Autumn 2017 TRF Trail Magazine

Autumn 2017

The Members’ Magazine of the Trail Riders Fellowship

Holy Smoke Putting a couple of Fantics through their paces on the Pilgrim’s Way...

Directors’ report on the state of the Fellowship Trans Euro Trail - 34,000km of Europe’s green roads Permission Granted - Restoring Pidham Lane, Hampshire Run Leader - How to go from follower to leader... Painful Landing - Riding the Air Ambulance for real!

THE TRF TEAM Conservation Director: Dave Carling dave.c@trf.org.uk 07586 325 260 Financial Director: Michel Sabatier finance@trf.org.uk 07801 187304 Heritage Director: Steve Neville steve.n@trf.org.uk 01474 742705 Marketing Director: Mario Costa-Sa mario@trf.org.uk 07721 480000 Membership Director: Carla McKenzie carla.m@trf.org.uk Technical Director: John Vannuffel john.v@trf.org.uk 01323 898847/07730 796215 Membership Secretary: Sharon Connor sharon@trf.org.uk TRF Membership PO Box 4829 SHREWSBURY SY1 9LP 07958 316295 Press: pr@trf.org.uk 07812 402021 I.T. Adrian Allen web@trf.org.uk Equestrian Events Liaison: Mark Holland equestrian@trf.org.uk Creative Communications & Website Editor: Greg Villalobos greg@trf.org.uk IT Director: Wil Linsen wil.l@trf.org.uk Governance: Stuart Bosworth stuart.b@trf.org.uk

Editorial I BUMPED INTO some Sussex TRF members recently at the 2017 Firle Place International Horse Trials and Country Fair, near Lewes, and introduced myself. “Oh yes,” said one. “You used to write in TBM didn’t you?” Correct, for a number of years. Also, by way of establishing my suitability for the job as editor of Trail, I still contribute to TBM’s new online incarnation – Rust – which is where the Holy Smoke feature in this issue was first published (www.rustsports.com). Prior to that I was a contributor to Dirt Bike Rider . Older riders cheating dementia, may remember in the late 1970s–early 1980s, Which Bike? magazine’s On The Rough section, which tested Enduro, Trials and occasionally Motocross bikes. It also supported the Which Bike? Enduro Team, which enabled this impoverished, young journo to compete in the National Enduro Championship for two years as a Clubman. Originally on a knackered Suzuki PE250 with an RM top end, not an ideal novice bike but all I could afford at the The Editor in time. Yamaha then took pity on younger days me and gave me an IT175 on long-term loan. Talk about from the ridiculous to the sublime. The IT took me to the Top Journalist award at the first Weston Beach Race – happy days. Throughout the 1990s I was involved in contract publishing, producing customer magazines, which is pretty much what I’m doing now for the TRF. Having been a trail rider for the last few decades with an interest in ancient roads, editing this magazine combines my two main passions. Familiarising myself with all the activities of the TRF will be a steep learning curve but one that I shall attack with relish.

Trail 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. The views expressed by individual members in Trail are not necessarily those of the Trail Riders Fellowship.

Members who attended the AGM in January will be aware that TRF Director Wil Linsen has volunteered to design and manage the TRF’s new IT platform. The print version of Trail is posted directly to TRF members only. The magazine will also be available electronically to download. The public-facing portal for anyone interested in trail riding and green-road conservation is www.trf.org.uk. I will let Greg Villalobos, Creative Communications and Web Editor, explain further. “Longstanding TRF members will remember Trail as a way of keeping in touch with all things Green Road. From ride reports down in Devon, to conservation work up in Yorkshire. The smallformat magazine used to land on your doormat, then it arrived in your email, then it took a break. We've been hard at work figuring out what the TRF needs to help members and regional groups pull together and share information, improve the membership joining process, access retail discounts and communicate on forums, social media as well as traditional print formats. This year we will see Trail return both through your letterbox as well as online. We are excited to be bringing you a new set of tools to help you ride and Conserve Green Roads.” The other new element will be Trail online and James, its editor, can fill you in. “Hello, I’m James Higgs, Rights of Way Officer for the Wiltshire regional group and an experienced (if somewhat conspicuous) trail rider. I’ve ridden the length and breadth of the country with many of you and particularly enjoy creating routes, exploring new areas and helping members develop the skills and confidence required to become effective run leaders. “As editor of Trail online, I’m looking forward to publishing news, useful information and details of TRF activity within a bold new environment that reflects our culture, respects our heritage and evolves into a valuable, go-to resource for motorcyclists appreciative of adventure, technology and fraternity.” Well that about sums it up. I hope you enjoy this Autumn issue of the relaunched Trail magazine. You will spot that there are no readers’ letters – with a bit of luck you can help us change that situation for the next publication. Please send any communications to: rick@trf.org.uk Rick Kemp

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ISSUE #1 AUTUMN 2017 The Members’ magazine of the Trail Riders Fellowship

CONTENTS

Image: The Rolling Hobo

03 Directors’ Report: We hear how things have been going this year from Marketing Director Mario Costa-Sa, Membership Director Carla McKenzie, Technical Director John Vannuffel and Financial Director Michel Sabatier 13 Fair Exposure: The TRF visits Countryfile Live and the Game Fair 18 TRF Map: All the TRF groups countrywide, with their contact details 20 Holy Smoke: The Pilgrims’ Way; Canterbury to Winchester on Fantics 34 Trans Euro Trail: Joined-up riding; 34,000km of Europe’s Green Roads mapped 42 Permission Granted: Bringing Pidham lane, Hampshire back from the brink 48 Run Leader: How to get from being a follower, to a leader... 54 Painful Landing: Ben Newham got to ride the air ambulance – for real

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Directors’ Round Up We hear how well things have been going this year from Marketing Director Mario Costa-Sa, Membership Director Carla McKenzie and Technical Director John Vannuffel.

Membership Matters “It has been a busy six months for the TRF membership team. I am delighted to be able to share some of the highlights with you,” Carla McKenzie, TRF Membership Director

Growth As of August 2017 our year-on-year growth was 11%; we are now a club of 4,727 members. All the signs are that this is a trend which is set to continue and we anticipate that by January 2018 the membership will be in excess of 5000. This will strengthen our Rights of Way voice considerably, and, of course, the fighting fund. Every subscription makes a difference to the number of legal challenges we can take on and therefore protect our continued access to ride the byways of Britain. Cumbria and Craven East Yorkshire By riding responsibly and considerately, all members can Lancashire play an important part in changing the perception of the Norfolk general public who, as we all know by now, are far more North Wales likely to be against trail riding than in favour of it. Peak District The more TRF members we have, the greater the difference Somerset that can be made. Tyne & Wear and Teesdale Congratulations to the following TRF groups which have West Anglia seen significant member growth over the last quarter.

Membership Communication

The new Trail website is nearly ready to launch. Regular membership updates will be posted on the site as well as ‘heritage’ Trail articles. The director team also send out regular group officers’ updates, so please contact your local group officers if you would like to find out more about the work of the National TRF.

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Out and About FOR ME, THE year began with a visit to Surrey TRF where I presented a lifetime membership award to Steve Sharp for his extraordinary dedication and work for the TRF. The evening was somewhat curtailed when lifetime member and motorcycle journalist Paul Blezard, aka Blez, rang to say he had crashed into an unlit traffic island on the way to the meeting. I dashed off to help. Thank you to the Surrey members who turned out on a cold and gloomy winter evening to help load the bike into Blez’s van. You truly demonstrated what the fellowship is all about. The local council has accepted full responsibility for Blez’s accident, In late spring, fellow director Steve Neville and I headed up to support the TRF at an inquiry in the Peak District National Park. The ancient trails across the park are under constant threat of being TRO’d. This journey was rather a unique one. Steve, a recently-retired environmental scientist, and I were both riding Zero electric motorcycles. With decibel meter to hand we rode some of the local trails and proved unequivocally that sheep can make more noise than some motorcycles! Our bikes made a silent protest

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Say baaaa... and fellow director Mario spoke eloquently on behalf of the TRF. Thank you to the Peak District National Park who provided a much needed charge for the Zero, to Streetbike of Halesowen who lent me the bike and to Blez who rode with us and helped me to cover the story. On the weekend of 13-14 May I joined TRF members from far and wide at the Wessex Wanderer event. It was great to meet members from all over the country to share trail riding stories and some great trails. Keith Johnston of the Wiltshire TRF was the chief organiser and the event raised £4,000 towards the TRF fighting fund and Prostate Cancer Research. (You can read more about the event at www.trf.org.uk/the-tour-de-wessex/ ) May and June were given over to meeting members at Loddon Vale and Wiltshire TRF, hearing about some of the national and local issues that face TRF groups and sharing some of my own trail-riding exploits.

The Wessex Wanderers event, the Fosse Way, Wiltshire

Put your hands together for... In 2016 the National TRF launched its Unsung Hero campaign to recognise and applaud the efforts of our volunteer members. Brian Cohen TRF South London & Surrey Brian has worked tirelessly to represent TRF members at numerous Surrey County Council right of way Forums. He seeks to shine a light on official obfuscation with probing enquiries and pointed requests for information; and he went the extra mile to gather information to support the successful TRF legal challenge against Hampshire County Council. Brian regularly updates members at our club night meeting and helps drive home the importance of adhering to TRF Code of Conduct to members new and old. Brian’s work helps make sure we continue to have trails to enjoy for years to come.

of financial constraints such as placing way markers around the trails. This is fundamental work that makes a massive contribution in maintaining access to the network that we all love to ride so much, yet this ROW work is largely unseen by the majority of the members who just want to ride. Well worthy of recognition. Colin Webb TRF Sussex Colin is the RoR officer for East Sussex and has been a TRF member since 1971. Colin still plays an active part in Sussex RoR matters and his knowledge of local matters is founded on decades of hard work. Colin continues to lead TRF runs and marshals at equestrian events. His input was also instrumental in ensuring seasonal TROs affecting East Sussex had an exemption for motorcycles.

Derek Vansittart TRF South London & Surrey Over the last few years Derek has organised dozens of events for our members. From our annual Christmas Curry, to creating road books for our Longest Day summer ride, to an Austin Vince inspired navigation event, to trips across the UK and abroad, to leading runs for TRF members from other parts of the country. The list 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.

Dave Ingles TRF Central Bristol He has tirelessly put the TRF stand up at Weston-Super-Mare Bike Night for the past year, no matter what the weather or his personal commitments and with little or no support from us (other TRF members). His stand at the Bike Night is there to promote and spread the word amongst the road biker tribe, to try their skills out on the greener-side. His commitment to the cause is exemplary.

