Big ride Wrap up

What a country

It’s been two weeks since I finished my cycling adventure and the long hills and endless roads have been replaced with fond memories of  the magnificent route, our beautiful country, the emotional experience of giving to people in need and the team spirit that developed on the way.

As we rode into Cape Town on the last of 14 days and 1600km of riding I was overwhelmed by the moment, seeing family and friends there to welcome us in and to share in the celebration of our success.



Three days later was the Cape Town Argus Cycle Race around the Cape Peninsula and I completed the 110km route in just over 4 hours; a puncture and very sore legs slowing my time and resulting in me missing my goal of completing the race in less than 4 hours. After riding 1600km without incident I managed to get a puncture 2 km from the start of the race…maybe I should have paid a bit more attention to my bike after the big ride?



Caitlin and Vaughan at the Argus start




Vaughan and Caitlin both rode the race as well, for Caitlin it was her first time and what a celebration when she finished in just over 6 hours! Vaughan was 10 minutes behind me, his goal of beating me still not achieved, but it won’t be long now! Don, my cousin and room mate, also battled through the race, our bodies definitely needed more time to recover. Robert, who joined us in Port Elizabeth finished the best in our family with a time of 3 hours 45 minutes just beating my brother Dave who finishing in 3 hours 50 minutes. Robert’s and Don’s father had a fantastic ride and finished 8^th in the 70 to 79 age group category with a time of 4 hours and 40 minutes. Our 2 friends from Jakarta, Kelly and Curtis, both enjoyed the ride and finished in time to collect their medals, although Kelly did say at times that she hated me for persuading her to do the race.

Back to our big ride, 7 cyclists made it the whole way, not bad for a bunch of old guys, our average age was 55 years old. Our target was to ride 1700km but we lost 100km on the way due to road works and heavy traffic. In all we were on the bikes for a total of 65 hours and I burnt just under 80,000 calories. On route we raised R550,000 (80,000 dollars) and with our personal sponsorships included it is estimated that we will have raised a total of  R800,000 (117,000 dollars). I was personally able to raise R120,000 (17,500 dollars), thanks a million to all of my Sponsors.

Before the trip I did not really understand how the daily fundraising activities worked and these became the highlight of the trip for me. I have a special memory of the donation on Day 2 of the ride when the recipients were a center for homeless children and the small kids came along to participate in the donation handover.


Donation in Dundee, KwaZulu Natal Day 2



The most spectacular part of the trip was riding next to the Lesotho Mountains in the Free State and the last day riding along the coast from Hermanus to Cape Town. We had a saying “It’s not a race it’s a ride” which was used whenever we were pushing ourselves and not appreciating the fantastic countryside around us.



Breakfast, my favourite - boiled egg, bread with honey and peanut butter and a cuppa tea

 There were hard days when I wanted to pack it all in, the worst of these were Day 3 when we pedaled through Golden Gate in the Drakensburg Mountains. The landscape was stunning but the hills were ridiculous and the day never seemed to end, hill after hill.

 On Day 12 we the rode down to Cape Agulhas, the southern most tip of Africa, and had to ride into a 40km headwind for miles, we eventually sought refuge behind the support vehicle. It was no good complaining to the locals about the wind, they said it was normal and we were lucky it was not blowing harder! Day 9 was the day I really hit the wall and probably the day I was closest to giving the whole thing up. The day before we had enjoyed a great ride and finished early and has gone to a local pub and watched the rugby; as a result I did not feel myself the next morning. We had a bunch of local riders joining us on that day so the pace was a little faster than usual, throw in a couple of really steep hills and the result was a really difficult day. Amazingly enough, after a good night’s sleep and a little motivational talk to myself I was on top form again the next day.

Would I do it again? I am not sure I would. But I definitely need these sorts of goals to motivate me to keep fit and active. I have not looked at my bike since we finished the Argus and have no desire to do anything strenuous, my plan is to spend the last 2 weeks of my holiday thinking about what the next challenge will be.

