FRIDAY 19th JUNE 2009 (UMAN & RUSSIAN RESCUE)

FRIDAY 19th JUNE 2009


Paul spent the entire morning working on the bike dismantling the carbs and checking the points. We were lucky - under the shade of a large tree and a tall concrete wall between us and the road with a ledge at bum height. This served as our workbench and seat. We were situated in a secure car-park and truck depot which was as grotty as grotty gets. I desperately needed a toilet and figured the experience would be dreadful. I wasn't disappointed. It made the worst of India look clean...!!!

We were on the road by midday, the bike still not real happy but we were willing to take the chance rather than stay in Uman. Our destination is Odessa, 260 kilometers away.

We pulled in at a fuel station 42kms along the road and Paul rechecked everything. The old girl (not me) did not sound happy. We let her cool down and continued on the road. If we didn't, we'd never get to the motorcycle rally where there might be people who can direct us to 'real' help.

We only rode another 20 kilometers when the bike slowed and slowed and slowed (which is saying something seeing as we were only traveling at 40 kph) and eventually konked out on a long incline. SHIT. We have never felt so isolated.
The 'new' battery had died. Not a good situation to be in on a Ukrainian highway with cars and bikes speeding past us at 250-300 + kph.

It was decided that Paul would hitch back to the service station and I would play 'guard dog'.



Eventually a bike pulled up - WOW, how extraordinary (no-one had bothered to stop in over two hours). A young woman (Lera) from Kiev and her man (Volodja) from Uman - nice people. Within minutes another two bikes pulled up. My eyes nearly fell out of my head (thinking to myself, geez - Paul will be disappointed he missed this...). Two rather attractive, young women dismounted from their Ural choppers, one dressed in a mini skirt, the other in a t-shirt tied up to reveal her belly button jewellery. Interesting safety gear. Before long some more bikes pulled in, Paul on the back of one of them. They were from Russia (the girls from the Wild Cats, Volgograd). Much kicking, much pushing, and then jumpering off a 12-volt into our 6 eventually saw us on our way. We had spent a total of 4 hours on the side of the road. We were sent on our way with the Russian equivalent of 'MORE REVS, MORE REVS'.




We knew when we had to stop again that we may not get going so just rode and rode till dark pulling up at a road-side stall. The man there (Vasja) indicated that the abandoned building across the track would be opened later and we could get borsch (it was now 10.30pm!). He was right - we sat on the side of the road till midnight and then the woman came to open up and give us a bed. The message was given that we needed a battery charger and one was duly brought to us, albeit the first charger to ever have been built in the world...!!!