What happened to our big trip?
Because South Australia suffered very little in the pandemic, Deborah and I were able to keep fit on the fire trails and back roads of the Adelaide Hills once the original Covid lockdown was relaxed. But our planned ride to Tamworth was not able to happen on schedule due to the pandemic. However, the Triennial made some adjustments to its program in response to the pandemic which meant Deborah was able to freight her work to Tamworth, and plan for us to arrive near the end of September with an additional piece of work to add to her exhibit.
At the beginning of August, we took our fully laden bikes and trailers on an overnight test run out to Springton. The route included both bitumen and steep metal roads through the Adelaide Hills. We were confident that our setup would work for the long trip to Tamworth.
Covid intervened again. South Australia was largely Covid free, but it appeared increasingly likely that we would not be able to re-enter South Australia from NSW after leaving Tamworth. Neither of us could afford an extra two weeks off work, or paying for quarantine. We cancelled the trip.
We decided, instead, upon a long loop through South Australia, taking the secondary art piece with us in the hope that it might later join the Triennial exhibition. The route would begin from Joy's garden in Victor Harbor, pass close to the Murray mouth, and continue past the old dairy farm at Jervois where Joy had grown up. We would take the long ride north to Marla via the Oodnadatta Track, and then return to Adelaide past the family farms at Gladstone and Crystal Brook. We left on August 29.
Early in the trip Deb was thrown from her bike and suffered a serious shoulder injury; a "clavicle fracture and severe acromioclavicular joint separation." It has required multiple surgeries and a long rehabilitation. In mid-2021 she is now close to a full recovery and we are beginning to plan the next steps in our project.
