HU Travellers Meeting California 2015

Mark Donham Radioman Rode the World - 31 months of riding, covering 26 countries, 6 continents, and 93,000+ miles of riding!

Mark started his motorcycle journey in 2011, by riding around the US and Canada before venturing south through Mexico, central and South America with side trips to Galapagos and Antarctica, then onto India, New Zealand, across Australia and Southern Africa mostly on his F800GS.

Come hear his story. The story begins with a touching saga of saying the "Long Goodbye" to his lovely wife, Chris. And the romance they shared over 20 years. Before the motorcycle adventure of a lifetime!

Mark will share some photos and videos from the travels, and answer the big questions of why someone would leave the comfort of home to Ride around the world, what bikes he rode (3 main bikes), some of the challenges, logistics and costs of a trip like this, and a few stories of the life on the road!

Eva Rupert and Josh Remer Tiny Bikes: Big Change - Small Motorcycles, Big Adventures, Making the World a Better Place

Tiny Bikes: Big Change was born out of the idea that our travels make the world a better place. Riding across the desert southwest on sub-200cc bikes takes the challenge of adventure motorcycling to a whole different level. Josh Remer and Eva Rupert co-founded Tiny Bikes: Big Change and are pioneers in the tiny motorcycle revolution. They will be discussing their past and future adventures on small bikes with a focus on building community and making adventure travel easily accessible.

Survivalist and adventurer, Eva Rupert, has a passion for vintage motorcycles and wilderness survival. Dedicated to empowering individuals through outdoor experience, she strives to make the world a better place, one motorcycle at a time.

Josh is an adventure and travel aficionado who prefers motorcycles as a means of transportation. He specialises in nonprofit management and is passionate about combining adventure travel with programmes that make the world a better place.

Elisa Wirkala One Girl's Transcontinental Journey Home

One girl's 30,000km adventure across the Americas on a CGL125 with an average daily budget of $30/day.

Many of us dream of epic adventures but struggle to understand how people afford to pull them off, or fear the dangers that lurk across the border.

In 2012, Elisa Wirkala was $30,000 in debt, had a mortgage loan of $240,000, and was making a pitiful salary as a middle school teacher. She was desperate to quit her job and hit the road, but the idea of adventuring across continents was a far off and impossible dream... Right?!

Find out how in just one year, this young woman managed to pay off enormous debt, earn rental income and quit her job to adventure across Australia and the Americas: 3 continents and 15 countries on a mini-motorcycle and a tight budget, alone through some of the most dangerous countries in the world, all without so much as a scratch. (And so can you!)

By her 30th birthday in 2014, Elisa, a Spanish teacher from Seattle, Washington, had already traveled to over 30 countries and motorcycled more than 30,000 miles in 4 continents and 25 countries. Often solo and always on a tight budget, this frugal teacher has an unstoppable passion for adventure.

Alex Chacón The Modern Motorcycle Diaries - behind the scenes and details to this endeavour

How a 23 Year old medical student sold everything he had to follow his dreams. Taking him around the world in 3 Years on a KLR 650.

Alex Chacón rode a motorcycle around the world for 3 years on various epic charitable expeditions including a 500 day solo ride from Alaska to Argentina. He sold everything he had at the beginning of his journey, including his car, TV and clothes and and left Medical School at age 23, living only out of his motorcycle for the next 3 years. These years were spent engaging in the most epic of adventures, riding in over 41+ countries, driving over 200,000+ km and crossing over 75+ borders around the world, discovering the most unique places and people on earth!

Alex Chacón is a Social Media Influencer, YouTube Talent, Video Producer, Professional Photographer, Inspirational Speaker and Global Motorcycle Adventure Rider and International Traveler. While travelling, Alex published his life changing and charitable adventures on YouTube, blogging and creating a massive social media following with epic pictures, video and unique storytelling that has captured the attention of the entire world.

Nevil Stow, RTW 2013 Around the World on a DR650 named Twiggy whilst fundraising for a good cause

London to Ukraine to Vladivostok and onward to Newfoundland! Preparation, paperwork and plenty of pictures. 17 countries covered from England to Mongolia and onward through Siberia to Korea and ultimately Canada.

An insight into planning, prepping and riding around the globe for 36,780 kilometres on an uncomfortable motorcycle. The strain it put on a good friendship between two brothers and the close bond that developed between two travelers.

The planning and execution of an albeit rapid RTW (wish I had more time). Border crossings, paperwork, corrupt police, motorcycle accidents and more are thrown into this mixed bag of goodies.

