River Rat

I see MB is on the move now lying 7th, I am backing him for a top 3 finish.

At least his tracker is no longer "dof" and I see BB is resting up as well.

I would think that this is an essential skill to have particularly if finishing is your goal.

Another rider to watch is Martin Bain Venn who has quietly slipped into the top 10 during the day, I remember his charge through the field after Sutherland. I wonder if we are going to see a repeat performance.

Could it be that these trackers go "dof" when being charged? Because it might just be that Benky is indeed taking a nap a recharging his tracker at the same time.

Eish, the numbers are not looking good for him his moving average is 10.kph which equates to about 84 hours of riding out of 92. Patsy on the other hand seems to be keeping with the target for now. I often wonder if they're doing the same calculations on the route, do they even have the mental capacity at this stage? I have never had a problem in all my long distance endeavours but then again I have never done a race where I was on the go for more than 15 hours non stop.

Benky's tracker isn't updating but assuming you are right we could be in for a very interesting night with Hansie being chased down by a relatively fresher Benky.

Patsy is on the move again but she has about 880 kms to go and at her current race average of 9km/h she won't make it, if she manages to ride at her moving average of 13.3km/h for at least 66 hours she can take 4 rests of 6h45m each so it's still possible.

I'm concerned for the two back markers Dirtrider is holed up at RV1 behind the cut marker so he really can't hang around for too long. While Patsy has been stationary for about an hour in the middle of nowhere.

At first I thought he had a mechanical but it seems as if he is struggling to get a rhythm going. Anyway he is about to reach WP2 and hopefully he can join up with the 2nd last rider Patsy Nakell for some motivation.

Added to the fact that he seemed to have technical and there was a lot of walking before WP1.

It really is quite easy to make a button, any soft plastic or an eraser cut or filed to size will work. Just make sure that it protrudes by at least 1 mm which is the extent of the switch range . Here's an example of mine before I sealed it with some insulation tape.

They have indeed just looped back onto the route and their detour seems to have added to the distance so let's hope it's just a time penalty. Two years back I drove some of the route from Loxton to Bloem and could see from the tracks where guys went off route, but it became pretty clear after a while that there were no new tire tracks and you could see where the guys turned around. These guys just bombed along

I think it tracks Ramses including the stops (and there weren't many) and I'm not sure that this part of the course has been changed. Nonetheless, it's all relative and last year no one was ahead of the marker so I would say that they are quicker at this stage of the race.

Saw that, every year I question whether it's a Garmin problem or concentration issue. Let's hope that they realise the problem before they go too far down that road.

Currently 5 riders ahead of the race record after 75km.

Lol I did the same thing with my 800 seems like an inherent problem. I just used a plastic weld stick filed down to suit and sealed off with insulation tape.

They might only be told when they sign in at the next WP and then at the directors discretion they either have to go back to where they left the course and rejoin, or get a time penalty or disqualification. However, if you look at the history of the rider (take Markus Franz for instance) it does not look like he got a huge advantage, but the onus is on the rider to stick to the route.

The drama starts early this year it seems we already have 3 riders off course.

