Day 25: Isiolo - Marsabit
Wake up was not too early this morning and after a good breakfast, we set off down the road, a little apprehensive of what lay ahead. The first 100 or so kilometers went past without too much stress, the first 60 km’s of which being tar and the rest good gravel road. Then things began to go south, the corrugations began to appear in their thousands each one larger and more vicious than the previous! Within the first 20 km’s of the corrugations, Grant’s cap for the compression chamber of his Techno Flex shock, blew off hitting him square in the inner thigh, and thus the true ‘fun and games’ of the day began. Not 15 km’s later both Mark’s and Paul’s compression chambers gave up, Paul’s managed to give him quite a bruise on his calf! Rob’s bike then suffered a front wheel puncture, which Grant and Craig changed while the others tried to work out why 3 shocks had failed. Once Rob’s inner tube was replaced, the team set off again and within five minutes of driving our fourth shock gave way. So now by 2 pm, we had Grant, Mark, Paul and Rob all bobbing and weaving as their rear wheels were only supported by the spring, which with the corrugation makes the bike look like a boat in really rough seas. Our final excitement of the day was provided by Les, who while driving through a town had the chief of police cut him off. Les’s left pannier connected the Chief’s bike sending Les into the air to land some distance from his ride. Fortunately no one was hurt, however we did encounter Africa’s finest policeman, and after numerous threats eventually sorted out the problem as dusk approached. Now tired, sore, thirsty and a little wary from the encounter with the village law enforcement, the Biker Boyz limped into camp, extremely grateful that they had survived the day, along with their bikes. In camp we met a fellow group of South African boertjies, who were heading up to Addis to set up a shelter to look after some 5000 orphans.
The start of the gravel road.
Resting the shocks.
Changing the tube.
Fixing the Bike.
The blown compression chamber.
The ultimate bush fix.
Grant on his bike.
Craig's bike playing in the sand.
Rob and his bike.
Dad and Rob have their priorities right!
COMMENTS
These are great photo's - good to see you do spend some time on your bike Grant!!!! Looks like MacGuyver could take lessons from your "fix-it" jobs. Bet those beers never tasted so good. Keep the news and photo's rolling - we do enjoy . .more
by Marilyn on June 23 2009, 11:31
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I do believe that Bunny and Minkey have a few tales to tell and after a good scrub, they will be fresh enough to keep us amused for many hours! I can just imagine Bunny's ears pinned back and Minkey's tail parallel, when you, Craig, are flying over . .more
by Mom on June 23 2009, 15:55
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THANK YOU so much for helping my old school chum, Mike Hodson. We are all so grateful you were able to extend a hand to our dear pal. Best of luck to you. xox, Adrienne Gruben
by Adrienne Gruben on June 24 2009, 10:47
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Loved reading about your adventures! Thanks for assisting Mike Hodson on his journey! Bike to Arkansas sometime!! Best wishes and safe travels, Ann Rosso
by Ann Rosso on June 24 2009, 13:25
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Thanks for helping Mike get across. He bailed me out before and it's nice to know there are good people out there. Good luck on your journey and thanks again.
by Jason Tessaro on June 24 2009, 13:45
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Thank you for helping MIke on his adventure!
by Melissa on June 24 2009, 13:46
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Thank you for getting Mike through a rough patch. Why do I have the feeling that The Big Five will be next on his list? His adventure just keeps getting more interesting. Good luck and safe travels to all of you!
by Josie Kendrick on June 24 2009, 16:40
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Thank you for helping our friend Mike Hodson! You have just earned a bunch of new fans in Arkansas!
by Melissa on June 24 2009, 17:24
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Unbelievable! This is what adventures are made of - having to sort out problems that you never thought would occur, and deal with all kinds of interesting people, and make plan B,C,D and E when plan A doesn't work.... Wow, you can't ask for more. . .more
by Kean on June 25 2009, 08:31
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I have followed your trip. I too travelled in Dec 2009- Jan 2010. It is the best thing that happened to me. Here is my blog: http://mzee-jaki.blogspot.com/2009/10/everyone-has-dream.html
by Patrick Jaki on March 15 2010, 09:25
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