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02 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: Gwembe Safari’s, Choma
GPS: S16 48.411 E026 57.103
Total
Distance: 19040km
Author: Chrissy Prydun
Weather: A bit cooler today but still sunny
and it seems to be drier everywhere so I think we are heading
out of Zambia’s rainy season
Daily travel
(route, road): As you know today was the big day when we would
get a chance to road test (pun intended…sorry for the cheesy
joke) Colin’s new holey foam cushion. The days drive had
sparked a lot of debate the night before particularly
regarding how far we ought to drive on our first day. The team
was a bit divided. Two arguments had emerged. Bear with me
because they are a bit complex and descriptive and this will
probably become a bit wordy but may give a bit more of an idea
of the complexity surrounding some of the issues involved here
for anyone who is interested.
One theory was
to do a long day’s drive to Livingstone (470km). The argument
for this is that in theory, when Col will be driving, the
small hole that has been cut out in the foam cushion will
ensure that there is no pressure on the two pressure sores
while he drives. Col will only wear a Kikoy to cover his lap
(so no shorts which could rub or irritate his sores) and we
have minimised transfers (so that now we only need to move Col
once directly from mattress to drivers chair), the only real
risk to the pressure sores comes from this one transfer. i.e.
when we move Col there is still a risk that when we attempt to
sit him over the small hole, that due to a slight change of
posture we may at first place him on the hole incorrectly and
bump or dislodge the scabs that have formed over the pressure
sores. We can check this because Woody has drilled a hole into
the bottom of the driver’s seat so with the aid of an
inspection mirror and torch we can check that both sores are
visible and hence have no pressure on them once Col is sat in
place. Therefore the argument here was that once Col was sat
correctly in place we should make the most of his position and
do a long days drive to get some miles under our belt in our
attempt for Col to drive to Cape Town successfully.
Another theory was to do two short days of
driving. 300km to Choma today (Sunday) and 170km to
Livingstone on Monday. The argument against this was that we
would have to do double the transfers and therefore double our
chances of dislodging the scabs off the two pressure sores.
However the argument supporting this involves a third wound
that has emerged. Col has had a small graze between his left
hip and leg which he does sit on but has been no problem at
all for several weeks now. However recently sitting on the
shower chair with a slightly different posture to normal may
have managed to aggravate it. It isn’t anything serious but we
realise that it is now important to account for it when Col is
both sitting on his shower chair for his routine and when he
is driving so that it doesn’t turn into anything more serious.
It wasn’t possible to cut another hole in the foam cushion to
account for this third problem graze because it would take
away from some of the support offered by the foam cushion. As
an alternative The Doc suggested cutting a hole in a thick
silica pad and placing it over the graze so that it formed a
raised protective area surrounding the wound. When Col sits on
this area in theory the raised circular padded area helps lift
any pressure off the graze in the middle. Unlike the other two
pressure sores which we can monitor while Col drives with the
aid of the inspection mirror, this third wound is out of sight
and even though the Doc had come up with this ingenious
solution obviously it is not fool proof and we didn’t know if
due to the bumps that come with driving that the graze might
be subject to pressure anyway. Hence the argument for doing a
short day’s drive would be to check that the silica pad had
worked. If after a short day’s drive Col’s graze hadn’t been
subject to pressure then we would know that we could do longer
days of trucking successfully in the future.
As a result the team decided to do a shorter
days drive to Choma to air on the side of caution even though
there was still some speculation as to whether this was the
best idea. The morning’s transfer was a little rocky. In our
first attempts to get Col positioned in place we managed to
incorrectly place him over the hole so that one of the
pressure sores was indeed squashed by the foam. It was a minor
incident, but this in itself dislodged some of the scab as
expected. We all relifted him to reposition him correctly and
this time both wounds were clear. When we arrived in Choma, it
was again suggested that Col just push on with the extra 170km
to Livingstone because if today’s transfer had bumped the scab
who knows what tomorrow’s could do. However, Col had a
headache (usually his body’s way of telling him something
isn’t right) and so his hunch was to stop and check that the
third wound hadn’t been aggravated by the day’s drive despite
of the silica pad.
When we arrived at the camp
in retrospect we realised it had probably been a good idea to
stop. Both pressure sores had faired up well despite of the
fact one of them had had some of the scab knocked off from the
transfer this morning. As for the graze we realised from the
mark on the cushion that despite of the raised perimeter of
silica pad, it had indeed been in contact with the foam
cushion and had deteriorated slightly. This was probably what
had caused Col’s headache and if we had kept driving for the
day it may have deteriorated more. A solution was in turn
devised to account for this problem. The Doc suggested
sticking a few cut out Granuflex layers to the base of the
silica pad to offer even more lift to the surrounding area, so
hopefully this will suffice when we drive to Livingstone
tomorrow.
Camping/Team (Dynamics, health):
We camped overnight at Gwebe safaris. Doc was
back in form engaging in some catch up training for the
marathon he plans to run, Woody went to chat to the owner of
the campsite about the tractors he had on site and we all
marvelled at the campsites collection of crocodiles which the
owner breeds to produce crocodile oil - apparently useful for
a host of ailments and infections. I realised as we sat down
to another one of Kiko’s delicious curry’s (perfect after the
mountain-load of chilli I dumped on my portion) engaging in
the usual amusing chit chat that I am really going to miss
camp life and these five unique and entertaining individuals.
I hope the next two weeks don’t fly by too quickly because
even though everyone might well appreciate a return to
normality I think we will look back in the not too distant
future at our time on the road and remember how lucky we were
to have the opportunity to do this trip!
Even
though Ben, Kiko, Woody and the Doc have been camped in the
tents in the Flinn’s front yard for the past two weeks, Col
and I have been staying inside the Flinn’s house in their
spare room and as much as we have appreciated their
hospitality it was great sleeping out in our tents again back
to nature and having my old room mate Kiko back to chat to and
help me zip my sleeping bag up (I have an almost nightly
ritual of struggling to zip up my sleeping bag in the dark and
general faffing around in the tent)!
The days
events had again prompted debate during the evening with some
people still adamant that we push on as far as possible. A
suggestion to drive to Botswana rather than stopping in
Livingstone but as tomorrow is routine day which means that
Col has to sit on his shower chair which will contribute to
the total time Col is sat up. Secondly we have a package to
pick up in Livingstone and Thirdly the Doc want’s to road test
the silica pad with extra granuflex on it. I have no doubt
that once we get over this initial hurdle of taking pressure
off the graze and perfect our morning transfers to minimise
damage to the pressure sores that we will all soon have the
confidence to get some long trucking days under our belt.
Moreover, if we begin a pattern of driving one long day on and
then having one day off (where Col can do his shower chair
routine) I feel confident not only that we can make it to Cape
Town successfully but that Col will complete all the driving
himself with minimal pressure sore deterioration. The cushion
with a hole in it is one of the best idea’s the team has had
and I am quite proud of Woody and Ben’s efforts in putting it
together.
I realise amidst all the joking
around that there was some tension around camp tonight
(inspite of Ben’s cheery guitar playing) due to the
aforementioned conflicting opinions about how far we should
drive. However, despite of some rumour that the disagreements
may be based on selfish pursuits, I feel this to be incorrect
and actually believe it all stems from having Col’s best
interests at heart. Everyone want’s to see Col make it to Cape
Town more than ever and the confliction merely stems from
people wanting to see him realise that dream in the best way
they see possible. The possibility of Col not making it is
still a real concern in the mind of some of the team members,
that’s all.
General Interest:
Yesterday was April Fool’s day and Col and I being the natural
pranksters that we are thought it would be a great day to pull
some pranks. The first one revolved around fabricating a tale
about the Doc’s promiscuity (as he yet again went MIA
entertaining our hosts) which Ben and Kiko fell for until the
Doc came home and we had to quickly confess that he hadn’t
actually been up to anything naughty the night before. The
second one which our host John became involved with and was
particularly pleased with involved sending a fake package from
our project managers to our residence in Lusaka addressed to
us. John had managed to pick up an empty FedEx box and traced
an old carbon copy of a label from another package we had
received at the Flinns in Jo’s handwriting. The girls had
agreed to send us a package at Livingstone (with Col’s new
pressure relieving cushion) so it’s arrival was plausible and
we filled it with believable items like Doc’s granuflex
dressings and a host of random, useless items (like gardening
gloves) this mystified the team as to why the girls would send
us such random items, while Col and I giggled inconspicuously
in the backround. It wasn’t until Ben recognised the stripes
he had drawn on two bits of useless foam (how is Col going to
sit on those?) that he realised the whole team had been
subject to a hoax and the sound of ‘April Fools’ was again
resounded. What I didn’t realise was that what goes around
comes around. My friend Luke had called me at the Flinns and
even though I had retold him the whole April Fools pranks we
had played on the team I still fell for his story that on the
front cover of all the newspapers was an article about a man
they had found in a Papua New Guinean tribe who had a flying
fox adaptation (a stretch of skin from limb to limb) that
enabled him to glide through the bushes. It wasn’t till I got
off the phone with him that I realised I took first prize for
the most gullible April Fool!
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03 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: Zambizi Waterfront, camping
GPS: S17
53.231 E025 50.674
Total Distance: 19,226km
Author: Kiko Matthews
Weather: Hot and sunny
(by the time we had finished today, we had dropped in height
quite considerably so the air temperature was a lot warmer
than in Lusaka).
Daily travel (route, road): Having
decided to continue on to Livingstone today, we set off at
9.30ish for the 180 odd km’s. It wasn’t a particularly
exciting drive (as has none of Zambia really) but we were all
quite excited but apprehensive at the same time, wondering if
the Doc’s new granuflex pad had worked for Col’s small
scratch.
We arrived at the campsite around 12.30pm and to
save on transferring Col too much from chairs, we put him
straight on the shower chair and Chrissy started with his
routine. Meanwhile, Doc, Woody and I went into town to do the
usual tasks– e-mail, shopping and money changing. We also
popped into see Pete Livingstone who has recently returned
from being a driver for Beyond Boundries 2. He is an amputee
from the knee down following a motorbike accident 18 years
ago. He is very similar to Col in that he hasn’t let his
disability stop him from doing anything. He used to ski on the
British disabled ski team and still does everything that is
possibly with regards to sport, outdoor activities, driving
and everyday things. He also experiences problems with his
disability but I got the feeling that he has learnt good
management over the past years, as we are learning with Colin.
We also went to DHL to pick up our package but
unfortunately it hadn’t arrived! We had a bit of chat with the
kind lady and managed to get it sent on to Gaberone for us to
pick up in a few days.
