My experience on this South of the Equator ride with GlobeRiders was not what I had expected in some ways and more than I expected in other ways. Certainly breaking a collarbone wasn't on the expected side. But that did allow me to ride in the support vehicle with four different residents of the continent: Andy in Malawi, Simon and Kisana in Tanzania and Killerai in Kenya. I learned so much more about them, their lives and the cultures they live in than if I had been riding my Harley. 

On reflection, the accident was timed perfectly because I was healed well enough so that when we arrived at the Ngorongoro Crater and the Serengeti I could actively use both my cameras and take some wonderful photos of the incredible wildlife we all saw.

I've enjoyed this trip immensely. Every participant enriched me with their concern for my well being, their enthusiasm for traveling on motorcycles, their wit, humor and zest for life. They were the right group of people to share the unique experience Helge offers and I'm thankful to him and to all of them for making this a wonderfully memorable two months.

The hits keep coming from this GlobeRiders South of the Equator Africa!

As we complete the tour, I have become reflective of the threshold events along the way. The challenge for me is that there were so many to process. In fact, it is fair to say that every single day had something to not only experience but to ponder. The most frustrating part of the entire trip was riding through something as simple as a banana auction along the side of the road or a traditional marketplace in a village and not stopping. There were times that I simply turned around determined not to miss this.

The final third of the trip had so much going on but I have to write about the Maasai Tribe and the feeling of being embedded with them for three days. This is an experience that we just wouldn’t have had on our own.

Upon arriving at The Maasai village, we were greeted warmly and it became apparent that this was going to be an important few days. The opportunity to connect with this tribal culture was beyond my expectation. The commercial aspect of this just did not exist. It was just the opposite. Let me explain.

The Maasai had some simple guest rooms and traditional food preparations. It was reasonable to expect that this would be commercial. It didn’t happen this way. We interacted with tribal elders, women, a small goat enclave and even a walking safari where we saw other Maasai out in the desert.

As we asked questions of the elders, it became apparent to me that these men have protected the culture and the existence of these people for many generations. At the same time, they have a way of life to protect, they also have issues with cultural evolution. I am seriously challenged with some of their cultural practices and impressed with others. I left the Maasai people grateful for the experience but wondering how they will progress over the next few generations.

I can’t speak for other international motorcycle tours but I am convinced that no one does this better than Helge and GlobeRiders. It simply would not work for me to line up like a group of Lemmings to ride across or through a country. All of us ride independently as we would like with a few rules to follow like show up in the late afternoon. The riding provided the right amount of challenges but the main thing was the cultural opportunities that are right in front of us. I am convinced that Helge is one of the ultimate humanitarian traveling the world. This is important to me because this is what I need and expect when I ride in unique places in the world. GlobeRiders just delivers it through Helge Pedersen. My appreciation can’t be appropriately expressed through this live journal report.