May 9th rest day update

Ok, gotta make this fast.

 The ride into here was long and hard, 174 kms total with the first 131 on dirtty gravel and the rest on pavement down hill but into a fierce headwind.  I had to stop in town for a burger and milkshake before heading on to camp.  I guess I do not take the race as seriously as others do .  The ride the day before was short (108) and to fish river canyon.  The canyon was cool, looks a lot like the South West US.  Our view point was about 10 kms from the camp and we got a ride in the run about truck and passed loads of people that were riding down there.  I felt a little bad for not riding, but I have done enough riding recently.

The race times are all messed up right now, I did have a 4th place finish, but not on the day they siad I did.  The 7th place finish is wrong I think, but it should be cleared up soon I hope..  I should be very close to Dan Johnson.  I am hoping to catch him in the next 4 days before the race ends.  Looking forwards to seeing everyone in Cape Town or on my trip home.

  Will try to update again soon, Internet time is running low

later

Ricky

May 6th What a day!!!

  Today started like many other days.  Woke up, packed up, had breakfast and got ready to ride.  When I was all set I clocked out and got on my bike.  I noticed that the screw that holds the cranks together was loose so I gave it a quick tighten and headed off with Peter.  Lynn passed us withing the first 100 meters and we hung on her wheels until Adam who was going for the stage win passed us and we all got on his wheel.  We had 31 kms of dirty gravel before we hit pavement for the rest of the day.  After about 15 kms of riding hard and passing loads of people Peter went with Adam and I was alone.  I thought I should keep going hard and see how the day played out.  Jethro soon passed me and I caught on to the back of him and caught up with Lynn.  When we got to the pavement I kept pushing it hard to see what would happen.  What I noticed was a lot of people sitting in a small town and then not very many people in front of me.  I decided that if I wanted to be in the top 10 on this trip, today was the day.  I peddled as hard as I could and toght that if I could keep up 30 kph all day I would have a shot.  Lynn pulled up behind me and we rode hard next together for a while until she pulled in front.  At about 50 kms I saw Rod and Juliana on the side of the road.  I stopped because I needed a break and they quickly were ready to get going again.  I started with them and asked Rod if at our current pace I would make the top 10.  He said no and went faster up to 36.  He said I had to keep that pace in oreder to get where I wanted and by the way skip lunch.  I held the pace as well as I could but it got a little hilly before lunch and I just tried to go as hard as I could.  At 60 kms Lynn was on the side of the road fixing a flat and after making sure she was good I cranked it to lunch.

  At lunch I saw that the only people in front of me were Tim and Adam.  I filled a water bottle, told Peter who was sitting there after riding Marcel’s wheel that I was leaving in 2 minutes.  I grabbed 2 pieces of French toast and got on the bike, in about 15 seconds.  I headed off and ate the French toast in the aero bars as I worked my way to camp.  I continued to peddle as hard as I could knowing that I had a chance to make it a fast day, but also knowing that their were a lot of faster people behind me.

  On the way to camp Jethro passed me and we talked strategy for me to be in the top 10.  He thought it should be quite easy and that when Paul and Sunil passed me I had to stay with them seeing they left before me.  I rode hard and in front of me I saw some of the people who rode from Lunch only.  I passed them and soon after spotted a red shirt behind me closing.  I rode hard and pushed up some big steep hills and finally saw the bridge that was 2 kms from camp.  At that point the red shirt (Paul) caught me.  He asked why I was peddling so hard and I told him that I couldn’t get into my big chain ring all the time since the lunch spot.  I thought he would pass me, but he said he had worked so hard to catch me he was tired too.  We rode to the bridge together as I was pushing hard while he was costing, then we had 2 kms on dirt to camp.  He said he was taking it easy on the dirt and I told him I was going to press on so with him just behind me I made it to camp 3^rd. 

  I scanned out and then headed to the bar for 2 toasted cheese and 2 cokes.  I wanted to puke, and die and fall over all at once but I knew that with the minutes ticking by and people trickling in I might have done well today.  At dinner Kelsey who knew I had really pushed it out today came up to me and told me I was 4^th.

  I was amazed, so happy and so proud of myself and how far I had come since the beginning of the trip.  I don’t know if I were to start the trip again how I would do, but I know I would have a chance to do better that I am.  I was just so happy to hear that with the massive effort I put in today I got the reward of doing well.  I also learned that the people that put in a full effort like that every day are truly unbelievable athletes and deserve to be talked about in conversations with the top endurance athletes in the world.

  So yea, good day on the bike, spent the afternoon recovering and catching my breath and now I am heading to bed.

  Later guys

 Ricky

May 5th Mando day greatness

Uphill to lunch, downhill to camp.  Coke stop at 100 kms at a store where I bought dried mango and some candy.  Made it to camp early enough to have some choco cake and vanilla ice cream before dinner.  Dinner as always was great and then there was a bonfire where we hung out and talked with Henry the TDA owner about some of the stuff he has planned for the future.  It was a mando day, but not super hard, maybe I am getting the hang of this biking after all.

