Training for Sahara in the snow!

It seems that around Attica you can find mud, rocky trails, graveled trails, easy trails, hard trails, but no sandy trails (at least in big quantities). Also you can find snow! This Sunday was a training outing for Alex and me, which ended up in us riding through a minor snow storm, and then through some muddy trails. So much for desert preparation... On the other hand our goal is to continuously push the bikes, and ourselves, in order to short out any problems or defects before the start of the trip.

Looks a bit like a jungle here.

 Tough going for both of the bikes!

 However the real problems started once we hit the tarmac. While approaching a curve I suddenly felt the rear tire blocking completely, while the bike screeched at a stop from 60kmh in the middle of the street. I had no idea what happened and my first concern was to get the bike and myself out of harms way. Once setting the 640 on the center stand the damage was obvious. The bolt that holds the front sprocket on the axle had snapped, resulting to the sprocket falling off and jamming itself together with the chain on the slider. That meant the rear wheel was completely immobilized. Lucky I was not going any faster!

 After some time a tow truck arrived to the relief of the 640, while the 690 roamed happily down the curvy roads. None of this "rescue and support" is happening down in Mauritania, so we better be ready!