The Accidental Single Speeder - Race to Cradock Part 7

The conversation between myself and Chris the race director went back and forth a few times. I insisted that I was done with the race and was going to arrange to get picked up. He refused to accept that as my final answer. He even went as far as to tell me that he was only saying to me what I would say to someone who called me wanting to quit. At one point I agreed to continue but after riding only 20 metres I almost fell off my bike due to the slippery mud. I called him back and told him I was definitely quitting. He eventually accepted that I was done.

I rode another 100 metres and thought as long and hard as I could in the time it took to cover that distance.
I stopped and checked the signal strength on my phone. It was marginal. Another 100 metres and I'd be out of contact until Hofmeyr. After a minute of reflection I called Chris, "You win, I'm carrying on." Had the conditions changed? Not up to that point. I realised that quitting isn't something I'd be happy with once I was home. There are legitimate reasons to quit but watching an arbitrary deadline potentially slipping out of reach after a few hours of trudging through mud with a bike that hated me didn't qualify as solid reasons. I'd been in more desperate situations before and rather than quit I embraced them. I had allowed my head to go soft. My body was tired but I've come to realise that it's a serial liar—always wanting to stop, always wanting to sleep. I lead with my head understanding that we are so much more capable than we give ourselves credit for. When you think you're done the truth is that you still have a few days left in the tank. Head space management is the secret ingredient.

Once I had transitioned out of that negative space I moved forward determined to get to Hofmeyr as soon as possible. In my conversation with Chris I had whinged about how horrible the roads were and how it was going to take me 4 or 5 hours to get to Hofmeyr. The road sludge persisted for a few hundred metres but after wading through a swollen river that ran over the road the conditions improved dramatically. There were a few sections that had the bike squirming but it wasn't anything like the roads I'd spent the afternoon cursing. Less than 2 hours later I was standing outside the Hofmeyr Hotel.

I was covered in mud so went around the back of the hotel into the secure parking area and was was shown to a room that didn't require me to walk through the hotel. It was late. I didn't need food. My priority was to get some shut eye. A quick shower, 2 rusks and a cup of tea and I was in bed. I set my alarm for 6 hours and pulled the sheet over my head.

5 hours later I woke up. I always feel better if I wake up before my alarm. If I got out the door at 3am I would be at the start of the Elandsberg portage just after 4:30am. The Elandsberg portage has tripped up a number of riders over the years including me. After my dismal performance the previous day I was up for the challenge of attempting it in the dark. I needed a victory no matter how small to cheer me up. A cup of tea and 2 rusks later I was good to go.

The ride out of Hofmeyr went smoothly and on schedule. Soon I was at the fence that required a walk across the veld to find a vague jeep track. I took my time checking and double checking that I was at the right place along the fence line. Once I had roughly figured out my intended line I got my compass out to make sure I had it right. Once over the fence I headed south for 620 metres. At exactly 620 metres I was standing on the centre line of the jeep track that ran perpendicular to the line I had been walking. It's easy when it goes right. Once on the track I continued on to the support station at Elandsberg. There was one section littered with Golden Orb spiders. Their webs glinting under the full moon made it easy to spot them. I was surprised by the colour variety ranging from black and yellow to silvery pearl.

It was 6am when I rolled down the driveway of the support station. It was a full 10 hours later than I had originally hoped but on the bright side I'd had a good nights sleep and was feeling strong.