The bike's ready! I'm ready! Time for the paperwork slog.

The bike has now been deblinged by covering the tank in matt black plastic. Stickers have arrived with websites, charities and from trip supporters, so now it looks like it's ready for adventure. All of the screws and bolts on it have also been replaced with secure ones so that light fingered people can't run off with any panels or vital parts from the bike.
All that is needed now is to get it covered in mud and dirt.
Vaccinations are now complete (including rabies!), the medical kit is ready and I've even been to the dentist to make sure that there's nothing looming there, waiting to go wrong. I don't fancy the street dentists that there might be in some of the places that I'm visiting.
My riding kit is now almost there, with only a kidney belt to get (good for back support and to shelter the kidneys from vibrations). A couple more supporters are about to send through some final accessories.
The Russian visa has been applied for, so hopefully that will go through, and then it will be rapid fire in getting Kazakhstan, China, India and Pakistan, each of which should hopefully only take 2-3 days.
My website shows T-24 days now! I'd better get on with renting out my flat and packing everything up!

Marathon Planning Exercise

Planning has continued at a furious pace. Visas, insurance, carnet, more vaccinations, luggage, the route. You name it! When you get to the nitty gritty detail of visas, more questions arise such as where we're going to stay, exactly the route that we'll take, where we'll enter and exit various countries. We're doing our best to remain flexible, but officials like to be able to track us! Maybe we'll get lost and go off course 'by accident'!

A trial run was carried out on the luggage front and everything seems to fit in, which is a good start. I'll only be taking my two 31 litre metal panniers and a small (24 litre) bright yellow waterproof bag to put on the back. Still plenty of space for souvenirs etc.

I've started to de-bling the bike by covering up the BMW badges with black tape. This should both keep thieving hands at bay and make me look like less of a 'walking wallet' or 'rich traveller'. Next is to get hold of some matt black sticky PVC sheeting and put it all over the blue and white paintwork. By the time I've finished, the bike should look much more rubbishy.

Anyway, just 36 days to go now and bar the visas, I am prepared enough to leave tomorrow, so a decent comfort buffer there.

If you want to get a notification whenever there is a new post, click on 'Subscribe to Posts' on the left hand side and follow the instructions.

Early posts

17th March 2007
Big, final service for the bike today covering brakes, electrics, air filter and chain. The Rider continues to gather interest and support from companies and friends.

5th March 2007
The Riders have decided to choose the Make-a-Wish Foundation UK as the charity for which to raise money. More details to follow!

28th February 2007
Planning is progressing, although it is still too early to apply for visas as most expire within 3 months of issue. The bike is almost ready to go and only requires the replacement of a couple of consumable parts prior to the long journey (chain, air filter etc.).

21st February 2007
Final 'comfort' changes being made to the bike by raising the handlebars, replacing the battery, installing a louder horn and wiring in a GPS unit.

25th January 2007
Visited d30 in Hove, Brighton to collect the protective armour for the motorcycle jacket and riding pants. It is much more comfortable and light weight than the standard armour that is supplied. Let's hope that it is not called upon to serve its function!