D91……Goodbye Namibia

Whilst I write this in the warm early evening, sat on my bedroom steps, the team are busy stripping the bearings from all the bikes” rear wheels. It is quite a task. It needs 3 people per bike, a lot of fiddling, and grunt, and then handfuls of grease to get them rolling again.

It was all going well when we arrived at the border post back into South Africa. Or so we thought. We had had one of those majestic rides through the Namibian landscape. We had even stopped at a spa ( sorry for that Stelios, Imelda and Sleazy). A dash of hot spring water and an ice cold Magnum set us nicely on our way. I shall refrain from commenting yet again on the extraordinary colours of the rocks in Namibia as I can hear Stelios now saying “God not those f**king purple rocks again!”. They were nbso more rose pink this time around just in case you were interested.

So there we were at the border post. All bikes in action. Empty trailer. Temperature a blistering 43 degrees. Tarmac melting. Drinking water too hot to drink. And George has got a rattle. Actually quite a knocking. After some investigation we take the back wheel off in the sweltering heat to examine the bearings. They are completely dry. Either the Namibian sand, or the sea water frolicking, or a combination of the two, had completely stripped all the grease off the bearings.

And hence I can hear the friendly banter from these steps of the amateur mechanics slapping grease in all the bikes orifices. We only have a 1000k to go so hopefully now we should be in good shape for the final run-in.

Namibia has been the Mecca for off road motorbiking. It has everything and more to throw at you. There are no people. There is sand, rock, gravel, passes, valleys, sand dunes and beaches. The lodges are friendly. The wildlife abounds, surprisingly given the arid nature of the place. It is well organised and clean. It is also safe. I cannot recommend it too highly.

Off for a G and T now by the pool. Enjoy the drizzle back home! J