Thanks to Rotary Club of Empangeni, all the Organizers, fellow Team Mates, especially Don my roommate for the great ride.


Don and me leading the pack


A special thanks to my darling wife and family who had to put up with all the training, preparation and worry while we were on the road.

I am not sure what will happen to the blog from here onwards, I will keep you posted!

Thank you so much for all your support, knowing that there were people out there thinking about me and wishing me well kept me motivated on one of the biggest adventures of my life.





 



A happy group at the end



Day 14. All over

Hi everyone, we arrived in Cape ToWn at 10.45 this morning, what an emotional moment with Shona, VaugHan and Caitlin there to greet me. There is so much more to tell, it has really be an experience of a lifetime for me but tonight I need a long sleep and no 4am wake up. Tomorrow I will make a big posting. To all that have supported me, my sincere thanks, you have been fantastic.

Day 13

What a great ride today from Agulhas to Hermanus, Shona and our friends Kelly and Curtis were at the Engen Service Station in Hermanus to meet us. It was so great to see my darling wife again after 2 weeks and what a pleasure to have a ride on fantastic roads with no wind and glorious cool weather. Everyone's spirits are high although there is the little matter of a 60km ride to Somerset West tomorrow and the great finish in Cape Town. I still do not comprehend that it will all be over tomorrow and that I have basically ridden across South Africa in the last 2 weeks. The memory is already filtering out the bad bits and leaving the uplifting and fun times for me to remember. The back slapping and well domes have already started and we drank a little bit more than has usually been the case tonight. We were invited to a glorious vineyard outside Hermanus for dinner tonight and we witnessed the most magnificent sunset over Walker Bay in Hermanus.
That's all for tonight as it is a little late but I will provide a final posting of all the going on's after the finish. Then it is the Argus race, I'm really looking forward to that.

Day 12, two to go

Cycling is a sport that is affected by many variables, bike problems, road conditions, weather especially wind and for us now, fatigue. We woke up quite chirpy this morning, an easy 87km ahead, an early finish and relaxing afternoon. Well that was not to be, firstly the first 50km was a series of dips and steeps hills, one after the next so it was very difficult to get into any sort of rhythm. Then came the wind, the dreaded Cape South Easter which was head on to us. So the easy 87km'er turning into a nightmare ride for us all and we arrived in Agulhus battered by the wind after nearly 4 hours in the saddle. After the usual routine of shower, washing and snooze my spirits did lift again and I went for a fantastic walk To the point and sat on a rock watched the sea at the Southern most tip of Africa. Very soon my energy returned and attitude changed and I took a bit of time to reflect over the last 12 days. It has been an amazing experience for me but probably something I would never do again. I need to try and put my thoughts and feelings down on paper but I really do not believe I will be able to capture the experience. Probably the biggest impact on me is the Experience of the donations and really understanding that there is so much not right in our country, we have such a beautiful country and modern infrastructure but we are neglecting our people and the most distressing part is that it is the children that are suffering the most.
Tomorrow morning I will try and write more, it is late now and who knows what tomorrow will throw at us.