We'll look in short, at building the bike, crossing borders in Ukraine, Kazakhstan and Russia and learn how caring most of the world is... oh, and why I had to come home early!

Nevil has lived and worked in the Cdn Rocky Mtns for 17 years and has extensive experience as a guide in the back country around the Canmore Banff area. He's been motorcycling for over 35 years and recently rode around the world.

Michelle Lamphere (Sturgis Chick) 2 years in the Americas - South Dakota to South America via Newfoundland - 20 countries, 45,000 miles and 2 broken bones

Fed up with my employers I decided to leave my 21-year six-figure-salary executive job, sell my house, and hit the road with my handsome English PanAm-riding boyfriend. What started out as a few months of 'me time' turned into a two-year journey through the Americas filled with great new friends, spectacular landscapes and some crazy memories.

Come along for the ride as I share a few memories from our travels including some of the best roads in the world, motorcycle spills, natural wonders, serendipity and a marriage proposal.

I'll be sharing photos from the trip, information on my gear/equipment, packing, border crossings, extended life on the road, money/budget, and some tools and hints that helped me.

Born and raised in Sturgis, SD I grew up with a love of the outdoors and motorcycles. Recently back from a two-year journey through the Americas with my fiancé, Brian on our bikes.

Nikos Dimitriou & Georgia Micheli The Pin Project: the art of traveliving - How to quit your job, prepare your vehicle for a RTW trip and travelive around the world

Quit your job, pack your stuff and just go. We never thought that it would be that easy and so rewarding at the same time. Being on the road since April 2012, offered us life lessons. 2 years in Africa, a bit of Europe and now Americas is part of our RTW trip.

Since age 29, we were following the stereotypes of our generation that means studying in a 'good' university, finding a 'good' job, meeting a 'nice' buddy and set up your house ready to host the Big Greek Family. We were so fed up with our daily routine. Not to mention the Greek recession consequences in all people lives. We were so stressed and also obliged to do something 'good' for our future.

In September 2011, we took the decision to start travelling overland, in March 2012 we quit our good jobs, in April 2012 we departed from Greece so as to travel in Africa, in March 2014 returned back home after two years overlanding in the Black Continent and in January 2015 we are continuing our travels in the Americas.

We decided to travelive for as long as we can stand on our feet, trying at the same time to inspire and share our vision with other people. Nothing is easier than start listening to your deep needs and realizing how simple is the life.

Carla King and Jonathan Ehly Riding to Central Baja's Undiscovered Treasures

We like to describe central Baja as a combination of the Galapagos Islands and Namibia that's only a day and a half's ride from San Diego. Its natural beauty and the opportunities for exploration by land, sea and air are endless. Baja has always been friendly to tourists and expats, and tourists flock to the northern and southern ends of the peninsula. But it's the central area between the Sea of Cortez and Scorpion Bay on the Pacific that calls to us, as it retains the original feel of old Baja.

Ride your dirt bike, your adventure bike, heck, even your Harley. There's no wrong way to explore Baja. Lately we've been trailering our KTM dirt bikes along with inflatable paddleboard-kayaks and camping gear to keep our options open.

We look forward to showing you a lesser-known network of dirt and tarmac through landscapes that range from the rugged and pine-scented Sierra San Pedro Martir Mountains to desert ranchitas to glittering seas. We'll explore seaside wonders like Bahia de Los Angeles with its hundreds of thousands of dolphins frolicking in the sparkling blue waters among stark islands rising from the Sea of Cortez and Scammons Lagoon on the Pacific Coast for spectacular whale watching.

Travel with us through the Catavina Desert with its thick-trunked elephant trees and Boojum forests, a surreal landscape borrowed by Dr. Suess to illustrate his children's books. Further south we bump along arroyos and oasis to the 7000-year old San Borjitas cave paintings. These are just a few of the opportunities we'll show you to inspire a plan for your ride to Baja's undiscovered treasures.

Carla King is an adventure travel author who has specialized in solo explorations of the world on a series of cranky indigenous motorcycles. Jonathan Ehly is also a world traveler and he has been exploring Baja for over 30 years by motorcycle, 4x4, boat and small aircraft to seek out hidden trails, remote valleys and secluded bays. We've spent the last year exploring Baja together, and have chosen Mulegé and Bahia Concepcion as our base for continued explorations.

Jeremy Kroeker, Canada Through Dust and Darkness and Motorcycle Therapy

Through Dust and Darkness - Crappy KLR through Europe, Middle East & North Africa.

