Richards Bay Rail Road Ride 2017

The first known unsupported MTB ride from Ermelo to Richards Bay.

A Bit of Background

Perhaps it was the onset of Spring with its promise of rejuvenation or the anticipation of the coming long weekend, I dunno, but there seemed to be a new energy about and even social media was not immune to its presence.
I found other restless souls, willing to explore the euphoria, making small talk on “The Geezer from Lindley’s”, Massive Riders WhatsApp group.

I enjoy this bunch. The banter is convivial and free flowing, often with a well-timed quip or a tongue in cheek insult. Always the same offenders, they are quick with their mischievous snipes and their jokes completely appeal to my sense of humour. The problem is, the longer you interact with these folk, the better your chances of catching something contagious.
I started developing the rash. All long distance unsupported cyclists know it well. It's almost invisible to the eye, but the itch is intensely discomforting and needs scratching. This became unbearable when I collected “The Gadget” from Graham “Master” Bate[s].

“The Gadget” is an awfully clever bit of kit that Graham has designed and now produces. It promises a never ending source of energy for power hungry cell phones, lights and other consumer electronics. Very clever, our Graham!

I stored “The Gadget” on the special shelf along with my other prized cycling accessories.

On this shelf I have Revelate Bags, a Supernova Light, an Apidura frame bag, a RearViz Safety Mirror, a hammock, a bivy, light weight sleeping bags and liners, a Coghlan’s emergency stove, Merino wool jumpers, a Mini Sawyer Water Filter, Power Monkey Solar Accessories, various Garmin devices and other items almost too numerous to mention, some still in the original packaging. And then there are duplicates…

You should be ashamed of yourself!

Guilt overcame me and I realized that I had completely neglected this eager collection of cycling accessories. What good is having all of this and not putting it too good use? Something had to be done.

Fact.

The only cure for "The Itch" is to organize a multi-day bicycle trip.  At the same time I get to right the wrongs of neglecting my bicycle paraphernalia. Two birds. One stone. This is how I sold it to Eileen.

Elton “Foot” Prytz is a LEG END. I have a collection of “The Foot’s” greatest tracks, so to speak. The one track that really appealed to me, is a 4 legged run from Ermelo to Richards Bay along the rail line service roads. This dedicated rail line, is used to transport coal from the Mpumalanga coal fields and beyond, down to the port of Richards Bay. These trains are the second longest in the country, sometimes measuring 2.5km’s in length. This stretch of service road, never having been done by bicycle before, added to the allure.

Graham was having lunch with Elton, when I called to ask for some technical advice. He mentioned that “The Foot” was also restless and may be keen to come on the trip.
Elton had mapped this track a few years prior, but had not actually undertaken it. 

I felt like a bit of a tonsil for being the first to ride Elton’s track, even though I knew he wouldn't mind. This at least gave me a chance to offer him the opportunity to decline. Surely, there was no way that he could make it under such short notice? It was Wednesday afternoon and I wanted to catch the Greyhound to Ermelo on Friday morning.

Not only was he going to make it, but he brought Colleen “Rooster” Cawood along.

We left early Friday morning. “The Foot” had managed to organize for us to leave his Toyota at the Ermelo Toyota dealership. Nice. This would make our trip much quicker and meant that we could start earlier, on what appeared to be a very easy, first leg of the journey. There would still be a shorter Greyhound trip, but now only one way, from Richards Bay, back to Ermelo.

I have met both Elton and Colleen on a few occasions previously, but have never spent a significant amount of time with them. Any rides we may have had together were accidental meetings in the Delta and usually in the presence of a fair number of other MTB Club riders. So there was not much one-on-one time. I was looking forward to the opportunity of getting to know them better and to ride with Elton, whom I have a lot of respect for, as an athlete

Our journey to Ermelo seemed to go by quickly. I was yacking away, barely giving Elton a chance to say much whilst Colleen listened with an occasional contribution. Colleen is a good listener, quiet at first, but she becomes more talkative as she gets to know you. One thing was for sure. We were excited and couldn’t wait to get going.

U-Lunda, or some such rather unusually spelt version of the name, met us at the Toyota. She was most helpful and insisted that we present ourselves for the Facebook Photo Shoot that was to be included in the weekly Ermelo Toyota media update.