James Higgs TRF Wiltshire As the ROW officer, James works tirelessly behind the scenes, liaising with National TRF as well as local councils and other groups to help keep the trails that we love to ride open. Additionally, he is working closely with the council to work out how the Wiltshire TRF can provide more support in these times

Steve Sharp South London & Surrey TRF Honorary Lifetime Membership Steve helped establish Surrey TRF over 25 years ago. Back then it had just 20 members, it has grown now to 260, becoming the third biggest Group in the TRF. Steve has done an amazing amount, including welcoming new members and the Rights of Road work with Surrey

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County Council. Steve has run our club night ‘formal bit’ for years. He has created a culture which has welcomed members and gets them involved and contributing. Steve is full of advice and support for new members. For years, he has been putting his contact details out there for people to get in touch with him. Simon Loftus TRF Wiltshire For the extraordinary time and effort Simon has put in to making the Wiltshire TRF horse events such a success story. Patrick Wallace TRF Sussex Patrick plays a significant RoR role in Sussex yet rarely attends meetings and keeps a low profile. Patrick is chair of East Sussex LAF and his years of work with East Sussex County Council have been instrumental in ensuring

So far in 2017 we are delighted to recognise the following Unsung Heroes: Darth Speede TRF Central Bristol Thanks to Darth for using his sharp negotiating skills and time to secure supplier discounts for TRF members. Andy Howes TRF Central Bristol Andy is always keen to welcome new riders into the TRF and has time for even the most nervous of beginners, with a most calm and pleasant manner. He is also very willing to pass on his knowledge of green lanes and will spend time marking maps up for people and sharing his routes. He encourages riders to get out on their own to learn and to lead. He also provides help with planning and leading sections of the annual Bike Tours for The Wounded Byways Tour. Bevis Billingham TRF Sussex We would not have many of the byways in Sussex if it was not for the work that Bevis Billingham did in the 1980s up to the present

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the local network is well managed. The Council recently imposed 16 seasonal TROs, all of which exempt motorcycles. This achievement is largely a result of Patrick’s work. Steve Stout TRF Cumbria Steve Stout has transformed that club on Facebook. He has made it really welcoming and easy to connect with members and does a lot to lead ride outs. Vernon Glashier TRF Essex Vernon is playing a significant role ensuring that TRF was prepared to take on Essex CC’s attempts to impose 15 unjustified TROs. Vernon’s work in submitting FOIs, scrutinising the process, and acting as TRF’s local radar, has resulted in the TRF being able to challenge the TRO from strong foundations.”

time. It was people like Bevis who really made a difference during the difficult period we had in the ‘90s in the struggle with the NERC Act, eventually enacted in 2006. Bevis spent many thousands of hours working on every aspect of Rights of Way in Sussex. John Vannuffel TRF Sussex John has made a big difference to how the TRF works and has really helped with Rights of Way work over the past few years. Before being involved in national work, he has always done a great job in Sussex – and still does. We are very lucky to have him. Paul Benjamin TRF Hertfordshire For all the work he does organising rides and for being a top bloke. Paul Lonergan TRF Hertfordshire For all the work he does organising rides and for being a top bloke! Any member can nominate a TRF Unsung Hero, just drop me a line to: carla.m@trf.org.uk

Membership Cards We have now concluded our consultation on membership cards. There was an overwhelming desire to see the annual membership card re-introduced. The team have negotiated a very competitive price with our supplier and cards will be issued to each member. Member Benefits We are working to secure a wide range of member benefits. The new trail website will have an area which is dedicated to benefits. A huge thank you to members who have

secured deals with their local suppliers; these will soon be accessible nationally. The companies who support the TRF, many of which are owned by members, thank you for your support. Your Thoughts Matter In October we will be issuing a national members survey. The survey will help the TRF prioritise the members’ wishes and requirements and allow us to put our efforts into the areas that are most important to them. Please take time to complete the survey, your thoughts matter!

Marketing Review Marketing Director Mario Costa-Sa outlines some of the effort the TRF is making to raise its profile. The TRF is now doing better than ever in its past. With membership now nudging 5000, we are nearly twice as large as when change began in 2011. Whilst we continue to grow, focus in recent month has changed from growing the TRF to changing behaviours, supporting Trail Riders interests in Road Conservation, and communicating with the TRF membership

Mario putting himself out there for the cause...

Changing behaviours Recently, many trail riders saw a repeat of a programme on the Peak District and issues surrounding trail riding on green roads from 2011 when the influence of the TRF may have been seen at a lower point than it is currently. This was a great reminder of how we seem to have moved on considerably from this point in time in many ways and especially in our relationship with the media and authorities. These include; Wilts TRF being invited on Countryfile – entirely positive. TRF invited to contribute to Crimewatch by the BBC to show how we were part of the solution. TRF in training with the Police in the Peak District – S Yorks and Derbyshire Police – again part of the solution. TRF at Countryfile Live and the Game Fair –

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again part of the solution – not the problem. I don’t see any evidence that the current TRF membership would agree with a partisan, segmented, “them-and-us” approaches to access in the countryside that may be promoted in this programme and represented by the user organisations at the time. In particular, them and us inevitably leads to accusations of bias, and it is difficult to see how bias can occur if it is just “us”. I do see TRF members and trail riders around the countryside taking a more holistic approach to access, focussing less on “our rights” and more on “share the trail” and consideration for all users of the countryside. These are the members who volunteered to come along to Countryfile Live and the Game Fair and do what they do on the trail, engage with all users and charm them into acceptance. One memorable example on a run this year was with TRF member and NFU employee Hywel of mid Wales who engaged members of his run with sheep herding to help a farmer near Rhyader. With each example of positive encounters with trail riders in the countryside will dilute the harm of the few negative ones. The Peak District has been under pressure for some time. I do also see TRF Directors engaging

directly and in person with the Peak District Authorities, dispelling inaccurate perceptions and informing them about positive solutions to problems that are being put to good effect by the TRF across the country. Click on the webcast here https://democracy.peakdistrict.gov.uk/ieListDocuments.aspx?CId=133&MId=1571&Ver=4. I see these partisan approaches at its most evident in this Peak District area. Strong local TRF groups, smaller in numbers, high in moral fibre – doing the right thing and adhering to TRF values – deserve our full support. In the Peaks I believe there exists a high proportion of “Trail Riders”, outside of the TRF’s sphere of influence of responsible riding. As a result, when I am at a meeting championing our cause, I am not without sympathy for afflicted residents and the PDNPA and am resolved to progress our campaign of changing all trail riders behaviours further, not just TRF members. Training and Education In September. led by Stewart Bosworth, the TRF will start one of its first training weekends, working and riding with Derbyshire and S Yorks Police where we aim to build bridges with the authorities, work to promote the TRF and

Financial Statement Michel Sabatier Financial Director For the 11 months ending 31 July 2017 “Our income has gone up 10% year on year to £170k, this has been fuelled by the rise in membership”. “Our membership expenditure, that’s everything except Right of Roads, has gone up to £86k as we have invested in a new membership system and more marketing activities”. “Our Right-of-Road expenditure has gone up significantly to £90k (up from £50k last year) because of the higher number of cases that we have taken on. For these good, “investment” reasons we are making a small loss of £7k as of 31 July. Finally our reserves (including the Fight Fund) are slightly down at £170k. This is also because we have received significantly less donations to the fighting fund than last year (£1k vs 29k last year). “Overall, the TRF is still in good financial health but we could do with more donations to the fighting fund as we have been taking on more and more Right-of-Road cases”.

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At the Game Fair

membership has allowed us to address this point. Key to the print version of Trail , will be advertising and the TRF is looking to build up a list of prospective advertisers.

responsible trail riding, as well as taking action against anti-social and problem riders. Similar initiatives are being progressed in Hereford with local Chair Graham Hutton. These cooperative approaches rather than the them-and-us attitudes are the way forward. As part of changing behaviours we have identified a need to train new and prospective Trail Riders. As well as improving riding skills and protecting ourselves and our machines from harm, the role of training in conserving the surface of the trail has been identified and is being promoted by the TRF. TRF Director, Chris Barrable is leading this programme for the TRF for training the wider public, with Stewart Bosworth focussing on the Police and the Authorities. A list of prospective partners and our accreditation framework was approved by the TRF Board and the first training providers have been evaluated for TRF accreditation. We will also be working with the MCIA and ACU for support for our accreditation programme. Internal Communications For many years the TRF has relied on local group officers to disseminate information about the TRF and plans form the top. Since late last year around 200 Group officers receive a Group Chairs’ Newsletter (GCN) each month. In addition, current paid-up members receive an impressive regular Road Conservation report from John Vannuffel, Technical Director, by email approx. quarterly. This has been included in this edition of Heritage Trail magazine which we intend to send out quarterly. Members who will have read this are aware the TRF appears now to be much more active in dealing with live cases than at any time in its past and is being more successful with the outcomes. We realise that since moving form the print Trail a few years back we have lost touch with many members. Our newly invigorated financial position from the growth in

Support for a positive future A reminder that the TRF is run by volunteers who are rewarded intrinsically and not by money. Whatever your view is of how the TRF is run, even after a few years of sometimes divisive campaigns and the open proposition of alternatives, those volunteers that run the TRF on behalf of the members would seem to be supported by over 90% of the membership at the AGM earlier this year. It may be held that over 90% of members believe this is due to progress in recent years and not failure, and central to this is firm direction on attitude, changing behaviours on the trail, and moderate behaviour on our comments on the forum and social media. In this way, we will also positively and more accurately influence public perception. I am immediately thinking of John Harvey‘s and Greg Villalobos’s excellent work with Ross Noble and Austin Vince and there are additional examples in each and every group. Those directly involved in dealing with the authorities and with the media don’t feel it is helpful or in the TRF’s interest to discuss or vent views that may be counterproductive or disparaging to other users on an open forum and hence Dave Carling, the Director Getting the youngsters interested in the TRF at Countryfile Live...

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responsible for Forum Moderation, will continue to take a firm line in removing any posts which may be seen as unhelpful to our current position. If you have a “beef” about the TRF or the way it is run, the first place to address it is your Group meeting and your Group Chair, not necessarily the social media of the forum. The chances are that your local group officer will have the information, sent by the Directors. If not, we are more than happy to discuss in meetings, face to face, by phone or by email to directors@trf.org.uk, and especially to involve any members who wish to get further engaged in our campaigning activity or reinforcing positive perceptions of the behaviour of the TRF and Trail Riders. The exception to feedback though the Group Chairs and Directors is via readers’ letters/emails to Editor@trf.org.uk. The Editors – Rick Kemp for the print Heritage Trail and James Higgs for web Trail act with editorial freedom. Going forward we have reintroduced Heritage Trail magazine on paper. Readers letters form an important part of feedback form members to the TRF and will be encouraged. Did the TRF presence at Countryfile Live and The Game Fair ruffle a few feathers?

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External Communication We have put a huge amount of volunteer time this year on having a TRF presence at Countryfile Live and the Game Fair. A separate article covers these two important initiatives and my thanks to all of the volunteers who helped make this a TRF Summer in preparing the stand and making us look good. Putting the interests of Trail Riders first. The Technical Director – John Vannuffel – has been keen to promote a strategy of putting Trail Riders’ interests first on our Road Conservation efforts. The TRF Board believes that the interests of 4x4 users are best served by them having a strong group representing their cause directly, and the TRF working closely with them. We have, throughout 2017, had regular meetings with the GLASS Chair to help them build their own organisation where we can. The TRF is taking a much more active and Trail-Rider centric approach than it used to when dealing with issues in sensitive areas and you can expect the TRF to be involved directly in discussions with the authorities and National Parks as well as the multi-user and umbrella groups that we align with. Political Campaigning Having made a start with the “write to your MP and Welsh Assembly” campaigns last year, we set the framework for our political and government strategies. The TRF is strong with Local Access Forums (LAFs) and we reminded all TRF officers of our framework for maintain Trail Riders’ interests in the January Newsletter this year. We know need to extend that work and raise our game particularly with parliamentary strategies and regional Assemblies. Again, we are looking to identify members with skills experience or interest in this particular area. Thank you again for your interest in the work of TRF Marketing and if you are looking to get involved your time will be more valued in addition to the financial support of TRF membership.

Rights of Road Update Technical Director John Vannuffel rounds up the progress with local authorities in keeping and gaining access to our Rights of Way and how our money is spent and saved...

Essex TRO Case This case has now been settled with the consent of both TRF and Essex County Council. The 15 green roads affected are no longer subject of a seasonal TRO that banned both

4x4 and motorcycles over the winter period. The TROs had the effect of treating the sustainability of 4x4 traffic as being on par with motorcycle traffic. Use of intelligent TROs around the country has provided ample evidence to demonstrate that such an approach is ill-founded. Seasonal TROs that exempt motorcycles have been successful, reinforcing the fact that motorcycles will, in general, cause no more “damage” than equestrian traffic. Burry Port TRO Case TRF is working to resolve this case with the agreement of the Council. This is the better option than a full court hearing. Smugglers Lane This case has now been settled with the consent of both TRF and West Sussex County Council. As a result, Smugglers Lane retains its correct status as a UCR that is part of the ordinary road network. Smugglers Lane is an important link on the Trans Euro Trail (see elsewhere in this issue). Glatting Lane West Sussex County Council had sought to record this UCR as a restricted byway, in consequence of an agreement between itself and the landowner(s) under the Highways Act. TRF had input into the case and engaged Counsel to provide an opinion which was conveyed to both the Council and Landowners. The threat of downgrading this UCR appears to have been averted for the time being.

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Image: Jon Bentman/RUST Magazine

Oakridge Lane: Purged of Perversity TRF has been successful in its High Court case to prevent Oakridge Lane being downgraded from a UCR to a restricted byway. This landmark case will do much to protect the public interests in respect of both roads and paths that are recorded on highway authorities lists of highways maintainable at public expense. TRF challenged an Order which sought to record a small (100m) section of Oakridge Lane as a restricted byway. The effect of that Order would have been to create two very long dead end BOAT’s linked by a small section of restricted byway. The decision for restricted byway status relied upon an argument that the digital mapping used by the Council did not depict the road as being covered by the thin lines used to show a road as being on the list of highways maintainable at public expense. The Court ruled that if the argument were permitted to prevail, it would result in a perverse outcome that was not intended by Parliament. The success has implications for other green roads across the country and is already being actively applied to a case in the Peak District. A more detailed write up is included elsewhere in TRAIL.

