Ashleigh's Adventure In Africa: Keep Your Eyes Behind You

When you ride through Ethiopia, the body is in pain - heat, altitude (10,000 ft at times), steep long climbs - but it's the ability to focus the brain that seems to be key, at least for me.

The thing is, this country is beautiful -- really stunning -- but you can't really let yourself look around too much. Someone says, "look at the view" and you turn your head for a second, take in what you can, and then inevitably you turn back and yell "The kid at 2 o'clock has a rock. Look at Noon - there's a gravel section. 3 o'clock, the sheep are about the cross." It happens in seconds. It happens all day long.

The trick is, you have to look ahead to make sure you aren't going to be hit or stoned or trampled by cattle, but you can't look too far ahead because this country will break your spirit ( at least mine). To look ahead means you see endless walls of pavement heading straight for the sky, sitting in front of layers upon layers of mountains. The best is to pull off at the top of a mountain and look behind you, congratulate yourself of what you have done, and then look only as far ahead as you need to. Mind games.

We've had 6 incredible days of riding. The hardest yet. We have been climbing endlessly -- Mt. Diablo+ every day. We hit the Blue Nile Gorge 2 days ago. You should google it for pictures. We climbed for 60k until we hit a plateau, and then the world just opened. It's like Zeus threw a lightening bolt into the ground - split it apart. Then, a difficult downhill for 20k, switchbacks, pavement that suddenly becomes gravel, then big rocks, then packed dirt. Hands aching, tires screeching.

Cross a short bridge at the bottom, and you hit 22k of 12% grade. Paved. Unpaved. No shade. It was a sufferfest, and incredible sufferfest that I was happy to give up on, but the bus was full (luck on my side again, as I finished the stage). It took the fastest woman (Natalia) 2:32 to climb it. It took me 4:40. That is called ugly.

Lucky, our lil Team Africa 911 has decided to win every time trial for Expedition riders and Nat and Josh took the second time trial so game on. It's all for fun, but it's nice to have goals :)

At the bottom, our Aussie pal George looked up at this unfathomable climb (seriously, it's unreal) and said "Gorge? That's not a Gorge, that's a dip." Australians are nuts.

Things I have learned:

1. If riding in Africa, get a triple chain ring. DUMB DUMB DUMB. The hills get so steep -- there's not a single woman left who has been able to do it all with a double. I have long been a big fan of the triple, cannot believe I don't have one. The mechanics tell me I was a fool. I KNOW! I keep asking if I can take a ring from my back cassette for the front (no) or grab a triple from a rider who is leaving (no) or buy one (no). bummer.

2. Tire levers for taking tires off and putting them on are for suckers. A ha ha. Really, they are quickly grabbed away by the boys and you're mocked if you use them. I'm actually getting pretty good at getting tires on and off without them now. And, we've learned a new trick dubbed the Martyn Wiggle, to get a tire on. I'll try to tape it and put it on youtube.

3. The sounds of violent vomit will wake you out of a dead sleep in seconds. Sickness is going around, and let me tell you, it's loud and you can't help but feel so bad for people. I've been okay so far, but Natalia (of Team Africa 911 of course) is on her death bed.

4. I have learned how to open a beer bottle with my pedal. These are my people, people!

And that is about 1% of what has gone on, and all I can manage to tell you at this point. Heading for Uganda in a few weeks -- no idea what we're going to do, but probably some rafting.

Next 2 weeks are unknown territory. We're going a new route, through the Rift Valley. Something about making it harder to make up for Kenya (honestly, this is so hard it really need not get harder). Something about hot springs at the end as a reward for surviving.

Honestly, I'm trying not to but I'm already dreading the end of this. Trying to live in the moment, but I don't want this moment to end. 3 more months!

Love to all,

ash

xoxo