J63 – 2/18/2006

Two months have passed since we started.

The time that slips by on this long race is an enigma: the length and regularity of our days (7 days out of 7, we pack and unpack bags, repeat the same gestures, have the same automatic reactions) could give the impression that the time is long, very long but in the end we haven’t seen the two months go by.  Our nomadic life is outside normal time and it is set to the rhythm of the race.  Joël and René get up at 6H00 and pack their bags.  Joël is in charge of feeding, that is: preparing the thermos bottles and the sandwiches for Serge.  René prepares the vehicles and ensures that everything is in good working order: he checks the different levels, gives a quick clean to the cab of the four wheel drive and to the camper.  Serge gets up at 6H45. At 7H00 everybody has breakfast.  At 7H40, the four-wheel drive and Serge start the day. We spend nine to nine and a half hours on the road, regardless of the weather.  There is no respite.  At 7H40, I type these few lines and answer mail.  I also plan the route we will follow with our different agencies, because after Turkey we will be accompanied by local guides.

Many of you have asked me what our future route will be: Iran, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan, China and finally Japan.  We had to juggle with the time it has taken to get the visas necessary after Iran.  Let me thank Dominique Girard, who has taken care of these visas in Paris, especially the week preceding the arrival of the new team on February 12.  Why do we get these visas in France when there are consulates in Tehran and the other countries?  We just can’t allow ourselves 3, 4 or 5 days or weeks to obtain visas.  Our caravan needs to move on.  Serge has to run every day, even when there are borders to cross, and everything must be well organized so he won’t be blocked anywhere.

After some 15 feedings and more than 70 kilometers covered in a day, we have always found the comfort of a small hotel with hot water and the luxury of a shower, which is very good for the morale.  A massage follows and then it’s the moment to charge the watch data and the cameras on the computer.  Glasses on his nose, Serge regularly reads his messages and our e-mails are sorted.  At night, the cell phone, the watch, the satellite navigator and the computer batteries are all recharged, just like us.

Today was marked by intestinal cramps for Serge at the end of the stage.  He got wet and suffered from the cold.  It wasn’t the first time that the cold gave him a stomach ache.  He didn’t have dinner with us, just bouillon with vermicelli, 2 Spasfon tablets and  then to bed.  Serge was tired and fell asleep quickly.