heavy bike in the dirt. More importantly would find it an enjoyable experience?

I signed up for the two-day experience at Tier 1 for the princely sum of £499. The centre Triumph has set up at Ystradgynlais just south of the Brecon Beacons is on an industrial estate, professional looking and brand new. The introductions were made to explain about the aims of the course, the bikes, where we’d be riding and of course the health and safety briefing. There were about a dozen of us on the course plus about 4 or 5 instructors. Not only that, but Sarah, the centre administrator followed us on both days with her Canon DSLR and telephoto to take pictures. off-road riding gear other than a helmet is supplied free of charge, although the web site says there is a hire fee.

The actual riding was done in the periphery of a coal quarry so it was not aesthetically pleasing but it did provide a selection of terrain types. I’d selected the Tiger 800 and the models we all had were the top of the range versions, the 800 being the XCA. A couple of the riders and most of the instructors chose the 1200. various set piece exercises were laid out to enable us to understand the characteristics of the bikes.

The first was weaving in and out of cones, then tight turns, up steep climbs, through woods etc. As the day progressed I became aware of just how good the White Power suspension on the Tiger 800 is but also that it is a big machine. virtually all off-road riding on an Adventure bike is done standing up which differs from what I’ve learnt and been taught riding enduro bikes. on my WR450 I tend to transfer between sitting and standing depending on what manoeuvre I’m performing. The huge tank on an adventure bike precludes some of the “body English” one performs on a smaller bike. Nevertheless I became more and more confident as the day passed. I tried one of

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the 1200 Tigers but actually found the huge 260 kg bulk intimidating and somewhat unnecessary. It seemed silly to have a dirt bike that was 70 kg heavier than my ZX9 sports bike. on the Friday night we all went out to dinner at a local pub and talked “Adventure Biking”. The second day was more of the same except that this being Wales, it rained that fine drizzly penetrating rain. This added an extra dimension to the riding experience.

There were more set pieces to try plus a selection of trails through the woods.

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It was interesting to see how different riders coped especially as most of them had had little or no off-road experience. Rather than having any innate skill I depended on decades of experience in the dirt to keep upright.

Picking up a fallen adventure bike was also a set piece exercise and we (re)learnt two techniques for doing this. I think some of the riders found it difficult and it shows the wide range of skill levels there are in off-road motorcycling. At the end of it I think everybody had learned something useful.

I’d recommend experienced TRF members to do the Tier 2 or even Tier 3 course straight off. If you can handle a 450 in a variety of terrain, transfer of skills to a bigger adventure bike is straightforward with the caveat of listening to the instructors and being respectful of the power but mostly the weight of these big adventure bikes.

Is it worth £499? Well, yes, if it allows you to make an informed decision or add a new and useful skill.

Paradoxically, it didn’t make me want to go and buy a Triumph 800 XC (at £12K for a new one or £8K for something 3 years old). Not that they are bad motorcycles, but I decided it depends on what sort of motorcycling one does. If I was to go motorcycle touring for a few weeks and my route took in some green roads and gravel roads I think I’d choose the Tiger.

However, depending on the mix of riding, there is an argument that something like the KTM 690, Husky 710, BMW 800 might be a better bet. They’re not so good on the tarmac, but are superior on green roads.

Personally, this philosophy extends to bikes like the WR450 and similar 450/500 cc KTMs, Hondas and others, if they are combined with a car and trailer or a van. This depends on doing circular routes one area at a time and then moving on; but one can carry spares and importantly dry kit. It all depends on your personal style of motorcycle adventure – which was where I started.

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In the Beginning The First TRF ride out and meeting - Mario Costa-Sa, TRF Chair Over £50K’s worth of The TRF’S FiRST meeting occurred at the Egli Vincent Valiant Trooper in Aldbury on 18 January 1970. This is a story about the major part played by the ACU and the local Berkhamsted Motorcycle and Car Club (BMC&C) had in the TRF’s inception.

The idea for a TRF had been around for some time before January 1970, the chief exponents being journalists Ralph Venables and colleague John ebbrell. it is believed they had already been turned down by the British Motorcycle Federation (BMF) so they enlisted the help of Berkhamsted club secretary ernie Wrigley and the Berkhamsted club and the South Midland centre ACU would be cheap at £50,000. Sections of “right of way” committee. this 3000-year-old icknield Way had fallen A “Green Roads Run” with a difference was into disuse and had been abandoned by organised by the Berkhamsted club. it would ramblers and horse riders. Motorcyclists rode be unusual because of what was planned to the Way, legally, to promote the desire to see follow. A brand new national club would hold the full length of the icknield Way properly recorded as a byway by the local authorities. its first meeting. The tentative name was the it was decided in pre-NeRC days, that the Trail Riders Fellowship. run would open up the route and help The Green Roads Run was under the leadupgrade a section of the Upper icknield Way, ership of Dick and Jean Sutton of the West which had changed from being recorded as Middlesex Amateur Motorcycle Club. The run a RUPP (Road Used as a Public Path) to a took in the icknield Way for approximately 17 miles. They riders formed four groups on a bridleway (No Vehicles Allowed) and back wide range of machines ranging from a 50cc to a RUPP at the change of county borders. italian cross-country machine to a 1000cc The day began with the “Green Roads Run” egli Vincent. incidentally, this bike today ride out, which was limited to a maximum of

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24 riders and it concluded at the Valiant Trooper. The riders’ ages were quite widely spread with the youngest at 16 and the eldest, George Abbay, a 67-year-old who had travelled from Shipley in Yorkshire to ride in the event. Weather conditions were not good.

A 1000cc Vincent, drizzle and a muddy green lane in January must have been challenging.

At the end of the day, at 5.00pm, the inaugural meeting of the then proposed “Trail Riders Fellowship” took place and amazingly, another 50 people showed up to attend the inaugural TRF meeting. BMC&C’s kindly made its clubroom available for this meeting for the thirty who took part in the run and at least a further 40 who were present by 5.15pm when proceedings began.

The three original sponsors, Messrs. John ebbrell, Ralph Venables and ernie Wrigley, provided a written summary of the general idea behind the Fellowship.

The following persons were elected to serve the Fellowship and to guide it through its formative period.

President: George Abbey Director: ernie Wrigley Secretary: Colin Salmon Treasurer: Mike Brown editor: John ebbrell

Affiliation to the BMF was to be sought.

After the meeting about 60 riders enrolled as founder members. This meeting was chaired

by BMC&C’s chair at that time Steve hoole.

The meeting must have been a huge success because 56 riders paid their subscription and became the first members of the TRF. Members of the BMC&C were very much into “green laning” in the early 1970s, as well as off-road sports in general. Throughout the 1970s “green roading” was always mentioned in the BMC&CC club minutes and had a regular agenda spot. The 1970 agenda titled “A General idea” included a proposal of guidelines on how the new fellowship should be operated and was signed by John ebbrell, Ralph Venables and ernie Wrigley.

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These were: 1) That membership is open to any person of goodwill.

2) That the TRF wishes to work in harmony with existing motorcycle organisations and willingly collaborate with local authority, government agency or amenity society.

3) That it extends the hand of friendship to all

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other users of the countryside in the interests of our common heritage.

4) That it would organise venture runs.

These may range from casual friend-callingon-friend to carefully planned large scale get-togethers.

5) That it would have have as few awkward rules as possible.

There were other proposals for the aims of the newly formed TRF and not all have been quoted.

Over the years, the TRF has fought to protect our interests in the countryside and has succeeded many times in its objectives to maintain our legal right in riding green roads.

The TRF still keeps true to promoting the aims and desires of the inaugural meeting: in January 1970 issue of the Berkhamstead Gazette there is a report about the proposed meeting of the TRF and the statement: “This Could Be The Start Of Something Big”.

Rediscovering the First Rideout inspired by a chance conversation with Alan Kind on Friday 18 January 2013 about the start of the TRF, Michel Sabatier, the TRF’s Finance Director, and myself braved the snow and went for an evening drink in the Valiant Trooper. On the following Sunday we followed as much of the icknield Way as we legally could around the Ashridge area and leading toward Princes Risborough.

Being wimps and new to trailriding and as it was snowing at the time, we decided to take a 1970 Land Rover to help with the navigation. Now, 50 years later, this route features regularly as part of our Dunstable Downs Green Road Ride and you too are welcome to come and enjoy the same pioneering run that the TRF members rode many years previously.

Thanks to: BMC&C – Mike Dunks, Peter Weight and Steve hoole who supplied the majority of thetext that Mike Dunks edited for the TRF. TRF – Robin hickin, Dave Tilbury, John Gardner and David Giles for their individual contributions but especially to Alan Kind for being the initiating spark that started the trail of discovery.

Ralph Venables article: dates & publication unknown The Berkhamsted Gazette (writer unknown), 23 January 1970 Refrs: “Unity”, the journal of the British Motorcycle Federation, Dec 1969-Jan 1970, see Letter John ebbrell

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First Aid in the Field Central Bristol TRF’s Dr Alcuin Wilkie experiences a rather different first-aid course IMAGIne yoU ARe the Run Leader, out with a group of eight riders in the Welsh hills miles from anywhere. you have allowed a few faster riders to go on ahead at their own pace as you know it is a pretty straightforward trail. you come round the corner and two bikes are lying on the ground; one rider is lying face down with his right arm at a very strange angle and the other rider appears to be wandering off down the hillside clutching his helmet. What do you do next?

This was exactly the kind of situation we were trained to respond to at the recent outdoor First Aid Course for trail/off-road motorcyclists, delivered by M-Power Activity Services at Haggs Bank Bunkhouse, near Alston on the Cumbria/northumberland border.

Why This Sudden Fascination with First Aid? Many people in employment now have some kind of first-aid training, which is part of statutory or mandatory training and is often viewed as just another tick box. The reality is that when an incident happens, we all have a duty of care to limit the consequences of any injury. In our case, this means effective first aid on the trail.

Having worked for over 30 years as a doctor, people look to me as an expert in this

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area. The truth is that 29 of these 30 years were spent in psychiatry, so my emergency medicine was very rusty. Back in June one of our club members, Dean Allen, needed to get first-aid training for his ACU Provisional Coach qualification and I asked the question of TRF Trail’s Facebook group: “Where’s the best place to get first-aid training?” As with any other similar question, there were a variety of responses, from informed people and the usual suspects, before TRF member John-Paul Dixon of M-Power popped up and told me about a course that he runs. Mario Costa-Sa replied, thanking John-Paul for providing first aid at the Wern Ddu Quarry AGM fun day. Shortly after this I was on the phone to John-Paul.

Background to the Course My years as a psychiatrist may not have taught me much about first aid but they did teach me how to get people to tell me things.

John-Paul Dixon and his partner Glenn Rees, who deliver the course, have a number of things in common other than trail riding.

Both work with disadvantaged groups providing outdoor adventure training – John-Paul with those with disabilities and Glenn with vulnerable and hard-to-reach young people. (I was halfway through the course before I realised that M-Power was

Annual 2018 Trail 39

not pronounced like the pop group M People, nor was it the name of an electricity company, but was in fact all to do with empowerment!)

Both John-Paul and Glenn have personal experience of unnecessary and preventable death in fit people. John-Paul told me that his motivation to move into providing first-aid training in the field was the death of a friend, who was on an organised adventure bike trip abroad and died from a heart attack brought on by heat exhaustion. There is now a whole industry surrounding organised adventure, which depends on elements of danger and the unknown. Unfortunately, when the danger and the unknown result in injury, the leaders and organisers sometimes fail badly to prevent deterioration and death. It was very clear at the course that both John-Paul and Glenn are passionate about training that will improve this situation. Rather like my work, you never really know when you have saved a life – only when you have lost one.

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Anyway, the decision was made – Dean Allen and I would go on the next two-and-a-half day course.

Getting There Getting from Bristol to Alston is not much fun when it is pouring with rain and the trip stretches from five-and-a-half hours to close on eight hours as Google re-routes you several times, sending you along most of the featureless A1M. Dean was not impressed, particularly as he had planned to arrive in daylight: “Why are we going all this way? We could have had the effing course in Weston!”

My attempts to reason with him were in vain.

We eventually arrived at a long, stone, twostorey building with all the windows lit up in an inviting way. By the time I had crossed the road from the car park I was soaking wet and despite the lit windows there was no one to be seen. After some searching I found a door at the side, which led to the boot room – there hanging on a hook was an extra large,

were not sure of some medical detail, they admitted it but explained that what was important was knowing how to respond when faced with a particular situation.

Both instructors were confident in their knowledge, ability and experience, which made for an enjoyable learning environment.

Within half an hour of arriving at the course we were back out in the rain to learn about hypothermia, exposure and the benefits of carrying an emergency shelter when out on the trail. What a pleasure it was to get out of the pouring rain and huddle inside what is effectively a large nylon bag with an elasticated bottom and room for five people standing or squatting. This illustrates two of the three main principles I took away from the course: the need for simple practical kit and the usefulness of real-life scenarios.

tatty, red waterproof coat with a TRF sticker.

“Ah, so Mario is here too,” I realised. We were soon united with the rest of the attendees, ensconced in the conservatory.

The Course I imagine first-aid instructors are not that keen on having a doctor in their class. I was apprehensive myself. Would there be some medical inaccuracy that I would feel the need to correct, or would I feel the embarrassment of having to let it pass? The last time I had been on a similar course was learning to be a swimming pool life guard at Crystal Palace Leisure Centre (after my wife nearly drowned on holiday). The instructor was talking about the brain and explained that it had two hemispheres, a north and a south – I decided not to interrupt in order to let the class know it was in fact left and right! There were no such faux pas here. everything taught was based on experience and practice – it was a very hands-on course – and if the instructors

Practical Kit We had been instructed to bring with us the first-aid kit we carry on the trail – which meant I brought nothing and Dean came with his one-man shelter, which he has been going on about since joining the TRF. I was worried my lack of preparation would be pointed out, which got me thinking that all you really need is some tape as most other stuff can be improvised – I was partially right.

After returning to the warmth of the classroom/conservatory from our exposure scenario, we were presented with our ‘free’ first-aid kit. To my pleasant surprise, rather than a green plastic box with a white cross on it, stuffed with various dressings and a pair of cheap scissors, we were given a large roll of orange gaffer tape and a man-sized super tough orange polythene bag. over the rest of the weekend we would use the gaffer tape to immobilise or support broken limbs, to staunch blood flow and to attach dressings, and the large polythene bag would be used as a makeshift stretcher.

Real-life Scenarios We had also been instructed to bring our motorbikes and riding gear with us. This meant that training, which had started in the classroom, could be taken out on the trail.

We were divided into two big groups with a

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trainer in each group. The trainer would give a scenario to one rider, who would then ride ahead and play out the scenario. The rest of the group would catch up and manage the incident with the designated Run Leader taking charge. The scenarios not only included a variety of incidents but also involved incidents happening to various personalities. An injured shoulder with lots of pain, being knocked unconscious, a serious leg injury, a suspected broken leg, collapse with sudden onset of chest pain were just some of the scenarios. The human responses varied from the rider who insisted on an ambulance being called and would not move when we offered to carry him out, to the rider who in-

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sisted on getting back on her bike after being knocked unconscious – both required a degree of persuasion.

Don’t Panic, Mr Mainwaring!

Incident management and extraction was the third principle I took away from the course.

When our group had a rider down with a broken clavicle in May, our first response was to get him to the nearest tarmac road and call 999 – our main headache was establishing our location accurately. Had we had the benefit of this first-aid course, we would have known about using a decision flow chart that can be used in Snowdonia or the Sahara. Is it safe to move the casualty? Where is the

nearest tarmac road? Where is the nearest accident and emergency department? Can we call a taxi, commandeer a car, or return to base and get a van? In our case we could have sent one of the team back to base to collect a van, return and pick up the casualty, and then take him to the nearest hospital, while the rest of the group carried on. This would have taken less time than waiting for the ambulance and would have saved unnecessary use of the emergency services.

Conversely, if the casualty can’t be moved, decisions need to be made about who stays with them and who carries on. Being able to make an accurate assessment of the casualty and convey this to emergency services may make all the difference as to how they prioritise your incident.

Putting it all into Practice and Consolidating the Learning on the Sunday afternoon, after completing our written and practical assessments, we set off for home. The weather had cleared and as we descended from the Pennines, heading towards the M6, we were rewarded with the most magnificent view of a group of hills on the horizon. It almost made up for the unpleasantness of the outward journey. “What’s that?” asked Dean. “I don’t know, I think it must be the Lake District,” I replied. The cloud had lifted, and we could see clearly for miles.

Time will tell whether the course has a similar transforming quality. Will it bring about permanent change in how we ride and how we respond to incidents? What will we remember in a year’s time? Was it worth the time, effort and money? I think so. I’ll let Mario have the last word because he’s used to that. “you need to point out the USPs, Alcuin.” “What’s a USP, Mario?” “Unique Selling Point,” he replied. As usual, I feel a fool! So here they are: 1 Basic and practical first-aid kit (gaffer tape and shelter); 2 Being able to communicate your remote location outside of postcodes; 3 Dealing with longer response times; 4 Casualty stabilisation in remote areas and adverse environments; 5 extrication of the casualty to a point of recovery; 6 Leadership in an emergency – the situational appropriateness of various leadership styles.

Annual 2018 Trail 43

Come to where the action is...

Come to Catalonia!

On trails...

On tarmac...

Our rural, Our rural, off-grid of f-g rid F Finca inca is is the the p perfect erfect b ase ffrom rom w hich to to e xplore tthis his base which explore b eautif ul area area of of Spain Spain ior ior ttrails rails or or beautiful rroads, oads, ffrom rom the the m ountains tto o the the sea. sea. mountains R ide d own o ly o ver a nd explore explore the t he Ride down orr ffly over and rroads oads a nd trails trails u sing o ur new ne w H on d a and using our Honda C RF250L ttrail rail b ikes.

CRF250L bikes.

www.catalanadventure.co.uk w ww.catala nadventure .co.uk

Vintage to Voltage Vintage Old Geezer Paul Blezard and Membership Director Carla McKenzie trail-ride a pair of volt-powered Zeroes to Paris and back, aided and abetted by a small team of TRF stalwarts.

Blez takes up the tale …

ReGulaR ReaDeRs OF Trail will know that our Membership Director, Carla McKenzie, has a penchant for electric motorcycles. The idea for ‘Vintage to Voltage’ was born during an evening Carla spent with classic bike enthusiast Julie Diplock and their respective partners, both of whom have classic bikes of their own. It would be a triple challenge: to ride a new american electric bike and an old British one from london to Paris, but to take in a lot of trails and byways along the way and raise money for three worthy causes. The most difficult aspect, it seemed to me, was that rather than using one of her classic steeds from the 1950s, Julie chose her 1926 Triumph Q! With a comfortable cruising speed of no more than about 40mph, no suspension front or rear, and a 3-speed right-hand-change gearbox, the Triumph would have been tricky to ride from london to Paris on good tarmac … but to trail-ride it much of the way as well would be really challenging, especially since the 26in beaded tyres precluded the use of any kind of knobbly rubber wear and also required tyre pressures to be kept high to avoid the tyres coming off their rims!

Nothing daunted, a september date for the trip was fixed, press releases were written and despatched, a blog was started and both ladies appeared with their machines at the ardingly

44 Trail Annual 2018

summer Classic Bike show that Julie organises, on 15 July. Ironically, it was Carla who was the first to have machine problems, with her brand new Zero. No sooner did she rock up at the editor’s place for a day’s trail riding practice on the DsR than her on-board charger went on strike.

, Back to Back

Carla and Julie

It was fixed under warranty by her dealer, streetbike of Halesowen, but it took a while.

On a more positive note, Zero’s main man in the uK, Dale Robinson, agreed to lend me a 2018 DsR to join the ride to Paris and back, and our old JOGle (John O’Groats to land’s end) comrade, James (Jimmy) Higgs, said he’d join us on his Honda CRF 250l. Three other TRF stalwarts also got involved: Heritage Director steve Neville, who agreed to ride his own Zero from london to Newhaven with us; steve sharp, who was to guide us across his local surrey lanes; and TRF Technical Director John Vannuffel, who rashly agreed to guide us from Dieppe to Paris and back, using as much of the Trans european Trail (TeT) as seemed sensible.

Our start date was Tuesday 18 september and I had picked up the demo 2018 DsR on the previous sunday. On Monday we heard from Julie that she was in agony with back problems and even after a trip to the osteopath the ride to Paris was out of the question. This also took her

partner Rick out of the equation, along with his back-up van. It was quickly decided to go ahead with the trip regardless, using Carla’s land Rover Discovery as back-up vehicle to be driven by her partner, Mark. It was a real shame to lose Julie and the whole ‘vintage’ aspect of the challenge, but we felt it was still well worth doing. It was just that now the emphasis would be more on the ‘voltage’.

DAY 1 – London to East Horsley On departure day, predictably, I was the last to arrive, despite being only a few miles away in the suburbs of southwest london. I was met with a barrage of good-humoured abuse from Jimmy, Carla, steve Neville and Mark’s friend Bill on his WR450. I did my best to make up for my tardiness by leading our motley band of motorcyclists efficiently across southwest london to Brooklands, via a series of scenic and relevant photo stops.

Carla had already used her best diplomatic

Annual 2018 Trail 45

From the left, Carla McKenzie, Paul Blezard, Steve Neville, James Higgs and Bill Sm

Bresles Gate

0% charge...

