If we restart the Tour again after the two-week rest, we have half of the Tour behind us (as far as time is concerned). A good moment for an evaluation.
Has the Tour been what I have expected? Absolutely. Almost every day on the bike to ride 120 km, I enjoy it very much. Depending on the circumstances (wind-direction, road surface, temperature, relief) it’s easy or very hard. Behind every urve a new piece of Africa is revealed, and you meet new people.
The international group we are traveling with is a very pleasant one. We are on the road now for two months, everybody has found his own sub-group that he/she is comfortable with.
At the beginning of the Tour i was not sure whether i could do 120 km a day, 6 days in a row. It turns out that it's not a problem: even after the tough stages i recuperate fast enough to be ready for the next day.
The thing that is most besides my expectations, is the type of riders in the group. I had expected that those who have came for the challenge (can i ride the bike all the way from Cairo to Capetown?) would strongly outnumber those who have a more touristic approach: the want to see Africa. This is not the case. It does not bother me, but i had expected otherwise.
In short: i'm still very enthousiastic. The countdown will start in Arusha: 8 weeks to go from there until i see Helene, Guus and Lieke in Capetown.
The statistics:
Travelled distance: 4366 km
Hour on the bike: 192
Average speed: 22,7 km/h
Altitude meters: 19000
# flats: 8
EFI: still OK