“Kykie so! Ek kry somma hoennavleis!” was how she reacted when I told her how old Elton would be in December.

Leg 1- Ermelo 2 Piet Retief – 115km, 700m of climb – 8hours 54minutes

Start 09h20

This leg promised to be fast and easy. The weather was perfect with an adequate amount of cloud cover and it was pleasantly cool. The tailwind did not hurt either. Just the kind of 1^st leg you need to get settled into a multi day trip. Tailor-made for me and my vicious turn of speed. My intention was to hold back. Not to go charging off into the distance.
“Don’t show off now, Niven. Be neighbourly! Push going up the hills if you must, or just engage in a bigger gear. You’ll get plenty of training that way!”

Thing is, my riding partners never read the script!

I was still on the tarred section out of town, when I first realized I was in trouble. It started with what felt like a clogged air filter, followed shortly thereafter, by 2 misfiring cylinders (Possible HT lead shorting out) and then the bearing knock. This deteriorated, until finally it reached catastrophic proportions. Not being able to participate in the chat I, mustered all of my energy just trying to keep those confounded cranks turning. My riding partners looked around regularly and then at each other. I could only imagine what was going through their minds.

Not long after we hit the gravel service road, we startled 2 young buck as we were descending, coming around a bend. The first animal narrowly missed Elton and bounded off across his path, bee lining it up the embankment towards the railway line.

The second buck was less fortunate than the first.

As Colleen passed him, the confused animal veered off to the left hitting a barbed wire fence at enormous speed catapulting up into the air, landing a few meters in front of me on his back and then he got the Duck Out of There. If only we had camera’s rolling.

That buck and I were having similar sort of days.

At 28km’s the cramp twinges added their hand to my very constricted chest and I had to inform my riding partners that my day was going to be long, hard and anything but pleasant. They were very kind and slowed right down, probably hoping to coax me into a better physical state. This was not to be.

I limped in to Sheepmoore at around kilometre 46. Elton and Colleen were idling and easily stayed ahead of me. There we had a few cool drinks and a bite to eat. I had a few sachets of ENO’s in an attempt to stave off the cramps. This has worked for me on similar occasions in the past. We exchanged pleasantries with the locals and then we were off.

At 85km down and another 30km to go, on the edge of a nice cool forest, I sat my riding partners down for a chat. I had to insist that they move on ahead at a pace that suited them. It was pointless for them to hang back with me, to try and nurse me through a tight chest and intermittent cramping. In situations like this, there really is no point in spoiling everyone’s ride. Furthermore, I had the gpx track and would get to Piet Retief eventually. Besides, if they hadn’t joined me on the trip, I would have been in the same position, having to guts it out on my own.

Colleen got it immediately. Perhaps, Elton also, but he would not say it. I needed to be on my own in this suffering. Reluctantly, they acquiesced. Colleen took a pic of me in a foetal position sucking on tyre levers and left. The relief I felt when they left, almost made me feel physically better. I hate affecting other people’s ride.

You may think I was grumpy, but I promise I don’t get grumpy in situations like this. There’s no point. You are travelling unsupported and have no choice but to get to your destination. Isn’t putting ourselves at risk like this, part of the attraction?
The final stretch into town was uphill on tar as the light was fading and night was settling in.

The Bel Air Lodge was a welcome sight. I had to sit down on the edge of the bed to compose myself, very happy to have soldiered on and to finally get there. I turned on the shower whilst cramps were pulling my hands back into obscene looking appendages. I slowly started feeling human again.

The kind landlady offered to drop me off at the Spur where I met the other two, still in their riding kit.

It took just 5 beers for the cramps to disappear and to feel really good again.  We dissected the days ride, struggling to understand why the ride was so much harder than appeared on paper. The riding was beautiful. The railway line was almost always present, but you only noticed it on occasion. Never boring. We ate, we drank, teased the locals, swapped stories and laughed.

I even got a vintage car history lesson. The Bel Air was a 57 Chevy, with porno looking tail fin flanks. Graham Bate’s parents owned one and Graham, may or may not, have gotten up to mischief on the wide back seat. He loved that car. So now you know.

