HU Travellers Meeting South Africa 2022

LOTS of presentations to come! As people register to present we'll list them here.

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 contact us here to volunteer.

Jessica Gelderman and Maarten Molenberg, Winding Wheels Locked Up in Morocco! The idea was to spend 3 weeks in Morocco during our motorcycle journey from The Netherlands to South Africa

We ended up spending six months in Morocco and explored as much as we could on our Yamaha Ténéré 700s, from plowing through the sand of old Dakar Rally tracks in the Sahara Desert to scrambling around on off-road passes in the Atlas Mountains. Meanwhile, we were immersed in a world of ancient traditions, which made us feel we were far away from home already in the first African country we visited. Morocco might be the best country in the world to indulge yourself as an adventure rider. Due to our changed plans, we now ride from south to north instead and continued our journey in Cape Town two months ago after shipping our bikes there. Maybe we have to take back our words about Morocco since South Africa keeps on delivering!

JESSICA GELDERMAN hails from The Netherlands. Before she knew about the feeling of freedom by traveling on a motorcycle, she wandered around in Australia, New Zealand and parts of Asia with her backpack. She had a great time combining work and travel and returned back home after 3.5 years. Time to settle down she thought. However, that didn't quite go according to plan. She met Maarten at work after they got back from their individual travels and, not long after, decided to quit their jobs and start to travel again! Africa was on top of the list for both of them, so that decision was made easily.

MAARTEN MOLENBERG, also from The Netherlands, has gone from dreaming of motorcycles as a child to riding them. A solo motorcycle journey along the Silk Road made him long for more. Last year, a new adventure started, together with Jessica, now his wife. They're on their trans-Africa journey.

Marius Bosch Brandon Bosch Memorial Ride Africa 2021 Solo ride PE to Sumbu, Zambia, on the Congo border and back: 11 weeks, 11 300 km

This trip was in memory of my son, Brandon Bosch, who passed away on the 15th of March, 2021.

MARIUS BOSCH started biking in 1982 and adventure biking in 2011. He has ridden over 200 000 km, covering SA, Namibia, Zambia, Malawi, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Botwana.

Sarper Sesli, Ride the Earth Cape to Turkey

As I am Turkish and live in both Turkey and South Africa, and currently am a tour guide, naturally I'd wish to encourage South Africans to visit and explore Turkey! Ask me anything and start planning for a fantastic and beautiful trip.

SARPER SESLI was born in Germany, grew up in Turkey, and now lives in both South Africa and Turkey. He's a tour guide in most adventure-seeking activities, including mountaineering, motorbiking, bicycling, and skiing.

Uwe Schmidt Questions and Answers 100 percent information

Practical Q+A from a world-renowned traveller. Get answers to all your questions, including camping by bike, tools, tips, and equipment.

UWE SCHMIDT has travelled widely. Just take a look below for where he has been so far!

2014: SA, Lesotho, Mozambique, Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Namibia, SA.
2015: SA, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Tanzania, Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Angola, Namibia, SA.
2016: USA (north America 6 months); SA, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbawe, Zambia, Namibia, SA.
2017: SA, Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, Kenya, Ethiopia, Sudan, Egypt.
2018: Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Israel, Lebanon, Greece, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, Italy, France, Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Luxembourg, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Russia, Georgia, Turkey.
2019: Turkey, Greece, Albania, Montenegro, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France, Monte Carlo, Spain, Portugal.
2020: Portugal, Thailand; March - SA (C-19).

Kevin Davis Around Lake Victoria / Nine Day-Trips in South Africa

1. Around Lake Victoria
Trip up to Lake Victoria and back in 2019, mainly tar roads and lodge accommodations

A talk about the trip I did in 2019 up to Lake Victoria and back again, using almost all tar roads and lodge accommodation with only one night's camping. It goes to show that you don't have to "rough it" on overland trips, being a tourist that happened to arrive by bike and not fly in is always an option.

2. Nine Day-Trips in South Africa
Ideas to get out and see SA with just one week's leave

Many newcomers are overwhelmed by the tales of long arduous overland trips with all their inherent planning and problems on the road. So, I'm showing how you can step into it in stages, starting by exploring your own country. Even only one week's leave can make it a lot easier to get used to it all.

KEVIN DAVIS is a keen overlander with extensive experience touring all of Europe, New Zealand, and Sub-Sahara Africa.