Camping and Living: Col was
done by about 5ish, as were us lot in town. The Doc and myself
went to watch the sunset over the Zambizi (with a beer or two)
whilst the others had their beer back at camp while they
prepared a bonfire. After dinner, some of us went to the bar
and continued to talk with Pete about life in Zambia, live as
an amputee and our trip.
General Interest: Good news
is that the driving and Col, all went well! After having had
an evening discussion we decided to leave for 8am which would
mean that Chrissy had to get up at 5am to start with the
BiOptron (speeds up cell growth and hence repair). We planned
to drive as far as possible so as to cover as much ground as
possible. We would also have a border crossing to do so an
early rise was important. Pete sat around with us whilst we
had sausage, mash and beans and talked about various things
including how disabled activities in Livingstone were a
serious possibility. Some of the companies would go to every
effort to allow anyone to do the activities if possible.
Vanessa Haarhoff had done a sky-dive since her accident so it
just goes to show that everything is possible. Unfortunately,
which is slightly crazy, we didn’t get to see the Vic Falls or
do any activity. I think it will have to be a return trip for
us all because it is meant to be amazing. It’s a shame but at
the end of the day, we’re here to get Col to CT safely, not
for a holiday. Any who wants to go, I’m free for the next 4
months, staying in Cape Town and have transport, so would be
happy for the company!
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04 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: Marang Hotel, camping, Francistown, Botswana
GPS: S21
11.966 E025 31.977
Total Distance: 19, 799km
Author: Colin Javens
Weather: Hot and sunny,
with cloudy intervals (no rain - rivers were very dry which is
a huge comparison to 500km away in Zambia where the rafting is
about to be closed due to the river being too full).
Daily travel (route, road): Chrissy and I were up at 5
to start our BiOptroning before everyone else was up at 6am.
After packing up and getting me into the car, we managed to be
off in good time at 7.30! Our aim for the day was to do 70km
to border, clear the border which included a ferry crossing
over the Zambizi, and to reach Francistown, approx 500km from
the border. Today was the first real test for the seat and
cushion that had been made by Woody and Ben. I think if
everyone was honest they would all say they were a little
apprehensive about the task ahead of us. This would be the
first major test to see whether my skin would break down over
a long period of driving.
We reached the border at 8.30am
which all went reasonably well and then caught the large ferry
across the Zambizi. On the other side of the river we cleared
the Botswana customs in record time, and then drove through
their Foot and Mouth, troughs. We managed to leave the border
by about 10.45am and yet again we witnessed an almost dramatic
change in the vegetation and surroundings.
It took us a
further 7 hours of driving on relatively good roads to reach
Francistown that evening.
Health and Team dynamics: We
were all pleasantly surprised that the homemade pressure
relieving cushion had not created any further break down on my
skin having been sitting in the seat for 11 hours straight.
During the day I had experienced some slight headaches which
often indicate that my body is in pain somewhere and as a
result of this, we stopped every hour to un-strap me and lean
forward so as to take the pressure off my bottom. This may
have also been a contributing factor to why my skin didn’t
break down. In addition to this, our expedition Dr/surgeon,
Mr. Christopher Parsons (!) had improvised with some Granuflex
and had come up with a dressing that helped relieve pressure
from my third wound on my hip bone. This also contributed to
the success of the days drive.
These areas of skin
breakdown are a major concern and if I was at home I would
definitely be resting up to heal the areas before they became
too much of a problem. The other major concern is that when I
reach Cape Town, it may be in the interest of my health and
body that I have to rest to relieve pressure from the areas.
As a result, this may jeopardize all the PR that has been
organised by Jo and Caroline, for South Africa. For me, this
is a great shame because I have learnt from this trip, how
important raising awareness of spinal injuries, is. To miss
out on this great opportunity will also be very disappointing.
Camping and Living: After a few directions, we found
the Marang Hotel (from the Footprint guide) which was a lovely
campsite with great facilities. We parked up strategically so
that I would be in the shade the following day when I was
resting up. As soon as we arrived, the team set up my tent and
transferred me from my pressure relieving chair and into my
bed. That evening, Kiko and Ben cooked up a lovely tuna pasta.
General Interest: As soon as we had passed over the
Botswana border we came across a large female elephant with
her 3-4yr old calf, in the road. This was a great thrill
because we hadn’t seen any wildlife on our transit through
Zambia.
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05 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: Marang Hotel, camping, Francistown, Botswana
GPS: S21
11.966 E025 31.977
Total Distance: 19, 799km
Author: Kiko Matthews
Weather: Hot and sunny
Daily travel (route, road): We have planned to drive
one day then rest up the following so as Col can do his
routine and also to give his wounds a bit of healing time.
Since this is the case, we stayed at the Hotel/camping ground.
Chris, woody and myself went to town to do the usual but apart
from that we didn’t travel anywhere.
Health and Team
dynamics: Everyone seems to be in good spirits and trying to
give Col ideas on the quickest and safest way to get him to
Cape Town. Even though we all have our views about various
issues, at the end of the day it is Col’s decision and we will
support him whatever he decides. We feed him the ideas, let
him process all the information and then let him decide on
what he thinks is best for him.
Camping and Living: We
are staying in quite a nice campsite. It’s a Cresta Hotel
(chain) situated next to a river that is currently quite dry
and set amongst a wooded, grassy area –perfect for Col who has
to lie down in his tent and so the shade provided by the trees
is great. There is a swimming pool, 2 bars, restaurant and
casino. (We decided to double all the money we have raised so
far, on Black Jack!) The facilities for Col are great.
We
are having to take Col over to the toilets on his bed so as
not to irritate his wounds on the push over there – it gets
the other campers wondering what’s going on, that’s for sure!
It’s not everyday you see a guy being lifted over to the
toilets on a huge travel, blow-up bed!
After the routine,
we had a very tasty meal of steak, chicken and salad with
sweet potatoes. We certainly don’t eat badly on this trip even
though, I think I’m the only one who hasn’t managed to loose
weight! Not fair!
General Interest: I would just like
to say thank you very much to the hotel for giving us a
discount and for being very helpful and friendly
Botswana,
or more specifically where we are in Francistown, is like a
completely different Africa from up North. It’s clean,
westernised and has all the amenities that we could need
especially from a medical point of view. Col is currently on
protein shakes to fatten him up and these are easily available
here and not at an extortionate price either. There’s a Hard
Rock Café, you can use Maestro in some of the banks
(don’t ever travel with an HSBC card because it won’t work in
the majority of countries since it’s not Visa), there are big
supermarkets selling most things, decent clothes shops, music
shops and numerous South African fast food restaurants! It’s
only when you get out of the towns that you feel more like you
are in Africa. With only a population of 1.8 mn (I think),
there isn’t a huge amount of life outside the towns.
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06 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: Marang Hotel, camping, Francistown, Botswana
GPS:
S21 11.966 E025 31.977
Total Distance: 19, 799km
Author: Kiko Matthews
Weather: Hot and sunny
Daily travel (route, road): Chrissy woke up at
5o’clock to do BiOptron on Col so that we could set off by
7.30. We had decided last night to see how the wounds were in
the morning to make a final decision on travel but we were set
to travel towards Gabarone and on to South Africa. The two
wounds on Colin’s buttocks are doing well with the cushion we
have made but the third one gets a bit wet during showering
and because the shower chair doesn’t really help with regards
to pressure on it, it has been evident that the wound looks
worse straight after. It has been drying up over night and is
good enough to travel on in the morning but we still have to
make sure that it is ok. This morning it appeared that the
silicon pad we had put on in the shower to protect it, had
some how caused a very small blister. This only became evident
in the morning and the decision was therefore to rest up a
further 2 days just to help the blister go down a bit and not
be irritated by the drive.
Health and Team dynamics:
As mentioned before, we have been slightly delayed for safety
purposes (with regards to Cols body) due to a small blister
that appeared next to his third wound (small scratch) caused
by something during showering (possibly the silicon pad-it’s a
little more complicated than that but for diary purposes that
will do!).
Camping and Living: The day was spent doing
the usual – swimming, e-mail, shop, chatting, eating, tidying.
Beef Satay for dinner cooked by myself. (I must just point out
that Woody, when the Doc was doing interviews, could only
remember what we’d done in certain places, by the meal we had
eaten in the evening!) Food is quite an important issue around
the camp just in case no one had realised. Momma Matthews
still has to ration these boys though otherwise we would have
no money left in Cape Town! They still get their treats though
which normally come out when I want one!
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07 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: Marang Hotel, FrancisTown
Date: 7th
April 2005
Location: Marang Hotel, FrancisTown
GPS:
S21 11.916 E027 31.977
Total Distance: 19,799km
Author: Woody (and finished off by Kiko ‘cos he’s too
lazy to do it all!)
Weather: Sunny
Daily travel
(route, road conditions): None except locally.
Team
(Dynamics, health): Everyone in tip-top condition. We decided
that it would be better for Col to do his routine in the
morning because it would give his 3rd wound a chance to dry
out before the big drive tomorrow. We also had to develop a
system whereby Col could do his routine and we would minimise
the chances of irritating the small blister that had formed
near the 3rd wound. Instead of dressing the 3rd wound we made
a foam cushion to go above the usual shower cushion with a
hole to take the pressure away from the problem area. In order
to further reduce any chances of irritation Col also kept his
shower time to a minimum.
Camping and Living: Another
quiet day spent around the campsite with Chris carrying out
video interviews with the rest of the team. (Kiko writing from
here) As mentioned above, we were back on the road tomorrow so
the usual shopping for provisions and last minute,
unsuccessful e-mail attempts were done, once again by myself
(not going to miss having the responsibility of keeping 6
people fed! I did want 7 kids but I think I’ve changed my mind
now!). It was happy hour at the bar (western influences
obviously filtering though the developing world drinking
community!) from 6-7 so we purchased a few beers and the
returned to a delicious Thai Green curry cooked by Chrissy. We
were planning on leaving at 7am the next morning so we all had
quite early nights. The boys haven’t been sleeping too well, I
think because it is so squashed in their tent plus there is a
lot of thinking going on at the moment. Ben and Woody sleep on
the outside, while poor old Chris is stuck in the middle! Ben
and Woody aren’t the most quiet or settled sleepers I know so
it makes for an interesting night sleep if you’re squashed
between them (I haven’t been in this situation, fortunately,
but poor old Doc has!).
