I never need a reason to go on a motorcycle trip, but 'sometimes' something happens to prompt me. You know little things like the collapse of the Soviet Union encouraging me to visit Czechoslovakia in 1990, for their first legal bike rally in a very long time.
That trip was made on my 500cc Gilera Saturno; not an obvious touring bike I hear you say, but there is a picture hereabouts with a small homemade rack on one side and a Triumph tank rack on the seat hump - I did 3000 miles in three weeks! Well, the idea for the trip I am about to go on started because I bought an old camera. I didn't need it, but it was shiny and right in my price range (cheap).
When I am not riding a bike I am a photographer. There are always cameras about, but there was something that fascinated me about this particular one.
I didn't know the Diax brand name, but a bit of research soon told me that it was manufactured in the Bavarian town of Ulm by W. Voss, a company that only existed for 10 years during the 1950s. I had never visited Ulm so that was enough for me to start looking at the maps!
Usually that is about as far as the planning goes before I set off, but I was stuck at home and not allowed to go anywhere while the world grappled with Covid. My mind kept working and Plan A was hatched.
By 2022 biking had probably returned to normal so I did a trip to France just to check. Everything looked much as I had left it; the roads were still back-to-front and the shops closed for lunch. I decided that it was okay for my photographic bike trip to happen in 2023.
A plan of action
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der September 2023-Ausgabe von Motorcycle Sport & Leisure.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der September 2023-Ausgabe von Motorcycle Sport & Leisure.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 8.000 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
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Honda CRF1100L ES Africa Twin
Without panniers he was adventuring nowhere - so at least Bertie's got something sorted now
BMW R 12 nineT
Chad gets a track day surprise when BMW's R 12 nineT turns out to be surprisingly fun on track
Test fleet: VOGE 525 DSX
After testing the Voge's abilities on a long ride, it was time to take it to the Cotswolds and see how it would manage on the rougher stuff
Portuguese Perambulations
Nearly over before it had begun, a brief workshop stint allows Spain and Portugal to be explored
Highway to Heaven
Three friends take on the challenge of riding the length of Canada, from Vancouver in the southwest to Inuvik in the north. The road is long, the conditions merciless, and wildfires are tearing through the country. To top it all off, the final leg of the journey is the ultimate test of gravel riding skills, nerves, and courage - it's the legendary Dempster Highway...
Battlaxes at the ready!
We tend to take tyres for granted, never really looking at them in any detail, or at how they work, just hoping that they keep us shiny side up at all times. Even in the wet
Ducati Riding Experience
When I rode the Ducati DesertX to France last year, I did have a bit of an explore on some easy fire roads and gentle green lanes in the wilds of the Médoc area, but was left with the feeling that, had I the experience, the DesertX would have been capable of taking me along some more extreme trails to some even more exciting places. If only there was a way of finding out just how well the Italian adventure bike could cope with some more extreme terrain...
Four pot flyer
Many said that sports bikes, and particularly bikes in the traditional Supersports class that was populated by 600cc inline fours, were dead. Maybe they spoke too soon?...
Eastern adventurer
With an increasing interest in smaller capacity adventure bikes, the market expands with a new entry
First Time Lucky?
It's ironic that the first all-new MV Agusta model to hit the marketplace right after Italy's No.1 trophy brand was acquired by Austrian giant Pierer Mobility, owner of off-road titans KTM, should be the company's first dual-purpose model of the modern era, powered by MV's all-new 931cc three-cylinder engine that's destined to form the basis of a whole series of new models in coming months and years.
