tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18615538.post1563165845150179798..comments2024-03-21T03:56:28.972-06:00Comments on Jill Outside: Race Across South Africa, part threeJill Homerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/02983065990450931943noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18615538.post-4112597148993752742014-07-10T10:35:16.281-06:002014-07-10T10:35:16.281-06:00I'm impressed by your recollection and the acc...I'm impressed by your recollection and the accuracy of detail you're able to capture. In particular I'm enjoying your willingness to explore and expose your emotional state from day to day. That anxiety that takes hold when you are unsure you're lost or not, whether you'll make shelter before dark is draining. Reaching each SS is just so sweet. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09804046699801901764noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18615538.post-26031087862512353422014-07-10T02:00:56.473-06:002014-07-10T02:00:56.473-06:00Oh boy. I remember crying and crying at Vuvu from ...Oh boy. I remember crying and crying at Vuvu from fatigue and pushing bikes in thick sticky mud and then I remember the exhilaration of nailing the navigation the next year and arriving there early.<br />That's the trail....an emotional and physical rollercoaster. <br /> <br />What camera do you use? The pictures are abssolutely amazing.Fionahttp://redislandride.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18615538.post-56324961183599135972014-07-09T16:32:31.561-06:002014-07-09T16:32:31.561-06:00Such a 'gutsy' effort. Never feel ashamed!...Such a 'gutsy' effort. Never feel ashamed!Helenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04051160693725705930noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-18615538.post-83563061880601331702014-07-09T14:13:25.464-06:002014-07-09T14:13:25.464-06:00Having Bruce and Ryan catch up to us at Tinana Mis...Having Bruce and Ryan catch up to us at Tinana Mission is a great example of how important navigation is in this race. It doesn't matter how quick you are if you spend hours stuffing around trying to find the correct route. There are some great stories of people ending up in all kinds of odd places going up the Vuvu valley. In one case they were headed toward Lesotho and David Waddilove sent a message scrawled on a cigarette packet up after them with a man on horseback.<br /><br />We got lucky being able to follow two guys who knew the route well but it also illustrates the dangers of following. I quickly lost where we were on the map - every spur running into the valley looks alike. The "lone tree" comment on the narrative didn't help much as there are plenty of trees that could be interpreted as "lone". You then have to pull out all the stops keep up with whomever you're following or you'll become really lost. Vuvu valley was one of those times and on the pure portage section I tried to be somewhere halfway between Jill and the leaders so that we still had some idea of where to go.<br /><br />The route we took is generally considered to be the best route as you have a quick but steep climb then ride an easy ride at the top of the valley to the village - mostly road even! The alternative requires a much longer climb.<br /><br />Jill wobbling towards me at the top was also a scary moment and I was really worried she was going to fall off the mountain. <br /><br />Arriving at Vuvu we caught up to 8 other riders. We went from mostly being 4 to a party atmosphere which was fun but also disarming, and being tired, a little overwhelming. Most of the riders were from the start day before ours and spent the night before at Tinana Mission after getting very lost coming down from Black Fountain.<br /><br />Despite trying to appear confident in my navigation skills Ntsikeni, Mparane Ridge, Black Fountain and Vuvu valley made me doubt them a lot. I either made bad mistakes (Ntsikeni) or couldn't work out where we were while following others (Vuvu). We had also made the mistake of printing our maps too small (A4/letter rather than A3) and many critical details were hard to pick out. Next time I'll print them larger, even blowing up the tricky sections onto their own sheets.<br /><br />Seeing Vuvu in the light was great though. There are some support stations where you arrive in the dark and leave in the dark and have no idea what they actually look like. I'm pleased to have taken Vuvu off that list.Liehannhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17105727844789935691noreply@blogger.com