General Interest: Whilst doing
my interview with the Doc, it made me realise what an amazing
thing we have done and what an incredible, ‘once in a life
time’ experience I have been given. Yes, I’ve had a few
moments when I’ve wanted to give up and get straight to Cape
Town, but now, having got this far, I’m very glad I didn’t. My
brain works in great ways in that I block out the bad things
that have happened and only manage to remember the good. When
I look back at this experience in however many years time, I
will know that I found it tough etc etc but I don’t think I’ll
remember why. The beauty of the human brain! I’m sure we’ve
all found it tough at times, Col especially, and must say, to
everyone who reads these diaries, just how patient he is. He
has spent something like 7 weeks of this trip lying on his
back or side, relying on us to feed him and entertain him and
he has never complained once! I know a few people who could
take leaf out of his book!
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09 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: The Wagon Wheel, Beaufort West, South
Africa
Date: 9th
April 2006
Location: The Wagon Wheel, Beaufort West, South
Africa
GPS: S32 20.067 E022 35.121
Total Distance:
21,278 km
Author: Kiko
Weather: Pleasant, sunny
but cool at night
Daily travel (route, road conditions):
Originally we had planned to drive one day and then have a
rest day. We hadn’t covered as much ground yesterday as we had
hoped, and the cushion we made has been so successful, that we
drove today a total of about 700km. We arrived in Beaufort
West, 490km from Cape Town in good time so that Chrissy and
Col could do their routine. The scenery was fantastic and
Woody says it’s his favourite yet. I must say that I disagree
but everyone has different tastes! The roads were great and we
were managing to do 100km/hr regularly. However, with our
hourly pressure relief stops, 700 km takes a little more than
7 hrs that it could. Not a problem though as there was no
rush. The 7am start helped and we eventually arrived at about
4pm.
Team (Dynamics, health): All fine. I’m in
particularly good spirits and having had some quite difficult
times, it’s nice to be on this natural high. It’s mad because
some of us on the team have been working on this expedition
for 3 years or more and now this is it. Arriving in Cape town
has always just been in the future and now it’s really very
close. All the obstacles that we’ve come across along the way
back in the UK and on the expedition, and we’re nearly there!
Phew!
Camping and Living: The campsite was perfectly
adequate and cheap (£1.90 per person). I made a phone
call to Eckhard (one of the South Africans we met in Sudan)
which was very successful because he very kindly said we could
stay in his (well, his sister’s, actually) beach house, just
outside of Cape Town, for a week before the official finish –
great news! He also has accommodation, car etc etc for me when
I stay on after the expedition has finished. Not bad, hey?
I cooked up a Chinese type vegetable stir-fry and we had a
few local Castle beers. I must say that as much as I love
cooking, I’m looking forward to only having to cook for 1 or 2
and not 6 (more like 8, the amount these boys eat) and cooking
what I want. Woody keeps insisting on sausages and meat and I
just want vegetables! Meat, meat and more meat!! Conflicting
desires on the food front.
General Interest: South
Africa isn’t really like the rest of the places we’ve been.
From Sudan down, it’s been getting gradually more and more
developed and now we’re as far south as possible and it’s more
like a slightly under developed, developed country. ATM’s are
everywhere, fast food restaurants, decent garages and fuel
stops, good roads, all kinds of cars, it’s clean, there are
decent road signs, the lot. The only thing that is different
from UK is the shanty towns and poverty you can see with
regards to the people. The local black people aren’t in
traditional clothing but just the western style clothes that
any of the whites wear. All the signs are in Afrikaans (the
local language spoken by 50% of the white population) and
English. The Dutch colonised South Africa back in the 1600’s
(I think) and bought over with them their workers and farmers
etc. Eventually these workers broke free from their Dutch
employers and the Afrikaans community was formed. This is why
Dutch and Afrikaans is so similar to speak/understand. South
Africa has quite an extensive history and it’s quite
complicated but amongst all this there are also the British,
natives and the Indians. The British came over and eventually
did their usual thing and tried to take over what the
Afrikaaner’s had and this was during the Boer War (1899 –
190?) and I think was only successful in annoying the
Afrikaans people and killing some of them. The British
eventually returned their independence to them and this was
marked by the end of the war. The English speaking part of
South Africa originates from the British who came there. Then
there is also Zulu and other tribal languages also spoken by
the locals.
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10 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: Eckhard’s beach house, Vermont, west of
Hermanus, (nr Cape Town) South Africa
Date: 10th
April 2006
Location: Eckhard’s beach house, Vermont, west
of Hermanus, (nr Cape Town) South Africa
GPS: S34 25.101’
E019 09.138
Total Distance: 21753km
Author: Kiko
Weather: Pleasant, sunny, quite cold early on and by the
time we had dropped to sea level it wasn’t quite as cool at
night as previously
Daily travel (route, road conditions):
Kind of our final day! Even though we still have to drive into
Cape Town, we have really made it now! We set off at 7am again
(which required Chrissy and Col to be up at 5am!) and drove
through some spectacular mountainous scenery and big open
plains. At around 11.30 we stopped at a garage because the
boys (surprise, surprise) wanted some food and it had to be
meat. This was our first sampling of a Steers burger (SA
Macdonalds! They’d kill me if they read that) and whilst we
were standing around the cars, just about to head off, an Audi
A3 came careering towards our Land Rovers, and then jammed the
brakes on! I thought we were about to be rammed but it turns
out that it’s our other SA mate, Dr. George (Eckhard’s
travelling mate). It was great to see him and bought back some
good memories. Bit random to say the least that he happened to
be around on the same road at the same time as us. He lives in
Port Elizabeth as well so it’s not even like the road we were
on was one he’d use regularly! Crazy small world.
Team
(Dynamics, health): All very excited and well. Col’s wounds
continue to heal well and one of the ones on his bottom is
looking particularly good – great news!
Camping and
Living: The beach house has lived up to it’s expectations. A
delightful house with plenty of beds, a swimming pool set next
to a BBQ area, in the garden and all fully furnished/equipped.
Over the past 2 months everyone has been teasing me about
Eckhard because we have been in contact with each other since
they left us. However, now they’re all thanking me for
spending a huge amount on my phone bill and keeping in touch
(still taking every opportunity possible to sneak in a sly
comment as well!)!! That’s friends for you I guess. Anyway,
after unpacking everything, Woody Ben and I went to the shops
and discount liquor store (!) to stock up for the week. I
think everyone would agree that we have deserved a few drinks
and so we stocked up well with cheap SA alcohol including a
few bottles of champagne (well, fizzy SA wine). We popped the
corks and had a bit of a ‘cheers and well done’ then proceeded
to eat Woody’s spag bol and drink some more. We were all in
bed surprising early considering the occasion but I think the
past couple of days of driving had warn everyone out a bit.
General Interest: None really except that I think
Colin and all of the team he so brilliantly picked (me
included!) deserve a huge congratulations. We have worked
excellently together as a team and I think we have done the
Colin Javens Spinal Injury Trust a huge amount of justice. We
had a few teething problems towards the beginning, but with
everyone learning from their mistakes, and making a real
effort within the team, we have made it to the end together
and still all smiling. Our telephone number is +27840781696 if
people would like to send personal messages to Col or us.
Thanks to everyone who reads this for all your support too -
it has been fantastic having all your kind comments throughout
the trip.
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11 April 2006
12:00:00
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Change Title
___________________________________________________
Date: 11th April 2006
Location: Eckhard’s beach
house, Vermont, west of Hermanus, (nr Cape Town) South Africa
GPS: S34 25.101’ E019 09.138
Total Distance: 21753km
Author: Chrissy Prydun
Weather: Sunny but not too
hot!
Daily travel (route, road conditions): None
Team (Dynamics, health)/Camping and living: Great! We
are all very excited about what we have accomplished,
especially Col and how he has put his health on the line to do
this trip. Fortunately our plan to feed Col up is still going
strong and he is fighting fit. I continue to bang on about the
importance of good nutrition and Woody is still on his egg
campaign to feed Col up !
We got a surprise visit from
Richard Pirouet one of the trustees who is staying in the area
at the moment. Today we spent the day cleaning out the
vehicles. Consequently the day was full of nostalgia and all
the usual antics. 5 months on and we still haven't exhausted
ways in which to entertain ourselves For example: Today Ben
thought it would be funny to try and put me in the oven and
shaved off his beloved handle bar moustache.
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12 April 2006
12:00:00
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The weeks rest
Date: 12th
April 2006
Location: Eckhard’s beach house, Vermont, west
of Hermanus, (nr Cape Town) South Africa
GPS: S34 25.101’
E019 09.138
Total Distance: 21753km
Author: Ben
Matthews
Weather:
Really nice and sunny, probably
about 23ºC.
Daily travel (route, road
conditions):
Kiks and I did a quick run down to the local
shops in Hermanus to pick up supplies so that we could
entertain guests! Bit of a long winded way to town as I wanted
to get in the sea first, eventually we found a track that got
us close enough. Stuck my head in and then quickly pulled him
back out, ‘pretty fresh’ is an understatement. Due to
prevailing winds the waters around here are warmer during the
winter than they are in summer months! Anyway it was great to
have an exceptionally quick dip, since the last time we saw a
sea was about the 27th November; the Med just before we turned
south for Cairo.
South Africa’s infrastructure and
amenities are pretty good, so much so it no longer really
feels that we are in Africa; well your stereotypical one that
is. However considering we have been roughing it for so long
and the need for us all to freshen/rest up before the big
finale, we couldn’t probably ask for a better place.
Team (Dynamics, health):
All very well and on tip
top form! Big Col is doing great and every day is positively
progressive with regards to his physical condition. It’s a
shame that his mental health is suffering (only joking, he’s
always been a little mmmmmmmmad). Morale around the camp is
excellent, as now most of the end of trip chores are complete
such as cleaning and sorting expedition kit and vehicles. Also
we had a little visit from some more familiar faces, well more
familiar to the Doc as it was his Mum and Pete and the rest of
us had only met them once before. However it really did start
to give the sense that things were coming to an end and that
Cape Town isn’t far away. I think Col might have been a little
reflective, since he’s been planning and organising this
amazing adventure for so long and the end is so close; I
suppose he’ll just have to conjure up a new mission. Not being
a weirdo but I’d like to say that he should feel massively
proud with himself for what he has achieved and at a fairly
large personal cost, a monumental effort. My friend you are an
inspiration for sure and I might allow you to have a photo
hung in my hall of fame, when I move out of my van into a
house that is.
Camping and Living:
Still in the
beach house resting up, very kindly lent out to us by Eckhard.
We got Col out onto the balcony today to soak up some sunshine
therapy, if anything it will help with his spectacular sock
marks.
Living like kings, very lucky, very nice, much
appreciated. Definitely don’t miss veg curry!!!!!! The cost of
living here (shopping) is cheaper than back home so the meat
is flowing into our bellies.
General Interest:
The
sea is cold!