Day 11

The end is in sight, we just finished our last long ride today, 136km in just over 5 hours, we ended it with a donation handover at the Engen Service Station to a home for the aged in Riversdale. From here forward we have 3 days left with rides of about 90km per day for the next 2 days and 60km on the last day. We will have a grand finish at Cape Town Waterfront, apparently escorted in by motorbike police. So let me recap the last 3 days, if you have been reading my blog or facebook you will know that I have had a difficult last couple of days to say the least. It all really started when we had the day off on Friday and I slept during the day then couldn't sleep that night. The next day was a good ride from Humansdorp to Plettenburg Bay but it was hot and long, 152km. When we got to Plet we did not sleep but went out and watched rugby. I ate too much and was exhausted by dinner time so I skipped dinner but still did not sleep properly. As a result I really battled every meter yesterday, it was cold and windy and I really was not in the zone and had no energy. We also had a number of riders joining us from towns along the way so we tended to ride faster than usual. We rode through Knynsa and the beautiful Wilderness but what comes with the beauty is hills, some really wicked ones too. I battled more and more as the ride went on and was absolutely relieved to arrive in George. We had a great donation there, the Engen owner was generous and the donation went to two needy childcare shelters in George. The African ladies who received the donations were so grateful and explained to us what they did, these people are unsung heroes who have dedicated their lives to helping these poor kids, I could not help but being re-energized by them and I felt my mood and attitude starting to change. My darling wife then put me on a strict dose of tissue salts for the rest of the day and I drank a huge amount of water as well. I had an afternoon snooze and we went for a early dinner and early to bed. This morning I woke up a different person and had a great ride today and am feeling great this afternoon, so my spirits are high and I and raring to go for the last 3 days.
Today we rode from George to Riversdale passing Mosselbay on the way. We had a great tail wind and the hills were few and far between. There was a little rain but it was warm and the road in good condition. 4 more riders from Empangeni Rotary joined us this morning for the last 4 days so we have a good sized group on 11 riders now. We really have had no real dramas so far, touch wood, I think there has only been 2 punctures, 1 wheel problem and a couple of gear and chain related issues. I am not sure if I mentioned it previousily but I had to get a new chain in Plettenburg bay because mine had stretched so much during the ride. The local bike shop owner was the an absolute star, he can to the Engen Service station, picked up my bike, changed the chain and returned it in 30 minutes, after hours as well.
We had an amusing incident at a Toll Plaza between Humansdorp and Plettenburg Bay, some of the guys rode into the Toll so were expected to pay. They ignored the shouts from the operators and rode on only to set off massive alarms. Anyway everything calmed down and we were on our way again without having to pay. I had forgotten how beautiful the garden route is, the road runs between mountains on one side and the sea on the other and crosses numerous huge gorges, one of the most rewarding things of this ride have been that every day we have experienced awesome countryside.
I need to mention my room mate Don again, he is one of the most tolerant people I have ever met but I do reckon he Is really looking forward to Thursday night when he will not have to share a room with me. I brought far too much stuff with me and spread myself all over the place. We have had lots of laughs and moans and the arrival of Robert has added further fun for the cousins. Robert is had the nickname Vic since before I can remember but for this ride he has been renamed Hammer, due to the fact that all his cycle kit and energy drinks are made by Hammer and have their logos all over them.
Tonight dinner is at the B&B which is really cool because I can go to bed when I want to.

Day 10

Today I hit the wall, I did not sleep well last night, crummy bed. Also ate too much and was generally uncomfortable. 5.30 start, misty and cold and I really did not want to be there. Anyway got through the ride but I will discuss more tomorrow, sorry about the short post but i need every minute sleep i can get. Tomorrow's posting should be better - 4 days to go

Day 9 and back on the road again.

It was great to have the day off yesterday, I relaxed, had my tooth fixed, picked up Robert from the airport and slept. The sleep probably was not the best idea because I landed up not being able to sleep last night which resulted in me being tired this morning and being absolutely exhausted now at 7.45pm tonight.

We had a big ride today, it started at Humansdorp, 90km outside Port Elizabeth. We started off by making a donation to the National Sea Rescue Institute (NSRI), it was quite amusing that 3 of us riders have had to receive help from NSRI at some time. After that we headed for Plettenburg Bay, a ride of 150km. Although there were not many hills to climb the combination of the distance and the sun took toll on me and I was relieved to see The end of the day's ride 5 hours 20 minutes later. My chain has stretched over the last week, I was fortunate to find a very helpful bike shop to take care of it. The guy came and picked the bike up when we finished the ride and had delivered it back before the second donation was finished. We made a donation to a home for physically handicapped children and then headed to our B&B just in time to catch the last 30 minutes of the sharks rugby game. As the afternoon progressed I became more and more exhausted and am packed and ready for tomorrow so it's early bed for me.