My route from Prudhoe Bay to Ushuaia

THE END

So this is it. The end. Flying over and into a beautiful white blighty was the absolute nail in it all. Im home. did that all happen ? yes it did ! and i will never forget any of it. well actually i have forgotten most of it. there is so much to hold in the memory box. Aside from "what now", my mind keeps firing in the odd flash of what was. mostly comical moments and wonderful faces. Lets hope smells, faces, circumstances, music and more, trigger more hidden memories.................................... A few stats : 22000 miles, 15 countries (regarding Alaska as independent), 4 rear tyres, 5 front tyres, 2 batteries, 2 chains, 2 choke cables, 2 clutch cables, 100 stickers, 2 close ones (1 being my falt), 2 TV interviews, 2 radio interviews, 5 national newspaper interviews, 3 magazines, 2 tearful episodes with head in hands, 1 moment with a wolf, 2 moments with cuddly bears, 1 dead snake, 1 dead bird, 1 moment with bandits, 2 moments with the police, 0 military moments, 0 robberys, 0 arguements with the locals, 1000 chicken and rice meals, 10000 empanadas (if ya know where they sell these little rascals in London, do let me know now please), 1000 new friends, 6 offs (small pain), 0 loss of documents, 0 punctures, 1 pair of lost boots, 2 lost cameras, 3 lost silly hats, wouldnt know where to start guessing at how much gasoline used. well then time to go. no more blogs.. some might be glad to hear.. thank you all those who suffered and stuck with the blog. i apologise for all the spelling , grammer and all mistakes. My just giving page is still open, so if you are considering sponsoring me and donating to the fragile x society, now the job is done, please click the JG widget on the right of this page. We have nearly hit the £6000 mark. £10000 being the target. I am amazed at that amount. I thank you once more !!...photos on the right hand side have been updated. "click for simons pics".... . All countries visited gave me nothing but open arms, help and big smiles. the reputation of some of these places is covered in darkness. i found nothing but light. They offer things i dont find in the UK. Would you offer a bed to a complete stranger, mad eyed, covered in oil and mud, splurting out alien language ?.... i will always think on these places and feel warmth. bye bye !! x

big thank yous !

5 days in ushuaia has given me time to look back on , what has been the most incredible 6 months of my life. i remember touching the arctic ocean up in prudhoe bay and looking south wondering what i would be thinking when i am down south looking north. .....its the people that are in my thoughts. the scenery, riding and all else involved on the trip comes a close second. i miss everyone i have met and long to see them all again. i am still amazed by the genuine interest, help and time all have given me. without this i would have had half the trip i did and would no way have been able to get the publicity i was seeking..... i want to say now a huge heart felt thank you to all the following people and organisations that have bent over backwards for me from when it was just an obsessing idea to right now. .................

