Dennis's Naked Mile - May 6

Turned out to be really nice in the hotel up on the top floor! We had already arranged and paid for breakfast this morning at 6am – as had quite a few other people! It had been a clear night and so the road had dried a little. We see Adam and Jorg set off and then Scott leaves also. Paul says he is not so bothered about racing to day so for me and Dennis to leave when we wanted. We wanted to catch Adam and Jorg – or at least not let them get too much time on us! I am currently in the lead for this section by 45 minutes (not including my mando bonus – so really by 1 hr 15) – but I still wanted to catch them to make sure. So I ride fairly fast keeping my heart rate at exactly 150 – with Dennis following and Paul nowhere in sight. The road is wet and sticky with some corrugation and lots of river crossings. I got stuck in the first one – more like a flowing river passing – and then got through the next one just as Patrick came flying through on his full suspension mountain bike and soaked me!! Kristian was taking photos so should be some good ones!

We rode really well for about 15 km – having to be fairly careful in picking the right lines – the scenery is really cool! Large spread out canyons – reminds me of Flagstaff, Arizona and the Grand Canyon of course!! We caught up with Adam and Jorg and slowed up to ride behind them for a while! Then surprisingly at 25 km we see the lunch truck – they had warned us the night before we might see it early depending on conditions!! Just after there was a river that we would not be able to cross – they had had to open the dam further upstream (very unusual as that is considered a great waste!!) So that was the end of today’s race!! We spent some time there eating cheese and apples – before taking the detour. A 500 m hike through the bush to some train tracks and over the railway bridge and another 500 m hike the other side back to the road where we could continue on our way!! So this is where Dennis decides he wants to do his “Naked Mile” (a TdA tradition!!) So – on the other side he strips down and then rides back to the river to wave at everybody at lunch before taking off! He disappears into the distance!! Pretty hilarious!! Scott and I rode together although his bike is still not right – his chain keeps sticking! In the end we stopped to clean and lube it – and it did seem a little better. We had a really great ride – chatting with people as we passed. Then finally we find Dennis again and he puts his clothes back on (that was way more than a mile!!)… The views are great and the road improving all the time as it dries out. Not much wind – we just enjoyed each other’s company, enjoyed the views and enjoyed not racing! Made it to a really nice camp – an Overlander and checked in. Then we proceeded to eat tons as usual – cheese and ham sandwich, schnitzel and fries, pasta carbonara, cheesecake and beers. Am now just getting organized for tomorrow – our last race day – a big mando day!! 172 km off road – its going to be interesting!!