So now, the end may be near, and so we may be facing the final curtain

Eventful trip so far!

Arrived in Bali to find we had only 1 working Rickshaw, but 4 almost working team members. Our second non-functioning Rickshaw (we had a choice of 2...either no electrics or steering mechanism, or a blown head gasket with no Spares outside Jakarta in Java) was to be trucked to Jakarta over the next 3 days and then repaired.

Tom and Chris from the Indostructibles (with Team Awesome) kindly offered to transport Scot to Jakarta as they were a man down. This arrangement worked well for their first 10 breakdowns....but when they stopped for lunch we decided to carry on down the same road with all 4 of us in our Rickshaw to see if it would be a viable option. The plan was to stop and wait for them if it was too uncomfortable.

After about 10K our Axle, Radiator, (and Brakes) failed and we coasted to a halt outside a welding shop! The snackbar opposite rang a mechanic who came to help fix everything and 2 hours later the Rickshaw was ready to roll again - but with a much lighter pay-load. During this time Team Indostructible hadn't driven by - due mainly to the fact that their Rickshaw was in even worse condition than ours (as I write this sat in Jakarta, they haven't even made it off Bali!) 

To avoid separating the team, we loaded the Rickshaw (only capable to carrying 2 people with the re-welded axle) into a truck to get to the Dock in West Bali...and limped our way to a hotel in East Java via ferry and cycle rickshaw.

Day 2 began with a "call to prayer" at 5am. Scot and Mark then arranged to travel to Surabaya by train whilst Nav and Simon drove the Rickshaw around the coast to the same destination. When Scot sent his first text to announce they had safely arrived on the train, the RIckshaw team replied they had safely broken down again (blown Radiator, melted Alternator, "Frozen" cylinder head). his little episode was not correctable by the side of the road, so once again our journey continued by truck.

On arrival in Surabaya, the Rickshaw was loaded on a train to Jakarta where the spare parts would hopefully be available. We boarded an overnight passanger train arriving in Jakarta the morning of day 3.

Managed to find a mechanic in Jakarta - (Henry, an American from San Francisco!), but the engine needs a total rebuild and parts aren't readily available. The second Rickshaw has apparently arrived (although we're not allowed to know where, and don't know when it will be ready to drive away)...it would also need to be fully serviced before departing Jakarta.

Due to the huge amount of uncertainty we are questioning our next options.