‘If you don’t try, you’ll never find out if you can.’

A couple of times recently I’ve been asked, “What are the key topics you consider before a bigger trip?”

There’s loads of info shared by several very experienced motorcycle travellers, and we’ve covered lots of info on Adventure Rider Radio RAW but I had a bit of a brain storm and zapped down some thoughts, in case they helpful to anyone dreaming of the road. 😊

Some useful Motorcycle Travel Prep considerations:

WHICH BIKE
 Choose a bike that suits the type of trip you plan. Mostly road, to mostly off road.
 Do you actually like riding it? If it’s your ‘friend’ you’ll love nearly all of your riding days.
 What kit can you make yourself? That’s gas in the tank money you are saving, plus it’s fun.
 Learn how to service your bike and to change tyres.
 Also consider the bike’s reputation for reliability, fuel range and cost of spares.
 If you plan to travel in Carnet de Passage countries, you might want to consider a wolf in sheep’s clothing. An older cheaper bike that you’ve rebuilt to tatty but excellent condition.
 Find out what key spares you’ll need to carry, but try hard to keep that list small.

VISAS
 Know the length of visas for the different countries you plan to visit.
 Whether the visa is started from issue date or arrival at border
 Whether can be applied for in advance or at border – not that I like to do the latter
 Know what info you need to apply for a visa – eg Letter of introduction. Read the small print.
 Know how many days you will need sill free on your passport on entry.
 Know if a country requires a full, clear page for their visa.

COUNTRY SPECIFIC PAPERWORK
 What inoculations does a country require you to have.
 What licenses does each require you to have.
 What bike ownership docs are required. Usually bike ownership docs. Relevant if riding someone else’s bike.
 Make copies of all. B&W and Colour. Find a place to store copies on line so you can access them from the road.

CARNET
 Does a country need a carnet
 Have a Plan B for the carnet, so if the country ahead is closed, then you have surrounding carnet countries included.
 Where can you renew a carnet – while on the road and its expiry date is approaching?
 Are spare tyres listed on your carnet or in your passport? If they are and you change a tyre in country, you may be required to carry the old, used tyre out. It’s a daft thing to be caught out by.

WEATHER
 Know the weather patterns and temperatures for the countries you are going to.
 Who wants to ride in the rainy season or the hottest time of year or when winter is happening?
 This also helps you to plan your clothing layers. NB Be minimal with that part of your packing list – if you are short of something, you’ll find somewhere along the way to buy it. You’ll be buying an experience too. Where you got it, the people who sold it to you and so on.

ROUTE
 Plan a route that will take in the main things you would like to see, but that gives you sidetrack and opportunities wriggle room.
 Have a Plan B route in mind as you go – road closures, sudden elections ahead etc
 Look at road conditions. That’s a ‘time, tucker and tyres’ thing.
 See if there are any favoured border crossings
 Get Maps as well as GPS data

PERMITS
 Know if you need permits for any sections you plan to ride through
 And where to get them.
 How long in advance.

SIGHTS TO SEE
 List the sights you’d like to see.
 Cut that to the Key things you really want to see.
 Work the costs for those into your budget.
 Research local events – Fiestas and the like – so you don’t miss them, but also so you can book accommodation well in advance.

CULTURES
 Learn about the cultures of the countries you’ll be travelling through, before you go. You’ll see so much more and learn so much more.
 You’ll also dramatically decrease the chance of insulting locals by doing something horribly rude, without knowing you are.

FUNDS
 Which credit cards work in which countries?
 Have at least 2 of each different type.
 Plus an ‘in date’ but closed card for a ‘throw away wallet’.
 Have someone at home who has control over your accounts and can help if the worst happens.
 Plan to carry cash too. Cards get stolen, eaten by ATM’s, Cloned and sometimes you just can’t pay by card. Spread your cash through numerous hiding locations.

ACCOMODATION
 Camping possibilities.
 Wild camping possibilities.
 Costs of hotels.
Be happy to wing it. Don’t get so hooked on the tram lines of planning that you seldom get to taste the travel magic that serendipity offers.

BIKE REPAIR
 Are there any dealerships for your marque of bike along the way.
 Have a mate at home who knows your bike and the mods you made. And is willing to source and send what you need.

TRAVEL INSURANCE
 Just do it! Ignore the expense.
 Make sure it’s a care and recover, plus repatriation policy.
 Check the small print very carefully – as in what’s the max claim you can make on any mishap.

MEDICAL ISSUES
 Work out where and how you can get prescription updates.
 If you have a particular issue, find out where in each country you can get the help you need if something goes wrong.
 Also look for any local lurgies you should be aware of and learn how to avoid them.

SIM CARDS Find out the score for each country before you go. The ability to have internet access is ever more important now. You’ll seldom find an internet café now so…

NAVIGATION
 Have three options – GPS – Dedicated Phone – Maps
 In some countries, when asking the way, ask several people. And not ‘Is this the way to?’ But ‘Which is the way to?’
 Teach yourself this habit before you go.

Well, a brainstorm of ideas. These are all peace of mind, opportunity-opening thoughts. Don’t have to do them, but hopefully they are a help.

They give you a chance to deal with the off-putting (for many) confusion of the unknown.

If you aren’t worrying about the basics when you are on the road, then your mind is free to deal with the unexpected mishaps and challenges, and free enough to see and take advantage of opportunities. 😊

There’s no doubt that this world of ours, and the greater percentage of people by a very long way, are super, welcoming and fascinating. 🙂👍👍

Plan to make one of your mantras, ‘Trust, until a person shows they cannot be trusted.’

Judging people by mistrusting first simply shuts off a huge number of fantastic opportunities. That’s really sad.
And another mantra, ‘If you don’t try, you’ll never find out if you can.’ 🙂

Adventures begin with dreams. If you are dreaming hard, I very much hope that you can make it come to life. 👌😊