A Red dog on an Orange River part 2 Day 2 – 500km to Pella plus another 3 hours of off road driving to get to Groot Melkboom campsite. The one thing you learn from overlanding is that there are three parameters required when planning a trip. The first is obviously the distance to be travelled, the second is the time required and the third is the fuel required, the slower the going the more fuel will be consumed. We struck down our camp after a quick breakfast and had what would be our last hot shower for the next 3 days. Our journey took us through Olifantshoek and I must say that looking at the sparse shrub veld it was difficult to imagine that the area could sustain a sufficient number of elephants to justify the name. The origin of the name is interesting in that in 1912 an elephant tusk was the purchase price for the farm that the town is built on. We followed a veritable green oasis of the farmlands adjacent to the Orange river, the ingenuity of our farmers proudly displayed in the vivid green lucern fields and vineyards. We crossed the Orange river just before entering the town of Kakamas, what a name for a town! Who would live in a town with a name like that? I mean Pofadder was sort of obvious, they must have found a puff adder there but what did they find at Kakamas? Perhaps it got it’s name from the sound an animal makes but the closest I could think of was a Hadeda which might explain the Kaka part but the mas? Anyway as a child I always imagined that Hadedas had a lisp so that would make it Kakamath, the truth is that Kakamas started as a refuge for farmers following the great drought of the 1890s. They formed a group to build irrigation canals by hand, many of these still in operation today. The name seems to have three possible origins - the Korana called the location of the drift across the Orange river T’Kakamas after a raging cow that storm them while they were herding their cattle. The Khoi origin is Gagamas meaning the red clay used by their women to beautify their faces. Apparently Kakamas without T’ in Korana means poor and infertile soil which was hardly descriptive of the lush farmlands surrounding the town or perhaps those early farmers did indeed find the stuff in the name, I think I’ll stick with the place of the raging cow. We fuelled up at Pofadder including one jerry can just to be sure as our planning showed that route was on the limit of our tank range. Shortly after that the off road journey began as we turned right heading for Pella, Pella was originally known as Cammas Fonteyn a fountain frequented by the San people. But in 1814 a missionary by the name of Christian Albercht and his converts fled Namibia having been persecuted by the Orlam Chief Jager Afrikaner. They established a mission at Cammas Fonteyn and renamed it Pella after a village across the Jordan river that was a refuge for Jewish Christians fleeing the Roman army advancing on Jerusalem in 70ad. The settlement was abandoned on numerous occasions until the 1890s when Father Simon and Brother Leo Wolf teamed up to build the church building in Pella. We decided to find the tourism office to get some information on the church as well as registering the start of our trip on the trail. We stopped next to a group of youngsters to get directions to the office, Ranger just loves kids and he stuck his head through the window to say hello. The young lad in the front stepped back at the sight of this huge dog staring at him right in the face “Jissie manne kyk hierdie groot stuk hond!” and that was the end of our communication. We made our way to the church hoping to wing it but as soon as Ranger jumped out of the vehicle our large group of onlookers scattered to the winds , Ranger thinking this was a game chased after them. We decided that this settlement had seen enough strife in its history with Jager Afrikaner and the wrath of the Roman army that they could do without being terrorised by Ranger from Pretoria so we set off for Klein Pella and Charlies pass. Charlies pass is quite a technical route where ground clearance is vital but we never needed low range or difflock, the route makes use of the various sandy river beds to traverse up to the mountain and followed by steep rocky climbs that takes you to the top and rewards you with glimpses of the Orange river and spectacular views of the surrounding mountains. The tyres on our vehicle were the original OEM tyres and not ideally suited to this type of terrain so we decided not to deflate it too much for the sandy sections so protecting the sidewalls from cuts in the rocky sections. The off roading was huge fun as Ranger joined my wife as she spotted for me over the rougher sections , he was more interested in the smells than wheel placement. By the time we got through Canyon Pass and Klein Pella we realised that we underestimated our travel time and we were about to invoke rule number one of overlanding which is don’t travel in the dark. Groot Melkboom was still an hour and half away and it was an hour to sunset, we had to be wheels down at least an hour before sunset. So we found a spot 100m off the track in a dry riverbed to settle in for the night, dry river beds are risky as campsites but we concluded that rain in this part of the world is a rarity especially this time of the year. Ranger recognised the drill when we started setting up camp and he took up the job of camp security. He patrolled the camp in ever widening circles periodically checking in with us before going for the next patrol. He celebrated his achievement with a typical Ridgeback zoomie run in the thick sand. The gloaming time was different here, there was no marked difference between day and night shift, it went from quiet time to quieter time with only the odd chirp from a cricket to remind us that we were not the only living beings out here. We sat around the fire with Ranger staring into the darkness as we stared at the fire but the wind started picking up to the point that Ranger retired to his bed in the annex , another big day done…

It's a fantastic area and I just love the contrasting landscapes as one travels west. It will sadden you to see the state of Kuruman once the jewel of the Kalahari now it's a haven for thieves and pickpockets only to be avoided.

Strange I wrote it up in Word and the paragraphs where there, anyway it's fixed.