Jeremy is a Mennonite with a motorcycle. When his seemingly unflinching faith in a Christian worldview begins to shift, Kroeker hops on his bike to seek answers from another perspective. After shipping his ride to Europe, Kroeker discovers that the machine wobbles back and forth worse than his own opinions about spirituality. Still, he caries on, oscillating through Europe—Germany, Austria, Croatia, Albania—and into the Middle East - Turkey, Syria, Lebanon and, ultimately, Iran.

It is there, in the theocratic nation of Iran, that Kroeker finds himself on a forbidden visit to a holy Muslim Shrine. Once inside, invisible hands reach into his chest and rip from his heart a sincere prayer, his first in many years. And God hears that prayer. For before Kroeker can escape Iran, God steals into his hotel room one night to threaten him with death. At least, that's one way to look at it...

Motorcycle Therapy - Central America - Crappy KLR from Canada to Panama and Back

From the Canadian Rockies to the Panamanian jungle, Motorcycle Therapy rumbles with comic adventure as two men, fleeing failed relationships, test the limits of their motorcycles and their friendship. Join the horn-honking, signal-flashing, wheelie-popping pair as they endure painful bee stings, painful snakebites and (when they talk to girls) painful humiliation.

Jeremy Kroeker is a freelance writer, a speaker, and the award-winning author of two books, 'Motorcycle Therapy' and 'Through Dust and Darkness.' With his motorcycle, he has traveled to nearly 30 countries while managing to do at least one outrageously stupid thing in every one. He has evaded police in Egypt, tasted teargas in Israel, scrambled through minefields in Bosnia and Lebanon, and wrangled a venomous snake in Austria. One time he got a sliver in El Salvador.

Jeremy's most recent book is 'Motorcycle Messengers'. Ask him to autograph it for you!

Alexander Conrad There is another choice! After being exhausted and burned out while working on my career, I decided to give up everything for travel...

After working very successfully as an engineer in industry in Germany and the US, I became very depressed and burned out. I got inspired by Ted Simon's "Jupiters Travels", which I found accidentally, and I decided to follow him, quit my job and gave up everything to travel the world on a motorcycle. So far I have ridden across eastern and southern Europe into parts of Asia I am now on the "Panamericana". My presentation will be a brief summary about the why and my experiences in Europe and Asia.

Burned out and very depressed, Alexander left everything and took on a motorcycle trip in 2011. Since then he has been constantly travelling on two wheels around the globe continuing his "Motorcycletherapy"...

Chris Baker Motorcycling Through Castro's Cuba

Discover the allure of Cuba—the forbidden isle. Join renowned travel writer, National Geographic photographer, and motojournalist Christopher P Baker (author of Mi Moto Fidel: Motorcycling Through Castro's Cuba) as he regales his 7,000-mile journey through Cuba by R100GS and profiles the group tours that he leads.

Chris Baker is the foremost expert on Cuba travel and in 2013 led the first group motorcycle tours of Cuba for U.S. citizens since the 1959 Revolution.

Ginamarie Austin Life Lesson from the Road and Roadside America

Life Lesson from the Road

Traveling solo has some ups and down. This journey has allowed me to step back and acknowledge those lessons and to learned from them.

My husband and I always had big dreams to travel across North America on our bikes; little did we know that a cancer diagnosis would rob us of pursuing that adventure—at least together.

Over a year ago, we learned that my husband had stage IV lung cancer. He had a couple of months or mere weeks to live. So, while he was in hospice, he set me aside and said, "Remember our vacation dream to take a motorcycle trip around North America when we retired?" Sadly, I shook my head yes. He told me, "Life is too short. Don't wait until retirement. When I'm gone, sell our house and follow our dreams."

Since he has passed, I have been learning how to stand on my own two feet while closing the estate, learning how to maintain my own motorcycle, and traveling on a trip of a lifetime on the back roads of North America and Baja on a small cc motorbike, the Yamaha TW200.

Roadside America - Unusual attractions, tourist traps, other oddities in the USA

America seems to be obessed with billboards and giant statues along the highway still hawk a baffling array of roadside attractions, tempting passing travelers to view giant blue whales, to see live rattlesnakes and other wild creatures on display in roadside menageries, or to stay at any of the local hotel with unusal themes.

These landmarks are kept in business by nostalgic travelers intent on experiencing a taste of this endlessly endangered American experience. That said, many quirky old motels and cafés hang on by a thread of hope, sit vacant, or survive in memory only—all for want of an Interstate exit.

