Words – Andrew Biram, Pics – Andrew Biram
RAD Moto celebrated their 2nd birthday in grand style in the mountainous Kingdom of Swaziland last month, with 33 clients and friends joining in the fun and celebrations for four days of adventure and entertainment. Based at the lovely Maguga Lodge, overlooking the Maguga Dam wall 20kms from Piggs Peak, we partied the first night away after an introduction of the team and an in-depth riders briefing which outlined the fun to be had over the next three days.
Eagerly waking on Friday morning, we wolfed down a fantastic brekkie and, after mounting our bikes, all followed Mark Taylor and Denzel Laurie into the hills of Swaziland. The route immediately blew us away with spectacular vistas over the dam before dropping us down a stony cattle path which opened more than a couple of riders’ eyes on the descent. Mark had warned us to expect vehicular traffic on the least likely paths and, sure enough, as we were battling down a nasty little section we had to avoid a Golf GTi climbing up towards us, lowered suspension and all. Where there’s a will there’s a way apparently!
The terrain did not let up at all but even our pillions in the group were smiling and having a blast, relying on the superb abilities of their partners to pilot them safely up hill and down dale. Much respect went out to them that evening at the awards presentation and they were rewarded with a shooter for their efforts. Our route planners possibly got a bit optimistic with their choice of lunch venue because, as beautiful as it was, the 4x4 that was carrying our grub was unable to get there. So off we went to a more suitable location to enjoy our sarmies, chicken and much needed liquid refreshments.
The final stretch of the day was hard fought with the riders feeling the effects of 36 degree heat and hangovers that just wouldn’t quit, no matter how much we were sweating, so when we hit the tar eventually it was “Home James, and don’t spare the horses!”
The clients had a ball in the pool that evening before we were spoiled to a very lekker dinner and a couple of soothing drinks to wash the final dust down. Outlaw Entertainment rocked our socks off, filling the night with great tunes and even some dodgy jokes courtesy of Sean Dienar. The Swazi mountain air must be really fresh as many yawns were spotted throughout the night, closely followed by retreating feet carrying their owners off to bed with the promise of a new day dawning.
Saturday we rose to a slightly overcast sky that was thankfully a lot cooler and only added to our enjoyment of the best ride of the birthday bash. Man, the paths and mountains that we traversed were the business; just awakening us to how blessed we are to be able to ride bikes for days on end in the greatest places on earth. The freedom and melting away of all stresses that our group experienced while up in the mountains was truly refreshing and quite necessary for a couple of members in our group.
Lunch for the day was enjoyed on the banks of the Komati River which served well to wash dirty faces and hands in before tucking into our well-deserved lunch packs which were waiting for us after our morning’s route. As with all RAD Adventure tours we aim to leave our surrounds as we found them and that day was no different. Even after sharing our supplies with some local kids, we ensured that we collected all the trash to take back to camp with us. It boggles my mind to see how the local people seem to find it acceptable to litter in their own pristine environment.
The route back to Maguga flew by even though Mark and Denzel had placed a tricky sting in the tail to really finish us off. By this stage we were all Rally Gods who even Alfie Cox would have been threatened by and nothing was going to stop our rapid progress home to watch the rugga. Pity we got trounced by NZ, I guess we couldn’t have it all our own way the entire weekend?
Sunday’s ride home was a damp and cold affair, with the heavens opening and kicking us out of Swaziland with our tails between our legs. 16 Degrees through Nelspruit and a 140km/h wind chill factor on wet riding kit ensured that we did not muck around getting home to a hot shower. One brave couple even made it back from Maguga, through the border post and to their home on the West Rand in three hours flat, courtesy of their phenomenal KTM 1190 Adventure. Silly but effective!
With clients like these and the passion for motorcycling that RAD Moto has, we will most definitely be celebrating many more birthdays in superb style going into the future. To all our clients and those who attended, thank you for making us the success that we are. We couldn’t have done it without you!
