Training has gone well this week, mostly base aerobic work with three runs and strength work. I will be out again this evening for a pacey 7.5km and then plan to repeat tomorrow before moving out a 12.5km on Sunday. Sandy has joined me once this week and is definitely getting faster and she even had the cheek to say that it wasn’t a very hard run when we finished. How six months makes a world of difference, Sandy struggled around the entire course then!
Preparations for the Cape to Cape, 135km weekend in Western Australia continue. Tom and I will be now be joined by our good friend Paul Castle who has been on oceans and up mountains with us in the past. Paul loves the outdoors and long distance running so was more than game to come and have a weekend in WA. We also received an email from John Morgan, another good friend of ours who has retired and lives in Adelaide. He had read that we were doing the Cape to Cape and asked if we needed someone to run support. The answer was a resounding yes so we are now getting into the finer details of the plans.
Paul got in touch with the lady who runs the Cape to Cape website about further information and told her our plans. He received the following email in response.
Hi Paul
Margaret van Dorssen gave me your details and I have posted your guidebook
today – airmail – so i hope it reaches you in plenty of time.
Margaret said you were planning to do the walk in 3 days – the whole Cape to
Cape is 135 km long and it is quite tough going in places, especially the
soft sandy beaches (!), so 3 days would be a bit ambitious for the whole
walk – very fit bushwalkers can do it in 5 days, but 6 or 7 is more usual
and more realistic.
However, you may be thinking of just doing half or a section with the time
that you have.
Anyway, have a good look through the guidebook – there is a distance chart
near the back – and e-mail me with any queries you might have.
There is quite a bit of information on our website: www.capetocapetrack.com.au if you haven’t already seen that.
Kind regards
Jane
Doing half of it!! This lady clearly underestimates our immaturity as this email has only made us want to prove them wrong! Three days it is and actually, three days it has to be as Paul and I have a flight to catch on the Sunday!
Just back from a few days on a Malaysian island and I have to say I feel all the better for it. Comprehensive training starts tomorrow so it was nice to get away without thinking about anything else but the kids and Sandy. Whilst away, I took the Solio charger with me to give it a thorough test. This small piece of kit is supposed to be used for charging electrical items using the power of the sun only. This will be something we will very much need in the Pole to charge GPS, SAT Phone etc and something I will need in the Sahara as a way to keep my ipod charged for the many hours out in the sun running each day. The kit is simple to set up , it fans out and you stick it directly in the sunlight. Now, I am male so the instructions rarely get read at the best of times but surely even I cannot get it wrong? Well I did something because it hardly charged anything. Conor’s Itouch was done twice but my phone was barely touched. I WILL now take a look at the instructions but I fear we are back to square one on this piece of the kit challenge.
Our third team member has had to withdraw which is a disappointment. It is a massive challenge and huge commitment so we are grateful that we have found out now as we start preparations in earnest. We have approached our agreed choice about joining and she has said that she would be very keen. This weekend we will try and iron some details out and hopefully be able to move on from this stage as the organisers are keen for us to get our sizing in for kit fitting!
This week will see me complete twice daily/6 days of training with running each morning (shorts, longs, fartlek) with my wife Sandy (the natural runner in the family) followed by strength and core work on the TRX as well as at VBC@Havelock where we have purchased the latest in strength and conditioning equipment. I am looking forward to the discipline to be quite frank, I thrive on working through the aches and pains as well as seeing the improvement in both physical and mental terms.
I will back this week with team mate update and how I am adjusting to the full training load.
It has been a busy few weeks of events, culminating in the massive Suntec one in Singapore on Saturday. With them now completed, I am heading to Rawa Island in Malaysia for a few days on the beach with my family. When I get back, my wife Sandy and I are heading out with our good friends Chris and Noreen Snell for dinner and no doubt a few too many drinks in the case of Chris and I. Sunday morning, I will enter the monastery, which is the term we use to describe the proper start of training when we are competing at the boxing club. I have 172 days until I compete the Sahara race and I need to start getting the mileage up as well a developing my core strength to help with efficiency. I will subjecting myself to a barrage of tests in the coming week including V02 Max at a sports clinic so I can train at optimal throughout and I have got the nutritional plan in place now so I can help my body on recovery.