COVID has undoubtedly played havoc with everyone’s travel plans and our wanderlust bug could not be tamed by the repetitive planning and dreaming of where we could go if only this virus would allow us. So with the lifting of restrictions to Level 1 we set about turning those dreams into reality, crossing borders was simply too complicated and the idea of contracting the virus and being holed up in a foreign country was not that appealing. Scrolling down the bucket list we found the Namaqua 4x4 Ecotrail and without much hesitation we booked for the first part of the trail from Klein Pella to Vioolsdrift. We decided to take our three year old dog Ranger with us, a rather large Rhodesian Ridgeback three quarters of a meter at the shoulder and a solid 65kg of muscle. The roof top tent plus annex was loaded, with water and food for 6 days. Ranger’s frozen raw food was competing with my beer and the wife’s wine for space in our camping fridge, 1.3 kg per day is quite a lot. Ranger is not too fond of the car but loves the destination, so we prepared a bed for him on the passenger seats of our vehicle. Day 1 – was a 660km trip from Pretoria to Red Sands camping grounds, a pet friendly place just outside of Kuruman. The journey was interrupted every 2 hours or so just to let Ranger stretch his legs, drink some water and mark some new territory. The first stop was a slight detour on a gravel district road just before Coligny and the CCTV cameras mounted high on telephone poles was a stark reminder of the war our farming communities are fighting. Ranger needed no invitation and he was out the car exploring the area making sure that other dogs would know he was here. The journey through rural South Africa continued and I recall driving through the rural areas of South Africa in the not too distant past and the church steeple rising above all other buildings was a sure sign that you were approaching a rural town, Sannieshof is different as the Vodacom tower now rises way above the church steeple perhaps a stark reminder of our new religion. A fuel stop at Delareyville and I was quite impressed with the way in which COVID measures were being observed masks everywhere and even the queues outside the ATMs showed that social distancing was the order of the day. We decided to get a toasted sandwich just to tide us over for the second half of the journey from the Afsaal Café. “Can we have a toasted Bacon and Egg sandwich please” my wife asked, “Sorry madam but we only serve Egg and Bacon”. Hmm something was afoot here! “So what would happen if I wanted a Bacon and Egg?” The curt response was “Specials cost R10 extra”. So Egg and Bacon it was and the process was clear the egg is cooked first in the pan, the pan is wiped clean before the bacon is fried, clearly one doesn’t want to mess with the system at the Afsaal Café in Delareyville! But perhaps we should have paid the R10 just to poke the bear a bit. Red Sands is an aptly named camping spot, the sand really is red, most likely as a result of all the iron ore found in the area. Ranger decided to celebrate his freedom with a good old roll in the sand and he was perfectly camouflaged. The setting up of camp was rather difficult as he wanted to go say hi to all the other campers, so we hooked up his leash to the tow hitch and he waited patiently for us to set up camp. A walk around the camp with him on leash soon settled the nerves of our fellow campers as they realised that he was just a big softie. We met the camp manager’s dog, rather scruffy looking who was at first quite wary of Ranger but after a couple of sniffs, the game was on they chased each other having a whale of the time amusing the other campers enjoying their sundowners. It wasn’t long before Ranger pulled up mid stride and I realised this city slicker was no match for the devil thorns of the Kalahari. He hobbled up to me, the offending thorn removed and back in the game he went only to be hobbled a short while later. Even scruffy dog found his match in the thorns and he too made use of my services, it was quite amusing to watch how both dogs would hobble up to me holding up their paws for me to do the necessary. A shrill whistle from the camp manager brought the game to an end as Scruffy dog hopped onto the back of the bakkie, knowing that the day was at its end and it was home time. Kalahari sunsets are sight to behold and the calmness of the gloaming as nature changes from dayshift to nightshift and the effect on our four legged friend was profound and we could thankfully leave Ranger off lead as he kept close to us and with no intention of pestering other campers, he knew where home was. The evening reminded us that even in spring the desert nights can be cold and Ranger was grateful to find his bed at the bottom of the Annex, sheltered from the wind he could settle in for the night knowing that we were in the tent just above him, it was a long day and tomorrow would be a long day’s journey to Groot Melkboom on the banks of the Orange River…

Hang in there.

I know what I am about to ask you is going to be tough. These guys usually get away because no witnesses pitch up for the court cases and this is not always because the victims are too scared or lazy to testify but because the system is so inefficient. What usually happens is that at the first appearance the defense attorney asks the magistrate whether the prosecutor has any witnesses to testify against the accused, if there are none the magistrate is almost compelled to release them. Of course if the investigating officer is there he will testify that he has a number of witnesses willing to testify which helps a lot to keep them behind bars. This game is repeated throughout the trial and as soon as there is no one there to testify the defendants are released. In 2016 we caught 3 bike jackers in Klapperkop and although I wasn't a witness or a victim I coordinated the witnesses to ensure there was always someone available. At the bail hearing I approached the state prosecutor and asked her to ensure that these guys did not get bail as there were 11 people willing to attend an identity parade, I could see from her attitude that she didn't really care. So when these guys appeared and she did not push for them to remanded in custody I walked up to the bench and stood in front of the magistrate until he asked me "Sir why are you standing in front of me" I explained the situation to him and he asked the state prosecutor whether it was true. Well, you can imagine her embarrassment when the magistrate lambasted her for not speaking up for the community she was supposed to serve. The 3 accused were hauled back from the holding cells and their bail was revoked, ID parades were held. I ensured that there was always at least one witness available per hearing, in fact my relationship with the magistrate was such that even if there wasn't a witness he gave me an hour or so to get them to the court. It took 3 years and about 12 court appearances but in the end they were put away for 12,18 and 29 years. It's a tough ask but you will be doing your community a favour by just making sure that you testify, hopefully you'll find a switched on state prosecutor because if you do they can ensure that you give your evidence early on in the trial and you won't have to go through my ordeal.