My Round The World ride (inc top blagging at Spa & The Ring)

My Round The World ride (inc top blagging at Spa & The Ring)

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5potTurbo

12,613 posts

170 months

Monday 24th September 2012
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"Not bad.." followed by "just had dinner with his Highness...."

thumbup

Thanks for the check-in. I wondered if you'd gone *glug, glug* in the sea!

daz3210

5,000 posts

242 months

Monday 24th September 2012
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Good to hear your OK Neil.

I guess where you are the mobile is not as good as good old Blighty.


neilski

Original Poster:

2,563 posts

237 months

Monday 24th September 2012
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There only seems to be a signal close to a village and the villages are over 100km apart so if I have a problem out in the desert I'll have a long way to walk or a slow death.

Internet is practically non-existent outside of the cities so this is the first chance I've had to get on line since Aktau. All courtesy of HRH of course!

daz3210

5,000 posts

242 months

Monday 24th September 2012
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Sounds like you are having fun then.

Is now the time to consider a satellite phone?

torqueofthedevil

2,083 posts

179 months

Monday 24th September 2012
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How do peopleknow you Are cycling around the world? I.e how did HRH above happen to hear your story and invite you to dinner?!?!?

Briliant though! Currently aspiring for LEJOG!

neilski

Original Poster:

2,563 posts

237 months

Friday 28th September 2012
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He got his driver to pull over next to me then asked if I was ok and if there was anything I needed. Well what else would you do when you're a sheikh and you see a heavily loaded cyclist riding along an unpaved road in the middle of nowhere and I do mean nowhere!

I said I was fine but thanks for asking and he was on his way. It wasn't until the next morning when I met his accountant who asked if I was hungry that I got invited to the camp then spent the day there eating, having a shower and having a look round while the sheikh was out hunting. When he got back in the evening and heard I was at the camp I was summoned to meet him to tell him about my trip then invited to join him and about 50 of his friends and family for dinner.

Digga

40,463 posts

285 months

Friday 28th September 2012
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neilski said:
He got his driver to pull over next to me then asked if I was ok and if there was anything I needed. Well what else would you do when you're a sheikh and you see a heavily loaded cyclist riding along an unpaved road in the middle of nowhere and I do mean nowhere!

I said I was fine but thanks for asking and he was on his way. It wasn't until the next morning when I met his accountant who asked if I was hungry that I got invited to the camp then spent the day there eating, having a shower and having a look round while the sheikh was out hunting. When he got back in the evening and heard I was at the camp I was summoned to meet him to tell him about my trip then invited to join him and about 50 of his friends and family for dinner.
Top, top blagging. I hope you got a few pics of the camp?

oj113

182 posts

206 months

Friday 28th September 2012
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Digga said:
neilski said:
He got his driver to pull over next to me then asked if I was ok and if there was anything I needed. Well what else would you do when you're a sheikh and you see a heavily loaded cyclist riding along an unpaved road in the middle of nowhere and I do mean nowhere!

I said I was fine but thanks for asking and he was on his way. It wasn't until the next morning when I met his accountant who asked if I was hungry that I got invited to the camp then spent the day there eating, having a shower and having a look round while the sheikh was out hunting. When he got back in the evening and heard I was at the camp I was summoned to meet him to tell him about my trip then invited to join him and about 50 of his friends and family for dinner.
Top, top blagging. I hope you got a few pics of the camp?
That's what I love about this part of the world, the whole concept of hospitality for your fellow man is astounding and very humbling.

Potatoes

3,572 posts

172 months

Friday 28th September 2012
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This is truly the most epic story ever.

Good man Neil!!

neilski

Original Poster:

2,563 posts

237 months

Friday 28th September 2012
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The morning after I'd had breakfast with the sheikh I slept rough (sleeping bag & mat, no tent) in a town and was mistaken for a homeless person by an old lady who then gave me 200 Tenge (about 80p) to get myself something to eat. Talk about going from one extreme to the other....

Potatoes

3,572 posts

172 months

Friday 28th September 2012
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lol

Rob_T

1,916 posts

253 months

Saturday 29th September 2012
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This adventure is rapidly turning into the best book not yet written. It's your pension sorted at least! Watch out jk Rowling!

torqueofthedevil

2,083 posts

179 months

Saturday 29th September 2012
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It takes some guts to ride in places as remote and desolate as you describe!

torqueofthedevil

2,083 posts

179 months

Saturday 29th September 2012
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It takes some guts to ride in places as remote and desolate as you describe!

daz3210

5,000 posts

242 months

Wednesday 31st October 2012
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Not heard from Neil in a while on this thread.

Here's hoping he is OK.

Minemapper

933 posts

158 months

Wednesday 31st October 2012
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I've seen some tweets not so long ago. I think he's in a very bandwidth limited environment.

neilski

Original Poster:

2,563 posts

237 months

Wednesday 31st October 2012
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^What Minemapper said.

Right now I'm camping next to a lake in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan with no-one around for miles & miles. I should be in Bishkek in the next few days so if I can find a decent internet connection I'll do some updates with some photos from the Stans.

Some good news last week though.... The photo I posted of me with the stripey head from riding into a headwind in the desert won me a new Giro Aeon helmet in a "best photo wins" competition so all my suffering that day wasn't in vain. smile

daz3210

5,000 posts

242 months

Wednesday 31st October 2012
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neilski said:
^What Minemapper said.

Right now I'm camping next to a lake in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan with no-one around for miles & miles. I should be in Bishkek in the next few days so if I can find a decent internet connection I'll do some updates with some photos from the Stans.

Some good news last week though.... The photo I posted of me with the stripey head from riding into a headwind in the desert won me a new Giro Aeon helmet in a "best photo wins" competition so all my suffering that day wasn't in vain. smile
Good to hear you are OK Neil, look forward to the updates when you can.


Gizmoish

18,150 posts

211 months

Wednesday 31st October 2012
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Really enjoying following this. Some of the photos are astonishing... what a wide world it is smile

Not sure if you're aware but there's some political machination going on in China as they prepare for the five-yearly changing of the guard at the top of government. It's affecting product deliveries because of customs clampdowns, not sure whether it will affect you getting into China or not (I'm assuming you're planning to at some point!).

You're near one of my favourite places on the map too... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taklamakan_Desert just a huge expanse of sand and nothing biggrin

MrB1obby

771 posts

152 months

Wednesday 31st October 2012
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neilski said:
Right now I'm camping next to a lake in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan with no-one around for miles & miles.
Thanks for rubbing our noses in it hehe