Ginamarie is on a journey to find her own two feet again through motorcycle. After the death of her husband, Ginamarie's been closing their estate, learning how to maintain her own motorcycle, and traveling on a trip of a lifetime on the backroads of North America and Baja.

Tom Medema Rally for Rangers - Mongolia

In July, 2015, 20 intrepid volunteers set out on a journey to bring new motorcycles to park rangers in a remote corner of Mongolia who desperately needed them. These rangers are attempting to protect some of the last pristine land in Asia from development, poaching, and mining, and were doing so on horseback and 40 year old Russian motorcycles held together with baling wire and duct tape.

Today, these rangers can cover vast territory without fear of breaking down, all through the efforts of the Mongol Ecology Center's Blue Waves Motorcycle Rally and the 20 volunteers who raised the funds to purchase the bikes, fly to Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia, and ride 1000 miles through the vast steppe of central Asia to personally deliver the bikes.

Join Blue Waves rider and Yosemite National Park ranger Tom Medema for a short documentary and talk on the rally. Tom is raising funds for the 2016 rally as well as recruiting riders for one of four future rallies bringing new motorcycles to park rangers all over Mongolia through 2018.

Tom Medema is an outdoor enthusiast and has been a road rider for 25 years. He is a park ranger in Yosemite National Park and began off-road riding just last year as part of an effort to bring new motorcycles to park rangers in Mongolia. Off road and Mongolia are his new loves.

David Rankine, USA Riding from South Korea to Europe AND Your Alaska Journey

Riding from South Korea to Europe

South Korea to Europe the easy way on pavement and what that entails.

A series of photos and commentary on riding from South Korea to Europe in 2014. We chose the easy route which is the Trans Siberian. You can do it too.

Your Trip to Alaska

A long term Alaska resident shows you photos of options on the various ways to get to Alaska, the best time to go, and suggests where to go when you get there. No we don't include taking an airplane. Useful handout included.

Dave Rankine is a long time motorcyclist who has been around the world two and a half times. His presentations emphasize things you need to know for your trip to the same places.

Gary Wegener Want to go around the world? Try Russia

Honestly, who doesn't want to travel 'round the world'? You secretly do, but never imagined it was feasible. Well, it is: do Russia.

Round the world via the Trans-Siberia Highway has got to be the easiest way to do it. Only one visa required for 9 time zones, and the rest you can do with just your passport. I crossed Russia solo on a stock Goldwing, in 30 days, late last summer (2014). AirBnB works, the Garmin works. Highways, hotels, food, security are good. The language was impossible for me, but they start teaching English in the 2nd grade.

While I was hosted by Rotarians almost the whole trip, I felt their hospitality was really a national trait. At truck stops or cafes, I never hesitated to say I was from America. I think any international association (Blue Knights, educators, labor unions?) would garner the same treatment, if you can make the connections before you go. It truly is a trip that will change the way you look at the world.

Gary is a Retired Navy/City Public Works Director. He rides a Goldwing and has traveled/enjoyed the 4 corners (southern Calif, Key West, Maine, Dead Horse) and points in between, and oh yes, traversing Russia, North America, Europe, Philippines, in his travels. "Always believed we are one humanity, and that travel reaffirms that."

Doug Laird Around the World in 100 Days

After 8 years of pavement covering 49 states it was time to explore the world. With my GSs I've ridden 32 countries circling the earth north to south and east to west.

How I transitioned from riding in 49 states to touring the world, visiting 32 countries in the process, is something I'd like to share. When I begin serious touring in 2003 my first goal was to ride all the paved highways in Nevada. Once that was done it was to ride all fifty states, I only have Hawaii left. Then the allure was Deadhorse to Ushuaia. That trip of course lead to 'why not' an Around the World Adventure.

Once the decision was made to ride around the world a two-year planning process begin. The trip I planned was to ride east to west along northern latitudes and complete the ride in about 100 days. Not wanting to cross Russia alone on the Trans-Siberian Highway I made my intentions known and by the time the trip started there were six of us making the trip. I will provide a brief overview of the planning process, applying for visas, shipping the bikes and details of what we encountered on the ride. The ride was accomplished in 98 days, without incident, and covered 15,812 miles.

Walt Fulton & Nancy Foote, StreetMasters Getting to the Road Less Traveled Safely and "Dirty Streetmasters"

While Adventure riding requires specific techniques, just getting there on pavement requires special attention too! Riding off-road on a large Adventure bike or a smaller Dual-Sport bike is unquestionably a unique skill. Oftentimes, however, the ride from the driveway to where the pavement ends can offer the most challenges and potential danger to any rider on any type of street bike.