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16 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: Eckhard’s beach house, Vermont, west of
Hermanus, (nr Cape Town) South Africa
GPS: S34
25.101’ E019 09.138
Total Distance: 21753km
Author:
Ben Matthews
Weather:
Really nice and sunny,
probably about 23ºC.
Daily travel (route,
road conditions):
Woody and myself down to the local
garage to fill up the Wagons for the final push to Cape Town.
Team (Dynamics, health):
The team are all very
well including Col; again he continues to improve physically!
Camping and Living:
As we have driven for 163
days, the team thought that it would be a good idea to get an
early night; all very excited looking forward to arriving and
seeing some familiar faces.
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17 April 2006
12:00:00
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Colin arrives at the End, Location: Signal Hill, Cape
Town
GPS:
Total Distance:
Author: Colin Javens
Weather:
A cold autumn day
Daily travel (route, road
conditions): It was out final morning in Hermanus 100km away
from Cape Town. The team woke early and one by one came into
my room to wish me good morning dressed in their Driving Home
Gear and looking the smartest I saw them look for a long
while. I could almost feel the excitement building in the
house on this special, final day’s drive to Cape Town. We left
at midday after the guys had lifted me out to the vehicle and
hoisted me into the driving position to depart on a drizzly
morning. Our destination for the day was Signal Hill where we
were to be eagerly met by Woody’s mother (Old Mother Wood),
Susan and Peter (Chris’ parents) and their friends, Jo and
Caroline, Richard and Sheelagh Pirouet and Claire Taylor (our
South African PR agent). Being a bank holiday the momentum was
drawn to a slow 20km per hour as we came upon a long line of
traffic – our first traffic jam since the last one since the
winding road around the Amalfi coast, at Sorrento, Italy. It
soon became apparent that we were not going to make our
destination at 3pm as scheduled. Just before we reached Cape
Town we had to climb a small mountain range and as we reached
the top we came over a pass called Sir Lowry’s Pass. Below us
and into the distance through the low cloud we could just make
out False bay and the cape flats with all the squatter
settlements. As we wound down the hairpin road clouds began to
part and the sun begin to shine through. As we continued I
could feel the excitement in the two vehicles rising and
rising. Unfortunately we were unable to see the famous Table
top mountain. As we neared it however, clouds lifted ever so
slightly to reveal the saddle and signal hill. After a quick
fuel and sandwich pit-stop we drove up the windy road and as
we reached the top of signal hill we saw Caroline and Jo on
either side holding a banner between their hands. As we drove
through the ribbon breaking it we had finally made it. It was
a fantastic feeling to have driven half way across the road
and to be met so warmly by friends and family who had made an
incredible effort to welcome us and brought champagne! I must
take this opportunity to thank everyone involved in making my
dream come true!
Team (Dynamics, health):
I can
quite honestly say that when we arrived I noticed first of all
a quiet tone over the expedition team and I think that we all
realised that during the first few minutes of meeting our
friends and family, it really hit home (like the cork I shot
from the champagne bottle that hit Ben square between the
eyes) exactly what we had achieved over the previous five
months.
Camping and Living:
Staying at the
hospitable and very friendly Backpackers Hostel in the centre
of Cape Town.
General Interest:
It’s very
interesting; the last time the expedition team and I set our
sights upon an expanse of water as wet as what we were
currently looking at was the Mediterranean off the Egyptian
coast, before heading south on the traditional Cairo to Cape
Town route.
---
At 3.45pm he drove up to the
tip of Signal Hill in Cae Town to be welcomed by Caroline and
Jo, the project managers, Richard Pirouet (Charity Trustee)
and his wife, and several parents and supporters.
CONGRATULATIONS to all the team...more celebrations
and events are planned over the next few days and we will be
updating the diary soon.
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18 April 2006
12:00:00
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Location: CAPE TOWN
Author:
Colin
In contrast to the previous days drive the sun
was absolutely blazing through my window. Unfortunately as I
still needed to rest up to help the ongoing healing process it
meant that I’d have to stay in bed for the day. On the plus
side Claire Taylor from Fleishman Hillard PR agency had
organised several media interviews ranging from newspapers –
the Cape Argus, 4x4 magazines to radio interviews with
Highveld Radio. I also spoke to BBC Three Counties back in the
UK.
That evening we had a visit from Ari Seirlis from
QASA (QuadPara Association of South Africa). QASA assist
Paraplegics and quadriplegics by providing a range of highly
specialised support services to encourage their
rehabilitation, community integration and independence. They
run several self help centres around South Africa where their
members live with minimal assistance and in the most
independent way possible. They also run several awareness
raising campaigns and as Ari said they are very keen to
promote prevention through education. It was very nice to meet
him and we could see he was very passionate about the cause he
represented.
The team ended the night with a braii
(BBQ) and a few beers.
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19 April 2006
12:00:00
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Table Mountain celebrations
Date: 19th
April 2006
Location: Table Mountain and Price Water
Coopers offices, Cape Town
GPS:
Total Distance:
Author: Chrissy Prydun
Weather: A gorgeous sunny
wind free day.
After a day of rest in bed (well you
couldn’t say it was exactly relaxing for Col what with the
press coming to visit him all day) it was time for Col to get
up for a visit to the top of Table Mountain. We honestly
couldn’t have asked for better weather considering that when
we arrived in Cape Town two days earlier it was freezing with
gale force winds blowing. Our expedition team and project
managers were met by an entourage of press, members of QASA,
and other wheelchair users who had heard of Col’s epic
adventure. Patron of the Colin Javens Trust (Ex-Springbok
captain and coach of the South African Rugby team) Morne du
Plessis was present as was Trustee Richard Pirouet, who was
back with his wife Sheelagh and Claire Taylor our South
African PR agent. It was quite amusing to see Col sitting in
the sun talking to the people who had come to meet him while
he sat on what must have looked like the most unusual model of
wheelchair: the racing style lopsided wheel-less driver’s seat
we had removed from the car that couldn’t be stood upright
without someone holding it up. I am sure people were perplexed
as to how Col managed to drive from London to Cape Town with
such hi tech equipment yet not afford a decent wheelchair!
Well as you know we had decided to hoist the recently
modified drivers seat out of the car and the boys graciously
volunteered to carry Col around in it to minimise the risk on
Col’s sores that would come from sitting on his normal
hole-less wheelchair. Considering half the team had hangovers
and the sun blazing wasn’t helping the boys, they did a great
job of carrying Col up to the Cable Car and around the
mountain while I had the minor role of lifting Col’s legs in
the air! Richard Pirouet got in on the action too, helping us
to huff and puff Col around the place but it was well worth
the effort. To see Col’s face atop of Table Mountain – having
been laid up for so long and considering all the sacrifices to
his health he had made to get this far – was something else!
On our way up to the top there was something of a
shamozal in the cable car as a wheelchair caught on the side
of the rotating wall continued to drag along and collide with
other wheelchairs and feet alongside the glass of our very
crowded car. My vivid imagination momentarily pictured a
cliffhanger storyline emanating from this fiasco with all the
wheelchair users entangled and suspended off a single cable in
unison, with the car itself collapsing under the pressure.
Fortunately this never eventuated! When we got to the top Col
was immediately interviewed for the press who also interviewed
Morne du Plessis and head of QASA Ari Seirlis. After his brush
with fame a few of us sat around to soak up the views and chat
to wheelchair rugby players. From here there was a formal
arrival ceremony put on with some moving speeches from Col,
Ari, Morne and Richard to boot. I think it really hit home
what the team and more importantly Col had achieved in these
moments.
After some more time spent soaking up the
incredible views, we were off to Price Waterhouse Coopers for
a reception put on by a paraplegic employee of PWC -Aleisha.
Ari, Colin and Richard spoke at the function and we were able
to play the 20minute promo DVD that had been put together from
footage taken by the Doc to promote our trip. It was quite
emotional watching the DVD with backround African Music
highlighting a handful of nostalgic moments from our trip and
a lot of images of the cars driving through beautiful scenery
we had seen on our trip. The night before we had played the
DVD to a big group of backpackers and silenced the typically
rowdy hostel we were currently staying at. The staff were so
moved they decided to offer us accommodation at the hostel for
the duration of our stay for free! Much thanks from all the
team.
After the reception the forever ravenous
expedition team contributed to demolishing the hors deurve
platters being passed around and it was a chance for us to
speak to some of the wheelchair users present at the function.
I chatted to three in particular Vernon, Anthony and Conrad
about their spinal injury who in addition to Ari enlightened
me on life in South Africa for a wheelchair user.
In
South Africa there is little government support and terrible
amenities for wheelchair users (such as inaccessible public
transport facilities). What’s more in rural areas the shocking
life expectancy for spinal cord injuries is less than a year
due to lack of rehabilitation facilities and education. Before
this trip I never really envisioned a Spinal Injury as a life
threatening affliction, but having visited KASI, KPO and
having met people from QASA I can now understand that
something like a pressure sore or Urinary Tract Infection
(common in paralysed people) could kill an individual if left
unchecked. This is where QASA is attempting to step in. They
provide a range of highly specialised support services to
encourage the rehabilitation, community integration and
independence of wheelchair users be it by financial,
educational or psychological means. There list of initiatives
is endless and I was very impressed by the systems they have
in place to support wheelchair users. What’s more they
encourage their members to be independent by initially
providing them with skills (e.g. teaching them how to drive an
adapted vehicle), education (e.g. providing scholarships for
wheelchair users to encourage them to get a University
Education with limited funds) and the independence (e.g. by
running several self help centres where wheelchair users can
live in an independent way with minimal assistance) to do so.
The organisation is currently 35% self sufficient and is
likely to increase through some of their business initiatives
which are helping to fund QASA. I was blown away by Ari’s
speech enlightening us on all aspects of QASA in lieu of a
lack of government support. Visit http://www.qasa.co.za for
more information.
After the reception, dinner and
drinks we all gathered in the bar to watch Col’s debut
appearance on South African television, squealing with delight
like a group of teenage fan’s as he appeared on the TV. As we
left the roller door was closing so Kiko and I who were the
last to run out attempted to do a commando role style
evacuation. We laughed hysterically when Kiko skidded and slid
out the door on her side. A very elegant style departure,
testament to our expedition team, the classy bunch of
individuals that we are!
