My Motorbike Trips

I’d been commuting in London on a motorbike for years, and it was always the most exciting and rewarding part of my day. A friend who co-owned a motorcycle dealership had ridden three times from London to Cape Town. I decided that’s what I wanted to do, too.

I gave up on my first two attempts:

* After three months in Syria, going south, I saw a lorry in the fast lane of a dual carriageway near Damascus approaching me with its headlights on.

* After eight months of going north from Cape Town when I nearly got shot by the Shifta - Somali bandits - on the Moyale Road to Ethiopia in Northern Kenya.

I love Africa: the people, animals, the vast skies and lands.

But how could I know I loved Africa if I’d never been to South America?

For my next attempt, I started in New York and went south. I gave up five times, but only after having scary thoughts in the middle of the night - by morning I knew the dark spirits would be gone.

I spent nearly three years riding 66,000 miles through 46 countries on ‘Fred’, my KTM 640 Adventure. The trip changed my life.

Trip 3 Route - 2003 - 2006

Fred - A 2003 KTM 640 Adventure