Last night I met one of my team mates for the North Pole race, Tom Clipston. I can announce Tom joining the team as he has now been able to secure the necessary permissions. Tom is hitting 40 like myself this year and this has always been on his hit list. We have known each for seven years now and worked together for four of them. Residing in Western Australia, Tom, originally from the UK, shares a very similar outlook to competition and challenges to myself. We have been up mountains together and sailed through force 8 gales as well as wrong parts of town in many countries in the early hours of the morning. Like me, Tom wants to win the Polar race. We see no reason in competing unless that is the aim and last night was spent discussing the training challenges, strategy and plans. Tom is coming to the end of his training plan for a half Iron Man he has coming up in a few weeks before we set out on the Cape to Cape 135km training trek we have planned for 13th May.
Our third team mate would seem to be running into some challenges based on his recent lack of communication. However, we will find out today whether he is in or not and to make sure we did not lose any momentum if the answer is negative, we have decided on a back-up to approach. Interestingly, the third member is female and well known to us both. A natural athlete, arguably elite level in endurance sports, she has the both the ability and drive to take on such a challenge. Whether she wants to share a tent with two hairy ass males for four weeks in the arctic is another question but we will have the discussion if the need arises.
That’s me for now, though next week I will be on daily postings as we get the training underway.
Both of these challenges are going to require some considerable quantities of equipment. In the case of the Pole, they can’t really afford to take chances that us amateurs will make the right decisions so the US$34,000 entry fee each we pay includes all the kit we will require for the 4 weeks in the Arctic. When we head to Norway for the Arctic training in January we will be equipped with everything we will need, from the pulk we will each carry all our equipment on, to the clothes we will wear and the tent we will sleep in.
For the Sahara, kit selection is down to the individual, though there is an extensive mandatory list that each participant must bring with them. Having booked the flight to Australia for the training trip earlier in the week, I knew there was a need to make some purchases, so I decided I would dig in and start to equip myself for the Sahara at the same time. Being someone who was once described by a skydive buddy as “all the gear and no idea” I was looking forward to the process. The aim was simple; I needed to purchase kit that was desert proven, light (this will become an obsession over the coming months as I have to carry it all for the 250km) and fit for purpose. My running shoes and clothing is something I will work in July as it will require a lot of research. However, yesterday I found myself comparing the weights of plastic and titanium sporks (a hybrid fork and spoon) as well as the relative weights and merits of sleeping bags.
From there it was the back pack I would carry everything in that came next which was going to be an important choice. All my food, sleeping kit, medical kit plus my daily hydration will be in this and a malfunction could see me out so I went for the Raidlight Evolution 2 as it seemed to have established itself as the pack of choice for endurance athletes in the Sahara and other desert runs. Mundane equipment such as blister kit, emergency whistle, safety pins (20 x large, no clue why required) compass (I know essential but a compass is a compass) were ticked off the list, along with the two headlamps we are required to carry for the night running sections of the race. I have elected to equip the pack with two 750ml bottles that will be attached to the chest straps. When I looked at the experience of past competitors, it was generally viewed as the best way to carry fluid as they could be fiilled easily at the check points unlike the hydro-packs that can take additional time.
Nutrition is going to absolutely critical as I look to provide my body with the fuel required and the nutrients for repair. However, this again needs to be managed from a weight perspective as I am required to carry all I will be eating for the six days in my pack. I have ordered a mix of freeze dried meals from Expedition Foods, Backpackers Pantry and Mountain House. In the coming weeks I can decide which dehydrated gunk I like the most, whether it be spaghetti bolognese, or macaroni and cheese. The added advantage of these meals is that there is no need to carry bowls etc as you throw the water in the bag and eat straight from it.
Next week the kit will no doubt turn up and I will start the process of trying everything out on runs. I still need to get into research mode on gaiters, clothing and running shoes but I think I have made a pretty decent start on the kit front.
The introductions to my North Pole team mates will have to come in time when they are happy to go public. One has an employer to placate, the other needs to convince his wife that he will not be taken by polar bears. Anyway, myself and the two un-named have our first team training planned for 12th May in Western Australia. The plan is to cover the 135km cape to cape trail in three days on a 10hr per day strategy. It looks like a beautiful area to do the training and when I was there in May last year with the family, I certainly enjoyed the location.
The purpose of this trip is to first of all get some time together as a team. Secondly, get used to the monotonous 10hr days ( we will do 12hrs a days at the Pole) and finally give some of the kit a good testing. We know that at the pole we will be amongst the least experienced but we also know that the time invested now into getting into a routine on tent erection, stoves on etc will save us valuable time when we get to the Arctic. We are therefore very keen to get used to the kit and the routine now and on a regular basis.