General Interest: Since
having arrived in Cape Town we anticipated that the worst of
our trip was over in terms of security and safety. On this
expedition we have driven through some notoriously dangerous
areas renowned for bandits and car jackings and have even all
had a lapse in memory when it comes to locking car doors,
keeping valuables hidden etc. Amazingly and gratefully though
we had passed through these areas unscathed and had not had
anything robbed (I am currently hitting some wood very hard)
to date. Strange it is that within the past three days we have
had two scares. The first happened when Woody went for an
outing to one of the local pubs with some people he had met at
the hostel and was mugged at knife point on the way home. He
had money and a phone in one of his pockets but luckily
producing a wad of tissues, claiming this was all he had and
telling his offenders to depart in a less than charming manner
which managed to discourage them. He arrived back at the
hostel thankfully in one piece, a little bit shaken but in
keeping with woody’s matter of fact approach and hardy
attitude, not overly stirred. Unfortunately one of the guys he
was with had his mobile and money stolen but amazingly woody
was never searched. Two days after this incident and the
Defender was broken into. The thief had broken into the back
window (whilst Ben was sleeping in the roof tent outside our
hostel in the car park) when the local security guard spotted
the thief with one of our sleeping bags and some other stuff
in his hand and yelled at him to stop. The thief dropped the
stash and made a run for it. In the end the whole event became
nothing more than a nusicance of filling insurance claims and
fixing broken windows but it reminded us that no matter where
you are we need to be on the ball!
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20 April 2006
12:00:00
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Cape Point celebrations
Date: 20th
April 2006
Location: Cape Town to Cape Point
Total
Distance: 22014km
Author: Ben
Weather:
Another
beautiful day with temperatures around 28ºC with only
the occasional cloud, on all accounts from the locals; we have
been very lucky over the past two days to have experienced two
of S.A’s best sites in such good conditions.
Daily
travel (route, road conditions):
I suppose really today
was our final truck – all the way to the most South West tip
of Africa, the end off a journey that has taken in 12
countries; on which we entered Africa at its most Northern
port – Tunis, Tunisia, clocking up over 22000km. What a day it
was too, I think that it was quite fitting for us guys to end
our ‘trucking trip’ amongst a convoy of Land Rovers,
supporters and friends slowly cruising spectacular coastline
south, from Cape Town to Cape Hope.
The convoy all met
up at Signal Hill car park (the venue for our arrival
reception on the 17th) at 10am, the convoy consisted of 7 Land
Rovers including ours and 3 cars. All the others Land Rovers
were owned by S.A locals who very kindly and enthusiastically
turned up to help us see in the end to our monster truck. By
the time we had all finished introductions to new friends and
briefed everyone on the intended route a good hour had already
passed. So it was gone 11am before we set off with what was
quite an impressive snake of Land Rovers on a 140km loop.
Our route was fairly simple – we had decided to cruise
down the West coast of the Cape peninsula to Cape Hope, taking
in Spectacular Ocean and mountain views as we passed Table
Mountain and its 12 apostles, hugging the cliffs of Chapman’s
Peak and passing brilliantly white beaches, all with the
massive Atlantic Ocean to our right. After stopping a few
times to appreciate the views and receiving a little local
knowledge we eventually arrived as far south as we could
possibly drive, parking up only a stones throws from the Sea.
Of course a few celebratory ales and polony sandwiches were
passed out and even a few of the expedition team took a
dunking into some pretty chilly waters to mark the occasion.
After a team photo the convoy departed and we were left to
truck back up to Cape Town via the West coast and False Bay.
It had been an awesome final truck; if you haven’t
been to Cape Town then you’re missing a real treat!!!!!!!!!!!
Team (Dynamics, health):
Absolutely brilliant, all
very chuffed with our achievement and feeling massively
appreciative all the support that we have received before and
throughout this remarkable adventure, without this support
today wouldn’t have been possible.
All are in good
condition!
Camping and Living:
Still at the
Backpack and celebrating hard!!
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21 April 2006
12:00:00
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Farewell
Date: 21st
April 2006
Location: Cape Town
Total Distance: 22014km
Author: Chrissy Prydun
Weather: Remarkably similar to
UK drizzle!
Team: (Dynamics/Health)
Even
though I am writing this diary entry on the 21st April, what I
have written below is something I wrote in the car on 8th
April as we travelled from Vryburg to Beaufort West in South
Africa. Things had been a little tense in the last week
regarding how far and how quickly we should drive from
Francistown to Cape Town to benefit Col’s pressure sores and a
host of other factors and I couldn’t think of what else to do
but to write about what I thought was important and positive
at the end of the day because it seemed like nothing was
getting resolved and people weren’t happy all in the week
which mattered the most. In the end it was all fine and we
made it through the kerfuffle and onto Cape Town as we thought
we would and are all getting along fine again! I intended to
read it to the team, but I didn’t think I needed to as things
more or less resolved themselves. I will show them one day
soon though. Nonetheless I thought it would be something you
might want to read. We met up with Chris’ mum and stepdad
Peter today and one of the things that struck Peter, an avid
reader of our diaries was the seeming lack of controversy on
our trip. He thought that things ran a little too smoothly. I
believe that there were obstacles to be faced and a lot of
hiccups and teething problems but the reason we got through
them was because everyone on this expedition whether they
claim to be or not are all very positive, have a fantastic
sense of humour and with this attitude in mind, problems just
didn’t seem to phase the spirit. I much prefer writing about
amusing anecdotes than really long winded sentimental drivel,
but here it is anyway…so bear with me!
___________________________________________________________________
Dear Kiko, Doc, Ben, Woody and Col,
As I sit here
on the penultimate leg to Cape Town I have many thoughts
racing through my head. I am hopeless at saying what I want to
say without waffling on and going off on a tangent so I feel
it’s best to get my thoughts down on pc to minimise the
ranting! I realise that what I am about to say still requires
some attention span and hopefully I won’t bore you to death
with sentimentality but I would appreciate it if you could
listen because my gut instinct tells me to read this to you
all. I successfully held back from intervening and saying more
last night but despite my calm exterior, inside I was going
crazy and I have never been one for keeping things bottled up
and even if this seems blatantly obvious, completely
unnecessary or perhaps too late I feel compelled to tell you,
yet I realise after today things will be ok, still I thought
I’d say it all the same.
I know you can’t force
feelings and things are meant to be as they are meant to be,
none of this lets play happy families. But I find it very
disheartening that on our final leg to reach our goal and
realise Col’s dream, that things have recently been tense and
although repaired I still sensed an undercurrent of tension
and the beginnings of apathy. Ironically, it all stems from a
noble cause and common desire to want what’s best for Col, to
get him to Cape Town in the best condition possible. I believe
it’s a recipe of conflicting opinions about what are the best
way’s to do so mixed with poor communication and
misunderstanding that have contributed to this cause.
Remarkably though it’s taken five months to get to this stage
and it’s no wonder it comes now in what seems like our
greatest challenge of the entire expedition.
Controversy sells and our relatively peaceful
expedition environment to date may not be ideal for promoting
Col’s story, but hey it’s still amazing that we have stuck
together and defied many of the onlooker’s prediction’s that
the trip might end with a fall out and some juicy cat fights!
Sorry boys, Kiko and I are adamant that this includes mud
wrestling too.
I am proud of everyone’s contribution
in keeping the team dynamics flowing so well because we are
very different individuals and quite often do have conflicting
opinions about how best to do things. This trip has made me
realise that of course arguing and friction are both normal…
but not inevitable just because you are spending long periods
of time together in cramped conditions. The formula for
controversy is always there and it’s not just about biting
tongues either. It’s the way you handle things that prevents
big scale disputes and it’s the way you guys have all handled
things coupled with an awesome sense of humour that have made
this trip such a success. And it’s not just about compromising
and putting on a brave face either or pretending things are
easy when they’re not. It’s the ability to see the bigger
picture and ascertain that one’s way may indeed be the most
efficient, easy and plausible way, but this doesn’t always
mean it’s the right or intended way. As the Doc always says
sometimes obstacles must be overcome and lesson’s learnt the
hard way and no one is in a better position to learn one’s
lesson then oneself.
Sometimes the hard way ends up
being the most enjoyable way through the animation it brings.
Especially you woody I know how much you love stirring up
trouble by mentioning that tea chest! It all reminds me of a
conversation I had with Kiko and the Doc on the Kenyan border
about climbing mountains, Yes you can climb the mountain the
long ridiculous way and get lost and faff around and do risky
or stupid things that will attract cannibals or you can climb
it quickly and resourcefully but then miss out on some of the
scenery and action en route like monkey’s shagging or the
excitement of running away from the cannibals etc. Either way
you get to the top of the mountain but the difference is in
the journey. As we all know too well half the fun is in the
journey having embarked on a 5 month voyage and sometimes when
things work too easily, some of the excitement and adventure
are taken away. I think everyone on this trip seems to crave a
good challenge whether you first knew it or not.
There’s probably no point in bringing up all the
malarkey about who might be right and wrong regarding Col’s
health so I won’t especially that things are now done and
dusted. In the same token I am not trying to act superior and
tell you all this as though you haven’t thought of it
yourselves. I don’t expect much to change and I know that I
know and we all know that everything will be fine in the end
and Col’s arse albeit slightly out of shape will make it to
Cape Town no worries. It’s just that I have often found myself
in a situation where I don’t appreciate something until it’s
gone or take something for granted and I don’t want to make
that mistake anymore so want to tell you how you all make me
feel and how much I cherish your friendship.
Thank you
Kiko for your frank and honest approach and your chatterboxing
skills. Yesterday you held things together very nicely by
happily chatting away and taking our minds off things. It
makes me realise more than ever how invaluable a resource you
are to our team and I’m glad you got the gutz to stick out the
expedition and stay on board despite your thoughts about
leaving three weeks prior. You see you too were meant to be
here for a reason and I’m going to miss your mothering ways,
your understated generosity, crazy scenario brainstorming and
intriguing mind, delicious and economical meals, sense of
humour and your ability to put your foot in your mouth in it,
which paradoxically often makes things less akward than more.
I look forward to our Thelma and louise-esque girls on tour
tour with Vanessa.
Doc, I also know you had the balls
to apologise yesterday but my hunch tells me that there is
still a lot on your mind. In fact half the effort you put into
this expedition begins when we go to bed, well when you’re not
concentrating your efforts on annihilating half of Zambia’s
population. All the brainstorming on Col’s behalf, post
expedition planning and writing the book are tasks I think you
deserve credit for. You look out for us with genuine concern
and have acted like our mentor offering a much appreciated ear
for all of us to talk to. I think you’ve done an excellent job
despite your concerns in getting us all to Cape Town alive and
in one piece. Inspite of my sleep deprived, blond haired way’s
which I know must drive you a bit mad at best I am going to
miss giving you shit, chucking cigarettes in sinks with you
and our all to rare deep and meaningful late night chat’s. I
look forward to coming and crashing my nit free arse on your
couch or floor whenever I am in the hood and latte-ing it up
with you in London.
