T minus 1

I dropped the bike at Air Canada Cargo this week so that they could do an inspection and put it in a crate to be shipped on November 1st. I'm thinking that it will be the only time that the bike is in good shape and so clean... it will be down hill from here ;-)

For context, because I've been so busy prepping that I did not do a great job of sharing. A couple of years ago Jason and I talked about riding in Africa, after some time and looking into the details, we settled for South America. Jason has been on the road for a few months already and he will be waiting for me when I land in Bogota, Tuesday November 5th 2013. The plan is rather loose, start in Bogota and go to Patagonia and have fun on the way. I'm in this for 3 months. That might seem long but with the distance we plan to cover we won't be able to dilly-dally much.

The preparation involved to get this going smoothly is quite extensive. First the Motorcycle needs to be ready and geared with the proper extras; crash bar, centre stand, bag carrier, 12v plug for charging, oil and air filters and new tires. That's the bike itself, there is also the gear to bring for the bike, oil canisters, gas container, tools and extra parts. It all takes time to gather and it is all new to me. I spent quite a bit of time reading blogs and forums on the subject to gather information. Second, third and more is Camping gear, getting a passport, getting my full motorcycle license, dealership issues, clothing gear, insurance, new glasses, the car needed maintenance, shooting weddings and events in the middle of all this. A source of stress is how will I get this bike back here... and I still don't know. I'll cross the bridge when I get there.

I'm hoping that I got the right gear and papers as for the rest, it is all part of the adventure. I got all the health vaccins covered, papers are all there (new passport included). I'm looking forward to this trip and I will try to share it in pictures more than words in this blog.

Cheers,

Bruno