The plan is to arrive on the 12th May, travel down to the start of the trail and effectively cover 45km per day starting on the 13th. We will be carrying our kit and camping each night. I have had the pleasure of spending time on both a mountain and in a boat with these two guys before and we do enjoy each others company.
Tonight I booked the flight, now I need to make sure I have the kit I will need. I believe I have most of it but with some Sahara purchase due next week, there are a number of items I will purchase with the dual purpose of using in WA on the training exercise.
This post is well overdue and effectively will be the trigger to activate the challenge. Though, in reality, with fees paid and team mates selected, it is fair to say we have been live for some time now. I suspect writing this will allow me a better understanding of why I have taken this on,because it will force me to think about it, when normally I just accept that taking on challenges are part of my DNA. I therefore apologise in advance if this becomes more like a psychology session for a soon to be 40 year old.
First of all, let me define the lunacy I am undertaking.
Oct 3rd 2010 – To run the Racing the Planets 250km Sahara race in 6 days, solo, carrying all the equipment I need with me for the duration. With varying distances each day, the course will include a 80km+ day.
April 2011 – To race along with two team mates 600km to the North Pole over four weeks, without support and each pulling 75kg pulks (sleigh). Described as one of the hardest endurances challenges in the world, we will compete against other teams from a around the world who we can safely assume will have more polar experience than us!
The Sahara for me is, to be quite honest, my way of getting my endurance base. The Pole will be the toughest thing I have ever attempted, requiring up to 16 hours racing per day, every day for weeks on end. The Sahara will give me the opportunity to get used to the mental and physical pressures that come with ultra distance events. I have always been interested in the Sahara and I am looking forward to the challenge but the Pole consumes me and I have found myself consuming every written piece on this extraordinary place.
Now let me define in no particular order why this is madness.
- I have never ran a marathon
- 95kg is not the frame of an endurance athlete
- I have never skied
- I have never been to the Arctic
- I live in Singapore , a tropical climate where I will be training for the North Pole.
Now let me understand why I am doing this (see, I knew this would become a therapy session).
For the last eighteen months, both my Vanda businesses have been working with Children’s Surgical Centre in Cambodia. CSC provides free operations to the children of Cambodia who would have no hope of them otherwise. I have been out to visit CSC five times in the last 12 months and I have seen first hand the incredible work they do, which sees them complete literally thousands of operations a year. The team is dedicated, highly capable and committed to developing their services to take on new surgical challenges. They do this on an impossibly small budget, with no government assistance and are funded entirely by charitable donations. In CSC I have found a charity that changes children’s lives every single day and I have made a long term commitment that through the businesses and the challenges that I will raise funds for them to help them to continue to do so.
When I was Chief Operating Officer at Sungard, I would often wonder whether the day would come when I would have the opportunity to start ticking off the more involved personal challenges bucket list I had. Balancing the corporate demands with the start of the white collar boxing events or Vanda Boxing Club in 2007 made me aware that the answer was not whilst I did the day job. When I left in 2008 to start Fidgets and Vanda Promotions they initially consumed all my time and any thought of personal challenges were put to the back burner. However, now my team runs the businesses on a day to day basis and they do it very well. They are talented, capable and hard working which has freed me up to work with my daughter Zara on a daily basis, look at some new business opportunities but also to start ticking off some of the personal goals I have set myself.
That’s it for now, there will be plenty more on the charity, training, kit etc throughout the coming months. I will also introduce you to my two team mates who will be coming to the pole with me as well getting plenty of video and photographs up. Please come along for the ride, this will be a long 12 months and the more support I have, the better.
I am back a few months now so the obvious questions is how am I doing with the book? Well the answer is progressing. There were a number of hurdles to cross relative to Lily’s colourful background and there still a number of gaps that need to to be filled. In all, I have 12 hours of audio and a good broad brush of content but when I go over what I have, I know there are gaps and areas that require filling in.
I have a number of significant challenges I have undertaken for charity in the next 12 months which will require significant work. I will be announcing one of them very shortly but once we have got the training load understood, I will be scheduling a trip back to SA to spend time with Lily on specifics.
