The Blog

 

And to the adventure begins

March 26, 2011

On Tuesday 22nd March at 12:00 we were sent on our way from Carel Du Toit school for the hearing impaired after a warm welcome were the children, aged 3-6, sang us a song for good luck and well wishes. We cycled out; little wobbly, as fully loaded bicycles tend to be, with a procession of children.

We had tested out our bicycles before, but not with a full load and the extra 35kg makes cycling very tough. The uphills don't only drain the muscles, but the mind as well. With our increased surface area, any small wind makes a huge difference in the amount of extra energy needed to cycle.

After 57km on our first day we cycled into Drakenstein Veterinary Centre (Between Paarl and Franschoek), to be greeted with a warm welcome by my family, with warm pies and ice cold beverages. Susan, Alex and Pia provided us with a great braai and soft beds after day one.

Day 2 provided us with perfect cycling weather as we headed the Franschoek and then tackled the Franschoek pass. This 660m ascent taxed us (remember we carrying an extra 50km - bicycle + load) but the scenery and the descent more that made up for the initial battle. We made it to Villiersdorp and while buying supplies at the local OK, was approached by a guy called Lee who made a few calls and got us a patch of lawn for the night at his sister’s small holding. After getting a little lost we eventually found Heather and Bruce Barrow who graciously offered us a safe place to sleep. They were already entertaining guests and despite this made us glorious supper and a beautiful breakfast the next day. Heather's parents had also done some bicycle touring and recounted some of their experiences of cycling thought France.

Beating our previous record of 63km on day 2, day 3 saw us doing 69km. This long haul saw us cycling from Villiersdorp to Robertson. For lunch we devoured a tin fish bunny chow (Ria's brilliant impromptu invention of cutting the top half off a load of bread, excavating the centre and filling it with tinned Sardines - pic below). After our feast we decided to have a nap and turned into a small abandoned clearing. Not as abandoned as we thought as we met a German and fellow bicycle tourer who has just been cycling around the Western Cape for the last 5 weeks. With this we headed off to Robertson but the setting sun made getting there in time unlikely. The harsh semi-arid terrain made it impossible to find a suitably sheltered area to camp away for the road side. Luckily we happened to come across some abandoned railway houses (pics below). These uninhabited and run down structures were just what we needed and we bedded down for the night.

We departed early on Friday morning and slowly meandered the 54km through to Montague. This was by far the most enjoyable day yet as we stopped repeatedly, spoke to locals and did some wine tasting along the way. In Montague we stopped at 'De Bos', a quaint little place that offers beds and camping facilities and was recommended by the German tourer. We were not disappointed and have subsequently decided to spend a rest day here.

Tomorrow, Sunday, we will head off to Barrydale and from there Ladysmith, Outshoorn and the George.We'll keep you posted when we get to our next internet port

Jiten.


 

Gear hiccups

March 9, 2011

Hi guys

It’s been a while since my last blog. Things are happening pretty fast at the moment with less than two weeks before we set off on our long awaited journey! Later today we’ll be setting up our stand at the Cape Argus Cycle Tour Expo – those of you attending in the upcoming days be sure to pop by.

Now this blog is just a bit of info for those of you interested in some of logistical challenges faced by us in putting together this trip.

International purchases: cycle touring isn’t s...


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FINE YOUNG AFRICANS - our first sponsor

March 2, 2011

With only 3 more weeks before we leave, the full impact of what we doing has yet to sink in. I don't think we'll fully come to terms with it until we are 2 days out of Cape Town. 


What we do know, however, is that sometime in July we will be climbing up Kilimanjaro thanks to Fine Young Africans, our first sponsor. They have kindly agreed to help support our worthy cause by sponsoring the whole Kili hike. No mean feat as it will see all three of us ascend the 5 895m over 7 days. Although it c...


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Team SiyaShova Goes Live

February 16, 2011

Dear Viewers
 
On the 15th February 2011, exhausted after a busy night on duty, I finally managed to work my way out of theatre, only to bear the wrath of the morning traffic on route to the airport.Excited yet somewhat nervous, we boarded our Kulula flight destined for Lanseria;  Ria being the last to board, as he was carbo loading in the VIP lounge! (I don't blame him, the food was free).
 
At Lanseria Airport we were met with open arms by Mrs Riley - the mother of our great friend and die hard...


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I am an African

February 11, 2011

Last week I had a very cool meeting with Lenina Rassool. A free-lance journalist and lucky for us, a very nice person. She has agreed not only to help us with our newspaper and magazine articles but also with some of our marketing. We’ll have another meeting soon to discuss our integration into the print media field.

Last week I also had the chance to speak to Fanie de Villiers, the former legendary South African fast bowler. Fanie’s daughter is deaf and had a cochlear implant operation, ...


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T-shirts Anyone... ????

February 9, 2011

We have a t-shirt available for anyone who is interested. Please note that these are sample t-shirts and there may be minor changes. Initially they will only be available in Cape Town until we sort out posting, but please still indicate interest as this will allow us to see if posting is financially feasible. 


The price is not yet finalised and depends on quantity and whether t-shirts are sponsorsed. We suspect that the price will be between R120 to R180. Please let us know if you are int...


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A new year, a new look

January 21, 2011

Hi guys

Just a quick blog for today. We're launching our new look site today. We've made some aesthetical and functional changes which we are sure you will appreciate. One of the new additions is a google map which will enable you to follow us. Although not real time, the map will enable you to get a fairly accurate idea of where we are on our trip. Mobile telecomms has come a long way in Africa, so we will regularly send sms updates to a contact in SA who will update the map whenever we cant....


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Bike One

January 13, 2011

Happy New Year All!!
 
Finally the long anticipated wait of my finished umf kind of a bike has come to an end!

Last week I drove over to Belville with great trepidation to pick up my bike - something that costs an arm and a leg, and has been giving me sleepless nights for the past 5 months! She rides like a dream :) but there are a few minor changes needed to get that perfect touring / upright posture I'm looking for. After getting a seat post with a setback and a more angled handlebar, she will...


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Back to the Mother City

January 6, 2011

As some of you will have realised, I have finally arrived back in Cape Town after 2 years abroad. These 2 years included 1 year working in London and just under a year working in the Cayman Islands.  However it has not only been work as I have spent some time in India, Jamaica and Cuba, although working in Grand Cayman, a tropical Island in the Caribbean had some perks (namely Pina Coladas at sunset). 

I am now in Cape Town until March when our legen...dary tour will take place and contrary t...


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Goodbye 2010... Happy holidays!

December 23, 2010

Season’s greetings to you all

It would be a shame to end of 2010 with one last blog. It’s been a mammoth year for all of us in South Africa, a bit more partying than usual thanks to the world cup, and now the end of 2010 is just a week away.

Ticking the checklist
It’s also been a big year for team SiyaShova. From what started out as an idea of having adventure turned out into become a full blown project. Countless hours spent on ticking things of the checklist, which among others include...


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