THE FRAGILE X SOCIETY IN GREAT DUNMOW. AMANDA , WENDY AND ALL TOOK ME IN WHEN I WAS WIDE EYED AND OBVIOUSLY NAIVE WITH THE PLAN. TAKING ME SERIOUSLY AND HELPING ME WITH ALL MY REQUESTS. AON GROUP LIMITED LONDON. SALLY, REUBEN AND MATTHEW. FOR THE GENEROUS DONATION TO THE FRAGILE X SOCIETY AND ALL THE WORLD WIDE PUBLICITY. TRANSWORLD COURIERS FOR THEIR GENEROUS DONATION AND HELP WITH SHIPPING MY GEAR QUICKLY AND SECURELY, LISTENING TO MY MOANS AND WORRIES ALONG THE WAY. NITE WATCHES FOR THEIR IMMPECABLE HELP WITH PUBLICITY AND LETTING ME PUT TO THE TEST ONE OF THEIR TX10 WATCHES, WHICH I HAVE TO ADD HASNT A SCRATCH ON IT EVEN AFTER ALL THE BATTERINGS I HAVE GIVEN IT ALONG ROUTE. IT HASNT MISSED A SECOND. DAVE GURMAN AT THE RIDERS DIGEST FOR HIS 2 PAGES OF INSIGHTFUL HONEST WRITING ON THE FXPEDITION. BIKE ANIMAL.COM AND DIRT BIKE RIDER MAGAZINE FOR THEIR PUBLICATIONS. A HUGE THANKS TO PHIL FREEMAN AND ALL HIS TOP EMPLOYEES UP THERE AT ALASKA RIDER TOURS. A GREAT BUNCH WHO SORTED OUT THE BIKE PERFECTLY TO HANDLE A NOVICE LIKE ME. I HAD A REAL HAPPY FUN TIME IN THEIR COMPANY AND MISS LIKE MAD SITTING AROUND THE OFFICE WITH BEERS AND LAUGHS. ASH AT A AND Z SPORTS IN GRAVESEND FOR THE STUNNING T-SHIRTS AND KEEPING UP AN ORIGINAL SPORTS SHOP, WHEN ALL AROUND ARE DULL CHAIN SHOPS. COLIN PATTERSON-SMITH AT THE FALKLANDS TOURIST BOARD, WHO HELPED NO END WITH INFO AND THE PERFECT FINISH TO THIS ALL. SALVADOR FOR HIS SPANISH LESSONS AND PATIENCE WITH ME. WITHOUT THOSE GENEROUS LESSONS I WOULD NOT HAVE HAD THE FOUNDATION IN THE LANGUAGE THAT QUICKENED MY LEARNING ON ROUTE. MAILSOURCE FOR UNDERSTANDING AND GIVING ME THE TIME NEEDED TO GO DO THIS..DEANO, DAVE, ALLAN, FABS AND ALL IN THE POSTROOM FOR PUTTING UP WITH TALKING OF NOT MUCH ELSE...TERRY, SPARKSY, MARK, BRI, TREV AND ALL, AT WEEKENDS SECURITY FOR THE LAUGHS AND CHANCE OF EXTRA WORK, U U U U U U ! .....KELLY - VANCOUVER FOR THAT FIRST NIGHTS KIP AND SHOW AROUND THAT BEAUTIL CITY ! GABY, GUIDO AND DALE, WAS A REAL PLEASURE IN THOSE EARLY DAYS !...PETE PIEL FOR JOINING ME AND RIDING SOME OF THE ROUTE. WE HAD A FUN TIME. PETE SHOWED ME THE WAY TO STICK MY NECK OUT WHEN IT COMES TO RAISING AWARENESS, JUST WHEN IT WAS NEEDED. AND THANK YOU PETE FOR THE PERFECT STICKERS AND T-SHIRTS. DEBBIE, PETES SISTER FOR LETTING US ROAM AND SLEEP AT HER PLACE IN PHOENIX. KERRY MOORE, THANK YOU LOADS FOR THE CONTACT IN THE STATES AND THE INTEREST MATE - COME ON THE EAGLES !FXMOM FOR ALL HER ENCOURAGING COMMENTS. PETER SOHM AND ALVARO URIBE WHO WORKS AT AON MEDELLIN FOR THE HELP AND WARMTH. MAKING IT EASY FOR ME TO GET THE PUBLICITY DOWN THERE IN DREAMLAND COLOMBIA. PATRICIO RODRIGUEZ AT AON QUITO AND ALL HIS COLLEAGUES FOR THERE HELP AND WARMTH AGAIN IN TRUE LATIN AMERICAN STYLE. TRUST AND UNDERSTANDING ALWAYS PRESENT. JOSE LUIS CONTRERAS AT AON LA PAZ FOR WELCOMING ME ARMS OPEN. ALL AT THE OTHER AON BRANCHES I VISITED. ALL GIVING ME HELP, TIME AND WARMTH. SIGNE, FRED, JOHN, JO, BRIAN , ROGER AND JAY UP THERE IN PHILIPSBURG. THANKS LOADS FOR MY FIRST TASTE OF GENEROUS HOSPITALILTY AFTER I HAD BEEN