HU Travellers Meeting Germany-Summer 2016

Sjaak Lucassen (Netherlands) 2 Decades World Travel & Adventure

A tour through all the travels and (winter) adventures, done on sports bikes, by a mad Dutchmen.

From the moment that it all started until the ultimate goal, a ride to the North Pole, in the near future, that's what the presentation, enlivened with videos, photos and a healthy dose of humour will cover. In between we experience a 3 years and 160,000 kilometre lasting World Travel on a Fireblade, during the time that communication with the home front still went by fax! We travel 250,000 kilometre around the world on an R1 on a very extreme way! We tackle the North Cape successfully - in the winter – after an earlier attempt had to be broken off due to worn homemade studs.

We visit the USA and Canada for a ride through temperatures colder then minus 30 and we ride over the Polar Ice north of Alaska, towing a huge sledge. Info on www.R1goesExtreme.com

Because motorcycle vacations felt always too short I started to travel. Before I knew it I got bitten by the travel bug. The result was that I spent about 10 years of my live on the road, using rather unusual bikes. I ride sport bikes. The reason is simple. I find it more important to use the right bike for my heart then the right bike for the terrain. During time my travels became more and more extreme. The last one was on the Polar Ice north of Alaska. The next one hopefully to the North Pole.

Hartmut Heldt From Cologne via the Silk Road to Tokyo - Circumnavigation of Afghanistan and China

The first part of my trip was five months through Africa from Kenya to South Africa. The second part took me 10 months through America from Argentina to Central America to Canada. In the third part, I traveled 17 months through Asia. I drove along the Silk Road through Central Asia and Russia to Japan. From there I traveled across Southeast and South Asia back to Europe. My three trips led me between July 2011 and September 2015 by a total of 32 months and 130.00 km through 66 countries and 4 continents.

After 30 years of work in a public agency I went with 58 years in early retirement. When I thought about what I could do with the extra free time, I noticed my hobbies traveling and motorcycling first. Why not both? So the plan was, my 30-year old dream of a world tour to finally realize.

Marcel Jung the way to dawn - Welterfahrung

Das sollte Das Jahr sein...und Das war! Ein lang gehegter Traum ging wahr, denn Greta und ich machten uns und sattelten am 01.Mai unsere beiden Hondas. Über die ehemaligen Jugoslawischen Länder führte uns unser Weg durch die Türkei nach Georgien. Von hier aus schlugen wir den Weg nach Aserbaidschan ein, um nach der anschließenden Überquerung des kaspischen Meers uns durch die weiten Steppen Kasachstans, sowie die endlosen Graslandschaften Russlands die Mongolei zu durchqueren. 29000 km ohne eine einzige Panne.

Dennoch War es spannend... Unvorhersehbare Hürden waren zu überwinden. Sei es der eingelaufene Motorradanzug, die unzähligen Stürze in der Mongolei, die Kompromissbereitschaft untereinander, oder einfach nur das Wirrwarr an der kasachischen Grenze. Begleitet von einem paar kurzen Filmsequenzen werde ich euch unsere Reise etwas näher bringen.

"I am Marcel, 31 years old and I did a worldtrip in 2015 to China. I drove with my girlfriend on two customized Honda Transalp through over 20 countries until we arrived back at home after 8 months."

Dan Skeates and Rolf Lange RTW: The most important things to bring

Whether you are a well-organised German or a careless Englishman, here is what you really should prepare for a wonderful journey.

Dan - I left England without a drivers license, essential tools and the wrong clothing and still I thought I was prepared. By meeting more prepared riders (mainly German) I realised that being under prepared didn't detract from my experience but enhanced it.

Rolf - Having had 2½ years before I started out for my round-the-world trip, I felt well prepared and organised: off-road trainings, vaccinations, first aid course, photo workshops, and interviews with mechanics – I did it all. Being prepared in a pretty much perfect way made me feel safer, but it did not teach me what is really important on a long journey through foreign countries.

Being open-minded, having a positive attitude and permanently wearing a smile are prerequisites to maximising your enjoyment. It's all about the people; those daily random encounters wherever you stop or whenever you need help make the adventure perfect.

In an entertaining way, Dan and Rolf will describe why your pack list is not the most important thing before setting out and how the wonderful people of the world made their amazing adventures so unique. Come with an open mind, ask many questions and contribute as much as you want to make this presentation the one that makes you say 'It's my turn to feed my soul'.

Dan from England and Rolf from Germany, typical stereotypes of their home countries. Dan under prepared and carefree and Rolf fully prepared & organised. They both rode for over 500 days but only 15 together; they had amazing experiences in a combined total of over 50 different countries on 5 continents.

