Post 6: Saturday 29th

The now familiar thunder storm is upon us with the first smatterings of rain prompting Amy to zip up the tent. This is our fourth camp but few of us bothered to bring out our cameras. The landscape has lost it's novelty. Dry dust and stone underfoot, brown shadowed mountains on all horizons. Thankfully it is unusually warm and I am hoping to use my sleeping bag as a duvet. I feel claustrophobic when it is necessary to pull the hood over my head and zip up over my shoulders.

It has been a difficult day when it should have been simple. The scheduled ride was only fifty odd Kms with no major passes to climb but the mood among the team was fairly sour as we breakfasted and prepared the bikes. There were complaints about the food and that many of the squad weren't ready in time. Little of the usual banter was circulating. We are all fairly exhausted and the thought of spending the next three nights camping contributed to the flat mood I suspect.

We headed out at around 9:30, half an hour behind schedule, and hadn't travelled far before Neil's trike had mechanical problems. The rest of us waited while a few of the guys worked on the trike. As we had stopped in the Tibetan quarter, a crowd of interested bystanders quickly developed around the two of us in hand cycles. At one point, a member of our support crew translated to the spectators that Catriona was paralysed. Immediately people began to pass money to her, overwhelming both catriona and penny. The people here are extremely poor.

My ride was interrupted by a blown tire that almost scared Amy off her bike. It made quite a noise and frightened her more than the night the thermos exploded in front of her showering glass over a handful of people in the mess tent. The tires are now a serious issue; this one blew after only 40 Kms and there are no more opportunities to buy any. Suspecting I the steering had been knocked out of alignment, we made some adjustments this evening and are expecting to see an improvement tomorrow.

After 8 Everest summits Neema is not fazed by a blown tire

Big hole