Adventure Bike Rider Forum

Getting back on a bike now after 40 years out of the saddle. Bought myself a BMW R1200RT, not an adventure bike but I enjoy it all the same. I am a carer for my wife who is is disabled and suffering early dementia. So a lesson to all do it while you can. I watch the videos of people travelling the world on their bikes and so wish I could do it but at 68 years old and with my responsibilities it will never happen. Should have done it all before I got married to get it out of my system, or would it have been like a drug and had me yearning for more, who knows. Hi to every one, rant over, I hail from Essex near Chelmsford, if anyone is passing and fancies a cup of tea pop in.

Welcome to the forum Schony! Don't have regrets about what you haven't done, look forward to what you can do! You don't need to ride around the world to have a great, fulfilling time on two wheels. Despite spending the last five years riding around the UK for routes in ABR magazine, there are still parts of our island that I'd love to visit, and they're only a couple of hours away. If you're looking for some inspiration, check out our downloadable guide to routes in the UK - we've got loads in there and you can download the gpx. files for each route so you can stick it in your SatNav and not have to worry about route planning etc. The guide can be found here: https://www.adventurebikerider.com/tomtom-guide

When I was endurance racing, there was another team also competing in the KRC championship whose combined age was 200 !!

So that was a 3-man riding team, aged roughly 65, 67 and 68 years. They were still fairly fit for their age, fairly quick on track too (mid-pack), and simply refused to stop after long careers as short-circuit club racers. Most importantly they were young-minded - which is by far the most important thing. I spent a night drinking with them after a 6-hour race at Pembrey and was struck by how they still wanted to have fun, enjoy the experience, stretch themselves a bit and prevent themselves from curling up in front of the TV, gardening or golf.

Obviously aches, pains and illnesses sometimes conspire against us, but where you still feel able to fulfill your long-held desire, and if you can afford the money/time - why not? I've also met much older travelers in some pretty far-flung places (including in Mali a 75 year old woman backpacking round Africa). With plenty of preparation it should be quite possible to get round the world if you choose realistic routes, especially the Europe-Russia-Canada-USA northern circumnavigation.