Mud

In South Africa, especially in the province of Natal, thunderstorms are frequent and sudden. Out of the blue come heavy gray clouds that in very short time become compact and ready for rain.

Lightning rapidly flashes through the sky and with the electricity and thunderbolts seem to break the clouds. A little later water comes down in buckets.

My friends and I wait anxiously for the rain to stop, because we liked to go down to the Dusi River where through the years we had made a racing track in the bush. It was a straight but muddy track which ran along the banks near the water. When it rained the dry soil would immediately turn to mud and to ride through that brown and sticky slime was great fun for us.

To be able to go once around the track without falling off your bikes was not easy at all and often we fell off and landed on our butts on the soft wet ground . Racing was great fun and riding on the slippery ground with the rear wheel spinning, meant to throw up lots of mud and cover those who followed. So it was a good idea to stay in front and avoid this treatment.

One of the oddest things I liked doing was to block the front wheel and accelerate, so that the back wheel would spin and the bike would go forward with a snake like movement and I tried not to lose my balance, standing on the footrests.

I got a kick out of lifting the front wheel and riding on the bumps with the back wheel only. This gave me a sensation as though I was flying.

Playing in this way we had the illusion to beat the force of gravity, even if it was impossible to do. When I was not able to get the upper hand I found myself on the ground covered in mud.

After a few hours spent in this way, we were all extremely dirty, tired, full of bruises and hungry. The river cleansed our bodies and took care of one problem.

We then left our track and headed for my house where in the garden we used the hose pipe to get all the mud off our motorbikes.

To determine whose turn it was to make tea we would pool out of a box of matches. The one who got the shortest match would go in the kitchen and prepare tea and milktart which my mom always had ready baked for us.

This was our way to turn a gray and dull rainy afternoon into great enjoyment.