Day 1 Hanoi to Cho Ben.
Most of us had a hard time sleeping last night, in
anticipation for the rides start in the morning. We woke up, around 6:00 am to the sounds of
honking horns, loudspeakers, roosters and the unloading of brick into the steel
truck-bed of a three-legged truck. The
soft morning light, barely able to penetrate the dense fog of pollutants that
had settled in the valley over the past few weeks, the air acrid with the smog
of millions of motorbikes, coal power-plants and the burning of ancestral
paper. We groggily made coffee and
checked to make sure that everything we needed was packed, then checked again,
and again; inevitably something of importance will be left behind and many
extra frivolities will be packed as well never to be used. This will be my third time doing the ride, 2nd time leading, however this year's ride will be an entirely new experience, as I will be sharing this experience for the first time with my father, something we have talked about since I had originally done the ride in 2015, after years of preparation he's is ready and able, and we both count ourselves as extremely fortunate to share this experience together. The year also differs in that I will be co-leading the ride with my good friend and former colleague Andrea Towne, who has lead and done the ride an equal amount of times to myself, combined we share over four separate years of ride experience, soon to be six, and I couldn't be more stoked.
When we arrived at the Dragon’s we
were greeted with the beaming white smiles of genuine happiness and gratitude,
it seemed to cut through the thick morning haze and remind us what we were
doing this for. After meeting with the
Blue Dragon kids and Chi, our Blue Dragon contact, the press started to arrive.
As the press arrived so did the rest of our team and our support team. I was happy to see the familiar faces of Mr
Coung ( the legendary medical support van driver) as well as the familiar faces
of our DHL drivers, which had done previous rides with us Thanh, Tan and Loan;
joining them was our legend of a mechanic Thu. The Vietnamese press then interviewed Leanne
and Jane Gradwell, followed by Thao and Loc. After a brief morning stretch lead by Leanne,
some words of wisdom from Andrea, and some directions and logistics from me we
were off. I gave my wife Ana one last
embrace ( she knows the drill) and our mascot, Meatball a kiss and a squeeze,
knowing that once again she would go on a hunger strike until I returned ( She’s
quite an emotional little dog) We left
the dragons dishing out highfives to our Hanoi supporters and our kids from Blue
Dragon and headed south down Lac Long Quan.
The route out of Hanoi isn’t a pretty one, tradtition gives
way to modernity and financial progress, a phase most countries have previously
gone through but few in the west remember.
New highways and infrastructure replace the old provincial roads while
the bicycles and oxcarts are replaced with manic truck drivers and bus drivers
who would give Patrick Bateman from American Psycho, a run for his money. As the city scape gives way to the countryside
we are enveloped in smog, exhaust and quarry dust. The latter to create cement with which go on
to dot the landscapes of Hanoi, Saigon and Da Nang with new modern highrises
and condominium projects, or be sold elseware to further the building of
skyscrapers or land reclamation projects of Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia and
China.
The lungs begin to ache, the eyes burn with each passing
truck. And with each passing truck, a
prayer that it wont be the last thing you see as it rolls over you. The riders, I can tell, are wondering “what
the hell did we get ourselves into?!” “Will every day be this grim’” or “ Where
is the scenic Vietnamese countryside I’ve been longing for; we didn’t leave
Saigon for THIS!”. All of these strangely
familiar thoughts race through their heads, as they keep a positive attitude
and show a brave face, the thoughts still cascade, as they have with every
rider who has embarked on this wonderful journey.
After hectic, albeit flat ride of 70+km we arrive at the front
door of the small town of Cho Ben, a quarry town, reminiscent of old Appalachian
mining towns complete with their assorted entertainments for the workers. When we arrive we mark our territory so other
riders don’t miss the turn and grab a few cold Bia Hanoi’s and wait. We are immediately met by a young boy of
about 12 years of age. I immediately
recognize the face, as his mom pushes the slightly chubby pre-teen to the
street to practice his English. His name
is Long, and he has met every H2H ride since 2015 in the same fashion, with a
gentle push from his mom. His English
has improved dramatically from the time I last saw him in 2017 (thanks in part
to the persistence of his mother), he was a true joy to reconnect with and a
truly intelligent and compassionate child, I can only imagine what bright future
awaits this small chubby boy from Cho Ben.
With the last rider in tow we ride the final 6km to our
hotel, passing a bigger hotel, which prefers to offer its rooms to the proclivities
of companionship and late-night entertainment.
Finally we arrive at our little home tonight, a vast, decaying hotel
situated over a wrought-iron and concrete slat bridge, surrounded by lovely ponds
and stark karst limestone formations which the north of Vietnam is known
for. With all the riders checked in, the
“three S’s” attended to (shit,shower and shave) we sit down for a communal meal
and group meeting at a nearby restaurant.
The meal is unremarkable, as they seemed to forget that they were in the
business of selling food, but the spirits were high. We all said our goodnights and took leave for
our spartan-like damp quarters, muscles aching and thrush-well….”thrushing”
from the day’s exercise. Taking one last
look with my puffed eyes full of quarry dust, I see the lovely 27 days in front
of us starting with the limestone formations that form the gateway into Cuc
Phoung national park, famous for its use as a location in the recent King Kong
film , King Kong: Skull Island. Taking one last drag from a cigarette to burn
out the taste of petrol in my mouth, I too head to bed, eager for day two.
-Zachary Kester
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