ALONE FOR WHAT SEEMED LIKE AGES. ALFREDO AND HIS WONDERFUL FAMILY IN COLIMA MEXICO THANK YOU. THEY FOUND ME SHOUTING AT A NON GIVING CASHPOINT MACHINE IN THE RAIN AND LOOKED AFTER ME FOR 2 DAYS, NOT LETTING ME PUT MY HAND IN MY POCKET AND SHOWING ME THE LOCAL SIGHTS THAT I WOULD HAVE MISSED. ALSO INTRODUCING ME TO FRANCIS FROM KLIENT FM IN HERMASILLO WHO SORTD OUT THE FIRST RADIO INTERVIEW OF THE TRIP. CHEERS LOADS OMER, MY NEXT RIDING BUDDY WHO KEPT ME LAUGHING FOR A MONTH. ALL AT THE CASA CARMEN. TARIQ, HANNAH, CASSY, PJ, I STILL MISS YA ! .. KAREN AND PATRICK FROM JERSEY, ANOTHER BONKERS COUPLE WHO MADE OUR TIME HILARIOUS- MISS YA LIKE MAD TOO ! CANT FORGET KARINA LA RATTA ASWELL ! TODOS RATTAS !!.. VICTOR AND JOSE HELLO AND THANKS FOR THE ENCOURAGING ENTHUSIASM OUT THERE IN THE WILDS OF THOSE RADIANT COLOMBIAN HILLS. JAIRO AND YORSMAN THANKS FOR ALL THE HELP WITH THE OIL CAP AND GIVING UP YOUR DAY TO SHOW ME SIGHTS I WOULD HAVE MISSED. THE CASA KIWI GANG, IN MEDELLIN. ANOTHER HILARIOUS TIME , I MISS YOU ALL !..TODD, WHO DROVE DOWN THE SAME ROUTE AS ME IN A CAR, WHERE ARE YA ? LOST IN ANTARTICA ? ALDO, ROSA MARIA AND THEIR BEAUTIFUL FAMILY, THANK YOU FOR PUTTING UP WITH ME AND THE BOYS FOR THOSE GREAT DAYS IN TRUJILLO. MARTINA AND DIDI, YOU NUT CASES. THANK YOU FOR KEEPING ME ALIVE AND LAUGHING IN BOLIVIA ! CRISTINA, BARBY, ANDRES AND JOSE . YOU ALL REALLY TOUCHED ME. I WILL NEVER BE ABLE TO THANK YOU ENOUGH FOR YOUR PATIENCE, WARMTH AND GENEROSITY TO A STRANGER. THE RADIO INTERVIEW WILL ALWAYS BE ONE THE HIGHLIGHTS OF THE WHOLE TRIP. MAGGIE IN LONDON, CHEERS LOADS MATE FOR ALL THE HELP AND GETTING MY ARSE GOING WHEN I WAS DISORGANISED AND DOZZY. MIRIAM YOU STILL ALIVE ?... THANKS TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO WROTE TO ME AND ENCOURAGED ME.I NEEDED TO HEAR AND READ IT ALL..NEARLY FORGOT TO SAY THANKS AND SEND MY BEST WISHES TO MIKE AND HIS CLASSIC EMPHATIC STATEMENTS, THE BEST BEING WITH SOURFACED GRIMACES AND VERY VOCAL " I DONT WANNA RIDE WITH THAT PERVERT" AND " I DONT WANNA LISTEN TO ANYONE " CLASSIC MOMENTS OF PAINFUL LAUGHTER ! AND DAN "LETS GET SOME COW, POLLO AND FAT SAUSAGES TO COMPLEMENT THE WINE ", THIS BOY CAN COOK ! - WANNA HEAR WHEN FUEGOS OPENS SON !AND JEFF, THE BOY THATS UP FOR IT ALL ,I.E. THE RED NECKS THAT PUT UPWITH ME LONGER THAN WE THOUGHT, RIDING AND RISKING ALL TOGETHER - IT WAS INCREDIBLE CHAPS AND A RIGHT LAUGH THAT WILL KEEP ME GRINNING FOR YEARS !! STAY ALIVE BOYS !!!! GONNA MISS YA !!.... CHEERS MUM , DAD, SUEZ , IAN, TOM, OUR SIAN AND ALL FAMILY ON BOTH SIDES FOR NOT THINKING IM NUTS TO DO THIS...CHEERS ENCOURAGING MUCKERS : VANGUS the "TERRIBLE", MR.STREETER AND ARIEL MRS STREETER (CONGRATULATIONS ON THE WEDDING (sbout time) , JASON...YASMIN CROWTHER FOR WRITING THE SAFFRON KITCHEN. THE BOOK HONESTLY KEPT ME SANE IN CENTRAL AMERICA. A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO ALL THAT SPONSORED ME. THE DONATIONS HAVE BEEN INCREDIBLE. I NEVER EXPECTED TO SEE SUCH GENEROSITY !! THANK YOU ALLLLLLLLL !! LOVE YA AND GONNA MISS YARRRRRRRRR !!!!!!!!!!!!!

