March 9, 2016
Mae Sot: My undoing ...
07/03/2016
I didn’t leave early enough this morning. I hung around for the 0700 “breakfast” that ended up being instant coffee and toast. So it was about 0730 when I finally got going, seriously under-fueled. The first 10 km or so on the ride to Mae Sot is the fairly flat approach to the hills. There is a large sign over the hiway soon after you turn onto it from the Thai National 1 Highway. In Thailand it is signed as #12 Highway, but it is also the Asean Hiway 1 – the rapidly developing road link between India and Vietnam. This is just one of the many road/rail networks being built across Asia. The sign proclaims it as the “South Asia Gate” and has a photo of the Taj Mahal, ShweDagon Pagoda and the Thai-Myanmar Friendship Bridge, for those who can’t read the print. The major hiway upgrade out of Myawaddy is now finished and once this bit of road is transformed into a major 6 lane freeway, this part of the world will be changed forever. Many would argue it already has.
There's a roadside police checkpoint shortly after the South Asia Gate sign. These police and military checkpoints are everywhere and cars mostly get waved through and are seldom checked. I got singled out and motioned to pull over. With handshakes and smiles I was given a can of ice coffee and a bottle of cold water.
Anyway, back to my undoing…
The hills and road construction start before you know it and I was slowly pedalling my way up towards the first of two passes to Mae Sot. It was getting hot and I was coping with the climb, until I hit the steep bit. I got off and started pushing, which is my tactic for dealing with these situations. For the next 30km that’s what I did: rode the bits I could and got off and pushed where I couldn’t. Despite the lack of a shoulder for most of the ride and the alarmingly close proximity of the traffic, I seldom felt I had to worry about my safety, as the drivers usually gave me a wide berth. At about km 27, after 10 km of hard climbing, I reached the first summit at around 900 metres. There is a roadside market soon after where I finally was able to cool down and refuel at one of the food stalls.
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Just before I got there, I met a delightful pair of young German boys, couldn’t have been more than 18 years old. They had just done some volunteer work in Myanmar and decided that they really needed to cycle to Hong Kong before heading home. They found a couple of bikes, cobbled together some gear and set off. They were literally dancing on their pedals, laughing their way up one of the steepest grades when we met at the roadside. It was midday, they had just gaily laughed their way up two (albeit small) mountain passes and were having the time of their lives. At the market place I met a French pair who had cycled from Europe, Asia, India, Myanmar and were now heading to Bangkok…. Hills? What hills? ... “Oh, you have some small up and down ahead, then all downhill to Mae Sot,” I was informed. My gpx track was telling me otherwise. By the accounts of all, Myanmar is lovely.
I set out resolved to cycle the rest of the way to Mae Sot, but knew I would be cutting it fine and probably running out of daylight by the time I got there. The second pass isn’t as high as the first one and tops out at around 700 metres. It’s about 35 km beyond the first pass, at about km 66, still leaving another 18 km to Mae Sot. I had 5 hours of daylight left, I could make it...
I was struggling soon after leaving my market place lunch stop. The downhills were fantastic, but the uphills were taking it out of me and before long I was off the bike pushing on inclines that earlier I was able to ride up.
At about km 63, at the top of a hill, I made the decision to pull the plug. I had only one more hour of daylight left, 2 km before I reached the second summit (most of which I would be pushing, not riding) and then another 18 km of mostly downhill before I hit Mae Sot. Once I did the maths and figured out I’d never make it in daylight, I put out my thumb and started hitch hiking.
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Oh, and I was totally and completely farked. I was still upright, but now clearly not coping with the physical demands of the ride. When those levels of fatigue set in, it is easy to make mistakes and this road had plenty of opportunities to make mistakes. I only later found out the locals call it "the road of death" due to the number of fatal accidents every year.
The third vehicle (a pick-up truck) pulled over and drove me all the way to my hotel in Mae Sot. He was a policeman heading home at the end of his shift. He even helped me to get a reduced rate for three nights stay. I'm going to need at least one day to recover physically, and another to rebuild my battered psyche. I am so so weak… I need to become so much stronger.
Today was humbling, but did give me the opportunity to once again experience the kindness of strangers.
A large group of ethnic Asian U.S. Christian Missionary kids at Famous Ray's Burger Joint. I seriously hadn't seen that many Americans in one place in a long time. There are a lot of Christian missionaries in Mae Sot, doing their thing.
The burgers are really good.
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Daily Stats
* 63 km cycled
* 18 km hitch-hiked
* 6:15 - time spent pedalling and pushing up hills
* 3:00 - time spent stopped gasping for air or resting
* 700 km on the odometer.
* All of 'em, each and every one (number of Thai cops I love)
Tomorrow Burma.
Today's ride: 700 km (435 miles)
Total: 700 km (435 miles)
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