Buff
Grey Hound
So after having our KDX’s for 4 weeks and having ridden them a sum total of twice at Dust ‘n Dust, T-Dawg and I decided we need to do the Matroosberg “Funduro” this past weekend. I mean common, it’s labelled as a “Funduro”, there are 3 routes to choose from, just how difficult can it be????
Urhhhmmm, apparently the answer to that question is “Very”!!!!
But I’m getting ahead of myself. We had prepped for this event the whole week, with emails flying back and forth, trailers being licensed, bikes being kitted, more kit being bought and even one or two gym sessions (shock & horror).
Saturday morning bright and early the bikes were loaded and hooked up to the Hilux and we headed for the hills, bright eyed and terrified. We had no idea what lay ahead but we were keen on the adventure. The okes from Cape-Enduro forum who had reccied the route made the green (easy) route sound like a walk in the park so we weren’t overly concerned. The red (named suicide) & black route were apparently monsters but we had no intentions of going anywhere near them anyway.
We arrived in Matroosberg to the sights and sounds of dust & 2 stroke and felt right at home amongst a crowd of bikers. Riders briefing followed shortly thereafter and alarm bells started ringing when the organiser mentioned that the 25km green route could be the possible route for a full on enduro later this year. Say what, aren’t enduro’s super technical and stuff??? “Did he say the GREEN route???”
After the kitting up and filling the bikes I was already sweating and I hadn’t even fired up the bike yet. It was a cooker of a day and getting worse by the minute.
We fired up the Duxies and headed to the hills. The first part was pretty easy, some nice sandy single track with a few rocks thrown in for good measure, but the path was heading ominously towards the mountain. I stopped to wait for T-Dawg and when he caught up he mentioned that he was feeling knacked and was out of breath… after 5km!!! That’s odd I thought, I know we’re unfit but not that bad so I figured he was just concentrating too hard. We took off again and things started getting very interesting as we hit the foot of the mountain. The sand had stopped and rocks were the order of the day as we navigated around these rocky outcrops. It was way more technical that I expected and the rocks way bigger than I expected but coming from a mountain biking background I was quite enjoying this.
At the base of the Matroosberg 4x4 route I stopped again to wait for T-dawg but this time the wait was much longer. I started stressing thinking he had wiped out so I stopped 1 or 2 of the bikers coming past and asked if they had seem him. “Yep, he’s resting a few kays back”. “Strange”, I thought, “wonder what’s up”. He eventually arrived and mentioned he was totally stuffed and his throat was as dry as a desert.
He’s talking and I’m thinking “Hmmm, this could be a longgggg day.”
So I mention that I’m pretty sure the worse is behind us as we’re detouring at the base of the 4x4 route and the chances are good that we’ll be cruising along single track at the base of the mountain.
I can’t even being to tell you how far off that prediction was!!! As soon as we took off from there the route dropped down a precarious little hiking path through a river crossing that had an almighty rock slap bang in the middle of it, just far enough from the embankment to swallow your front wheel completely if you don’t pop the wheel onto it. The track was so narrow that “over” was the only option. I somehow managed to land the front wheel on the rock but then it just skipped right over and came down on the engine & frame with an almighty thump. Thank goodness for frame and pipe protectors otherwise I recon my pipe would have been in its chops.
Then it was up and over more rocks, the route getting more and more technical all the time. By this stage I had pretty much exceeded my skills basket and I was thinking that if it got any worse then I’d have to make a plan and turn around. But where to? The way back was of the sort that I didn’t want to do it a second time, especially after dragging my back tire down a steep decent a few minutes early.
So now I’m thinking “If I’m battling here, T-dawg must be k@kking off big time so I’d better wait for him and see if he’s okay. 30min later my chommie still hasn’t arrived so I decide to push on. But wait, before you think I’m heartless sod, I had asked almost every rider that pasted me if they had seen him and each one said he was in a different place each time but doing the same thing, resting So he was making progress… slowly.
