MaxThePanda
Race Dog
I hiked down the Witels river last weekend with some friends, which involved a lot of swimming cold water canyons, sleeping out in sandy campsites, and marvelling at one of the most beautiful places you’ll ever see in a lifetime. Camping mattresses are not the most comfortable things in the world, and I’m always a bit of a light sleeper in the wilderness. Collapsing, dog tired, with a full belly, shortly after dark, I would often awake in the middle of the night for a couple hours, look at the stars and take stock of life.
As much as I despise the label, I’ve come to accept I’m a bit of a petrolhead. As a boy I had a set of cards of the world’s famous cards, and I knew every detail of every one of them. I grew up surrounded by old cars, and still own a ’67 Spider of my own. There’s just something about beautiful machines and a winding road. In a fantasy life, I’d probably be a F1 racing driver in the 70’s.
My father was a doctor, so as kids we were banned from motorcycles of any shape or form. Instead of turning me into a champion kart racer at age 8, he took me sailing, and got me into racing yachts. Then life intervened.
When my brother returned from living abroad for many years, I taught him how to kitesurf, a long-time passion of mine. So, when he bought a shiny new KTM 640, he returned the favour by dragging me off to the Cederberg on his old Tenere. I was first terrified, and then hooked. And so it began.
I’ve always loved motorsports, but all of a sudden I was following the bikes. Especially the Dakar. The glamour and the glory, the dust and remote mountains, plains and deserts, the crazy people… the sheer insanity of it all. Like many of you, I’ve spent much more time than is healthy following, but never for a moment thought I’d actually do something like that myself. But then along came the Amageza. I saw it begin, got more interested the next year, and obsessed about it the next time round. Real people I knew were doing it. It was in the realm of the possible. Wait a minute, what was I thinking?
Which brings me back to that river bed in the Witels. A very wise man once talked to me about the importance of goals, and working towards big things. For some unknown reason the number 4 and the colour red have always held special importance to me. We are strange creatures! This year I turn 44, and I’ve long felt it will be an auspicious year for me.
Well, the bases are loaded. In November I proposed to my gorgeous girlfriend, and I will marry in July. Looking up at the stars on that inky night I thought a lot about how my life will change, and the challenging but magnificent journey that awaits.
And the Amageza? I am a bit of an impulsive person. And I knew that 2014 might be the sweet spot. Long enough to be a real challenge, open enough to get in without real rally credentials, and just, just vaguely within the realm of money possibility. So I rushed in where fools fear to tread, and signed up without really thinking about the consequences. What better way to do it?
I lay in the dark and thought about my impulsive decision to sign up for the Amageza. I realised that I was fulfilling a dream of my youth. I was going motor-racing… too old, too lacking in talent, and too reluctant to injure myself to do it in any particularly competitive way, but racing nevertheless. And it’s the spirit that counts.
The more I’ve looked at it, the more I’ve realised that the Amageza this year might be quite a serious undertaking. Almost twice as long as last year, more remote and probably more difficult. Perhaps not that far off Dakar standard after all. I’ve unwittingly found myself a big goal for the year… a very personal goal, something for me, that a lot of people around me don’t really understand or connect with, but something that I know will mean a lot to me.
I read Ned Suesse’s ‘Lessons from Dakar’ https://neduro.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/guest-column.pdf and the last paragraph really stood out:
Perhaps that’s the important thing about any goal. Life is short, and as I dig in my heels and get dragged reluctantly towards 50, it just seems all the shorter. The things we achieve, the things we look forward to, the things we make sacrifices and strive so hard for, are often over in an instant, and we are left with only the memories, and sometimes the scars.
So, godammit, in this, my 44th year, I am going to enjoy the process! This is a really big year for me. And so, may it begin!
As much as I despise the label, I’ve come to accept I’m a bit of a petrolhead. As a boy I had a set of cards of the world’s famous cards, and I knew every detail of every one of them. I grew up surrounded by old cars, and still own a ’67 Spider of my own. There’s just something about beautiful machines and a winding road. In a fantasy life, I’d probably be a F1 racing driver in the 70’s.
My father was a doctor, so as kids we were banned from motorcycles of any shape or form. Instead of turning me into a champion kart racer at age 8, he took me sailing, and got me into racing yachts. Then life intervened.
When my brother returned from living abroad for many years, I taught him how to kitesurf, a long-time passion of mine. So, when he bought a shiny new KTM 640, he returned the favour by dragging me off to the Cederberg on his old Tenere. I was first terrified, and then hooked. And so it began.
I’ve always loved motorsports, but all of a sudden I was following the bikes. Especially the Dakar. The glamour and the glory, the dust and remote mountains, plains and deserts, the crazy people… the sheer insanity of it all. Like many of you, I’ve spent much more time than is healthy following, but never for a moment thought I’d actually do something like that myself. But then along came the Amageza. I saw it begin, got more interested the next year, and obsessed about it the next time round. Real people I knew were doing it. It was in the realm of the possible. Wait a minute, what was I thinking?
Which brings me back to that river bed in the Witels. A very wise man once talked to me about the importance of goals, and working towards big things. For some unknown reason the number 4 and the colour red have always held special importance to me. We are strange creatures! This year I turn 44, and I’ve long felt it will be an auspicious year for me.
Well, the bases are loaded. In November I proposed to my gorgeous girlfriend, and I will marry in July. Looking up at the stars on that inky night I thought a lot about how my life will change, and the challenging but magnificent journey that awaits.
And the Amageza? I am a bit of an impulsive person. And I knew that 2014 might be the sweet spot. Long enough to be a real challenge, open enough to get in without real rally credentials, and just, just vaguely within the realm of money possibility. So I rushed in where fools fear to tread, and signed up without really thinking about the consequences. What better way to do it?
I lay in the dark and thought about my impulsive decision to sign up for the Amageza. I realised that I was fulfilling a dream of my youth. I was going motor-racing… too old, too lacking in talent, and too reluctant to injure myself to do it in any particularly competitive way, but racing nevertheless. And it’s the spirit that counts.
The more I’ve looked at it, the more I’ve realised that the Amageza this year might be quite a serious undertaking. Almost twice as long as last year, more remote and probably more difficult. Perhaps not that far off Dakar standard after all. I’ve unwittingly found myself a big goal for the year… a very personal goal, something for me, that a lot of people around me don’t really understand or connect with, but something that I know will mean a lot to me.
I read Ned Suesse’s ‘Lessons from Dakar’ https://neduro.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/07/guest-column.pdf and the last paragraph really stood out:
Perhaps that’s the important thing about any goal. Life is short, and as I dig in my heels and get dragged reluctantly towards 50, it just seems all the shorter. The things we achieve, the things we look forward to, the things we make sacrifices and strive so hard for, are often over in an instant, and we are left with only the memories, and sometimes the scars.
So, godammit, in this, my 44th year, I am going to enjoy the process! This is a really big year for me. And so, may it begin!
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