Monks Trod TRF has applied to the High Court for a Judicial Review of Powys County Council’s use of temporary TRO powers in respect of Monks Trod. The “temporary” TRO has been in place continuously for some 16 years or thereabouts. TRF now awaits the High Court to decide whether to grant permission for the Judicial Review. The outcome of this case has potential to prevent authorities from abusing temporary TRO powers. Winterbourne Earls TRO’s were proposed on two fords in Wiltshire. TRF had significant input into the process. The proposed TRO’s are no longer being pursued by the Council. Kent TROs Kent County Council has now imposed intelligent TROs affecting seven green roads in the County. The TROs are made for sustainability purposes and (obviously) do not affect motorcycles. 4x4 traffic is seasonally restricted with further short term (5 days) restriction being available in the event of a Met Office yellow weather warning for rain. Hampshire TRF successfully defeated TROs in Hampshire via a High Court challenge in 2016. Those TROs affected eight green roads. Hampshire County Council now proposes to TRO motorcycles on two of those eight roads. TRF congratulates Hampshire County Council on its progress, noting that its TRO proposals are now 75% less absurd than they were last year! TRF continues its endeavours to prevent the Council from causing further detriment to the public interests with its ill-advised TRO proposals and, to that end, has provided input to the TRO process with a view to avoiding further litigation. In addition to those TROs being dealt with by the Council Rights of Way department, the Highways Department has proposed a further two TROs. One of those TROs appears to be sponsored by a Parish Council working in league with the anti-public access industry. TRF can take some reassurance in this as certain organisation’s involvement with TROs has been a significantly useful factor in securing success via legal challenges.

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A healthy dose of anti-public access industries’ extremism will tend to infect a TRO process and increase its vulnerability to legal challenge. Obstructions The public has long suffered from illegal obstructions to its green roads. The Highway Authority has a duty to prevent such obstructions and protect the public’s access rights. Some Highway Authorities perform very poorly in this respect and many fail to recover the expense of clearing illegal obstructions from those responsible for them. Where Highway Authorities fail to clear obstructions and/or fail to recover expenses, despite having ample powers to do so, the public interest suffers and the public purse subsidises illegal obstructions. TRF has some options to take Highway Authorities to task where they fail to act in the public interest and perform their duties. In certain circumstances, TRF can take the Highway Authority to court to obtain an order compelling them to perform their duty to clear an obstruction. TRF can also seek Judicial Review of Highway Authorities decisions and failures to act. The inherent shortcoming with taking legal action against the Highway Authority is that public funds are consumed in defending the case, only for the best result being the Highway Authority having to spend yet more public funds reluctantly performing its legal duties – there is no express duty for it to recover the expenses of clearing illegal obstructions. TRF is now exploring options to cut out the Highway Authority as middleman and act directly against those responsible for illegal obstructions, by way of pursuing private prosecutions. In contrast to actions against the Highway Authority, the offender can be ordered to pay the costs of prosecution. The risk of offenders benefitting from a Highway Authorities poor performance and reluctance to recover costs are greatly reduced. The public purse is better protected. It has also been identified that a useful side effect of private prosecution is that the carriageway status of a UCR can be clarified by the Court – at the offender’s expense. TRF is at the early stage of exploring options for private prosecution. The finding so far is one of “what is there not to like?”

Fair Exposure Two new marketing initiatives aimed at country folk. The Game Fair for the land owners and Countryfile Live for countryside users and enthusiasts. Trail: Hi Mario. Looks like you’ve had a busy summer! A real step up for the TRF becoming involved in some of the biggest country shows in England. What’s the story?

Mario: Greg Villalobos, the TRF’s Creative lead, has been very successful in reaching out to the public regarding Trail Riders on the web and via Facebook. We now need to go out and meet the wider, non-trail riding community face to face. To do this, we have exhibited at the two main shows organised nationally this summer; the Game Fair and Countryfile Live Trail: What was the thinking about taking part? Is this all part of the TRF’s conservation strategy?

Mario: Conservation is looked after by Dave Carling and covers our work safeguarding the way TRF members conduct themselves on the trail and changing the behaviours of all Trail Riders to ensure the sustainability of our

pastime. Our presence at Countryfile Live and the Game Fair is somewhat different in that we are not targeting Trail Riders or even bikers. Our presence is to reach out to the wider public and landowners and inform them about the legality of trail riding and our social reasonability away from the trail. Trail: Why did you decide to take part? What benefit does it bring to the TRF, it’s already had some TV exposure on Countryfile?

Mario: The benefit to the TRF and Trail Riders as a whole, is that you never get a second chance to make a first impression, and by talking to people in the up-beat environment of a show we hope to set the scene for further positive encounters when they come across us on the trail. The main point was learning. At the Game Fair visitors discussed the problems with anti-social riding from a landowner’s perspective including some interesting insight

Autumn 2017 Heritage Trail 13

into some of the factors that cause it. They were generally well aware that the majority of trail riders were responsible. By contrast Countryfile Live was 100% positive, out of thousands of visitors, not one report of irresponsible trail riding or problems in the countryside and all the visitors were up for trail riding and wanted to know how to get into it! We have been trying to get a place at these shows for several years. We had no success at the old CLA Game Fair but a chance encounter with its new marketing manager opened the door to us. The TRF had featured on Countryfile a couple of years back with Wilts TRF which we were very pleased with, and we finally got a place on the show site this year. Trail: What goes into pulling something like this off? I’m guessing you put a bit of effort into making sure that the TRF were well presented?

Mario: The feedback received so far has been that the TRF has never looked better at a show and we are keen to get new creative ideas to improve further and build on the success of our presentation this year. I have a long list of improvements to action from the volunteer team and the event manager Tom Carnell. A project like this normally has a corporate budget of tens of thousands of pounds. We work to budgets of a few hundred. Despite financial constraints we like the TRF to punch above its weight and deliver presentation improvements though the generous work of our TRF volunteers and creative input that is required before we even get to the site and thanks must go to: Tom Carnell, Glos TRF, with event management and stand position. Rupert Trigg, Norfolk TRF, Director of www.dualcreative.co.uk, for the new TRF banners. Gary Wrench, a new TRF Member and Director of of www.codeav.com for the truss system that lifted the whole stand Stuart Ward, owner of Peak Design for the TRF desk and TV unit It would be great to have more TRF members ideas and input on stand for our next show at Motorcycle live at the NEC or even next summer’s events. Let us know if you are up for arranging this and what resources you would need to create a eye catching display. The main factor is finding a good event

14 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

the London show in February. Given the tremendous interest from the wider public, we need to create and promote a network of training partners who can take non-riders and novices and train them in the TRF’s ways, providing them with bikes and access solutions for non-licence holders. What’s is most reassuring is that local groups have started to follow up with their own initiatives at a local level; county shows and bike meets. TRF Marketing has the infrastructure to support these – brochures, banners and sign-up process. Trail: Well done to all involved!

manager, and in Tom we found a great one. Tom is a rising star in the TRF and it was his work that found the volunteers we needed to make the show a success. Trail: It’s great to see the TRF stepping up to these opportunities, I think most members would appreciate the effort that goes in to making this happen. Will we be seeing you on the stand next year?

Mario: Next year we will look to do both the Game Fair and Countryfile, if Tom as event manager is up for it. It would be useful to extend this into other sectors e.g. equestrian and hopefully a ramblers/walkers event. In November Robin Hicken will be managing our presence at Motorcycle Live at the NEC, and Alcuin Wilkie has volunteered to manage

Autumn 2017 Heritage Trail 15

Obituary Seymour Moss passed away on Tuesday 25th July aged 81 after a brave fight with cancer. He was proud to be one of the TRF's founding members but he never spoke much to his son Gary about his early years with the group. I recall that he was National Chairman in the early 1980s when I first joined. I recall he kept the executive meetings and AGM’s running smoothly despite the efforts of some members having the usual contretemps with one another. His choice of machine at that time was a self-built trials Triumph Tiger Cub which he rode until he got a Yamaha DT175 in the 1980s. He told Gary he liked this bike as he could, 'just pull in the clutch and kick it over without having to find neutral' as he had to on the Cub. By the 1990s he was using a Serow – same thing but with an electric boot! Seymour’s wife predeceased him in January 1988. He leaves one son Gary, a TRF member himself since 1987. Steve Neville Heritage Director Steve Neville is also our in-house expert on electric bikes, as well as being involved in our GIS mapping project.

EVENTS OCTOBER 7 The Hadrian Adventure Weekend OCTOBER 7 - OCTOBER 8 Haltwhistle Contact: Northumbria TRF OCTOBER 22 Exmoor Forest Ride, Sunday 9 AM, Raleghs Cross, Taunton. Contact: Somerset TRF NOVEMBER 18 TRF National Conference at Motorcycle Live, Sat 9 AM, TRF, London NOVEMBER 18 TRF at Motorcycle Live NEC Birmingham Nov 18 - Nov 26

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16 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

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TRF GROUPS LIST

1 Cornwall 2 Devon 3 Somerset 4 Dorset 5 Isle of Wight 6 Southern 7 Axe Vale 8 Bristol 9 Wiltshire 10 Central Bristol 11 Loddon Vale 12 South London & Surrey 13 Sussex 14 Kent 15 Hertfordshire 16 Essex 17 Suffolk 18 Norfolk 19 Cambridge 20 Oxfordshire 21 Gloucestershire 22 South Wales 23 Mid Wales 24 North Wales 25 South East Wales 26 Worcestershire 27 Shropshire 28 West Midlands 29 West Anglia 30 East Midlands 31 Peak District 32 High Peak & Potteries 33 Derbyshire & South Yorks 34 Lincolnshire 35 East Yorkshire 36 Manchester 37 Lancashire 38 Ribble Valley 39 West Yorkshire 40 Cumbria & Craven 41 Teeside & North Yorkshire 42 Northumbria 43 Tyne/Wear Teasdale 44 Herefordshire

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1 CORNWALL Regional Rep: Phillip Joyce p.joyce@cornwalltrf.org.uk / www.cornwalltrf.org.uk / 07787 522674 / Meet 3rd Thursday of the month, 8pm, The Hawkins Arms, Zelah, Cornwall, TR4 9HU 2 DEVON Regional Rep: John Heal johnheal@blueyonder.co.uk /www.trfdevon.org.uk / 01626 366 860 / Meet 2nd Tuesday of the month at 7:30pm, The Dolphin Hotel (01626 832413), Station Road, Bovey Tracey, Devon, TQ13 9AL 3 SOMERSET Regional Rep: Colin Blackburn colin.blackburn2@btinternet.com / www.somersettrf.com / 01984 640987 / Meet 1st Thursday of the month at 7:30pm, The Maypole, Thurloxton, Taunton, TA2 8RF 4 DORSET Regional Rep: John Williamson wjwilliamson@btinternet.com / dorset-trf.org.uk / 01929 553640 / Meet 1st Tuesday of the month at 8pm, The Royal Oak Hotel, Bere Regis, Dorset, BH20 7HQ 5 ISLE OF WIGHT Regional Rep: Andy Hawkins 01462 811654 / Meet 1st Wednesday of the month at 8pm, The Eight Bells Inn, Carisbrooke, Newport, PO30 1NR 6 SOUTHERN Regional Rep: Colin Lindstrom c.lindstrom@ntlworld.com / 07818 404240 / Meet 3rd Thursday of the month at 8pm, Southampton and District MCC, Cranbury Centre, Cranbury Road, Eastleigh, Hants, SO50 5HT 7 AxE VALE Regional Rep: David Clegg dccjej@talktalk.net Meet please contact Group Rep via email. Any suggestions welcomed. 8 BRISTOL Regional Rep: Glen Summers mail@trfbristol.org.uk / www.trfbristol.org.uk / 01454 619246 Meet 4th Monday of the month at 8pm, The Portcullis, 130 High Street, Staple Hill, BS16 5HH

