This from Double Entry:

Knobber is going to do the Wurdz but I have the sheet with the teams on so have listed them below along with some thanks.

Thank you to everyone who took part. There were six teams of four, shown below in order of the time they set off from Danish Camp

Trixski – sponsored by the fabulous new ski-carrier of the same name – Count, Lady P, Screamer and Smiffo

Velociroptors – Capt F, Tarzan, Muddy and Twicza

Great Crested Woodpeckers – the Pecker Family minus 1 and excluding dog (those who did the quiz will understand)

The Tour D'Parys – Rapid, Subby, Gorjoyce and Edwina

Forking, Bangers, Lush and Gate Crasher Steve – I wonder who they could be?!

Girl Power - Cyclopath, Courtesan, Good Head and Princess Theakstons

A special mention to Depth Charge for testing the trail out for us, and Lost Cause who tested parts of it on foot. Also to Ringer for supervising the padlock challenge and Blow Felt for marshalling where we needed him. Finally a thanks to the RA (it doesn't happen often) for the lovely weather.

And this from Knobber:

Since I explained things at length on the day, I will keep the Wurdz brief.

These events always have the worry that it will pour with rain, and/or no-one will turn up. But as we sat on the terrace at Danish Camp sipping our coffee in the morning sunshine, I knew it would turn out to be a great day, and worth all of the effort.

Sure enough, Hashers arrived with bikes and spent the half hour before the start oiling, pumping and adjusting, and in Forking's case, charging. Eventually all arrived and were ready to go so Hairy Gusset set off the 6 teams at 5 minute intervals.

The route followed the trail from Danish Camp and along the banks of the River Great Ouse, taking in 8 Superglues along the way. Bell End Too had done a top job getting us permission to go through the Howbury Hall Estate, and this allowed us to avoid the busy A428 and ride through the tranquil farmland. Our thanks to Julian, the owner, for letting us cycle on his land.

After exiting the Howbury Hall Estate, the pack found themselves in Renhold, where there was a series of clues and eventually the first Superglue location, at All Saints Church. After that, the Renhold stage came to an end at the Polhill Arms. Such a good pub, so I decided to stay for a pint and make sure that all the teams came through and weren't stuck on the Superglues.

By this time, Team Trixski – sponsored by the fabulous new ski-carrier of the same name – were down at Rutherford School counting Dragons, and had pressed on further by the time I got to The Bluebell, another excellent pub, having just about everything you might want from your local. Including a very nice pint of London Pride.

Then across to Bedford Park to sort out some clues there, before heading to the lunch stop at D'Parys Arms. The food was good, as was the Directors bitter. Ringer administered the Padlock Challenge to each team, taking in his stride that another tennis court had appeared since we set the clues and therefore the answers were at odds with the combination on the lock.

On leaving the D'Parys, the pack headed towards Bedford town centre and then along the Embankment, along to the Marina and Country Park, before crossing the bridge over the A428 and finding the way back to Willington Dovecote. From there, it was a short cycle to the finish at The Crown.

All returned safely and Double Entry and Hairy Gusset set about the marking. Ultimately, this revealed that the winners were Team Trixski – sponsored by the fabulous new ski-carrier of the same name – (Count Roadkill, Lady P, Smiffo and Screamer). They received unique H5 Cycle Treasure Hunt bottle openers, which Double Entry had provided.

Thanks to Hairy Gusset for generally mucking in (instead of mucking out) during the day, Ringer for taking care of the Padlock Challenge and Blow Felt for checking the teams along the way and volunteering to deal with any miscreants. I really enjoyed the whole thing, mainly due to my companions Bell End Too, who was bicycle repair man and broom wagon on the day, and of course Double Entry, who did all of the worrying, kept me focussed and thought of all of the things that I hadn't. And finally to our hosts Danish Camp and The Crown, and the pubs along the way.

On on

Knobber