All Aboard The Ray Train

24/09/15 Nundroo to Rest Area 106kms

Will and I woke up to the sounds of Ray loading up his bike and getting ready to hit the road. I looked out the window and noted there wasn't any wind. This was all we needed to get our lazy butts out and into action. This was all good until we got to the filling the water bottles bit. The water tasted like a salt lake. Yuk, even the coffee Will made me was undrinkable. So we'd got ready but now had to wait until the shop opened in an hours time, so we could buy water. Friggin hell, the wind will start then. We joked about stealing water from one of the many caravans parked up, but the an older man came out of the next room, drinking coffee and started chatting to Ray and I. Out of the blue, I asked him if he might have any water we could have so we could get going before the wind. We'll blow me down he said "no bloody worries cobba, I've got plenty. "

He was a prospector from Queensland, near to Rays' home town. So we all filled our bottles with enough water to get to Penong, had a look at some of the meteorite rocks he'd found, said a massive thank you, and hit the road. What a great guy. Thank you prospector man, good luck with your fishing.

Discussing meteor sightings across the Nullarbor......hmmmm, I'm not sure guys, really?

Ray had decided he would like to chug along with team Wiljen today, for a change, so it was a Will, me then Ray, to begin with, and we actually took off with pretty good speed. Will and Ray shared the lead, while I just enjoyed the ride. Right up until we had two vehicles coming from both directions, and definitely meeting right on us. We scattered like rats, and the killer verge snickered it's evil laugh of success, as my bike just slid sideways from underneath me, in the blink of an eye, I hit the ground like a tonne of bricks, right on my left elbow, and forearm. Ouch, ouch, ouch. It hurt a lot. "Oh you Fucking, stupid, shitty, piece of crap, road!" Ugh! " aaaaggghh, Fuuuuck!!!"

Will and Ray were at my side in seconds, helping me up and moving Betty away from the road. I was ok, but my left arm was super sore. I checked I could move everything, and after much more cursing of the deadly scree pile on the verge, we carried on.

All aboard the Ray train, at least you can't miss us.

Ray's gone all ninja.......keeps the flies and wind out of his face.

Ray's in his groove, and we push to keep up, he is a machine.

Slippery, hey? No kidding you jokers!

Ray somehow pushed us harder, not outwardly, he was very chilled and relaxed, but with him riding with us, we seemed to try harder, and in no time at all we came to the blue sign of happiness, telling us we only had 5 kays till Penong. Wow, that was quick. The wind didn't even seem that bad. May have been because I was drafting behind two big men.....cool. The Ray train was steaming along this Eyre Highway.

Can't believe we've got here already. This Ray train is a fast train.

We had a big rest at Penong, having lunch, chatting, and some small grocery shopping for one last day of riding tomorrow. While we were chilling, the bikers we saw at Nullarbor Roadhouse showed up, heading back to Perth. They were all looking a bit tired and worn out. Then we hit the road again, aiming for a rest area 25kms down the road. My arm had swollen quite a lot, and was difficult to bend and it hurt to put too much pressure on it. Hmmm, this could be difficult. Will asked if I wanted to stay here, but I said no, I could make 25 kays. After the first 3, I was regretting my decision, but it was too late, so just had to try find a position that didn't hurt too much, and keep going. The wind had really picked up, and I struggled to keep with the guys, and Will had to drop back to stay with me. Thank god for the guys, or I may not have managed to get through it. 

Nice little Penong rest. Shaded seating, fresh water, and a lovely sandwich.

The camp site was right on the road, with little shelter, but it was stiff bickies, I could go no further. So we made the most of it, and the guys got a fire sorted, we got tents up, cooked up all our fresh veg, noodles and enjoyed the satisfaction of getting this far. Thanks for getting me through the pain guys. Tomorrow we'll finish the job.

At least we have a nice bench to use, and a fire.