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9 WILTSHIRE Regional Rep: Jim Cairnduff jim.cairnduff@blueyonder.co.uk / www.wiltshiretrf.co.uk Wiltshire TRF Facebook / 07840-352996 / Meet 1st Tuesday of the month at 8pm, The Fox and Hounds, Devizes Nursteed Road, Devizes, Wiltshire, SN10 3HJ 10 CENTRAL BRISTOL Regional Rep: Lucy Wishart lucywishart@outlook.com / www.centralbristoltrf.org Central Bristol Facebook / 07821 652801 / Meet 3rd Tuesday of the month at 8pm Attic Bar, Full Moon Pub, 1 North Street, Stokes Croft BS1 3PR 11 LODDON VALE Regional Rep: Ian Neilson joinus@lvtrf.co.uk www.lvtrf.co.uk Meet 2nd Tuesday of the month at 8pm The Swan at Three Mile Cross, Basingstoke Road, Three Mile Cross, Reading, Berkshire, RG7 1AT 12 SOUTH LONDON & SURREY Regional Rep: Tony Rowlands - surreytrf@gmail.com / www.surreytrf.org.uk / 07772 333328 / Meet 4th Tuesday of the month at 8:30pm Ripley British Legion, 25 Rose Lane, Ripley, Woking, Surrey, GU23 6NE 13 SUSSEx Regional Rep: Andy Wardrobe sussex@trf.org.uk / www.sussextrf.co.uk / 07414 529298 Meet last Thursday of the month at 8pm Ashington Social Club, Mill Lane, Ashington, RH20 3BX 14 KENT Regional Rep: Rod Leeming - Rod.leeming1@btinternet.com / www.trfkent.org.uk / 07875 141834 /Meet 2nd Tuesday of the month at 8:00pm The Castle Hotel, High St. Eynsford, Kent DA4 0AB. 15 HERTFORSHIRE Regional Rep: Peter Rawl - join@hertstrf.org.uk / www.hertstrf.org.uk / Herts TRF Facebook 07958 506066 Meet 2nd Wednesday of the month at 8:30pm Various venues. Schedule on Facebook 16 ESSEx Regional Rep: Graham Coker graham@cokerg.freeserve.co.uk / Essex TRF Facebook / 07789 922537 / Meet 1st Wednesday of the month at 8pm The Crown, Sandon, Chelmsford, Essex CM2 7SH 17 SUFFOLK Regional Rep: Colin Poutney -vraptor@ntlworld.com / 07981 116310 / Meet first Monday of the month at 8pm The Three Kings, Fornham All Saints, Bury St Edmunds, IP28 6LA 18 NORFOLK Regional Rep: Rupert Trigg - info@norfolktrf.org.uk www.norfolktrf.org.uk / Norfolk TRF Facebook / 07899 918276 / Meet 2nd Wednesday of the month 7:30pm The White Horse, Trowse, Norwich NR14 8ST 19 CAMBRIDGE Regional Rep: Tony Lacey - newmembers@cambstrf.org.uk www.cambstrf.org.uk Cambridge TRF Facebook / 07753 820 520 / Meet 3rd Thursday of the month at 8pm, St Ives Outdoor Leisure Centre, California Road, St Ives, PE27 6SJ 20 OxFORDSHIRE Regional Rep: Craig Layfield committeeoxfordtrf@gmail.com / Oxford TRF Facebook / Meet 3rd Thursday of the month at 8pm, The Gladiator Sport and Social Club, 263 Iffley Road, Oxford OX4 1SJ 21 GLOUCESTERSHIRE Regional Rep: James Osborne hello@trfglos.org.uk / www.trfglos.org.uk / Gloucestershire TRF Facebook 01531 822728 / Meet 1st Wed of the month at 8pm, The Wagon Works Club, Tuffley Avenue, Gloucester GL1 5NS 22 SOUTH WALES Regional Rep: Christian James Christian@swtrf.org.uk / 01446 410073 / Meet 1st Thursday of the month at 8pm, Ty Nant Inn, Morganstown, Nr Radyr, Morganstown, CF15 8LB 23 MID WALES Regional Rep: Marianne Walford marianne@trailrides-wales.com / www.facebook.com/ groups/35441996823628401686 430522 / Meet monthly, variable date and venue. Contact rep or check Facebook page. 24 NORTH WALES Regional Rep: Neil “Timpo” Thompson - timpo@bikerider.com / 07980 555874 / Meet 1st Wednesday of the month at 8pm, The Burntwood, 26 Burntwood Road, Buckley, Clwyd, CH7 3EN 25 SOUTH EAST WALES Regional Rep: Gareth Watts wattsatllan@aol.com / 07791149494 / Meet 1st Wednesday of the month at 8pm, Hafodryns Hotel, Hafodyrynys, Crumlin, Caerphilly, NP11 5BE 26 WORCESTERSHIRE Regional Rep: David Walters 07767 204730 / Meet 1st Tuesday of the month at 8pm, White Hart, Fernhill Heath, Worcestershire WR3 8RP

27 SHROPSHIRE Regional Rep: Mike Price alwynmike@hotmail.com 07718 902682 No regular meeting place... yet. Phone unattended for up to 2 weeks at a time so please TXT if no answer. 28 WEST MIDLANDS Regional Rep: Steve Whetton -whettonfamily@blueyonder.co.uk / www.westmidlandstrf.co.uk / 01527 451089 / Meet 1st & 3rd Wednesday of the month at 8pm Wilmcote Working Mens Club, Wilmcote, Stratford upon Avon, Warwickshire CV37 9XX 29 WEST ANGLIA Regional Rep: Geoff Groom ggroom1@btinternet.com / 07929 275465 / Meet 1st & 3rd Thursday of the month at 8:30pm Scott Bader Social Club (Opposite the parish church), Wollaston, Nr Wellingborough, Northants NN29 7RJ 30 EAST MIDLANDS Regional Rep: Cliff Austen www.emtrf.co.uk / 07789 483600 / Meet 2nd Wednesday of the month at 8pm Clock Warehouse, London Road, Shardlow, Derby DE72 2GL 31 PEAK DISTRICT Regional Rep: Alan Gilmore a.gilmore_home@outlook.com / 07807 818542 / Meet 1st Thursday of the month at 8pm Fisherman’s Rest, Belper DE56 2JF 32 HIGH PEAK AND POTTERIES Regional Rep: Russ Unwin - russ.u@hotmail.com / 07968 770629 / Meet 2nd Thursday of the month at 8pm The Black Horse Endon, Stoke-on-Trent ST9 9BA 33 DERBYSHIRE & SOUTH YORKSHIRE Regional Rep: Bob Morley - derbysandsyorks.trf@hotmail.co.uk / 07836 680323 / Meet 2nd Monday of the month at 7.30pm, The Royal Oak, High Street, Barlborough, S43 4EU 34 LINCOLNSHIRE Regional Rep: Nev Cooke cookie60@btinternet.com / 07845 067047 / Meet 2nd Tuesday of the month 7:30pm, Woodys, Woodland Waters, Willoughby Road, Ancaster, Grantham NG32 3RT 35 EAST YORKSHIRE Regional Rep: Julian Mamo julian.mamo1@googlemail.com / 07583 694431 / Meet 2nd Tuesday of the month at 7.30pm, The Londesborough Arms, 44 High Street, Market Weighton, York, YO43 3AH 36 MANCHESTER Regional Rep: Phil Kinder philmancunian@googlemail.com / 07809647293 / Meet 4th Monday of the month at 8:30pm, Sycamore Inn, 4 Stamford Square, Ashton under Lyne, OL6 6QX 37 LANCASHIRE Regional Rep: Keith Westley - 01704 893215Meet 1st Tuesday of the month at 8.00pm, Rigbye Arms, 2 Whittle Lane, High Moor, Wrightinton WN6 9QB 38 RIBBLE VALLEY Regional Rep: John Sinnett trfribblevalley@gmail.com / www.trfribblevalley.co.uk / Ribble Valley TRF Facebook / 07980 558405 / Meet 2nd Tuesday of the month at 8pm, The Petre Arms, Whalley Rd, Langho, Blackburn, cashire, BB6 8AB 39 WEST YORKSHIRE Regional Rep: Paul Milner chair@wytrf.org.uk www.wytrf.org.uk / 07901 381 629 Meet 1st Thursday of the month at 7:30pm, Cue Gardens, Stadium Mills, Stadium Rd, Bradford, West Yorkshire BD6 1BJ 40 CUMBRIA & CRAVEN Regional Rep: Steve Pighills 01539 725292 Regional Rep: Nigel Summers - nigel_summers@sky.com / Meet 2nd Tuesday of the month at 7:30pm, Cross Keys Inn, Milnethorpe LA7 7AB, 01539 562115 41 TEESSIDE & NORTH YORKSHIRE Regional Rep: Leo Crone - shearwater69@fsmail.net / 01325 788509 / Meet 3rd Wednesday of the month at 7:30pm, The Lord Nelson, Thirsk YO7 1AQ 42 NORTHUMBRIA Regional Rep: Greg Villalobos ride@northumbriatrf.org.uk / www.northumbriatrf.org.uk Northumbria TRF Facebook / Meet 1st Wednesday of the month at 7:30pm The Staffs Club, Blaydon, NE21 4JB 43 TYNE & WEAR TEESDALE Regional Rep: Paul Smith smip694@aol.com / 07980 144446 / Meet 4th Tuesday of the month at 7:30pm, The Golden Jubilee Pub, Yarm TS15 9XN 44 HEREFORDSHIRE Regional Rep: Graham Hutton graham.hutton671@btinternet.com / 07581 023924 / Meet 1st Tuesday of the month at 8pm, New Inn, Fownhope, Herefordshire HR1 4PF

Holy Smoke... I regularly ride bits of the Pilgrims’ Way in Kent. It’s my local patch, so perhaps the thought of riding from Canterbury Cathedral to Winchester Cathedral wasn’t that strange, despite the fact that genuine pilgrims tend to go in the opposite direction, often before crossing the Channel on their way to Santiago de Compostela. 20 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

Words: Rick Kemp Photos: JB / RUST Magazine and Rixpix

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22 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

THeRe WaS anoTHeR reason for starting at Canterbury. Clements Moto is just a few miles from the city and it imports, among other motorcycle brands, Fantic. I contacted proprietor Dean Clements about using a Fantic for the ‘pilgrimage’ as the idea of being able to do it on an inexpensive, learner-legal trail bike, albeit one that had been electronically de-restricted, was quite appealing. Dean was more than happy to aim the 125 e Performance press bike in my direction – so happy, in fact that he wanted to come along too, on the Fantic 200 Competition. not a bad idea as it turned out. Conventional wisdom has it that, for personal safety reasons, trail riding shouldn’t be a solo activity but, with smartphones, GPS and so on, these days it’s not as much of a concern (but do check out Painful Landing later on in Trail). For a fairly complex route, however, a second opinion was always going to be useful, not to mention another bike with back-up navigation. For the wary pilgrim the trip is about 140 miles. obviously on a motorcycle the route is going to be different, with only highways and byways at our disposal. But which ones? For this we enlisted the help of the TRF’s map supremo, John Vannuffel. Initially he came up with a more southerly route, which he said would be far better riding, but it was nowhere near the Pilgrims’ Way. In the end we compromised on ‘one he’d made earlier’. This was an east-West, coast-tocoast route which we could adapt for our purposes and, as it was in GPX format, it went straight on to my android phone. Dean had a Garmin GPS with oS mapping with the route overlaid. What could possibly go wrong? LOOK ON THE BRIGHT SIDE The plan was to complete the trip in daylight, which in mid-august gave us about 13 hours. Little did we know that it would also turn out to be the hottest day of 2016, with the recorded temperature at Gravesend in Kent a gnat’s under 34ºC. It is possible to get a Pilgrim’s Passport, which you can have stamped at 24 participating churches including the cathedral at either end. This passport also entitles you to discount hospitality en route. The other thing that marks out a bona pilgrim is the scallop shell, usually worn around the neck – apparently there’s seafood aplenty once you’ve crossed La Manche and the shell was an outward sign that you were grateful for the Lord’s/planet’s/what-have-you’s bounty. after careful consideration the passport idea was abandoned, as the churches were off the route and would be too time-consuming. In the event, the nearest I came to wearing a scallop shell was doing a u-turn on a petrol station forecourt. In terms of machine preparation, the only extras involved fitting a USB charger to each bike and mousses were fitted all round, so we wouldn’t waste time with punctures, but the trade off is that road speed needs to be fairly modest to avoid overheating. To make sure we didn’t dehydrate, my acerbis adventure suit was fitted with the optional aqua Pack and Dean wore a CamelBak. UP AT SPARROW’S We rolled into Canterbury at about 6.45 am to meet up with Rust editor and photographer JB, for a farewell photo session outside Christ Church Gate. It costs 12 quid per head to get the other side of those great wooden doors but, if you make an appointment, pilgrims can get a blessing. at that time of the morning, you’re mixing it with all the delivery vehicles which are banished from the city centre after 7am.

