Swearworthy Cold

Magda - The 24hrs before D-day held no promises-it was icy cold and sleeting.

Golden Gate Highlands National Park

Jerome - Magda and I wanted an early start as we were only halfway to Underburg but the two Posers as they were now called, Paulo and Martin wanted to have a lazy start with a good breakfast before they head back to Johannesburg. This is where the Bar One story was born as I said to them that just a Bar One chocolate bar would suffice as breakfast.

Jerome - The cold was setting in fast and through the Golden Gate Highlands National Park we came across a horrific accident due to black ice that we decided to contact the Support Team and meet them rather at Harrismith. Read my account here on Black Ice and Death

Thinus and Martin loading Magda and my Vespas onto the support trailers in Harrismith as sleet begins to fall.

Marlene and Magda supervise the loading of our Vespas

Magda - That night we trudged from eatery to eatery in the rain in Underberg looking for a place willing to feed 18 souls. Once inside the “The Grind Cafe” with its pub “The Woolly Bugger”, things started looking up and with good food, attentive staff and a few drinks to warm the vital organs and keep the cold at bay we all enjoyed a lovely evening.

Charlie

Colette showing us how to make 12 cups of coffee out of 1 liter kettle water

Dudley

Gys

Magda

Marlene

Matthew

Petro and Angie

Thinus

Tiffany

Magda - Climbing into bed that night at the backpackers lodge the admonishing warnings of family and friends ---don’t do it---crazy---dangerous---ran in ever faster circles inside my head, biting each others’ tails like serpents rolling down a hill. I pulled my buff up against them and the smoke filled room, popped a sleeping tablet and bunked down uncertain as to what the day would bring.

Vespas in the Mud

Jerome - Within 2 months our dreams of conquering Sani Pass had become a solid reality with the target date set in just over 3 months’ time, training began in earnest.

Left to Right: Marlene PX150, Jerome ET4 150, Magda GTS250ie, and Charlie GTS250ie

Charlie and Jerome the Vespa Ninjas

 Magda - Preparation for Sani took place at Breedsneck Pass near Hartebeespoortdam. Marlene felt that the terrain would make good practice ground for the rocky inclines of Sani and she was right. Just getting to Breedsneck Pass itself was challenging in itself as the back route on a farm road to there was quite muddy.

Jerome - Muddy wasn’t the right word for it as it has been raining for weeks leading up to today and there was more mud than Glastonbury. Sophia in the mud with me.

Mud Glorious mud.

Jerome - Is this mud ever going to end? But thankfully it did end as the mud was replaced with rocks. The end of the rocks couldn't have come any sooner as the road started climbing up over the Magaliesberg Mountains at the Breedsneck Pass. 

Jerome on the Rocks

Dudley and our Support Vehicle

Marlene, Charlie, Magda, and Jerome at the top of Breedsneck Pass

Harties with the Mates

A group of mates decided to join the annual scooter rally held at Hartebeespoort Dam. It was a fun outing. Enjoy the photos.

From left to right is good looking me (Jerome) representing the Posers SC on the black Vespa ET4, Bruce from Aces SC on the copper plated Vespa P200E, Shawn from Vesparados SC on black Vespa Sprint, John on a silver LML Star Deluxe and James from Aces SC on a cream Lambretta TV175.

Our first sight of the dam

Well there has to be at least one photo of the Super Villain, me.

Meeting up with the other Vespa riders from Roodepoort

Meeting up with too other Posers, Duds and Charlie

Now what do we have under Charlie's seat?

 

The Vespacar