Altus Ehlers Cape Agulhas to John O'Groats A story about the jewel of Africa, its people, culture and hardships

My goal became a reality when I bought my motorcycle after 12 years abroad and the departure date was set for 2017. Join me on my adventure across East Africa to Scotland, riding through 14 countries, being ardent about the journey, and embracing various challenges with the people of Africa.

ALTUS EHLERS packed a lot into the 140 days to explore halfway around the world across East Africa to Scotland.

Johan Gray Mindset to Achieve / Tyre Changing

Mindset to Achieve
Transformational performance model to achieve, improve as a person, and take on challenges

We can learn a lot from top sports people in how they set goals, achieve results deal with failure and constantly improve. If we can duplicate these practices, we can take on some of the most challenging adventures. We can improve how we interact with other team members on any adventure or we can use these skills to constantly improve how we adventure. You do not know what you do not know, as the saying goes. What if you can learn rather than figuring it out, find out how to change those aspects that keep you back to be the best you! The mind is sometimes the most limiting factor, what is your state of mind when you ride?

Tyre Changing
And what tools you need on-the-road

Always so important to have this in your arsenal of adventure skills! No one has ever said they wished they never knew how to deal with tyre issues... and if they did, they won't go far. ;)

For eight years, JOHAN GRAY fulfilled the role of Chief Instructor at the well-known and leading African Dream Adventures, South Africa (ADA SA). He set and put standards in place and developed leading rider development curriculums. ADA is known for approaching training in a way that ensures every student experiences personal attention, like painting with a pinstripe brush rather than a roller. In 2015 Johan as Programme Director delivered the Women Development Programme.

Don't miss your chance to work with Johan directly through his "SLOW RIDING SKILLS" workshop this weekend! More info about it below.

Xenia and Tinu, XT Adventures Riding the Beautiful Silk Road / 1.5 Years in New Zealand and Australia

Riding the Beautiful Silk Road
Year 1 of a 3.5-year world trip along the famous Silk Road through Iran, the Stans, China, Pakistan, India, and Nepal

We are a Swiss couple that is on the road since 2017 and we would like to take you guys on a trip with us along the famous Silk Road which we travelled on our two XT660 Yamahas. We spent one year in incredible countries, crossed many borders, went up the Himalayas and rode the famous Pamir Highway. You will hear some funny and weird stories from the road and get some info about our bikes and the gear.

1.5 Years in New Zealand and Australia
Year 2 of our 3.5-year world trip

After spending the first year on the famous Silk Route, it was time to head over to New Zealand and Australia where we spent 1.5 years. We rode on both Islands of New Zealand and circumnavigated Australia including some very remote dirt roads, loads of river crossings and interesting wild life. We will also talk a little bit about our trip planning and budget.

XENIA and TINU are a travel-bug-infected couple from Switzerland who are on the road as often as possible. Even before they met, they have been travelling and living abroad. Now greater than the sum of their parts, this team has become even crazier with adventures! They last presented at HU Queensland 2019 about their travels through India (see Talk #1) and are now heading back to Europe via Africa.

Megan and Matthew Snyman, Great World Trek The Great World Trek A married couple of South African doctors traveling the world for two years on motorcycles.

Matthew and Megan recently returned from a two-year motorcycle trip through South America, North America, and Africa with even more on the cards. Come and see some beautiful pictures, some crazy videos, and hear some funny stories. Plus, insights into living as a couple on-the-road and how Matthew performed a miracle by getting his wife to agree to ride a motorcycle around the world. All questions welcome!

Matthew and Megan are two medical doctors, and a married couple, who rode their motorcycles across three continents for two years in aid of Doctors Without Borders. They're also proudly South African!

Dos Waweru and Joan Ndarathi, Throttle Adventures Throttle Adventures Life is too short for ordinary adventures

We are a Kenyan open-minded couple that loves traveling and especially on motorcycles. We have been riding together ever since we first met at a biker's event. The best place our bikes have taken us was into each other's hearts. And then we to explore the world, beyond prejudices and our comfort zone. In 2015, Dos rode from Kenya to South Africa and back on his 180cc bike, setting the Kenyan record for the smallest bike to do an adventure trip of that magnitude in Africa. In 2017, Joan took a similar, but shorter trip (3,100 km) across Tanzania to Kingoma – Lake Tanganyika, setting a record as a solo Kenyan female long-distance rider.