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To give ourselves a better chance of making the time we picked up the Pilgrims’ Way at Charing, home to the 13th-century archbishop’s Palace, favourite hangout of Thomas Becket, though perhaps not for much longer if Historic england has its way. Part of the Pilgrims’ Way is now blocked by the eurostar rail line, though there are some good lanes along Crundale Downs and you can go through the villages of Wye, Boughton Lees and Westwell to pick up the Pilgrims’ Way proper. We couldn’t have been more than an hour out when we met our first and only pedestrian pilgrims. They had set out from Winchester eight days previously and were self-contained as far as accommodation and catering were concerned – they were carrying everything they needed and were averaging about 15 miles a day. We were only packing plastic and our little Fantics needed to average a bit more than that per hour. There are only two major obstacles on this route: one the ancients would’ve had to contend with and the other we made ourselves – the River Medway and the M25 London orbital Motorway. Both can only be crossed at a few designated places. For the mighty Medway, aylesford Bridge was the target and for the M25 it was just north-west of the town of Sevenoaks (known locally as Sixoaks after the Great Storm of 1987). THE RIGHT TRACK You know when you’re on the right track when you come upon hostelries with names like The Dirty Habit, as you do at Hollingbourne where the Pilgrims’ Way crosses the Sittingbourne road. Between there and aylesford, there’s a loop off the Pilgrims’ Way up towards Blue Bell Hill and down to Burham. These are classic downland trails, chalk with some flint, some maintained and some not. a mixed blessing; the unmaintained trails tend to wash out into a steep V-shape, so you’re riding over rocks in what is effectively a single big slot; the maintained version has gravel boards across to stop the soil washing down the hill which, with time, turn into high-rise steps and can be a bit of a bone-shaker. It was on one of these that the route on Dean’s Garmin fell over. oS-mapping was still available, however, and I had the route on my android phone. We soon developed a technique whereby I led the way on the road and where the route indicated we should leave the tarmac I would wave Dean through and he would reference the oS map. not ideal but it worked. Since we crossed aylesford’s medieval stone bridge, another Medway crossing has opened and now vehicular access is restricted over the old Bridge – let’s hope it helps this listed monument to survive. For those that don’t know, the River Medway separates the Men of Kent from Kentish Men and likewise Maids of Kent from Kentish Maids – in both cases the latter should be born west of the water and come from Saxon stock, while those in east Kent are descended from the Jutes. So there you have it. Moving swiftly on, our chosen path took us under the M20 twice before skirting round Laybourne Lakes Country Parks and then picking up another downland byway from Holly Lane in Great Buckland, the most northerly point on the route, before looping round and crossing under the M20 again at Wrotham. as they say, there’s a pattern developing here: essentially we were riding east-to-west but the majority of the byways run across your direction of travel, so you have to balance the amount of lanes available versus the amount of progress made in the right direction, with one eye on the clock. and before

24 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

Autumn 2017 Heritage Trail 25

you say anything, the GPS computer can’t do this for you in real time. Unless, of course someone out there knows different? From Wrotham it’s a fairly hard slog on back lanes, which included many an encounter with White Van Man (WVM), in the morning delivery rush hour. This is a relatively recent phenomenon due to the rise in online shopping, whereby boys and girls from central europe tear-arse around the countryside, following their GPS plots and delivering god-knows-what as a self-employed independent subcontractor for nationwide logistics companies at half the national minimum wage. on a single track road there’s no room to overtake WVM. The vans stop in the road to unload and if you should meet one head on, because they’re more used to driving on the right, they swerve into your path. Progress through west Kent was slow.

26 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

Still following roads named Pilgrims’ Way, or Pilgrims’ Way east or West, we crossed the M25 at Twitton and then wound our way to Knockholt at which point we were less than 30 miles from central London. The route led us due south and we took a very welcome wooded byway off Silverstead Lane. Then, once back on black stuff, we crossed yet another Pilgrims’ Way before ducking under the M25 at Brasted and heading on to edenbridge. at this point, should you feel like a cultural break, you’re spoilt for choice. There are the castles of Heaver and Chiddingstone, Winston Churchill’s country house Chartwell and the historic cutsie-pie villages of Toy’s Hill and Ide Hill, both as you would imagine set on high ground – but sod all in the way of green lanes. So we pressed on. Crossing the county border into east Sussex and heading towards Dormansland and Lingfield, it had taken us five hours to get out of Kent. a quick blast up the track that is Willmot’s Lane let us cross the M23 at Smallfield. after this it was keep your head down and beware low-flying aircraft as you hit Horley and the Gatwick airport sprawl. You kiss the airport perimeter before going through Charlwood, one-time home to Barry Sheene, Britain’s last 500cc Motorcycle Grand Prix World Champion. The route took us crosscountry to newdigate and Beare Green and on down to ockley before almost looping back on itself and heading for what are perhaps the jewels in the crown of this particular route: Leith Hill and Coldharbour.

‘On reflection Dean said he’d rather have included more off-road and taken two days. I can see his point, but I think there was a greater sense of achievement fitting in a reverse pilgrimage between Matins and Evensong. Did we amass any celestial credits? I doubt it. Did we make a special journey? Definitely...’ HIGHS AND LOWS IN THE HOME COUNTIES after a fair amount of roadwork it was good to get to, what are for trail riders in the South-east, some of the most legendary trails. not exactly the Strata Florida and Monks’ Trod of Mid-Wales but not bad for Surrey. We were in the Home Counties, where land and property is disgustingly expensive and even the best-behaved off-road riders are treated with utter disdain. Speaking of which, we witnessed what architectural atrocities can be committed by people with more money than taste. Down one byway, which was fenced, we saw a white-marble mansion under construction complete with swimming pool and heliport that would be more at home in the Hollywood Hills than the Surrey Hills. There’s one point on Leith Hill that resembles an ancient spaghetti junction where byways, footpaths and bridleways all converge. We stopped to consult the oS map and have a look round for a byway leading in the right direction, to commune with nature and rehydrate – even though it was after midday the heat wasn’t showing any signs of fading. Dean was seemingly quite cool in his flexible armoured vest and MSR race shirt and pants.

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My acerbis suit had everything open except the fly zip – chest vent panels, rear exhaust vents, thigh vents and the elbow to wrist sleeve vents. The sleeves do zip off but as I only had a T-shirt underneath I thought better of it. Perhaps the only drawback of unbroken sunshine is the difficulty in reading a smartphone screen, which necessitated hunting the cover of trees or holding your left hand in a position to shade it. neither of these is an ideal solution. after the glorious sandy descent from Coldharbour, we picked up more lanes south of Ranmore Common and headed south past Cranleigh and Dunsfold aerodrome, once the headquarters of the BBC’s Top Gear programme. From there we bashed on to Chiddingfold and, still keeping to the back roads, carried on to Haslemere and the spectacular Devil’s Punchbowl; all the more spectacular now thanks to the Hindhead tunnel, which hides all the traffic and noise. In fact there is now a trail going over the tunnel, which has to afford one of the best views in southern england. AN END BEFORE EVENSONG after this the going stays quite open as a series of lanes takes you into Hampshire via Frensham and south-west, past the Ministry of Defence training grounds familiar to enduro riders in the South eastern Centre. By this stage we were beginning to have one eye on the clock. according to the map we had two loops left, one either side of the a31 near alton, before heading for Medstead, the point at which we had planned to leave the route and head for Winchester. Maybe it was the heat, tiredness and the lack of a good pub lunch (my intake for the day had been three energy bars, a petrol station sandwich, some fast-acting glucose tablets and the contents of my aqua Pack). We became slightly disorientated and map-reading was hard work. However, eventually we found ourselves in Medstead and Dean made an executive decision to abandon the GPS and follow the signposts to Winchester. By the time we arrived at the Cathedral it was near on 12 hours since we’d left Clements Moto HQ. Fortunately, Dean had organised the works van to bring us back to Kent. of course, as soon as I got the camera out to record our arrival a gentle rain began to fall. We loaded the bikes into the van and headed for home. on reflection Dean said he’d rather have included more off-road and taken two days. I can see his point, but I think there was a greater sense of achievement fitting in a reverse pilgrimage between Matins and evensong. Did we amass any celestial credits? I doubt it. Did we make a special journey? Definitely.

PILGRIMS’ WAY STATS Odometer reading: 223 miles Total time: Including; photography, fuelling, feeding and getting lost 11.75hrs Lowest point: 27ft aylesford, Kent, crossing River Medway Highest point: 965ft the top of Leith Hill, Surrey 28 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

THE BIKES

Fantic 125 E Performance Fantic 200 Competition

THe WoRLD oF the specialist, off-road motorcycle manufacturers can be quite turbulent as you’re dealing with small-production runs, limited finance and seat-of-the-pants management. You may remember that Clements Moto was the Gas Gas enduro distributor for the UK till the factory went bust only to be refinanced and available in the UK once more from another distributor. In the meantime Fantic had become available so Clements Moto stepped in. The enduro range comprises 50 and 125cc versions and the recently added 250cc model. Thesmaller capacity pair are available in three variants; Performance (basic), Casa (better) and Competizione (best). The 125 motor is a Yamaha WR lump, but it’s the chassis package that Fantic does so well. The chrome-moly perimeter frame with conventional forks and steel swingarm of the basic Performance model is a huge 30kg lighter than the standard Yamaha and a little shorter too. The Casa models have USD forks and aluminium swingarms and Competizione versions offer more adjustability on the suspension and are supplied with Tommaselli 28mm fat bars.

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If Motards are your thing these three models are to be had in that guise too and in the three specification levels. as mentioned, for our Pilgrims’ Ride, I rode the basic 125 e Performance (£4,399.00 at today’s rates). Don’t know about you, if I’m riding a lightweight I tend to tread lightly with it whereas with a 450 you treat it a bit more like a bulldozer, sit back and give it loads and bash your way through obstacles. From the outset I will say that the basic Fantic design is to keep the bike narrow at the top to allow for plenty of rider movement, and in order to keep the seat height manageable there is minimal padding. If you want to spend all day in the saddle get a BMW. In the literal sense, the Fantic ends up being a pain in the arse. The first Big downland climb I encountered bearing in mind the surface was bone dry, hard and loose I felt that the gearing was wrong with the culprit being the gap between second and third (of six ratios). as usual this turned out to be pilot error, I was pussy-footing about because it was a lightweight. at the next opportunity I employed Plan B, hit it hard in third and use the power created higher up the rev range, after all a 125 is never going to be torquey. This worked a treat and the little Fantic responded well to more of the same. Being so light you felt that you could change direction in mid air. also, low weight inspires confidence braking on a loose downhill due to lack of momentum and if necessary you can always have a dab without fear of ankle damage.

