Wednesday. October 27. Day 89.

So we have 1 day left and I really don’t know what to say1 looking back on the road all I can reflect on wa how incredible it has all been! Quite surreal actually!

We spent the day doing admin and getting our clothing washed – which was long overdue. We also managed to wash the van. Puddy and Human spend most of the day at the Hectic 9 studios – a kids program on SABC 2 doing interviews and promoting the tour. We hooked up later with another old friend, Hardus who showed us around town and gave us a good lunch.

Christi and Tertius joined in on the session again but we knocked off after a few k’s to leave the final stretch for Saturday. We will also be visiting the SOS children’s village in Cape Town tomorrow

Once again a great big thank you to all the people who have made this tour possible. It has truly been an amazing trip.

Tuesday, October 26. Day 88.

We said our goodbyes at the lovely Protea Hotel in Stellenbosch and made our way to our fina base camp; the Fire & Ice Hotel in Cape Town. We only have a few k’s left and the crew are supremely pumped.

Christi Wiehahn, legendary South African skateboarder and good mate of Puddy joined in on the road today skating the stretch with hi. Another friend of the crew, Tertius also joined in and skated the session with them. The bakkie Tertius was driving gave some problems along the road causing a bit of a halt. Puddy however kept on skating and the crew including the two new comers joined him a bit later again.

The session flew by really quickly and Puddy made good time on the road averaging at 28km/h. We have set up base camp in the mother city and wewill be skating the last stretches into her in the days to follow.

Monday. October 25. Day 87.

With a big uphill to facing us Puddy started the day skating up the Houwhoek Pass towards the St Lowry’s Pass. On the summit we had a quick team meeting and realised that from our vantage point we were able to view Table Mountain for the first time. This felt great and, especially Puddy felt proud that he had come this far.

We were warned that once on top of Houwhoek Pass Puddy would have to bomb the St Louries Pass. From what we gathered this was the zenith of downhills. After some discussion Puddy Padded up and took the Hill head on.

Gaining a lot of speed really fast Puddy mange toride it out most of the way. He foot braked on occasions but once he reached the bottom he said that he was pretty bummed that he didn’t suck it up, tucked in and went full speed. Safety first I suppose. Especially when we are critically close to the finish. A fatal possibly fatal thing happened however. One of his wheels overheated from the speed and duration of the speed that it melted and finally burst open almost causing a vicous bail. Pulling off from the road he quickly set up a new set only to have them do the same thing on another downhill we encountered further along the road.

After another change of wheels the skating continued to just past Gordonsbaai where Tertuis Vivier caught up with us to chat with Puddy.

Tonight will be our last evening in the Protea Hotel in Stellenbosch so a greatest of thanks you’s to the staff and all who looked after our every need. You guys have been spectacular.

We are so close to done that we can taste victory. But let’s not count the chickens before they hatch.

Sunday. October 24. Day 86.

We took the day off from skating to prepare the van and finalise the last few arrangements for skating into Cape Town next week. We were one man down as Human spent the weekend with his loved ones in Hout Bay and is only to return tonight or Monday morning.

Late afternoon we hooked up with some of the friendly folk from town we met on our day off yesterday and played some soccer on the local sports field. Last night we had a tour off the town and its night clubs. Thanks to Nicola and Ruark who showed us a good time in Stellenbosch.

A band playing in one of the local joint; Bohemia even supported the cause and did some punting from on our behalf over the mic.

The St. Luawries Pass awaits and the local kids say that it’s going to be way too harsh to bomb. We’ll have to wait and see till tomorrow....

The tour is nearing completion now and we would like to thank everyone who has been involved to thus far and showed their support. The show is not over yet and if you happen to see us on the road please do not hesitate to stop us for some photos or make a donations.

Skate for Change 2010. From Jo’burg to Cape Town on a skateboard.

Saturday. October 23. Day 85.

Last night was an interesting and fun evening spent among the students of Stellenbosch. We met some great people and had an absolute blast.

We spent our last off day before the tour ends exploring the town while Human drove through to Hout Baai to pick up is wife and daughter. They will be joining us on the last leg of the tour.