the end of the world - Ushuaia - job done

That big ridiculous grin above, isnt relief, joy or an outlet of feelings of grand achievement. no, its a ridiculous grin of disbelief with some sort of half acknowledged joy. 10 miles outside my final destination, the end of the road, the end of the trip. the southern most city on earth, ushuaia, my bike completely shut down, with a choking slapping sound of a voice, " NO MORE MILES MAN !". 10 miles left out of 22000 miles. i slowed down to stop for a picture and she just died. its serious im sure. i pushed the bike up a hill surrounded by the incredible tierra del fuego landscape and then hoped to bump start the thing. it worked, i rode out those 10 last miles at 20mph with the engine straining at high revs and making horredous sounds of scraping metal, and the sound of all things inside loose. some might say, im lucky again to have broken down so close, i agree. also an added drama to a story (which i could do without)... the problem now is how to get myself out of argentina, legally with customs stamping the bike out. anyway, enough of all that. southern patagonia is spectacular.

el chalten (above) is a tiny argentine patagonian resort, tucked into the shadows of mount fitzroy. this valley is silent , except for the howling wind and the sound of tapping rain. from here, its south down to the torres del paine, national park on the chilean side of patagonia. this is an area contradicting the rest of northern patagonia. here is where the vast nothing,becomes the rugged jagged mountains , twsiting roads heading higher, turquoise lakes, something. dont get me wrong, i loved riding through nothing , except fields and big skies. but this is where a man can sit in awe for hours,grinning and imagining.

in the shadows of a hidden fitroy. argentina

trees grow at angles everywhere. the relentless wind makes sure of that.

el chalten

the ends of ruta 40. still not a twist in gravel insight. but shapes on the horizon.

entering torres del paine, chile

the famous torres peaks. atmospheric again. waking up to this with no one around is something i can never forget.

patagonian pumas are a ferocious foe. rarely seen by man. this puma i tamed after he knawed on my ear lobe for 10 minutes.

the modern day is everywhere down here, but the old days are also everywhere. it has a 100 year old feel to it inside and out.

gypsy siggs

guanaco adult. big brown eyes and jaws of a camel.

nearing tierra del fuego. the magellan strait became visible. the excitement was gaining on me here. i still cant get over the fact of making it this far. money and time , well with desire also, are all thats needed. anyone can do this. A storm came in as quick as it left on the strait, pulling the clouds into all sorts of original shapes to me. really did seem like the ends of the earth. its cold and the wind gets stronger. on one side of tierra del fuego , to the east - strange rays glowed from the horizon, as clear as day light. at first i thought, "oh it must be the sun", then i dimmly realised the sun was setting on the other side of the world. and the rays were running from thin on the landside to wide on the sky side. ?????

puerto natales, chile

this could be alaska

crossing to tierra del fuego was a small ferry. the whole area hasnt moved in years. small villages just sit there with no inhabitants left. all windows smashed. just the wind left. a lonesome atmosphere. beautiful.

tierra del fuego

ushuaia. its all finished. the only thing left is to find a way home.

ushuaia

tierra del fuego. heading south

ushuaia

deeper south into patagonia - fragile x families & new friends - a radio interview - the road to the ends of the earth

Buenos Aires is quiet now. the dakar racers and all the excited koas that the rally brings has gone south. dust trails sucked out of the city into the unknown. the first south american rally. i follow it out. a day later and at a very slower pace. Puerto Madryn is my destination. The famous seaside resort sits on the atlantic coast of patagonia. Cristina, lives there. She contacted me a long time ago, when i was in the early stages of getting my head around the trip. She has 2 children affected by fragile x syndrome. Maggie who has helped me along the way, with ideas and explanation sheets in spanish, back in london is Cristinas niece. Easy getting out of buenos aires. hit the main drag in the centre and fly down that south. half hour and im in the fields. Along Ruta 3. The road is a 100km straight, much like the roads in the north of the country. the wind gets fierce. when the road finaly turns , it turns to the west. a head wind strains the riding down to 4000revs and no more. much like riding at altitude, i cant throttle out anymore speed. concentration is hard here. the horizon doesnt move it stays far off. the fields stay the same. dry vegitation. the sky stays huge and blue. i turn south again, the wind turns to a cross wind. leaning into it becomes the normal riding position, at least a 10 degree drop towards the road surface. until the wind suddenly drops every once in while, dropping the bike to a further angle. all is ok , when you get used to it. 2 nights and a 5 hour tyre change in bahia blanca, to get to puerto madryn. crossing the rio negro i am told is the start of patagonia. patagonia, the land of the people with big feet. Dan is there. we left him to ride his own roads at christmas. its great to see the comical geezer again. he knocks up the best steaks and salads you can imagine. evenings in the hostel gardens, beef sitting over a flame, being watched and tossed by dan , are a perfect end to heavy days wind wrestling riding. I finaly contact Cristina here. i am a month late. originaly i planned to here early december. riding these continents is almost as unpredictable as sailing the seas. Cristina comes to my hostel with Barbara her daughter, who is affected with fragile x syndrome. As soon as we all meet i am filled with warmth and big smiles. we sit there for 2 hours laughing and chatting. my spanish has almost improved , by learning a new word at least once a week. cristinas english i see improve as we speak. barbara picks up the english words very quickly also. I am made so welcome, it couldnt be better.

