Mongol Rally, Day 8, 26/07

Slow start this morning as yesterday's riding was very tough in the heat.

At the hostel I met a couple of lads from Iverness who are touring the Nordics and Lithuania/Latvia on more sensible sized bikes and as usual they were in disbelief at how far I was going on the XR.

The mighty XR while still in tip top condition

A little maintenance was completed, the blown headlamp bulb was a pain in the dark the previous night and as I am about to go into Russia it would be the perfect excuse for the police to constantly hassle me for bribes. The USB charger still does not work but I will leave that for when I get to Moscow; as for the moment I am staying in hostels and hotels where I can charge my phone.

The ride to Rezekne in Latvia was again very hard, it seems that the Latvians have decided to dig up all the roads that head east and leave them in a loose gravel finish. The dust clouds are choking and the big trucks pepper you with stones as they rush past. Latvia seems to be woods, fields and lots of small farms, I did not see any industry over my whole trip.

Rezekne has a definite Soviet feel about it with lots of crumbling social housing flats and the expected big statues. My hotel is the usual lovely reception area then somehow you go back in time while in the lift and emerge to find a room perfectly preserved from the 1960's, complete with dripping taps and lino flooring.

Soviet era crumbling flats

The bingo hall next door (also bar, pizza restaurant, and general low life hang out place) is boasting a mega prize night of  100Euros! I suspect that the ex Soviet housewives of Rezekne will be there and horribly drunk later tonight!

Miles today 220M (352KM) and a lot of dust and dirt.

Oh my god here we go again! Mongol Rally 2015

So having not learnt my lesson last year, my lovely wife has again unleashed me on the unsuspecting world (or at least Eastern Europe) and agreed that I can ride to Mongolia once more.

Unfortunately work has delayed my departure so although the 2015 Mongol Rally started yesterday, I am still at my work desk for another week before donning my leathers and risking all for the sake of insanity.

Now this year the Aventurists have supplied some words for us all to speak whenever in a public forum, so here is a taster that puts us in the mood.

"Adventure used to be easier. Maps had edges and you could keep going until you fell off the edge of the world. Now you have to try hard to get lost. You've got to ignore the travel guides, you've got to throw your compass down the loo and you've got to set off with nothing but ignorance to light your path"

So to make progress after a late start I have a cunning plan.
A few weeks ago I rode my mighty steed (Honda XR125) to Warsaw in Poland and left it with the lovely Anna who is guarding it with her life until I return next Saturday - then it's head down for a thrash through Lithuania and Latvia with Moscow as my target for first proper rest and party time (hopefully there will be some very slow teams that are still in town)!

To get you excited here is the trusty steed (donated by Koh Lee Na) sitting by the Berlin wall while I was on my way to Warsaw.

As you can see from the painting I am metaphorically escaping! (pretty high brow for me)

Bigger boots, more armour and old age will hopefully keep me safe this year.