I have one of those USB dongles that allows me to access internet even in the townships. For the first three days it was like lightening, from Sunday to today it has been painfully slow and I have been unable to upload anything significant. Now however, I am in Formby, Merseyside so I have a decent connection at my parents so can get this rather long post up though it will be in two sections.
Sunday was a wet day in the Eastern Cape but I was up and into my suit by 6.30am as I knew i could not be late for the arrival of Lily’s mother’s body at 8am. The coffin hearse was right on time and the coffin was led into the front room of Lily’s sisters house where there were about 30 people crammed in. Outside, there was a group of mostly men, all in their sunday best suits and I stuck with them though I was clearly conspicious being the only white person for 30kms!
The preachers stood in front of the coffin and one by one delivered a firebrand style of sermon in Xhosa so I have no idea what they were saying. I just stood at the back with an inane fixed grin on my face as people came over an introduced themselves.
Pastor’s Preaching
All of Lily’s family was there, including her four daughter and the extended family. There was little weeping, the event really was treated like a celebration of her mother’s life and at the community hall there was easily a couple of hundred people. The singing in particular was awesome and Lily recorded this of three people singing in the community hall, one of which is Tulile (in the satin blouse) which typified the whole service.
The following day we were up at 4am and I drove 12 hours with no stops back to the Western Cape. Lily and the three girls slept periodically, as they had been up with family throughout the night but I just got into the driving groove and with the exception of fuel stops I just pushed on. The scenery was not visible for the majority of the time as they rain and wind hit us hard, so hard indeed that when we were on the mountain passes I was keeping the wheel on a 30 degree right lock to compensate!
We arrived back in Khayamandi around 6pm and by 7.30pm we were all in bed and sleeping. The girls had to be up at 5.3oam for school and Lily and I had a busy day of research ahead of us. In addition, our good friend Selwyn was bringing a group of tourists to her house for lunch. The night was interrupted however when news came through that some family and the Khayamandi pastor had been involved in a crash on their return, a common occurence. Their daughter had been thrown from the vehicle and had been hit by the following trailer. The news was received in typically stoical fashion, as in this house God would take care of it.
By 6am Lily was on her hands and knees scrubbing her home. The news from the hospital was positive and all had been discharged so Lily was in full preparation mood. The morning was a blur of cleaning and cooking and in between helping out, I turned on the recorder and we talked about her home. I will save the detail for the book but the very, very, very short version is that when Lily lost her job as a debt collector with a bank, she used her money to buy a small plot of land in the township. In her final days at the bank she had repossessed a stove from someone who had not paid the loan. The bank valued the stove and Lily thought it was worth buying. For the next six months, Lily and her four daughters (all of them children) lived in the shell of house with a zinc roof and nothing else during winter. Every morning she would wake up and bake scones, the recipe of which she found on the back of the packet of sugar. These scones were sold for R1 about 15 Singapore Cents or 1o US cents and the girls would sell them at school whilst Lily would wait for the children at lunchtime and sell more.
Like any business, Lily set targets and she wanted to sell 300 scones a day. More days than not she hit this target and day by day she bought the bricks and the timber to build the house. To this day, Lily is one of a small minority that owns her home with no loans at all, all through human perseverance.
As the tourists were due, I departed the house and went off around the area. I did this little video to show you Khayamandi. It is not great as I was holding the flip as I was driving!
I returned at 4pm and the tourists were still all there listening to Lily tell her stories with her all dressed in her African clothes. I remember being a visitor to the township in 2002 with Selwyn, apprehensive but curious and I found it quite strange to be looking on at the goings on with this being my second trip actually staying here!
We hurried Lily along (you have to, Lily can talk for 5 hours without a break and I have the evidence) before we headed to the Ikamva Lethu Centre that Sandy and I helped start in 2002. Ikamva Lethu means “our future” and the centre was set up as a safe place for the kids to go after school and socialise as well as be educated periodically on HIV etc. It had grown considerably in scope over the years and my Boxing Challenge of 2005 had started off a school sponsorship program that now had 28 kids from Khayamandi going to good schools with the fees paid by the project.
On arrival we were greeted by a the usual hoard of kids aged from 2 to 6 who were not in the dancing classes inside. They jumped all over us and held out hands as we went inside to see what was going on. For the next 30 minutes we witnessed the kids do everything from ball room to salsa. They were aged from 3 to 15 and they attacked the task with passion and zeal. Clearly they loved what they were doing and whilst there was a wide variety of standard, there was also a common thread of enjoyment. The rules were simple, no drugs, no alcohol. Come along any day, start with your homework upstairs and then you can dance. Show tenacity and the desire to succeed in both and you will find yourself sponsored at a good school. It is one of many projects ran by the man who gave me my love of the township, Selwyn.