Leg 2- Piet Retief 2 Vryheid – 122km, 1380m of climb – 11hours 24minutes

Start 07h16

Thankfully, I fell asleep easily, but I woke up at 01h00. That was to be my lot. I grabbed my phone and ended up doing some data admin, listening to Elton’s rhythmic snoring. We checked out just after 06h00 and headed for the Wimpy and breakfast.

Earlier that morning I dumped my Assos bib shorts in the empty bath. These had come a long way with me through the years and I felt it was time to retire them. I was hoping that someone else may find a use for them, if not they would surely be discarded. Elton suggested that I should probably put them in the dustbin.
Imagine our surprise, when the owner of the guest house pitched up at the Wimpy, with my soiled Assos, thinking that I had mistakenly left them behind. I didn’t have the heart to tell him the truth. I couldn’t. Instead, these were re-gifted to our waitress, for a second lease of life.

My chest was feeling much better, but the twitches in my legs hinted at the possibility of returning cramps. In my mind, this was going to be the hardest of the 4 legs. It was now accepted that we were all happiest if we rode at our own pace and this would allow me to manage my day as best I could. I felt that if I got through today, I would start feeling stronger. You can’t underestimate the impact a strenuous bad health day has on recovery.

Starting out it was cool and overcast and it felt strangely comforting to be back on the bike. We hit the service road and found our respective rhythms. I’m quite fond of riding on my own and love getting  to that hypnotic state almost bordering on meditation.

I was woken from this shallow slumber to find Colleen and Elton watching kids sled down a steep grass embankment on the side of the railway track. They did it again for our pleasure. With most rides, the countryside tends to be cleaner and there is more vegetation and less erosion, the further you move away from civilization. This was no exception. The beautiful countryside, idyllic lifestyle and lazy flick of a cows tail, has such a soothing effect on the soul.

Once again the riding was sublime and I couldn’t help but be impressed by the feats of engineering that were required to design and construct these magnificent bridges and tunnels that decorated our route. These were all constructed years ago. Some are almost 100 years old.

I rode along steadily and carefully, being very aware that any sudden feats of bravado could bring on a cramp attack. I ate and drank regularly all in an effort to avoid a repeat of yesterday’s performance.

The change in the vegetation was now quite obvious, with open savanna type stretches giving way to organized timber plantations.
At this stage you have switched into touring mode and you’ve hit the sweet spots with regards zoom levels on the Garmin, fine tuning your favourite data screens and you are familiar with where you have stored various items within your luggage.

This doesn’t mean that you do not, on occasion, drift off course, usually easily corrected without too much fuss and little effort and the Garmin is only too eager to tell you that you weren’t paying attention.
Now, I often ignored the notification messages from my cell phone. It seemed just too much effort to verify whether that specific WhatsApp message was relevant to me.

On one such occasion I checked and found a notification from Colleen advising me to deviate onto the tar road. I had already passed the point where I should turn, so I just continued along, following the purple line.

Probably a good thing as I ended up riding along one of my favourite stretches of the day’s leg which ran along the Pongola river and then along the forest fringes in to Paulpietersburg. It was hilly and I assume, given my physical state, my partners were trying to make life a little easier for me.

We met at the KFC in Paulpietersburg about 65km into the day’s route.

We left the KFC together and rode within close proximity of each other, for a while, slowly drifting apart until I could not see them any longer. Much later, at some point they came into view again, so I had managed to reduce the gap slightly. They had obviously stopped for something to eat or a loo break, but this always motivates one to ride a little harder.

The first 6 km’s of the final 18 were my worst of the trip. It was tar, long, straight, climbing and busy with very little verge. Elton is very careful with the inclusion of tar and will only do it if he has no choice. He wants to revisit this part of the track and the solution may involve a serious deviation which may necessitate an increase in distance. Whatever it takes, I say. The final 12 km’s is also on tar, but not as bad and in some areas, one can ride on a wide sidewalk.

Elton sent me a pin location for the Spur. We ended up there, all still resplendent in our riding kit.

The looks on the faces of my riding partners, told a story. Colleen seemed a little traumatized by the final on-tar experience.
So was I.
I was tired but feeling better than the day before and proud of my effort to hang in there.
Elton appeared fresh, but he didn’t like the tar either. He seemed more bewildered by the length of time it took us to complete the days ride. The riding had been proper and way tougher than we had expected and tougher than the planning data suggested.

