Back in March 2021, the Stahlratte sailing ship, which had up until then been ferrying passengers and motorcycles around the Darien Gap, made its final voyage. Except this voyage wasn’t around the Darien, it was to Cuba. And one rider, embarking on a round the world trip, loaded himself and his motorcycle onto the Stahlratte to make a side trip to ride Cuba. After all, the pandemic was in full swing and Cuba was on his list.
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Both on and off-road, choosing the correct line is an important riding skill and it can make the difference of whether or not you get through a challenging situation. But how do you build the skill of choosing a line? What should you watch for and what are key factors in your choices? On this episode, we have instructor Clinton Smout from SMART Adventures teach us these important skills.
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Matt Shields and his fiancé, Lucie, wanted to do an adventure and they decided the mode of transportation would be a motorcycle. And although they had no bike, no license and no gear they decided to take the leap and put their idea in to motion. They left the UK in May and have recently arrived in Kenya, and after six months and 20,000 km they are now halfway through their adventure. They’ve learned as they went and have had some fantastical experiences on what they call a ‘wild ride’. Matt and Lucie are a testament to the thought process that we can do anything if we set our minds to it.
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A few years ago, David Prigel had a motorcycle get-off on his way to work, one that resulted in injuries and a short stint at the hospital. David’s wife wasn’t keen on the idea of him getting back on the bike again, in fact she was adamant that she didn’t want him to ride anymore. When we had them on the show back in 2017 they talked about their dilemma of whether or not David should ride his motorcycle again. Since then a number of things have changed in David’s life and on this episode we find out what happened to him, what he learned from the crash and where it took him. We also hear from Clinton Smout about dealing with the fear of a get-off and he has some tips that should help you overcome those fears.
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For most of his adult life, Mathew Sturtevant found himself so paralyzed with anxiety and fear that it limited him in almost everything he did. In search of a cure, he decided to face the dragon head on using ways that he knew would challenge him the most, a cross country motorcycle ride following the Trans America Trail where he would face remoteness, extreme weather, high altitudes and difficult riding conditions. His hopes were that by facing his fears using his motorcycle that he would gain his life and freedom back. For this adventure he enlisted two friends to go along with him and the plan was that he would document the trip and his transformation. Except it didn’t go as planned, he found himself unable to face his fears, unable to shake the anxiety and unable to be honest with his friends that had committed so much for this adventure.
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Motorcycle tire pressure settings are critical and for adventure motorcycles heading into the dirt it could make the difference between a fun ride or steady frustration, but does the perfect setting exist? Can we look at the chart, match our terrain and riding style to our payload and suspension, and then adjust our pressure to the recommended setting? Well not quite, but it may be a little easier than you think and to walk us through this we turned to two rider trainers with slightly different approaches. Bill Dragoo, although very technical minded, likes to keep it simple and has some great ideas he has developed for setting tire pressures he can live with. Chris Birch comes from a high level racing background and is very in touch with his tire pressures and how subtle changes make a difference in the way the bike feels. Both are top level rider trainers that will help put us on the straight and narrow for setting our off-road tire pressure on our adventure motorcycle.
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Jon Evans was at a low point in the adventure of life, having recently gone through a divorce, when a YouTube video caught his eye. By the time it was over Jon knew what he needed to do - go to India and ride the Himalayas. The question was how. He didn’t have a budget, so he searched for the cheapest way for him to have an adventure on a motorcycle in the Himalayas - a tour company. Not just any tour company but the cheapest tour company he could find. What he couldn’t know was just how much of an adventure it was going to be. And just what an impact it would have on him and his life.
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What if you could go on a motorcycle camping trip and not take any gear? Sean Burch did just that when he recently rode the South Carolina Adventure Route, and met up with his wife at the end of each day. And what if you could take your motorcycle to work with you and use it every chance you had? Scott DeMello is the Captain of a 50 meter super yacht and he gets to take his motorcycles with him to ride when he and his wife, the boat’s chef, are on shore leave. On this episode, we talk about two very different kinds of motorcycle travel, on land and sea.
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Ali Peberdy, retired motorcycle cop, has just returned from an eight week trip to Europe. Before she left, we spoke with Ali and she told us about some concerns she had, things like dropping her bike, going solo, age and breakdowns. Ali is back in the UK now and she has some stories to tell about the things she experienced on her trip, from the rude hotel receptionist to the mishap in the cornfield, and whether or not her trip concerns were valid.
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Riding a motorcycle downhill isn’t particularly difficult, but what does make it difficult and unnerving for many riders are the obstacles encountered on the hill. If it were just a steep slope with plenty of traction, the type you may have ridden in a parking garage or some other paved steep decent, it would be no problem. But in the dirt, surfaces are not flat, they don’t necessarily have good traction, they may have ruts, rocks, roots and a host of other obstacles that add to the challenge of riding downhill. On this episode of Rider Skills, Clinton Smout walks us through how to deal with each obstacle. Then he has some simple downhill riding exercises that you can practice with your own motorcycle at home, and you wont even need a hill.