  That’s all I have energy for now

Later

  Ricky

May 4th Eat it one day, see it the next

   Well, leaving a rest day is always an interesting experience.  Resting is nice and sometimes 1 day is just not enough, but we get to head to a new place and see new things which is always fun.  We headed out this morning, and within the first 20 kms I got to see me new favourite anima.  It was an Orax, a great tasting animal which was sandy blond hair and white legs with these amazing long unicorn style horns.  I watched him for a while and took some pictures then got back on the bike.  I was getting close to Dana in front of me when she stopped in the road and started pointing to the side of the road.  I looked over and saw about 8 zebras running along the road.  It was amazing, I later found out that they were mountain zebras and they are very rare to be down by the road.

  Lunch was Tuna an old favortie and after that we still had 60 something kms to make it to our 139 km camp.  It was difficult to get going after lunch, but after a while we developed a tail wind and I even saw one of thise little dirt tornados heading along the road in the direction I was going.  I tried to speed up to catch it but I had no luck.

  All in all a pretty fun day and with 4 tough days including 2 mando days coming up (Tomorros and 2 days later) all on dirt with some scerious distance coming up it will be a tough 4 days before we get to our last rest day.

  Well it is a bit after 7 and I am ready for bed so I will cut this off here.

 Goodnight everyone,

 Ricky

May 2nd and 3rd

  The update for May 3^rd first because it is super easy.  Today is a rest day at the entrance to a sand dune park in Namibia.  I am sure it is amazing, but I have seen eough sand dunes to last a life time so I took the day to chill out.  I woke up and did laundry.  Cleaned my bike and fixed a slow leak in the back tire and then went to the gas station.  Got on the internet for a bit and didn’t upload anything because I could not plug my computer in and the 2 computers they had are hidden so that I couldn’t put a USB stick in.  Guess everyone will have to wait for the updates.  I had lunch at the gas station, snacks and a steak and kidney pie and then headed back to camp to work on this update.  I will finish this update, take a nap then have dinner at the lodge next door to our campground.  I had dinner there last night and I am sure tonight will be a similar experience.  More on that at the end of the May 2^nd update.

  May 2^nd.  Well it was a short day into the rest day and it was a nice change.  Lunch was at 50 kms and I started out thinking I would try and see how fast I could go.  Right out of camp I was passed by Stu and Jethro 2 of the race leaders and I decided that this was the day I would hang on to them.  I stayed on their tails for 7.5 kms with Lynn joining up 1 km into the ride.  I knew that they could not keep up the 27 km pace all day and knowing that I couldn’t either I was waiting for them to slow down.  They did change pase, but unfortunately for me it was not to slow down.  I guess they do a 7.5 km worm up each day and they pushed the pace up to 30 as we were heading up a slight incline.  I dropped off and watched them peddle into the distance.  I guess I have to be satisfied with my effort on this trip, but it would be a lot of fun to be in contention for the lead.  On the other hand, waking up everyday and riding as hard and as fast as I could wouldn’t be much fun.   I guess the bottom line is I am having a great amazing experience and I am happy with the way it is going and that is all that is important.  Sitting on the bike less would be nice though and the fast guys are on their bikes about 60% of the time I am so, yea, I guess their bums are less sore.

  At 50 kms I saw the lunch truck and was quickly informed by Dave that today was the naked mile.  Not many people were at lunch and I thought it would be a big group thing but what happened was a few people riding down the road 1 at a time naked.  I didn’t really see the intrigue in that at that time and decided to just ride on, finding a gap in the naked people. 

  Made it to camp well before noon and went straight to the bar for some food and a beer.  Got the tent all set up had a shower and decided that chores could wait until the next day.  We hung out at the bar for a while, went to the gas station down the street for internet and then found out that the lodge next door ($200 a night for a room without a TV) had a buffet dinner that was only $220 Namibian or about $30 US.  We headed over just before it started and had no idea the treat we were in.

  I started out with some salads, crisp lettuce, ripe peppers, baby tomatoes and feta.  Pasta salad, and even some smoked fish.  Pretty good start, but now I was ready for meat.  I headed back to the buffet and saw the stir fry station.  I put some veg on the plate and some beef and chicken and had soy sauce put on as the lady across the way cooked it all up for me.  Then I looked up and saw the grill.  The plan was to go and look to see what I wanted next, but I was trapped.  I was staring at 7 different kinds of game meat and instantly knew what the nights challenge would be.  I was going to eat 9 different animal steaks in 1 night.  I accomplished my goal and even had room for desert, it was amazing.  Oryx was my favorite, springback was great, Kudu was also amazing.  Warthog and Wildebeest were surprisingly tasty.  I had driven and Impala before, but eating one was just as much fun.  I also ate an Eland which I have no idea what it was, but it also tasted great.  So with the beef and chicken in the stir fry I ate 9 different animals in the same meal which I think was pretty cool.  Not sure if I will ever be able to top that and I am sure I will not be able to top it for less then $30 US.

  After that it was back to camp, a beer and then bed before I woke up and started my rest day routine.

  Pretty simple 2 days but it has been nice, most of my body is pain free, bike is ready to go tomorrow and things are looking up.  1 more riding days until we hit the Cape Town waterfront.  What a trip so far, so much to enjoy in the last days.

  Later all

Ricky

May 1 Dirrrty South

Well actually North Namibia, but I could wait for a chance to use the title.  Today was more dirt.  Before lunch I rode mostly alone but when Jenn caught me I rode with her a bit.  I only seem to ride with her on dirt days when she is not feeling well, and I hate that she is sick, but it is nice to ride with her.

  At lunch we had hot coco, which was great because it was cold and only getting colder.  The rode we were on was heading straight for the darkest most lighting filled clouds I have ever seen.  It looked great, but heading into it riding a bike on dirt up a 15 km climb was a little sketchy.  At the top of the climb everything paid off though with one of the most spectacular views I have ever seen in my life.  The pictures will not do it justice at all, but it was an imence view with mountains, rocks and desert all laid out below us, just incredible.  We then decended 500 m in 4 kms which was some of the most dangerous riding of the trip in the rain soaked conditions.  There were steep downhills, some even steeper up hills, and a lot of loosesand and gravel.  I made it down in tact and then had a 40 kms ride to finish at camp at 121 kms.  I got in and headed straight for the bakery which is famous in all of Africa for the Apple Crumble.  It was great and followed up with a blueberry muffin and another pastry.  The bakery is in the extras of “The long Way Down” with the same guy that served be serving Euan Macgregor.  I really want to see the movie when I get home because we are traveling a lot of the same route they did.

  After that it was cleaning the bike quickly with a hose because the drive train was sounding like crap with all the wet sand and lubing the chain for tomorrows 83 kms day into the rest day by a Natioanl Park with sand dunes.  I think I have seen enough sand dunes in Algeria to last me a life time but for a lot of people this will be their first time and they are very excited to see it all.

  That’s all for tonight.  Dirt roads make me tired and even though it is 8:20 and my alarm is set for 5 am, bed is calling my name and I don’t want to disappoint.

  Goodnight all

 Ricky

April 30th 78 kms beer stop

April 30th 78 kms beer stop Well I had so many things to write about but then at 78 kms the race director Kelsey pulled up in the green truck and gave me a beer. After 78 kms on dirt 1 beer instantly made me feel like my legs no longer hurt, the road was magically smooth and camp was just around the corner. None of these things were actually true of coarse, camp was still 33 kms away into a head wind and up many hills, the road was bumpy and washed out once again shortly after, and my legs still hurt not unlike the way they feel now. It was however, the best beer of my trip so far because it was free, cold, and drank while straddling my bike. Before any of this happened the fun had started. After lunch I was riding with Peter and we pulled up next to Gerald. I know some people would like me to punch him in the face but he is actually a really nice guy and still EFI. He had put an 8 speed chain on his bike thinking it was a 9 speed chain and at 70 kms it gave up and broke. I had some spare links for a 9 speed chain and we tried to make it work but the pins were too short. Eric Defour AKA the bike Macgiver pulled up and managed to rig something up with a shram and a shimano quick link put together. It lasted for about 100 meters before it came apart. We stopped again and as I got off my bike I hear this massive deflating sound from the back of my bike. My back tire had gone flat with me doing absolutely nothing. Eric worked on the chain again shortening it restricting the gears that could be used but making it possible for Gerald to ride to camp and keep his EFI. I had 1 spare tube and used it to fix my problem. When I took the old tube out I saw a hole the size of a tack head in the tube. Not sure how it got there or what caused it, but I threw a patch on it seeing it is my only spare tube while I am riding my fat tires. After all the drama and excitement we arrived at camp which is quite nice. Some people as always have rooms while I and many others are in tents (intense as well because we are in tents). We had the rock throwing decathlon event today and I was competing for my team. I didn’t do great at the landing rocks in the map of Africa and only got 1 bonus point for hitting the cardboard cut out of an Ethiopian child with a rock. A head shot was worth 5 points and I got him in the body  After that was the rider meeting where I got my winner plate for the team time trial. There was a lot of chirping from people about our A team and B team strategy to the time trial but we played by the rules, had fun, and I peddled as hard as I possibly could so I am not upset at all. Plus I get to yell at people who talk shit and we all know that is something I can have fun with. By this point in the trip everyone has done something foolish and it is my pleasure to remind them of that as they remind me that I am not the fastest rider on the trip. Since we got on the dirt today the scenery has been amazing. It looks like we are riding through Death Valley. There are mountains in the distance. We are going up and down hills, and the road side is all scrub dessert. No trees, just small shrubs, some cattle and a few Namibian cowboys. Much more enjoyable to ride through than the long flat paved roads of before. I guess that was it for today. It was nice to catch up with Peter and his family and take the day a bit slower than normal. Time to head to the tent and enjoy another night in what is getting to be quite a smelly sleeping bag. Later all Ricky

April 30th 78 kms beer stop

April 30th 78 kms beer stop