Three Zeroes and a charging point in the East Horsley campsite - spot the yellow QuiQ charger

Steve and Carla riding Wolvens Lane

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Jimmy on Smugglers Lane which is signposted as a ‘Public Way’ rather than a byway

The first trail of Day 2: The view down Water Lane from Newlands Corner

mith

skills to get us permission to ride on the last remaining section of the hallowed Brooklands banking, and steve nearly got into trouble for testing his Zero’s climbing ability on the steepest section, perpendicular to the track direction!

It was actually quite strange to ride slowly along the steep incline, designed to cope with heroic men and women thundering along at 100mph rather than 20 or 30. We got the electric bikes plugged into the mains while we had a quick look around the excellent museum and had some lunch in the adjoining café.

Our stop for the night was at a well-equipped campsite in east Horsley, less than ten miles from Brooklands. Carla, Bill and Mark went straight there while Jimmy, steve and I took the opportunity to ride some of the nearby surrey lanes. I’ve been trail riding in surrey for 35 years, so the terrain was familiar. I was very glad that the steep and deeply rutted chalk descent into shere was dry, yet on the 190kg Zero it was still tricky, especially since the bike’s Bosch aBs system proved unable to cope with the loose surface and simply let the brakes off altogether for several seconds at one point.

Day 2 – East Horsley to Newhaven We rendezvous-ed for breakfast with our run leader, steve sharp, of surrey TRF, at the café opposite the scenic Newlands Corner viewpoint, near Guildford. steve led us up and down some of the best lanes in the area, but excluded the most challenging ones in deference to Carla’s relative lack of confidence on her Zero. The highlight was Wolvens lane, which runs south for several miles from the a25, west of Dorking, to the village of Coldharbour and leith Hill. steve had agreed to take us as far as a petrol station near Horsham, over the county border in West sussex, and by the time we got there it was raining quite hard, so we were glad to take a break with a coffee and a bite to eat under cover. Fortunately, the rain had stopped by the time we got going again. Jimmy Higgs took over as run leader all the way to Newhaven. locals will know that West sussex was one of the worst hit counties in the country when it came to losing vehicular rights of way as a result of the accursed NeRC act. There are precious few byways, but Jimmy took us along

“as soon as we got on board the DFDs ferry, I asked the French crew (in French!) if we could plug the Zeroes into the ship’s mains and they quickly produced a nice long extension lead, with two sockets in it” steve showed me how to switch off the aBs on the Zero, but it’s quite a rigmarole and my aging brain failed to memorise the procedure.

Ironically, steve fell victim to another Zero quirk only a couple of minutes later when his 2015 Ds spat him off as he pulled out onto the a25.

He blamed the wet mud on the side of his rear tyre, but with the monstrous amounts of torque available from zero revs, it’s really not a good idea to just whack open the throttle, even on dry tarmac, unless you’re pointing dead ahead. at the campsite we were able to plug all three Zeroes into the traditional campsite sockets, thanks to the boxful of cables that Mark had brought in the Discovery. We also had a pair of QuiQ chargers with us, which halve the charge time for a full charge from eight hours to four. It was just as well we did because in the morning steve discovered that his Zero had mysteriously stopped charging when only half-full. With the aid of the QuiQ charger he was able to get up to 100% before we left.

a couple of corkers near Brighton and lewes, reached via a scenic tarmac route. The first was smugglers lane, which is signposted as a ‘Public Way’ rather than a byway, and I had to get off and give Carla’s Zero a push to help her over a fallen log near its start.

When we got to Newhaven the staff at the were good enough to let us plug into the mains while we waited to go through customs and board. John Vannuffel, our TeT run leader, turned up on cue, his KTM 690 equipped with a double GPs set-up: one for the TeT trails, and the other for the overall route to our destination and the quickest road route to it, just in case. as soon as we got on board the DFDs ferry, I asked the French crew (in French!) if we could plug the Zeroes into the ship’s mains and they quickly produced a nice long extension lead, with two sockets in it. However, neither bike recharged as much as we had hoped, but it didn’t matter as we only had a few miles to ride from Dieppe to the guest house that John had wisely booked in advance.

Annual 2018 Trail 47

Day 3 – Dieppe to Bresles via the Trans Euro Trail We were soon on our first TeT trail and the going was easy, in technical terms, but it still had the Zero’s suspension working hard and I couldn’t help thinking how bone-jarring it would have been for Julie on her unsuspended vintage Triumph – and torture for anyone with her bad back. There was also one steep descent, which had the Zero’s aBs struggling to keep the brakes functioning again; I used a fast pumping technique to keep the pads pushing against the discs. I was concerned for Carla, but she made it down, slowly but surely. On an easier, wide-open section I swapped steeds with Jimmy. He seemed to take to the Zero like a duck to water while his Honda 250 felt like a lightweight armchair after the 190kg electric bike. I immediately understood how he’d been able to zip past us at will (getting some great photos and video footage while doing so). swapping back onto the Zero reminded me of how uncomfortably far forward I had to lean

when one of the bolts holding the front brake caliper onto Bill’s WR450 went aWOl. On finding he had no brake, he looked down to see the caliper dangling down where it could no longer squeeze the disc. undaunted, Bill removed one of his fork yoke pinch bolts and used it to remount the caliper in the right place with the front brake function restored. I’ve been a fan of the fast and robust WR450 ever since I rode both the 2-Trac and the standard version in some sections of the shamrock Rally in Morocco, on the launch of Yamaha’s innovative two-wheel system back in 2003. In contrast to the flat-out blasting in Morocco, we could not have been bimbling more gently along the TeT but riding behind the WR450 on the near-silent Zero it seemed both noisy and noxious. I should add that Bill had actually fitted a standard exhaust in place of the aftermarket item his secondhand WR originally came with, but it was still loud compared to the more modern KTM 690 and Honda CRF250l, and was also burning a bit of oil…

“Carla and I opened up the Zeroes to remind the others what they’re capable of. let’s just say that they’re as fast as a KTM 690. OK?” while standing on the pegs, and the plank-like properties of the seat when sitting down.

We stopped for lunch at the McDonald’s in Neufchâtel-en-Bray and it required all my powers of persuasion, in my very best français, to talk the manageress into allowing us to run our extension lead from an internal socket to our table out of the main door to Carla’s Zero.

The afternoon session had some fairly technical sections, where we had to turn tightly and steeply uphill from open fields into adjoining woodland, and the Zero’s very limited steering lock was a serious handicap in places where the petrol bikes could leap and weave around the obstacles with no trouble. There was one really tight turn over roots and around a tree stump, where Carla got stuck but John was able to bounce the front end of her bike round. I got up the first section, but then Jimmy had to push me backwards for a second go around the tight turn and I thought how useful it would be to have reverse – a bonus that comes as standard on many of the other electric machines I’ve ridden. Carla’s optional crash bars also proved handy as forward grab rails for her helpers!

We had some unexpected drama later on

48 Trail Annual 2018

The good weather continued in the afternoon as John led us along the TeT trails while Jimmy and I photographed, Carla concentrated and Bill followed. Our destination was a campsite in the small town of Bresles (pronounced ‘Brel’), east of Beauvais, and when we found ourselves on a fast section of near-motorway, with only a few miles to go, Carla and I opened up the Zeroes to remind the others what they’re capable of. let’s just say that they’re as fast as a KTM 690, OK? DAY 4 – To Gay Paree and back John Vannuffel led us from Bresles to the northern suburbs of Paris, but after an unexpected couple of excursions down bus lanes against the traffic, we realised that John’s satNav was a little out of date, so I got out my tourist map of the city and we headed for the Trocadéro, the classic viewpoint for the eiffel Tower.

The ride back to the Bresles campsite proved more eventful than anticipated. There was quite a strong headwind and after riding a total of 96 gentle miles, with 15 miles still to go, Carla’s battery indicator was showing 0%. In contrast, ‘my’ 2018 DsR still had 34% left. Fortunately,

We found a car workshop at the road side and Christophe, the owner, kindly offered us a free charge without hesitation.

Above: Recharging at the McDonalds in Neufchatel-en-Bray Below: Posing at the Eiffel Tower

Carla’s optional crash bars proved invaluable as grab rails for her helpers!

John Vannuffel in action on his KTM690

Taking advantage of a ‘green’ eco-photo opportunity

Annual 2018 Trail 49

Carla ‘inspecting the crops!”

John V giving Carla an assist on one of the increasingly slippery trails

Above: John V checking the route on twin SatNavs This pic: Blez negotiating a stone-lined ford near Dieppe Blez’s problem was manfully solved

by Jimmy. who just heaved the front wheel into the rear wheel’s rut.

Thanks mate!

50 Trail Annual 2018

We were met halfway up the climb by Frenchman Xavier Courbion, riding the TET alone on his KTM 950

zero charge on the dash does not mean ‘no go’ – the bike will keep running for several more miles. a couple of miles further on, we found a car workshop at the road side and after I explained our situation Christophe, the owner, kindly offered us a free charge without hesitation, plus coffees all round to boot.

Turned out he was a Harley owner and was intrigued by our adventure.

Day 5 – Trail Riding Back to Dieppe We were off the tarmac (or le goudron en français), and onto our first green lane of the day, within three miles of leaving the Bresles campsite. It was an old Roman road, with the classic straight-line characteristic, and we rode it for nine miles through fabulous countryside full of friendly farmers. We skirted around Beauvais airport and stopped for petrol on the edge of the town, but most of our morning was spent off-tarmac. There was one trail, with a deep and overgrown rut, where Carla’s crash bars were more of a hindrance than a help, and another where a set of wind turbines provided a perfect backdrop to the two Zeroes for a ‘green’ eco-photo. shortly afterwards, on one of the final trails before lunch, I saw Carla launched into the air and deposited into the vegetation as she got her Zero cross-rutted. Fortunately, she got away with no more than a winding and some painfully bruised ribs. unfortunately, Jimmy was too far back to catch her spectacular ‘dismount’ on his headcam video, but we recorded the aftermath as Carla got her breath back. The Zero’s crash bars proved their worth once again, bending in to give the bike a more streamlined look...

By the time we got to Neufchâtel, we’d done 100km (62 miles) and Carla’s DsR battery was down to 37%, while mine still had 51% charge.

We returned to the McDonald’s we’d visited on the way out and, recognising us, the staff kindly allowed us to plug in straightaway, this time with both Zeroes sharing a single McD socket just inside the door. With both Zeroes’ ‘juices’ boosted by about 10%, the ICe bikes fully fuelled at the petrol station alongside, and the humans all fed and watered, we set off for the afternoon’s final stint to Dieppe as a gentle rain started to fall.

The lanes were starting to get a little damp and slippery from the intermittent rain but we also rode through a little stone-lined ford in the centre of a wonderfully scenic village. after retracing our steps from Thursday for many

miles, but in the opposite direction, John took us up a ‘fresh’ lane that we hadn’t had time to take in on the way out. It soon proved to be the most challenging trail of the whole trip. The initially friendly grass surface soon changed to rocks with a deep gulley up the middle and very little ‘shelf space’ to either side as it went steeply uphill. I could see that Carla was struggling, despite having the advantage of her knobbly Michelin anakees, but she just didn’t have enough confidence to get any momentum going. as she said later, “My head went into ‘cannot do’ mode”. she swallowed her pride and let Jimmy ride the Zero up the tricky section.

I was doing fine on the standard Pirellis MT60s until the wet grass turned to mud and, combined with the slope, even the gentlest application of the throttle in eco mode still sent the rear wheel spinning sideways, so I had the front wheel in one rut and the rear in the other.

My problem was manfully solved by Jimmy, who just heaved the front end over into the rear wheel’s rut. Thanks, mate! as an added bonus, we were met halfway up the climb by a bold Frenchman called Xavier Courbion from Rouen, riding the TeT alone on a KTM 950, in the opposite direction. He warned us about the deep fossé (gully) ahead, and enquired about the section we’d just ridden up. I assured him that he’d get his big V-twin beast down safely, and he did. We rode one more gravelly trail, relaxing this time, near the coast before cruising into the port of Dieppe in drizzle.

We had tons of time before we were due to board the ferry, so it was an ideal opportunity to get some more juice in the Zeroes at the passenger terminal – Carla was down to 17%, while I still had 40%. Once again, we also plugged the electric bikes into the DFDs extension lead for the four-hour duration of the crossing but, as before, we were disappointed when we returned to them to disembark – we’d only gained about 10%, which is what you’d expect from one hour rather than four.

Nevertheless, it was still well worth having because it made all the difference to Carla!

It was dark and raining as we rolled off the ferry. We thanked John for all his leadership and forbearance, and while he headed west on his KTM, I led Bill, Jimmy and Carla east along the a27 towards eastbourne and Hastings. We were bimbling along at 40-45mph most of the way, so I thought the 38% in Carla’s battery would be ample to get her the 30-odd miles home.

Turned out it was actually 33 miles from door

Annual 2018 Trail 51

Carla and Blez with Colin Seeley (left) and Dave Degens

Steve, Carla and Blez at Turner View

to door, and her dash was reading 0% while we were still on the Hastings bypass but her Zero kept going for the final three miles, albeit with reduced power, so she made it. Phew! To her chagrin, ‘my’ 2018 DsR still had 34% left, having used only 24% of its bigger battery pack to cover the same 33 miles at the same speed. so it was just as well that we’d ‘topped up’ at every opportunity – McDonald’s, the terminal, and the ferry – otherwise Carla wouldn’t have made it.

The moral of this story is that you can have a lot of fun trail riding a big Zero and cover a lot of ground in the process, especially if you ride it slowly. You won’t actually have to ‘fill up’ as frequently as you would on a small-tanked petrol trail bike, but it will take a lot longer to do so, especially if you can only use the standard 1kW on-board charger. (Much faster charging is available, at a variety of prices, but that too is another story.) What I’ve learned is that while I’m already sorely tempted to buy a Zero of my own, I’d much rather have a 2018 DsR than a 2017 machine, and I can’t understand why

52 Trail Annual 2018

even the 2019 machine doesn’t have traction control or reverse. last but not least, I’m delighted to report that we raised over £2000 for the three Vintage to Voltage charities: the Dougie Dalziel Memorial Trust, the Kent, sussex and surrey air ambulance, and The Joan seeley Pain Relief Memorial Trust. Furthermore, I was able to witness Carla handing over a cheque to Colin seeley himself at the southern Classic Motorcycle show in ardingly on 28 October and to get a snap of him with us and her Zero.

My next aim is to have a decent trail ride on the much lighter and more nimble Zero FX… Paul Blezard The blog, complete with the charity details, is at: www.vintagetovoltage.wordpress.com andy Marsh’s video should be out by the time you read this

RIDING

At Spanish Enduro Trails there are several packages on offer and all represent great value. Customers can expect the latest, expertly maintained Beta RR 350F and 300 2Ts to ride and you only need to pack jeans and a T-shirt because all riding gear can be hired on site for a flat fee of £10.00.

As part of the all-in deal fuel for the bikes is also included.

Unlike some trail destinations, you can ride from the complex into the countryside without touching tarmac. Once you’re on the trails, there’s lots of terrain to choose from according to your ability. Three levels are offered: Easy, Intermediate and Demanding, and the appropriate level should be specified when booking.

Riding in the spectacular countryside of south-eastern Spain you will take in everything from forest roads to mountain trails including river beds and rocks. Come lunchtime you’ll get to enjoy traditional Spanish tapas for less than €10 a day.

RELAXING

When off the bike, Cortijo del Centeno offers a very homely and friendly family atmosphere with shared accommodation in which to rest and play. Breakfast and an evening meal are also part of the package. Facilities include a 1000 square-metre pool complex featuring a beautiful natural rock pool, a pool bar, games room, jacuzzi and a small gym. Additional sports on offer are tennis and basketball, and horse riding can be arranged nearby. Wi-Fi is provided.

PRICES & INFORMATION 3 nights stay with 2 days riding: £450.00 4 nights stay with 3 days riding: £600.00 Flights and transfer costs are down to the riders Nearest airports: Murcia, 1hr 20mins Alicante, 1hr 45mins (greater choice of flights and cheaper) EHIC (European Health Insurance Card) is compulsory Personal insurance is discretionary

E: cortijodelcenteno@ymail.com T:0034 608 753 146

See our pr

3 NIGHTS STAY / 2 DAYS RIDING

£450

4 NIGHTS STAY / 3 DAYS RIDING

£600

romotional video @ https://youtu.be/yrLHEbuyXsc

Trails 56 Trail Annual 2018

smart TRF Life Member and Local Observer Assessor for IAM Roadsmart Keith Johnston explores the Trail Riders Fellowship and the advanced motorcycling agenda

THE TRAIL RIdERS Fellowship will celebrate its Golden Anniversary in 2020 and has come a long way since a group of stalwarts met in a small pub in Aldbury, Hertfordshire.

That meeting in the Valiant Trooper was convened in the face of losing roads open to the public through disuse. Today, the TRF is a vibrant organisation with 43 groups across England and Wales and some 5300 members, many of whom are also IAM Roadsmart members.

Trail riding in England and Wales is an immensely rewarding countryside pursuit, bringing adventure and exploration together with technical riding skills, orienteering and land access knowledge. It is enjoyed in sunshine, wind, rain and snow throughout the year in some of the country’s most striking landscapes, from the wild moorlands of Northumberland, over the rocky mountains of North Wales to the flat farm plains of Lincolnshire and down to the furthest reaches of devon and Cornwall.

Trail riding helps develop a range of skills including riding on different road surfaces, braking on surfaces of all grip levels and slow riding. The benefits of trail riding are not confined to enhanced rider skills. Just 3.5 hours of trail riding meets the Government recommendation for weekly exercise and

greatly benefits mental health. Wider benefits also accrue to the UK economy in terms of 1500 related jobs and £100M income, see www.trf.org.uk/the-economic-value-of-trailriding-2018/ However, just because you own a trail bike doesn’t mean you can ride anywhere you like. In fact, responsible trail riders technically never ride ‘off road’ as the trails and green roads we use are actually classified as Byways Open To All Traffic (BOATS) or Unclassified Country Roads (UCRs). There are approximately 208,000 miles of roads in England and Wales, 115,000 miles of footpaths, bridleways and restricted byways, and 6,000 miles of BOATs. The Trail Riders Fellowship exists to help preserve access to these historic BOATs by working with (and sometimes lobbying against) lawmakers as well as helping new and existing members learn where they can and can’t ride (and why), promoting a confident and responsible code of conduct that ensures all countryside users are able to enjoy and share our diverse landscape well into the future.

The principles contained within the IAM Roadsmart Advanced Rider Course and Motorcycle Roadcraft apply equally to trail riding on unsealed roads as to riding on tarmac roads. Trail riders utilise tarmac roads

Annual 2018 Trail 57

to ‘join up’ unsealed roads and form a route for their recreational rides. However, whilst the riding principles are the same, the context whilst riding unsealed roads will be different, therefore demanding adjustment in the application of these principles. It is the nature of these adjustments that makes trail riding a challenging way in which to enjoy the countryside and respect other users.

So, how does the TRF contribute to road safety? Three ongoing examples are in the areas of Partnership with Authorities, Member Training and our Code of Conduct for members.

Partnership with Authorities Our core mission of green road conservation includes working with authorities if instances of nuisance or illegal riding occur. Our work with police forces around the country encourages an approach that presents the TRF as a means of learning where you can and can’t ride and what behaviours are appropriate on unsealed roads.

For example, Northumbria TRF has worked with the Forestry Commission to improve signposting in the Slaney Forest and the same group has worked with the farming community to introduce informative signing regarding the sensitive April and May lambing seasons. The TRF has also worked with the defence Infrastructure Organisation to produce guidance on access to the Salisbury Plain Training Area in Wiltshire.

In areas where illegal riding has been particularly problematic – Sheffield, South Wales, Birmingham and Nottingham – the TRF has worked closely with local authorities and police forces to help clamp down on a growing problem. In south Sheffield alone, 331 calls were made in August 2017 by residents reporting illegal motorcycling incidents in the area. This figure dramatically dropped to 85 calls in November 2017, due to authorities working to crack down on the issue. Sixty-four riders were stopped and issued with written warnings for anti-social riding, 17 motorcycles were seized after being ridden in an anti-social manner, and 17 motorcycles were seized for having no insurance.

58 Trail Annual 2018

The purpose of the off-road motorcycling police teams was to enable officers to engage with and educate motorcyclists who were riding illegally, and to encourage them to correct their behaviour. The TRF worked with the police in developing an action framework covering education, engineering and enforcement.

Education was given out through social media, council websites, Ordnance Survey maps at exhibitions and at country shows manned by the TRF. Responsible commercial trail riding companies were also engaged.

Engineering covered the physical deterrents used by the authorities such as clear signage and course barriers. Then finally, enforcement was the last resort taken to catch the persistent law-breakers where all other methods failed.

Member Training TRF recognises the importance of member training. This is developing in three ways.

Each year TRF groups organise a wide variety of events for members across the country, which need to meet the requirements of our insurers. Through the Auto Cycle Union (ACU), we now offer Coach and Clerk of Course accreditation, to equip our members with the skills and knowledge to organise and deliver both competitive and non-competitive riding events at all levels.

Annual 2018 Trail 59

riders also means that our members can offer help to other members of the public who may be injured or taken ill whilst out enjoying their activities in the countryside.

In addition, we have developed an accredited training course covering legislation, social and environmental responsibility, safety and riding skills. These courses are held at four different levels, from 16-year-old post-CBT riders who wish to develop their competence to a special course for police officers.

