Day Three - Bueng Kan to Ban Phaeng

113.88 kms over 8 hours 54 mins including rest times

Today I joined the One Hundred Club.  Never having cycled even close to 100km before, it was always going to be tough.  This is me at the end of day three.

 

We set off on a cool morning but I think we all knew that the cloud cover would burn off and turn into a scorcher.  The heat rash under my shorts at the end of the day was testament to that.  

Today was all about the cycling and how my body would perform.  OMG listen to me!

I have started to realise how important the nutrition that you put inside you at each stop is.  I have never eaten so much before and thankfully the food is delicious.

Breakfast is always a huge plate of fried rice, fried eggs, fruit and toast.  Coffee to pump you up. In Thailand they sell great little cans of strong sweet iced coffee which are a cyclists best friend at a rest stop. We drink copious amounts of water with electrolytes to keep hydrated.  The slightest sign of a headache tells you to increase the intake.

About half of the cycling today was off road on very bumpy and dusty tracks.  The impact on the body was harder and you had to concentrate, as Craig (Borat) discovered when he got the tandem with Mai Thiew on the back stuck in a rut around a corner.  Suddenly his riding partner was no longer there.  Thankfully she was ok.  Mai Thiew is so inspiring: Director of Home Hug orphanage, where we are headed, she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer about 9 years ago but is determined to do the ride with us and be part of it.  She is an amazing woman and very precious cargo for Borat to lose!

The rubber plantations turned into endless miles of tobacco plantations and we were to see the leaves hanging to dry in one large barn towards the end.  We stopped in a few villages to be greeted by excited children, who wanted to play, ride alongside on their bikes and even have a go on the tandem.

 

At one village we stopped by the Catholic Church and the priest came out to see us.  His English was great and he explained that 95% of the village is Catholic since the French arrived up the Mekong well over a hundred years ago.  The church on the river is probably the first thing they built.

 

At the first stop today after 22 kms, I took a gel with caffeine.  Some cyclists swear by them and some shy away, saying they upset your stomach and can make you feel sick and the high that you get means you also have to come down. I was told to drink loads of water with it not realising there was a bumpy off road 20 km stretch ahead to torment my bladder! But I wanted to test one and today was the day to do that.  I have to say that I did get a huge boost of energy and had a power in my legs that came out of nowhere. I was even singing far too loudly. On a welcome stretch of highway, I found myself zipping along in a group and we must have been averaging about 29 kph.  

I am understanding the pleasures of riding in a group and resting behind someone else at times, which was what happened later in the day when I was starting to lag and Emma cycled up and tucked me in behind her.  

It was a long day which was broken up into five legs with a longer stop in between.  We needed those to hydrate, snack and stretch.

My legs were better than I thought.  The main problem I had was the intense pain between my shoulder blades from leaning over the handle bars all day.  The wonderful Chris and Andrew of Team NZ helped me out with that in the evening with an application of Deep Heat, Panadol and some stretching.

By the end of the day, I was immensely proud of myself.  We were all in bed by 9pm after the best dinner so far of steamed fish in chilli and lime, chicken and cashew nuts and Som Tam salad (my favourite).

 

Another 100+ day tomorrow before the rest day.