Round and round we go

Day Total: 139 KmAvg.

HR: 127bpm

Avg. Speed: 26.7 km/h (excluding aid stops)

Song of the Day: The Beatles – I Am the Walrus

A funny thing happened on the road today. The idea actually hatched over dinner the previous night (Tuesday) out of a discussion about what we were hoping to get out of this experience. At the end of it, “Bastiaan the Great” (he’s ludicrously fast on his bicycle and also happens to stand 6 feet 8 inches tall) suggested that we forget about racing. In his words: “We are in Africa, not in a race”. Given that he was currently in 3rd position, I didn’t know how serious he was about it. From my perspective, I had concerns over the pace we had been making over the previous days and the lingering effects it would most certainly have, particularly when we hit the offroad and/or hillier sections.

The morning started with a long, long, long – but thankfully gradual – climb. Long needs some form of relative measure to gain meaning so here you go: it was 25 miles long. The lead bunch started ratcheting up the pace quite early on, and sensing that another hard day would lie ahead, I bit my lip to prepare for some suffering. About that time, Bastiaan looked over at me and said “Remember our deal.” And just like that, we let up and let them ride away. I could not have made that decision alone, even though it was absolutely the right one for my body and my ambitions of riding every inch of every day. We then pedaled lightly, then pulled over and waited for a few others. We continued up the slopes picking up a few other riders here and there until we had a group of 9 or 10. The pace was comfortable, spirits were high, and for the first time I was able to eat something on the bike without worrying about my hair catching on fire due to the furious pace. Honestly, it was great to finally be able to look around, talk with some new people, and cover the distance without killing myself.

The scenery was very dramatic for the duration of the climb – high, craggy sandstone “mountains” on both sides of the road. There was no vegetation, but I did see my first wildlife in the form of an amazing pigeon and a very rare black crow. The scarcity of anything interesting to look at meant we talked quite a bit amongst the members of the group: Tori (CAN), Martin (NED), Bastiaan (NED), Terry (AUS), Luke (AUS), Carrie (NZL), Lindsay (NZL), Steve (CAN), Randall (CAN), and ceratinly not to be forgotten, Peter the Plumber (AUS/RSA). Another international mix. As the token American the jokes were on me: “Hey Scott, are you looking for oil?”; “Did the Bush family pay for your trip when they found out you would be in Sudan?”; “Will you try to interrogate the locals in Kenya?”. Ha ha, but admittedly, it is interesting to get a feel for the world’s perception of the USA. In the end, they all admitted I was a pretty good guy. I told them only to say that if they meant it because I was of no relation to Chuck Norris so they should not feel intimidated.

The ride ended esaily enough and again we are camped in the middle of nowhere. There is absolutely nothing in any direction except the road and the police checkpoint where we pitched our tents. Looking for humor, I sent Canadian Matthew (you saw his picture in yesterday’s post) to talk with the local military police guys to see if we could get a shot of ourselves holding their AK-47 machine guns. Matt came back dejtected, saying “I think I had one of them ready to agree, but then his boss came over… and his boss speaks pretty good English”. So instead we visited the “shop” to see what kind of treats we might buy. The shop is really the side-project of our entreprenurial security detail. These 3 dudes in suits have been with us since day 2, and somehow, every day, they always have cold beer, sodas, and cigarettes. One carries this small Italian sub-machine gun on his hip. It looks totally absurd, but hey, that’s just how they roll here. When we were closer to a town, they invited ~20 of their friends to come over free dinner and I braced myself for the repercussions of an accidental discharge. Fortunately, nothing happened.

Tomorrow we ride a short 95km into the city of Luxor. Luxor is home to the valley of the kings and numerous temples, pyramids, and ruins. It also happens to be the site of our first rest day, so we will sleep there 2 nights and have a full day off the bike. There will be hotel rooms for toilets/showers (or to sleep in if one chooses) as well as restaurants – hopefully with ice cream. I need this day. There will be a lot to get done: laundry, bike cleaning, food shopping. Maybe it won’t be that restful, but my arse will be very appreciative. My dad has been stricken with some severe saddle sores and will use this time to recover so he can get back on the bike and continue riding.

I’ll plan to send out some additional photos and updates on camp life, some profiles of pieces of gear I have, as well as some “rider interviews”.