Finally, TRF is encouraging each group to offer first aid training to its members on a rolling three-year basis. Incidents do happen and other than accident prevention, the next best thing is knowing that there is a good chance that the casualty is riding with friends who are trained in first aid and understand how to manage an accident scene to the same high standard. It is also helpful if some basic equipment is being carried to help manage those situations. TRF’s aim is for 20% of its membership to be trained and in possession of a valid certificate at any one time. Wiltshire Group has been offering ‘first on the scene’ training for the past three years and in late 2018 ran a course in partnership with the Wiltshire & Bath Advanced Motorcycle Group. First-aid training of trail

60 Trail Annual 2018

Code of Conduct for Members The purpose of our Code of Conduct (see elsewhere in this issue) is to educate and encourage trail riders to adopt a responsible attitude to the environment in which they ride and to uphold the safety of themselves and other users of the unsealed road network in England and Wales.

Motorcyclists are themselves a vulnerable group in terms of road safety and therefore particularly understand and recognise the vulnerability of walkers, cyclists and horses.

A long tradition has developed of TRF members supporting international and club Horse Trials across the country by marking out routes and acting as marshals. When meeting a horse on the trail, a TRF member will pull into the side of the road, turn off their engine and, where necessary, remove their helmet. TRF members are also often requested to help with traffic sensitising training for horses. A number of TRF groups also support mountain bike events by acting as marshals.

The Trail Riders Fellowship is now the foremost organisation concerned with the conservation of unsealed roads in England and Wales. TRF believes that every single trail rider can play their part in conservation through their behaviour, attitudes and actions linked to monitoring the condition of the network of unsealed roads and maintenance through partnerships with authorities.

MOTORCYCLE ADVENTURE!

When: June or Sept 2019 Where: Catalan Pyrenees What: Action, Wilderness, Fraternity

AUSTINVINCE.COM

Wider Access on an e-bike Apart from being the TRF’s Heritage Director, in real life Steve Neville is known to whip out his particle counter at the slightest provocation to check the air quality, hence his appreciation of zero-emission transport and his interest in the fast-growing e-bike market

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AT THe eND of the nineteenth century improvements in electric vehicles, on both doom mongers predicted that London two and four wheels. You only have to drive a would be tens of feet deep in manure if Tesla or even a Nissan Leaf to see that this is true. The next decade from 2020 will see something were not done to control the electric vehicles gradually take over from the massive emissions of horse-drawn transport. internal combustion engines (ICe) although Conferences were held but no single I doubt they will ever completely disappear. solution was found. Horses were very After all some people rather quaintly still use inefficient in terms of power to fuel weight but they had served mankind well for centuries, thanks to careful selection and ra 180 Race The Fantic XF1 Integ breeding. An example of product evolution.

By 1910 the petrol engine had largely replaced the horse, thus substituting one form of environmental pollution for another. Diesels came a bit later and were more efficient for larger vehicles and produced their own pollution challenges for the future. In the early twentieth century coal fires were the main issue (now it’s wood-burning stoves - ed).

Since 2010 we have seen massive

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network to use on two wheels, given a few important considerations. Once you had a single choice for a bicycle’s propulsion system: your legs. These days there are any number of electric bicycles available, which the law has decided, are still legally bicycles.

They are limited to 250w power output, which may seem pathetic but the torque is not limited. The other sting is that in the eU they are limited to 25 km/hr or 15.5 mph.

Whilst this too may seem pathetic, most of time on the trail its not an issue. It’s the hills that spoil the fun and the motor removes much of the pain.

My first electric bike used a conversion kit on a hard tail Claud Butler mountain bike.

This was followed by a TReK eX5 with full suspension to which I fitted a more powerful hub motor. Parts were sourced from places advertising on the Internet and the battery from Ping in China. This had to be carried in a backpack but gave the bike a stealth capability, as it did not look like an electric bike until one saw the rear hub. It was quite quick and I used it on tracks across the Kent

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horses, in spite of their inadequacies.

These pages have seen several articles on electric motorcycles and the challenges they pose, particularly when it comes to recharging. My issue with the Zero DS is not the 100-mile range but the inordinate time it takes to fully recharge (seven to eight hours). Motorcycles will continue to be well behind cars with the uptake of electric propulsion.

Aside from this, motorcycle trail riding on green roads has a problem. In spite of there being 6 to 10 thousand miles of green roads, depending on your definition of a “green road”, we are excluded from thousands more miles of usable green routes. These are bridleways and restricted byways (RBs).

The latter were once roads used as public paths (RUPPs), but their reclassification meant the government stole access rights from us.

Since the Countryside Act 1968 (remember that’s why the TRF started), cyclists have access to bridleways and the Countryside and Rights of Way Act 2000 gives cyclists access to RBs. So there is another large

E-bikE LAW The electrically Assisted Pedal Cycles – eAPC – (Amendment) Regulations 2015 harmonised previous UK law (1983 Statutory Instrument No.1168), to bring it into line with eU law (regulation 168/2013).

They replaced previous e-bike law on 6 April 2015. So eAPCs – electric bikes or e-bikes in common parlance – must now meet the following criteria in order to have the same legal standing as regular non-assisted bicycles and to be allowed on roads, bike paths and other places where bicycles are allowed under UK law. electric assistance can only be provided to a maximum of 25 km/h (15.5 mph) The motor used must be of no more than 250w (maximum continuous rated power) The e-bike’s pedals must be in motion for motor assistance to be provided The rider must be 14 years of age or over There are a number of different ‘e-bike-like’ machine types out there that, at first glance (or even after a detailed inspection), may be difficult to distinguish from legal e-bikes. This is of course an important distinction as the latter can be used without any red tape, in just the same way as regular nonassisted bicycles, while the former cannot.

These other categories are fully regulated motor vehicles under eU and UK law, so using them on public highways in the UK is a much more complex affair and inevitably involves attempting to obtain paperwork and possibly meet other requirements, such as insurance and dealing with the DVLA. In short, they are likely to be legally classed as a moped or even motorbike. Manufacturing standards are also more complex, so the manufacturer generally has to through the procedure known as type approval, which involves passing safety standards, before the vehicle can be put on the market.

A brief outline of the two main ‘e-bikelike’ categories you may come across: E-bikes controlled by a throttle where there is no need for the pedals to be turning to engage the motor – so-called ‘twist-and-go’ machines. New models of this kind are now classified under eU law under the L1e-A ‘powered cycles’ category that allows power up to 1000w, with power assistance cutting out at 15.5mph. Twist and Go bikes are potentially very helpful for those with any kind of condition that severely limits a pedalling action, but the procedure and exact requirements for registering them remain unclear. Note twist and go e-bikes bought before the introduction of the new laws and limited to a 250w motor rating remain effectively legal and so can be legally purchased and used as second hand models.

Machines that exceed the 25kmh assistance limit generally known as speed-pedelecs or s-pedelecs. Again, there is an eU regulatory class for such vehicles with assistance limited to 45kmh (L1e-B – two wheel mopeds). Some UK e-bike retailers say they now have a process in place for registering such machines for legal use on-road as mopeds. Mopeds in the legal sense that is; as pedalling is still required to enable motor assistance, these are in reality superfast e-bikes of the pedelec variety.

The user will also need insurance, legally certified helmet, vehicle excise duty and a qualifying driver’s licence (and potentially down the line an MOT it seems).

You should also be aware that the Department for Transport states that electric bikes limited to 15.5mph but fitted with off-road switches or modes that, when triggered, enable a bike’s motor to continue assisting to speeds beyond 15.5mph, do not comply with UK e-bike law.

As featured on www.cyclinguk.gov

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marshes and at Bedgebury Forest in the High Weald. However, all was not good as range was limited to 10 miles.

In April 2015 I took the plunge and purchased a HAIBIKe FS AMT; a full suspension, electric all-terrain bike. It was expensive at £3600 but promised a range of about 40 miles and good off-road handling.

I managed a two-day ride down the Ridgeway, which of course included sections of RBs parts to which motor vehicles are now excluded. We used to win the battles on that green road but eventually lost the war.

Over the past three years I’ve used it to explore many byways and UCRs, but of course I can legally add in bridleways and RBs. Using the higher power modes means range is 25 miles but I have a spare battery of a slightly lower capacity that I can carry.

I think it should have more power on hills and that in the UK we should have the USA’s standard of 750w and 20 mph.

Legislation, as always, is often defective and does not address the real issues on the ground. In fact, if the speed limiter is overridden with a dongle, all it means is that

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the annoying cutting in and out is eradicated and cruising mph in the low 20s is possible.

This is the actual sweet spot above which the chassis and handling on a bicycle shows its deficiencies.

But the key is that we can ride powered two wheelers on trails that we’d otherwise not be allowed on. I believe that there is an opportunity for Super Pedelecs, which are legal in Germany and Switzerland, to be used in this country. The Bultaco Brinco is an example but word on the street is that the company might be going broke and haven’t sold that many. This might be because of the legal complications of the different versions and where they can and can’t be used. They are effectively electric mopeds but have fewer restrictions put on them compared with ICe mopeds. It would be great if they were allowed to use RBs and bridleways. Fat chance!

So with electric mountain biking there are compromises but for me the enjoyment lies in riding a bike in more places than even the Zero DS is allowed (no different to an ICe bike) with the assistance of a motor. My own different form of “motor” cycling.

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Sucker punch extreme enduro

TRF Enduro Club Rory Jones in action

Anthony Milliar Welsh 2-day

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Set up by Leo Swinfen, the TRF Enduro Club has been gathering pace over the last couple of years. As Leo explains it’s an ideal way for trail riders to experience a different dirt discipline within the Fellowship I hAd ThE idea of raising money for the TRF before even trying an enduro. I got some sponsors and specially made jerseys sorted with help from Mario then entered a Mercian enduro. It was a real eye opener going from trail riding with seven others to racing with 120.

I was really struggling but had Andy howes there spurring me on. “Come on, one more lap, it’s not over!”

After a few events with Mercian, I tried Wales and West Race which was a step up again, Welsh enduros being harder, I was out of my depth. I met Anthony Milliar on a training day he was running told him about the idea of a TRF Enduro Club and he got on board which was great to have someone who could actually ride to a high level.

I had also seen a TRF post from Rory Jones, a roofer, and realised I worked with him years ago and got in contact. It turned out we’d both got into dirt bikes the same time but he’d gone straight into racing where as I started trail ridding with TRF. Anyway, got him on board and we’ve been racing buddies since. We entered the Welsh 2-day Enduro, all three of us as TRF Enduro Team it was an awesome experience. After the first day didn’t think I could do a second but I did. Unfortunately, I’d never done a time-card enduro before and I totally messed it up coming in late and early adding loads of time penalties too speacial tests. Anthony Milliar did really well though – smashed it.

Myself and Rory went on to do a six-hour enduro with Endurorocks then entered the dusk till dawn Enduro as a two man team in the 12-hour event; again, an amazing experience. I love the start of that event with the horn. however, towards the end cramp got better of me and Rory had to finish it for us.

From then on reluctantly Rory bullies me in to doing harder, bigger events. We entered the Tough One’s Little Brother a WOR event as introduction into extreme enduro. We

arrived, walked some of the course and I thought there’s no way I can get round this!

Even Rory looked nervous. We payed our money and cracked on with it and we both finished. I was really stoked and felt on top of the world it was great feeling to complete it.

Then we entered another WOR event, the Sucker Punch Extreme Enduro. This event beat me after getting stuck in a bog for over half an hour but Rory nailed it and managed to finish 3rd in the novice class, his first podium finish in an extreme event. Meanwhile Anthony Milliar has been concentrating on Core Championship and the South West Enduro Championship and ended up winning the Expert class both despite suffering from a knee injury that needed an operation. In 2019 he is contesting the British Enduro Championship in the Expert class and South West Enduro Championship in the Championship class. Meanwhile, Rory Jones is in training for Romainiacs 2019 mainly at Lee Walters training school; looking forward to seeing a TRF jersey going through the midle of those Red Bull arches.

Looking forward, I’ll be trying to generally improve and enjoy my enduro riding more while making the TRF Enduro Club work.

This means helping others who want to try enduro and raise more money for the TRF. I’m just thankful that sponsors have had blind faith in me from beginning as I really hadn’t a clue what I was doing. Also special thanks to Anthony and Rory for getting on board.

My next challenge is trying to find a way of making it worthwhile representing the TRF as a sports team given that it’s not cheap.

Ideally it would be great to have TRF Enduro Teams from other Groups around the country and I’m working on how to organise that within the TRF Enduro Club.

The TRF Enduro Club would like to thank initial sponsors: RBK Design, building contractors, ABC Autorite, Swindon and White Dalton Motorcycle Solicitors.

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Lost in Wales On the weekend of 1-2 September the Mid Wales Group held the Mid Wales Meander and the Hafren Hunt.

Events organiser Marianne Walford has the inside line

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WE WOuLD LikE to thank local motorcycle dealers David Jones of Newtown, Freestyle of Newtown and E T James of Rhayader, who all willingly donated prizes for the treasure hunt.

Accommodation providers Sarah and Darren of the Hafren Bunkhouse went above and beyond by not only providing use of their facilities free of charge for the riders to plan their treasure hunt routes and eat the meal provided at their return, but also kept the tea and coffee flowing! https://www.facebook.com/hafrenbunkhouse/

Marianne, Colin and Lucie from Trail Rides Wales also put a lot of time into the events: planning and putting out the treasure hunt checkpoint boxes, and leading two of the Meander ride groups; http://www.trailrideswales.com We are very pleased to say that after these events, a cheque for £1500 was presented to the Brecon Mountain Rescue Team. The amount raised was match funded by HSBC, so many thanks go to Angela Crowe, our social secretary who arranged that.

The original idea of a Treasure Hunt using green lanes was advertised for February, but with the bad weather of early 2018, it just wasn’t going to happen then. With the best will in the world, Mid-Wales TRF Group is run by people who get it wrong a lot of the time!

Despite this, things often work out well in the end. The Treasure Hunt was re-named the Hafren Hunt and advertised as being on Sunday 2 September by one member.

Another member advertised what he thought was the same event, but named Saturday as the day and called it the Mid Wales Meander.

So suddenly it seemed like rather a good idea to run two events on one weekend! Riders had the choice of doing just one of the events, or staying over and doing both.

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in order to lessen the impact on the green lanes in any particular area, it was decided that the Meander would run on the format of guided rides, with several different start locations. Leaders volunteered from all over Mid Wales. Max offered to lead a ride in the south of our area, starting from Sennybridge and looping around the Llandovery region.

Graeme lives in Bucknell and offered to lead from knighton. Going north but still on the east side, Clive organised his ride from Welshpool.

Hywel suggested Furnace, on the A487 between Machynlleth and Aberystwyth, as the start point as there is a large car park there. Arranged at short notice, Ben took three novice riders who were staying at his caravan park, Morben isaf, near Furnace, while the rest of the rides went from Staylittle, near Llanidloes. in the planning, each starting place had a ride leader and a tail ender, but as the time got nearer, some of these plans changed.

Max’s tail ender had to cancel, but Gareth, whose friends kevin, Vaughan and James had booked on to the ride, asked to be a late addition and said he would tail end – he and Vaughan shared the duty. The other riders were Lee, Jeff, Shawn and Mark from Gloucestershire. Max was well organised and sent several people GPX files of the proposed route in advance.

Ride Leader Max’s Eye-view Having never led a ride as such, i was slightly daunted by the task. i gave the briefing before leaving and made sure everyone understood what was going to be happening at gates/junctions. We pulled up to the gate for the first uCR and James kindly asked when we were getting fuel, as he had forgotten to put some in! i heard from others that they had stalled or come off when stationary, sadly and embarrassingly the bigger off was mine when i came off the back of the bike – that new fuel injection has a lot to answer for! i think the boys had Go Pros recording too!

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Got to Llandovery, and the lads had a rest for 10 minutes whilst i took James to get some fuel. Then back to it, a good run all the way to Llandeilo for about 11.30am, fuel and a quick sarnie, and then back on the bikes.

The best part of the day for most would probably have been from Llandeilo to Abergorlech, with lots of uCRs and byways in the forestry with a few challenging sections all of which were ridden with ease. A pub lunch in Abergorlech in a sunny beer garden, and then off towards Porthrhyd, down the byway with the “counting lady” as we named her, due to her standing in the doorway of her house as we passed and counting us out loud.

She counted 10 somehow, though there were 9 of us, yet when i had ridden through on Wednesday on my recce, she had opened the gate for me!

We got in as many lanes in up around the Cilycwm, Cynghordy area taking us to about 4.15pm. it was then that the Gas Gas went on reserve.... Thankfully we were already on our way to Llandovery. So a quick fuel there, we rode the 1 hour and 25mins trip back to Sennybridge.

As planned, the full route was covered and all members had as much bike time as possible. All seemed to enjoy it anyhow!

The ride itself was 137 miles and i was home by 6.00pm.

Graeme had agreed no tail ender, as he had a small group on trail and older bikes: Craig on a Honda CRF250L, Dave on a Yamaha TT250 and Roger on an XR200. They should have been joined by Steve but his van didn’t play ball so he missed the day, unfortunately.

Clive also had a small group: just Luke and Greg, with Rob who has just moved to the area, and they rode some challenging green lanes around Llanfyllin.

Hywel and Steve took Vernon, Bob and Ben, with ivan and Mark, and had a good day’s riding in the Nantymoch area. Also around there, Ben led Craig, Adam and Martin, all novices on kTMs’ on a route that met with their approval. They were surprised at how tiring trail riding is!

Three groups planned to set off from Staylittle: two intermediate, with leaders Matt and Lucie, and one easy with Marianne. unfortunately she injured her back on the

previous Friday and was not fit to ride.

Stepping in to help, Colin took the group originally assigned to Lucie, minus Andy who changed from intermediate to novice. Matt the leader and Steve the tail ender had six riders, three groups of two, assigned to them as an intermediate group: Paddy and Chris, Alex and Colin, and Tim and Steve. Tim and Steve changed to Colin’s group, so Matt and Steve took the four on a northern route which included Bearded Lake and Happy Valley. Both Matt and Steve live in West Wales, south of Aberystwyth, and had done a lot of research, planning and mileage to learn this route, so many thanks to them for their diligence. The battery of Matt’s bike suddenly gave up the ghost, but luckily it was late afternoon and they were on their way back.

He was towed to Marianne’s house where he was able to exchange the dead one, and ride home. Matt is an old-fashioned proper trail rider with no van or car and trailer!

Colin’s group consisted of Rob on a Beta Cross-Trainer, Mo on a Freeride, Steve on an

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SWM RS300R, Tim on a Montesa 4 Ride, Perry on a DRZ400, and ian and Stuart on a kTM VMC sidecar, with leader and tail ender Carl both on Honda CRF250Ls. Quite an unusual selection of bikes! Mo said: “i had a wonderful day out. The views were amazing and the trails a little challenging but nothing i couldn’t confidently ‘give a go’, – i only dropped the bike once.”

Lucie took the novice group of Andy, Pete J, Pete W and Richard who were all riding CRF250Ls, Sue on a kLX125 and Chris on a Fantic Casa 250, which was initially reluctant to start. Dick Sawle on his XT500 brought up the rear. For both Petes and Sue, this was only their second day’s trail riding, and their skills improved during the day as they watched the others and tackled new terrain.

Andy also felt he learnt a lot and enjoyed the company of riders on similar bikes.

Colin’s group and Lucie’s met briefly on their way to the lunch stop at Pennau Craft Centre at Bow Street.

Nine teams signed up to do the Hafren Hunt on Sunday, but two teams of two amalgamated into one team of four, one rider was left as the two friends he had entered with cancelled, so he joined another team, and three teams decided against it after having had a long day on Saturday. Each team was allowed 50 minutes before their start time to plan their routes.

Laminated A4 maps, descriptions of the checkpoints, and pen and paper were provided, along with a larger map of the area which was hung up on the wall. it’s always a worry that everyone might decide to go in the same direction, but that didn’t happen. Two teams went west and two teams north, but after visiting the first one or two checkpoints, they then choose different routes. Marshalling teams of three local riders went out in each direction: Hywel and the two Steves going north, and John, Haydn and Andy going west. The northern ones never saw any other riders!

The western group was able to assist when the teams were unable to find a checkpoint

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box, and it was established that it must have been removed by someone – a bit annoying as there were contact details inside.

Two of the teams gave good feedback after the event, which we will take on board and will make next year’s event even better. The teams had six hours to visit as many checkpoints as possible, which scored them marks based on distance from start and difficulty of

the green lane. The first team started at 8.50am, with following teams going at 9.00am, 9.10am and 9.15am. We assumed that everyone would have had a cooked breakfast and that no teams would stop for lunch, so a meal of jacket potatoes, meat, tuna mayo, cheese, salad and dessert or cake was provided for their return.

Vernon, Bob and Ben returned within their time schedule, and by the time they had eaten and wanted to go, no-one else had arrived. They had a good score of 135, and we assumed that as all the other teams would have late penalties added, Vernon, Bob and Ben would be the winners and we awarded them prizes of gloves andT-shirts.

By 3.30pm, the other teams had all arrived, and some were annoyed to be told they had accrued penalties! “We were only five minutes late”, they said! The last team to ar-

rive, the amalgamated team of Paddy, Chris, Alex and Colin had amassed 200 points, and after the late penalties of 60 were deducted, they were 5 points ahead. it was a good thing that we had intended to award prizes to the first and second teams!