We left the centre as most township folk starting heading home after a long day. I was being bombarded with questions from Selwyn’s guests, curious about township life, safety concerns, the prevalence of HIV (high) and life expectancy (43 years old). I tried to explain that I had walked the streets of the township in pitch dark and I felt safer than I would have done if I done the same thing in my home town of Liverpool.
Selwyn continued the trip around the township and I asked to get off as I was confident I knew I where I was and could navigate back. Wrong! Rows of shacks upon shacks and I just got confused but I didn’t care. I stopped off to play football with some kids andcaught up with one of the guys I had met in the Eastern Cape . Eventually I made it back to Lily’s and who should be there but Samkelo! This young man had come over to London in 2005 with Yolande to see box. He was 12 at the time but now at 16 was nearly 6ft and it was great to sit down and catch up on what was happening for him.
The evening was spent with the usual stream of visitors. I can’t tell you how much I enjoyed this part of my trip. The warmth of the conversation, laughter and general sense of community was not something I had experienced before.
The following day was spent with Lily doing work on her life story. We did a total of five hours covering some difficult years for Lily, including a forced marriage which involved beatings like you could not imagine. Lily talked about the subsequent years in the New Cross Road which is was always a tough place to exist though these days is a complete no go area. This period of her life saw her witness kangaroo courts where the guilty would be beaten before having a tyre placed around their neck filled with petrol and lit. The courts were ran by the ANC Guerillas and it was an in justice seen by Lily that led her to become the voice of dissent when nobody else dared if she felt there was an injustice going to happen.
Difficult times
These were dangerous times in South Africa as the anti-apartheid movement took hold and the militancy brought much violence and civil disobedience to the streets. As we went through these times, Lily would introduce a friend into the timeline only to tell me later along the line that they had been shot or died in some other way. Lily could not tell me of one person that she classed a friend in those days that survived the period.
I will be back in 24 hours with the final installment of the trip to South Africa
This piece started out as multiple entries but every night I never finished due to some distraction in the house, exhaustion or just because it is winter here in South Africa and they don’t have heating in the townships!
I arrived at 10am, following a 13 hr flight via Johannesburg and after a few technical difficulties with the Vodacom people and the mobile modem , I was on my way to Khayamandi. The journey took me 35 mins and I was amazed how familiar it all was. It is not a new journey for me as Selwyn and I did it each day I was boxing training in the township of Khayalishta and staying in Khayamandi in 2005 but never the less it was a relief to find it familiar
As I drove into the township, Lily was in the middle of the road waving to me. That was a relief as I did not hold out much hope of finding anything once I got into the labyrinth of roads, jammed with the shacks and buildings.
It was fantastic to see Lily again, though characteristically her previous few weeks had been eventful to say the least and included being arrested, a court appearance and her mother dying. As we arrived at the front of her home, the first thing she pointed to was the damage that some intruders had done which she believed was related to the court appearance but more on that later.
Athi, Lily’s youngest daughter was home and it was great to see her . Nearly fifteen, Athi is a young woman now with a greal deal of poise, great communication skills and a certain elegance that is magnified by being very tall. Lily has four living daughters with Athi and Tulile still living with her. I am very fond of the two of them. They are both very bright and have a great sense of humour which has got them through a lot of challenges.
That evening, myself and Lily ate dinner whilst Tulile, home from school, was cramming for an exam the following day. Lily and the girls are Seventh Day Adventists so not only was there grace before and after meal but then the bibles came out after the dishes were cleared. For the next 45 mins there was reading from the Book of Numbers in the Old Testament before a discussion on some particular points. Once that ended, the first of a steady stream of visitors started which is a constant theme in a township. The sense of community is massive and it is not unusual for Lily to receive 5-7 visits from neighbours throughout the evening. I have to admit it brought home to me the lack of conversational skills people have when they are surrounded by one way mediums such as the internet and TV. Each guest was warmly received and an active discussion would ensue about the comings and goings of life. It was engaging and highly enjoyable.
