Round and round we go

Stage: 62
Day Total: 129.1km
Total Time: 4:24
Avg. Speed: 29.3km/h
Avg. Heart Rate: 120bpm
Total Climbing: 848m

Song of the Day: James Brown – I Got You

All cylinders were fired this morning in preparation for the day’s ride. Some wanted an early arrival to the Malawian capital city of Lilongwe in an effort to lengthen the rest period. The Dutch contingent were intent on arriving in time to view the live broadcast of the Tour of Flanders, that grueling and dramatic one day classic bike race. I simply wanted a quick passage and the promise of an air-conditioned hotel room was enough to cement that motivation.

A cooperative group rode well early on and with 6 strong riders we made good time through to lunch. A 5-minute respite allowed sufficient time to finish my sandwich and this simple reality put a smile on my face. The pace quickened shortly after lunch and with 40km remaining in the stage we lost 3 riders: Bastiaan riding off of the front, Tori and Steve falling off of the back. I struggled to understand why this acceleration was occurring, but it most definitely was, and with flashbacks of stages in Egypt ripping across my mind, Dennis – aka “the Furnace” – took a massive turn to keep things moving. The furnace continued to fire and once it was obvious that for once we were really just racing against each other for the fun of a competition, I let go and got involved.

With 5km to go Dennis took the front again and started to get away through the traffic. Fortunately for us, the course turned 90-degrees right and immediately started climbing again. We were all hurting, so I moved to the front in an effort to keep a hard temp up the hill and take away opportunities to recover. With 200 meters to go on the climb I threw everything I had into it and surged ahead of Dennis by 30 meters with Adam right on my wheel. I was gasping, but so was Adam and as we approached the final roundabout I surged one last time to get some separation and sprint across the finish line. Did I win? I don’t really know yet. I was first across the line but rolled 20 meters past the entrance to the camp and ended up arriving at the timing station behind Adam. Oh well, I’m not racing anymore anyway.

Not much else to say. Malawi continues to delight with open expanses of low grasslands and small forests. I will not say it is a featureless landscape though it is so reminiscent of the Midwest region of America that I fail to get as excited as I did when we carving through the back roads of Tanzania. Lilongwe appears to be a quaint but modern city. The presence of a large number of South African establishments which I recognize from my time in Cape Town is promising for it means there will be an abundance of tasty post-ride snacks available for purchase. Of note as well is an ice cream establishment which means my new weight-gain program can begin in earnest!