One of the teams who decided against doing the Hunt said: “Thanks a lot for hosting the Meander and Hunt. We really enjoyed the opportunity to ride your fantastic area. Colin was an excellent guide on the Saturday, we chose not to take part in the Hunt, partly because the timings were tight for us to travel the 5 hours home and partly because, having virtually no knowledge of the local area, we did not fancy spending 4/5 of the day looking at maps and scratching our heads. Maybe it could be an idea in the future to put a local rider in each group.”

We asked the teams about this suggestion,

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and in reply Ben wrote: “i really enjoyed the Hunt, and actually it was one of the best day’s riding i’ve had for a long time. With regards to the group that suggested having a local, i would tell them that defeats the entire purpose of the event. Getting a bit lost and sorting yourself out in unfamiliar territory, with unpronounceable place names, made it a fantastic event!

“One thing that might have worked out better would have been to have everyone turn up at the same time for a briefing, with the leaving times staggered by only 5 mins.

That way the rules would have been reinforced and also it might mean that people would have a bit more banter at the start, increasing the competition and making them more likely to come back, even if out of time completely. But then we were the first group to leave, so maybe we missed that anyway.

Can you tell me if we did actually win or not? i heard a nasty rumour that another team beat us in the end, although i thought they all lost so many points it was hopeless.

Thanks, it was an excellent event.

Vernon was also complimentary: “i’ve not done a Treasure Hunt before so did not really know what to expect. Pretty sure Ben and

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Bob were the same. in many ways this added to the enjoyment – something new. i printed off maps beforehand, tried to ‘blow up’ the Hafren Forest trails so we could plot a route through there (if we were allowed access) and various other things – waste of time! Not necessary – your documentation was all that was needed.“ Should a local rider be in each team? unequivocally not. As a team with no local knowledge we had a go and enjoyed ourselves immensely in doing so. A local would mean it was just another guided ride whereas without one we felt we had “Done something”.

Did we spend 4/5 of the day looking at maps? No. Cunning, guile and treachery from 2/3 of the team, plus youthful enthusiasm and ability from the other third got us through!

Look out for next year’s event in early September!

For 2019 we will be running our annual trail riding event based from Parkers Farm, near Ashburton just off the A38.

This area offers a huge number of legal lanes, north over to Dartmoor and Okehampton, south to the sea, west to the South Hams, and east to Exeter.

Riding will take place on Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th, and we endeavour to cater for all riding abilities.

Riding starts and finishes at Parkers Farm. We hope to run a Big Bike group for bikes over 650cc for 2019, please make this clear on your entry form if you would like to join this group.

This is a very popular event so please book your place early to avoid disappointment.

Accommodation is in fully equipped modern holiday homes, and will be available from 3pm on Friday 5th April, with a hot breakfast roll, teas and coffees on both Saturday and Sunday mornings, and a hot evening meal on Saturday night, followed by a night of chat. The holiday homes are available until 10 am Monday morning, so no need to rush off, but please could you let kirstie know if you plan on staying until Monday. To check out the facilities on offer please have a look at their website at ParkersFarmHolidays.co.uk Prices are £192.00 per person Touring pitches also available at £140.00 per person Any cancellations prior to March 8th 2019 will receive a full refund, thereafter will receive £55 only.

For more information or to book places please email teign2tamar@gmail.com

ALL MOTORCYCLES MUST BE ROAD LEGAL RIDERS MUST PRESENT THEIR CURRENT MEMBERSHIP CARD AT REGISTRATION Before you ride you will asked to declare that : You are physically and mentally fit to participate and are competent to do so You understand the nature and type of event and the risks involved and agree to accept these risks, even if such risks involve negligence on the part of the organisers/official You will not seek to claim against the TRF, their organisers or officials, the landowners or other bodies or individuals connected with the event in respect of any damage to your property regardless of the cause, including and damage caused by the negligence or breach of said bodies or persons.

Your motorcycle is legal and effectively silenced RIDERS OF NOISY MOTORCYCLES WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO PARTICIPATE

The

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Griffin Trial

On Sunday 5 August 2018, Somerset TRF ran its first ACU-permitted Long Distance Trial (LDT), the Griffin Trial. Report by Somerset TRF Group Rep and Event Secretary, Josh Cook

THE pROCESS OF putting on the LDT started much earlier in the year when around 10 Somerset TRF members travelled up to Bristol to take part in the ACU Trials Seminar, arranged by Chris Barrable. These members now hold ACU Clerk of the Course status, meaning they are able to put on and run an ACU trial. Having gained the qualification needed to allow us to run an LDT, our attention swapped to how and when we were going to run our first ACU LDT. The idea came on a Sunday as we drove back from a sidecar Long Distance Trial in Devon. The two things we wanted to ensure were firstly, the trial should be simple to run, and secondly, it should be fun for all involved!

The concept that ended up being used originated from our highly successful Somerset TRF members ‘connected rides’, which we have been running on Exmoor for a number of years now. Instead of having a set route, road book and sections manned by observers, we would have groups of eight

being led around the sections by an STRF member. This meant that everyone bar the Clerk of the Course was able to enjoy a day’s riding while also competing in the trial. When the groups arrived at a section, the group leader would walk the section, then ride it whilst the other seven riders in the group marked how they got on. Having done this, the rest of the group would then ride the section whilst the group leader observed them and noted their scores.

Having decided on this format, a run through was needed to see if the theory would work in practice, so a club only ‘dry run’ was planned for March. The only problem was that it ended up coinciding with a huge dump of snow and -4 degrees C temperatures on Exmoor. This certainly tested the riders and organisers who took part! Despite the challenging weather, the format was a success, so a date was set for Sunday 5 August, when we hoped there would be more favourable weather.

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The next part of the process was to gain an ACU permit for our event. This involved drawing up some Supplementary Regs and entry forms to send of to the ACU. Largely thanks to Martin (STRF Chairman), the regs and entry forms were accepted and we were granted our first ACU permit – it was all systems go for our first ever Long Distance Trial. The next job was to give our trial a name. This was decided at a monthly STRF meeting over a few beers. The name ‘Griffin’ was chosen for two reasons: the first, was in reference to the Somerset logo of a Gryphon, and secondthe spelling of the name was chosen in honour of long-time STRF member and LDT legend Buster Griffin. With that, the regs and entry forms were made available and entries started flooding in from all over the country. The event was declared full a fortnight before the trial, with 80 riders signed up. We had riders from many different TRF groups including Somerset, Devon, Dorset, Cornwall, Central Bristol, Oxford and even Northumbria!

The weekend of 4-5 August came around and it was time to run our first event – thankfully in sweltering hot sun and not snow this time. A dedicated team of STRF members spent the Saturday setting up the sections

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ready for the trial. A combination of traditional 5,3,2,1 trials sections and 12-1 foot to fail sections were used, as well as a progressive hill climb and a speed test for any tie breaks. The exceptionally dry summer we were having, coupled with the entry which included some very experienced LDT riders, meant that the sections were set up to be technical to ensure that a good day was had by all.

On the morning of the trial, riders arrived at the start venue of Ralegh’s Cross Inn, ready to be scrutineered and signed on. Once signed on, they were assigned to a group and at 9.30am all groups were away and into the forests for a great day’s riding. Being led by an experienced STRF leader meant that not only did the competitors get to ride all of the sections but they were also able to experience some of the fantastic trail riding that the Exmoor forests have to offer. Half way through the day, the leaders brought their group to Ralegh’s Cross for a carvery lunch stop, all included in the price of entry.

Once fed and watered the groups headed back out to complete the rest of the sections.

All of the groups eventually arrived back at Ralegh’s Cross by 5pm, thoroughly tired out from an excellent day’s sport on Exmoor. The

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scorecards were collected and taken home to be compiled into results.

The results revealed that the organising team had set the trial up at just the right level, with no riders managing a completely clean ride but two riders managing to go around for just 1 mark lost, quite an achievement when looking at some of the sections.

The sections provided an excellent level of challenge for all with almost every rider being able to clean a section or two at some point during the day.

In the end, the event was decided by the times recorded on the Special Test, with Somerset TRF’s own enduro god and Beta salesman, Anthony Milliar (1 mark lost) just pipping Cornwall’s Graham Airey (1 mark lost) to the overall win. Graham, aboard his Montesa 4Ride, did take home the Trail Bike Class Award for his efforts. The Twinshock class was won by Colin Rossiter riding his Honda TLR 200, losing just 8 marks during the day. The Trials Bike class was won by Othery’s finest, Nigel Higgs, on his Montesa 4RT, who lost his 5 marks all in one section, denying him the overall win. Finally, the Enduro Bike class was won by Richard Maddern on his Husqvarna WR250, losing 9 marks all day, a top ride considering Rich can usually be found competing on three wheels rather than two.

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Overall, Somerset TRF’s first foray into running a Long Distance Trial was a success and something we hope to repeat as an annual event moving forward. The event would not have been possible without the hard work put in by many parties. A huge thanks go to TFE Forestry for the use of the land, Ralegh’s Cross Inn for the parking field, the ACU for their help in obtaining our permit, Martin Keswick for acting as Clerk of the Course and all the Somerset TRF members who helped set up and lead groups on the day. Most of all we would like to thank those who came along and entered the trial.

We hope to see you all again next year!

A chance meeting between two old friends in 2017 has resulted in the formation of...

ON THE FIRST January 2018 Dirt Bike Holidays was formed with the sole intention of becoming Spain’s premier off-road Trail and Motocross Holiday venue.

With around 60-years experience of motocross, and other motorcycle sports and a background in competitive racing, team management, running clubs, organising meetings and even owning the UK’s finest motocross track, they have formed, what they believe to be the ultimate off-road adventure, offering customers the best experience possible.

With the wealth of experience available, they can offer the complete off-road experience to total beginners through to experienced MX and Enduro riders. Steve has a comprehensive knowledge of all the trails around the Andalusian mountains and is always happy to give any help and advice during the ride to make it as enjoyable as possible.

You will be based in their own stunning

five-bedroom Villa, which offers a fantastic facilities including a pool, a couple of superb relaxation areas, a BBQ (for customers use) and beautiful gardens.

The day starts with a full English breakfast, then its out on the fleet of new Fantic 250cc Casas, which are kept in excellent condition, for about 1.5 hours riding before a pit stop for refreshments and then another hour or so on the bikes before stopping at a typically Spanish restaurant for a well-earned lunch break. This is followed by the ride back home and in total around 6-7 hours is spent taking in the unbelievable scenery and local hospitality.

So far they have had nothing but 100% positive feedback from their customers, and many new bookings have been made on recommendations.

By the number of customers that have already re-booked for next year, it would seem that they have got it right – so don’t be left out, book now and try it for yourself.

Up Against the Wall Paul Jennings from North Wales Group relives his experiences at the Northumbria TRF’s Hadrian Adventure Weekend – giving his CCM a good spanking in the process HAlTWHisTle iN NoRTHuMbeRlANd is a very long way from my home in North Wales, especially when you’re dragging a knackered bike trailer up the M6. Add in a boat-load of Friday evening commuters trying to fight their way through never-ending roadworks, and the journey feels twice as long as it actually is. but the five-hour trip to the Hadrian Adventure Weekend held over the last weekend in september was more than worth it, not least because there’s frankly not a lot going on in this remote part of england.

There are no crowds, no shopping centres, no traffic jams and no urban sprawl. Just a lot of wide open countryside, some fantastic trails and some of the warmest, friendliest people you’re ever likely to encounter. i’d booked my ticket for the event as soon as the online entry system went live and was lucky to secure my place as the event sold out within minutes, such is its popularity. like several others, i was staying at the Twice brewed inn on the Military Road between Hexham and Carlisle, a handy location thanks to its proximity to the event’s Haltwhistle HQ, and because it serves some excellent local beers.

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saturday started early and chilly, but it was one of those mornings that you just knew was going to turn into a glorious day. sure enough, after a 20 minute ride to the sign-on, there wasn’t a cloud in the sky and i’d already soaked in the first of the day’s many spectacular views.

Almost as impressive as the weather and the scenery, was the number of ride leaders and tail-end-charlies that had turned out.

They’d arrived en masse and were happily giving up their time to make the event as warm and welcoming as possible. And because so many had volunteered, each

group of riders numbered a maximum of six or seven bikes which, for the group i was in, meant we’d be able to make good progress and wouldn’t be bogged down by the ‘herding cats’ syndrome which can hamper larger groups.

Having signed an indemnity form to declare i’d ride responsibly and that i have no known allergies to the mud of Kielder Forest, stotty cakes or chips served with gravy, i met my ride leader, Phil, and tail-end-charlie, Mick, shook hands with my co-riders for the day, and set off into the wilds.

When entering the event i’d ticked the box

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which said i wanted to get in as many miles as possible (there was also an option to ride at a more relaxed pace), and it was obvious from the start that we weren’t going to be hanging around.

We spent the morning getting our eye in on a series of fast gravel tracks over open moorland to the south of the event’s HQ, with Phil throwing in the occasional rockier section to keep things interesting and to make sure we stayed warm. it was one of these sections that led to our first mechanical of the day: James, a relative newcomer to trail riding, had applied too much ‘Whiskey Throttle’ as he was tackling a rocky climb, and had launched his KTM up the hill without him. His gear lever had been bent by the ensuing crash landing and was fouling against the crank case, but after a team effort to get the offending item straightened, we

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were soon off again, this time heading westwards to find some technical trails near Hartside.

This time it was Phil’s turn to take a tumble. but instead of damaging his bike, it was just his ego that had been dented. He had, after all, managed to fall off at a complete standstill. And right in front of me. it was exactly the ammunition i needed to make sure he got his share of leg-pulling for the rest of the weekend.

After a fuel and food stop in Alston we headed east towards the trails of slaley Forest. i’m reliably informed that these trails are usually hidden under several inches of mud, mulch and gloop. Fortunately for us, they were almost completely dry and rather than having to plough our way through muddy ruts and bottomless bogs, we were floating over dry, sandy trails with huge

plumes of dust being kicked up behind us.

We were supposed to get back to HQ by 6.00pm, but it was 7.30pm by the time i finally rolled back into the pub’s car park. i’d put 160 miles on my bike’s odometer and had been given the new moniker of “The CCM slayer.” it was a relatively slow-speed fall that had resulted in my bike being damaged and my name change: so slow in fact that i’d landed on my feet without so much as a knock or bump. unfortunately, my 14-year-old CCM 404 ds had fared less well: it had landed heavily on the same prominent rocks which had caused the crash, resulting in a snapped subframe, a broken exhaust hanger and a very squashed radiator which was somehow still holding its coolant. but there’s nothing a handful of zip ties and half a roll of gaffer tape can’t fix!

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The bodge-job had held the bike together long enough for me to get back to the pub, but it was clear i wouldn’t be riding the next day unless i fathomed a way of making a sturdier repair. There was talk of trying to find someone with a welder, but Rupert, a friend i’d met on a trip to iceland last year, came up with a much simpler solution using a couple of webbing straps to hold everything together. it was by no means a permanent fix, but it’d do. And so, after a long but thoroughly enjoyable day, i headed to the bar for a few restorative beers and to share tall stories with riders from the other groups.

The next morning, with just a slight headache from the previous night’s antics, i fired the CCM back into life and made my way back over to HQ for day two.

Greg Villalobos (Chairman of the Northumbria TRF) and his team had worked hard during the weeks leading up to the event to secure permission from the Forestry Commission for us to venture into Kielder Forest – an area which is usually off limits to bikes and 4x4s, but which today would enable us to put our best bog-snorkelling techniques to the test. despite the long, hot summer which had resulted in the dry trails the previous day, Kielder was wet. Very wet. As a result we spent the morning wrestling our bikes through a series of bogs, each seemingly deeper and wider than the last, finally resort-

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ing to picking our way through the plantation’s closely spaced pine trees to avoid the worst of the quagmires. it was hot, sweaty work, and i’m sure i can still taste the Kielder mud today, but the challenging conditions made for an unforgettable experience, especially as the CCM survived… much to the surprise of Phil and Mick who 24-hours earlier had been sure it was destined for the breaker’s yard.

With a long journey ahead of me, i decided to finish day two slightly ahead of schedule, so thanked Phil and Mick for showing me around and made my way back to the pub to load the trailer. i’d already decided that i’ll be back next year – not even the horrors of the M6 on a Friday night, or a broken bike, have put me off. Although i will need to perfect my welding skills before the next event!

The Event The Hadrian Adventure Weekend is a two-day trail riding event organised by the Northumbria TRF. it gives riders the opportunity to enjoy some of the finest riding that england has to offer; from the grand open vastness of Northumbria to the rocky mountains of Cumbria. For information about the 2019 HAW keep checking the Trail website and magazine.

Dawn till Dusk

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LasT moNTH THe suffolk Group held its annual endurance fun ride across east anglia which has grown in length year-on-year to become a monumental 262-mile test of concentration, resilience and reliability. entries were limited by the number of volunteer run leaders available, though entry was free to anyone willing to lead a group along the route supplied by organiser Colin Pountney, who was able to make a £2,000 donation to the Cambridge branch of the brain injury charity Headway as a result of the event’s success.

Like last year, I led a delegation of riders from the Wiltshire Group, who had all managed to arrive and encamp at the venue well in advance of my fashionably late entrance – prompting surprise that I had managed to show up at all. I was quickly

whisked away from my ungrateful team by the organisers in order to be fed, though not before I had managed to erect my tent, which (in between laughter) caused health and safety concerns on account of its size and inconspicuity.

Having survived the night unsquashed by virtue of my glow-in-the-dark tent pegs (and thoughtful van parking), I joined the rest of the participants for breakfast and registration at dawn, followed by a staggered start for each of the nine groups hoping to make it from Haverhill to the Norfolk coast and back by dusk.

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Wiltshire group leader and Trail online editor James Higgs recounts a very full day in the saddle, all in a good cause

My CRF25L and bijou tent.

my team set off a little after 9.00 am and managed to overtake one of the earlier groups, which was struggling to traverse a concrete kerbstone used to prevent hare coursers from misusing the former airfield that we had been given permission to cross.

Knowing that procrastination and chatter could deny us a daytime finish, we kept our pace up and avoided stopping for the photos and high-fives that can often limit ride progress if you let them.

Those of you who haven’t yet ridden in suffolk, Cambridgeshire or Norfolk will likely be surprised by how sandy the soil is when you do. It lends itself well to the type of market gardening and salad cultivation that can be observed all over the Fens and Brecks.

The terrain here is flat, straight and open, which makes for good road speed on the sections of sealed roads in between the lengthy and very dusty unsealed ones. many of the green roads sport the ‘no cars’ TRo sign, making for narrow, unrutted trails that

perhaps only take up a tenth of the highway width in places. one such example is the old road that runs alongside the a11 into Newmarket, where a whole motorway could be built if the local authority saw fit.

Thankfully, the old road is now an unobstructed, width-restricted byway, though it hasn’t always been this way… after giving way to a few dozen racehorses making use of the Pegasus crossings that riddle Newmarket, we passed the southern Group’s ‘rider smoking’ andrew sillence before fording the River Lark and picking up the ancient Icknield Way. soon afterwards we received a rare shower of water courtesy of one of the crop irrigators, which had been set to spray an unavoidable (but welcome) arc of water across a byway near Thetford.

Just east of Thetfard lies Peddars Way, where a TRo prevents all public use of a byway on adjoining Brettenham Heath due to the risk of disturbing rare ground-nesting birds. Unusually, the risk isn’t attributable to motor vehicle use, but to dogs failing to be kept under close control whilst being exercised and emptied by their owners. a diversion open to motorcycles was helpfully authorised by the council at this point in order to preserve route continuity. a Frogger-esque crossing of the a11 on the ancient Peddars Way brought us to our first fuel stop at Watton, where we agreed to limit our refreshment intake to drinks and light snacks. Woe betides the rider attempting a ride like this on a full stomach – the energy needed to digest food is better used on keeping upright and pointing in the correct

Andrew Sillence from the Southern Group leads his team away.

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Below, left to right: Ben, Simon, Martyn, Darren and Kev

The old road was obstructed with large bales in 2016, which made for some good – if inadvertent – trials practice.

Breakfast – the organisers ensured we were well fed at all times.

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Darren shows off his dusty face at Hunstanton

direction (particularly whenworking as part of a team). The 73 miles to get here had passed quickly and my CRF250L still had plenty of fuel left, with only Darren’s KTm 450 eXC and simon’s Beta running on to their reserve settings. as we pushed north on the Peddars Way it struck me how empty it was, with only a few friendly walkers (and campers) to be seen as we overtook a few more groups en route to the coast. Last year an oncoming ‘hardy walker’ type had homed in towards my bike like a moth to a headlight in order to make me stop, which I was duly compelled to do.

Personally, I would think myself something of a failure if my only power in life was to momentarily halt someone’s enjoyment of their day.

We were the first group to arrive at Hunstanton and so found a suitable parking place for the oncoming melee on a grassy patch overlooking the Wash, whilst we refreshed ourselves alongside the many other tourists investing their money into the town. We had agreed during the ride briefing that we would not fall foul of the fish and chips pitfall, though goaded some of the other riders into buying large portions of both. our group settled for ice-cream and fluids instead.