I went to bed that night with the temperature plummeting. I put on three layers of clothes, two pairs of socks and slept with the blanket over my head to keep warm. The township went from the noise of people singing hymns, drinking beer in the shabeens and the screams of domestic argument to total quiet by midnight. Quite literally you could hear nothing, it was real silence brought on by the need for everyone to be up early for work the following day.
The next noise I heard was Tulile leaving for school at 5,30am, a Monday to Friday neccessity if she it to make the journey and be in school on time. I was up by 6.30am and after breakfast with Lily we planned to spend the day together to get the beginnings of the book together. First of all we had a quick trip into Stellenbosch.
On arrival we saw that one of the streets had been blocked off by Police. It took Lily 2 mins to find out that two drug dealers had shot each other but in their quest for violence had ended up leaving their drugs stashes in their cars which were now been removed from the scene.
That afternoon, Lily and I sat down and we started her story. There were no provisios, escape clauses or “off the record”, Lily wants to it to be told and I am honored that it should be me that does so. We allowed the story to lead us and so it did when we were discussing her children and I noticed there was one name I not heard before. She then went on to tell me the story of her teenage pregnancy (she was 15) by a teacher when she had no idea what sex or love was. A traumatic birth followed (some saying the revenge of the nurses for what she had done) before Thembakazi was born with massive brain damage. Thembazai died in 1980, aged 5.
The next hours flew by as we discussed jobs, attempts on her life (there have been two), her parents, and her experiences under apartheid. It was fascinating and I have picked a clip to introduce the voice of Lily.
Lily tells me about the birth of her first child
That evening the house became busy from 5pm as people arrived to take a combi taxi to the Eastern Cape for the funeral of Lily’s mother. Young and old, they all crammed into her front room, waiting for a 7pm arrival, that eventually arrived at 11pm, before setting off for the 12 hours drive. It is a notoriously dangerous drive so extensive prayers and hymns were sung before departure and as I still had the microphone on caught the singing for you to listen to.
Hymn being sung
The following morning we were up at 4.30 am and in the car ready to go (after prayer of course) to King Williams Town in the Eastern Cape. Lily wanted to go the same route as the others but I wanted to go the N2 route as I thought it offered more scenery and would be safer. Lily eventually agreed but spent literally the first 30 minutes of the drive telling us the benefits of the N1 route before her daughters begged her to stop.
A small issue of a bird strike aside, the journey was uneventful but full of beauty. I drove for six hours before Lily said we must go visit her cousin in the township of Port Elizabeth. I didn’t feel we could say no but the voices of descent were louder from the back of the car. It was only after we agreed that I heard Lily say we had better hurry as her cousin was leaving to the same funeral we were heading to! We got off the main road and headed down a road, that became a track, that became a dirt track, that became a nightmare! 3kms in with the rocks bouncing off the car as we drove over them, Lily said it was a trap and bandits would now get us. I will admit to being slightly alarmed by this proclamation until I pointed out that nobody knew we were coming this way as it hadn’t been planned!
We arrived in the township of Port Elizabeth where many people who watched the images from the apartheid struggles of the 80’s and nineties would recognise. Today it still has its issues and there remains thousands of shacks, but there are also some beautiful houses nearby that demonstrate the commitment of the black South Africans to develop their community.
Three hours later and after 12 hours on the road, we arrived at the home of Lily’s sister in a township just outside King William’s Town. I had driven for 12 hours with a 25 minute break and I was in my bed by 8.30pm and alseep.
I was running errands for Lily this morning and arrived back at her sister’s home shortly before 1pm. Lily was still at church as Saturday is the main day for Seventh Day Adventists. The older members of the family were in the house when I arrived so I went on in and spent a pleasant time talking with them about Lily and South Africa in general. Lily then rushed in to say that it was raining so I was needed down at church to pick people up. The road was a quagmire but I got through the mud and did my taxi duties before returning to the house.
I have been asked what the reaction is to me in the townships. I have been overwhelmed with warmth and absolutely love being there. The older generation are so friendly and willing to talk and I have not been hugged so much than when I was at a family wedding as a 7 year old. Sure, you get the odd look wondering why you are there, but once introductions are completed it is nothing but friendliness. It was like this when I was first in the townships 7 years, four years ago and remains so today.
Tomorrow Lily’s mother’s body returns at 8am for the funeral and I will be there for the day to help were needed. We will be up again at 4am on Monday and traveling the 12 hours back again. It is an immense privilege to be brought into a family like this and every moment spent with these wonderful people is providing information for the book. Not only that but the difference of environment and priorities is refreshing my mind and providing inspiration for some interesting charity projects.
