Last Updated: Wed 17th Nov 2010 - 02:38am
Me, myself and I
I'm Richard, 28 and this site was originally set up to document a trans Africa trip I took on my bike. That trip didn't exactly go as planned and ended up with me being flown back from Spain after coming off the bike during some rather bad snow and ice we had in Europe at the early part of 2010.
That trip was as part of the Calums Road Ride organised by a few good friends and devestated comes somewhere close to describing how upset I was not to make it to the finish. I’m Richard - 26 and currently planning to undertake a solo circumnavigation of Africa by motorbike although if we rewind a few months I’d never even sat on one let alone had a licence. Towards the end of 2008 I started to plan a trip that would take me over a year and 20,000 miles from the heart of scottish winter to the sahara and beyond.
I currently a self employed in the logistics industry. I can’t really say it was my intention to start working for myself; like lots of things in my life (this trip included) it was something that I just ended up doing, it probably seemed like a good idea at the time. That good idea turned into 3 years, 6 countries and 4 major projects (to date) later.
I can't say if I'll come back to this work after the trip I try not to plan my life too far in advance. At the moment to only date I have in my head is 8th January 2009. That is the day I depart Raasay, Scotland for at least 12 months in the saddle. There is no return date set; when your staring down the business end of nearly 20,000 miles most of which is sub-Saharan Africa I reckon its best not to have too many plans.
Why do I want to travel?
Travelling is something that I’ve always wanted to do. My Dad was in the merchant navy when he was around my age and has been to some pretty impressive places – looking at the places he has been on a map has always made me want to go and visit them. This had been an idea that had always been at the back of my mind as a “must do” however like so many people it was probably destined to remain a "must do". That is it would have it I was wasn’t so damned impulsive.How did it start?
Early Sept 2008 I was sat talking to a mate and I told him about this idea I had to travel. I also mentioned the “excuses” that meant it was destined to stay as a pipe dream. I went home from the pub that night and on the way home had an realisation that I was actually a very lucky person and life had been good to me. I’d started my own company at the age of 23 that was providing me with a nice income I didn’t have a significant other or a set of rugrats that I had to think of – I was as free as a young man can get.So I decided to follow the dream and actually put it into practice. It was soon pretty obvious that four wheels was not the way to go but two might just be. It was now late Thursday night, tired I surfed the net and booked my CBT (Compulsory Basic Training) for Saturday.
A week later I was doing the training for my full motorbike test, after passing the big toy test I was now set to leave. Well, not quite.