the next day cristina introduces me to Andres, her son and jose a friend who also has 2 children affected by fragile x syndrome. above in the photo from left to right : cristina, andres, barbara, jose and me. I was taken around the town, to all the best spots. never a dull moment. we are all laughing and joking all day long. the plan is to get a radio interview. cristina has a friend involved in radio. Barbara and andres are brilliant with this stranger from england. Its hard to recognise the FXS affects. I see now that my Sian at home, is so much more affected by this syndrome. My new firends show no signs of autism spectrum disorder that sian does. The more i get to know these lot the more i am warmed. they are all very close and understanding of each other.

Andres is a golf fanatic and judging by all his trophies, a top player.

jose has 2 children also affected by fragile x syndrome. Ignacio who is 15 years old and sabrina who is 25. jose is full of fun. he has me in stiches for the time we meet. he loves his 2 wheels also, dashing and darting about puerto madryn on this nippy machine.

The last nights meal. i much on those perfect argentine steaks. vino tinto and dolce leche. again i dont have to put my hands in my pockets. i miss my new mates.

Irene (in blue) is Cristinas friend. she speaks perfect english. she teaches english and sometimes is a guide down south in patagonia. A radio interview is arranged by Irene. she has a weekly show on this east coast station. the audiance reaches north to Buenos Aires and who knows how far south. Im nervous, as i havent done anything like this since the TV in Trujillo, Peru. Its fine though. the bloke interviewer is full of energy, which rubs off on us all and he quickly understands whats going on with the syndrome. Irene, translates fast and furious, not missing a trick. 15 minutes into the interview, the phone calls start coming in , along with emails. all from listeners interested in FXS. We bring cristina into the interview, to answer the callers questions. A lady caler asks where she can get her kids blood tested for the syndrome. cristina mentions, that Buenos Aires is the only place in argentina that this can be done. The whole thing lasts half hour. a real success. im chuffed, we all are. thank you mr interviewer, irene, for her perfect ability and of course cristina who, deepened the whole expereince. Cristina is travelling to santiago, chile, in weeks to come , because 2 researchers from the USA are talking a conference , regarding recent finds, in medicine, that perhaps will help with altereing affects of the syndrome. apparently adding protein to needy fragile chromosome. fingers crossed !!

This is a bay near puerto madryn, that i was lucky enough to be taken to by cristina and her family. Jose being a photographer took some incredible pics of these huge sea beasts. sea lions in english. lobos in castellano. they made a right racket.

the bull. in crontrol of all things seals

Along the atlantic coast, deeper into patagonia is a penguin colony. these little blokes didnt care about humans, romping through their manor.

man looks at penguin. penguin looks at man. Dan and his new found friend.

these red shrines can be seen all over argentina. it a good luck shrine dedicated to gauchito gil. n argentine hero from the 19th century. give him gifts and you might be lucky.

travelling to the west side of argentina. near the chilean frontier. head south down ruta 40. a road that drift down for 5000kms. top to bottom of argentina. i head south on it at 125kms north of perito moreno. its a famous road amongst overlanders. notorious for its harsh winds and dirt.

staright away, 10kms in, the road splits. no signs. just the sun to give a direction. dan and mike discussing which fork to take. as it happens we take the left fork. the right one.

endless straights, along compact gravel, loose rocks and deep ruts left by trucks using the same lines. the sun goes down leaving this vast expanse, light up like fire.

when the gravel heads west in a falling sun, nothing can be seen. the glare is painful. slow down and push your luck. it works. no one falls.

guanaco. they just blend into their surroundings, dashing out at high speed into the road.

met these 6 or 7 argentines. all cycling a large part of the ruta 40 south.