I am a few hours from heading to the airport to catch the 12 hour flight to Johannesburg and then on to Cape Town. The days following the massive White Collar Boxing event in Singapore on the 2nd October were a rush to get the final items for the trip and get the businesses straight before I go. The next 3 weeks will see me only in Singapore for 24 hours, as when I return on the 22nd I will be departing with our national boxers to Cebu in the Philippines, to settle them in for their training camp as part of our preparation for the SEA Games.
So, what am I doing in South Africa? Well, I will spending my time down there staying with a lady called Lillian Ngwexana in a township just outside Stellenbosch called Kayamandi. I stayed with Lily in 2005 when I was training for the Boxing Challenge and it is this township that started my passion for fund raising efforts. During my stay with Lily at her home, we spent a lot of time listening to her incredible life story and I promised myself that one day I would return and write a biography on her so that others could hear it. Lily epitomizes the indomitable human spirit, having spent a life working against the odds to fulfill her potential and bring up her family. Her story is one of hardship, bravery, determination, love and above all else a never say die attitude that has her admired by all that meet and spend time with her.
By 6pm tomorrow Singapore time, I will be at Lily’s home in the township and it is there I will be spend the next three days as I endeavour to capture her story with my meagre writing ability. The plan is simple, we will spend every hour together along with my dictaphone. During that time Lily with some questions from me will take me through her life story.
On Saturday I will drive Lily the 1,200 kms to King William’s Town in the Eastern Cape for her mother’s funeral as she died late last week. During the long journey there and back we will continue the story and whilst at the funeral I will get to meet her entire family, something that previously did not seem possible. We will then return to Kayamandi and continue throughout next week at her home.
Together in 2005
For the entire trip it is my intention to post daily updates, pictures and audio snippets of the days work on this blog. Lily’s story will provoke many emotions in you but I hope you get to see the reason why I am willing to travel 19,600 km to have the honour to tell the story through a book on her life.
I look forward to introducing you to my african mother.
considered this skydive http://bit.ly/bMDiOh in 2000. Felix is top of the game, as close to perfection as Patrick Gayardon. Good luck mate 1 hour ago
Plan called for a 10km but I got a 20km done. My knees are feeling this mileage so I am now at the stage when I hope this race gets underway 1 hour ago
Watching Home V Etoille, brilliant on the pitch but disaster in the stands considering they decided to make it free 4 a TOP TABLE CLASH" 2010/09/03
Watching Home V Etoillen, brilliant on the pitch but disaster in the stands considering they decided to make it free 4 a TOP TABLE CLASH 2010/09/03
Nice piece in TODAY on Vanda Sport Group latest project http://bit.ly/crXEff2010/09/03
Delighted Starhub are showing IFS White Collar Boxing Sing in the weeks after the event on the 17 Sept. Testament to the events high quality 2010/09/01
A matter of days from announcing an important win for Vanda Sports Group with a comprehensive marketing contract on a new sports property 2010/08/31
Ano 4 hrs trail running with full pack today. That is my 8 hrs for the weeknd done so now off to the boat and an afternoon with family 2010/08/29
http://twitpic.com/2iwo0w - Conor at a birthday party, why didn't we get these when we were kids 2010/08/28
On arrival we saw that one of the streets had been blocked off by Police. It took Lily 2 mins to find out that two drug dealers had shot each other but in their quest for violence had ended up leaving their drugs stashes in their cars which were now been removed from the scene.
A small issue of a bird strike aside, the journey was uneventful but full of beauty. I drove for six hours before Lily said we must go visit her cousin in the township of Port Elizabeth. I didn’t feel we could say no but the voices of descent were louder from the back of the car. It was only after we agreed that I heard Lily say we had better hurry as her cousin was leaving to the same funeral we were heading to! We got off the main road and headed down a road, that became a track, that became a dirt track, that became a nightmare! 3kms in with the rocks bouncing off the car as we drove over them, Lily said it was a trap and bandits would now get us. I will admit to being slightly alarmed by this proclamation until I pointed out that nobody knew we were coming this way as it hadn’t been planned!
So, what am I doing in South Africa? Well, I will spending my time down there staying with a lady called Lillian Ngwexana in a township just outside 