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The first unsealed road out of town is south Beach, where catching up with a learner driver in a Discovery gave me a rare opportunity to take photos as the rest of the team were unable to overtake it. Here the road is wholly sand, which requires commitment of the throttle and faith in the front wheel as it finds its way through the undulations. a cautious right hand will soon see the front wheel sink into the sand if you let it. our second fuel stop was made in swaffham, which gave us all time for another much-needed drink. The heat was starting to affect my riding and my T-shirt was soaked in sweat, so the opportunity to replenish with tinned diabetes was not to be missed – 148 miles down, 114 to go. shortly after this the route took in some new roads through Hockwold Fens near Brandon, where the undulations of the ground started to sap the strength out of me, enough for me to notice that I had slowed down. I kept my concentration as best I could as we made our way back round Thetford, past lavender growing wild amongst the gorse, and negotiated the sole three gates of the ride near Icklingham. a 228-mile fuel stop near Newmarket set us up for the last 34 miles back to Haverhill, which retraced some of our morning’s route and cruelly took us for a final seven-mile loop past the TRF direction signs which were placed on the verges to assist us in finding the venue. martyn, simon, Kev, Ben, Darren and I finished before dusk at a little after 8.00pm, taking 11 hours at a code-of-conduct friendly 24 mph to complete the gargantuan loop without breakdown or incident, though a volunteer recovery van driver was on hand during the day to collect anyone who wasn’t able to finish the ride.

The final group arrived back at around 11.00 pm, by which time our group had finished the dinner kindly served by the venue owners and had either settled down for the night or loaded up and left. The success of the event would not have been possible without the efforts of Colin, suffolk TRF and all the volunteer ride leaders. see you next year!

Headway – Colin Pountney HeaDWay Is aN autonomous charity that does great work supporting people with brain injuries. This event was organised by suffolk and Cambridgeshire Trail Riders Fellowship.

Participants arrived back at dusk, hot, thirsty and very, very dusty! The event raised £2,000 for Cambridge Headway and was kindly supported by Tesco Newmarket branch, which donated food and drinks to keep us going. People frequently ask me why I raise money for Headway at my two TRF events whereas most motorcycle events raise money for air ambulance. Well, that’s great but I thought about what happens to people after an accident, and the rest of your life if recovery doesn’t work out so well.

There are a lot of sports and hobbies that people do where you can sustain a brain injury and riding a motorcycle or riding a horse must be high on the list. I live in Newmarket where we have hundreds of horse riders and I know a lot of motorcyclists, so head injuries are something I hear a lot about. Hopefully most of us will not need help but if you leave hospital with a brain injury, then it’s Headway which will help you get your life back to near normal, or have a nearby hub for you to go to for help, or just to give your family a rest or some time for themselves as it can be a full-time job for them.

Back in april the raffle at the ICeNI weekend raised £450 for suffolk Headway and my Dawn till Dusk ride on 4 august raised £2,000 for Headway Cambridgeshire. Dawn till Dusk is in its third year now and I have to turn members away as it fills up quickly.

D2D is a one-day event but people can camp for two nights if they like. The start is at Chris Rolls’s house as he lives on the essex border and has some fields he kindly lets us use. The ride will take you 260 miles through Cambridgeshire, suffolk and Norfolk up to the seaside town of Hunstanton for fish and chips, and then back by a different route before it gets dark (well, that’s the plan).

We had 50 riders all paying £30. Chris and his wife Janet cooked and sold bacon rolls for breakfast and a chilli ’n’ rice with a beer when we got back. Tesco of Newmarket kindly supplied the food free of charge, enabling us to make £500. so a big thank you goes out to Chris and family, to Tesco Newmarket, all my run leaders and of course to all who came and supported us. I would love to do it again in 2019, so watch out for the poster in Trail next year.

Autumn 2018 Trail 95

Trail Riders Fellowship

Handbook

Contents

TRFHandbook Talk to Me A guide to how members communicate with each other and how the Fellowship communicates with its members.

Since 1970 the TRF has always organise itself as groups. In addition we remain open to using our members choice of technology to communicate, paper, forums, Facebook, Twitter Instagram email and other social media. Over the last four years Greg Villalobos has probably done more than anyone to improve the TRF’s brand and image including our presence on the internet. Here Greg puts forward the TRF’s current position on the tools we use to communicate and lets us know what he is planning for the future.

99

Staying in touch: A Newbies’s guide to communication with the TRF and some of the important stuff

102

Putting on an Event: Preparation and protection for the Hadrian Adventure Weekend

109

Friends of the TRF: Companies offering discounts to members

110

Responsible Rider Training: Working with the emergency services to educate and assist

112

Groups Map: Regional Groups with their contact details

114

From the Groups: Contributions from TRF Groups around the country 98 Trail Annual 2018

What is www.TRF.org.uk for?

This is the TRF’s shop window, where we show the very best of the TRF’s work across the full range of areas we are active in. It’s designed to communicate to other bodies that have an interest in us and the areas we work in. So, for example, if you are working with your local authority on a conservation project, it’s the website that they can visit to get official info about the TRF and find examples of other conservation work that the TRF has taken part in.

If you are working with the Police, there is a page dedicated to showing the work that the TRF has done with the police and our approach to anti-social motorcycle use.

The content on www.TRF.org.uk is carefully selected to help the TRF communicate to people who may not know a lot about us or trail riding and green roads. It’s not aimed at TRF members.

What is www.Trail.TRF.org.uk for?

This is the TRF’s engine room. It is primarily primary role is to make it easy to join and manage your TRF membership. Its secondary role is to be an area to collate and make available resources that help TRF members conserve green roads as well as get the most out of their trail riding. The content presented on this website is entirely dependent on contributions from TRF members and TRF Directors. A small team of editors are responsible for putting content together, presenting it and distributing it using a variety of channels that include email, social media, print magazine and word of mouth.

Our ambition is that valuable information is held in one central location and made presentable and accessible.

A snapshot of the things you can do on TRF Trail Website looks like this: Join the TRF Manage your TRF membership Communicate with other members using Trail Riding Talk (see below) Read TRF stories curated by TRF editors Access many discounts offered to TRF members Look up a TRF membership number to determine if it is current or not Find contact details of all TRF Groups Find links to Facebook Groups being used by TRF groups Find events being held by TRF Groups throughout the year Apply for TRF Conservation Match Funding Find out who has been awarded a TRF Unsung Hero Award Contact any TRF Director Access digital versions of the TRF Trail Magazine Read a list of Green Road terminology Find links to local authority definitive maps Access a guide to using a GPS device Read tips on what tools to take trail riding Access tips on setting up a TRF event Read tips from members on what bikes to use for trail riding Access links to other motoring and green road organisations Buy TRF Riding Jersey Download TRF Brand Kit to produce your own products and materials

How does the TRF communicate to members and how can members communicate to each other?

The TRF communicates to members via: TRF Website - www.TRF.org.uk TRF Trail Website - Trail.TRF.org.uk Monthly email newsletter - Scheduled Service 5,200+ subscribers.( in addition the TRF communicates with a further 13,000 past members and trail riders who have registered with the TRF) Monthly Group Chair email newsletter - GCN 250 subscribers Quarterly Trail Magazine - 5200 subscribers TRF Facebook Page - 10,000 followers TRF Trail Facebook Group - 1,600 + members TRF members can communicate with each other via: TRF Trail Facebook Group - 1,600 + members TRF Trail Website - Trail.TRF.org.uk Their local group Facebook Group if they have one Their local group Forum if they have one Their local group WhatsApp group if they have one Face to face at local group meetings

What is Trail Riding Talk for?

The Trail Riding Talk feature on the Trail Website is primarily an area for new members to introduce themselves and connect with more established members who can help them connect with their local groups. It is also a space for any TRF member to communicate, however we have seen a trend in the last five years towards groups using their own spaces for group chat, largely on social media such as Facebook. The team behind the Trail Website reviewed the changing communication landscape and concluded that we were not able to compete with the tools, security and proliferation of Facebook Groups and therefore the Trail Riding Talk feature was put together in a very simple format that is designed to be easy to say ‘hello’ and then be directed towards the area where a members local group is communicating.

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Feeling left out?

TRFHandbook Where to Ride ONE OF THE most common reasons people cite for joining the TRF is to find out where in the countryside they can legally ride.

Trail riding in England in Wales is an immensely rewarding countryside pursuit, bringing adventure and exploration together with technical riding skills, orienteering and land access knowledge.

It is enjoyed in sunshine, wind, rain and snow throughout the year in some of the countries most striking landscapes, from the wild moorlands of Northumberland, over the mountains of North Wales on the flat farm plains and fens of Lincolnshire and East Anglia through the South East’s Garden of England and down to the furthest reaches of Devon and Cornwall.

However, just because you own a trail bike that doesn’t mean you can ride anywhere you like. In fact, responsible trail riders technically never ride ‘off road’ as the trails and green roads we use are actually classified as Byways

Open To All Traffic (BOATs) or Unclassified Country Roads (UCRs). Access to these historic, legal lanes is constantly under scrutiny from national and regional government organisations as well as land-owners and the wider countryside population.

There are some 208,000, miles of paved road in England and Wales, 115,000 miles of footpaths, bridleways and restricted byways, and 6,000 miles of BOATs. The TRF exists to help preserve access to these historic BOATs by working with (and sometimes lobbying against) lawmakers as well as helping new and existing members learn where they can and can’t ride (and why), promoting a confident and responsible code of conduct that ensures all countryside users are able to enjoy our diverse landscape well into the future.

The traditional starting point for countryside navigation is the Ordnance Survey map and a quick glance at the Primary Routes key will enable you to identify the marking of BOATs. However this doesn’t mean that all of them are ridable all

The TRF Code of Conduct ONLY USE ROADS THAT THE PUBLIC ARE ENTITLED TO RIDE MOTORCYCLES ON Trail riding is lawful on green roads which are commonly known as unclassified county roads, or which are classified as Byway Open to All Traffic. If in doubt, check with the Highway Authority or the TRF. Motorcycles and riders must be road-legal. Green roads are subject to the same laws as black roads.

TRAVEL AT A SPEED WHICH IS SAFE AND SUSTAINABLE FOR THE ROAD SURFACE Ride at an unobtrusive speed, taking regard of conditions and visibility. Be prepared to stop within a maximum of a third of the distance in which you can see the road ahead. Excessive speed increases wear on the road surface, avoid travelling at high impact speeds above the voluntary recommended maximum of 25mph.

KEEP TO THE DEFINED AREA OF THE GREEN ROAD Endeavour to travel with least impact. Ride in the 4x4/tractor ruts and avoid creating a third rut, where safe, reasonably convenient, and possible to do so. Avoid straying from the road, especially onto moorland or farmland – doing so may be a criminal offence.

RIDE QUIETLY AND UNOBTRUSIVELY Machines must be effectively silenced. Use the throttle with discretion, as noise does offend.

Green roads are subject to the same laws as black roads.

GIVE PLENTY OF SPACE TO WALKERS, HORSES AND CYCLISTS As a courtesy, on narrow black roads or green roads, stop and switch off engines when sharing the road with ridden horses.

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HONOUR THE COUNTRYSIDE CODE Respect the countryside and those who live, work and play in it. Green roads can be valuable habitats for wildlife, take especial care in spring and early summer. Fasten gates to safeguard stock, except those tied open for land management purposes.

Glossary of Terms Can’t tell your BOAT from your UCR? Have a look at this lot. the time and to get the definitive list you need to contact the council concerned. Start with the council website then go to Highways and followed by Public Rights of Way and, if you’re lucky, you’ll get access to the definitive map.

Also, see ‘Viewranger Progress’ elsewhere in this issue to see how digital access to Beginners’ Routes is coming along.

Additionally, county councils will issue permits on request to use some of their Restricted Byways (RBs) and in respect of seasonal Temporary Restriction Orders TROs, in many instances the small print exempts ‘horse-drawn vehicles, motorcycles and quadricycles’ when signs read No Motor Vehicles. A situation some other countryside users find it difficult to get their heads round.

Signage is one of the many areas that the TRF is taking councils to task over.

There can be quite a few points of potential conflict with other users, horse riders, dog walkers even cyclists and runners when you’re riding a trail bike on a green road. The best form of conflict resolution is to follow the TRF’s Code of conduct.

ENDEAVOUR TO BE A GOOD AMBASSADOR FOR MOTORCYCLING Be courteous to other road users and respect their equal entitlement to use the road. Bear in mind the difficulties of others and try not to add to them. Acknowledge others with a friendly wave or other suitable gesture. Responsible trail riding is a form of quiet enjoyment of the countryside.

Maintain the standard of a responsible trail rider, so as not to disturb the tranquillity of National Parks and peaceful areas of the countryside.

Guidance to support the Code of Conduct rule.

Hierarchy of Highways: 1 Unclassified Road (UCR) 2 Unmetalled Unclassified Road (UUCR) 3 Byway Open to All Traffic (BOAT) 4 Restricted Byway (RB) 5 Bridleway (BR) 6 Public Footpath (PF) 7 Permissive Path Other Highways & Byways: 1 Right of Way (ROW or PROW) 2 Other Route with Public Access (ORPA) 3 Public Highway 4 Road Used as a Public Path (RUPP) 5 County Road 6 White Road 7 Green Road 8 Lane 9 Footway 10 Track 11 Trail Selected Terminology: 1 Motor Vehicle 2 Definitive Map and Statement (DM or DMS) 3 List of Streets (LOS) 4 Traffic Regulation Order (TRO) 5 Countryside and Rights of Way (CROW) Act 2000 6 Natural Environment and Rural Communities (NERC) Act 7 Definitive Map Modification Order (DMMO) 8 Countryside Access Forum (CAF) 9 LAF (Local Access Forum) 10 Rights of Road (ROR) 11 Road Conservation (RC) 12 Rights of Way Improvement Plan (ROWIP) 13 Long Distance Trial (LDT) 14 Trans-European Trail (TET) Miscellaneous Terminology: 1 Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB) 2 Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) 3 Off-Roading 4 Waymarking Organisations: 1 Auto-Cycle Union (ACU ) 2 British Motorcycle Federation (BMF) 3 Natural Environment Research Council (NERC)

Annual 2018 Trail 101

TRFHandbook

Putting on an event In September 2018 sixty riders headed north to take part in Northumbria TRF’s Hadrian Adventure Weekend. We caught up with event organiser Greg villalobos for a detailed look at what goes into putting on an event like this.

THe HAdRIAN AdveNTuRe Weekend is now in its fourth year and whilst it hasn’t got any bigger it’s definitely got better. We’ve learned a lot over the years, made a few mistakes and hopefully improved every year. This article is designed to help other groups understand what we do here for our event and share some of the processes we have developed.

01: EARLY STAGE PREPARATION Assign Event Manager For this event myself and NTRF Treasurer davy Myers took on the roles of event Manager. It was our job to ensure the

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successful and safe running of the event. It’s our names that are put forwards on any TRF insurance documentation.

Agree the format of the event The Hadrian Adventure Weekend is a noncompetitive 2 day guided trail ride around Northumberland and Cumbria. It takes place on byways and public roads. We also have access to Kielder Forest as organised with The Forestry Commission. We work with the FC to put together a route that goes in one direction through the forest on fire roads and some enduro style routes in the woodland.

We set an easy, medium and hard route to cater for the ability levels of participants.

Sell the event We use https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/ to manage the ticketing of the event. It’s a very powerful and easy to use website that vastly reduces the administrative burden of organising the event. We allocate 60 tickets and TRF members can buy these directly from the website. The process of buying the tickets requires them to input their details including TRF membership number etc, and the website takes payment. everyone who buys a ticket is automatically sent info about the event and we can message people directly when required. If someone wants to cancel it’s very easy to issue a refund.

We also have a waiting list so once it’s sold out people who are on the list and are offered a space if/when it becomes available. I can’t recommend this website highly enough.

Our total sales were about £2,600 and the

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commission was about £200. This was a bargain for the amount of time and hassle it saved us as organisers.

ARRANGE RUN LEADERS & TAIL ENDERS When we first put on the Hadrian Adventure Weekend it was difficult to get Northumbria TRF members to commit to being a run leader for the weekend. However, over the years as the event has grown in popularity we’ve been fortunate to get a large number of members to help. This year we had 12 leaders and 12 tail enders. It was important to get them to commit early on and get it booked into their diaries.

DIRECTOR APPROVAL AND INSURANCE It’s essential that the event is covered by TRF insurance. Hopefully it will never be needed but if something does happen the approval enables the TRF Public Liability Insurance to be engaged in any proceedings. There are set criteria that the TRF require to obtain insurance, largely based on a robust risk assessment. We worked with TRF director dave Carling to make sure that our processes met the insurance criteria and that we were covered.

ASSIGN ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES Putting on the Hadrian Adventure Weekend can take up a considerable amount of time and energy. We assigned roles across the

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committee, some major and some minor which greatly helped spread the load. There’s no point in the event Manager running around on the morning of the event putting up signage, signing everyone in and giving the briefing as well, all those things can be distributed across the team.

02: PRE-EVENT DOCUMENTATION ORGANISE FILE SHARING Northumbria TRF has a Google account for the Committee. We used Google drive to create a folder for the Hadrian Adventure Weekend.

This allows us to keep all our important documents in one place where everyone on the committee and event team can access. It helps in the smooth running as well as keeping everything safe and easy to replicate for next year. It also means that if the event organiser has to drop out for some reason everything is there for someone else to pick up.

RISK ASSESSMENT A risk assessment is designed to demonstrate that event organisers have planned ahead and taken steps to reduce any potential risks to people involved in the event.

It’s an essential part of obtaining TRF insurance. We try not to ‘copy and paste’ from other risk assessment forms as it’s important that you do your own thinking rather than rely on someone else’s. That said, it can be helpful to see how others approach this, here’s ours.

CERTIFICATE OF INSURANCE This should be sent to you by a TRF director once your event has been approved.

We upload ours to our Google drive folder.

TRF MAJOR INCIDENT PROCEDURE This year we were provided with documentation from TRF that covers actions to take in the event of a major incident. This was very helpful as it made it clear what the event organiser should and shouldn’t do. We made sure that the event Managers had copies during the event. We also took the key points and included them in the Run Leader Briefing document.

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TRFHandbook ACCIDENT BOOK This is an folder wit accident report forms printed out. Instructions were included in the Run Leader Briefing about what should be reported. The event Manager made sure that all accidents went in the book, there were three minor accidents this year.

RUN LEADER BRIEFING In the past we’ve made some assumptions that run leaders knew what their job was for the weekend. This year we decided to improve this process and put together a formal briefing document that covered what the event Managers expected of them, as well as giving clear guidance on what to do if certain situations occurred. In my opinion this was one of the most important documents we created for the Hadrian Adventure Weekend as it removed any assumptions or guess work for the run leaders. every run leader and tail ender was required to confirm that they had read this document before they could take part in the event.

PARTICIPANT SIGN ON FORM All participants were required to sign on the morning of the event. This included reading,

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signing and returning a sign on form that covered the TRF Code of Conduct as well as extra information that the event organisers asked them to agree to for the event. It’s essential that these signed forms are kept safe for five years after the event. In the unlikely case of a claim being brought against the organiser this paperwork will help prove what information was given to the participant before the event.

RUN LEADER & HELPFUL CONTACT INFO For this year’s event we provided all participants with a form containing all run leader / tail ender mobile phone numbers, as well as event organisers emergency contact and local recovery provider. This was designed to help in the unlikely scenario that a rider became separated from their group.

We made sure to ask permission before distributing everyone’s phone number.

WELCOME BRIEFING SCRIPT Getting everyone organised on the morning of the event can be a little chaotic. We put together a ‘briefing script’ to be printed out and read from in the morning briefing.

Having this script made sure no important info was left out. It also meant that someone else could read it if the event Manager was not available.

GPX ROUTES The Hadrian Adventure Weekend takes participants through Kielder Forest. There are three routes to get through the forest, easy,

medium and hard. We provided run leaders with GPX files for each of these routes so they had options based on the kind of riding their group was looking for.

03: THE EVENT SIGN ON All participants signed on at the start of the Saturday morning. This allowed us to make sure we knew who was there (several didn’t show up) and that we had their signed agreement forms before they started. They were not given their riding group number until they had signed on.

RIDER BRIEFING The event Manager gave a welcome briefing to all participants. This was a friendly way to start the event but also a verbal briefing of the document that everyone had signed, making sure that the important info had been conveyed. A group photo was taken which was fun but also a helpful way of proving who was there at the briefing.

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TRFHandbook DURING THE EVENT Whilst groups were out riding the event Managers were either ‘roaming’ by bike dropping in on groups and being on hand if required, or desk based to co-ordinate or help by phone. This year there was no need for any support or intervention by the event Managers whilst the groups were riding.

AT THE END OF THE DAYS RIDING It was a requirement for each ride leader to check in at the end of the day and confirm that all participants were back safely and report any incidents or accidents. Most did this, and for the two that forgot the event Manager called them and got confirmation before the end of the day. Three minor accidents were reported which were all written up in the accident book. The event Managers were satisfied that all participants were accounted for.

EVENING MEAL The Hadrian Adventure Weekend requires all participants to arrange their own accommodation. There are plenty of camping, B&B, bunkhouse or hotel options close by. We hold an evening meal in a local

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pub as a way of getting everyone together and celebrating the weekend.

04: AFTER THE EVENT QUESTIONNAIRE using the eventbrite system and a Google Form, we send out a questionnaire to all participants in the week after the event. This is a great way to get feedback that helps us shape future events. It’s also a great way for participants to pass on their largely very positive feedback to their run leaders.

SAFE STORAGE All signed forms and accident book are put in a folder and stored by a Committee member for five years after the event.

