Thunder's Road - Calum's Road 2010

Mr De Jonge has talked of just such a thing, I'll leave it with him :augie

Having said that if you'r enjoying my inane ramblings the Just Giving account is still open, feel free to click the link and get your wallet out, all contributions have been and will be gratefully accepted! :thumb


How are they going to use the money raised to build the road. Is there such a thing as a civil contractor there who will build it or will they do it themselves?
 
How are they going to use the money raised to build the road. Is there such a thing as a civil contractor there who will build it or will they do it themselves?

They will be doing it themselves with the help of a Dutch contractor who is out there working on the Southern Road. It's going to cost about £150K to build the road with the locals doing the work, does not sound a lot compared to costs in this part of the world but to put it in context the local government budget for the 200,000 people in this area is £25k per year to provide all their services! :eek:

If a government contractor was to do it it would cost something in the region of £1,000,000 which is one of the reasons it's not been done even though they have been lobbying for it for the last 40 years.
 
They will be doing it themselves with the help of a Dutch contractor who is out there working on the Southern Road. It's going to cost about £150K to build the road with the locals doing the work, does not sound a lot compared to costs in this part of the world but to put it in context the local government budget for the 200,000 people in this area is £25k per year to provide all their services! :eek:

If a government contractor was to do it it would cost something in the region of £1,000,000 which is one of the reasons it's not been done even though they have been lobbying for it for the last 40 years.

Which is the good thing about Balast Nedam getting involved. They are supplying a lot of expertise free of charge, but more than that, it will ensure the foundations and engineering of the road will be durable. Currently the road is just a glorified dirt track, but with some proper engineering behind it. it will mean that the road will remain solid even when flooded so the lifeline for their communities stays in place (ie , horse and donkey carts will travel on steady footing as well as the people going back and forth to the clinics, rice fields etc). The good thing I found about it is that the communities are willing to get involved themselves and put some work into it. Ownership of the issue combined with some outside support can go a long way :thumb2
 
Which is the good thing about Balast Nedam getting involved. They are supplying a lot of expertise free of charge, but more than that, it will ensure the foundations and engineering of the road will be durable. Currently the road is just a glorified dirt track, but with some proper engineering behind it. it will mean that the road will remain solid even when flooded so the lifeline for their communities stays in place (ie , horse and donkey carts will travel on steady footing as well as the people going back and forth to the clinics, rice fields etc). The good thing I found about it is that the communities are willing to get involved themselves and put some work into it. Ownership of the issue combined with some outside support can go a long way :thumb2

You can see why he's writing the book :thumb :D

Having said that our dog is loving the latest videos :pullface

795575699_e9Eer-L.jpg
 
Mr De Jonge has talked of just such a thing, I'll leave it with him :augie

Will there be intrigue, will there be back stabbing?
Or............................. is it just a case of vodka and diet coke and seven beers please barman?

All will be revealed in "I didn't sign up to this............" tales of woe and mirth by a bunch of Tossers heading to Africa. Watch this space :D :blast :blast :blast :eek: :jager
 
Last edited:
Will there be intrigue, will there be back stabbing?
Or............................. is it just a case of vodka and diet coke and seven beers please barman?

All will be revealed in "I didn't sign up to this............" tales of woe and mirth by a bunch of Tossers heading to Africa. Watch this space :D :blast :blast :blast :eek: :jager

Can't wait.... :popcorn
 
Roger

Thanks for taking the time and trouble to post. It has proven to be a fascinating and entertaining report. And a welcome distraction this morning from having to do mine !!

You and the gang must be proud - deservedly so... Congratulations on an epic ride and a great report.

Simon
 
Just came across this one which I quite like. John riding down Calum's Road with a lot of kids running after him. (I know not strictly part of the ride report, but keeps the masses occupied while they wait for Roger's next episode :D )
 

Attachments

  • DSC_0764.JPG
    DSC_0764.JPG
    57.5 KB · Views: 319
Thanks for that Gert, I will have a good look at that one when Roger has finished his much appreciated task of putting all the photos on CD's for us all, he told me it was a bigger job than he imagined. :clap:clap A large smurf coming his way in May.
In the meantime I had another look for more of you, and found this.

IMG_2442.jpg


John
 
Just read Bhud's excellent report he emailed me and followed the link to this thread. This is an Excellent Ride report and great to read all about the adventure and to have some many photos to view. Well done to everybody involved, great job :bow:bow :thumb
 
1-2-2010 evening

Showered and chilled thanks to some of the local beer we had the chance to take in our first sunset in The Gambia, yes there had been one the previous night but with the hell of the snad on the track to the compound we somehow missed it! :augie

808447080_6etVL-L.jpg


808449429_7hEdE-L.jpg


808446511_tvdLc-L.jpg


808505263_CjMGn-L.jpg


Like the beer we were well and truly chilled, life was good and so was the food eaten by candle light as electricity is not a service available in this part of the world. You rely on torches and candles but oh the African skies, just amazing!

808505150_RMLP3-L.jpg


808432458_hZM9P-L.jpg


Gert was hallucinating and enjoying an imaginary fillet steak, rare apparently with all the trimmings :D

808432170_XCG4u-L.jpg


Our tales of daring do proved too much for some of our hosts, but Sid's Dalek headpiece was a big hit! :D

808431915_XZysu-L.jpg


After the meal some of us walked up to the village were the locals were having a celebration thanks to the drummers who had stayed over from the previous nights welcome party. No pictures unfortunately it was just to dark but it was a fantastic night, hundreds of people in the centre of the village dancing to the rhythm waving torches and blowing whistles, it was a bloody rave!!!!! :thumb

We retired to bed, tomorrow Bhud's wife Katherine and my long suffering other half Linda (Melanie Cheeks of this parish) would be arriving!. :bounce1
 


Back
Top Bottom