Walt and Nancy will share some tips and tricks learned over a million plus miles both on and off road: suggestions on gear, technique, focus, awareness, pitfalls, surprises and will address anything that comes up during the 40-minute presentation.

Walt Fulton and Nancy Foote, owners of Streetmasters Motorcycle Workshops, are focused on rider safety - both on and off the pavement. Walt is a retired (and resurrected) motorcycle road racer, dirt tracker and continues to teach and ride off-road. Nancy has been an avid on-road rider for the last 30+ years whose love of the sport brought her to her involvement in Streetmasters. They have traveled much of the western US, including Alaska, and are going back to New Zealand for a second time in 2016.

"Dirty Streetmasters"

Streetmasters Motorcycle Workshops is best known for offering Advanced Cornering Techniques for the past 10 years, but for the last two years they have combined on-road and off-road skills in a class called "Dirty Streetmasters".

Streetmasters is offering a "Dirty Streetmasters" class at the HU California Travellers Meeting. If you ride a Dual-Sport or Adventure bike and would like to get off the beaten path, join us for a day-long workshop on Saturday, September 26th.

Dirty Streetmasters is designed for riders that want to explore the path less traveled, but haven't yet kept going when the pavement ends. Walt Fulton, former professional dirt track racer and long-time off-road rider, will help you obtain the skills you will need to be comfortable riding your bike in the dirt.

Already ride in the dirt? This is an excellent opportunity to refresh your skills under the watchful eye of an avid off-road instructor.

The day will start with an hour or so working on dirt-specific skills before heading out to some local dirt roads. You must have an adventure/dual sport bike with dual sport tires to participate in the Dirty Streetmasters workshop.

Class size is limited, but we do need a minimum of 6 riders, so sign up soon to ensure your spot! The price is $100, which is an incredible deal JUST FOR THE PARTICIPANTS OF THE HORIZONS UNLIMITED TRAVELLERS MEETING CALIFORNIA 2015!

Use this link to sign up for the "Dirty" Streetmasters class.

Joe Berk, CSC Motorcycles The Western America Adventure Ride - a 5000-mile ride around western USA with visitors from Zongshen on the RX3 motorcycle Exhibitor Information

CSC Motorcycles recently completed two group rides with its new 250cc RX3 motorcycle. CSC led a team of 15 new RX3 riders on a 1700-mile ride through Baja, and then another team of 10 riders (including journalists and Zongshen employees from China and Colombia) on the 5000-mile Western America Adventure Ride. This presentation focuses on four areas: The RX3 motorcycle, long-distance riding on 250cc motorcycles, the challenges associated with large group rides, and how the RX3 motorcycle performed.

Joe Berk is a management consultant, expert witness, and author focused on manufacturing, quality, and profitability improvement. His clients include Zebra Technologies, Kawasaki, Yamaha, Boeing, Walker Precision, Baxter World Healthcare, CSC Motorcycles, and others. Joe is a regular contributor to Motorcycle Classics magazine and he is the author of 10 books on manufacturing, quality, financial management, motorcycles, and firearms. Joe also teaches in the College of Engineering at the California State Polytechnic University.

Clement Salvadori Sixty years, Seventy Countries - Things I have learned, or not learned, in my many, many miles.

I had a decent job which involved a good deal of travel (U.S. Dept. of State), but the allure of riding my motorcycle around the world forced me to resign. Two years on the road, a year in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico, studying for an MFA, and since then have managed to eke out a living getting paid to ride motorcycles, and writing about them.

Clement says: "I've been riding for 60 years, since the age of 15, and motorcycled thru 70 countries. Went 'round the world on a BMW R75/5 in 1973-75. Have published six books on motorcycling, and am a regular contributing editor to Rider magazine, and occasionally to others."

Clement Salvadori is the author of 'No Thru Road - Confessons of a Traveling Man'. Ask him to sign your copy!

Nevil Stow, RTW 2013 Bears & Moto Camping. The Do's & Dont's!

Bears & Moto camping, the do's & dont's

A humorous but informative presentation about not getting eaten. Learn from a guy that has made every mistake... and some!

Just because I was a mountain guide in the Canadian Rockies for a few years doesn't mean I know everything so come join me for a 40 minute laugh as we explore the myths and facts behind our Ursine neighbors through my own mistakes!