Between these two adventures, the adventure travel bug bit hard and ignited a driving hunger to explore the world with our own eyes, and to experience other cultures and traditions. We also want to tell the story of beautiful Africa and Kenya.

DOS WAWERU and JOAN NDARATHI are passionate about traveling and motorbikes. They are traveling the world for the next three and a half years on their BMW F700GS. So far, they have been to 10 African countries and will be the first couple from Kenya and Africa to travel the world on motorbikes.

Schalk van der Merwe, Living the Dream Through Africa Cape to Nord Cape, Norway X 2

A slideshow of the adventure from Cape to Nordkapp, Norway, and back.

SCHALK van der MERWE has traveled through 18 countries in Africa and 16 countries in Europe to Nord Cape in Norway - a total distance of 51,000 km by bike, so far. He also traveled by other means to The U.S.A., Canada, China, and Australia. The rest of the world is still to come!

Joey Evans From Para to Dakar "You didn't come this far to only come this far."

Joey always dreamt of racing his motorbike in the Dakar Rally, a race considered to be the longest, toughest and most dangerous off-road race in the world. It had claimed the lives of 70 people over its 39 year history. Joey's life, as he knew it, came to a literally shattering halt in 2007: a collision with another rider during a local race in South Africa left him with a crushed spinal cord among other serious injuries. Completely paralyzed from just below the chest (a T8-T9 incomplete spinal cord injury with 10% chance of walking again), Joey chased his Dakar dream in a new way, fueled by sheer will to recover. It was 10 years of gruelling challenges, successes, and lessons learnt along the way. On January 2, 2017, Joey stood among fellow competitors at the start of the Dakar Rally in Asuncion, Paraguay.

But the universe wasn't finished with him yet. Over the next 9000 km, the Dakar tested Joey with unbelievable events and a catastrophic plot twist that defied imagination.

Joey shares a message of determination in the face of insurmountable odds. A true to life struggle of chasing a dream while not only overcoming physical disabilities, but also living in the real world with its daily pressures and challenges. You'll gain a new perspective on your own challenges and the renewed drive to chase your own goals and dreams.

Joey's book, FROM PARA TO DAKAR, was published in November 2017. He was awarded "Off track rider of the year" by the South African Guild of Motoring Journalists and "Special Award for Outstanding Contribution to South African Motorsport" by Motorsport South Africa.

JOEY EVANS has always been a keen sportsman and up for an adventure. He's run several marathons and ultra-marathons, hiked the fish river canyon, finished the Roof of Africa enduro, raced in the Botswana desert 1000 and ridden his dirt bike throughout South Africa, Mozambique, Swaziland, Lesotho, Botswana, Namibia, Paraguay, Argentina, Bolivia, Lebanon and Morocco. Joey has been married to his soulmate Meredith for nearly 20 years and they are the proud parents of four teenage daughters, an extreme adventure in itself!

Andrew Russell, Cape to Cairo Cape To Cairo: World Record by Motorcycle

Andrew will be speaking about his successful Cairo-to-Cape Town World record attempt and previous failed attempts. The talk covers the logistics, gear, and the physical, mental and mechanical trials and tribulations!

South African ANDREW THABO RUSSELL holds the World Record for the fastest time from Cairo to Cape Town on a motorcycle. He completed the 11,000 km distance in seven days 18 hours and 52 minutes (2018). It was his 3rd attempt. He has traveled more than 40,000 km of adventure riding around Africa, half of which was in the form of ultra endurance racing.

Sabine Krauss and Uwe Eisenmann, Follow The Blue Sky #FollowTheBlueSky and Make New Friends Motorcycle trip from Germany via Middle East to South Africa. Our first long-term trip with a lot of new experiences and views of life.

Leave the red line of life, have a break and follow the blue sky. The idea of our trip was to have a good time (19 months). To be not in a hurry, to be open to exlore "new" countries and spent time with the people and get a lot of new inspirations. We have no special adventures or tourist hotspots on our bucket list. We decide day by day, hour by hour, where we go or where we stay, and what we are doing next inspired by the locals or traveller whom we met on our trip.