Frank Voellm Holy Cow! – Going Naked in India and Zig-zagging from Ushuaia to Alaska

Holy Cow! – Going Naked in India

Double-crossing India and Nepal. 33.000 km, 15 months. From Ladakh to Kanyakumari , from the Punjab to Nagaland and through Nepal. Twice.

At first glance the little KTM Duke 390 might not be the perfect bike for dirt roads and white water crossings in the Himalayas of India and Nepal, but she's naked alright, and on her I managed to dodge all the holy cows the traffic mayhem of the two Hindu countries could throw at me in 1 ½ years. Trust me, many a time I shouted expletives of a stronger nature than just an astonished 'holy cow' into my helmet. In the end, it was all worth it, though!

Incredible India is the official slogan, and truer words were never spoken! From the Taj Mahal to the beaches of Goa, the soaring, ancient temples of Tamil Nadu or the splendid forts and palaces of Rajastan, that's what comes to mind when India is mentioned. There is a very different India too, little visited, hidden and difficult to get to - harsh passes and bad roads leading over high passes of the Himalayas to Tibet. This presentation will have you itching to saddle your steed and head east asap!

Zig-zagging from Ushuaia to Alaska

Three years. 150.000 km. If I wanted to have a good look at the Americas a 2nd time, that's what I'd do agian!

Crossing an ocean by ship was one of my childhood dreams. The opportunity finally came when I was in my mid-40s and boarded the Grimaldi freighter in Hamburg bound for Buenos Aires. That was in 2010, just two months after I had been here at my first ever HU meeting in Germany.

The trip down to Africa and across the Atlantic was smooth, the time passed much quicker than expected, and there is nothing better than arriving in Argentina in high spirits with an almost new 1200 GSA, some Spanish skills, a good supply of funds and basically unlimited time for a journey from Tierra del Fuego all the way to Alaska. Panamericana? Stay away from it! That's where the bad cops are! And it's all paved and boring! East-west across the (often) unpaved Andes passes, that's where the real fun is! Or in the Chaco of Paraguay, preferrably at an Asado on a cattle ranch. Or sailing the Caribbean from Colombia to Panama.

Getting into the US is almost a bit of a let-down, with border crossings as smooth as the straight roads. But soon you discover that a motorbike and a German number plate is a door-opener, and these North Americans (US and Canada!) are very friendly and generous people. So after reaching Alaska two years into the trip I headed south to Mexico for the winter and a visa run. That gave me another summer from Texas to Florida, north via the Appalachians and New York to Quebec, and across the continent to Vancouver.

Alas, even though I was scheduled to present my fresh trip at HU in the Canadian Rockies, I had to cancel my appearance there (much to the annoyance of Susan and Grant!) when the trip ended on the very last leg with a broken drive shaft and final drive. Oh well. I sold the bike 'as is' and flew to Asia for... well, see my other presentation

Filippo Fania Solving Mechanical & Electrical problems On the Road

No need to worry about mechanical or electrical problems - all you need is a little basic knowledge and lots of creativity.

This will be an interactive workshop, where we will focus on what people are interested in. Bring your questions and problems, and together will try to find a solution - in particular for electrical and electronical issues.. Bring your bike and show us also your modifications and special fixes. Filippo will also explain and present some modifications that have proven very helpful during his world-trip with his wife Heike, 2 Live the Dream

Filippo has extensively travelled the world by motorcycle, truck, 4x4 - he has huge experience in motorcycle mechanics and in particular the electrics and electronics. He now runs a business specialised in motorcycle and automobile electrics and electronics.

Felix Krüger Record your travels on action cams! DO's and DONT's when using action cameras on motorcycles, bikes and cars.

We all do photography on our trips. Some will even do video, but as we all know this can never really show the scenery of where you have been. Since little actions cams are widely accessible today they can give you an extra option to document your travels and show friends and family what you have been up to and maybe make them understand a little better WHY you do what you do.

In my presentation I'd like to discuss some of the action cam options that are out there (high quality and cheap ones), the DO's and DONT's and how to use them to get some nice basic footage. This presentation is designed to get you interested in the topic and to get you started using action cams.

Felix is 28 years old and has had his motorcycle licence for 3 years. He enjoys traveling on his BMW. Living near Munich he has the Alps right next door and enjoys short trips to Italy, Austria and so on. He also likes to record his trips and put them on YouTube.

Mick Benson Emergency - I don't know where I am! and Motorcycle Electrics for the Squeamish

Emergency - I don't know where I am!