This talk has been going at HU Canwest since 2009 and was put together by me to aid moto travelers who were apprehensive about camping in bear country. I will have props at hand and will probably do my best to injure myself whilst demonstrating them, so if you want to learn through humour, please come along... especially if you're from another part of the world :)

Beware of bear sign in Prudhoe Bay, Alaska

A mountain guide in the Canadian Rockies with over 18 years of backcountry and bushcraft skills,I'm still learning from people every day!... oh yes, and I rode a DR650 around the world :)

Cameron Marshall, Moto-Mentor Campology - rider mindset, bike setup and options, rider setup apparel etc, camp gear and setup, the plan

Cameron Marshall will present and demonstrate how to prepare and execute successful, comfortable camping using your adventure bike. 4 main topics: the rider, the bike, the camp and the planning and all assorted gear. How to select what's right for you and how to use it. Includes demonstrations of the gear he suggests. Fast paced and sometimes funny.

Motorcycle rider, camping lover. Together they represent the most free you can be. After 30 years of pursuing both I'm eager to share what I've learned. Bike set up. Rider set up. The camp. The plan. All assorted bling and shortcuts to get you there quicker and easier.

David Petersen, Best Rest Products Tire Repairs & Changing on the Road and Trail, Motorcycle Recovery and Towing Exhibitor Information

Tire Repairs On The Road And Trail

This seminar covers a variety repair methods for tubed and tubeless tires. We'll discuss a variety of repair products and their merits, then we'll demonstrate tubed and tubeless repairs using vulcanizing strings and patches.

Tire Changing On The Road And Trail

This seminar shows you how to change a tire on the road or trail.

We'll discuss the tools needed to remove the wheel from the motorcycle and what it takes to break the bead on a tire. We'll demonstrate a tire change using only the tools we carry on the bike. We'll show you tips, tricks, and techniques that make this process quick and easy.

Motorcycle Recovery and Towing

This seminar discusses methods of recovering a bike that has gone off the road or trail. It also discusses methods of towing a disabled bike.

We'll demonstrate how to hook up a simple Z-pulley system with a 5:1 lifting ratio, that will haul a bike up a slope. We'll also demonstrate how to tow a motorcycle and how to attach towing straps.

David Petersen is the owner of BestRest Products. David has developed a number of motorcycle products. He's ridden the Continental Divide Route, ridden to Prudhoe Bay, and developed the NorthWest Passage Adventure Route across WA state. He's written a free e-book - 'How to Ride a Motorcycle Off Road'.

Jimmy Lewis Safe Off-Road Skills

Jimmy Lewis will surprise you with simple and effective tips you can apply to your riding right now to make you a safer and more confident rider. Designed primarily to have riders become more comfortable off pavement, these skills come into play any time traction goes away or the riding becomes difficult. With so much of the world's roads not paved, why would you let a little dirt get in the way of a great adventure?

Jimmy Lewis is a retired professional motorcycle racer who has turned his focus to teaching high-level off-road riding skills on Adventure Motorcycles. He uses experience from top finishes at the Dakar Rally and Baja to show you how to be safe and efficient on your bike at any speed.

David and Heidi Winters RTW Trip Planning - The Nuts and Bolts and We're Sleeping Where??

RTW Trip Planning - The Nuts and Bolts

Over preparing will stress you out and ruin your trip. You need the right mindset and tools when it comes to trip planning.

Know enough to get inspired but not too much to only find boredom. Get all the information you need to know to pack up your bike and hit the road. We will discuss paperwork and documents, outfitting yourself and your bike, how to get in the right mindset, tips for saving money and how to budget a huge trip. I will provide online resources that I used that will help with the planning.

Weather, illness, schedules, money and holidays will all threaten your trip. Learn how to prepare yourself for what lies ahead, but just remember, it's not an adventure until something unplanned happens! So live a little and don't try to plan it all!

This class will be LOADED with information so come on time and bring something to take notes with! We want to make sure we have plenty of time to cover this very important topic.

We're Sleeping Where?? - RTW Couch Surfing, Wild Camping, Sleeping in Lobbies and with Complete Strangers.

During our travels, we wild camped along the coast of Turkey, in abandoned campgrounds in the Czech Republic and on the streets of Israel. We have stayed with complete strangers, from Nepal to Hungary, and everywhere in-between. David has even slept on the top of a zamboni storage shed in Canada…

Some of these moments have become the highlights of our trip! This is the vulnerability that you must embrace during your adventures. It's what makes you approachable and what will, in the end, make your trip.

What's safe, and what's a bad idea? My wife and I have slept in countless types of accommodations and will share our knowledge and experience with you.

