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4 Aug 2015
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This is no fun.
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
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5 Aug 2015
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Another, late afternoon rendezvous with riders coming in the opposite direction informs us of problems on the Ulaangom to Tsaanaguur section; fifteen river crossings, all high due to the recent rain. They advise heading south to Khovd an Ulgii.
Then it's tuck ourselves away up in the hills for the night.
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
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5 Aug 2015
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Rivets, washboard, whatever they're called, are awful and probably the nastiest surface I have ever encountered. Sure, for a few miles they're bearable but for tens of miles they're extremely frustrating and hard on the bike.
At 1mph it's like riding a horse as you go over each individual one.
At 10mph your bike is rattling to pieces (Poor Paul with his metal panniers felt it more than me, but still)
At 20mph it gets a bit better depending on the distance between the washboard but still not nice
At 40 or 50mph it's not too bad, you get a floating sensation as the wheels are hardly ever in contact with the ground, but it's only for those braver than me, 40mph feels like 100mph!
Standing up helps sometimes, sitting down is better at other times but overall it's nasty stuff. I won't miss it, that's for sure.
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5 Aug 2015
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Is your partner dropping his bike too, or do you just take up all the slack? 
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5 Aug 2015
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Shrekonwheels
Is your partner dropping his bike too, or do you just take up all the slack? |
I thought I'd put in the hard work on this one. 
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
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5 Aug 2015
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wildman
The washboard claims it's first victim; Daniel's clutch.
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That was an awful heart sinking moment as I had no clutch at all. I hadn't taken a clutch cable with me although I did have a cheap cable repair kit. During the 10 seconds it took me to roll to a halt my mind was already thinking of how I could fix a broken cable, how far I could ride without a clutch etc.
Thankfully though, as you can see, it was just the adjuster that had fallen out and popping a bolt through the lever fixed it. I didn't have a nut though and so tie wraps held it on until the end of the journey
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5 Aug 2015
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118 miles from beyond Tes towards Ulaangom
The going became very sandy the closer we got to Uvs Nuur.
First stop was in Baruuntaruun.
Unfortunately, despite being before 11:00 in the morning, the local town drunk decided that I should provide him with the means for his next fix. Mongolians, in our experience, are a warm and friendly people but steer well clear of a drunk Mongolian; he was highly persistent and, when it became clear that I was in no mood to subsidise his habit, he became aggressive, kicking the motorcycle and me. I fended off the first kick but I regret to admit, I placed a well aimed motorcycle boot as I rode off.
We also encountered a little territorial stand-off with a herd of horses (I just had to look up the collective noun for wild horses). They stood their ground in the cool water, the grey being the obvious leader, only a rev of the engine finally affording us clear passage.
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
Last edited by Wildman; 2 Sep 2015 at 21:47.
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5 Aug 2015
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By now, my confidence in sand was in tatters and I was picking my way.
We eventually arrived in Zuunguv. It was tempting to hitch our motorcycles whilst we quenched our thirst.
Ever the perfect hosts, I was provided with a stool to sit on.
Daniel had brought with him a Polaroid camera that prints photographs which proved to be a massive hit with local children.
Whilst we were there, a Land Cruiser arrived and a rather portly gentleman wandered over and in broken English, enquired about us and our journey. Let me introduce you to Dam who, unbeknown to us at the time, would become a great friend.
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
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5 Aug 2015
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
Last edited by Wildman; 26 Aug 2015 at 22:41.
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5 Aug 2015
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Towards the end of the day, a few kms after this sign.
Again!
This one hurt. In a carbon copy of my crash in Morocco, three years earlier, I dabbed my right foot, my toes caught in the sand, the pannier followed through and caught my heel and within a second I was lying on the ground facing forwards with my foot facing backwards. I felt the MCL on the inside of my right knee 'go' as I went down; very painful.
Picking bike up, I continued for another mile or so but it was obvious, I couldn't go on that day. We decided to camp by the side of the road and review our options in the morning.
We weren't on the main route into Ulaangom but on a track that the locals use.
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
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5 Aug 2015
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I've been asked why we hide ourselves when camping each night. The reason is that Mongolians are so friendly and inquisitive that they will stop if they see you, as they did that evening.
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
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5 Aug 2015
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As we were packing away and reviewing our options the next morning, around 07:00, a vehicle came along the track, stopped and out stepped .... Dam, the gentleman we'd met in Zuunguv. After a little conversation he says, "You need ambulance and truck". I told him that an ambulance probably wasn't necessary but he simply said, "Two hours", jumped back in his Land Cruiser and waived at his driver.
We packed away and waited.
And waited.
My right knee was swollen and tender but could bear weight and I was hopeful that the damage wasn't as bad as three years ago.
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
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5 Aug 2015
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
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5 Aug 2015
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Just as we were beginning to lose a little faith, five and a quarter hours after he left, Dam reappears, accompanied by the Ulaangom ambulance, a doctor and some 'muscle'. He declares that a truck is also on the way.
A quick examination by the doctor and he declares that I need x-rays so I'm bundled into the ambulance leaving Daniel in charge of my motorcycle.
It's a good job that I hadn't broken anything since the ambulance ride was little short of terrifying. My rear-end literally left the seat twice on the 70km drive to Ulaangom.
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
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5 Aug 2015
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Dam and Daniel supervise my motorcycle being loaded onto the truck.
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Paul "Every county of England, every country of Europe and every (part of every inhabited) continent of the Earth" 94% done! What's left? Central America, East, Central and West Africa, Australia & New Zealand
Last edited by Wildman; 13 Aug 2015 at 18:19.
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