My Rhino Wars — The Flat Tire and the Lion
Because the APUs are the last people to get funds we had been patrolling with really wrecked tyres for weeks. Our spare was absolutely useless at this stage. In the early hours Johannes and I were glad to see a lion in the thick bush, for exactly 2 minutes. A few meters down the road we got another flat. The procedure we had by now perfected was to get the small battery charged air pump out and just keep on stopping every now and then to inflate the almost useless tyres. I was going to the lodges maintenance workshop ever morning after duty to beg them to fix my tyres. Now when in the one camp, that had no lion, a flat was not a big problem. Now it was. I shone the big torch towards where we had seen the lion, a big male. Nothing. I had no choice, I had to get the bakkie going, my other guys were out and at night, I was their only backup, the “colonel” who always claimed to be out on patrol, was never seen or heard, and his cell was off. I said to Johannes , “Let’s do it.” Getting out the pump and attaching the thing I was expecting Johannes to be helping, or at least keeping an eye out for the lion. No, he was sitting dead still, too scared to move. Some violent threats got him more scared of me than being eaten by a lion and he, sort of helped.
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Problem was the hole was a big one, we could see the air blowing up sand from the road. Had to plug that some how. Sometimes, especially under stress my brain works quite well. An Acacia thorn! I gathered my courage and walked into the bush to get one, my little legs were, just a little bit ,wobbly . Plug the hole, pump the tire and off we go. I never took Johannes into the lion camp with me again. I also took his stripe and gave it to another, braver man, Joseph.
