Race2Paarl with the tart (aka Sarah v Heerden)

Race2Paarl a Freedom Challenge event. 620 km. A lot of ascent.

Yoh. What a race. Sarah van Heerden , you are a splendid tart. It was a Roller-coaster of emotions.

Day1: 220km, Willowmore to De Hel (via Prince Albert). 20 hours. The race day started at 6 AM In Willowmore. As usual the ride to Prince Albert was muddy and windy and our progress was slower than hoped. It was hard to leave the luxuries of Prince Albert, but we pushed on into the night. We arrived at De Hel at about 2AM, in the rain. It continued to rain. We were very cold. Especially Sarah. She is skinny and lives in Durban. And has a chipped tooth.

Day 2: 120km. De Hel to Anysberg Nature Reserve. It took 15 hrs. Another tough weather day. We left in the rain at 5AM and headed into a strong, cold headwind.  Die Leer is the infamous  donkey track that leads you out of De Hel. It is only about 3km but it is very, very steep. ( and rocky and slippery). The next 10 kms after die Leer were a slog along a rocky jeep track with a cold headwind. The lunch stop at Sandrivier was wonderful albeit short. The ride to Anysberg was much better. The sign at Anysberg nature Reserve (known for its hares) : 'it's not funny to kill a bunny' was a source of great entertainment for hours. We were obviously very tired. We were treated to a warm fire and brief sleep at Anysberg cottages.

Day 3: 300km, 23 hours. Anysberg to Wellington, the end (via Montagu, McGregor, Trouthaven). It's amazing what you can do when your carrot is to avoid riding in cold, freezing rain and headwinds. Another cold front was approaching.  The ride into Montagu was freezing. It was pre-dawn. The last 30 km into Montagu are downhill  (Ouberg Pass). Its a fast descent but the freezing cold wind eats into your bones. Especially your feet! We were freezing. We stopped at a 24hr garage  in Ashton. The InterCape bus arrived at the same time. Sarah took it upon herself to ask most of the traveller's if they were willing to sell their socks. A Tart after my own heart. No luck. It was obviously also cold on the bus.

Sarah then had a brain fart of note. She had heard of riders using latex surgical gloves to keep their hands warm. The only latex on offer were condoms. So she bought condoms. The lady at the till didn't even  bat an eyelid when Sarah asked for 2 boxes! Obviously the condoms did not fit her feet. Prob because these were RSA condoms. She then tried to put them on her toes, but that was not a good idea either as they were very slippery ( to her astonishment) and did not stay in place. In the end she bought 2 face clothes and they worked wonders as foot covers.I laughed and laughed.

The McGregor backpack Dorothy Botten Geoff Botten was splendid as usual. Sarah stole all my crispy bacon and my pork sausage and fed it to a 3 legged dog. Naturally, I was upset. "You have all your legs" was all she said. That was a stark reminder of the plight of others and we pulled up our big girl panties and rode to Trouthaven. It was here that we met some other riders (two men) who treated us to a warm fire and a braai. We then got to watch the second half of the Springboks rugby game. At 9PM, we left the men with their beers and small sausages and rode the last 70-80 km to Wellington via the Bainskloof pass. The usual StettynsKloof portage was out of bounds because of the rain. Sarah was very relieved!

On arrival in Wellington the heavens opened and the rain poured. 2:22 AM.

We were done.  Tired, relieved, grateful and very much alive. 2 tarts with sore bums.

Thanks Sarah!

Our attempt at a selfie on the top of Swartberg Pass.

Trying to warm up in the Ashton 24 hour garage. Freezing cold.

Our departure from Prince Albert at 5PM to head into De Hel at night did not go unnoticed.