Bonova's RR - AMAGEZA 2014

Hello Ladies and Gents!
So we are all hopefully home safe from the Amageza 2014 and most likely suffering a bit from the post Rally blues......but BADLY! I'm back at work today trying to cope with a still very sore hand, and wishing that actually I was out there keeping it pinned rather than here behind the computer trying to solve life's more mundane problems. No stress about bikes, tires, times, positions, rev limiters, bouncing valves, servicing, sleeping(dealing with snoring), eating, sore muscles, thorns in knuckles, dreams about launching off precipices, hard seats, fuel, map-book marking, waypoint checking and friends out there at night struggling to make it into camp.
Yip.......sometimes I wonder why we don't all just ride bikes all the time!
So to stop it depressing be tooooo much, I will start this thread to keep the dream alive and to try to savour some of the memories that are etched in the stone of my mind so accurately.
I'm sorting trough pics and vids at the moment..... but lets jump in there asap and get to the reality of the Amageza...... what went before and lead up to that point was pretty much the same for everyone - ALOT of stress and organizing..... a lot of travel..... and more stress about bikes and gear and logistics...... when I say stress though - I mean it in the nicest way! It's that awesome stress that you thrive off..... it drives you and makes you want to perform. Good stress and bad stress.... i'll talk about that later...

Here is a post I made before the Rally just to give my mindset:

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I had a serious sit down with myself today.... It came after a conversation I had with a fellow competitor. He's FAST.... Really fast....and he navigates like a home sick mole.....
Anyway...They did some training this past weekend...sand up near Kosi bay....I was working so I couldn't join Sad they Got some riding in with the man himself Brett Cummings. Over a thousand km of sand....yum
Anyway... When Brett put the Hammer down, it was over in a matter of a few min. Not even any dust to follow...no break marks.... Just wheel spin and broadslides to show he had been there. And I'll say it again...my mate can ride...properly.
It got me thinking about Amageza.... There are some big names this year....some guys with skill, speed experience and serious talent.  Next level for us mere mortals. You know the types...you see them for split seconds on the enduros and the social rides.... They drop you like a hot potato.....pass you like you're going backwards when you thought you were styling on the edge of the limits of traction.

What I took from this was that it's all about the race with yourself..... It's beating your mind, pushing your own limits. Letting go of what you cannot safely attain in the name of finishing rather to race another day.
I remember bluebull2007 saying something and it stuck in my mind..... I've used it on the races like sea to ski and mountain madness when I'm pushing just a little too hard. I'll quote him " FOCUS , FLOW, FINISH".  Nowhere in there does it say chase the man on the KTM 450 Rallye..... For he my friend is racing his own race...... And the race is long. Just hope to see him (or her) at the finish line. And he who gets there 1st best keep the beers cold
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