I am a Canadian living in Perth, Western Australia, with my husband Rod.  The moment I read that the participants of the Tour d’Afrique had the privilege of eating porridge every day, I knew I had to sign up.  I love porridge!

Looking back to when I was six, I recall making a lap around the block on my new bike accompanied by my parents.  When I was twelve, I remember riding halfway across town just to pass by the house of a girl I had a crush on.  In seventh grade I got to ride to school all by myself, clumsy saxophone case in tow.  

During high school biking didn’t seem to matter much, but when I went off to college I rediscovered the childhood thrill of riding a bicycle.  Now, just like when I was a small boy, I have tried, incrementally, to see “how far from the house” I can get and still make it home safely.

 
Over the past ten years I’ve had the opportunity to see many wonderful places, ridden across several states in the pursuit of crossing my own continent, done self contained tours, traveled to several countries, biked in the jungles of Cost Rica and pedaled to base camp on Mt. Everest.  

I guess all these rides and the idea of bicycling across the entire African continent are simply extensions of that childhood fascination with wanting to know how far I can go and what lies around the next corner, and in the pursuit of finding that, being amazed by all the wonderful little things I’ll see along the way.

The past ten years as a high school Art teacher have been wonderful, but I have resigned from my position, sold my house and most of its contents just for the opportunity to do this ride…and I can’t wait for the adventure, for the people I’ll meet, for the places we’ll see, and for the simplicity of life on a bike.

So…I’m curious…do you think the old sax will fit in the overhead bin on the flight to Cairo?  Just a thought…

Hi, I am Rainer and I live in Munich in Southern Germany.

When I was a young boy, using a bike was the best way for me to get moved, except of at least 5 months of the year when skiing was my preferred form of locomotion.  

As student, I started to do adventure tours by either hitchhiking or using a motor scooter or finally by hiking which became my preferred sports.

Since I have retired, my tours became more challenging, i.e. higher and longer.

When I heard for the first time about the Tour d’Afrique I was immediately very much excited, because I like this combination of adventure and physical challenge. Yet I needed a couple of months to make a final decision because I have not used a bike for a lot of years due to the after effects of a paragliding accident. Finally, after some successful trials, I decided to join the Tour d’Afrique as expedition rider.

The TDA gave me already great pleasure by choosing a new bike and exercising with it at the foothills of the Bavarian Alps. Since I have been already in five out of the ten countries the TDA will pass through, I know that there is a significant difference between these countries and the Alps, and that the tour will not be always exactly fun but often strain.

The African map on my kitchen door reminds me every day on the forthcoming trip, and I am sure that I will have finally great pleasure.

See you all at Cairo!