Ben, sorry I beg your pardon,
Snowflake how do I begin to thank you for your kindness. Your
antics and enthusiasm make me laugh a lot and the expedition
would be a hell of a lot more ordinary without your energy and
party pants. Your genuine loyalty to Col and the expedition
are touching. Yeah you big pansy I thought that adjective
would appeal to you, but really it takes a lot of character to
be dumped by your fiancé on an expedition and keep
going for the sake of your best mate and the purpose of this
expedition. Your extra help with Col has also been
appreciated, washing clothes with such enjoyment, not taking
short cuts and taking the time to do things right like brewing
the ultimate cup of tea. I am going to miss playing Frisbee
with you like we are the kids who were always picked last for
sports, foam cock fights and our shopping trip gossip sessions
and yes I am going to take you up on that offer to go rock
climbing whenever we get a chance.
Woody and Col,
jointly can I say thank you for having the sense of humour
necessary to be dragged into the bizaare world of Chrissy
Prydun and thank you for putting up with my indecisive
high-school like decision making to date. It’s just difficult
to put in to words how I feel about you both, as irritating as
it makes your lives and I hope my sincere affection towards
you both is testament to that. I’m just sorry things couldn’t
be more straightforward but as Kiko always says ‘you can’t
help how you feel’. What will be will be.
Woody thanks
for all the subtle, little things you do that upon first
glance might not be noticed. I am in awe of your humble behind
the scene efforts, resilient attitude and no bullshit approach
to life. I am going to miss your shit stirring, riding on the
roof of Landy’s with you, swimming across rivers and drum
jamming with you and always making sure I serve you food and
cups of tea last to drive your appetite insane. I look forward
to watching Australia thrash England at some miscellaneous
sport in the local pub at Daventry upon my return and that
thai meal you owe me, well I can take that off your debts.
Col your selfless nature, patience and courage may
sound cliché but they are rare qualities in this
world. I like the fact you think you have a part of your brain
missing which that can make you grin inanely in the most
miserable of situations. The ability to see the good in
everything never ceases to amaze me and it’s true, your jokes
are terrible but they make me laugh. Thank you for having the
gutz to trust me and take me on board in such an intimate role
as carer having only met me briefly. I shall miss our
nonsensical late night chats and arm wrestle competition and I
look forward to spending a week or so with you in the Lugg
until your replacement carer arrives rating all the toilet
experiences in Africa from best to worst.
Before you
fall asleep I want to say a big thank you for listening. It’s
all been said before but I am still so lucky and grateful for
the opportunity I’ve been given to be here and I want you to
know it. This is by far the best travelling experience I’ve
ever had. It’s been hillarious and eye-opening to say the
least. I feel lucky to have had you guys to travel with. I’m
looking forward to our last weeks together even though it’s
probably time to go our own ways. I hope there are more
moments like the other riotous night when we are all crammed
in the tent together but if not I have a truckload of great
memories to mull over when we depart. Today’s scenery was an
absolute bonus and hopefully sneak preview of more good news
to come. Wow, some of what I’ve written sounds really pants
and is so cheesy but if the world explodes tomorrow I’m glad
you know all of this. Habibi guys!
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24 April 2006
12:00:00
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The arrival in Cape Town by Richard Pirouet - Charity
Trustee
The last
few days have made such an impression on all who have
witnessed them that I owe it to everyone else involved in the
project to report to you on them.
Sheelah and I had
always intended to have a few days holiday in Hermanus (a
beach resort about 100 miles out of Cape Town) before meeting
up with Colin and his team as they arrived in Cape Town. It
was only on our day of departure that we discovered that they
were there too!
Given the difficulties they were
facing, they had decided to “race” down to the Cape from
Zambia in about four days and give Colin a whole week of rest
before the actual arrival. So we called on them the day we
arrived and three things were immediately apparent:
1.
Colin was in need of the rest, mainly because of the burns and
sores.
2. Colin was as up beat as ever and clearly
exhilarated by what had been achieved.
3. The whole
team were in great spirits. They had gelled and clearly had
had an amazing time. Not only were they still talking to each
other, they were all smiling!
We saw them three times
in all during those days and those first impressions just got
stronger.
Fast forward to Monday 17 April and a small
band of supporters (Caroline, Jo, Chris’s parents, Woody’s mum
and the two of us) are all standing on Signal Hill in the lee
of Table Mountain at the appointed arrival time of 3 o’clock.
It is a grey day and there is a howling South Easter that is
threatening to blow us off the top of the hill. Then we get a
text to say that they are stuck in the bank holiday traffic
returning to Cape Town. An hour later they get there and the
sun comes out for the first time for two days. Lots of jokes
about being one hour late after x000 miles but they are all so
excited about being there and Colin’s face in particular was a
sight for all to see.
That evening there was a
celebration party at the hostel where they were staying.
Sheelah and I left early and there are no reports on what
happened later (and nor will there be!).
On Tuesday,
Colin had a day of rest interrupted by press interviews but,
in the evening, they saw for the first time the DVD of
highlights of the first half of the trip. This was shown in
the hostel and what had been a very noisy bar the previous
night suddenly fell silent. By the end of it, there wasn’t a
dry eye in the house. The owner of the hostel immediately
cancelled all the accommodation bills for the whole team.
Everyone who has visited Cape Town will know that
organizing a trip up Table Mountain a month ahead is rather
like planning a barbecue in advance in the middle of the
English summer. So, on the Wednesday, we all opened our
curtains with some trepidation. But we needn’t have worried.
Not a breath of wind, not a cloud in the sky and the sun again
shone on the righteous. Chris was worried about Colin being in
a wheel chair for too long that day but the team were not to
be put off by that. He sat in his specially adapted seat and
they simply carried him round everywhere.
At the foot
of the cable car, we met up with our patron, Morne Du Plessis,
Ari, the head of QASA who had flown down from Durban for the
day, and ten of his other wheelchair
bound members. Colin
was carried to the cable car and up we all went. While
everyone was being wowed by the spectacular views, my mobile
phone rang and guess who it was, Derek. So Colin spoke to him
from the top of the mountain.
We had a brief but
emotional ceremony with inspirational speeches by Ari, Morne
and Colin and, to my mind, that was the moment when the team,
Caroline and Jo, and, of course, Colin, really could say
“We’ve done it”. I heard those words several times in the next
few minutes.
Down the mountain, a quick change and we
all had to rush over to a reception at the offices of PwC
hosted by a wheelchair bound member of their staff. Colin had
to put on his “one good shirt” but we let him off the tie and
he talked the assembled gathering through the DVD.
That night, Colin was on the national TV news,
including the interview that we had seen recorded on Table
Mountain.
Thursday, another beautiful day, we met at
Signal Hill and were joined by other Landrover junkies for a
ceremonial drive to Cape Point. Before Colin arrived, there
was lots of talk about carburettors, fuel pumps etc but, as
soon as he arrived, they were all looking at his vehicle and
trying to comprehend just what had been achieved over the last
five months. My bit of the story ends here, as I had to wave
them off on the drive and then get on to a plane for my return
journey.
All in all it was a marvellous few days that
Sheelah and I would not have missed for the world. Caroline,
Jo and our PR lady, Claire did a great job with all the
arrangements. It was an absolute privilege to see Ben, Woody,
Chris, Chrissy and Kiko in action and to see how their main
focus was always on Colin.
But there was never any
doubt as to who was the star of the show.
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27 April 2006
12:00:00
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Final but one entry
Final
entry from the Project Managers
Both Jo and I are just
off the plane from Cape Town early this morning. We were so
pleased to be able to be there to welcome Colin and the team
to Cape Town and to celebrate their achievement with them.
Being together and hearing their stories first hand (rather
than via text or satellite phone as we had been) makes it all
so much more real and to see their raw emotions of what they
have all seen and experienced en route. It really is an
amazing achievement and they all worked so hard together as a
team to achieve it.
Since the final trip to Cape Point
we have loaded the expedition vehicles onto containers. These
set sail on Thursday back to the UK where we will be selling
the Defender (if anyone is interested?!) and keeping the
Discovery for motivational and lecture tours around the UK. We
went to speak at the Sea Point Lions Club to set up a
partnership with Hereford Lions Club who supported us from the
UK, and to link them with the work of QASA. We were fortunate
to be invited for a tour of South African Parliament and to
have lunch with Vincent Gore MP who is leading disability
issues in South Africa. Colin has been admitted to Cape Town
Medi Clinic for a check up and to receive some treatment for
his burns – and he will be flying back to the UK this Saturday
with Chrissy. Ben, Woody and Chris are having a few days more
in Cape Town and are back next week and Kiko has decided to
stay in Cape Town for the summer. So whilst it really is the
end of the trip, it is just the beginning of Colin’s work in
the UK raising further funds and awareness, and motivating
other people to achieve great things.
Thank you to
everyone who has enjoyed reading and following the Driving
Home team's progress so closely over the last 6 months. Your
support has been fantastic. If you do not already receive the
monthly newsletters please do send an email (
caroline@drivinghome.co.uk ) and I will be able to keep you
updated with Colin's work and the work of The Colin Javens
Spinal Injury Trust – there is plenty still to come!
A
date for the diary. Colin will be talking about his Driving
Home expedition - the challenges and achievements, accompanied
by stunning photos at the Royal Geographical Society, London
on Wednesday 13th September 7pm. Please put the date in your
diary now. More information will follow in the newsletter and
on the website in due course.
In a few days time we
will have a final diary entry from Colin summing up his
thoughts on this amazing experience, but in the meantime we
would like to thank you again for all your kind support, As
Ari Seirlis (head of QASA) said to Colin, "you have
done the easy part, now the challenge is to use that
achievement and experience to raise awareness of spinal injury
and to raise funds towards the welfare of the spinal injured
and research into spinal cord repair". We hope you
will continue to support us the challenges to come.
Caroline and Jo
UK Project Managers
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30 April 2006
12:00:00
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Colin's final reflections
Coming
from a man who says very little to sum up his emotions, it’s
quite hard to put into words exactly how I feel about the last
18months of my life. What I can describe to you are some of
the feelings that hit me when we were carrying out the most
challenging and exciting part of the expedition, probably the
highlight of the 5 1/2 months for me.
It was our first
day into Kenya and what lay ahead definitely was the most
challenging part of our route, not only were we about to
encounter roads in the worst possible condition but we were
also really acutely aware of the dangerous situation we had
put ourselves in, due to the amount of Shifta Bandits in the
area. For me, unable to move from the shoulders down, it was a
fantastic feeling that I was still able to attempt such a
feat.
