It is hard to believe that we only have two more countries ahead of us. Today the Td’A 2009 Team crossed into Botswana. The past two days were spent at Victoria Falls on the Zambian side where riders engaged in laundry, bungee jumping and booze cruisin’. A thoroughly exhilarating 48 hrs. Some even ventured over into Zimbabwe and were pleasantly surprised to find that all their worldly possessions weren’t given, by court order, over to “War Veterans”. Today was a relatively easy 80km trek to the short ferry ride over the border. The rest of the Elephant Highway promises to be much more of a challenge.

I wrote an article several eternities ago regarding bathing in the Dongola, Sudan zoo. I did it in the interest of literal diversity. At the time we were slogging our way through the deserts of northern Africa and many updates were becoming repetitive…plus I was feeling a bit cheeky. However, as we progressed South the terrain, people, countries and rider stories changed rapidly and there was no need/opportunity for a bit of an off the wall update. That still holds true, but as our cook is on vacation and our Kenyan support staff have taken up the ladle I have found myself filling their role on the truck which is namely riding shotgun (ie, choosing the music, helping with traffic control and in the process getting hit in the shins by impatient Zambian drivers, and waving at riders as we pass them by). Therefore, today I haven’t an interesting anecdote from the road or an in depth description of what the day held besides that it was long and there was peddling involved. Therefore, I feel compelled to write something a little different. I present to you my list of odds for Tour related events that may happen over the next little while.  

ODDS THAT:

• A country we have biked through will no longer exist in 10 years- 5:1
• A country we have biked through will change it’s name in the next 5 years- 2:1
• Everyone who is currently EFI will keep their status for the rest of the trip- 30:1
• Tricia the English schoolteacher will show up unannounced in Cape Town to surprise Paul McManus- 80:1
• A bridge along our route will become washed out shortly before we are to cross it- 7:1
• Robert Mugabe decides to invade Victoria Falls- 500:1
• A rider will make the joke “That was fun, lets do it again!” upon crossing the finish line in Cape Town- 1:1
• Likelihood that rider is Frank Smith- 1:1
• Most riders will VOW to keep the weight they have lost off when they return home 1:1
• Most rider will INFACT keep the weight they have lost off when they return home- 100:1
• Riders will look back and think, “Actually, I really loved Ethiopia”- 1,000,000:1
• Riders will look back and think, “Actually, I really loved Africa”- 1:1
• Tom Stevens will make an original joke before Cape Town- 50:1
• Eduard Sloots abandons the whole notion of recumbent bicycles- 500:1
• Nothing else gets stolen from our campsite in the night- 3:1
• Craig Tingle shaves his beard upon arrival in Cape Town- 35:1
• Nick Marr becomes a tee-toler- 400:1
• John Davis abandons chamois cream upon returning to the United States- 3:1

     While we wait for them to get back on the road again...!                             Pic by Wimpie Van Zyl

I am again ashamed to say it, but I had a great rest day in Lusaka enjoying 1st world luxuries in 3rd world Zambia.

Lusaka was a pleasant surprise, actually Zambia is. The people are awesome, really nice, friendly, helpful and welcoming. In Lusaka you could be in Sydney, Vancouver (in summer), or any other developed nation city. There was a 4 lane main road, several huge shopping malls & everything/anything you could need/want.

It was the mechanic Mark’s birthday which was celebrated by an awesome dinner at a flash restaurant called Rhapsody, which is just like a Keg restaurant in Canada. Followed by drinks at a little less flashy Alphabar.

The rest day involved a Movie Marathon- having not seen a movie for months. 4 hours spent in the cinema was awesome an I was not the only Td’A person there. Actually about 10-15 of the cinema goers were Td’A Muzungus.

Today I was back on the bike, 158km, awesome day; fast, flat and smooth. The only downside was the trucks & traffic. I ended up having a big crash involving Tom and I being pushed off the road by a semi trailer. Bodies are fine but my bike was not so lucky & I need a good few hours of work tonight; luckily it will recover.

Td’A has pulled in hard to the bustling Zambian capital of Lusaka. The riders have been treated to a decidedly Western city with movie theatres, ice cream and a major shopping centre.

