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Rietz Street was. He smiled and told me to turn around and look up. I read the street sign
and I myself smiled. I then cycled to the house of Barry Rheener. He was not in but his
wife and three of his five children were. They welcomed me inside their home and I took
a quick shower and cleaned up for dinner. I spent the evening chatting with the family and
managed to call home. My older sister answered and put my baby nephew, Michael, on the
line. My sister told me that he just looked at the phone with a quizzical expression when I
spoke, probably thinking, “What the …?”
After breakfast in the morning, I went with one of the sons to visit their vineyards.
On their property there were four dam reservoirs, a mountain, a gas station and a car deal-
ership. I took a few photos and returned to the house. My intention was to leave the next
day, but the heavy rain and gale force wind deterred me from venturing out. I was getting
extremely restless soIwenttolie downat6p.m.andstayed inmyroomuntil themorning.
The next day, I told the family that I was heading out. They wanted me to stay
longer but I felt too restless and so unproductive- no public speaking, no interviews… just
eating. I loaded the bike and said good-bye to everyone. They were opposed to the idea
from the beginning for the winds were so strong, but 'stubborn' was my middle name. The
mom wanted to drive me but I said no thanks. She even wanted to drive in front of me to
act as a shield, but again, I said no thanks.
In hindsight, I think I should have at least taken her up on the shield idea. The next
50 kilometres were to be the toughest in my life. It took me six hours and during most of
that time I stood on the pedals to cycle while on my granny gear! On a few occasions I
actually stood frozen in space unable to move forward due to the extreme wind. My con-
centration was only on keeping my balance. I never noticed the scenery for I was looking
straight down at my front wheel. Since the road was narrow and busy with traffic, I spent
most of my journey on the rocky shoulder almost wetting myself.
I took frequent breaks but only glanced at my immediate surroundings. I was
drained and disheartened when I realized that I still had seven kilometres to go. Under any
other circumstances, that was a proverbial stroll in the park. Completing these kilometres
became my life's goal. I began to concentrate on nearby markers as small mental goals to
reach. In essence, I wanted to carve the seven kilometres into smaller, bite-sized chunks.
At times, these markers were pebbles that were less than a meter apart!
By 5:00 p.m. I finally arrived in Worcester at the Joffe Ford car dealership and
waited for Wiekus Viljoen to fetch me. He came and quickly drew me a map on how to
get to his home. I met his wife Getha and their baby and was given a room. We had a brai
(barbecue) when he came from work and then watched some TV. I was totally and utterly
spent.
Thenextday,Wiekushadtoleaveearlyfortheairport,soIgotupandatebreakfast
withhim.Iwenttohisfriend,HenryHall'shomethatdayandstayedthere.Hiswifewasin
the hospital to deliver their first child so his house was empty. I spent the day at the Farm-
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