THE NEXT EVENT? The energy that the Hadrian Adventure Weekend brings to Northumbria TRF is tangible, in the days after volunteers are full of ideas about what we can do next year. Its a great way for people to experience the joy of helping guide others around who are appreciative of their efforts, a real reward for the effort put in. We try to keep that energy going - lets see what we come up with next year!

following businesses are offering Friends of the TRF The discounts to TRF members 58% Discount Suzuki GB bikes.suzuki.co.uk/owners/acu-licence-holders/ On parts for ACu licence holders 38% Discount John Banks Renault on Traffic vans 25% Discount EBC Brakes Direct www.ebcbrakesdirect.com Brake and clutch components Gecko Enduro Tours Guided green-lane tours in the Pyrenees Orientales www.geckoendurotours.eu 20% Discount CCM Spares www.sparesccm.com The place for CCM owners quote membership number Custom Lids www.customlids.co.uk discounts available on all motorcycle clothing Datatag www.datatag.co.uk Quote code TRF2017 Herbert & Ellison discount on seat refurbishment www.herbertellisonupholstery.co.uk/ 15% Discount Cotswold Outdoor www.cotswoldoutdoor.com Cycle Surgery www.cyclesurgery.com Gear 4 Motorcycles www.gear4motorcycles.co.uk WM Moto (Carlisle) www.wmmoto.co.uk Available on parts and selected clothing Adventure Spec Motoz low-impact trail tyres www.adventure-spec.com J&S Oxford www.jsaccessories.co.uk Flexiplates www.flexiplates.co.uk quote code TRF15 Zen Overland www.zenoverland.com

Eurotek KTM (Ripon, Yorks) www.eurotekktm.com Applies to mail order, shop and parts fitted in the workshop The KTM Centre (Hemel Hempstead) www.thektmcentre.co.uk Bikestop www.bikestop Off-road clothing discount Viewranger www.viewranger.com discount on digital maps code: TRF2017 MotoKing www.motoking.co.uk 10% Discount Rally Raid Products www.rally-raidproducts.co.uk discount available on all custom Rally parts Redtread Off-road motorcycle tours in Spain www.redtread.com Midwest Racing www.midwestracing.co.uk Available on parts, accessories and clothing Premier Bikes www.premierbikes.com KTM franchise with discount applying to parts and clothing Endurotek www.endurotek.co.uk Parts and accessories Manchester Xtreme www.manchesterxtreme.com Please quote your TRF membership number PC Advanced Motorcycle Training http://www.cbtanddas.co.uk Bolt Bikes www.boltbikes.co.uk Gerbing www.gerbing.eu discount code is TRF10 EDZ www.edzdirect.com Base-layer clothing discount code is TRFC_10 Variable Rates Centre Trail, France www.centre-trail.com 15 euro cash back on booking

Enduro Tyres www.endurotyres.com Special rates Bike Revival www.bike-revival.co.uk Shock Absorber specialist Trail Rides Wales www.trailrides-wales.com Free guides for members on selected days J&S Oxford www.jsaccessories.co.uk MX Zone www.mxzone.co.uk Centre Trail France centre-trail.com IAM www.iamroadsmart.com Bike Seal bikeseal.co.uk Rewire Security Tracking, cameras, CCTv, alarms www.rewiresecurity.co.uk Dirtbikebitz Bike parts, riding gear and helmets www.dirtbikebitz.com Nomad ADV Lightweight travel & rally gear www.nomad-adv.com Opie Oils & Service Parts https://www.opieoils.co.uk// Fowlers of Bristol http://www.fowlers.co.uk Smith & Allen Lubricants https://www.smithandallan.com Transylvania Trails http://www.transylvaniatrails.com Bikefix discount on servicing and repairs www.facebook.com/Bikefixyeovil Dirtbike Express https://www.dirtbikexpress.co.uk Catalan Adventure 10% off accommodation and 50% off bike hire Fraser’s of Gloucester 5% on spare parts www.frasersmotorcycles.co.uk

Check website for up to date info www.trail.trf.org.uk/members/benefits

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Responsible Rider Not only is the TRF training young riders and new riders, it’s also joining things up by getting the Emergency Services on board ThE TRF pRomoTES respectful and lawful trail riding on green roads across England and Wales. The core mission of green road conservation includes working with authorities if instances of nuisance or illegal riding occur.

Work with police forces around the country encourages an approach that presents the TRF as a way of learning where you can and can’t ride and what behaviours are suitable on green roads.

The use of dual-purpose motorcycles offers a flexible and effective tactical deployment option to a range of Emergency Service providers involved in operations such as searches of urban and rural terrain for persons or property, and security and patrol of large public events.

Their use also provides public reassurance in areas where anti-social or criminal activity is reported. The growing theft and use of scooters

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and smaller capacity motorcycles by organised crime gangs in cities presents a unique challenge for police forces. Dual-purpose motorcycles, perhaps with taser-equipped police riders, provide a highly-visible deterrent.

Smaller dual-purpose motorcycles provide an effective resource in urban environments where their size and adaptability make them particularly useful for deployment and incident resolution.

The Trail Riders Fellowship Learning programme is designed to instruct learners in the safe use of dual-purpose motorcycles on unsealed public roads, byways and any other land, not forming part of a road, in both urban and rural environments.

The terminology ‘dual-purpose motorcycling’ rather than ‘off-road’ is deliberately used. ‘off-road motorcycling’ is inaccurate and

Training unhelpful when considering the use and deployment of motorcycles that are ridden on both sealed and unsealed carriageways, rights of way and any other land not forming part of a road. ‘off road’ tends to build on the assumption that use of dual-purpose motorcycles reduces or removes the legal, social and environmental responsibilities associated with riding motorcycles on the road.

A clear understanding of public access, both on private and open land, provides the information needed for the effective use of any national model to manage and reduce threat, risk and harm to both the rider and a wide range of the public who also enjoy lawful access rights, on foot, horseback or other vehicles.

The TRF Learning programme is designed to cover four specific modules: The legislation surrounding the use of motorcycles on unsealed carriageways, private land and land with public access Social and environmental Impact considerations when using dual-purpose motorcycles on unsealed carriageways

Basic skills when riding dual-purpose motorcycles on unsealed carriageways and other land of any description not forming part of a road First-aid skills in respect of the initial identification and management of the most common types of injuries that may occur if a rider falls from a dual-purpose motorcycle when riding on unsealed carriageways or other land of any description, not forming part of a road The TRF has designed the Learning programme to meet the standards and outcomes in respect of basic dual-purpose riding skills within Emergency Service learning programmes overall and those of their professional bodies. Critically the TRF Learning programme also equips dual-purpose motorcyclists with the knowledge to apply dynamic and planned risk assessment and decision making to reduce the physical, social and environmental threat, risk and harm to our communities.

TRF trainers meet the police sector standard for training delivery and assessment.

The TRF has 43 groups across England and Wales leading to a reduction in travel costs for training. We also offer web-based training modules for certain aspects of the course, a cost-effective measure when compared to traditional training. We are the leading organisation promoting lawful and responsible motorcycle access to our 6000-mile network of green roads. The TRF is the largest club within the ACU, the national governing body for motorcycle sport, with membership numbers approaching 6000.

At http://www.trf.org.uk/police/ you can learn about some of our activities with the police designed to tackle anti-social behaviour on motorcycles, particularly the educating of riders in South Wales and the peak District.

As a gesture of support, the TRF encourages membership for serving police officers engaged with motorcycle duties relevant to the TRF. As well as Emergency Services, the TRF has active relationships with the DVSA, RospA and IAm, which ensures alignment and accreditation with their respective learning programmes. There is a recognition that dual-purpose motorcycle training enhances riding skills, building on hazard perception and recognition, machine control, planning operations and dynamic risk assessment.

Contact: police@trf.org.uk http://www.trf.org.uk/police/

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1 Cornwall TRF Contact: Martin Goddard | admin@cornwalltrf.org.uk | 07787522674 | http://www.cornwalltrf.org.uk Meeting details: 3rd Thursday of the month, 8pm at The Hawkins Arms, Zelah, TR4 9HU 2 Devon TRF Contact: John Heal | johnheal@blueyonder.co.uk | 01626 832413 http://www.trfdevon.org.uk/ Meeting details: 2nd Tuesday of the month, 7:30pm at The Dolphin Hotel, Station Road, Dolphin Square, Bovey Tracey, TQ13 9AL 3 Somerset TRF Contact: Josh Cook | keeperjhc@hotmail.co.uk | 07590 281296 http://www.somerset-trf.org.uk Meeting details: 1st Thursday of the month, 7:30pm, at The Maypole, Thurloxton, Taunton, TA2 8RF 4 Dorset TRF Contact: John Williamson | wjwilliamson@btinternet.com | 01929 553640 | http://dorset-trf.org.uk/ | http://www.facebook.com/groups/1655657811402165 Meeting details: 1st Tuesday of the month, 8pm at The Royal Oak Hotel, Bere Regis, BH20 7HQ 5 Isle of Wight TRF Contact: Andy Hawkins | 01462 811654 Meeting details: 1st Wednesday of the month, 8pm at The Eight Bells Inn, Carisbrooke, Newport, PO30 1NR 6 Southern TRF Contact: Ben Plummer | twine007@me.com | 07769652656 | http://www.southern-trf.org.uk/ Meeting details: 3rd Thursday of the month, 8pm at Southampton & District MCC, Cranbury Centre, Cranbury Road, Eastleigh, SO50 5HT 7 Central Bristol TRF Contact: Darth Speede | hello@centralbristoltrf.co.ukv | 07766090190 http://www.facebook.com/cbtrf/ Meeting details: 3rd Tuesday of the month, 8pm at the Nova Scotia Hotel, 1 Nova Scotia Place, Hotwells, Bristol, BS1 6XJ 8 Bristol TRF Contact: Glen Summers | mail@trfbristol.org.uk | 01454 619246 | http://www.trfbristol.org.uk/ Meeting details: 4th Monday of the month, 8pm at The Portcullis, 130 High Street, Staple Hill, BS16 5HH 9 Wiltshire TRF Contact: Jim Cairndu | trf.wiltshire@gmail.com | 07840 352996 | http://www.wiltshiretrf.com | http://www.facebook.com/groups/WiltshireTRF | http://www.facebook.com/wiltshiretrf/?fref=ts Meeting details: 1st Tuesday of the month, 8pm at The Fox and Hounds, Nursteed Road, Devizes, SN10 3HJ 10 Loddon Vale TRF Contact: Dave Carlingv | http://www.lvtrf.co.uk/ committee@lvtrf.org.uk | Meeting details: 2nd Tuesday of the month, 8pm, The Swan, Basingstoke Road, Three Mile Cross, Reading, RG7 1AT 11 Sussex TRF Contact: Andy Wardrobe | sussex@trf.org.uk | 07414 529298 http://www.sussextrf.org.uk Meeting details: last Thursday of the month, 8pm at Ashington Village Hall, Mill Lane, Ashington, RH20 3BX

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For the latest details go to: trail.trf.org.uk/groups/

12 Kent TRF Contact: Steve Neville | sneville@blueyonder.co.uk | 07887 478552 http://www.kentishtrf.org.uk Meeting details: Last Sunday of the month, ride leaves at 9.30am, The Oakdene Cafe, Wrotham, TN15 7RR 13 South London & Surrey TRF Contact: Tony Rowlands | grouprep@surreytrf.org.uk | 07772 333328 http://www.surreytrf.org.uk/ Meeting details: 4th Tuesday of the month at 8:30pm, Ripley British Legion, 25 Rose Lane, Ripley, GU23 6NE 14 Oxford TRF Contact: Martin Welch | chairman@oxford.org.uk | http://www.oxfordtrf.org.uk/ Meeting details: 3rd Thursday of the month at 8pm @ The Original Swan, Oxford Road, Cowley, OX4 2LF 15 Gloucestershire TRF Contact: James Osborne | hello@trfglos.org | 01531 822728 Meeting details: 1st wednesday of the month, 8pm at the Wagon Works Club, Tuffley Avenue, Gloucester, GL1 5NS 16 Hertfordshire TRF Contact: Mark Brown / join@hertstrf.org.uk | 07958 506066 | http://www.hertstrf.org.uk/ http://www.facebook.com/groups/HertsTRF/ Meeting details: 2nd Wednesday of the month at 7pm, different venues around London and North Home Counties Schedule on Facebook or contact local rep 17 Essex TRF Contact: Graham Coker | 07789 922537 graham@cokerg.freeserve.co.uk Meeting details: 1st Wednesday of the month, 8pm at The White Horse 2 Church Street, Witham, CM8 2JL 18 Suffolk TRF Contact: Colin Poutney | vraptor@ntlworld.com | 07981 116310 Meeting details: First Monday of the month, 8pm at The Three Kings, Fornham All Saints, Bury St Edmunds, IP28 6LA 19 Norfolk TRF Contact: Rupert Trigg / info@norfolktrf.org.uk | 07899 918276 | http://www.norfolktrf.org.uk | http://www.facebook.com/groups/norfolktrf/ Meeting details: 2nd Wednesday of the month, 7:30pm at The White Horse, Trowse, Norwich, NR14 8ST 20 Cambridge TRF Contact: Andy Lonnen | 07753820520 | newmembers@cambstrf.org.uk http://www.facebook.com/TRF-Cambridgeshire-624123620992268/ | http://www.cambstrf.org.uk/ Meeting details: 3rd Thursday of the month, 8pm at St Ives Outdoor Leisure Centre, California Road, St Ives, PE27 6SJ 21 West Anglia TRF Contact: Geoff Groom | ggroom@btinternet.com | 07929 275465 Meeting details: 1st and 3rd Thursday of the month, 8:30pm the Scott Bader Social Club, 122 High Street, opp Parish Church, Wollaston, Wellingborough, NN29 7RJ 22 West Midlands TRF Contact: Steve Whetton | enquiries@westmidlandstrf.co.uk | 01527 451089 / http://www.westmidlandstrf.co.uk Meeting details: 1st and 3rd Wednesday of the month, 8pm at Wilmcote Sports and Social Club, 16 Aston Cantlow Road, Wilmcote, Stratford upon Avon, CV37 9XX 23 Worcestershire TRF Contact: David Walters | davidwalters101@hotmail.co.uk | 07767 204730 Meeting details: 1st Tuesday of the month, 7:30pm at The White Hart Fernhill Heath, WR3 8RP 24 Herefordshire TRF Contact: Graham Hutton | graham.hutton671@btinternet.com | 07581023924 Meeting details: 1st Tuesday of the month, 8 pm at the New Inn, Fownhope, Herefordshire, HR1 4PE 25 Mid Wales TRF Contact: Marianne Walford | 01686 430522 marianne@trailrides-wales.com | http://www.facebook.com/groups/354419968236284/ Meeting details: Last Thursday of the month except December, no fixed venue.

26 South Wales TRF Contact: Christian James | christian@swtrf.org.uk | 01446 410073 Meeting details: 1st Thursday of the month at 8pm at the Ty Nant Inn, Nr Radyr, Morganstown, CF15 8LB

27 South West Wales TRF Contact: Rob Williams | rwmotobiker@aol.com | 07974 102372 Meeting details: Last Thursday of the month, 7pm at Hagans Café and Fish & Chip Shop, 2 Pensarn Road, Pensarn, Carmarthen, SA31 2BS 28 Shropshire TRF Contact: Mike Price | alwynmike@hotmail.com | 07718902682 Meeting details: 3rd Thursday of the month, 7.30pm the Acton Arms, Morville, WV16 4RJ 29 East Midlands TRF Contact: Lee Jordan | lee@jordaninstall.co.uk | http://emtrf.co.uk/ Meeting details: 2nd Wednesday of the month, 8pmthe Clock Warehouse, London Road, Shardlow, Derby, DE72 2GL 30 Lincolnshire TRF Contact: Nev Cooke | cookie60@btinternet.com | 07845 067047 | http://www.facebook.com/groups/253106844849995/ Meeting details: 1st Thursday of the month, 8pm Woodys, Woodland Waters, Willoughby Road, Ancaster, Grantham, NG32 3RT 31 Peak District TRF Contact: Alan Gilmore | a.gilmore_home@outlook.com | 07807818542 Meeting details: 1st Thursday of the month, 8pm the Fisherman‘s Rest Belper, DE56 2JF 32 High Peak & Potteries TRF Contact: Russ Unwin | russ.u@hotmail.com | 07968 770629 Meeting details: 2nd Thursday of the month, 8pm The Black Horse, Endon, Stoke-on-Trent, ST9 9BA 33 Derbyshire & South Yorkshire TRF Contact: Bob Morley | bobmorleycbs@gmail.com | https://www.facebook.com/SOUTHYORKSHIRETRF/ Meeting details: 2nd Tuesday of the month, 8pm the Dusty Miller, Sheffield Road, Barlborough, S43 4TW 34 North Wales TRF Contact: Neil “Timpo“ Thompson | timpo@bikerider.com | 07980 555874 / http://www.facebook.com/NorthWalesTRF/ Meeting details: 1st Wednesday of the month, 8pm The Burntwood Pub, 26 Burntwood Road, Buckley, CH7 3EN 35 Manchester TRF Contact: Phil Kinder | philmancunian@googlemail.com | 07809647293 http://www.facebook.com/groups/13477365684/ Meeting details: 4th Monday of the month, 8:30pm at The Sycamore Inn, 4 Stamford Square, Ashton under Lyne, OL6 6QX 36 Lancashire TRF Contact: Keith Westley | keith.westley@outlook.com | 01704 893215 http://www.facebook.com/TRFLancashire/ Meeting details: 1st Tuesday of the month, 8pm The Rigbye Arms 2 Whittle Lane, High Moor, Wrightinton, WN6 9QB 37 West Yorkshire TRF Contact: Tim McEnhill | info@wytrf.org.uk | http://www.wytrf.org.uk Meeting details: 1st Thursday of the month, 7:30pm Cue Garden, Stadium Mills, Stadium Road, Bradford, BD6 1BJ 38 East Yorkshire TRF Contact: Julian Mamo | julian.mamo1@googlemail.com | 07583694431 http://www.facebook.com/groups/959312044201559/ Meeting details: 2nd Tuesday of the month, 7:30pm the Bay Horse Inn, 75 Market Place, Market Weighton, York, YO43 3AN 39 Ribble Valley TRF Contact: Paul Stewart or Gary Barker | admin@ribblevalleytrf.org | 07791 934041 or 07711 064574 / http://www.ribblevalleytrf.org Meeting details: 1st Tuesday of the month, bi-monthly, at 8.00pm commencing 5th June 2018 Contact rep for full details. The Petre Arms, Whalley Road, Blackburn, BB6 8AN 40 Teesside & North Yorkshire TRF Contact: Leo Crone | leocronektm1190r@outlook.com | 01325 463815 http://www.facebook.com/groups/teessidenorthyorkshiretrf Meeting details: 3rd Wednesday of the month, 7:30pm The Lord Nelson, 40-41 St James Green, Thirsk, YO7 1AQ 41 Cumbria & Craven TRF Contact: Nigel Summers nigel_summers@sky.com | 07891 403992 http://www.facebook.com/groups/1631280750485319/ Meeting details: 2nd Tuesday of the month, 7:30pm the Cross Keys Inn Milnethorpe, LA7 7AB 42 TyneWear Teesdale Contact: Paul Smith | smip694@aol.com | 07980 144446 Meeting details: 4th Tuesday of the month, 7:30pm The Golden Jubilee Pub, Yarm, TS15 9XN 43 Northumbria TRF Contact: Greg Villalobos | ride@northumbriatrf.org.uk | http://www.northumbriatrf.org.uk/ Meeting details: 1st Wednesday of the month, 7:30pm The Staffs Club, Blaydon, NE21 4JB

TRFGroups NORFOLK Club Night: Second Wednesday in each month Start Time: 7.30pm for 8.00pm Location: The White Horse, Trowse, Norwich Website: www.norfolktrf.org.uk FB: www.facebook.com/NorfolkTrf/ NORFOLk TRF IS a thriving club that continues to grow with an active membership exceeding 150, having grown from just over 50 in the last Five years. We host a well-attended club night, with spirited banter, friendly debate and a beer covering some of the key issues affecting trail riders including rights of way. New members are always welcome and whenever possible we try to bring in a guest speaker including first aid demonstrations. Several members have also recently attended Biker Down courses, showing our commitment to fun and safe riding. Further event training in conjunction with the national TRF is also planned.

Norfolk TRF has a closed Facebook group with details about rides or events that are happening.

Non-members are given access for four to six weeks in order to see what goes on and take part in rides. A monthly newsletter is sent out via email following club night for those unable to attend.

In terms of our rides and events, we can be found taking advantage of the beauty and charm of the surrounding local area with regular rideouts throughout Norfolk and Suffolk and trips to some of the gems of the Norfolk coastline, such as Wells-On-Sea or Hunstanton, or further inland through Thetford Forest.

As a club we regularly organise trips beyond the local area. Over the past three years we’ve been to France as well as the Isle Of Man, which with its clearly signposted routes and natural scenery is a must for any trail rider. We also organise regular

“Since joining the TRF I have met a lot of lovely people, some who are now very good friends. If we are on a ride out and someone has an issue with their bike, everyone pulls together to get things sorted. To me, the TRF stands for my ‘Trail Riding Family’. “

trips to both North and South Wales.

The highlight of the club calendar remains the well attended Iceni Ride. Organised with Suffolk TRF, it sees 90+ riders come from around the country to take part in organised rides throughout Suffolk and Norfolk. Last year extra run leaders were required for the Norfolk area, meaning a number of our riders were provided with leader training.

At the end of it all, we make sure the funds raised by the event go to good causes in 2018 this meant that the proceeds were donated to the charity Headway. Our increased activity, membership and fundraising has allowed us to make donations to national causes, most recently to Stonehenge, and in aid of supporting national TRF goals.