Looking back on it, that day’s drive was by far
the hardest we did. After breaking my steering it meant that
we could only drive at 15mph over corrugated roads, a whole
13hours continuously to Marsabit. It wasn’t just the feeling
of me being able to drive on the roads with my team but it was
the feeling of being able to be in one of the most remote
regions of the world, with nobody in sight for miles, just a
wide open horizon and up above a massive African sky. The
other great feeling for me was that when I had my accident in
2000, I’d always had a considerable urge to go back to Kenya.
Six years later with three years of planning and 60 odd days
on the road, I’d finally made it back!
The next day
when we had to drive over a lava flow it was again quite
intense. It felt like we were entering a world that nobody had
ever set foot on before and again it hit me how amazing it was
that I actually had the ability to do this! After we’d driven
for half a day on the rocky terrain, we dropped over an
escartment that ended up representing the end of the lava flow
and down onto the remnants of what seemed like an extensive
dry lake bed, which in fact marked the start of the Chalbi
desert. We ended that day, driving in tracks with dust blazing
behind us. I remembered where we had stopped. The team were on
an incredible high. As the sun was going down, the strong wind
that blew in our face felt like it was coming from a hair
dryer. We ate veggie curry (again!) that night, we laughed a
lot and slept out underneath the stars with plenty of shooting
stars to be seen. Even though we hadn’t seen anybody all day
and we were in the middle of a desert, Ben still armed all of
the team with a machetti each with encouraging words of how to
use them, in case we were attacked in the night.
Thankfully, we never did encounter any bandits that
night and eventually made it out of the Chalbi desert the next
day even though the tracks weren’t marked clearly on the maps
and as such navigation was very tough going. Luckily Ben’s
phenomenal navigating skills lead us to safety. However, I
always expected that the expedition would be tough, especially
with a spinal injury. I knew that I wouldn’t have access to
accessible facilities like I was used to from home. Luckily
we’d taken time to choose the right equipment (like a
collapsible shower chair and side tent awning that could
double as a private toilet) to enable me to adapt to any
facility we came across. Again, the difficulty of
inaccessibility was overcome thanks to the help of the
expedition team. I can’t remember the amount of times the team
would have to lift me onto a long drop toilet and then squeeze
out past me alongside shit-stained walls! I suppose I also
expected that the facilities wouldn’t be that great and then
prepared myself mentally for that. I think the longest I went
for without a shower was a smelly 2 1/2 weeks because Woody
had regretted to tell me that the portable heat-exchange
shower had already been hooked up to the car!
When it
came to the driving, I knew that I would be able to complete
the whole journey myself. However, on several occasions, once
in Sudan, once in Kenya and on the way to Lake Tanganika in
Zambia, I surprised myself when I managed to continue to drive
on some very difficult terrain.
Having arrived back in
the UK yesterday, it’s strange to think after suffering a
spinal injury in 2000, that the last 18 months have been some
of the best of my life. Looking back at the expedition, I can
pick out some of what I think our main achievements:
-
We successfully visited three projects KPO (Nairobi), KASI
(Moshi) and Disicare (Lusaka), considering I had to rest up
during some of this time.
- We all learnt a great deal
about spinal injuries in Africa and how people almost have to
have an added strength to deal with their problems their. I
was also inspired by several of the people that we met e.g.
Rocky Narangha in Nairobi – a quadraplegic who had
successfully set up Nairobi’s largest driving school, an IT
college and a big BP petrol station on the way out of Nairobi;
Priscilla from Moshi – a C4 paraplegic lady in her 60’s who
had her accident in 1984. She left hospital three years later
to go home to her small farm plot where she has not left
since. She has nothing there, no books, no television, no
electricity, yet she has an incredibly strong heart and mind;
Vanessa Harhoff from Zambia –a C5 24 year old quadraplegic.
Her strength and humour are an inspiration to anyone. Her
artwork has also definitely inspired me to have a go when I go
home.
- My personal achievements: learning to take off and
put on my own t-shirt which I’d never done since my accident;
learning to float and do backstroke unaided in water (Zambia’s
Shiwa Ngandy hot springs) for the first time.
- We
successfully adapted and equipped two Landrovers to complete
such a hard journey.
- The last month of the expedition
felt like a corporate training session when the team had to
devise a way of preventing anymore breakdown to the skin areas
of my bum. I was really impressed how six different minds
worked together to find several different solutions. e.g.
cutting a whole in my driver’s seat and designing a pressure
relieving ring to go on top of that; designing a pressure
relieving dressing to prevent anymore breakdown and adapting
the cushion on my shower chair
- Team dynamics: The team
have worked so well together, that we haven’t had a single
falling out during the whole trip.
Once again as I
write this, I realise how important the people around me have
been in making this expedition a success. Everybody seems to
ask us whether we’ve had arguments along the way. The simple
answer to that is no. It’s been mentioned before, but the
driving home team really seem to handle every problem or
setback with a certain type of humour which helps to relieve
the situation and not to blow it out of proportion. I can
quite honestly say that these guys are very special.
It became apparent to me as I was loaded into the back
of the discovery, lying in the fetal position on my travel
mattress (having discovered one of my pressure sores had
deteriorated and I couldn’t drive the remaining leg from
Kasama to Lusaka) that I would not have been able to complete
this challenge without the help of my very “unique” expedition
team. Each member of the team has brought their own qualities
to the expedition:
Ben Matthews (‘my brother from
another mother’), has been my trusted friend since I was 11.
Having somebody on the trip who knows me better than anyone
else and being able to fall back on them without even
sometimes having to discuss the problems concerned, has been
fantastic. Ben has supported me right from my accident up
until the end of the expedition. Ben is a natural entertainer
and has also got an incredible amount of energy, which often
feeds off to the other team members. He once asked me if I
thought he was fussy when it came to getting things done.
However, for me Ben’s constant strive for perfection in
everything he does always provides me with great confidence
that the job will get done properly. Even though I’ve known
Ben the longest, I’ve learnt a lot from him during this
expedition, mainly due to his attitude to life and his ability
to weigh up a situation and come up with compromises that can
ease a conflicting moment.
You’d be wrong to judge
Woody the first time you meet him. His laid back approach
hides a lot more than meets the eye. Woody is probably the
first one to lend a friend a hand. He admits to himself that
he’s more of a pessimist than an optimist. I wouldn’t call him
a pessimist, but he has added a level headed-ness to the team
dynamics. Somewhere underneath his enormous Afro hair there is
a logical mind that has helped solve several mechanical
problems that we’ve come across on the expedition. Although
his sense of humour is very unique, his shoulder shuddering
laugh helps to add a twist in the tale to the comedy on the
expedition. From Woody I’ve learnt how important it is to give
an honest opinion of what you actually think. You need to call
a spade a spade.
Doc is an incredibly great people
person and has been an excellent representative of what we are
trying to achieve on this trip. He has a very charming way of
talking to people and always puts them at ease. Doc’s
enthusiasm for his camera-work has been very thorough. He
spends many a late night and evening backing up his footage.
He has a very active brain and is forever coming up with new
business entrepreneur ideas. I’ve learnt a lot from Chris in
more ways than one, especially on how not to grow facial hair.
He’s helped me to realise how important raising awareness of
spinal injuries is and the resulting effect it can have on
people and spinal research.
Due to her permanent
position in the Defender, I spent less time with Kiko on the
trip than the rest of the team but Kiko is absolutely full of
energy. To give her credit, when she knows she wants
something, she goes and gets it. Her great money skills have
ensured the team’s kitty has stayed on the straight and narrow
instead of plummeting into debt. I think at any point during
the expedition we know where Kiko is because her volume switch
is a few decibels higher than ours. Her sense of humour shines
through and adds another dimension to the crazy team antics.
Kiko did like looking after her “boys” as she called us. Her
mothering skills always ensured that everyone’s dietary needs
were satisfied. Having looked after her five big kids on this
expedition, she now is adamant that she no longer wants the
seven of her own she once hoped to have.
I didn’t
really contemplate before I left how important Chrissy’s role
on the expedition would be. But looking back at it I consider
myself very lucky that Chrissy came with us. If you can
imagine that you’d have to spend everyday with somebody for
164 days in any ordinary situation, let alone driving to the
otherside of the world, you would have thought you would have
had to of known that person very well. In my case I’d only met
Chrissy once but for some strange reason instantly felt at
ease with her and for an even stranger reason knew that
everything would be ok. It never ceases to amaze me how
optimistic she is and although she is here to help me because
I am unable to do everything, she makes me feel very normal,
(like I haven’t got a disability) Also I must take my hat off
to the way she has dealt with my burns because on occasions
they have been very unsightly and due to the weeping it has
created a lot of extra work, which has always been done
without battering an eyelid. Chrissy has also played a very
important role of keeping the team together and additionally
she has inherited the Australian habit of taking the piss out
of everyone! Like Ben, I’ve learnt from Chrissy that it’s very
important to weigh up different people’s personalities and to
treat them accordingly.
However, it’s not just my team
that I have to thank for making this trip such a successful
expedition, so I would like to take this opportunity to thank:
- Derek Breed – the founder of the expedition for his
generosity
- My Family – for their continued support
-
Richard Pirouet, Tony Wright, David Croisdale-Appleby our
trustees for guidance and support
- Jo and Caroline - our
project managers for their behind the scenes hard work
-
The people of Hereford – for all their generosity
- The
Winston Churchill Memorial trust – for backing our expedition
- Spinal Research for their encouragement and office space
for Jo and Caroline
- Cranfield University for all of
their technical support
- Stoke Mandeville Hospital for
their ongoing medical support
- Spinal Research for their
encouragement and office space for Jo and Caroline
- John
Lloyd and Colin Green at Landrover Experience and those at JV
Like for training the team in off road driving and sponsoring
us for some of our equipment
- Charlie McGrath at
Objective for the expedition team safety and survival training
which fortunately we did not have to use
- David
Constantine at Motivation for introducing us to our African
projects and for his guidance
- Trek Overland,
W&H Safari Equip, Discoparts, Footloose 4x4,
Fleetguard, Devon 4x4, Pentagon Glass Tech, Optima, Conrico,
Allisport, Kelly Kettle, Keith Gott, General Ecology, Exmoor
Trim, Mobile Storage System, Condor Ferries, Atlas Fire
Protection, McConnells, Coxlease School, Butchers Pet Care,
Brecon Pharmaceuticals, Gordon Foundation, Pegasus Ltd,
Chartwells Insurance and Gerald Simonds for all your
expedition sponsorship and belief in us.