You will need to sleep somewhere, so make the most of it and learn how to accept hospitality and how to give friendliness.

David and Heidi love traveling! They've backpacked around Europe and lived in South Africa. They toured the States on a BMW and realized they needed more! Then came a 14 month RTW trip, two-up on their KTM 640Adv. Nowadays they travel in their VW Westfalia with their daughter, Brooklyn.

Eva Rupert Wilderness Survival: A Balance of Finesse, Awareness, and Raw Determination

Survivalist Eva Rupert discusses subsistence living and her experiences on the Discovery Channel's groundbreaking show, Naked and Afraid. With over a decade of primitive survival experience, Rupert spends extended periods of time living in the wild without any gear or supplies. Constantly seeking out new challenges and environments, Rupert has tested her skills in remote locations across the globe. Awareness, self-reliance, and a true sense of empowerment come from spending time in the wilderness. With a focus on inner strength and connection with the natural world, Rupert shares the basics of wilderness survival and how to live successfully with nearly nothing.

Survivalist and adventurer, Eva Rupert, has a passion for vintage motorcycles and wilderness survival. Dedicated to empowering individuals through outdoor experience, she strives to make the world a better place, one motorcycle at a time.

Skills: Primitive Pottery, Brain-tanning, Leatherworking, Cordage & Fibers, Basketry, Edible & Medicinal Plants, Animal Tracking, Shelter Building, Friction Fire Making, Experiential Outdoor Education

Harold Olaf Cecil, Giant Loop Moto Over Packed Is Under Prepared and Fly And Ride Packing Exhibitor Information

Over Packed Is Under Prepared (thanks to Dave Lomax for the title!)

How LITTLE can the adventurous motorcycle traveling carry and still be: Safe, Self-Sufficient and Comfortable? What's the bare minimum requirement? What do you always carry? How do you reduce both the weight and bulk? Why does it matter?

Simply put, we think traveling light is more FUN! Motorcycles perform better, are subject to less wear and tear and are safer to ride in challenging conditions when they are not piled with bulky heavy gear.

Lighten up and enjoy the ride more, as we share our "tribal knowledge" as motorcycle travelers in an informal open discussion.

Fly And Ride Packing - How to pack for air travel that takes you to motorcycle travel.

My work has afforded me the opportunity to fly to several destinations and ride motorcycles: Australia, Norway and various regions of the USA. We'll talk about what to carry on and what to check, how to pack it on the plane and how to carry it on the bike with a minimal amount of gear.

Harold Olaf Cecil co-founded Giant Loop in 2007 with a single innovative soft luggage concept and a "Go Light, Go Fast, Go Far" approach to packing and motorcycle exploration. The company now makes an extensive line of modular, customizable, highly rugged, stable and lightweight adventure-proof luggage and gear.

Mike Kauffman Packing for your adventure ride

Packing for comfort, safety and contingencies without overpacking. You can't bring it all!

During the 7 years of camping throughout Canada, US, Mexico and South America, I have learned some valuable lessons on how to pack my bike without overloading. What do I need, what do I want and what can I do without? Whether the trip is 4 days or two months, having the right gear for your personal needs is important. I've learned from others, and added my own touches to have the essential items for comfort and self reliance on my rides.

As a retiree and a California resident I have the luxury of year around travel. Since 2007, I have ridden 200k+miles, camped hundreds of nights throughout USA, Canada and Mexico. Sometimes alone, sometimes with friends and sometimes with friends met along the way, it has been an adventure.

Nicole and Alana Espinosa Cooking on the Road - Camp-side one pot meals for the road and demo the best stoves for local and global cooking

Come join us as my daughter Alana and I cook up some camp-side one pot meals for the road and demo the best stoves for local and global cooking in honor of our dear friend Peter Dean whom our community lost this last March. His beautiful and jovial spirit lives on in our hearts...and stomachs. Let's lift a fork and toast to Peter in a rocking sidecar hack on the other side.

After getting her second dual sport bike in 2008, Nicole launched off on her first adventure ride to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon on a 10 day trek. Being away from her kids Alana and Dimitri for the length of some of her longer solo rides has been the hardest part of her adventures. So now Nicole is prepping for an RTW in 2017, with her kids in a sidecar to experience global travel and world schooling as a family.

Remembering Peter Dean, great chef and a great guy!

Alex Chacón Social Media (Facebook, Twitter, Youtube) - How to properly use, optimize, share and create a following on social media, the positive, negative and ideas you never thought of!