Protea hotel are really looking after us and have gone out of their way to accommodate us on the final days of our epic journey.

With only a couple of k’s left the crew are jumpy with excitement and looking forward to reaching our final destination.

Friday. October 22. Day 84.

We shared our breakfast table with a journalist from The Somerset Journal who interviewed the crew. Ailsa and Mark from the Caledon Hotel met up with us a bit later, they stocked up with some Skate for Change T-shirts, which the whole crew signed. they want to frame one, and put it up for displayin the hotel.

While waiting for the team to finish up, so the day’s session could get under way, Human though it a good idea to pop into the casino for a moment or two. Well, a moment or two later he stepped out a bit richer. It was time to get the show on the road.

The road was anything but easy and Puddy’s luck was against him (unlike Human’s) as he faced a 5km climb off about 300m. Puddy on the other and gave the uphill the finger and pushed like a monster. 84 Days on the road has turned Puddy into a skateboarding machine. The team just looked on in awe from within the van as he climbed the mountain. Reaching the top Puddy was not rewarded with a downhill; however that is said to come. The Sir Lauwries Pass which awaits us in the next day or two is apparently a monster of a downhill, long and steep.

After the 23km skate for the day and the killer uphill which was conquered we made way for our new base camp. The Protea Hotel in Stellenbosch gave us accommodation for four evenings, massages for each member. They even made us a “welcome” sign which was just great. Definitely looking forward staying here this week.

Tomorrow is our day off and we look forward to exploring the beautiful town of Stellenbosch.

Thursday. October 21. Day 83.

Hotel Caledon...

There are only 7 days left of the Skate for Change tour 2010 and we are all buzzing with excitement.

We woke this morning and had a lovely meal at the Caledon Hotel. These guys have gone out of their way to accommodate us. They have sponsored us all accommodation and meals for our stay here and also threw in a massage for each crew member. The service is superb and if you are ever in Caledon you are missing out if you dont spend at least one night there.

We skated into Caledon today. The road surface was pretty good but the weather was a bit fowl. Rainy and cold. We skated to the doorstep of the Hotel where we had some lunch and relaxed for a bit after hitting the road for the second session. It all started well with a sweet downhill from the hotel but took a turn for the worse as we reached the high way were the surface reminded us again of “the road to Mordor.”

Tomorrow we pack up and leave the hotel. A thank you of the highest regards to them for making our stay unforgettable.

Distance skated 23 km

Top speed 34 km/h

Average 18 km/h

Tour kilometers 1778 km

http://www.thecaledoncasino.co.za/

Wednesday. October 20. Day 82.

Just as we were getting used to the idea that no major mishaps would present itself on the trip the weirdest thing happened. We started the day thanking the Swart family for their extreme hospitality and care during our two day stay on the lovely farm just outside Riviersonderend.

On the road Puddy encountered a ridiculously rough surface which comprised mostly of uphills. What a nightmare. Puddy managed to skitch behind (hold on to a passing vehicle) a truck for about 2 k’s which helped out a little bit. After 8 k’s of torment Puddy and the crew pulled off beneath some shady trees to take a water break. All of a sudden a tractor charged from behind at a violent speed, half on the road with the other half on the dirt.Human anticipated fatality and jumped in the van to get it out of the way. Luckily he did it because if he hadn't we would have no van at this moment. The tractor vroomed by as we watched in a disgusted awe. Why couldn't it just swerve onto the road? Why wasn't it driving in the road in the first place? It really wasn’t that busy. Sadly Puddy dropped his board in the commotion and the tractor crushed the back part of his board crippling the truck (thats the axis for the non skaters reading this blog). He has a spare so the tour is not over. In case you were wondering..

Max drove out to Caledon to manage accommodation. We are staying at the Caledon Casino Hotel and they have really gone out of their way to accommodate us. A retreat all of us deserve after spending 82 days on the road.

Distance skated 25 km

Top speed 40 km/h
Average speed 19 km/h

Tour distance 1754km