‘on the road the 125 is unremarkable and that’s a good thing. even running on mousses which can feel a bit lumpy it steers true enough. It took a while to realise it had six ratios as top is something of an overdrive. on the road the 125 is unremarkable and that’s a good thing. even running on mousses which can feel a bit lumpy it steers true enough. Back to the gears, it took me a while to realise it had six ratios as top is something of an overdrive. If the road is right, sixth would extend the tank range, as it was it managed more than 200 miles with a top up. The LeD lighting is a gift for bikes like this, very bright in daylight without sapping too much power and if the bike does go over, a bulb filament won’t break because there aren’t any. The rear lamp is tucked neatly out of harm’s way. Indicators on a trail bike make riding on fast roads – where the speed differential between a 125, albeit an unrestricted one , and most other road users is quite high – both easier and safer. The electronic instrument panel is multi-functional, but as long as you can see your speed in mph, check the trip and make sure you’ve cancelled the indicators the rest of the functions aren’t vital. after 12 hours of mixed on-off-road riding I have to admit that the Fantic 125 e Performance is a very capable motorcycle and it provides a huge amount of fun out on the trail – and it’s learner legal. I wish they were about when I was a lad. The 200 turned out to be a stop-gap model which has now been replaced by the 250 enduro in Casa and Competizione versions, Motard models are also available. at £4499.00

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the Casa variant is only £100 more expensive than the new chrome-moly framed 125 which must make it good value. First tests of the Fantic 250 e Casa have appeared in the specialist press and here are a couple of verdicts. Nikko Nieminen in Motorcycle Sport and Leisure “I was also starting to appreciate how well suited this 250cc bike was to a novice off-road rider like myself: it had enough poke to get me out of the ruts and puddles that I got myself into, but not so much power that giving it a handful would throw me off it. The big bear claw pegs were easy to stand on, and even with my big and heavy off-road boots, I could still easily control the gear and rear brake levers. “We rode over mud, gravel, grass and even up a stream – the variety of tracks was impressive. not being used to riding standing on the pegs, my legs were getting tired by the end of the day, and my clutch hand was starting to ache from having to use the lever a lot more than you would on the roads. as the ride drew towards its conclusion we were also riding a lot faster as I learnt to trust the bike to find its way through the ruts and puddles and stopped fighting it so much. The less I tried to wrestle the controls the easier the riding got – I’m still an absolute beginner, but I felt that just a day out with the group had improved my riding no end. and best of all, it had been a real giggle – I loved every minute of it. as the ride finished, we passed the same crossroads where I had looked at the ruts in horror in the morning, I didn’t see anything scary now. I had done much more demanding sections during the day and even if I fell off, it didn’t matter. These guys called it parking, not falling off – I liked that! “The day with the Lincs TRF taught me a lot about trail riding, and all that goes with it. It’s not just about riding, it’s also about enjoying the beautiful countryside, having a laugh with your mates and even getting fit – I was knackered after the ride. one thing’s for sure, the ride made me certain that I need to find some money to buy myself a trail bike. now, which of my kidneys should I sell first…?” From a more experienced off-road perspective, this is Jonathan Bentman from RUST Magazine (www.rustsports.com) “It’s a really nice bike, it feels full size and actually it’s got a really roomy cockpit. I’m six-foot tall and the bars, seat, footpegs are just ideal and also it wouldn’t monster a smaller person. The engine is perfect, it reminds me of an XR 250 very luggy and chuggy. It’s got a lovely six-speed gearbox even though its on a 14-tooth gearbox sprocket at the moment which is a bit high for off-road it will still pull from very low revs like the old four-strokes used to. Handling is very good, there’s some breeding here with Fantic and Husqvarna heritage and produced by people who understand the market. This is a premium product that’s 75 percent off-road and 25 percent on-road. Having said that, the seat is good enough and the sixth gear makes it comfortable and unstressed on the road. all round I’m very impressed, it’s not meant to be a racer, it’s a trail bike and it’s an excellent trail bike. Well done Fantic.” apparently, if you like Honda CRF250s you’ll love the Fantic 250e. Many thanks to the good folk at Clements Moto for all their help.

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Fantic 250E Casa

Below right: after a 12hr ride we ďŹ nally arrived at Winchester Cathedral. In the rain...

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Trans Euro Tr A single dirt road route from the edge of Africa to the Arctic Circle and back. A free GPX download that unlocks 34,000km of Europe’s green roads. The stuff of trail riders dreams? Not anymore. The Trans Euro Trail has just launched and it’s going to change your trail-riding holidays forever. What’s more, it has been the brain child of TRF member John Ross. Images: John Ross & The Rolling Hobo

TRF: Hi John. Well, this is an exciting announcement. I bet you’ve been dying to tell the world about this project. Can you start by explaining what the Trans Euro Trail is? John: Absolutely. In a sentence: The TET is a 34,000km legal overland route from the North Cape in Norway to Tarifa on the Straits of Gibraltar taking in 28 European countries and some of the best trails, landscapes and experiences of our continent using as little surfaced road as possible that’s been put together by the people that best know those trails – local riders. It’s an opportunity to rediscover the essence of overland motorcycle travel right here on our own doorsteps – travelling light and independent of support vehicles, interacting with locals, sleeping where we can find space for a tent, cheap accommodation or welcoming hosts, using local markets and shops for supplies, using our wits and connections we make locally to deal with problems and connecting in the way that only motorcyclists can do with our surroundings. Make no mistake, even in our sometimes busy continent, the TET does traverse very remote wilderness areas where the ability to accept and deal with any situation is critical. You’ll very often be out of mobile range and, if you can summon help, it may be a very, very long time coming. There’s nobody there to hold your hand – this is a route for the independent minded. Go prepared and you will have the adventure of your lives.

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rail

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TRF: Where did the idea for TET come from? It’s obviously got connections to the Trans America Trail (TAT) right? John: Yes, Sam Correro’s TAT was our inspiration, as was the Trans Canada Adventure Trail. Both use GPX’s to allow adventurous self-sufficient riders to step off the beaten track and experience the true heart of their countries. I’ve not been riding in the States but have been lucky enough to explore the trails of Europe from Hungary to France and the Netherlands to Spain as well as spending time exploring remote Southern and Eastern Africa by motorcycle and dipping into amateur Rallye Raid in North Africa. Through these forays, I’ve met like minded riders from across Europe – people passionate about their pastime, the trails they use and their spectacular home countries. Over beers, campfires and interweb conversations, the idea developed to share these special places and experiences with each other - initially just as a bunch of mates but then later on a grander scale as a Trans Euro Trail linking each county’s trails to the next to create something unique. Europe has everything our friends from over the pond have but we also have hundreds, thousands of years of visible human history all around us – form stone circles to wartime bunkers. It’s fun to think that that local lane you love and know so well may be linked by the tyres of a trail bike, your trail bike, with one passing through an olive grove in the Greek Peloponnese or a rickety wooden bridge in the Finnish forest. TRF: I imagine many people have thought about this kind of project but up till now no one has managed to pull it off. How did you do it? John: It’s taken a considerable amount of time and many, many e-mails, messages and telephone conversations (my wife deserves a medal for her patience!). But it seemed to strike a chord early on and once people got wind of the project, offers of help from across the continent came in. To me that’s been the most exciting thing – watching the banter, passion and ideas bouncing around – just the same thing that happens on a ride or at a TRF meeting but this time across a whole continent. The power of the internet, an idea and a shared goal. We very soon realised that it was too big a project for one person to

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France

Albania manage. So for each country a “Linesman” volunteered, someone with the knowledge, networks, passion, IT and communication skills to coordinate their part of the TET. Not for any financial reward, just for the warm fuzzy feeling of doing something for the greater trail-riding community and being in at the inception of something rather exciting. TRF: It’s obvious that community is a big part of the TET. Is there a commercial element? Everything is available for free, but you also have a commercial partner? John: The idea of the TET was to create something for bikers, by bikers. Something borne out of a shared obsession. People gave freely of their time, routes and experience in the knowledge that there was no commercial driver, the TET was to be free to those that wanted to use it. No impediment would be put in place of people wanting an adventure except for their self-imposed limitations. We know the liberating nature of our pastime, we want more people to experience it. By making it free, we also knew that there would then be nothing stopping people returning to the TET website to download the latest most up to date routes, routes which will be constantly updated to reflect the changing nature of the trails whether through closures, construction, legal changes or identification of the fragility of a particular area. However altruism doesn’t pay the bills. Like any self-respecting bunch of bikers engaging in a new plan, we approached Adventure Spec to blag some T-shirts. The response was more than we could ever have hoped for. Dave and Chris are like minded souls with decades of light-weight motorcycle adventuring behind them and, in a fit of generosity, offered to support the project with server space, IT and creative talent and buckets and buckets of enthusiasm. They have

Greece

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Montenegro enabled us to turn a pipe dream into reality. What’s more, they have named their new ADV Spec adventure jacket after the Linesman! Job done we’re famous ;-). The Linesmen are to be given the first examples as they hit the street – so along with a warm fuzzy feeling, there’s protection from the trails and elements. Guys, we are indebted. TRF: As we know, the status of green roads in the UK is constantly changing. How do you manage to make sure that everything on the TET is legal? John: That’s the thing that’s really important to all of us involved in the TET. Keeping the TET current and legal is critical. We are all only too aware that there are forces out there eager to further limit our freedom and will leap on any infringement with glee. The TRF has been a huge support in the UK. They are the experts, the curators of our green-road heritage. In the UK Regional Rights of Road reps have guided us away from closed or TRO’d trails and seasonal TROs. We can’t watch every metre of 34,000km but our users can. The whole idea of the TET is that it’s never finished, it’s constantly evolving. The GPX track isn’t gospel, what lies in front of one’s front wheel is. Riders using the TET will remain aware of their surroundings and feed back issues, changes and closures through the website, allowing the Linesman to update the GPX to keep it as current as possible. It’s a living, changing beast. That said, with the best will in the world, it’ll never be 100% current and some of the route will be infrequently travelled or not ridden recently. The bottom line is that the rider on his bike has to accept full and personal responsibility for any transgressions. After all you don’t blame your 1:25,000 map. TomTom or Michelin Road Atlas for mistakes.

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TRF: Some people may be concerned that having a route available through the UK might increase traffic and put more pressure on the Green Road network. What would you say to that? John: Indeed it might increase the footfall a bit – there might be a pair of Montenegran DRZ400’s riding down your local lane in August or you might have the opportunity to stop and chat to a French rider on a green road in the Welsh mountains or share lunch with three Italian KTM Adventure riders on the Old Coach Road in the Lakes. Perhaps you can help mend a puncture, point out a cracking pub or café or even offer them a bed for the night. Perhaps a friendship will ensue and an invitation to their neck of the woods. Or perhaps you will be that Yorkshireman, Welshwoman or Dorsetman edging along a trail high in the Romanian Carpathians or Spanish Pyrenees waving to local riders and stopping to kick tyres and talk bikes and beers.

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Bosnia Green roads on the internet isn’t new. For those that can turn on a computer, the UK’s green lanes are already available on Wikiloc, Viewranger, forums or any number of other sites. But who knows whether they are accurate, legal or current? Our single wiggly line across our land will be as up to date as is possible. A TET value is to be respectful of trails, communities and environment. We support the Code of Conduct of the TRF, France’s Codever and Spain’s AMVER all of which focus on sustainable use of green roads, coexistence with other users, maximum group size of 5-6 and avoiding trails when they are fragile. In the UK, the TRF’s involvement ensures that there is local input as early as possible if issues are developing/foreseen with a particular lane and the TET is then diverted – it can be done the same day. The TET is a trail-bike route, it’s not designed for 4x4s. In fact it’s too narrow in many places, too difficult in others and impossible to turn round in many. Nor is it a route for those that wish to travel on huge bikes with hard cases piled high and deck chairs and kitchen sinks strapped to the back. It’s challenging but not damaging for those well prepared, travelling light and prepared to make their own adventure. We all know that there are idiots out there and whatever you do you can’t stop them, but what we can do as responsible trail riders is show local communities and co-users of the trails that there is a majority of riders that treasure our green road heritage and respect the freedom we still have. TRF: It’s a remarkable project John, you must be very proud of what you’ve managed to achieve. We look forward to getting out there and exploring Europe.