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It all began with an image of a modern day Marlboro Man, rugged, weathered and on an adventure. The image that would eventually lead to the experience that Jeff and Kelly Traviss had on a dream trip that would demand every ounce of their stamina and endurance. They faced incredible discomforts and challenges, yet they clung to hope and knowing they had no choice but to push on they found the strength to continue. What happened and could they have done anything differently?
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The idea of riding a motorcycle around the world presents enough challenges for the average rider, there’s border crossings, break downs, logistics, and so many other things to consider. But, add to those challenges running a business while you’re on the road, raising funds for a charity you really care about, bringing a 75 pound German Shepherd with you, and fitting everything you need for work, your dog and camping on your bikes. These are some of the things Jess and Greg Stone have been dealing with but they’re having the time of their lives doing it. Now, it’s not always sunshine and roses, they’ve already had their share of troubles, but there isn’t anything going to stop them from riding around the world. Jim talks to Jess and Greg about how they do it, their outlook and we hear some amusing stories of things that have happened to them since they left Guatemala a few months ago.
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Spencer Conway and his wife, Cathy Nel, have a goal to circumnavigate all seven continents on Earth. So far Spencer has completed Africa, which most riders would consider to be the most difficult one and recently he and Cathy completed their circumnavigation of South America. And because Spencer does not stick to the main routes he often finds himself lost and has incredible experiences. In fact, he refuses to take a GPS with them just for that reason because he thinks that the key to a successful trip is to get lost every now and then. Spencer has come away with some fantastical tales of adventure and the troubles they’ve faced in South America, which he shares on this episode.
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When Tom Fitzgerald asked his friend Patrick Farrell if he could talk to him, there was a plan brewing in his mind, one that he wanted Patrick to be a part of. Tom is 80 years old and he’s been a cowboy and ranch hand most of his life. His love for motorcycles began 60 years ago and he’s been riding ever since. When he was 15 he read a Reader’s Digest story about the mysterious Oak Island in Nova Scotia and has always wanted to see it. So, that and his desire to ride 10,000 miles for his 80th year were Tom’s motivation for his most recent adventure with Patrick.
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Aggressive rider? Sounds counterintuitive but there are times when you want to be an aggressive rider and riding instructor, Chris Birch, explains how becoming an aggressive rider, done properly, can improve your riding performance.
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Trip planning builds excitement - who’s going, what does the motorcycle need, what to pack and of course the route. The route is a big part of the excitement and there are some very important details to consider that can easily be overlooked, in part because it’s so difficult to assess - yet it could be the factor that makes the difference between getting into trouble or avoiding it. And when you consider the route, other questions come up. How do you know if your motorcycle, your gear and your physical fitness is suitable for your desired route? All that and more on this episode of Rider Skills with Instructor Clinton Smout.
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Camping from your motorcycle can be one of the most rewarding things you can do on two wheels, but for the uninitiated it can be a formidable task trying to figure out what you should take and how to fit it into the limited space on your bikes. Ben Williams shares some common mistakes that campers make and we’ve also got some tips for camping on your motorbike.
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Planning your adventure as a couple is half the fun. You choose the bikes, the gear, the route. But the hard stuff, the stuff that unravels under pressure, things like stamina, the desire to endure hardship or inclement weather day in day out, or negotiating and communicating as a couple to make sure you both get the most of the trip, those are the difficult ones. Doug and Sharon Wildeboer have just started a one year motorcycle trip through Iceland and Europe. But, before they left they gave us a personal glimpse in to the preparation and planning that went in to their trip. Including how they would balance work on the road with travel, their expectations and logistics.
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What is it about the Darien Gap that draws people to it? Is it the bot flies, the venomous snakes, the bandits, the extremely rough terrain? There are options for getting around it, by boat or plane and you won’t risk your motorcycle or your life by choosing an alternate route, yet still there are those who are fascinated by the Darien Gap, those who want to conquer it. In 2017, Wayne Mitchell and a group of ex-military friends rode from snowy Alaska to the furthest point in Argentina, but when they reached the Gap, they didn’t go around it, they went through it. After just one day of pushing the limits in the jungle, one of their team was forced to turn back to Panama. What was supposed to have been the dry season in the Darien Gap proved to be a monumental challenge with torrential rains, deep mud and broken down motorcycles.
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Ali Peberdy has been riding motorcycles for about forty years, she’s worked as a police officer and some of those years she was a motorcycle cop. She’s ridden thousands of miles in and around Europe with her friends and now in retirement she’s discovering a whole new world of riding. She’s just about to embark on a solo trip in Europe and has had to face some fears she has never known before. What steps did she take to address those fears and how will this shape her adventure?
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