The Norfolk group is best summed up by some of our member comments that were made in a recent survey:

“A sign that the local ride outs are successful are the smiles and banter after every ride.

Great friends and a family feel to meetings.

And should anyone be struggling help is always there.”

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CENTRAL BRISTOL Club night: Third Wednesday of the month Start time: 8 pm – 9.30pm Location: The Nova Scotia, 1 Nova Scotia Pl, Bristol BS1 6XJ Website: centralbristoltrf.co.uk/ FB: www.facebook.com/cbtrf/ TRAINING, TRIALS, TeNTS, Trips and a bit of S&M for good measure It’s been another quiet year for CBTRF – we like to keep our heads down and avoid controversy.

In between the bread and butter of trail riding we have tried to give a bit back to our beloved Fellowship and fellow riders in various ways.

Training We like to both give and receive. Training is about improving our own skills and helping others improve theirs. Our rider skills trainer and event manager Dean Allen has provided four days delivering a range of training from trials and enduro skills for beginners to more advanced riders. Two of us, Byron Williams and Alcuin Wilkie, completed the ACU Clerk of the Course Trials training. In October Dean completed his ACU provisional coach training and then Alcuin and Dean completed an advanced first aid training for trail riders course hosted in Haggs Bank Bunkhouse, Cumbria.

Trials Long distance trials to be specific. We have had more members entering these than any other year and they have found these a great way to ride new green roads, ride legally on private land, have fun and improve their riding skills (by falling off frequently and observing others falling off).

Tents In August, we organised our own fun trial and family camping weekend in a field belonging to one of our members Mark Griffiths. Fortunately, another member, Jon Williams, provided a large marquee so we could shelter from the August rain and have our barbecue in the dry. It was a true family event with great food, a camp fire and opportunities for riders of all ages.

Trips Tents were also a big part of our annual August trip to the Isle of Man – the highlight of which was a guided tour by Tom knight of his and his uncle’s practice areas. Tom knight (nephew of enduro legends David – son of Juan) is a fantastic semi-pro rider whose skills left me in total awe:

‘How the hell did he do that?’. Our other annual trip was to Dollgellau, Snowdonia in June. The long dry spell meant that some of the more challenging lanes were relatively easy. Despite this or maybe because of it one of our group had a nasty off and ended up with a badly fractured collar bone – emphasising the importance of first-aid training.

‘Give me Central Bristol TRF or give me death.’

Austin Vince, February 2018 Sadomasochism Which brings us nicely onto this topic: ‘the giving or receiving of pleasure from acts involving the receipt or infliction of pain or humiliation’. Why do we partake of a leisure activity that involves falling off motorbikes, breaking down, getting covered in mud and being wet, cold and exhausted? Could some of it be to do with the pleasure we derive from seeing others suffering? Our fancy dress Christmas ride last year was to Devon and included Simms Hill – a well-known rocky competitive hill climb. This is the conversation between Dean and Alex, as Alex was falling off for the fourth time halfway up the hill (you must imagine Alex dressed as Tigger and Dean in a suit and tie): A: “Fucking get out of the way then! Fuck! [falls over] You got in the way!”

D: “What did you go round the back of me bike for?”

A: “Because you always park it in the fucking easiest place to go up!”

How very true! Happy Christmas all.

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TRFGroups CUMBRIA Club Night: Second Tuesday in each month at two seperate venues; Start Time: 7.30 pm Location: The Cross keys, Milnthorpe and every third meet is at the eden Hall Hotel, Penrith FB: www.facebook.com/cumbriatrf CUMBRIA TRF IS a small club of about 110 members covering a large county. Within the boundaries of the county there is also the Lake District National Park which is a highly sensitive area as are all national parks in the Uk. The riding is very varied, (as varied as the weather), but predominantly the trails are rocky with lots of changes in gradient. River crossings are also a feature of the county and some are shallow and inconsequential, others are only to be used when the water levels are suitable.

Club members are very passionate about their trails and play a large part in looking after them, working in partnership with all of the authorities and locals. Our group meetings are well attended and we use them to catch up, have a beer and arrange ride outs. Our communication is via email and our Facebook group. We also run regular training sessions for members on riding skills, trail repairs, run leader skills, navigation and anything else we can think of.

We have an agreement in place within the boundaries of the National Park that our riding groups are not larger than six bikes.

As we are adjacent to Lancashire, the Yorkshire Dales National Park, Northumberland and County

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Durham, all of which have excellent riding, we regularly visit these areas as well. There are often trips to Wales, the Isle of Man and some of our members get abroad on a regular basis.

We do not run any events in the county at this time and have no plans to in the near future. This is mainly because the county received 47 million visitors in 2018 and the infrastructure of the county has been struggling to keep up with the growth, especially since the inception of the World Heritage status so our feeling is to add more is inviting controversy. We are happy to show other TRF groups around at any time and just need some notice to ďŹ nd volunteer leaders.

DEVON Club Night: Second Tuesday of the month Start Time: 7.30pm Location: Dolphin Hotel, Station Rd, Dolphin Square, Bovey Tracey TQ13 9AL Website: www.trfdevon.org.uk/ DeVON IS ONe of the biggest counties in england, therefore unsurprisingly, we also have one of the biggest groups with over 350 members associated with the county. Why is that? Well, the answer is easy, but a combination of a number of things which add up to being THe county for trail riding.

We have over 1000 legal lanes, fully documented, with overlays for all mapping software kept up to the minute by riders who enjoy these diverse lanes on a daily basis. The undisputed legality of these lanes has been exhaustively researched by trail riding legends within the county, who have invested vast hours of their own time to provide a legacy and resource for future trail riders within as well as outside our county.

We welcome dozens of groups into the county every year from all over the Uk, providing run leaders, gpx routes and suggestions regarding accommodation and where to find a decent cream tea (cream first….) across the whole county.

We work hand in glove with Devon rights of way and countryside access forums to validate our good works, which include lane clearing for all users, lane restoration and participation in the Parish P3 scheme. We literally build bridges (Ashwell) (http://www.trf.org.uk/building-bridges/) with co-rights of way users from ramblers to South West horse riders. We’ve earned their respect and have a seat at the table when discussing pragmatic outcomes to rights of way issues.

We are passionate about Devon and the right to ride across our diverse landscape from moor to sea, ruts and slabs, stones and stream, hills and vale. We have monthly meetings in Bovey Tracey (http://www.trfdevon.org.uk/) which are inclusive and broad ranging, including practical tips for trail riding as well as covering important aspects of lane clearing and rights of way. We strive to strike the correct balance between being a riding group and rights of way lobby and we think we’ve got it right, just ask the folk who visit the county and the council that runs it…. A classic example of what we offer is the annual weekend where we set up accommodation and run leaders for visitors to come down and enjoy the hospitality we can offer – from the sites we choose to the lanes we ride, catering from beginners to those looking to ‘push on’. Just ask anyone who’s been down – they’ll tell

you. For those within the local area we run regular ‘fun days’ where for a nominal fee that goes into the TRF coffers, you can ride on private land across varying terrain from stubble fields to gnarly woodland, often areas used for enduros, but at a pace suited to you. It embraces both the sociable aspects of being a TRF member and the inner child looking to have fun ‘off road’. If you love bikes, enjoy riding in the countryside with a bit of company then we are kindred spirits. Join us.

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TRFGroups EAST YORKS Club Night: Second Tuesday in the month Start Time: 7.30pm Location: Londesborough Arms, 44 High St, Market Weighton, York YO43 3AH FB: www.facebook.com/groups/959312044201559 THe eAST RIDING of Yorkshire is a ceremonial county in Northern england. The clay terrain is mainly flat, however we do have a rift of chalk undulations that form the Yorkshire Wolds which hosts the oldest horse race in england. The kiplingcotes Derby has taken place every year since 1519 and is run every Spring on public roads including a prominent ‘green’ lane, aptly named ‘kiplingcotes Race Course’.

We meet at 7.30pm on the second Tuesday of the month at the Londesborough Arms in the historic town of Market Weighton, situated between Hull and York We have about 25 attendees at our meetings with around 70 members in total and consider ourselves to be friendly bunch of people with common interests of trail riding, tea breaks and a bacon sandwiches!

A ‘taster’ local ride every month for new members is offered which gives an idea as to what can be expected. Apart from our local lanes, we often venture up to North Yorkshire or occasionally over the Humber bridge to Lincolnshire for our daily thrills and spills. Long weekends in the North Yorkshire Moors, Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District satisfy the more adventurous riders.

This year the Group helped the organisers of three charity fundraising Tractor Runs, two in North Yorkshire and a local run within our own region. We offer volunteer marshalling to increase the safety for all involved, which is always very much appreciated, and also enables us to socialise and integrate with farmers and landowners and promote a more healthy relationship. The events also allow us to ride on routes not normally available to us.

We also held a successful fundraising evening in aid of the Yorkshire Air Ambulance which presented ‘the unforgettable Austin Vince experience’. Two local rounds of the RAW enduro series, which is run at the Driffield based army vehicle training ground, offered more opportunities to get involved with marshalling duties.

A small group travelled part of the Uk TeT in July this year, from Hexham through to Skipton, covering 800 miles door to door with the six days limited time allotted. Two brave lads tackled the wilds of Alaska! And a couple are presently riding the ‘Pony express’ trail in mid America!

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LODDON VALE Club Night: Second Tuesday of every month Start Time: 8pm Location: The Swan, Three Mile Cross, Reading RG7 1AT Web: www.lvtrf.co.uk Email: joinus@lvtrf.co.uk BASeD IN THe heart of the Thames Valley, Loddon Vale TRF (LVTRF) is an active and social group of over 150 members enjoying and conserving the local green roads of Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hampshire, Wiltshire and Oxfordshire.

Our key aims include: building strong working relationships with local councils to ensure better access to green roads. engaging with local trial riders to advocate responsible, safe and sustainable riding. Creating an active and engaged group to arrange regular rides to enjoy the lanes of the area. We utilise an increasing number of ways to raise funds for the group’s lane maintenance activities as well as supporting the national Fighting Fund.

We try to increase rider skill levels through formal training days as well as rides aimed at developing riders’ ability at all levels. We also arrange for members to attend the local BikerDown course as well as building a stronger relationship with the local group of the Institute of Advanced Motoring (IVAM).

We have a monthly ride out on the third Sunday of every month and 2018 has seen members invited to over 50 ride outs. We also arrange at least two “Dirty Weekends” a year, 2018 seeing trips to Mid-Wales and South Devon.

An active Rights of Road (RoR) team work with Berkshire, Hampshire and Buckinghamshire councils arranging lane clearance days as well as specific lane repair projects such as the one in

Langrish in Hampshire. A monthly RoR email keeps members up to date with the status of TROs and conservation work. Our newsletter “Tails from the Trails” shares news with our group members.

Our monthly club nights at The Swan in Three Mile Cross on the outskirts of Reading often feature guest speakers and knowledge sharing evenings on subjects including GPS, map reading and route planning, as well as discussions on local Rights of Road issues.

A dedicated committee work hard on behalf of the group’s members and are keen to welcome more young and female members. Our oldest member, “Rockety Ron”, is still leading popular rides and is over 80!

The members are a social bunch, with lots of banter on our Facebook page and forum, where you can always find an answer to a question.

Members are always quick to lend a hand and this year we introduced the “Rabconda Register” for those looking for some help changing a tyre.

We welcome members from other groups into the area and will find a route or run leader for those that want it. We are looking forward to expanding the group’s activities on all fronts in the year ahead.

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TRFGroups ESSEX Club Night: First Wednesday of the month Start Time: 8.00pm Location: The White Horse, Church St, Witham CM8 2JL FB: www.facebook.com/essex-TRF eSSeX TRF HAS seen something of a resurgence in the last 18 months with membership doubling to 157 members (as of 10/2018). About a year ago we changed our meeting place to the White Horse in Witham and this has proved to be a popular venue with our monthly meetings now well supported.

This is a great starting place for any new members with a wealth of experience from some old hands as well as recent learnings from some of the newer members. New members can discuss the pros and cons of different bikes, find some likeminded people to ride with and most importantly find out where to ride legally.

As the membership has increased we have tried to make sure that events and ride outs have grown in line. In 2018 we were treated to the irreverence that is Austin Vince and as you would expect tickets for this sold out very quickly. We aim to do something similar in 2019 as it’s a great way of bringing the members together, many of whom can’t make the monthly meetings.

A highlight of the calendar this year has been two enduro-style fun days, where we have hired some private land and set out a novice friendly course to allow riders of all ages and experiences to test themselves and their machines. The youngest rider this year was only 13 and I’m not going to guess what age the oldest member was!

Another event that the club is involved in jointly with Braintree & District Motorcycle Club is the Stisted Long Distance Trial which is always well attended by club members. In 2018 to help

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novices get ready for the event we ran a Roadbook training evening to explain how it all works and help them get around on the day. essex TRF members also like to get out and around the rest of the Uk. Wales, Thetford Forest and Yorkshire are just three places that have been visited this year, either on a self-organised basis or as part of another TRF organised event. In 2019 we intend to run a larger trip to Wales to the Sweet Lamb Complex for some riding and training as headlined in a recent edition of Trail magazine.

Club communications have taken a step forward as we have been brought kicking and screaming into the new millennium and now have an active Closed to Members Facebook page, but don’t worry if that’s all foreign to you as we also send out emails about ride outs and other events.

Our increased activity has led to increased Club Funds. We have been able to make a donation to the TRF Old Coach Road Fund as well as some other local charities. Other funds will be reinvested into improving the club and the member numbers.

Some of our plans for 2019 are above, but we also intend to train some Clerks of the Course for events and have more novice-focussed ride outs.

NORTHUMBRIA Club Night: First wednesday of the month Start Time: 7.30pm Location: The Staffs Club, Blaydon Ne21 4JB Web: www.northumbriatrf.org.uk FB: facebook.com/groups.northumbriatrf/ Email: ride@northumbriatrf.org.uk 2018 HAS BeeN a great year for Northumbria TRF. It really feels like the club is maturing as more members get involved and begin to take on volunteer roles that help us have more impact in the region. In particular, I’ve been really impressed with the way new members have stepped up and created a system for making sure we have at least one and often many more newbie-friendly runs every month. It really makes a difference knowing that we now have a pathway for helping completely new members to get out and ride for the first time – you can see those involved really forming a tight riding/friendship group. Those guys will be running the club soon!

Northumbria is fortunate to have what is possibly the most remote and wild riding in the country. That’s not to say we don’t have our own set of challenges. There are several green roads that can be sensitive in poor weather and we are working harder than ever to get people to think about the conditions before they ride. We’ve also made good connections with Northumberland and Durham County Councils, our conversations are now positive and collaborative rather than adversarial.

Hexham Lane was subject to a high-profile fundraising campaign a couple of years ago and we’re happy to say that it is fairing well since being reopened. One of our members took the initiative and orchestrated a project to donate

and fit much needed gates on the lane – a great use of our club funds.

Finally, the highlight of this year has to be the Hadrian Adventure Weekend 2018. We’re now into our fourth year of hosting this event and I can’t say enough great things about all the NTRF members who volunteered to help make it such a success. We sold out in less than a day (with over 20 on the waiting list!) and all the run leaders and tail enders took on their roles with professionalism. I couldn’t be more proud of the team, thank you everyone. It looks like our TRF guests enjoyed themselves too! Working with the Forestry Commission to access kielder Forest is a unique experience and we’re now exploring ideas for more events that take us into other forest areas. Fantastic!

I will be stepping down from my role as NTRF Chairman this year, it’s a role I’ve thoroughly enjoyed for about three years but as my family grows my free time shrinks! I’ll still be on the Committee though…

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TRFGroups MID WALES Club Night: Third or fourth Thursday of the month Location: Variable, notified by Facebook and email to group members Group Secretary: marianne@trailrideswales.com New members: andrewjeprice@yahoo.co.uk FB: www.facebook.com/groups/354419968236284 Mid-Wales TRF is blessed with the most glorious countryside to ride in, so we will let the pictures do the talking. True to its rural nature, it is run in a hit-and-miss fashion by a bunch of well-meaning but forgetful people. Mobile signal and super-fast broadband are still to visit many of us, but if you want to get away from it all – it’s the place to be.

In 2018 we became more outgoing, and we hope to increase our activities again in 2019. Our charity for 2018 was the Brecon Mountain Rescue Team, to which we donated £1985. In 2019 it is the Royal Agricultural Benevolent Society and other small local charities which support farming communities.

Events for 2019 include: 4 and 5 May: Red Ride for owners of Honda CRF250L and Rally motorcycles only, riding from Dolgellau.

31 August: the Mid Wales Meander, with ride outs provisionally going from Sennybridge, knighton, Welshpool, Newtown, Staylittle, Ponterwyd and Machynlleth 1 September: the Hafren Hunt, a treasure hunt for teams of 2, 3 or 4 in the Mid Wales area December: Santa Run in early December where participants must wear festive costumes whilst riding.

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SOMERSET Club Night: First Thursday of the month Start Time: 7.30pm Location: The Maypole, Thurloxton, Taunton TA2 8RF Website: www.somerset-trf.org.uk Email: keeperjhc@hotmail.co.uk (Group Rep, Josh Cook) Welcome to Somerset TRF Group!

With the challenges we have in Somerset following the NeRC legislation and the re-classification en masse of the RUPPS to Restricted Byways, we needed to explore new ideas to allow our members to ride in a hassle free environment.

In 2010 we made the acquaintance of one of the largest private forest owners on exmoor and by October we had initiated our exmoor Forest Ride Days, a fun day for all riders in beautiful private forests on exmoor. A main loop around the forest of three or four miles is achievable for all riders; off the main loop are numerous sub-loops of varying difficulty. The format and ethos of these events has remained unchanged for 16 events over the eight years, with club members and family undertaking all the work including the set up and post-event clearing up along with the high-quality catering. With thanks to the support of riders from across the Uk, our rider numbers have increased progressively with the April 2018 event, reaching 465 riders. To ensure we can adequately manage these events and control risks, going forward we have restricted entries to TRF members only. We and the landowner are keen to encourage junior riders into the TRF family so it is free entry for under 16s, accompanied by a TRF adult.

Apart from these large, twice-yearly fund raising ‘open’ events, we also run STRF Club only fun days in various forests and our very popular ‘Connected Ride’ where we split into groups of up to eight riders, A ride leader takes the group on a mystery tour in a number of forests ‘connected’ togetherin some cases by UCRs and some minor roads; a pub lunch and out for the second half.

We also actively organise a number of more traditional trail rides on the UCRs of Somerset and into other Uk counties. Long weekends in Wales, Isle of Man, Spain, Greece, Romania, Portugal and France also are a part of the group’s trail riding adventures.

In August 2018 we ran our first ACU sanctioned trial, ‘The Griffin Trial’. A long-distance trial with a new format that takes the structure of our Connected Ride and throws in 18 trials sections to test the best. We had a full entry of 80 riders for

this inaugural event that from all the very positive feedback was a great success.

While Somerset’s traditional trail riding was seemingly devastated by NeRC back in 2007, the group has grown from strength to strength with numbers significantly higher than ever before, with monthly meetings typically having 40-plus members attending. All as a result of some creativity, organisation and enthusiasm as well as giving what our members say they want; a good social group with riding.

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TRFGroups HERTFORDSHIRE Club Night: Second Wednesday of the month Start Time: 7.00pm Location: Various, schedule on Facebook Web: www.hertstrf.org.uk FB: www.facebook.com/groups/HertsTRF HeRTS TRF IS currently the largest TRF group at comfortably over 400 members. We are a fastgrowing group, up from around 80 members a few years back. Having grown steadily we are the only TRF group to ever grow to this size.

Our aim is to give Herts TRF members access to the resources to be amongst the best informed, skilled and courteous trail riders within the TRF. We focus on supporting three key areas: 1. Offering our members more rides at all levels – up to three local rides a week at times. For national events there will always be a large contingent of Herts TRF travelling members offering shared van space and bike support. We cater for all abilities and introduced the popular regular short “beginners run” format into the TRF. More challenging runs are also readily available from our 20 or so regular run leaders and network of friendly TRF members in other regions.

2. Training – Herts TRF currently offer training in five key areas. These are basic trail and ”offroad” training, run leader training, GPS/Garmin navigation, road conservation, and, of course, low-cost certified first-aid training. For young riders, Herts TRF pioneered the post CBT course for new riders featured in Summer 2018 Trail.

Herts TRF will play a big role in driving TRF training nationally in the future.

3. Road Conservation – of course our main aim is to conserve green roads. Herts TRF has 16 Road Conservation (RC) officers covering Herts and neighbouring counties and we are at the forefront of TRF RC Strategy and setting best practice example in this area. We offer assistance to neighbouring groups when required.

Being close to London, Herts TRF is a diverse group of members – from barristers to builders, land owners to labourers all with a common love of trail riding. We are working hard on attracting teenage riders to the TRF and offer free access to second-hand equipment for young riders and post CBT training. Female riders are increasingly well represented and include Donna Gray, former British Ladies enduro Champion and Louise Hodgkinson, 2017 BMW GS Trophy Female qualifier. We are particularly proud to have a keen new lady starter rider, Carmen Pinto, as this year’s most promising new member. With so many members, if you need any help there is always a

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Herts TRF member who can assist you. As busy Londoners our communication is mainly done via our Facebook group. We always welcome newcomers and all TRF members are welcome to reach out to us via our open FB group where we are happy to help. In addition to FB we have monthly email news, a Whats App emergency group, regular monthly meetings in the winter months and social meetings in the summer.