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Permission Granted When water damage left Pidham Lane in Hampshire on the brink of closure and Hampshire County Council unable to commit to a repair, things didn’t look too good for Loddon Vale TRF. That is until they discovered the council’s small grant scheme. With 50% costs put forwards by the council, and the other 50% by the club, the door to keeping this popular lane was thrown open again. Would they manage to pull it off? TRF: Hi Andy. It looks like you’ve been busy over in Loddon Vale, that’s a lot of Hi-Vis! Could you start by giving us a bit of background to the Green Road you’ve been working on? Andy: Hi Greg, This is the ‘Pidham Lane’ byway that forms part of the East Meon 5-ways complex at Langrish village near Petersfield. This set of byways is subject to a permanent TRO since 1993 limiting vehicular traffic to three wheels or fewer. This is a great set of byways which are shared by motorbikes, horses and walkers. It’s an area that Loddon Vale TRF (LVTRF) frequently takes organised ride outs to, all year round. TRF:What happened to create an issue with the lane? Could it have been prevented? Andy: Hampshire County Council (HCC) highlighted in 2016 that the byway was at risk of closure because of significant surface water damage. The surface conditions are mostly

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chalk in this area and over many years the chalk has been washed away in places. The damage had created a number of large craters which were becoming dangerous to horse riders and pedestrians. LVTRF and HCC held a joint site visit in July 2016 and HCC suggested that LVTRF could use the HCC ‘Small Grants Scheme’ to help fund repairs that would keep the road open. HCC had estimated that 50 tonnes of hard core materials would be required to fill the craters and create a stable foundation. TRF: The way that Loddon Vale has approached this repair has been really interesting. It’s involved volunteers, fund raising, small grant schemes and the approval of official bodies. Impressive stuff. How did you do it? Andy: The HCC Small Grants Scheme (SGS) is a matched funding scheme, where 50% of the costs of performing repairs is provided by HCC, and the other 50% is made up of volunteer man hour in-kind costs plus LVTRF funding. HCC made estimates of material quantities, and obtained quotations for us. There is a maximum of 25% in-kind man hours so with a total estimated cost of around £2300 the LVTRF club would need to find around £600 to fund the activity. Fortunately we were grateful to receive a donation of £200 from Witley MCC at this time. The LVTRF group discussed the opportunity at a number of club and committee meetings. This would be the first time that the LVTRF had taken on a job of this scale so there was some careful consideration to ensure we would be capable of doing a good job. We made contact with Chris Cole at Devon TRF to get insight into the work that had

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been performed by them. They gratefully shared their method statements and risk assessments with us so we could build on their experience. The SGS application was submitted in October 2016, and the contract with HCC was signed by Brian H LVTRF chairman in January 2017. TRF: What was the biggest challenge that you needed to overcome to make this repair happen? Andy: The biggest challenge has been the organisation of machinery to move and place the 50 tonnes of hardcore materials. Originally it was envisaged that a mini-shovel, dumper and digger would be needed. To hire this type of machinery with operators and public liability insurance proved to be a big challenge. There are many companies that hire out equipment with operators, but typically this is on a Monday-Friday basis or for a whole weekend. There are also the logistics of getting the machinery to site and the security issues which meant we really wanted to complete the work within a day so we did not have machinery on site overnight. Luckily in the TRF LV group we found that there were a couple of experienced people who had their own machinery, training and insurance. This hugely simpliďŹ ed the activity as we could contract these guys to bring their machinery for a one day event. TRF: And the repair itself, how did it go? Andy: We had the 50 tonnes of materials delivered on the day before the work day. The delivery truck drivers were brilliant as they battled really hard to get the materials delivered as close to the work site as possible which meant reversing their 20 tonne vehicles up 100m of the byway through a lot of mud and overhanging trees. Steve T had prepared a risk assessment for the event. The key risks identiďŹ ed were using hand tools, manual lifting and working around machinery. The key mitigations that had been identiďŹ ed were for everyone to have hi-viz vests for maximum visibility, for anyone

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working with tools to be competent and have suitable PPE, and having work gloves available for all to use. The machinery we had turned out to be well matched to the job in hand. Dick R brought his CASE 420 tracked loader, and Leigh B brought along a hired 3te mini-digger. We had 14 volunteers turn out from LVTRF and a couple from Southern TRF. The volunteers focussed on clearing overhanging trees and vegetation and assisting in draining some of the water-logged areas. We were lucky with the weather and had a bright and mostly rain-free day. Ade B setup a canteen which meant we could get hot drinks and a lunchtime burger. This also meant the day was a good sociable occasion as well. The repairs were done to the major damaged areas and we completed the work by 4pm on schedule. We lastly put up some signage at the end of the byway indicating that the work had been performed by LVTRF in cooperation with HCC. TRF: What’s next for Loddon Vale TRF? Andy: LVTRF has built up a good relationship with Hampshire CC and we will be talking to them more about other green roads in need of repair in the area. I think we need to get greater visibility of the members within the TRF who have the experience and access to earth moving machinery. This has proved to be the key element in performing a signiďŹ cant work scope such as we took on at Langrish. There is a lot of potential for the TRF to demonstrate that its members are part of the solution when it comes to keeping the green-road network open for the long-term future. TRF: Thanks Andy.

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Above: Dave Carling is the TRF’s Conservation Director and supervises Conservation Projects, Code of Conduct and is in charge of moderation on the TRF Forum

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Run Leader When you started trail riding, the chances are you ended up in a small group following a guy who knew where he was going. That would be the ‘run leader’. The guy who knows the lanes, knows how to connect them and knows when to get the camera out for the bits that you’re almost certain to fall on. But how do you go from being a follower to a leader? Cumbria TRF have put together an innovative scheme to help TRF members get skilled up and build the confidence to begin to lead runs. Nigel Summers was on the latest training day, here’s what happened... TRF: So Nigel, the first I heard about this was when I saw Steve Stout’s post on the Cumbria TRF Facebook Group. Is that how you got involved? Nigel: We had talked about it at our local area TRF group meetings. A problem had been identified. Each month a run leader is chosen to lead a TRF run. Steve Stout was advertising these runs on the Cumbria TRF Facebook page and they were hugely oversubscribed, filling up within seconds, leaving many who would like to have come out disappointed. Group numbers are strictly limited especially in the highly sensitive Lake District National Park. Steve’s solution was to encourage more riders to become run leaders so we could offer more runs per month. TRF: What’s your background in the TRF? Why did this appeal to you? Nigel: Apart from brief forays into trials and grass track racing over four decades ago, and more recent trail riding on big adventure bikes on the Iberian Peninsula and in North

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Africa, my bike life has been lived on European tarmac roads and UK track days. A neighbour of ours, TRF member Lucy Dunn, and her partner Steve Stout were clearly having far too much fun on their knobbly-tyred steeds and my curiosity made it a simple step for them to talk me into trying the trails which, with Steve’s patient guidance, I started exploring in February 2016, joining the TRF a month or two later. The Cumbria Group proved to be a friendly, welcoming and lively lot, always ready and willing to share their years of knowledge and experience with a wobbling newbie. I was soon making new friends and heading out on the green roads. At the end of 2016, I volunteered my services as secretary for the Group, a position I now hold. The Run Leader Training appealed on many levels. Primarily it would provide an opportunity to give something back to a Group who had treated me to a year of great riding adventures and fun. To lead rather than follow would demand taking control of many aspects. Route planning and on-the-day navigation; it would involve an enhanced degree of responsibility and attention to the welfare of other riders in a group; it would require an ability to identify and tackle various logistic issues including trying to keep people safe, legal, fuelled and fed. Overall, it promised to be a win-win. A chance to help answer a specific problem of oversubscription to ride outs within the Group and a broadened view of the whole trail-riding experience for myself. TRF: How did the day unfold? Nigel: First off, I should tell you that Steve Stout went to considerable lengths to prepare and produce a set of notes which he sent out to all the participants before the day. These notes were to serve as a post-event aide-memoire since he knew he would be covering a huge range of subjects during the course of the day. At my age, the memory sure needs all the aid it can get, so I’ll be drawing heavily on his notes in what I now tell you. Also, the briefing was actually conducted throughout the day at various stops and over lunch as there was much interesting and stimulating discussion surrounding many of the points raised. Steve kicked off with a briefing at our rather chilly rendezvous point. This was basically split in two parts. 1: WHAT TO DO BEFORE THE DAY Route planning: Making sure that the route suits both your own capability as a run leader and your prospective rider group. Are you offering to take out newbies or intermediate and experienced riders? Navigation methods. Primary means of navigation (e.g. GPS). Back-up navigation method (e.g. detailed OS Maps covering the route). A printed route overview map to highlight potential fuel and food stops on the day. Timing: Making sure that the route could be covered in the available time, remembering daylight hours and contingency for potential mishaps, gates, fuelling and food breaks. Advertising your run: How and where to make your run known to your group. Making sure people know where and when to meet and when they need to be ready to ride. Kit: Making sure your own bike and your kit are fit and won’t be letting you down. Force Majeure: Being prepared to abandon the day – for example if extreme weather intervenes. How you can communicate such last-minute changes to the group.

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2: WHAT TO DO ON THE DAY. Introductions with helmets off provided lesson number one. We won’t look like that with helmets on! As the plan would involve each one of us taking the role of leader and tail ender for periods during the course of the day, we needed to know that we could recognise each other once ensconced in riding garb. And how many of us were there? Another important point to get lodged in the head! Obvious, you’d think, but do we all make a pre-ride count every time out, or do we just tend to leave it up to the run leader? Be honest now. Steve offered important insight into the run-leader role. This touched on what can be a legal minefield and led to some interesting discussion among the group. Basically, the run leader in our scenario is an unpaid volunteer who is willing to show others a route taking in legal roads, some of which will be “green”, and some will be tarmac linking the green ones together. That’s it. The leader is otherwise not responsible for whatever might happen during the day and every rider should be aware that he or she is entirely responsible for themselves. But that might not absolve the leader of perceived responsibility in a court of law, so the business of introduction was taken a little further than a mere exchange of names. For example, Steve asked each of us to say a little about our personal riding experience. This may sound involved and time consuming, but in practice, Steve showed how a great deal of information could be gleaned from quite brief exchanges using carefully worded questions. The introductions phase also provided an opportunity to ask each rider about their bike’s maximum fuel range. Fuel stops need to be planned to suit the machine with the shortest range. Steve stressed the importance of making sure that the group know and can identify (with helmet on) who is the Leader and who is the designated Tail-Ender. Making sure everyone is aware that they are expected to keep an eye on the person immediately behind them is equally critical, especially at junctions. If the rider behind you is not there, there is a problem or a lost rider so stop and turn back. Eventually the group

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will all become aware in turn and go back to the source of the problem to help sort it out. Even the penultimate rider in the line needs to adhere to this golden rule. The Tail Ender might be an experienced rider, but that doesn’t mean they will have a problem-free day! If a rider becomes separated from the group, they should wait at the last place they were still in visual contact with the others. Eventually the group will double back and find them. Lost riders should not attempt to head off in a random search for the group. This will only make the situation worse. The Gate handling procedure is shared with the group. Leader and Tail Ender do not open or shut gates. Rider two opens and rider three shuts the gate after the Tail Ender has passed through. Tail Ender waits for the gate shutter to pass and then sets off him/herself. Simple. If everyone follows this rule, everyone gets to ride everywhere in the line except at the very front or at the very back, everyone gets some gate-opening and gate-shutting action and gates are handled with the minimum of time-loss. And yet how many riders do you know who get confused by this simple procedure and seem incapable of following it? A good few, I’ll bet. Steve discussed procedures for handling accidents and injuries and the importance of identifying the point when the best outcome is beyond the capabilities of the group and will be provided by emergency service professionals. The vital point was made that unless a rider is pretty much on the point of death, it is crucial to take the most humorous possible photograph of their plight for later publication on all social media platforms before going to their aid! Steve advocated encouraging riders to speak up if they were finding the ride-out pace too fast, too slow, or the terrain too hard or too easy. There might be something the leader can do to improve the lot of a rider having a bad day, although it was also pointed out that to please all the people all the time is an impossible dream. The importance of making sure that all riders have tools appropriate to their own machine was also highlighted. Steve demonstrated his own simple kit, developed over more miles than most of us will ever cover.