We travelled slow, take our time, found great people, and learned a lot. We will describe our road trip from our hometown via the Balkans and the Middle East to South Africa. We focus on the stories about our new friends and the endless warm welcome. Our own game-changing experiences of our life!

SABINE KRAUSS and UWE EISENMANN started their 19-month, long-term trip from home. They travelled the "first part" (Germany via Middle East to South Africa) with our motorcylce, two of one bike. They have been on road for 12 months so far and gained a lot of new experiences.

Donna and Andrew Reid Bike to Hike - The Adventurous Way! Travelling the world on two wheels with the aim of hiking on every continent

The trip started as a chat in a pub: "Let's ride bikes to Tanzania and climb Kilimanjaro." All we needed to do was buy bikes and start training... easy. An 800GS was purchased and training was done at Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve. The big day arrived and we wondered what lay ahead. It took nine days to ride up, with each day being simultaneously exhausting and exhilarating. We discovered that Africa lives along the road feeding off the endless source of trucks and buses. We climbed Kilimanjaro, summitting on New Year's Day to watch the sun rise over the African Savannah. It was breath-taking. We are now hooked and have continued the bike-to-hike on other continents, with a couple more still to come!

ANDREW REID has been a motorbike enthusiastic for most of his life. DONNA REID followed first as pillion, then as a rider. Their adventurous spirits took them on their first motorbike trip to climb Kilimanjaro in 2008. A couple's relationship can be an adventure. That is, if you design it that way.

Graham Hoskins, Host of Adventure Bike TV Circumnavigating the Mediterranean Sea and "Old man's version of the Dakar Rally"

Motivational Speaker, Entrepreneur and Adventurer, Graham's early promise of a career flying fast jets in the Navy was cut short by a battle with cancer aged 21. Side-effects of his cancer treatment caused him to go through 4 total hip replacements in the last 16 years. All of which drive his resolve to take life by throat and make the most of it.

In 1990, Graham made his first charity motorbike ride after he found out that he had cancer. He and his best pal dressed as chickens and motorcycled from college in Plymouth to London and back. In 2005, they decided that a much bigger challenge was needed so they rode 4000 miles to Moscow and back in under 7 days for BBC Children In Need. He enjoyed the 'short' adventure so much that he now filmed 3 TV series on just that and also is the host of Adventure Bike TV.

Circumnavigating the Mediterranean Sea

Inspired by his Moscow challenge to produce a TV series on a similar theme, Graham spent three years working on a TV commission. In spite of many near misses, in 2010 Graham persuaded Danny John-Jules from Red Dwarf to ride 7000 miles through 16 countries and 3 continents, circumnavigating the Mediterranean Sea in just 16 days for UK Sport Relief. As far as we know, Graham and Danny were the last Europeans to make this amazing adventure before all the trouble in north africa and the middle east brought the possibilities to an abrupt halt.

"Old man's version of the Dakar Rally"

Two years after they circumnavigated the Med, Graham and Danny took on another challenge - an old man's version of the Dakar Rally, from Spain though West Africa to the Gambia, again in just 2 weeks. From being chased by bandits, to being turned back down the road at gun point and from sandstorms to broken bikes - did they complete this amazing 2 week adventure? Come and find out...

Ronell Scheepers Angola, Africa's Rough Diamond

Bike roadtrip from Oranjeville in the Northern Free State - solo to Windhoek, Namibia, then with adventure group to Angola, approx. 8300km

Angola, Africa's Rough Diamond - a bike road trip undertaken solo from Oranjeville to Windhoek, Namibia , then onwards as part of a recce tour group to Angola, consisting of 4 bikes, and 4 offroad 4x4 vehicles, exploring what Angola offer. Route followed from Ruacana westwards, up Northward to Luanda, and back in a southerly direction inland to Rundu. From there I went solo again via Caprivi Strip to Botswana, visiting Chobe Nature reserve. Long road back home via Palapye, Zeerust, Oranjeville. Total distance aprox. 8300km. Angola, a land with very diverse landscapes, from desert in the south to tropics in the north. Also very contrasting living standards, from very poor to extremely rich. Angola's people have a fantastic vibe! Angola is not a premier tourist destination yet, so for the adventure traveller it has a lot to offer.