Herts Member Benefits – in addition to all the standard TRF member benefits we are the first group to offer members full access to all of the sustainable routes for motorcycles on the webbased Green Road Map. We also have a Garmin base-map version for Summer and Winter routes.

Come and meet us – all trail riders are welcome to get in touch with Herts TRF for our Saturday social rides from Royston or Dunstable Downs. On the Dunstable Downs ride you will ride the route taken by the first ever TRF ride.

In 1970 in Herts the original TRF first welcomed members to join, and we look forward to continuing to do so throughout 2019 and into the future.

SOUTH LONDON & SURREY Club Night: Fourth Tuesday in each month Start Time: 8:30pm Location: Royal British Legion, Ripley, Surrey GU23 6Ne Website: www.surreytrf.org.uk/ Forum: forum.surreytrf.org.uk/ THe SOUTH LONDON and Surrey TRF group send warmest greetings to fellow trail riders across the country. We are proud to be a part of an organisation which brings people together from different walks of life to enjoy and protect our local green road networks and to promote responsible trail riding.

We are apparently the third largest TRF group and are still striving to overtake Mario’s Herts TRF who are in second place. We do this by offering a warm welcome to new members at our club nights and having an active forum where new and old members can get involved and sign up to one of our regular runs, led by our dedicated run leaders.

Our local green road network is not as large as some groups’, but it is certainly varied. From the ancient green roads which ascend the chalky North Downs between Guildford and Dorking, to the boulder strewn trails around the spectacular natural amphitheatre of the Devil’s Punch Bowl: visitors are always impressed.

We have a small and dedicated team of local heroes who work hard to protect our trails and our rights. We have worked with Surrey County Council to sign post every byway with information about user rights and how to report illegal use. We successfully petitioned the Council to change their Constitution to include a Code of Best Practice in Rights of Way decision making.

We haven’t lost a trail since.

We actively promote the TRF Code of Conduct, recognising our role as ambassadors for motorcycling and that a minority of people are challenged by our presence. And that virtually anyone will be offended by being placed in danger. We are fiercely protective of our routes and do what we can to challenge irresponsible use, whether that is reporting illegal activity to the Police or reaching out and educating those who are unaware of the sensitivities.

Members of our group get up to all sorts of other antics on their bikes away from the local trails. Quite a few members are passionate about trials and through our strong links to Hookwood Trials Centre, have offered members the chance to try it out. We are playing a bigger role each year in supporting the octogenarian and nonagenari-

ans at the Aldermaston MCC in safeguarding the future of the Uk’s last remaining threestage trial (date for your diary: 28 April 2019). We have training trips to Baskerville Hall, Wales and a pretty sizeable contingent for whom the Catalan Pyrenees has become their mecca thanks to Austin Vince’s legendary Navigation events.

(Your author will spare you any bragging about “Team Overall Winners” living up to its name just a few years ago!).

Our final words celebrate the life of Derek Vansittart who passed away in October (see elsewhere in this issue). Group members know how passionate he was about the TRF and how much he did, more than perhaps any of us, in bringing us together in the true spirit of friendship and Fellowship.

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TRFGroups OXFORD Club Night: Third Thursday of every month Start Time: 7.30pm for 8.00pm Location: The Original Swan, Oxford Road, Cowley, OX4 2LF Website: www.oxfordtrf.org.uk THe OXFORD GROUP has changed quite dramatically over the last couple of years. Many former members described the group as “cliquey”, and felt that insufficient ride-outs were offered for new members and that the monthly meetings were drab affairs spent “bitching” about any change or new idea proposed by the TRF Directors.

With the influx of some enthusiastic new members and some initiatives created by the more established members, things have really turned around and we have seen many improvements in communication, cooperation and camaraderie throughout 2018. As we approach the end of 2018, with a refreshing change of attitude now adopted by the majority of the members, we are looking forward to enjoying some good times with OXTRF in 2019.

Monthly Meetings We have the use of a good-sized room (with its own bar!), which has an excellent sound and projector system. The decor of the pub is not plush, so it’s perfect for tyre-changing demos – recently we were allowed to take a bike into the meetings room for a suspension-tuning session! Non-members are always made very welcome but should check our website for the dates of meetings.

Communication Communication has improved significantly in the last year. Members are able to post ride-out information via a closed Facebook site (https://www.facebook.com/groups/88649085480 5858), to which we allow access to all TRF members and trusted “friends of TRF” such as local motorcycle dealers. We use MailChimp for sending out “sensitive” information and Monthly Member Updates plus ROR news to TRF members who have selected Oxford as one of their groups.

We also have our own website.

Improved Rides In 2017 we realised we needed to improve our rides schedule, in terms of both number and variety. Fortunately Charles Lovell stepped forward and took on the role of Rides Coordinator. Charles formalised a rota of rides by identifying who within the group might be leaders and who needed to be led, as well as establishing what sort

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of “challenge” was required – particularly by the newer members. As we approach the end of 2018 our members, at all levels of ability, have an excellent choice of rides varying from scenic/beginners rides (almost one every weekend) to bike- and body- breaking rides in such places as Monmouth.

Throughout 2018 we have had several members coming forward prepared to lead rides, none more so than Andy Smith. We are pleased that Andy will be taking the role of Rides Coordinator next year.

Where We Ride Our local rides usually start from a lay-by in Grove, near Wantage, Oxford. There are few challenging green lanes in Oxfordshire, so we quickly move off into neighbouring counties such as Berkshire and Wiltshire. Our experienced riders regularly load their bikes onto vans or trailers and don’t have to travel very far to ride some splendid lanes before returning home the same day. Over recent years we have arranged several thoroughly enjoyable weekends away to such places as Wales, Devon and the Isle of Man. Our overseas trips are also becoming OXTRF fixtures and have included such locations as France, Portugal and Morocco. The most challenging trip for some of our members this year was “Ride 4 Change” held in South Africa.

Strengthening the ROR Team We are very lucky to have two Senior Rights of Road Officers, Chris Hurworth and Chris Blomfield, who between them have many, many years of experience. Their efforts have been boosted recently by the addition to the team of Nick Berry and Ilse Lambert. During 2018 Ilse really got to grips with some tricky ROR issues and worked very closely with Technical Director John Vannuffel and neighbouring groups with whom we share the same lanes and associated issues.

Events and Shows Another great asset to our group is Manuella Beis. ela has been the main driving force behind many enjoyable “special” events over recent years but this year we far exceeded anything we have done before, particularly in helping to man TRF stands and organising ride-outs at such events as Adventure Bike Rider (ABR) Festival, Countryfile Live, The Brackley Festival of Motorcycling, The Overland event and Motorcycle Live at the NeC.

GLOUCESTERSHIRE Club Night: First Wednesday of the month Start Time: 8.00pm Location: Wagon Works Club, Tuffley Ave, Gloucester GL1 5NS Website: www.trfglos.org.uk FB: www.facebook.com/TRFGlos/ eXCePT PeRHAPS IN hell or high water, we have a monthly face-to-face meeting, at which people can chat and make plans, new members are welcomed, followed by discussions of local and national issues. We also have presentations on topics such as Facebook, GPS and RoR, visits to shows and trail rides. We have a closed Facebook group in addition to the public group, currently with 109 contacts. We try to be all-inclusive.

Trail Riding Days There are two days of riding east of the Severn, with small incursions into adjoining counties.

There are virtually no green roads in the Forest of Dean but there is half-a-day’s riding on the west side, mostly in the lower Wye Valley. Overlapping into Herefordshire and Monmouthshire can add another half-day.

Rides are publicised by the group every month.

Presently Pete and his backmarker Paul organise rides all over the county, as far as Bath and the lower Wye Valley. Jacky and Damon organise trips to Devon. James organises the Wales 300, a twoday trail ride with B&B; the 15 Fords, a trail ride in the Cotswolds and just venturing into Oxfordshire, suited to adventure bikes and beginners; and the kineton Ride from near Stow-on-the Wold, 30 miles in duration and suited to beginners and big adventure bikes. Mark occasionally leads rides into south Herefordshire and Monmouthshire. Marked up maps are available for all members to copy.

Group rides have ventured as far as the Isle of Skye. Members have also been to France and Australia, and another Paul has been to Morocco.

We often lead visitors from other TRF groups.

TRF Links We have active links with all the surrounding TRF groups. Two of our members, Mike and James, led riders in the Wiltshire group’s Wessex Wanderer trail event. Mark looked after the camp and participants. He was also Clerk of the Course for the Herefordshire group’s Hereford Hospice Trail event. We have previously held “fun days” on private land open to all TRF members. We liaise with other clubs in the area, such as the West Glos. and Dean Forest Motorcycle Club, whose usual activity is trials and long-distance trials.

Public Relations We help at a number of eventing and endurance horse events. We have donated several thousands of pounds over recent years to national TRF funds, the Byways and Bridleways Trust, and the Gloucestershire Archives. In the local press we have had articles published, and have responded to articles and letters. We exhibited for many years at the Cotswold Country Fair and at the 110,000-visitor Town and Country Festival at NAC Stoneleigh. Recently, Tom has taken the lead in national TRF stands at Countryfile Live and the CLA Game Fair. Adam helped out.

Rights of Road Gloucestershire had about 400 RUPPs, all unhelpfully signed as “Public Paths”. The Council did no reclassification, boasting that they would wait for the law to change. These routes became RBs, and the signs were changed literally overnight. Many RBs are also on the “List of Streets” as “County Roads”, so we have lost those too. There are a handful of BOATs and some unsealed County Roads. The group has an active RoR Officer.

Gloucestershire County Council’s priority is given to walkers, while the bridleway network is fragmented and still has “piebald” routes, and the vehicular routes are afforded little effort. Several years have been spent in the doldrums under subcontractor Amey, but RoWs are currently back with the Council, and Highways will have a new contractor from April 2019.

Liaison The group has two people on the Local Access Forum (LAF), and has worked with the Council on previous forums. Mark was a major contributor to the original “Making the Best of Byways”. We have consulted with both AONBs about the National Trails, the ROWIP and road schemes.

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TRFGroups EAST MIDLANDS Club Night: Second Wednesday of the month Start Time: 7.30pm for 8.00pm Location: The Clock Warehouse, Derby Website: www.emtrf.co.uk OUR CHARITY FOR 2018 has been Blood Bikes Uk. Our run calendar is always the second Sunday of the month and looks like this: January: Chirk February: Craven Arms March: Derbyshire April: Barmouth, two-day May: Rhyader, two-day June: Devon, two-day July: Scarborough August: Langollen September: Yorks and Lakes October: Barmouth, two-day November: Melton December: Derbyshire Day after Boxing Day: Mince Pie Run, Melton Ride Report, Rutland Loop Run, 6 October 2018 It was a glorious balmy Indian Summer’s day in keyham when we set off, 22 degrees C in the shade and not a cloud in sight as we gathered in the car park of the Dog and Gun, keyham, for the start of our Rutland Loop Run. Ok, so it may have been a little bit colder than that and it might have been raining just a bit, but inside our helmets it was a another fantastic day out, doing what we all love. Five set out, five came back. Rain fell, as it does, and a lot of mud was flung. Several fords were crossed without loss to

either man or machine.

Sausages, pie and chips were eaten (not whilst riding, for obvious HSe compliance). Two brand new bikes were christened on the trails, as were their riders. I picked up a “p word” and have to pass on my thanks to Geoff and Dave for their extra help with a really swift tube change on the trail.

A great day out and a great introduction to trail riding for two new riders, who both had those big smiles on their faces that we all understand.

And many thanks to Geoff for leading again and planning the route, and to my fellow riders for the camaraderie and craic.

The last words go to Wraggy (Stuart Wragg) and his poetic description of a ride-out with the east Midlands group: “I had just been for a hot soak in the bath when these words came to me:

‘Twas a fine winter’s day as we gathered at dawn Assembled like warriors with our leader Sean.

A blaze of orange and an Austrian delight, The great and the good and not a Honda in sight!

I’m glad I jumped ship and ditched my Honda bib, After crashes galore and a broken rib ...

So out with the old and in with the new And now I’m an Orangeman through and through.

We ALL make mistakes and live with the shame And we’re never too old ... it’s part of the game.

You live and you learn and never look back It’s about when to defend and when to attack …

The essence of life and the brotherhood of man And making it count as often as you can.

Thanks to Sean and all the guys I rode with that day – I thoroughly enjoyed your company and comradeship.”

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TEESSIDE & NORTHYORKS Club Night: Third Wednesday of the month Start Time: 7.30pm Location: The Lord Nelson, 40-41 St James Green, Thirsk YO7 1AQ Facebook: www.facebook.com/groups/teessidenorthyorkshiretrf THe YeAR 2018 has been a busy year for the Teesside & North Yorkshire group with numbers growing steadily. As you can see, we have had a full calendar of events, including newbie-friendly runs throughout the year, and we have lots planned for next year, too.

November-December 2017 Bottle & Chocolates drop at farms and houses on or close to sensitive trails on the North Yorkshire Moors.

April 2018 Breckenbrough Horse Trials cancelled due to wet weather.

For the third year running, the Dales Discovery weekend was held at Redmire, near Leyburn.

This popular event was again fully subscribed; an excellent weekend’s riding with great feedback.

June 2018 A practice day was arranged for those who wanted it at a local private track followed by a barbeque – an excellent day.

ASke International two-day horse trials – three riders attended each day to gather score cards.

July 2018 The annually held Coast to Coast two-day event was run between Scarborough and Morecambe Bay this year. Again, this event was fully subscribed, with plenty of positive feedback.

Group members manned a TRF stand at BIkeWISe, an event run annually by Durham police force.

August 2018 A social ride-out was arranged, ending with a meal at The Lion on Blakey Ridge, the second year for this event which is growing in popularity.

September 2018 The Moors & Coast weekend was held for the third year running at Beacon Farm near Whitby. The event was again fully subscribed, we had a great weekend’s riding with lots of positive feedback.

Good work is done by Leo Crone, Dick Brew and Doug Cartwright in engaging with National Parks,

councils and landowners in a effort to promote the TRF and keep lanes open for all users.

Other group members are active in clearing lanes, removing obstacles, replacing gates and providing labour as required.

The money raised from events held and raffles etc. on club nights has this year been spent as follows: Donations TRF National £5000 North Yorkshire Dales National Park (annual donation) £2500 Great North Air Ambulance £375 Mountain Rescue £350 Lane Repairs Deadmans £250 Cumbria TRF Old Coach Road £250 Northumbria TRF Simonsburn £500 December 2018 Christmas ride-out in the Yorkshire Dales to be followed by a Christmas meal in Reeth. This looks to be a popular event with tickets selling fast. Thanks to John Bellamy for organising this event once again.

2019 Event Dates 27–28 April: Dales Discovery 5–6 June: Coast to Coast 14–15 September: Moors & Coast 12–13 October: Wold Top explorer Special thanks to the committee, which comprises Al Campbell (Secretary), Doug Cartwright (ViceChair), Gerry Heyden (events Coordinator extraordinaire), John Bellamy, kev Hoyland, Leo Crone (RoR Officers), Martin Durham (Vice-RoR Officer), Nev Styles and Scott Heyden (Treasurers), for all your time; to all the run leaders and TeCs who have stepped up to the plate and taken our members and guests out on the trails, and to all our members for making 2018 a resounding success.

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TRFGroups WILTSHIRE Club Night: First Tuesday of the month Start Time: 7.00pm for 8.00pm Location: The Fox and Hounds, Devizes Website: www.wiltshire.co.uk Facebook: www.facebook.com/WiltshireTRF/ THe WILTSHIRe GROUP was formed in 1982 by Bill and Anne Riley, when their four-year-old West Wiltshire Trail Riders group affiliated to the TRF. Bill and Anne have devoted decades of their lives to researching and recording all types of public rights of way, which is why Wiltshire is said to have more miles of byway than any other county.

Parts of Wiltshire feel very remote at times, with only the ubiquitous parallel ruts to remind you that you’re not alone in exploring the rolling countryside of the Marlborough Downs, Cranborne Chase, the Vale of Pewsey or Salisbury Plain. Some of our byways are quite long, with the Ridgeway, Fosse Way, Ox Drove, Old Shaftesbury Drove, Old Bath Road and the Salisbury to Winchester Roman Road all over five miles in length.

Wiltshire’s green roads are typically undulating and either unmade or (at best) improved with stone, which can be tiring for new riders and a shock for those unaccustomed to riding through deep ruts or on slippery wet chalk. Sometimes they suffer the wrath of the anti-motorcycle lobby, with Stonehenge Drove and the Ridgeway being historic targets for the “vision” of diminished public access. We successfully avoided a hatchet job in 2015 when we filmed with the BBC for their flagship Countryfile programme.

We raise money by marshalling horse and mountain bike events, the most prestigious being the annual international horse trials held near Nunney, Somerset. This three-day Midsummer

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event sees us sharing a course with Olympians and Monarchy. Our flagship Wessex Wanderer weekend of guided trail riding in May has grown to become a showcase for everything that is good about trail riding, Wiltshire and the TRF. Club funds pay for the occasional professional guest speaker and train members in motorcyclespecific first aid, with donations being made annually to the Fighting Fund and our nominated good causes, which have included Tommy’s, Wiltshire Air Ambulance, Prostate Cancer Research Centre, Hope 4 Harmonie and Freewheelers emergency Voluntary Service.

Steve Coward arranges annual riding weekends in North Devon and Mid Wales, which prove very popular on account of the stony terrain and proliferation of beer. At the year-end we assist Steve and Becky Burbidge with their Great Christmas escape charity ride between Burbidge’s Bakery in Andover and Salisbury Plain, which is usually on a cold and muddy day!

A number of european trips take place each summer with France, Spain and Portugal being popular destinations – the Trans-euro Trail and Adventure County Tracks are a free resource for the motorcycling community to enjoy.

Meetings in The Fox and Hounds’ skittle alley are an informal (if cosy) affair, with between 30 and 40 members making the monthly journey to socialise, discuss routes, mark up maps and enjoy the entertainment arranged for the evening.

Group membership stands at over 200 people from all walks of life – including a strong contingent from the armed forces. We use Facebook to arrange monthly social meetings plus two rides each week in the summer and one per week in the winter.

Ours is a culture where member skills are regularly traded in order to help one another, which is the foundation of any mutual society and the “Fellowship” aspect of the TRF.

NORTH WALES Club Night: First Wednesday of the month Start Time: 8.00pm Location: The Burntwood Pub, Buckley CH7 3eN FB: www.facebook.com/NorthWalesTRF/ CLUB NIGHTS ARe always very informal, just a room full of trail riders talking dirty.

New or prospective members are met by Amanda, our group secretary. She does a great job of welcoming them and explaining how the group works and what to expect. Rides for the coming month are traditionally posted on the board at the meeting. More recently Facebook plays an equal if not bigger part in organising group rides.

Despite great riding on our doorstep some of the group members venture further afield.

Peter Urquhart was part of the UkGS team in Mongolia this year. Again, on the big bikes Mark Hollingsworth rode a 1200 GS across America on the Trans-American Trail.

John Nicholson and his partner Lucy are slowly making their way back from New Zealand on a DR650. See https://www.facebook.com/JohnAndLucysWorldAdventures/. Others have organised trips to the IOM, Portugal and several other places.

As a group we have organised the AGM that wasn’t at Wern Ddu: called off the first time due to snow and a poor attendance was reason the second time round. This did nothing to diminish the fun everyone had with free access to an extreme enduro paradise.

We combined a camping weekend in Dolgellau at the start of June with hosting Somerset TRF. We raised £430 from that weekend, which was added

to £650 from Timpo’s March Moon, although not strictly a TRF event it is pretty close. A total of £1080 was presented to the air ambulance at the Llanbikefest where we again had a stand.

Other than that, it’s just trail riding all the time, week in, week out – fabulous.

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TRFGroups KENT Club Night: See below Start Time: See below Location: See below Forum: https://kent-trf.forumchitchat.com THe keNT GROUP is effectively spread out across the county on an east-west axis. This means that more or less wherever you are you can get to a meeting or group run.

We hold an AGM either in December or January to elect the Chairman, Secretary, Treasurer and Rights of Way Officer. Also of equal importance is the horse event coordinator (see below).

The east kent members meet at the Plough and Harrow in Bridge on the evening of the second Wednesday in the month. Those from south-east London and the west of kent meet on the last Sunday of the month at the Oakdene Cafe at Wrotham on the A20. We have an informal meeting over coffee or breakfast and then ride from there at 9:30am.

Most communication and arrangement of rides is through the group forum. https://kent-trf.forumchitchat.com. There is also a kent TRF Facebook page. The group web site is now defunct and we depend on the national TRAIL and TRF web sites for general trail riding information and media. kent has a couple of hundred miles of byways plus perhaps 50 miles worth of unmetalled, unclassified county roads (UUCR) which means there is plenty to explore. We suggest that

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everyone purchases the four Ordnance Survey Landranger maps that cover the county: 178, 179, 188 and 189. These give a good overview of where to ride even if a GPS based mapping system is also used (OSMaps or ViewRanger for example).

We support horse events throughout the year mostly British eventing at Chilham Castle. There are often one or two other events later in the year including an endurance GB event in the Canterbury area.

Being close to France means there are occasional opportunities to cross the Channel to ride in the emptiness of our nearest european neighbour. Finally, members make up groups to attend TRF events in other parts of england and Wales.

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