So now the worst was behind us and I could finally hook third gear… WRONG, the sh!t was just about to start. Did I mention it was hot, as in “soaked to the bone in sweat” hot? I take this little corner and the track literally stops at the base of a rock face. “What the hell, have I taken a missed turn somewhere?”. I taker a closer look and there’s tire tracks going up the rock face. “Not a sh!t, there’s no farking way I can take a KDX up there” I’m thinking, “not today, not tomorrow, not ever”. I’m taking 10 story building high rock face here…. Okay, okay, maybe 2 stories but it freaking felt like 10 !!!
Have I mentioned how many times I’d fallen off by now??? Plenty !!!
“You can do this Buc, just pop the clutch and hang cable”, “If they can do it you can do it”, “toughen the fukc up you biaatch”… you name it, I spoke it all, all to myself.
Bwaaap, I hit the first rock, the bike goes vertical and I pull a superman move but I’m up onto the first shelf. I stick my foot out for support and there’s nothing under me. Bang crash boom, I moer down the rock face. Pick up the Dux, curse, kick the bike. Try again !!! This time I make it and I’m still on the bike, so I hop off the left side and kinda lift & drag the back wheel so that it’s closer to the contour line before I try the next bit. Bwaaapp Bwerrrrpp, the bike stalls and slides backwards and my legs are at full stretch digging in with the toe caps to try and stop me falling further down the rock face. I kick start the bike while perched precariously. Bwaaap Bwaaap Bwaaap, drop the clutch the Duxie flies, with me holding on for dear life, straight up the next face. By this stage my KDX has impressed me so much that if I wasn’t so stuffed I’d have been in awe.
Have I mentioned it was hot? I can hardly see out of my eyes because of the sweat burning them and my throat is on fire. I take a few minutes to compose myself, drink and get my heart rate down. I’m half way up this face and I’m beginning to think I might make it. Bwaaaaaaaaaaap… and I hit the next face but the bike is standing still, just spinning against the rocks. I rock it back and forth and try again but the same thing happens. So I climb off and try to walk it out but I’m slipping and the bike lands on top of me. Fark, I’m broken, it’s hot and this 100kg Duxie has suddenly become heavier than my Tenere.
Eventually I manage to man handle the bike on the next level and I climb onto the cable. The Dux hits its powerband in 1st gear and it’s just “k@k en klippe” flying all over the place but I hold on for dear life and do everything possible to keep the front wheel well placed. And suddenly I’m over the top, looking down a near vertical drop. “Ag my moer, you’ve gotta be kidding me”….
To be continued
Urhhhmmm, apparently the answer to that question is “Very”!!!!
But I’m getting ahead of myself. We had prepped for this event the whole week, with emails flying back and forth, trailers being licensed, bikes being kitted, more kit being bought and even one or two gym sessions (shock & horror).
Saturday morning bright and early the bikes were loaded and hooked up to the Hilux and we headed for the hills, bright eyed and terrified. We had no idea what lay ahead but we were keen on the adventure. The okes from Cape-Enduro forum who had reccied the route made the green (easy) route sound like a walk in the park so we weren’t overly concerned. The red (named suicide) & black route were apparently monsters but we had no intentions of going anywhere near them anyway.
We arrived in Matroosberg to the sights and sounds of dust & 2 stroke and felt right at home amongst a crowd of bikers. Riders briefing followed shortly thereafter and alarm bells started ringing when the organiser mentioned that the 25km green route could be the possible route for a full on enduro later this year. Say what, aren’t enduro’s super technical and stuff??? “Did he say the GREEN route???”
After the kitting up and filling the bikes I was already sweating and I hadn’t even fired up the bike yet. It was a cooker of a day and getting worse by the minute.
We fired up the Duxies and headed to the hills. The first part was pretty easy, some nice sandy single track with a few rocks thrown in for good measure, but the path was heading ominously towards the mountain. I stopped to wait for T-Dawg and when he caught up he mentioned that he was feeling knacked and was out of breath… after 5km!!! That’s odd I thought, I know we’re unfit but not that bad so I figured he was just concentrating too hard. We took off again and things started getting very interesting as we hit the foot of the mountain. The sand had stopped and rocks were the order of the day as we navigated around these rocky outcrops. It was way more technical that I expected and the rocks way bigger than I expected but coming from a mountain biking background I was quite enjoying this.