What the well-dressed motorcycle traveller wears! ;-)

I am a Free Stater from RSA. Lesotho Snow 4x4 tour in July 2015, -13 temperatures! Then off to Angola in Sept 2015 on my motorbike. Other times I am a farmer, agribusiness woman and photographer. Love the outdoors, kayaking and adventure.

Alex Jackson A Ride on The Wild Side - Making Motorcycle travel work for conservation

I will be talking about my trips around Southern Africa in 2013 to highlight the issues of poaching within South Africa. I have been working with an Anti Poaching Unit in Limpopo for around 4 years and also my company Kaapstad Motorcycle Tours makes a donation to HelpingRhinos.org for every booking we take. I will also be outlining a new project that I am planning for May 2017 in partnership with South African National Parks.

Alex Jackson has spent 18 years riding in Southern Africa, with 12 years guiding in the wildlife industry. He has run Kaapstad Motorcycle Tours for the past 8 years.

Gareth Jones, UK Pan without a plan - 6 months, 20,000 km solo journey through 10 countries of Southern Africa on my modified 1951 Harley Panhead

From Cape Town to the first Horizons event in South Africa at Elgro River Lodge, through the deserts of Namibia to the wildlife and waterfalls of Zambia, the lake at Malawi and the mountains of Lesotho. 6 months, 20,000 km solo journey through 10 countries of Southern Africa on my modified 1951 Harley Panhead. No rear suspension, no electric start, no back up and no plan. A truly fantastic adventure of fabulous riding and the friendliest people – a lifelong dream realised.

Gérard Saouter, France Four months in South Asia - Rent a bike (or buy) in Thaïland and Vietnam ?

4 months in South East Asia, riding several bikes rented in Thailand, another one bought in Vietnam... Leaving with the purpose of travelling 10,000km from home, thousands of kilometers with an unknown bike, naturally comes with a certain level of concern. The reward is many satisfactions all along the journey : 2,500 km in the North of Thailand riding Honda 250 and 500 bikes, 10,000 km in Vietnam and North of Laos riding a Yamaha 125.

Countries are quite varied, people always endearing... From the 1864 curves road to historical Ho Chi Minh trail, and including the straight forward trails along the Mekong delta canals, each one gets enjoyed at its own pace.

Just retired, I wished to travel abroad... After 3 months in Turkey, 4 months in South-Asie, a couple of weeks in Siberian Altaï, I'm visiting now South Africa for 2 months... On motorcycles, how happy I am! On the road again...

Lorraine Chittock Wild Life Woman - Lorraine uses motorcycles, Land Rovers, Jeeps or camels as she tours the world while publishing books about the animal/human bond.

Lorraine will take you through a tour of the project specific transport she's used — motorcycle, Land Rover, Jeep, camel — while working on the road to publish books about the animal/human bond.

She first hit the road solo on a Honda CB360 at the age of 18 - in 1978 when women on bikes were a rarity. It was during the twelve years living in Africa and the Middle East that she traveled from Sudan to Egypt along an ancient caravan route with 200 camels and eight Sudanese men.

In 2003 Lorraine decided to take her career and two Kenyan ex-street dogs on the road. The pack of three began exploring North America in a Jeep Wrangler. Two years, 30,000 miles, and twenty-two states later, Lorraine transferred her belongings to an old Chevy van once used as a surveillance vehicle by the Arizona police department and headed to Latin America. Her cabin overlooking the Pacific Ocean in Chile is now a haven for travelers in the HU community.

Lorraine has been a presenter for the past five years at Overland Expo and was a speaker in January at India Bike Week in Goa. She is an advisor for the Ted Simon Foundation. This will be her 5th Horizons Unlimited Meet.

Hein van Rensburg Basecamp Secrets My method on how to use Basecamp for all your navigation

Basecamp is still the best navigation software in the world today. It has by far the best tar and off-road maps in the world today and the largest database of Points of Interest on these routes. It is also notoriously difficult to learn and use effectively.

My method unlocks the few basic secrets you have to understand to plan routes effectively. This presentation will be done in the the form of a workshop. Bring your PC and GPS and participate in the workshop.

NOTE: Basecamp is a Garmin System and does not work with Tomtom units.

HEIN VAN RENSBURG has traveled extensively in South Africa, Europe, USA and the Middle East over 30 years. He is an electronic engineer and has worked in the military and aerospace industry for 35 years. He loves to ride and is an avid golfer.