The beers, wine and food was glorious. Again we dissected the route. Tough. Perhaps, best done in two days, especially if it gets longer to avoid the tar. We made new friends and put a smile on the waitrons faces and the manageress, possibly impressed by our story, even gave us a free drink. First for me at a Spur.

The B&B we stayed at was old, but quaint and had some interesting décor. There seemed to be an amateur interior decorator on the loose. People in these little towns are unbelievably accommodating and helpful. I love the fact that they take pride in what they do and try hard to please. They deserve our support.

Leg 3- Vryheid 2 Ulundi – 111km, 1255m of climb – 9hours 40minutes

Start 06h50

“My name is Luca. I live on the 2cnd floor. I live upstairs from you…”

I’m lying awake with this Suzanne Vega song stuck in my head. Why? Where have I heard it lately? Then suddenly Elton’s phone alarm goes off and there it is. His alarm chime sounds remarkably like the start of the Vega song.

I had slept well. The cumulative effect of the previous days’ effort, had assured that lack of sleep would not be a problem.
We endeavored to leave a little earlier in the morning in an effort to get to Ulundi by mid-afternoon, allowing ourselves some additional recreation time.
We would usually start our day at a Wimpy, but the Wimpy in Vryheid would not open till late. So off we went to the garage convenient store.

My on bike nutrition leaves a lot to be desired.  I have not progressed much past the consumption of sugar laden items and was getting bored with my limited imagination. Before leaving, I consulted the nutritional experts on the Massive Adventures WhatsApp Group, hoping to find culinary inspiration.
There appeared to be strong support for savoury pies, placing them in the Super Foods category.

Chuck Bell said that Chicken pies were superior and Beef and Salmon pies were Ok, … or was it that Beef pies could give you Salmonella? No matter. Where possible I ordered chicken and I started this morning’s ride consuming two of them.

The day would have a unique set of challenges. It was unclear from Garmin maps or Google Earth whether there were any interim stops allowing us to stock up on provisions. We decided to be self-sufficient and to err on the side of excess.

On the bike I felt great for the first time, since day 1. I’m a slow starter. Today would be no exception.
The cycling Gods also played ball and gave us a generously moderate and fast track for the first half of the days ride..
Eventually, I managed to draw level with Elton and Collie.
Shortly after 10h15, we stopped to have a meal on a bridge crossing the rail tracks. I added my food stash to the communal nutritional pool.

My contribution was: Sardines in oil, Salticrax, Pretzels, dried wors, cheese, peanut brittle, Nougat and a Jungle Oats bar.

To get these out of my backpack, I had to remove a toolbox, new 11-speed chain, spare tube and a few other items.
Colleen and Elton looked on in amazement and commented on the amount of crap and additional weight I was lugging about.
I was then compared to Gerrit “Homing Pigeon” Pretorius, another LEG END. They laughed at my pitiful little backpack, compared to his. Something about playing with Pitbulls and not weeing like a puppy.
I needed the 5000 litre Sherpa Super Deluxe backpack complete with multi lingual library.
Huh? I asked.
Apparently, Gerrit believes in being prepared and amongst his on-bike collection,  is a bicycle mechanic handbook in Afrikaans. Some sort of remark was made comparing his ability to mend a bicycle with his navigational prowess. I can’t remember it being complimentary. 
I, like Gerrit, believe that there is no reason to be uncomfortable or to suffer whilst riding long distances.

For the first time in our trip I managed to ride a little ahead. The next 50km was some of my my best riding. The topography was very hilly with numerous bridges and tunnels, but for some reason it kinda suited my riding. I pulled into a tavern on the edge of a little settlement and ordered a Zamalek quart.
At first there were only 3 people sitting outside on the covered patio. This number steadily grew to about 20 by the time Elton and Colleen arrived. I was now on my second Zamalek.

A photo shoot ensued and we could only leave once we had posted the various photos and video via WhatsApp. We had a very entertaining time with the folk at the Tavern.

It was 16 hard km’s into Ulundi, which included a fair amount of climbing. Those Zamalek’s should probably be confined to after action satisfaction.
We headed for the Garden Court to begin our customary recovery routine.

We booked one room for the three of us.