At the base of the Matroosberg 4x4 route I stopped again to wait for T-dawg but this time the wait was much longer. I started stressing thinking he had wiped out so I stopped 1 or 2 of the bikers coming past and asked if they had seem him. “Yep, he’s resting a few kays back”. “Strange”, I thought, “wonder what’s up”. He eventually arrived and mentioned he was totally stuffed and his throat was as dry as a desert.
He’s talking and I’m thinking “Hmmm, this could be a longgggg day.”
So I mention that I’m pretty sure the worse is behind us as we’re detouring at the base of the 4x4 route and the chances are good that we’ll be cruising along single track at the base of the mountain.
I can’t even being to tell you how far off that prediction was!!! As soon as we took off from there the route dropped down a precarious little hiking path through a river crossing that had an almighty rock slap bang in the middle of it, just far enough from the embankment to swallow your front wheel completely if you don’t pop the wheel onto it. The track was so narrow that “over” was the only option. I somehow managed to land the front wheel on the rock but then it just skipped right over and came down on the engine & frame with an almighty thump. Thank goodness for frame and pipe protectors otherwise I recon my pipe would have been in its chops.
Then it was up and over more rocks, the route getting more and more technical all the time. By this stage I had pretty much exceeded my skills basket and I was thinking that if it got any worse then I’d have to make a plan and turn around. But where to? The way back was of the sort that I didn’t want to do it a second time, especially after dragging my back tire down a steep decent a few minutes early.
So now I’m thinking “If I’m battling here, T-dawg must be k@kking off big time so I’d better wait for him and see if he’s okay. 30min later my chommie still hasn’t arrived so I decide to push on. But wait, before you think I’m heartless sod, I had asked almost every rider that pasted me if they had seen him and each one said he was in a different place each time but doing the same thing, resting So he was making progress… slowly.
So now the worst was behind us and I could finally hook third gear… WRONG, the sh!t was just about to start. Did I mention it was hot, as in “soaked to the bone in sweat” hot? I take this little corner and the track literally stops at the base of a rock face. “What the hell, have I taken a missed turn somewhere?”. I taker a closer look and there’s tire tracks going up the rock face. “Not a sh!t, there’s no farking way I can take a KDX up there” I’m thinking, “not today, not tomorrow, not ever”. I’m taking 10 story building high rock face here…. Okay, okay, maybe 2 stories but it freaking felt like 10 !!!
Have I mentioned how many times I’d fallen off by now??? Plenty !!!
“You can do this Buc, just pop the clutch and hang cable”, “If they can do it you can do it”, “toughen the fukc up you biaatch”… you name it, I spoke it all, all to myself.
Bwaaap, I hit the first rock, the bike goes vertical and I pull a superman move but I’m up onto the first shelf. I stick my foot out for support and there’s nothing under me. Bang crash boom, I moer down the rock face. Pick up the Dux, curse, kick the bike. Try again !!! This time I make it and I’m still on the bike, so I hop off the left side and kinda lift & drag the back wheel so that it’s closer to the contour line before I try the next bit. Bwaaapp Bwerrrrpp, the bike stalls and slides backwards and my legs are at full stretch digging in with the toe caps to try and stop me falling further down the rock face. I kick start the bike while perched precariously. Bwaaap Bwaaap Bwaaap, drop the clutch the Duxie flies, with me holding on for dear life, straight up the next face. By this stage my KDX has impressed me so much that if I wasn’t so stuffed I’d have been in awe.
Have I mentioned it was hot? I can hardly see out of my eyes because of the sweat burning them and my throat is on fire. I take a few minutes to compose myself, drink and get my heart rate down. I’m half way up this face and I’m beginning to think I might make it. Bwaaaaaaaaaaap… and I hit the next face but the bike is standing still, just spinning against the rocks. I rock it back and forth and try again but the same thing happens. So I climb off and try to walk it out but I’m slipping and the bike lands on top of me. Fark, I’m broken, it’s hot and this 100kg Duxie has suddenly become heavier than my Tenere.
Eventually I manage to man handle the bike on the next level and I climb onto the cable. The Dux hits its powerband in 1st gear and it’s just “k@k en klippe” flying all over the place but I hold on for dear life and do everything possible to keep the front wheel well placed. And suddenly I’m over the top, looking down a near vertical drop. “Ag my moer, you’ve gotta be kidding me”….
To be continued