Despite the gradually increasing availability of goods and products that we have been noticing as we move closer to South Africa, this city has truly been our first reminder of everything we left behind... camping in deserts, dodging snakes, waking up at ungodly hours and cycling our asses off.

For those of you out there expecting us to be engulfed in nothing but four months of hardship, don’t worry. Tomorrow we set off for another bush camp and in a few short days we will arrive in Victoria Falls, the adrenaline capital of Africa. Riders are already planning rafting trips, skydiving and bungee jumps.

The hard months in Egypt, Sudan and Ethiopia are the cheques we wrote to ourselves to justify such excesses.

Everyone is ready to cash them.

Most Td'A participants start in Cairo and hope to go all the way to the end in Cape Town- this tough bunch can say they have crossed the entire continent.

There is another, smaller contingent on the tour each year who either believe they could not endure four months in the saddle or are unable to because of family and work commitments that allow them to stay for just a matter of weeks at a time. These are known as the sectional riders, and for them they quickly have to catch up to the pace of the tour, and the routines that the rest have become accustomed to. 
           
Our current section is called the Zambezi Zone- from Lilongwe to Vic Falls covering over 1,200 km in a mere 8 cycling days. The brave souls for this leg are Simon, Alex, Nate, Markos, Ian and David. Having already completed half their cycling days they have done their best to overcome the challenges; and this welcoming group of cyclists have embraced them.
           
It can sometimes be difficult for the sectionally challenged to wake up so early, pack up tent, find their plate and cup, get some breakfast, fill their water bottles, pump their tires, put on sunscreen, put their gear away in their locker, copy down the directions, get on their bike all before 7:30am and then ride between 140-170km only to unpack and set up all over again. For the sectionally challenged, its never easy and just as they start to figure out their routines, and just as we get to know them a little better they are gone again and a fresh group takes their place, and the challenges start again.

Hats off to all this year's sectionally challenged riders. Great job, and hope to see you all back here again someday.

Definition of my experience in Africa:
A concentrated time of being present in the moment...living the Td'A habitual style... a consistent energy for now.

Imagine just another day on the saddle. A mere 141km  of rolling hills. It's never ‘just another day'. It will always require a constant focus to draw the force into one's legs throughout the duration. 174km yesterday and 160 km tomorrow. These people are skilled at what they do to grind the miles and feel the spirit of the rich cultures and the serene surroundings of the African outback for 11 weeks solid. The responses are modest; as such a slow and silent progress mustn't be so prominent and the energy becomes natural. But I see it. I observe the bodies growing strong and the motivations growing wide.

From desert to rock to corrugation, potholed gravel and switchback gorges. not only do they live it out, they take it on to endure a widening ability to thrive in it.

Lloyd Strong's shocking pace has been one of the most ‘fabulous' to observe. I remember the days of his enthusiastic call on the strenuous long kms. "I take it one peddle stroke at a time." Nowadays I can barely meet riding beside him because he is out of the saddle powering up the 50^th climb of the day with a smile from ear to ear.

Anne Gallagher's impressive ability to tackle her most dreaded...pushing through these winding foot hills amid the mountain pass. Her spirit high and lilting laughs still present as she embraces the bush life into the evening at camp.
Over the past few days it has been pleasing to see an increased involvement from the cyclists amongst the local communities. Scavenger hunting for random things brings unique encounters and humbling relations.My day was made perfectly balanced after eating catfish which the local people caught in the very area I rode today. Football played with young Zambians and a half pumpkin skin this evening. Wow these boys could jump higher than a roo in delight of seeing what James could do with the veggie and his feet.
Tonight the stars are out. What a treat to have clear skies again...will this be the end of the rain for a while?

 
We  all Dream, consciously or subconsciously,
Especially when riding a bike
for 8 hours and sleeping for 10 hours daily.
Subconscious dreams may be remembered, to be savoured,
Analyzed by Freudian, Jungian or Shaman analysts,
Or just forgotten.