Alex Chacón is on the cutting edge of innovative and unique digital content creation and leading the way as a social influencer for his Millennial generation. He's inspired millions with the 360 Degree Selfie he created and popularized, voted the most Epic Selfie of 2014 by CBS News/Mashable and 3rd most searched Selfie of all time according to Google Zeitgeist.

Watch Alex's 3 Year Epic Selfie - Part II

His first film 'The Modern Motorcycle Diaries' totalled over 18 Million views.
He's appeared for live interviews on CBS News, Fox News CNN/HLN, Huffington Post and more, and his body of work has been featured all around the world in online articles, newspapers, news magazines like TIME Magazine, Lonely Planet, Travel Channel and more.

Alex continually works with major brands in digital content creation like Google and has collaborated in professional productions like the GoPro hero 3+ Launch Video, Highest Road in the World, along with Kawasaki, Alpinestars, Harley Davidson, and more.

Carla King Self-Publishing Your Adventures

For all you budding authors, Carla will run a 2-hour workshop on self-publishing your travel adventures! Get all the information you need to publish your book in print and ebook formats. Learn how to set up your website to sell books. How to distribute your books in online retailers. How to market your books using social media tools, blog tours, mailing list newsletters and media outreach. Especially exciting are very new options this year for easy-to-create full-color ebooks for the iPad and Kindle Fire.

Carla King is an adventure travel writer who reviews vehicles, gear, and gadgets like motorcycles, stand-up paddleboards, dive equipment, communication systems, helmets, tents, and boots. She's also a self-publishing expert who writes how-to guides, leads workshops and speaks at writing conferences.

Reg Kittrelle I Wrote a Book; I hate the Author - The untold side of book-writing

"Everyone has a book in them." Yeah, fine, but maybe mine should have stayed there.

Writing that first book has sides to it that aren't always covered by the numerous self-help books on the subject. I talk about the pain, the heartbreak, the rejection ...all those things that happen BEFORE you've written the first word.

The formal book writing process is often presented as a very generic, clinical process that only requires that the would-be author follow defined, logical steps. And that works fine for many people. But what about those of us with the attention span of a Boxer puppy and the the step-following skills of a drunk? How do I/we manage to produce a book?

I answer this question by drawing heavily from my own experience, and break the presentation into these sections (tentative):
1. From Inspiration to Perspiration: That first Key Stroke
2. The Single Best Thing You Can Do
3. Writing is a Grind
4. Editing; Dante's 10th. Circle of Hell
5. Post-Press Depression

Reg Kittrelle has been riding for 50+ years, a free lance moto-journalist for 25+ year. He's a past publisher / editor of motorcycle publications, an event promoter and author.

Richard Battles, RKA Luggage Communications and soft luggage Exhibitor Information

Richard and Kathy Battles started RKA Motorcycle Luggage in 1985. Every textile product that leaves our building is designed and manufacture there, we make these products. MADE IN THE USA. RKA is now also offering other products including communications products.

The Evolution of Evolution

Communications, are you "IN-Charge"? The evolution of evolution, communications, what we expected in the beginning, and expect now from the hi-tech world & what we are getting.

Motorcycle soft luggage applications

RKA has been manufacturing Motorcycle luggage 29 years now and is mostly "On Road" orientated but Richard still has a lot to talk about.

Most of our users are on road touring folks so our saddlebags do not conform well to off road or dual sport motorcycles with high pipes, but our tankbags, Seatbags, and Rackbags DO work just fine!

Richard will discuss attachments, positioning, packing, and bungee cords, among other things.

Elisa Wirkala Survival Spanish For Dummies

Survival Spanish for those traveling through Latin America or Spain!

Come take notes on the phrases and vocabulary you'll really want to know before hitting the road in the Spanish speaking world!

Presented by Elisa Wirkala, novice finance-enthusiast, adventuress, teacher and writer who recently completed 30,000kms across the Americas from the southernmost point of Argentina to Seattle.

Border crossings - How to get through borders with minimal stress and cost!

Packing light - Tips and techniques from experienced travellers to reduce weight and bulk.

Regional discussions - e.g. travelling in South America or Asia.

For Women Only - A must for the ladies, so be sure to plan on being there! A chance to talk to experienced travelling women without the men around!

Experienced Travellers Panel - ask the experts anything you want!

Walk arounds / Show and tell!

Tents and Bedding discussion (in the camping area) - What works, cheap vs dear and which ones keep you dry, warm and comfy!

Bike mods - Show off your best bike mods - homemade saddle bags, toolbox mounts, GPS mounts, seats, side stands, tank panniers, cup holders, etc.