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CHEERS
LUKE, PK & MARK

A sponsor of note...

Ok. So we are only about 5 weeks away from our departure date! We have set ourselves some deadlines, and we've been meeting them... well kinda. The DRC visa application has been sent off, seriously holding thumbs on this one! I've paid the cash into their bank account and our passports are floating around this country of ours somewhere, dodgy feeling!
We have been to KTM and given them a spare parts list, lets see what the outcome is there, we should be getting an answer today!
PK and I have had some serious crash bars fitted to the bike, see the pic below. Still got to be powder coated. Luke also managed to get us a deal on some carbon fiber protection for the fuel tank, brake discs and engine covers...


So the biggest news to date is our Garmin Zumo sponsor. Luke you beauty. PK and I are kinda wondering what Luke all promised this guy, he is getting us a bit worried... Another thing is the screens, they should be here any minute so we can fit that too.
I'm off to the Doc this afternoon to get our medical kit sorted out. We got the malaria kit sorted last Friday, each of us has a self test kit and daily malaria tabs, Doximal (spelling...) and Coartem
as a treatment. The Doc at the Travel clinic gave a moerse big soap to take along, it's a freebie! Thanks Doc!

Well, now everything has got to happen fast ... keep it on 2 wheels!

Off the traveller's back

I just managed to get some good info from Bjorn and some others staying at Ashanti Backpacker's - thanks for the tip Anne!!

Bjorn just rode the west coast of his Yamaha XJ900 - what a beast! His pannier frame broke too many times, the welding jobs look dodgy but got him here!

Here's some info he passed on:

• No Carnet required - just got Laissaire Passe at the border (sorry about the spelling)
• Got most visa's in the country before...
• Did not use the FISH system, which he does recommend though...?? It's having preprinted info such Passport number, Name, Job etc... listed on a paper ready to hand to the MD (main dog) at the border crossing...
• Places to stay:
• Cardboardbox in Windhoek
• Luanda - stay at Club Nautico (Yacht Club) on the Island of Luanda for FREE...
• Togo - Before Lome on the left, a place called Chez Alice - (00228) 2279172 - she is Swiss (lalala) chezalicetogo@yahoo.de
• Ghana - Just after Accra, Big Milly's (apprently there is a sign!!)
• Dakar - he was racking his brain for the name of the place and then said, just ride through Dakar, it's like a big car park, they have tenting facilities there... we'll look for it!
• Bamako - Auberge Djamilla - Badalabougou Sema 1, Rue Gamal Nasser (Recommended by the Swiss in the Pinzgauer)
  
• Routes:
• Cameroon/Nigeria crossing, used Ekang border crossing - there is a awesome route down to Calabar.
  
• The Swiss took the Brazzaville - Oyo route which tarmac then to Leconi which is the crossing into Gabon, this is a good route if there is rain...
• Bjorn took the route Brazzaville - Ludima - Doulelise and crossed at Nyanga. Hectic dust on the road and therefore not good if there is rain coming down...

That's just a bit of info - the rest we'll know when we're done!!

The Day PK got a bike...

PK has got a bike. This one is capable of doing the trip. A beautiful orange KTM 640 Adventure. Now he can join the crowd! He says he paid for it, although he did ride it out of Hout Bay on Tuesday evening in really dodgy weather, rain and gale force winds! I like the dedication. Someone saw him stopping at the robot (traffic light), holding on to the pole as his feet have difficulties reaching the ground. When asked for comment, PK denies this...

Luke has been a man possessed in recent weeks, he's been emailing and setting up an official website at www.africanwestcoast.co.za - we are still tweaking it at the moment but it's looking good already. We got some stickers printed for panniers, they look so nice and shiny at the moment, 1 week into the trip I bet they'll look well worn!

Here is the pic.



2.5 months to go. Yippyka-yay-m&^%$F&^%#$!!!

P.S. Go the bokke!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Sponsors

Today our first sponsor committed to our trip. Aerotrim will supply us with three screen extensions to fit our KTM 640's. Jacques (The MD- main dog) will fit the bikes with the product in September. Aerotrim's website= www.aerotrim.co.za

Other news - Bike SA has agreed to publish a short write-up in their September edition and follow our progress in subsequent issues while we are on the road.
BikeSA's website = www.bikesa.biz

PK has also been on the blower and spoke with RedBull and Camel smokes. Both are keen to supply us with their products; possibly some good bribing material for the border crossings.

So this hopefully is the start of many more sponsors coming aboard.

The low-down on the Carnet de Passage

We got some more information on the Carnet de Passage today. Here is the deal, AA South Africa say that there is a Rand 6000.00 deposit that must be paid upfront. The Carnet with 25 free pages costs Rand 2500.00 and is valid for 1 year - we need this one as we are travelling through about 19 countries. Processing time for the Carnet should be about 1 week... This Carnet is valid for Africa only, Rand 6000.00 is refundable once the bike is returned to ZA with the full Carnet.
The www.aasa.co.za website has got good information on it but it helps to speak to them. The forms that need to be completed are all available on the website.

As for the international driver's license, 2 passport pictures and Rand 110.00.

Crank that throttle...

Cape Point

Yesterday I joined 2 more Africa veterans on the last leg of their journey. Gert & Gert, yup, both from southern Germany did the last ride of their journey to Cape Point. They have already been here for sometime and decided to finish it off and get the last pics to post on their website. www.vonbnacha.de - they came down the east coast on their Yamaha XT 600's... in 7 months and 1 day.
It was another awesome day out on the bikes, would have loved to find some dirt to ride but no such luck. The ostriches at Cape Point took a fancy to running like lunatics alongside the bikes, the baboon's on the other hand just sat there eating and scratching...



And just a note, that we'll be off in 3 months and 12 days... and we don't have one visa!!