A real life experience guide of how to get assistance in the event of an accident. Do's & Dont's

I had a serious accident in June 2014 where me and my bike fell off a mountain in the south of France. I expected easy assistance as I was in Europe and the technology I had with me. The realisation that none of this is true and that I was lying 100 feet down a mountain with a broken back and no one knew I was there.

Motorcycle Electrics for the squeamish

An easy guide to motorcycle electrics (original and can bus). An explanation of the difference between fused and can bus electrics. How to easily find the fault and fix it with minimal tools and spares on board. Including wiring diagrams for the squeamish.

The electrically self sufficient bike - How to make your bike completely electrically self sufficient - no need for a plug!

I have developed a way to travel on your motorcycle without ever needing a plug socket to charge or use any of your equipment.(inc laptop, batteries, camera equipment, GoPro, Scala etc). As well as the ability to jump start your own bike battery in the event of a drain without carrying jump leads. I will be demonstrating this using my demo bike - BMW R1200GS but this method can be applied to any bike.

Ask Mick to tell you the story behind the picture!

Mick is 'new money' as a solo motorcycle traveller. Deciding to fully research RTW motorcycle travelling to be more prepared. Mick is also an inventor and after a serious motorcycle touring accident in summer 2014 is developing new tools to keep others safe.

Claudio Gnypek and Sonja Ritter Abenteuer Vorbereitung - Workshop + Live Podcast: Eine Reise zu planen ist simpler als man denkt.

Je mehr wir reisen, um so weniger planen wir. Früher machten wir uns Gedanken über Probleme, die auf der Tour auftauchen können. Mittlerweile wissen wir: Vor der Reise ahnten wir oft nicht, welche simplen Lösungen wir unterwegs fanden.
Wir erzählen, wie wir unsere Trips planen, worauf wir achten und welche Regeln wir bewußt ignorieren. Man sollte nicht kopflos, sondern sorglos reisen.

Wir sprechen über folgende Themen:

• Das perfekte Reisemotorrad: Mit welchen Motorrad reise ich am besten, wie rüste ich es aus und wie bekomme ich es auf einen anderen Kontinent?
• Routenplanung: Wie genau plane ich die Route, welche Stopps plane ich ein und wieviele Kilometer pro Tag schaffe ich?
• Gepäck: Nehme ich ein Zelt, Schlafsäcke und Kocher mit, wieviel Werkzeug, Ersatzteile und welche Kleidung?

Auch ihr könnt eure Erfahrungen einbringen. Diesen Workshop nehmen wir als Radiosendung für unseren Podcast "Pegasoreise" auf.

Adventure preparation

The more we travel, the less we plan. Previously we started thinking about problems that can occur on the tour. Now we know: Before traveling we had no idea about the simple solutions we found on the road.

We talk about how we plan our trips, on what we pay attention and which rules we ignore. One should not travel careless, but carefree.

We will talk about the following topics:

• The perfect travel bike: What motorcycle I travel the best, how do I equip it and how do I get it to another continent?
  
• Route planning: How exactly do I plan the route, which stops I plan and how many kilometers a day can I do?
  
• Luggage: Do I take a tent, sleeping bag and stove, how much tools, spare parts and which clothes?

You can also bring your experiences. This workshop we record as a radio show for our podcast "Pegasoreise".

Claudio and Sonja love to travel and mostly on a motorbike. The best thing about travelling is to get in contact with other people. That's why they started the adventure-Podcast "Pegasoreise", a Radioshow about travelling. Once a month they produce a podcast, on which you can listen to the stories on the road.

More to come...

How about you? We're all here to learn, and there's LOTS to learn! We want to do more presentations and seminars - but we need volunteers to give them! Any topic you can contribute having to do with motorcycle travel, maintenance, planning etc, lasting 20 minutes or more, would be great. Please sign up here.

Border crossings - How to get through borders with minimal stress and cost!

Packing light - Tips and techniques from experienced travellers to reduce weight and bulk.

Regional discussions - e.g. travelling in South America or Asia.

For Women Only - A must for the ladies, so be sure to plan on being there! A chance to talk to experienced travelling women without the men around!

Experienced Travellers Panel - ask the experts anything you want!

Walk arounds / Show and tell!

Tents and Bedding discussion (in the camping area) - What works, cheap vs dear and which ones keep you dry, warm and comfy!

Bike mods - Show off your best bike mods - homemade saddle bags, toolbox mounts, GPS mounts, seats, side stands, tank panniers, cup holders, etc.