That evening, at supper, Colleen was given honorary male membership, in a rather informal little ceremony.

She was lauded for her positive attitude, uncomplicated no fuss demeanour, ability to endure physical hardship, mental fortitude, ability to imbibe, putting up with our snoring and generally just being a good bloke. Here was a chicken with balls!

A rooster.

 Leg 4- Ulundi 2 Richards Bay – 107km, 1755m of climb – 10hours 21minutes

Start 06h37

 “Rooster” had to deal with Elton’s rhythmic snoring on one side of the room and my apnia interrupted snort-like restlessness on the other. But now that she was one of us, we knew that he would take it in his stride.

We recovered our bicycles from the locked boardroom and devoured our packed breakfast parcels in the restaurant, before heading to the 1-Stop to stock up on provisions.

Today was going to be a good day. According to Elton’s mapping software, we only had 1365m of climbing and we were basically heading downhill all the way to the coast.

A fair amount of climbing awaited us at the beginning of the ride. Soon I had assumed my familiar position of tail gunner, whilst the other two frolicked about like playful little mountain goats, showing off at every possible opportunity.
Eventually, they had disappeared and I plodded along trying to get comfortable on my Cambium C17 Latex stretched Brooks saddle.
I got even further behind when I was commissioned to do another impromptu photo shoot complete with compulsory data transfer to WhatsApp. I must have spent 20 minutes there battling with the photo transfer.
Just before leaving, one of the young kids asked for “chokolerts”. I said that I didn’t have any, but he would have none of that. Sliding open the zip on my frame bag, I pointed to the contents, saying “Look. I don’t have any.” He pointed to zipper on the other side saying “chokolerts”.

The little bugger had been rummaging through my stuff, whilst I was engaged in a black-white public relations exercise.

Over the past few days, we had had a few spots of rain, but it did not warrant pulling the rain jacket out of its pocket. Now, though, it started raining quit hard. Jacket went on and all the steep descents into the river valleys were treated with more respect. Climbing out from the valley floor next to the ginormous concrete bridge structures, I had one or two moments of lost traction on the back wheel. Even the goats took refuge in some discarded concrete pipes. I remember thinking how dangerous these roads could have been, had it rained steadily for 4 days. I realized for the first time, how fortunate we were in terms of the weather. Shortly afterward, the rain stopped and normal business resumed.

I was now a savoury pie eating convert. Man, they are good! I actually prefer them cold. I had none of the pie induced heartburn. Go figure! I can only attribute it to the fact that the extended exercise regime had some way of moderating the stomach acid spike.
I wolfed one down chasing it with a cream soda and raced off in search of the frolicking teenage mountain goats. I was feeling good again.

I made contact with them about 55km’s into the days ride.

Something was wrong, though. We had done about two thirds of the climbing at the halfway mark and just by looking at the route ahead, there seemed to be no letting up in the amount of climbing that we were still required to complete.
Yet, our data indicated that we only had 400 meters of climbing left.
It turned out the there was a glitch in the software, because we ended up doing an additional 450 meters or so. It also proved to be our biggest day in terms of ascent.

The riding was excellent, but tough. There were more bridges and tunnels on this days’ route than any other. The hills were therefore numerous, with sharp little descents and steep climbs out the other side, up the valleys. This type of terrain was wreaking havoc with Elton’s knees.
Not one to complain though, he just kept hammering it.
“Rooster” was strong and his cycling was impressive. Jokes aside, I think that the ladies are mentally tougher than the lads.
I was chuffed with my form. I seemed to be getting stronger every day. It was really encouraging.

Although out in the rural areas, there was constant exposure to civilization in the final 25km’s and the final 10km’s were fast.

We pulled into a shopping centre, not far from where we were meant to catch the Greyhound the next day.
Again we headed for the Spur to begin the recovery process.
The security gave us a bit of a hard time about having our bikes inside, but eventually we were allowed to store them within the confines of the restaurant.
We stayed a little longer and laughed a little louder and congratulated ourselves on a job well done.

Along with a very real sense of accomplishment, I felt a twinge of sadness that our adventure was now over.

But I had got to know two great people and have made friends for life.
We have suffered together and now there is a bond.

Repect “Rooster”

Respect “Foot”