Once back from Morocco, we started to make plans. I registered with a riding school, because without a licence, we wouldn’t have been able to make the trip and, in the meantime, Vicente gave me lessons with a CRF 450 on which I could barely touch the ground with my feet.
One day I woke up and saw it had rained a lot overnight. I wasn’t sure I’d be able to have my lesson, but I went to the riding school anyway. I began the lesson and then something happened that never should have. As I practised my braking, I crashed, the instructor came to help me sit up, he called Vicente and we went to hospital… I didn’t want to think the worst but unfortunately the diagnosis was not good, a fractured foot. Our plans would have to wait!
The following months passed very slowly, while my desire to get back in the saddle only grew. In the end, I recovered and could continue with my lessons. After failing twice, I was able to pass the exam on my third attempt and, with a licence finally in my hand, we could start the trip.
I didn’t have a motorcycle and would need to choose very carefully, seeing as this would be my first and that we’d be travelling fully loaded, crossing various types of terrain. There are a lot of choices on the market, but when you start looking for specific characteristics, they narrow and there are fewer available options, also considering the law that limits vehicle power for novices like me.
After analysing different makes and models, we decided on my travel companion, a Honda CB500X. Having bought it, we set about outfitting it, adding the necessary accessories, even though we knew that this would mean an increase in vehicle weight.
After doing a lot of research, we decided to be safe and go with the aluminium Trekker Outback cases by GIVI, not only because the brand is very well known and so it’s easy to find replacement parts in many countries, but also due to the reliability of the products and the variety and quality offered, which was exactly what we needed. Our CB500X was ready!
For Vicente, though, thanks to his vast experience, we didn’t have the same limitations. He went for an Africa Twin, which was new back then. He still uses it today and has ridden 82,000 km with it, or rather the distance we’ve covered over these three years of travel.
We also outfitted his bike with GIVI accessories and finally the trip was about to begin!
We couldn’t count on anyone and didn’t even have any sponsors, only a little help and so, to be able to start our adventure, we had no choice but to sell our car and other possessions and rent out our apartment. I have to say that we did it willingly, because we knew this experience would change us forever.
The first step was to decide on a route and, seeing as I had no experience, we decided to start in Europe, to allow me to get used to the bike and the extra weight.
MOTORCYCLE EQUIPMENT
For those who treat riding like an adventure, GIVI offers a wide range of accessories dedicated to the most extreme situations:
