Cycling tour to Durban (Light) 2019

On Thursday 17th October 2019, fourteen of us boarded a 20-seater bus with trailer in tow ably maneuvered by our trusted and well liked driver Danny Govender for a 4-day tour. Another cycling tour, adventure awaited us.

Cycling tour to Durban Day 1  – Johannesburg – Vrede – Memel – Newcastle

An early morning departure, preceded by a busy late last minute packing evening, culminating in a puncture not even 10kms outside Johannesburg set the pace of the cycling tour, coined the Happy Go Lucky tour. Freshly made toasted egg and polony sandwiches, provided and served by our breakfast connoisseur Nizam Moosa, was hungrily devoured and chased down with steaming cappuccinos. Laughter and banter permeated the air as we waited for the tour bus puncture to be sorted.

On tours there are the usual characters – the talkers, the jokers, the wise ones, the quiet ones and the one line ones. As we climbed back onto the bus, it seemed that we had not seen each other for ages.  Embellished stories from previous tours flooded all corners of the tour bus. There are many reasons one decides to join the tour but the banter usually is the key reason. Cycling is just the excuse. Friends enjoying each other’s company. A one liner careened through the air majestically landing on each ones ear that required noting:

“Reputation is gained in inches but lost in feet” – Haroon Bada

We tore off the N3 and noticed the cacti and blue gum trees spread on the dry highveld bush. The land was pregnant with expectation of rain. It was dry, windy and the sun turned on the heat. We noticed the poor free state roads which were being repaired after much disrepair and previous failed repair attempts. It was the reason why we chose to drive through and start cycling where the roads are better.

Symbolically we started our ride from the Estina Dairy farm near Vrede. A sad monument of all that is wrong with our country or should I say the government we repeatedly voted for and who have not returned the favour by delivering on its mandate. But, that’s a long story better articulated by service delivery protests and political analysts. The highveld needs rain which seem to come later each year presenting challenges for farmers and food sustainability generally.

After offloading our bikes, getting ready and capturing customary start line pictures, we headed towards Memel, a small town between Vrede and Newcastle, the latter being our destination for today.

The roads were generally rideable with some poor sections. The farmlands were dry as horses and cows grazed freely occasionally lifting their eyes with nary a bother as the chattering and whirring peloton glided past.

We came across some Anglo Boer sites but we were travelling too fast to make notes. At one point we saw an owl gliding past the dry fields and later noticed many solitary birds sitting on the electric lines. Sadly very difficult to identify. I had to remind myself that this was not a birding trip.

After a while we split into small groups as the relentless rolling hills took its toll in the midday sun. For a brief moment, could not have been more than 10 seconds, a strong gust of wind almost lifted me. I needed to grit my teeth and pedal strongly into what felt like a hurricane lest it threw me into the ditch.

Occasionally trucks pass through and the heat generated from a combination of its engine, tyres and metal, blows pass giving you an on road sauna experience. Thankfully, the strong winds return shortly after.

We reached Newcastle after climbing the highest altitude of 1805m and thereafter raced down into the city. We could not help but notice green patches in a sea of dry fields. We ended our ride with a relaxed swim in the cold hotel pool.

Day 2  – Newcastle. Dannhauser. Escort. Mooiriver. Nottingham Road

We started the day earlier but the heat woke up early too. One could easily mistake the laughter and tomfoolery for a festival or party. Certainly not a willing choice to painfully struggle up and down these rolling hills.

The road surface was beautiful as we glided out of Newcastle. We kept together building a solid momentum. The road was initially wide with increasing narrow sections as we motored. The traffic was building up intensifying our nervousness. We stopped and decided, for safety reasons, to drive to the quiet roads we usually take. We all agreed looking at the narrow shoulder and traffic while on the bus that we chose a poor route.

At first the debate revolved around where to continue our ride. Some of us fell asleep while this continued. It was Friday so the debate meandered about where to read Jumma (Friday prayers). Some wanted to ride, others wanted to pray while the rest did not want to ride so chose to pray.

Five of us started our ride just outside Escort at the foot of the torturous Griffiths hill in murderous heat. The rest went for prayers. Griffiths was grueling at first but somehow as the gradient increased it became easier. On summiting, I joined the others as we raced into Mooiriver for some hard-earned refreshments.

Clouds had slowly gathered and the sky darkened. We motored on joining a passing peloton climbing another brutal hill outside Mooiriver. It first drizzled and within minutes powerful dagger like drops stung our bodies. We were drenched and riding on the wet potholed road required extra concentration. Thankfully our support vehicle was right behind, shielding us from passing motorists. We stopped at a delightful coffee shop in Nottingham Road and someone mercifully scrambled some dry tops from the support vehicle.

Most who prayed also climbed Griffiths as the pressure of fomo was much too strong. They too were caught in the rain. They jumped into the bus and joined us at the coffees shop were the revelry continued.

The long drive to Durban comprised many animated discussions. Zahid Sema, a local from the routes we cycled, came into his own, earning the person of the tour badge. His storytelling hit all 50 colourful spots. Many were in stitches while others were just dumbfounded. Later Bashir Abramia shared some delightful personal stories screaming for a book to be written.

Ismail Mitha commented that he had far too much sunblock for riding in the bus.

We arrived to a festive and busy Durban. After a well-deserved shower, we had a sumptuous dinner at the Vapor Cafe. The lemon butter prawns and crayfish tails hit all the right spots.

Day 3 – Durban

Saturday was ‘rest’ day but some spent it swimming in the sea while others rested and relaxed. The day was set out to collect our race entries, sort our bikes, hydrate, carbo load and generally prepare for the next day’s race.

Cycling Tour Day 4 – Amashova Cycle Race

Uncharacteristically early, we headed to our different pens awaiting the call to start. Amashova is a 106km race from Pietermaritzburg to Durban (the Comrades down run). There is nothing ‘down’ about this race as you start climbing almost from the start. It was another scorcher of a day and cycling was brutal, at least for me. I could barely hang on to any passing peloton and pretty much rode alone.

The rest of the group posted amazing results with three sub 3’s, and at least six who were in strong contention. They looking good for the rest of the season while some of us will need to go back to our training board and reassess.

Several of our group flew back leaving ten of us to endure a quiet bus trip home. We analysed the good and bad of the tour intermittently catching some well-deserved shut eye. True to form we suffered another puncture an hour from Johannesburg.

Another exciting and fun cycling tour made special by those who were there, almost a full house. Deep gratitude to those who took on various responsibilities to successfully pull it off yet again.