tok-tokkie
Race Dog
Long story short says I fell off my bike being an inexperienced noob not planning my route far enough ahead though there was a surprise when I came over a small rise. I ended up running off the track to the right, front wheel into soft dry sea sand bringing the bike to a sudden standstill & me biting the dust on my deft shoulder with my ankle under the footrest or something. Not a good place to be.
This was 15 km past the cattle grid entrance to TrekOsBaai past Vredenburg. Now I am in trouble, it is about 3:45 pm, I am alone, I have no cell phone (stolen on Monday & I know who the perp is), I have no water or food & I have broken my collar bone. I know I have broken it because my right collar bone is in 2 pieces from a crash about 18 months ago on my VFR (thanks Groote Schuur ? but the failure to knit may not be entirely their fault as about 5% don?t join up) so I know just how it feels. Ankle is seriously bruised but functional. I have had this Dakar for less than 3 weeks but let it capsize at the wind generators at Klipheuwel when switching off the ABS ? I only just managed to put it back on it?s feet that time so there is no hope now with a broken collar bone.
?You have got yourself into this so bloody well get yourself out of it? says I when my head had cleared a bit. I take the topbox off and have a go at lifting it ? had just viewed the vid on ChainGang earlier in the day. No way I am going to do it. Their second suggestion is to lie down near the bike & wait for a passing someone to come to your aid. Fat chance! Only vehicle I had seen was at the first bay on the right after you enter, both of the shade-cloth boma areas were completely deserted. I walked along the track a bit to see if anyone was fishing around the bend but say two things: 1. there would be no one ahead because the snail slymstreepe crossed over the tire tracks so no vehicles past here since last night; 2. Man Friday has walked past ? great kaalvoet tracks going in the direction of Saldanah ? but he was not to be seen. I saw the settlement way down the coast at the next headland ? even further than the walk back out the way I came in - but my ankle is very unhappy. (I had on short Daytona boots but they are not really the right thing for dual sport riding I know). Will have to put tok-tokkie (name for my bike is same as my screen name here) back on it?s feet. I need a long balk to lever it up but there is nothing lying around on the beach besides some see-bamboes (kelp) and there are no trees around. That idea isn?t going to fly.
I see tok-tokkie is lying on a slope which gets steeper as it drops down to the beach so if I am lucky I can drag it down the slope & it will get closer & closer to being back on her feet. So I start dragging her down one end at a time. At last she is down there & much closer to vertical. Dig out the sand around the gear lever and try to engage neutral but it changes from 3 to 2 but no further until I start her and fiddle with the gear lever with the clutch in & the bike on it?s side. I get astride the bike but have 2 problems: 1. if I lift it too far or overbalance to the right then I have zero chance of getting out of here by myself as there is still further to fall on the right so I can?t get my right leg down to steady the bike that side & 2. I can?t lift the bike off its side because my left shoulder won?t allow me to pull on the bars to lift it the last bit. ?Grow up & just do it?. That worked and I chugged out of there back onto the track, put the topbox back on & my gear ? lifting the helmet wasn?t fun with my broken collar bone ends grinding against each other. Chug ? chug carefully all the way back to the tar road (that was when I measured the distance from the fall to the gate). Into Vredenburg & get an Appletiser to drink & the kind man at Midas phones my wife & I tell her I have been having an adventure & will be late back but not to worry. ?What have you broken?? (She knows I have done something). ?Nothing, I am fine see you soon.? ?What damage to the bike?? There is nothing broken on the bike ? the gear lever may be bent as I had hell changing up through the box but that may just be my ankle. It was then just after 5 pm. I was back in Green Point at 6:30 roughly.
My vrou does not know yet that my collar bone is broken. I have an appointment at the Sports Science Centre at 3:00 pm today as I am not going to let this collar bone stay in 2 pieces like the other one.
That was an adventure but then this is adventure riding.
How else do you learn? I know about the Zeevenwacht & Villiersdorp courses & will be doing them when I get back on tok-tokkie. Any other suggestions or advice?
This was 15 km past the cattle grid entrance to TrekOsBaai past Vredenburg. Now I am in trouble, it is about 3:45 pm, I am alone, I have no cell phone (stolen on Monday & I know who the perp is), I have no water or food & I have broken my collar bone. I know I have broken it because my right collar bone is in 2 pieces from a crash about 18 months ago on my VFR (thanks Groote Schuur ? but the failure to knit may not be entirely their fault as about 5% don?t join up) so I know just how it feels. Ankle is seriously bruised but functional. I have had this Dakar for less than 3 weeks but let it capsize at the wind generators at Klipheuwel when switching off the ABS ? I only just managed to put it back on it?s feet that time so there is no hope now with a broken collar bone.
?You have got yourself into this so bloody well get yourself out of it? says I when my head had cleared a bit. I take the topbox off and have a go at lifting it ? had just viewed the vid on ChainGang earlier in the day. No way I am going to do it. Their second suggestion is to lie down near the bike & wait for a passing someone to come to your aid. Fat chance! Only vehicle I had seen was at the first bay on the right after you enter, both of the shade-cloth boma areas were completely deserted. I walked along the track a bit to see if anyone was fishing around the bend but say two things: 1. there would be no one ahead because the snail slymstreepe crossed over the tire tracks so no vehicles past here since last night; 2. Man Friday has walked past ? great kaalvoet tracks going in the direction of Saldanah ? but he was not to be seen. I saw the settlement way down the coast at the next headland ? even further than the walk back out the way I came in - but my ankle is very unhappy. (I had on short Daytona boots but they are not really the right thing for dual sport riding I know). Will have to put tok-tokkie (name for my bike is same as my screen name here) back on it?s feet. I need a long balk to lever it up but there is nothing lying around on the beach besides some see-bamboes (kelp) and there are no trees around. That idea isn?t going to fly.
I see tok-tokkie is lying on a slope which gets steeper as it drops down to the beach so if I am lucky I can drag it down the slope & it will get closer & closer to being back on her feet. So I start dragging her down one end at a time. At last she is down there & much closer to vertical. Dig out the sand around the gear lever and try to engage neutral but it changes from 3 to 2 but no further until I start her and fiddle with the gear lever with the clutch in & the bike on it?s side. I get astride the bike but have 2 problems: 1. if I lift it too far or overbalance to the right then I have zero chance of getting out of here by myself as there is still further to fall on the right so I can?t get my right leg down to steady the bike that side & 2. I can?t lift the bike off its side because my left shoulder won?t allow me to pull on the bars to lift it the last bit. ?Grow up & just do it?. That worked and I chugged out of there back onto the track, put the topbox back on & my gear ? lifting the helmet wasn?t fun with my broken collar bone ends grinding against each other. Chug ? chug carefully all the way back to the tar road (that was when I measured the distance from the fall to the gate). Into Vredenburg & get an Appletiser to drink & the kind man at Midas phones my wife & I tell her I have been having an adventure & will be late back but not to worry. ?What have you broken?? (She knows I have done something). ?Nothing, I am fine see you soon.? ?What damage to the bike?? There is nothing broken on the bike ? the gear lever may be bent as I had hell changing up through the box but that may just be my ankle. It was then just after 5 pm. I was back in Green Point at 6:30 roughly.
My vrou does not know yet that my collar bone is broken. I have an appointment at the Sports Science Centre at 3:00 pm today as I am not going to let this collar bone stay in 2 pieces like the other one.
That was an adventure but then this is adventure riding.
How else do you learn? I know about the Zeevenwacht & Villiersdorp courses & will be doing them when I get back on tok-tokkie. Any other suggestions or advice?