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Numerous other points were covered throughout the day and included: Making sure that everyone understood that in the event of breakdowns, injuries or any other problems suffered by an individual rider, everyone was expected to muck in and help out to the best of their abilities and that injured riders should never be left alone. Sharing any information about the lanes that the leader and/or others may not know Handling challenges from members of the public and/or landowners Following the TRF Code of Conduct Reporting access issues, lane blockages, lane damage etc. to the local group’s Rights of Road (a.k.a. RoW) officers Making sure you and your ride-out group have lots of fun and laughs. TRF: What were the big lessons you came away with? Any surprises? Nigel: For me a favourite moment came when Steve deliberately included a lane in the route that would almost guarantee a confrontation with a landowner. This particular lane – lets be accurate here and call it “this particular ROAD” – includes some gates wired shut and others deliberately rendered inoperable, forcing users of the road to make detours over field land which is extremely soft and very easy to mark. Sure enough, we were challenged, not by the farmer himself on this occasion, but by the farmer who owns the neighbouring farm who had seen us making one of the aforementioned detours. The encounter began with the farmer disputing our contention that it was our legal right to make a reasonable detour within his neighbour’s land if there was a blockage on the legitimate road. At this point, he was not a happy bunny. Illegal detours by “off roaders” through his own farmyard (itself a bridleway), fuel theft and various other problems had caused him to have to spend thousands on an elaborate set of access gates for vehicles and pedestrians. We all removed our helmets and crucially did a lot more listening than talking until we fully understood his position. You could not help but sympathise with his problems, and he certainly appreciated that we did. Anyway, the encounter ended with him having a right good laugh with us, eventually confessing to having been a keen biker in his past, and generally realising that we weren’t a bunch of two-wheeled hooligans out to ruin his life and intimidate him and that in fact

52 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

we were all prepared to look out for, and be respectful of, each other’s needs. By that point, an unhappy bunny had become a happy bunny. Job done! The whole day was an eye opener. It was brilliantly and professionally thought out and run, but the real surprise was how it will impact on me even as a participant in ride outs. Yes, it was Run Leader Training, but it was also so helpful in “getting the right head on” just as a rider in a group situation. I’ve spent my motorcycling life preferring to ride alone or just with my better half on the pillion seat and there was so much information offered on the day that I simply hadn’t thought about. I think the training will make me so much more aware of the needs of others. Less selfish I guess you could say, and that can’t be a bad thing. TRF: So will we be seeing you at the front of the group more often now? Nigel: Definitely. I’ve already taken out my first group (before the training day) and now, armed with Mr. Stout’s excellent words of wisdom, I’m very keen to repeat the experience. I really enjoyed the planning phase - beats watching the TV any day - and contributing in some small way to folks having fun on the day was a great feeling. TRF: Finally, what would you say to any other TRF members or groups that are thinking of replicating something like this elsewhere in the country? Nigel: Go for it. The only thing missing on the day were other experienced run leaders. Steve invited them, but sadly none could attend. Everyone can benefit from everyone else’s experiences and nobody knows it all. I would say that even the most experienced run leader in the country would have found food for thought somewhere in what was covered on the day. It’s definitely a more-the-merrier thing. Everyone will benefit so get to it! TRF: Thanks Nigel.

Inspired by Cumbria TRF? Putting together a training day like this isn’t too hard with a bit of planning. Having more run leaders helps spread the responsibility of leading rides throughout your regional group. Get in touch with Steve Stout for a few more tips. TRF Director Chris Barrable has responsibility for Training and holds the list of TRF accredited Training Providers

Autumn 2017 Heritage Trail 53

Painful Landing Trail riding gives you freedom to explore parts of the country that would otherwise be fairly hard to get to. It’s not without its risks though, and falling off is all part of the learning process. That’s why we invest in protective gear. Most of the time we get up, dust ourselves off, take a pic and keep going. But what if it’s more serious than that? Would you know what to do if one of your riding buddies had a bad one? TRF member Ben Newham found out the hard way. TRF: Hi Ben. Sounds like you’ve been in the wars. What’s the current condition of your shoulder? Ben: I’ve fractured my left scapula, which I understand is the triangular bone, or shoulder blade. They don’t put you in a cast because it’s quite deep in your body, which means I’m constantly twinging it! It will be 6-8 weeks before it has healed and then up to six months before it’s up to full strength. TRF: Sounds painful. Let’s backtrack, what was the TRF ride out that you were on? Ben: It was a ride in Herefordshire and Wales organised by Paul Benjamin. So far we’d had riding quite similar to that we find at home although a lot more overgrown and less travelled. We’d just stopped for lunch and fuelled up, about 40 miles into a 100 mile ride.

54 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

TRF: So what actually happened? Ben: This is the embarrassing bit. It was a farm track, almost entirely flat, no ruts or anything even slightly difficult. I turned into the corner and lost the front on the gravel and was catapulted into the ground. I kept my arms tucked and took the brunt on my shoulder. I think anyone that has ridden with me will know I have fallen off before; this was the first time I instantly felt I’d been hurt. TRF: OK, so you’re lying there on the ground. You know you are hurt. Was it mad panic or did the other riders you were with know what to do? Ben: It was pretty good actually; Bob and Vern stopped me moving whilst Paul B kept talking to me (other riders having gone ahead). After working out I was generally OK they took my helmet off and gave me a bag to rest my head on. They got on the phone to 999 and gave them the location in degrees and minutes, plus the OS grid reference. I think Darren and Paul G were dispatched to the nearest junction to guide the expected ambulance in. We’d just crossed a ford so everyone was working out how we’d deal with that. Everyone was extremely calm and capable. I had to speak to the emergency services operator who I think was assessing my condition. She told me it could be long wait and I was not looking forward to lying in the sun for an hour or two! Whilst we waited I was kept entertained by bad jokes and mickey taking as you might expect. Vern also called his extremely patient wife out from her hike to bring his van to the spot, so they could take my bike back to the B&B.

Autumn 2017 Heritage Trail 55

Painful Landing TRF: The air ambulance looked quite exciting, though I’m sure you weren’t feeling that at the time. What happened when the paramedics arrived? Ben: After 10 or 15 minutes of waiting, we heard a helicopter in the distance and someone joked, “That’s for you Ben.” It came closer and someone else said, “Well it is a red one.” It started circling and I was soon forgotten about as everyone got excited about the helicopter! I remember Darren running up the lane with a big grin on his face. They spent a few minutes flying around to see where they could land, choosing a spot less than 100 metres from where I had landed myself. Once they had arrived they quickly got as much information as possible from my mates and got started with the drugs which instantly made me feel a bit better. They asked if I minded if they removed my amour before they sliced through the gear and removed the neck brace that I was glad I’d worn. They generally poked and prodded, paying particular attention to my neck and spine and established that I could be walked out to the helicopter with a suspected dislocated shoulder. I slowly stood up, the combination of the drugs, shock and lying down meant I was quite dizzy. I managed to get to the helicopter without falling again and I was sat in first class sipping on morphine whilst they flew me to Shrewsbury hospital.

56 Heritage Trail Autumn 2017

Perhaps the worst bit was arriving at the helipad which is next to the car park; there were lots of people with video phones filming the helicopter who must have been quite disappointed as a hairy topless me stepped out. As I’ve always found with the NHS A&E, I was dealt with quickly and well looked after, though they kept me in overnight because of the drugs they’d given me. TRF: Looking back on the incident, was there anything that you think went well or could have been done differently? Any lessons we can learn from your accident? Ben: I remember the pilot saying how easily they had found us because we were able to give the precise location, and that he felt the OS grid ref was best as there is room for confusion with lat/long coordinates. Even if you ride without a GPS there are various apps which will give you a precise OS ref, so I’d suggest everyone gets one of those, like the “OS Locate” app. One other thing I think would be sensible is to have a list of emergency contacts for these more informal, but still organised, trips. Details could easily be shared via Facebook messenger in advance, or just given to one particular person. Had it been more serious for me it could have taken days for my wife and family to find out. I was pretty disappointed that it took almost five minutes for the guys to start taking pictures and having a laugh at my expense whilst I was on the ground. They normally have the timing down to 30 seconds or less! In all seriousness, I think it was dealt with exceptionally well. I should say a special thanks to Paul Benjamin who drove well out of his way and waited for hours at the hospital to take me home on Sunday night whilst I was discharged. Vern and his wife also very kindly got my car back home, going above and beyond. It surprised me that the air ambulance is entirely supported by charity, so dig deep next time you see a collection. My wife told me she always donates as she expected me to require a lift from them at some point! TRF: So, is that you off riding for a while? Ben: Yes, for a while. I was hoping to do the mini-mondo in Spain in September but the doctors think that’s unlikely, plus I’ll be out of the Cambridgeshire TRF Dawn till Dusk event. But I can use the time to put more shiny bits on the bike I suppose! TRF: Thanks Ben, get well soon!

DID YOU KNOW? Did you know that the Air Ambulance operates entirely on donations? Herts TRF made a donation to Wales Air Ambulance after Ben’s accident. You can make your own donation here: http:/www.walesairambulance.com/ Also, as Ben raised the point, family/next of kin can be informed quickly if you have an ICE (In Case of Emergency) number in the Contacts on your phone, emergency services always check for that.

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Conserving Green Roads...

...one T-shirt at a time To purchase any of the items shown here please go to www.trf.org.uk/ and select SHOP from the top menu

T-Shirt: Ride Green Roads £14.99

T-Shirt: Green Road Warrior £14.99

T-Shirt: Logo Distressed £14.99

T-Shirt: Logo Badge Regional £14.99

Beanie: Logo £9.99

Riding Shirt: Colour-coded to bike £39.99

Gilet: TRF Logo Front £14.99

Hoodie: TRF Logo Large £14.99

Embroidered Patch £2.05

Hoodie: Green Road Warrior £14.99

Hi-Vis vests are available in a number of different versions Hi-Vis 02: Regional £9.99 Hi-Vis 03: Marshall £9.99 Hi-Vis 04: TRF Logo Large £9.99 A range of alternative colours are also available for the t-shirts, hoodies, and riding shirts, along with promotional leaflets, feather flags and banners.

SMALL ADS 2005 KTM 250EXC with 350 top end conversion as was popular option in this year. Lots of money spent maintaining this bike. Starts on the button. Registered & MoT’d. Expect signs of use. Offers around 2k good starter package. Contact for details. 2014 Honda CRF250X I have a 2014 Honda CRF250X D – the enduro model – for sale. It is on a 14 plate and the V5 is in my name. The bike has been upgraded and now has a proper speedo, dip and main beam, key ignition, front and rear brake light and a horn. It also has a big aftermarket alloy bash plate, Barkbuster wraparounds plus bling and spares including the standard Honda plastics. The bike is also for sale on ebay with full details for £3,950 with a make offer option. I am open to sensible offers. Bike has long MOT and is not far from Malvern in Worcestershire. Call 07809 612 286 for more details or if interested. 1998 Suzuki DR250 I am looking at selling my DR250, 1998 R reg, it has electric and kick start and oil cooler, I am asking £1250 for it and it’s located in North Yorkshire. Any questions and photos can be sent from my email. Adam-dowson@hotmail.com

Friends of the TRF 25% Discount EBC Brakes Direct www.ebcbrakesdirect.com Available brake and clutch components 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 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 J&S Oxford www.jsaccessories.co.uk

2015 BETA ALP 200 1 owner from new. Registered 16.04.2015 - now SORN. Regular oil/filter changes. Modified seat in memory foam (more comfortable). Location Portsmouth area. Price £2400.00. Can email photos if required. Email: motovela1@gmail.com 2001 Honda Dominator NX650 Registered 2001. Owned by me for last 7 years. Tested Nov 2017. 16897 miles, excellent condition, rides like a new bike. Recent suspension, brake, steering, bearing overhaul. New Hagon rear shock. Nice simple bike that is easy to maintain and has a reputation for going forever. £1900.00. https://www.gumtree.com/p/honda-motorbi ... 1265230892 2010 KTM EXC 200 On a 60 plate. It’s done 2 hours since Christmas last year when it had a new top end. Front forks just serviced. All new plastics and decals. New RFX gear lever. RFX footpegs (well used).Wheel and headstock bearings replaced. KTM folder present with small number of KTM tools. V5 in my name and registered at my address MOT expires 21 October 2017. £2,450 Based in Crowthorne, Berkshire, call Darren on 07392 605 173

The following businesses are offering discounts to TRF members

Flexiplates www.flexiplates.co.uk quote code TRF15 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 10% Discount Rally Raid www.rally-raidproducts.co.uk Discount available on all custom Rally parts Zen Overland www.zenoverland.com Midwest Racing www.midwestracing.co.uk Available on parts, accessories and clothing Fraser’s of Gloucester www.frasersmotorcycles.co.uk 10% off of clothing and 5% on spare parts Premier Bikes www.premierbikes.com KTM franchise with discount applying to parts and clothing

Bolt Bikes www.boltbikes.co.uk Gerbing www.gerbing.eu Discount code is TRF10 Manchester Xtreme www.manchesterxtreme.com Quote your TRF membership number EDZ www.edzdirect.com Base-layer clothing Discount code is TRFC_10 Endurotek www.endurotek.co.uk Parts and accessories 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

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