Total: 1947.5
Total Vic to Adelaide: 726
Today was great. I rode the whole way pretty much with Hong. He actually went pretty fast, and we got into Beachport around 5:00pm S.A time (half an hour before Vic). We laughed a lot as I said with great surprise this morning that it was the first time I actually saw him riding, every other time I've seen him he's been off it, having a break or pushing it up hills.
This morning was nice, we first had some brekky and then rode to the blue lake in Mt.Gambier. The lake was really beautiful. It was raining quite heavy so we didn't hang around to long and then shortly after we left to ride out the 90km to Beachport.
I really have a lot of respect for Hong. He doesn't expect anything fancy, he doesn't eat a great deal and he's very easy going. The last two days his dinner and breakfast have been the same meals. This morning he ate two meat pies for brekky, as he had a four pack from Coles and ate the other two last night. In the middle of the day he doesn't stop and every time I offer a snake he says no, only after I tell him the sugar would be good for him he'll take one. An example of his gratitude was when I was riding and I stopped to pick some apples off the side of the road. Hong was so grateful, even though the apple wasn't fully ripe he continued to eat the whole thing.
After this we pulled into town and checked into a camp ground. We did the same thing as the last couple of nights and Hong payed $14, I payed $10. Very expensive camp ground, for both Hong and I we really should have tried to find some place free. At least here we had easy cooking, showers, power and a safe environment. I'm now actually getting used to sleeping in the tent with him abd it's at the point I feel we should pay equally.
The unfortunate news for today however is that Hongs rear wheel is buggered and he's not to sure if he can continue. He needs to replace 5 or so spokes, if he continues to ride he could snap the whole wheel. I told him I'd have a look in the morning and hopefully I can try fix it a bit.
This showed me two things - that Hong was crazy to leave on a bike without having a clue how to replace anything and secondly I think that he wanted it this way. For Hong it is not about sticking to his word or trying to complete it solely for the challenge but more to just appreciate the overall experience. I respect that he has a lot of confidence that he can come into a completely foreign situation, without knowing what can happen. This is the biggest area that I had to develop for this trip - going off into the unknown and being so confident that nothing will go wrong. If something does seem to go wrong then I just get out of that situation, steer off route a little and fix up whatever it is. This is something that contributes to a special bond and I certainly feel this with Hong. I have not met to many people that have this quality and I love it when I do. It's something that can be applied to all facets of life, in particular business, and also everyday life choices. Perhaps the two biggest areas I want to enjoy most throughout my life.
After some good spaghetti and lentils for dinner Hong and I have set off for sleep for a long day tomorrow. Hongs going to look at busses as he might not continue.
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