- Avanade, Kroll
International and ISB Design for continuous web updates,
location mapping and diary publishings - thankyou for your
work
- Molten Rock and Chris for your immense effort in
flying the off-road wheelchair to Kenya. It was a superb few
days whizzing around so independently - good luck with it in
the future
People we need to thank en-route
-
Stoke Mandeville and staff for their kind send off
-
Genevieve and Paddy Matthews for a delicious pre-departure
dinner
- Susan and Peter for a generous meal in Portsmouth
- Derek, Hillary, Hillary and Pauline for your hospitality
in Jersey and the school community of Jersey
- Condor
ferries
- The Lions Club of Jersey
- Stan and Neji for
introducing us to Africa
- Tom from Norway for your wisdom
- Tequila and Mr Neji for their crazy antics
- Yaya
the owner of Adams House and staff in Aswan for their Nubian
hospitality
- Manon and her dutch crew for the experience
- George and Egg-heart our great travelling companions and
hopefully friends forever (you crazy South Africans)
-
Crazy Dan the cyclist for the entertainment
- Craig the
manager of the only Landrover dealer in Addis Ababba who fixed
our vehicles
- Rocky and Colin for our first welcome to
Kenya
- Flash, Sarah, Nikki and Jojo Barlow for a warm
welcome home, their overwhelming generosity and using their
house as a base at the halfway stage
- The community of
Gil Gil for their fundraising and generosity
- Pembroke
and Greensted schools for inviting us to come and talk to your
students
- Mike and Debbie Ghaui for their hospitality and
continued support (and for not laughing too much when I fell
out of my wheelchair)
- Ron and Pauline Beaton for our
fantastic stop off in the Mara and their fundraising efforts
- Susie, Yan and Erin Allan for their warm hospitality in
Nairobi
- Isabella Iems for inviting us to Sotik
-
Martin and his wife for looking after us at Sotik Tea Estate
- Ezekial, George and other staff for showing us around
the tea estate and factory in Sotik
- Members of KPO, KASI
and DISICARE for your warm welcome and knowledge
- Gazza
for his superb photography and party shorts!
- Anthony and
Anthea Rowan and family for putting up with us so long and
Anthea for her kind words
- Bill and Claire, always good
for a laugh
- Nikki Ghaui for inviting us to stay at
Kisolanza
- The Foxes in the Ruaha for a delicious lunch
- Mark and Mel for your hospitality at the Hot Springs
were I learnt to swim and Boris and family from Switzerland
for your company there
- Vanessa, Amanda and Quentin
Harhoff from Kasama for your incredible hospitality and
putting up with the guests who never left
- Zambian Phil
for your scuba diving lessons and humour
- John and
Kirsten Flinn from Lusaka for allowing us to descend upon your
abode for so long
- Nikki Bauster from Francistown for
your donation and kind words
- Peter Hemingway for taking
the time to meet us and share your knowledge
- Eckhard and
sister for letting us crash your beach house in Hermanus
-
Tony and staff at the Capetown Backpackers for your
overwhelming generosity and Friendship
- Ari and Members
of QASA for your inspiration aod hardwork
- Claire Taylor
for your hard work and friendship
- Richard and Sheela
Pirouet, Old Mother Wood, Susan and Peter for your friendship
- Landrover Convoy for your great welcome and for being
there on our last day’s trucking
- Ashburton for
supporting CJSIT as your charity of the year in South Africa
- The Carver Brown’s for your friendship
- Dr Bruce
Caven and The nursing staff at Cape Town Medi Clinic ‘hood
donkey’ for looking after me!
- The Lions Club of Cape
Town
- Finally I would like to thank everyone who has
emailed the expedition team for their words of support and I
hope to be in touch with all of you very soon
- Erica at
International SOS for getting me home safely
Somebody said to me very recently that the most
important thing in life is not actually finishing something,
it’s actually starting it. That’s what really counts. The
Driving Home idea was my dream since I was a boy. I feel like
I’ve put the wheels in motion but I could definitely not have
done it without so many peoples help and I feel that because
of the support that everyone has given me, it has given me and
my team an amazing opportunity of a lifetime. We’ve seen
places and faces in this world that many will never set eyes
upon. We’ve seen landscapes change from Mountain to Savannah
and back to Mountain again. We’ve all learnt so much and we’ve
met some great people but most of all we have obtained some
fantastic memories. In the wider picture, I hope this
expedition has helped raise awareness of spinal injuries and I
can admit myself that before my injury I knew nothing of the
subject and I hope we’ve made a little difference. It’s also
opened my eyes even more to what is actually possible in this
world if you set your mind to it.
Right now I am
resting up in Stoke, but when I return I shall divulge details
of future plans for Driving Home and the CJSIT so stay tuned…
SOME INTERESTING STATISTICS AND GIGGLES:
Expedition Nicknames:
Ben (Sandy): Mr Bi-iiin;
Benjimund; Little Lady; Chopper; Helicopter, Snowflake, Chuck,
Sandy
Chris (Shandy): The Doc; Dr Sticky Pants; Dr Turd;
The Dark Destroyer; Tripod; Parsnip; Hemmingway; Shandy
Chrissy (Candy): Prundi; Prund; Crispy; The Nutritional
Terrorist; Baby Doll; Little Old Lady
Kiko (Gandy): Mummy
Matthews; Gandolph; Lloyd Christmas (after Chrissy cut her
fringe); Saki; Kikes; Flora
Woody (Handy): The Wood; Ricko
the Sicko; Slimer; Oglebey; Peeler; Woodmeister;
Col
(Randy): Gayvens; Shavens; The Shave-inator; The Queen; Hank;
Hank-on; Grandma; Nicky; Boing-deckster
Quotes:
Col’s tactful one liners: Ralph, didn’t you have more
hair last time (He hadn’t lost any and was always semi bald);
Kiko, in this light you look great! (It’s dark)
Chrissy: Doc, you know, you need to get out more
Doc: I’m in the middle of the Sudan for gods sake!!!
Flash Barlow to Kiko after her and Ben cancelled their
wedding: Do you want some slippers, cos I hear you have cold
feet?
Woody (at the start of the expedition in
reference to a previous family holiday): I promised myself
when I was 13 that I would never go on a driving holiday
again!
Ben: (pointing in the blatantly obvious
direction of the only route in the middle of the otherwise
isolated Sudanese Nubian desert) Hey Swiss Robert we’re going
this way!!:
Ben: Am I right?
Chrissy: Are you
wrong?
Ben: I am right!
Chrissy: You’re not wrong
Doc: Knock, Knock
Chrissy/Col: Who’s there
Doc: Doctor
Chrissy/Col: Doctor who? Ha ha ha
Kid to Col at Pembroke School Talk, Kenya: How did you
get your wonky eye?
Kid to Col at School in Jersey: How
did you get that bump on your head?
Catch Phrases:
Doc: For ****s sake!; Should I be filming this? I am going
to do some damage; yeah baby yeah! I suspect…; If I was being
honest…
Col: That’s nice; …and things like that;
Safety never takes a day off;
Ben: That’s right!;
Don’t worry I can get by; Un momento (usually to Arabic
speaking border officials)
Woody: How many eggs do you
want…c’mon!!; Can we eat yet? Can we have sausages? Where are
we? What are we doing? Who are you? Hurry up!
Kiko:
(in a cockney accent): Ya wot?
Chrissy: what’s for
lunch little lady (in a bullying tone); that’s a nasty little
habbit/I don’t like your attitude (pronounced li-il ‘abbit and
‘a’ii-tude in east London gangsta accent); you are in my
hemisphere now so from now on you must follow my rules (after
crossing the equator)
Tequila (our Libyan guide): Why?
Beeeee-caaaause….; Libya has the best…
Favourite made
up songs:
Woodywall (to tune of wonderwall)
‘It
doesn’t matter if your granny’s black or white’
Three
Little Fishies
Total…
Mileage: 22,000km
Countries visited: 12
Days: 164
Vegetable Curries:
1 trillion, 2 naans and 1 grandpah
Punctures: 3
Vehicles stuck: 2 (Woody driving Brenda en route to
Khartoum in some sand and Col driving Beryl in our first day
in Zambia becomes stuck in a muddy car park)
Piss stops in
one day’s trucking: 8 in 2 1/2hours
Arguments: 1
Return visits to guests: 11
Times falling out of the
wheelchair: 1 (Mike Ghaui’s Place, Kenya)
Animal Carcasses
picked up: 11
Sundowners: 1.5
Hottest Place:
Lake Turcana, Kenya
Muggiest Place: Moshi, Tanzania
Coldest Place: French Alps, France and Simien Mountains,
Ethiopia
Wettest Place: Zambia!
Windiest Place: Chalbi
Desert, Kenya
5 Best Camping Spots:
Camping
outside under the stars in the Chalbi Desert, Kenya
Camping high up in the Simien Mountains around a fire,
Ethiopia (New Years Eve)
Camping in the remote Nubian
Desert with trillions of stars, Nile Route, Sudan (Christmas
Eve)
Camping by Lake Lagano, with views of the lake
lapping from my tent, Ethiopia
Camping on a windy
fishermans beach with an awesome sunset, Gabez, Tunisia
Most unusual camping spot: Mc Donalds Car Park,
Rennes, France
Toilet Humour:
Worst Toileting
Experience: Squat toilets, Wadi Halfa, Sudan
Most
challenging Toilet Experience: Battling with temperamental
showers At Derek’s house in Jersey
Longest time on the
Toilet: 5hours
Shortest time on the Toilet: 1hour
Annoying ways to ask for tea and coffee
Colin:
M,n,o,p,q,r,s….what’s the next letter?
Kiko: T
Colin:
Tea? Why yes I’d love some…milk and two sugars
Chrissy: What’s the first name of the guy who heads
the UN
Doc: Kofi?
Chrissy: Coffee…yeah I’d love some
thanks, milk and two sugars
Ben: Whose the guy who
Rocky fought in Rocky 5…Mr who?
Woody: T?
Ben: Tea…yes
please…milk but no sugar
Food
Favourite meal:
Tasting meat for the first time in ages at Ol Malo, Kenya:
fillet of Steak on the BBQ
Worst meal: Cold Injera,
Gondor, Ethiopia
Winner of the weetabix challenge: Chrissy
ate 24 weetabix in 45minutes!
Trucking:
Longest truck: 810km in 13hours
Best Truck: Chalbi
Desert, Kenya and Nubian Desert, Sudan
Worst Truck: Kasama
to the Forrest Inn en route to Lusaka, Zambia
Most
difficult Truck: Kasama to Lake Tanganika, Zambia
Security:
Number of muggings: 1, Cape Town,
South Africa
Number of car break in’s: 1, Cape Town, South
Africa
Number of car accidents: 0
Number of gear
crunches: More than we told Woody about!
Best swim:
Shiwa Ngandu, Hot Springs, Zambia
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