From Hazelton, BC, Canada to Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, by Motorcycle
On October 6, 2008, I met Dan Burns and Shane Pierce
at the Laundromat in Moab, Utah. They and their friends, Riley Beise
and Brendan Hutchinson were completing a shakedown ride, prior to taking
off for road’s end at Ushuaia, Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, near the southern tip of Argentina. All of the BC Buckaroos, as they call themselves, hale from the towns of Hazelton or Smithers, which are located in remote Northeastern British Columbia, Canada.
Some might think it is foolish or even a bit crazy for these four young Canadians to ride their Kawasaki KLR 650
motorcycles from the far north to the far south, covering a distance of
8100 miles (13,000 kilometers). The BC Buckaroos trip is self-financed
and self-supported, meaning that they have only themselves and their
financial reserves to carry them forward on their ultimate KLR road trip.
As Dan tucked his clean clothes into the waterproof
North Face duffel bag mounted on his bike, I asked him why they are
making this trip. “We are doing this ... we are not really too sure,
but we want an adventure, and are excited to see how another part of the
world lives. We are looking to broaden our awareness of the other
cultures to the south”, he said.
The BC Buckaroos had stopped in Moab to get their
bikes tuned for the road by Fred at Arrowhead Motorsports. Dan
emphasized how grateful they all were for Arrowhead’s help in getting
the bikes ready for the big ride.
On October 13, 2008, I received a quick update from Dan, stating, “The USA has been great. We are now in Douglas, Arizona
making a few last minute stops and getting ready to cross into Mexico
tomorrow." From the remote towns of Central and South America,
communications via the internet are spotty at best, so it will be
interesting to hear where the B.C. Buckaroos are, now that it is late
November.
Things have changed a lot in this world since
January 1952, when an unknown 23-year-old Argentine medical student took
off from Buenos Aries
for an 8100-mile (13,000 kilometer) tour of South America on a sputtering 1939 Norton 500 motorcycle. In those days, Che Guevara’s unreliable “one-lunger” and pigs in the road were the biggest threats to his safe return.
for an 8100-mile (13,000 kilometer) tour of South America on a sputtering 1939 Norton 500 motorcycle. In those days, Che Guevara’s unreliable “one-lunger” and pigs in the road were the biggest threats to his safe return. Today, in a world where Somali pirates range as far as the Indian Ocean to hijack an oil tanker loaded with two million barrels of oil and over three hundred people die in the Tijuana, Mexico drug wars in less than six weeks, we wish the BC Buckaroos Godspeed. And watch out for pigs in the road.
By James McGillis at 02:10 PM | Travel | Comments (0) | Link
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