Reinhardt to the Rescue

Sometimes it is staggering how much can change in just 24 hours. The past day is a clear example of that.

At this time yesterday I was sitting in the hotel cafe with a few of our team members, feeling rather forlorn and considering the parlous state of our cycling adventure. At that time no one seemed to know who we were or where we going to. Our bikes were all sitting in a dismantled mess in the hotel garage, with no guarantee they would ever be able to function again. On top of that, we were all starting to feel tired of Prague, and were keen to get back on the bikes again.

Just as I was (almost) in the pit of despair, a jovial German walked in the room and introduced himself as Reinhardt (that might have been what we said, but it could easily have been something else, like Helmet or Werner or whatever).

"Where is Mr Dawson ?", he asked. I put up my hand, wondering what else could have possibly gone wrong. In fact it was me that was wrong. It actually turned out to be the beginning of a complete change of fortune.

He went on to explain that he was going to assemble all the bike that evening, so that they would be ready in the morning. He also assured us that he had a proper bike trailer, that would easily accommodate all the bikes (and he did). Not only did he come equipped with tools, but he also spoke great English and was thoroughly familiar with what we were doing (or attempting to do).

He disappeared into the garage and, a couple of hours later, the bikes looked almost like they did in Hamburg. That evening I was able to sleep better than I had for some time, finally thinking that there might be some light at the end of the dark tunnel.

In the morning we were greeted by a large van with an amazing bike trailer attached. The bikes were quickly loaded and another two vans arrived to help carry all our team members and their luggage. So far so good.

"Maybe we should check all the bikes", I suggested. Most of them powered up according to the normal routine, however three bikes had developed a fatal flaw - they would not turn on. This was yet another curveball, that we all just decided to ignore and hope that it would go away.

The first part of the day's plan was to transfer all of us and our bikes to Cesky Budejovice, where we would start the ride. This was about 2 hours by car from Prague.

When we were close to the destination, we received a message from those in one of the vehicles. Their van had suffered a blowout and could not go any further ! Another van had been ordered to take them the rest of the way. Does it ever end ? I started to wonder if someone had trod on a black cat's tail or walked under a ladder.

It was then that a genuine miracle occurred to save the day. When the bikes were unloaded, we pulled the three dead ones aside to consider our options. Reinhardt (Werner/Axel/Helmet ?) looked a little puzzled and then professionaly jiggled the wires. The dead bike came back to life. The same calibrated jiggle was performed on the other bikes and they too returned from the dead. That was a relief.

We also had a good chance to look around the city. It really was a delightful place, with a wonderful city square, full of whimsical pastel coloured buildings and coffee shops. It was our type of place.

The replacement van soon arrived and we were ready to go. The ride began with a couple of laps of honour around the square before we followed the river out of the city.

What followed next was three hours of amazing cycling, but absoutely nothing could prepare us for the sight that met our eyes when we arrived at Cesky Krumlov. I have visited a lot of cities in my time, but this magical place almost defies description. It was just breathtaking. We stopped to just gape at the sight before us. Hundreds of pictures were taken, but I am sure that none of them will do justice to the visual impact that this place had on us.

With all the bikes now working, just about all of our team finally in good physical health and with the support of staff who know what they are doing, things really are looking up.

See a separate footprint for images of Cesky KrumlovRead more