Just another day
I decided not to ride today. I wasn’t ill, a little tired but certainly not exhausted. I just didn’t fancy it. Unlike our last trip the ride through Africa is a supported tour. Tour leaders, medics, chefs and bike mechanics all accompany us as we ride from Cairo to Capetown. We simply ride our bikes. […]
Local news
Maybe it’s just me but I always like to read local newspapers as I travel. While often really removed from day to day life the local rag gives a sense of issues and debates that are going on. I thought therefore it may be interesting to write a wee blog on just that subject. We’re […]
Facing fear?
So, having struggled with wobbly bridges in Nepal and having my hand held on part-formed (aka broken) bridges in Sudan I somehow decided I could take on adrenlin fuelled activities here in Victoria Falls. There’s lots on offer here, from bungee jumps to zip-lines, helicopter flights, lion encounters and white water rafting. While the water […]
Nearly there yet?
So, from a time perspective we are 75% done. Following two rest days at Vic Falls we have just one month of our four month trip from Cairo to Capetown left to go. Just one month! Gee. When a new rider, Rob, joined us in Arusha he noted that we were just getting to the […]
24 seconds
When signing up to TDA you have the option of being a racer or expedition rider. Given speed is not my forte and i see myself as a cycle tourist – hence the requirement for regular photo stops etc – I am most definately in the expedition category. I had hoped on joining the tour […]
Half way review
On leaving Arusha we passed the signpost set up to signify the half way point between Cairo and Capetown. While I’m not sure exactly how this translates to the TDA route from the section stats that TDA provide we have travelled around 8,000km so far (guess!) – around 600km of this being on a very […]
Emotionally tough
Any long distance, whether riding or running is as much a mental as physical exercise. In marathon running we talk of hitting the wall and I guess in riding 18,000km from Cairo to Capetown there was bound to be a tough week. For me however it was activity around me as opposed to my own […]
Holiday in Africa
Cycling through Africa with TDA is brutal. We average around 120km a day and while more and more of Africa is getting paved we still do a fair bit of off road too. Camp becomes a regular routine – soup, drinks, pitch, “shower”, dinner and bed. I don’t need to set an alarm anymore and […]
