Probably the most common question that people have been asking about the trip (other than why) is what route I plan to take. Australians then typically snigger when I pronounce the word "root" instead of "rout" (ask an Australian why...).
The timing is still very vague because I have no idea how far I will want to ride each day, how long I will want to stop at each place, and what delays I will encounter (hopefully not too many). Perhaps more significantly, I don't know what I will feel like on the trip - eager to push on for home, or happy to move at my own pace. Maybe I'll keep going when I get to the UK and do a complete circuit (although I like the idea of saving that for another time!).
So... the rout is Melbourne, Sydney, Fraser Island, Darwin, Singapore (8 days by boat for the bike, 5 hours on a plane for me), Malaysia, Thailand, Cambodia, Laos, back to Thailand, Kathmandu (3 hours on a plane from Bangkok for man and bike because I can't ride through Burma or China), India, Pakistan, Iran, Turkey, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, back to Turkey, Greece, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, France, and finally back to the UK. I may skip the loop in the Middle East if I'm tight on time or sick of riding, but I'd really like to see Petra.
In terms of timing, the plan is to be back in the UK for the end of June. If I time it really well, I'll be able to make it to Glastonbury, which will give the trip a certain symmetry because (i) I will have been on the road for exactly 6 months, and (ii) Glastonbury was the last big event that I attended before I moved from the UK to California 6 years ago.
In addition to the itinerary, I'm slowly building up a list of people that I hope to meet on the trip. So far, these include Paul Lanzillotti (flying out to Ko Samui), Mark Allenspach (riding to Switzerland, who I should catch up in Thailand), Trent Eddy (an ex-Bainie in Phnom Penh), Casey Reichel (hiking in Nepal), some friends of Dan Tu-Hoa that live in Islamabad, and a host of people in Europe ('host' being the operative word). Hopefully, others will be able to fly out to meet me on the road, or point me in the direction of a friendly local with a comfy couch.
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Monday, November 17, 2008
Six weeks to go!
Not much to report over the past week on the trip front . The KTM Superduke went to a very good home - a nice Finnish couple that have recently moved to Melbourne - although I must say that they negotiated a very good deal...
Sum total of the week's progress was the purchase of a 12v socket to install on the bike, and a USB adapter that should allow me to charge my GPS and iPod on the move - ingenious. I also heard from a chap called Mark who will be doing Sydney to Switzerland on a GS1150 with his wife at a similar time.
Given the lack of news, I thought I'd mention a few words about my inspiration for the trip. Surprisingly, it wasn't Ewan and Charlie, although they did boost my confidence because if that pair could make it across Asia (with the help of a camera crew and a couple of 4x4s), I figure I should be able to make it on my own no problem. The whinging thesps certainly weren't the first adventure motorcyclists - before them, the most famous motorcycle travelog was probably Jupiter's Travel by Ted Simon. My favourite is One Man Caravan by Robert Fulton, who did a similar journey to mine (in reverse) on a Douglas twin in 1932. The way he tells it, he concocted the trip at a dinner party to impress a girl and felt compelled to follow through with the idea. And he was packing heat on the bike.
Inspiration for my trip came from an Australian couple that I met at Mrs Bandari's Guest House in Amritsar in 1997. They were doing Australia to the UK two-up on an R80GS, and I thought it was the coolest thing I'd ever heard. If it's still there, I'm hoping to stop off at Mrs Bandari's for a cold beer and some nostalgia.
Sum total of the week's progress was the purchase of a 12v socket to install on the bike, and a USB adapter that should allow me to charge my GPS and iPod on the move - ingenious. I also heard from a chap called Mark who will be doing Sydney to Switzerland on a GS1150 with his wife at a similar time.
Given the lack of news, I thought I'd mention a few words about my inspiration for the trip. Surprisingly, it wasn't Ewan and Charlie, although they did boost my confidence because if that pair could make it across Asia (with the help of a camera crew and a couple of 4x4s), I figure I should be able to make it on my own no problem. The whinging thesps certainly weren't the first adventure motorcyclists - before them, the most famous motorcycle travelog was probably Jupiter's Travel by Ted Simon. My favourite is One Man Caravan by Robert Fulton, who did a similar journey to mine (in reverse) on a Douglas twin in 1932. The way he tells it, he concocted the trip at a dinner party to impress a girl and felt compelled to follow through with the idea. And he was packing heat on the bike.
Inspiration for my trip came from an Australian couple that I met at Mrs Bandari's Guest House in Amritsar in 1997. They were doing Australia to the UK two-up on an R80GS, and I thought it was the coolest thing I'd ever heard. If it's still there, I'm hoping to stop off at Mrs Bandari's for a cold beer and some nostalgia.
Sunday, November 9, 2008
The world's most expensive metal boxes
Anticipation for the big trip is mounting (as is the bill). On Sunday, I went over to Everything Two Wheels to get the panniers fitted. We didn't get finished until almost 11pm, which is service above and beyond the call of duty, but after a few hours everything fitted perfectly - nice job, Pete! The alu panniers were pristine and came in bubble wrap, so there was much nervousness as the holes were drilled to mount them to the frame. I initially thought that the towels on the floor were to stop the panniers from getting scratched (hardly necessary, given the punishment they're about to receive), but after a while it occurred to me that Pete may have been more concerned about his brand new workshop floor. Anyways... the bike is beginning to look worthy of intercontinental adventures now. Which is just as well, given what the Touratech panniers cost...
Route planning is coming along - I'm thinking of heading up the east coast of Australia as far as Fraser Island, and then cutting inland through Longreach and Mount Isa to Tennants Creek before heading north to Darwin. Just getting out of Australia is going to be a marathon ride - I don't think I'm going to see much change out of 6,000km. I'd like to ride along the beach at Fraser Island, but I'm still trying to find out if that's realistic, or if 300+ kg of bike, rider and assorted camping gear, spare parts and assorted paraphernalia will quickly disappear into the sand.
I am enjoying the new Arai Tour X - I had initially thought that a new helmet might be an unnecessary luxury, but after wearing it I realised that my 10 year old lid had some significant hygiene issues as well as safety issues. No excuse to wear my fancypants Dainese trouser suit as yet, but I do need to get it dirtied up in case any bikie gangs in the outback mistake me for a cissy.
Route planning is coming along - I'm thinking of heading up the east coast of Australia as far as Fraser Island, and then cutting inland through Longreach and Mount Isa to Tennants Creek before heading north to Darwin. Just getting out of Australia is going to be a marathon ride - I don't think I'm going to see much change out of 6,000km. I'd like to ride along the beach at Fraser Island, but I'm still trying to find out if that's realistic, or if 300+ kg of bike, rider and assorted camping gear, spare parts and assorted paraphernalia will quickly disappear into the sand.
I am enjoying the new Arai Tour X - I had initially thought that a new helmet might be an unnecessary luxury, but after wearing it I realised that my 10 year old lid had some significant hygiene issues as well as safety issues. No excuse to wear my fancypants Dainese trouser suit as yet, but I do need to get it dirtied up in case any bikie gangs in the outback mistake me for a cissy.
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