Daydreams, our conscious dreams where we are the
Director and actor allow us to stretch the limits of our Imagination.  The collective boundaries of all our imaginations
(CBI) sets the limit of humanities potential, whether utilized or not.
As Bobby Kennedy said  "Some men see things as they are, and say whyI dream of things that never were, and say why not"

Perhaps the larger our CBI, the higher the likelihood of our extinction.  If not, then with a high probability there exist intelligent beings in our cosmos whose intelligence compared to
ours is like ours compared to that of a mouse.  Their CBI will be
vast compared to ours.  Outside the union of all CBI's lies the totally unimaginable.

Perhaps if our spirit is sufficiently evolved when we die, it is allowed to go wander the totally unimaginable. Perhaps this is heaven.

Ernest Enns

Today was the longest day of the Tour so far, 175km officially but some speedometers have registered up to 178km. In lieu of writing an update about the day myself, I figured it would be a better idea to sit in the bar at our camp and query riders as they came in.

“Surprisingly, better than expected. Mostly due to a tailwind for the last 30km, if that had been reversed it would have been an entirely different story. Bring on 200km”
Tim Gain

“Glad I’ve got tri-bars and skinny tires”
Allan Benn

“It was the cat’s ass!”
Frank Smith

“FABULOUS!!!!!!”
Lloyd Strong

“I’m exceptionally pleased with how fit we have become. Even though it was a trying day, my legs are fine and I could happily continue biking”
Malcolm Campbell

“It was the longest in kilometers, but it didn’t feel that long. I don’t think it was such a hard day. It was okay for me”
Peter Rombaut

“It was not a good day for me, not for me anyway”
Marcel Oode Geerlink

“It was nice; it was a bit of a sufferfest with all the rolling hills and lack of tailwinds. There was a bit of a cross, head, tailwind 7.5 hrs in the saddle for me and Tim and Bruce, that’s quite a long day.”
Mark Knight

“I enjoy”
Peter Hodes

“I liked it. I had a raincloud chase me for about an hour”
Graeme Scrivener

“Good. I got caught in the rain for a little bit but it was no big deal since it was warm rain. Cold rain is no good, but the rain here is fine. The afternoon was a bit better than the morning because the wind helped you”
John Hinch

 

 Another country down today.  Each time we cross a border it amazes me as to how different things are when you have only crossed a river or a line that doesn't really exist.
Almost all the borders we have crossed have been extremely slack in terms of stopping people.  I'm fairly sure that, other than entering Sudan, I could have just ridden straight past the controls without a single question. Today was no different. As always, the immigration staff genuinely welcomed me, a few minutes of waiting and filling out the entry book yourself (why would an immigration officer enter your details into the entry book?  That's way too much like work.) Then we rode into Zambia.

Yet again things change, the road is potholed, kids are quieter and seem to have some sort of fear in their eyes and today for the first time for me it poured down within a kilometer of the crossing.  I've been lucky with my rides so far and while most riders have been wet at least once,  I've either been at the front or the back and it's not been raining by the time I've rolled through.

The day's riding was relatively uneventful - 140kms with a light tailwind. I spent the day riding with Tim and Bruce and we had finished lunch after 75kms by 10am. Joining the train of Frank and Craig for the afternoon meant completing 140kms by 1pm including the border crossing.  I guess sometimes the legs just turn easy and two days rest helps that.  It looks like the rain is in for the night, so it could remain interesting. Hopefully we won't be affected by the flooding that has hit Zambia in the last few weeks.

Time will tell.

Irmie Bush, 2006 TDA participant and mother of our tour doctor Luke Bush, donated 520 insecticide treated nets (ITNs) to the World Vision charity in Choma, Zambia. Three days prior, Irmie donated 1,500 INTs to the Mazibuko community who were recently affected by floods. In 2006, the Defeat-a-Mosquito campaign was set up and the Metropolitan Health Group sponsored Irmie per kilometer from Ethiopia. With the money raised in 2006, Irmie was able to purchase 800 ITNs which were distributed to the villages of Chainda and Matero in April 2007. Wishing to do more after the tour, Irmie had the idea to create a calendar with pictures collected from 2006 TDA riders and sell the calendars to raise money for the Defeat-a-Mosquito campaign. The calendars raised over 16,000USD. If you wish to donate, purchase a calendar or would like more information regarding the Defeat-a-Mosquito campaign, please visit www.africadream.co.za or email defeatamosquito@yahoo.com.