29 April 2013 - Day One

Hectic! The word gallantly attempts to describe the morning of the FIRST DAY OF MY TRIP! Everything was ready and prepared well in advance.

Just re - reading this last sentence I wrote has me realise just how absurd it must sound to seasoned adventurers. The truth of the matter is that some things did go wrong. Thus early this afternoon found me frantically trying to close up the last pannier (Does one refer to soft bags as "panniers"?) and then test the new GPS again. It is new, because the one I bought just two months ago gave up the ghost yesterday. I was completely taken aback, as it is a really good piece of equipment and its passing came as an unexpected and unpleasant surprise. And that was just one of the issues.


My sincerest thanks, Johan (manager at Cape Union Mart, West Coast Mall in Vredenburg) for exchanging the faulty GPS for me.

According to my planning I would have spent the night quite a few kilometers from where I am tonight. Given the delays this morning, I have opted to spend tonight in a beautifully quiet B&B in Stellenbosch. The Millstream (sic) B&B obviously could not offer me the same fiscal rate that a camping site would have, but it was comfortable, clean and spacious; comforts that my tent could not provide at the close of this day.

Early tomorrow morning I'll be in Somerset West looking for
Tomorrow I'm off to Somerset West, in search of a reputable motorcycle shop. Reputable as in having the facility to have motorcycle wheels balanced. I've picked up a vibration, which to my mind suggests that I need to have the wheel balancing checked. Towards the end of my ride today, I started feeling as if I'd had a full body massage at the hands of a Sumo wrestler. No more of that, thank you! The wheel balancing will be checked!

All things considered, I'm hoping to end tomorrow night in Swellendam. The ride will, however, not be along the N2. At least not for most of the day. There are some interesting places and roads to explore. Check in again tomorrow to see where I've been.

Good guys and blessings

A while ago I contemplated having the wheels of my bike made tubeless. Spoked wheels, apart from the rim designs of KTM, are generally fitted with tubes.

While this is great, it becomes far less than great when one is in a remote area somewhere outside cell phone reception, (and worst of all) completely by oneself and, as in my case, not too experienced regarding fixing punctures. As I was visualising this, images of myself having a puncture, somewhere on the road between nothing and nowhere with no centre stand, frantically trying to break the bead on the rim so that I could fix the puncture before it got dark, kept creeping into my head.

A very good friend of mine, Lodie de Jager (www.naboom2germany.co.za) shared his experience of having his KLR converted to tubeless and then travelling 19 000km through Siberia without any loss of pressure in the tyres. That convinced me! I contacted Donovan Muller at Cytech in Johannesburg (www.toursforafrica.co.za) and arranged to have the rims of my Triumph Tiger 800XC converted to tubeless. I also spoke to Mike Hopkins from the Triumph dealer in Cape Town. He agreed to have the wheels taken off by his workshop (thanks, Gareth!) and couriered to Cytech in Johannesburg (thank you, Wafieka!). Then (and listen to this!) Mike lent me a new (demo!) KLR for the week with which I could travel back up the West Coast. Wow! Mike, I'm a client for life!

My wheels arrived back in Cape Town yesterday afternoon. I took the KLR back to Cape Town, picked up my Tiger and rode back up the Coast. Alas! As soon as I got onto the freeway, I realised that something was amiss! The wheel balance on the front wheel was out, ever so slightly, but still. By this time it was way past business hours, so I had no other option than to continue my ride home.

Thinking about it, I surmised that the only thing that could have happened to the front wheel was that a small piece of a stick - on balancing weight must have come off somewhere along the line.

And now? Well, today being a Public Holiday in South Africa, it was impossible sorting the wheel out. Tomorrow would be even more difficult (impossible, actually), which leaves Monday. Yes, I know. I should have been on the road for two days already by then. However, Monday will be the day when I'll ride down to Cape Town, get the balancing sorted out and then proceed with the ride.

How well was the conversion process handled? Extremely well! Thank you, Donovan! Realising I was pressed for time (in starting my trip), you ensured that the conversion was done fast enough in order for me to start my trip, yet no corners were cut. I was provided with a qualitative product and for that I thank you.

What is this post all about? I needed help and those mentioned in this post spared no effort in ensuring that I, with a dream of riding my wonderful motorcycle around South Africa, would not have to give up the dream.

Tomorrow then I'll start packing my (soft) panniers. Expect some photographs! I've have the items to fill the bags laid out on the table in my study for the past few weeks already. It helped me being able to check what is there already and what not.

Overdue

So  many things happened since my last post and here I am burning the midnight oil. I realise that posts from my side are long overdue, but ... as always, though, it's far more pleasant reading someone's post when the blogger's wits are about him. I'll therefore share some interesting news tomorrow - news about kindness, unexpected blessings and good people; really great guys.

House of Hope

During my trip (Alone around South Africa) I'm endeavouring to raise funds for a specific place of safety for traumatised children and women. House of Hope (www.houseof hopewc.webs.com) , in Vredenburg on the West Coast, is run by a small but very dedicated group of people who realised that little ones and often their moms have no place to turn to in the case of domestic violence (which may be of a physical and / or emotional / sexual / economic nature). Me? I involuntarily see the pain in the once - trusting eyes of a child in my mind's eye as I reflect on this sad phenomenon.

Please have a look at their website. House of Hope is an NGO (Non - government Organisation), so they have to rely on funding by altruists and others who still care. I know that even the smallest financial contribution and / or financial commitment will have a positive impact on the lives of these children and women. Details may be found on the House of Hope website.

And if you decide to assist ... thank you. Two small words to convey the gratitude of these traumatised little ones and women, benefiting from your kindness, as well as those involved with caring for them.

A Spanner in the Works?

"A spanner in the works," is an expression well known to most (if not all) of us. The long - awaited panniers arrived in the country last Friday! Or so I thought. Those ever efficient, meticulous Germans packed the container - without including a single 37 litre side pannier set! That left three adventurers / idealists / freedom seekers, embarking on three very different trips to three very different destinations, scurrying to set Plan B in motion. I don't know what my fellow adventurers have arranged, but I now, am the highly impressed and proud owner of a set of Enduristan Monsoon soft side panniers. Wow! 30 litres per side, expandable to 60 litres per side! My sincerest thanks to Amanda and Chris from Dustriders (www.dustriders.co.za) in Still Bay for their efficiency in getting me, amongst other items, my pannier bags and pannier frames so quickly. 

At this very moment the wheels of my motorcycle are making their way (by courier) to Cytech in Johannesburg. Riding a Triumph Tiger 800XC, I have no desire to unsuccessfully attempt fixing a puncture somewhere in, e.g. the former Transkei. Tubed tyres, you see. A very dear friend of mine had his wheels done (at Cytech) after having ridden through Africa twice and then did a nineteen thousand km solo trip through Siberia (www.naboom2germany.co.za) with the tubeless conversion done on his KLR. That convinced me.

Where has this left me? Well, the wheels arrive back in Cape Town by next week Thursday / Friday (Please let it be Thursday!), so my dynamic (because it seems to have a life of its own) date of departure will be either Friday, 26 April or Saturday, 28 April. The (intended) route on my Google map is coming on very well indeed. I'm deriving a great deal of pleasure from poring over it and, already I can see there to be a second trip coming somewhere in the future.


Pictures and more musings to follow soon! Not too many days left before the Adventure begins!

It starts here!

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