lack of oxygen , at 5,000 metres there ’ s only 50 % as much oxygen as there is at sea level and could only reach 50- 60kph in third gear . Over the top and down and up again to Yulang La and then all downhill to Shigatse .
Adopting a racers crouch and some slipstreaming between each other , 120 kph top speed was recorded on Wayne ’ s GPS . Consensus was that “ that was it ” and even if you threw the bikes off a cliff , they wouldn ’ t go any faster .
From Shigatse we followed the Nyang Chu River through fertile valleys . A densely populated farming area , thus we were always on the lookout for animals wandering along the road . Dudley almost scored a little porker that bolted under his front wheel , an irony in knowing his religion .
Chris would cruise by and then drop back as he was taking video with a helmet cam . He was going to make a movie called “ The Black
Snails ”, the group ’ s combined nickname , one day ?
That nigh we slept at over 4,000 metres for the first time !
We managed to sneak through some roadworks with our Land Cruiser just out of Gyantse and Christen a new bitumen road . The truck with our gear was not so fortunate and would have to take the long way . The road had only just been completed , in fact we sidled by roadworks , laying bitumen at one stage . The road followed the edge of Lamdruck Tso ( lake ), and it had the most incredible curves and switchbacks I ’ d ever seen .
I ’ d been following Stefan with his partner Flossie on the back when he ’ d run over a house brick sized lump of tar and getting major air . Both wheels had daylight beneath them , Flossie could have fitted a helmet between her arse and the seat . It looked like a sad ending had been in store , but with a couple
TRAVERSE 28