First day of cycling

14 May Nairobi to Machakos

Total cycling distance: 69.3 km

Total cycling time: 4:22 hrs

Total climbing distance: 1100 m

Just over a year ago, this crazy idea was conceived where Chris and I decided that we are going to cycle through Africa and now finally the day has come. We both woke up jumping up with excitement and so ready to cycle. We started the morning with a good cook-up brekkie, thanks Pips and packed the car. Once Erick arrived, him and Chris handed out K2K caps and t-shirts which they organized for us with our logo on which is awesome! Now our support team really look official :D

we decided after our recent experience in the Nairobi traffic we would drive just out the city to a safer cycling zone. Due to the hectic traffic we were advised by locals to not cycle the highway which then took us on to a back route to Machakos. The first 30 kms we cycled single file through busy towns where the cars never stopped, but the road was in good condition and fairly flat. All the stall owners and small markets filled with people, eagerly waved and greeted us with wonder.

At lunch time Mom and Erick, the most fantastic support team who drove every few kilometres and waited for us to ride past safely and without fail, cheered us on, found a tree where we parked off. Mom was so fancy, she even whipped out the camping chairs and we ate cheese and ham rolls in style along side the road. We met an interesting Kenyan man cycling past on an old-fashioned bicycle which he fixed up and tweaked a bit. Once Pips showed interest in the bike and he approached us – this really got him chatting about his bike! We fuelled up with energy and a cold coke before getting back on the saddle.

The first few kilometres after lunch was pleasant, the road was quiet and we passed by subsistence farming and rural homesteads. Some locals stared with amazement, others waved and shouted excitedly. We saw a small hill coming up but at the time, the road was so flat and from that distance, comments about us easily tackling it and it being just a teaser, were made. Little did we know what was coming for us. I do recall Chris saying, “I’ll see you at the top”. Well...over 1000 m climb over 10 km later…It was a tough hour and a half pushing ourselves up this monster of a hill. We carried on, even at 6 km/hr, the four of us stuck together and never allowed each other to give up or doubt ourselves. We also had our driving team waiting with ice cold drinks and continuous support and motivation. We were hot, sweaty, dehydrated, tired…and then we finally reached the top, what we thought would never come. The downhill, where the max speed reached 47 km/hr and no brakes were needing, was worth the climb.

Mom has decided that she wants to do a few kilometres each day to eventually do the last 25 km into Hoedspruit, so after the hill she decided it was time – well chosen Mom. She started off doing just over 3 km, which is amazing as she hasn’t been on a bicycle for 34 years. GO MOM!! It wasn’t long after this that we entered the thriving metropolis Machakos with big smiles on our faces, searching for our accommodation, the Machakos Suites Luxury Hotel, which Chris had specifically booked on the outskirts of the town that on our initial route we wouldn’t have to go through the city centre. As we now had come from the other side of town we cycled right through the city and this was an experience in itself. Everyone hung out the taxi windows screaming “Jambo” at us, meaning hello in Swahili, so excited to see these unfamiliar faces in their home. We came to a road crossing where we stopped for some motorbikes coming out a side road…then another group, and another!! It was insane, at least a couple hundred motorbikes came out the side alley and that loud roaring sound of engines revving really was exhilarating. Pippa asked the guy waiting along side us who said there was a town meeting, which explained the crazy number of bikes.

We got to the hotel, a completely different hotel to what we would normally be used to and were warmly greeted by Johnathan who had recently opened his hotel. We had a cold drink outside in the cool air before settling into our rooms. The hotel is great, very cosy, the kitchen, the size of a closet, the dining room, not much bigger either, has three tables neatly decorated with cheap condiments. Our rooms clean and comfortable. After a nice shower, scrubbing the sweat and dirt off our bodies, we sat outside under the stars eating our chicken, rice and chips from the limited hotel menu. After a hearty meal, exhausted and VERY sunburnt (we clearly didn’t put enough on), we went to bed for an early good nights rest after a long day.