The Death Road

---

5000mtrs up where the air is thin is not the best with the aforementioned chest infection.

The Death Road, is a much anticipated highlight. Cycling down the road with the most fatalities relatively, 7000 in 10 years or something like that. That doesnt stop us tho, in our crazy get up, various protective wear and a huge full face helmet. The 1st part is deceptively easy hurtling down tarmac at 30km/hr. Fine, no probs, what I want to know is why the company is called "Downhill Madness" but there is a unjust amount of uphill, uphill at 5000 mtrs with my chest & you expect me to peddle, not a chance! So I push.

The tarmac soon makes way for what I can only describe as a narrow gravel track in a cliff face. No wonder bus loads of people went over the edge, 400mtrs vertically down to their death. It is here where we are given a test run of 5 minutes to seperate us into groups. It is also here that my chain comes off, hence, I finish last & automatically get put in the slow group- we will be having less of that!

The scenery was truely amazing, lush green mountainous forest tho unappreciated by us whizzing by, eyes on the road, definitely nowhere else.

Throughout the trip we hear the tales of the less fortunate. A guy, who a couple of months previously, pushed his mate over by accident whilst playing macho games- whoops.

A great one tho was the Japanese girl they call "ET." She simply didnt register a bend (that are both blind and deaf and still in use by cars, buses and anyone mad enough to drive a motorised vehicle along it) & went shooting off, still peddling as she dropped over 450mtrs straight down. Apparently all she needed was a large basket on the front. The worst thing is that, perhaps it is the adrenaline, everyone found this hilarious!

Our group just about made it down in one piece as one guy had a close shave going over the edge but landing in a bush 1mtr down. "The Man that God Touched" was his name thereafter!!

At the bottom the Brazil England match for us and coke for anyone who wants it from our guide, from this god damned stuff there is simply no escape and its pissing me off.

---