Dude I have seen the state of you when you have been back a couple of weeks from your previous trips. Depressed as hell that you are no longer somewhere nicer than the UK and suicidal when the bills start coming in. You will want to go somewhere else not long after you have come back and the wait of five years to pay off your existing debts before you can set off again will have you in a looney bin with rubber walls and a straight jacket.

It's bad enough coming back to nothing, it must be even worse knowing you will be paying for your last jolly for the next five years. I know there will be some who will say do it now don't wait because you could get run over by a bus just waiting around. Every time I have EVER got into debt the feckin bus was late and the bills still came through the door! The fact you are still walking around and have not had to be scraped off the tire treads of the No 42 New Brighton to Liverpool bus is testament to that logic.

That's just my opinion of course but you did ask for thoughts, in the meantime go and chop some trees down you will feel better

__________________
www.frothandflames.com
2012 Kawasaki W800
1997 NX 650 Dominator

I'm gobsmacked that any private individual would give money to someone else so they can go off on holiday on a motorcycle. I also feel that if I were to ask strangers to finance my m/c holiday, they'd just laugh at me and if I ask friends, I very quickly wouldn't have many left.

__________________

Brighty's website: TheBrightStuffDotCom

CURRENT RR WITH REGULAR UPDATES: The Wife Takes on Chlamydia: A South American Retrospective

Not long to go now till the start of the charity season and then you'll see lots of people being "sponsored" to do stuff they'd self finance otherwise. There are times in the summer when you have to queue up at the start line to do a charity LEJOG event.

I'm sure Ted's a resourceful kind of bloke and if he could come up with a good angle, one where people would feel they were getting something for their (say) £5 investment the money would flood in. All he'd have to do is stay one step ahead of the police.

I might end up selling myself to a rich old man as a chaperone BMW tech.. I'll cry myself to sleep as I wash his riding socks by moonlight..

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Really not a half bad idea there Ted. You'd be amazed at the kind of absurd money some American BMW riders here have. Off the frickin' scale. I'm sure some would be happy to hire a ride along mechanic, expert guide, linguist, Valet, Documentarian and boot polisher.

There are guys here that make Ewan and Charlie look like paupers. Seriously.
And a lot are YOUNG guys, mostly Dot.Com Zillionares. And they'll pay good money for those with the right skills. And again ... we can thank Ewan and Charlie for bringing this Super elite group into our small ADV Travel world ... which now seems to have been co-opted into Pop Culture.

Maybe an idea... Being someone's butler doesn't really appeal though. I'd end up burying them in the desert.

And you'd never know where the line is... Before you know it he's demanding that I wear latex gloves and a gimp mask and do things with WD40 that shouldn't be mentioned on a Motorcycle travel forum...

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

It's been proven that many forum readers (myself included) have given support to those on the road. ADV Rider is full of such stories. Some sell books, DVD's or T-Shirts, some put your name on their tank, some give you a hearty handshake! A few get into trouble and use the forums to solicit "emergency" funds. Some of these pleas have backfired when discovered to be less than truthful.

Successful rider/travelers have a few qualities that seem to endear them to readers and inspire others to SEND MONEY:
1. Most are good writers and Photogs, post great stories on Forums and stay active with followers. They all seem to have good salesmanship skills as well.
2. Some offer something in return, others are sponsored by charities and offer goods for money. Some give only a hearty hand-shake and show up at a rally that you have to PAY to enter and hear their presentation and buy their do dads. Like it or not, that's our reality at present. Support it, or not.

You could argue that reading forums about MC travel beats watching TV or going shopping. (reference Simon Gandolphi!) And why not support someone you feel connected to ... if you can afford a few bucks? Am I a sucker for doing so?

I've given money to several riders on the road. One is Jammin' Jay, who spent 3 years going RTW on his Suzuki DR650. I bought a T-Shirt. Jay has now parleyed his celebrity into running a tour company:
Jammin Global Adventure Travel (this was my idea, submitted 2 years ago!)

Many have done the same, long list including Charlie Boorman, Tiffany Coates, Nick Sanders and more! Others do the rally circuit peddling bits & bobs and doing slide shows and talks.

You can read Jay's Ride Report on ADV Rider:
Jammin thru the Global South - ADVrider

the voice of experience......and you know this how? Do tell!!
Err.... no, maybe best to claim the 5th!

Just throwing this in the ring... My daughters each have small online businesses and are looking at ways to market...they are studying this guys methods:
Funnel Experts

If your thinking of marketing yourself or creating a product, some of the points this guy makes my be helpfull.

It may seem way out there, but something in it may just help with the process of getting $$$

__________________
Age does not protect you from motorbikes. But motorbikes, to some extent, protect you from age.

Agreed....what I dislike more about this particular individual is that it is all being done under the concept that funds are being raised by the ride for charities :/

Makes me feel like Im saving my ass off to do my RTW while some people can just do this

Sometimes it's better not to ask

Hahaha

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Blimey
i dealt with few jobs like that...................still they did it for nothing , so getting paid doesnt seem so bad an idea Ted will always be ok for cash as he is now an unofficial Harley Pin Up in certain bars located in Brighton and San Francisco

Overland travel is all about improvising....

I wonder if Touratech sell an Overlanders 'Drag-queen pole dancing make up set'

And if they don't... Why not !!

__________________
Did some trips.
Rode some bikes.
Fix them for a living.
Can't say anymore.

Kin ell Ted - thats a step too far Backless chaps and a harley mate thats all a drag queen about town needs

personally i wouldnt take the loan . With the skills you appear to have i would imagine you could find cash in hand work pretty much anywhere - its amazing how job opportunities come your way when your arent looking for them .
I tend to be pragmatic in the job i do given that i see so many people pass away at very young ages , whilst the ones that take drugs and drink like fish last till they are 70+ .
I would just go and get it out of your system - sell the hi fi / tv / clothing etc to make up the shortfall . If it all goes wrong you can come back and do some spannering as thats a skill that is always needed ( wish i had it ) .
And without wanting to sound like a heartless txxt dont worry about your mum - if you asked her what she thought my guess is she d tell you to do it and not worry about her , doesnt help you feeling like you are letting her down but she wont thank you otherwise - trust me have seen it alot , no offence intended .
Failing all above its chaps time