aproaching the end of that days section of ruta 40, we found this german bloke, leo wandering around infront of an ambulance asking what country he was in. he has wrecked his africa twin 750 honda. he couldnt remember what happened. looks like he was fast across a deep dune of gravel which twitched him into a frenzy. the bike must have sumersalted a few 10s of metres, judging by the wreck.the ambulance left him there with us. we got a tow truck to pick his wreck up and we got him to hospital in la calafatte. dan road with the ambualance all the way. 200kms away. he is ok, just a bit in shock and scatter brained for now.

approaching the bizzare and wonderful mount fitzroy in el chalten, patagonia. the wind was double strong along this stretch. seeing the range come up over the horizon is spectacular. fitz roy is named after the captain of the beagle, the ship Mr darwin sailed the local seas down here in, discovering stuff.

fitz roy, the tallest peak. just like a scene from a dark fantasy.

The straight and uneasy road to Buenos Aires

The peace of mind lasts 60miles out of Tucuman. Raul Becker in tucuman, and his boys had spent the whole day digging into my bike searching for answers. The spluttering had to be a moody carb. A clean and a refit was all that was needed. the starter problem was all in the cleaning of the wires in the box, on the handlebars. And scratching the white crusty stuff on the battery connectors. 60 miles out im spluttering and buckerooing all over the road again. arghhhhhhhhh !! no more !!!! All i had to do was switch the tank tap to reserve and alls rosy on the spluttering front. the pipe leading from the tap into the tank thats not the reserve pipe must be blocked. i blame bolivian sand myself. The bike starts after a few attempts of pressing the starter button, but its still a worry that it will erode into uselessness, somewhere up high and nowhere near anything. Cordoba is the next nights stop. it being a large city , they should have a mechanic to scratch his brow over the bike there. Cordoba. They say it is the cultural capital of the americas. loads of universities, museums and art , everywhere. to be honest all i noticed was a decent mechanic and a million beautiful , i mean very beautiful women everywhere. A wonderful place to sit drink coffee and just watch the world. I spend 2 nights here. the bike starter problem is understood. the clutch sensor has decided that with all the miles from alaska it is a weakling. 2 pumps of the clutch everytime i go to start the bike , it starts. reliable as regular postroom deliverys at Aon London !! .. did i mention my speedo hasnt worked since the ecuador - peru border ? cant remember... mike has marked down most of the miles, but i am unsure acuratly. i think its around 17 or 18 thousand.... will study a map and get a more acurate guess one day soon. After 100s of cafe side coffees im off to buenos aires..... not even out of cordoba and my bike is all over the place. a savage rattle scaring the life out me comes from below. my rear wheel bearings have been crushed and eaten alive. im not going anywhere. the sun is a melting pot fire. we take the wheel off. half the bearings have disintergrated and the other half , crushed flat. the casing is split into 3 pieces. my sweaty bald head is in my hands and my elbows on my knees as i sit leaning against a shop window, which turns out to be a moto mechanics tienda. mike gets chatting to a local fella who says he will take mike and the wheel down the road to a tyre fitters to see if they have a new bearing, while i stay as i am, a shell of a man with his head still in his hands. they dissapear for 3 hours. the sun moves around baking my brains even more. i dont care. im visited by, elvio, luis and frank. followed by gregg and his brother ignacio. 10 mins later im laughing about and chatting all things bikes, babes, basketball and general man stuff. i speak terrible mockney spanish, they dont speak english except gregg and ignacio. i understand most of what we say. all great once again. these people just want me to be happy and they incourage me that the bearing is no problem. they seem very sure and convince me. mike turns up with the first chap we met, who drove the wheel away . carlos and his kid son. the bearings new and fitted.... we all exchange details and say hard goodbyes then we are off. into a falling day and loads of miles, or so i think !...... from cordoba its around 700 ks. . this part of argentina, is very flat. the roads are endless straights. A strong wind seems to always be head on. the views either side are green oceans of corn fields and just fields. towns turn up. all the shops are large agricutural machine selling warehouse type shops. A salar shows up. mike decides to have a look . about half mile off the road. he falls off the bike again when the sand around the salar reminds him of bolivia. 100 miles out of cordoba, "bang !!!" oil everywhere ! mikes ktm is spitting out the dark fluid like i have never seen before. im relieved it isnt my bike. i imagine a football size hole in the belly of the bike. its his ususal oil sensor problem thats been irritating him for weeks now. lucky once more though, we are stopped at an asado restuaurant, with a kawasaki dealer next to it. looks like goodfellas are all sitting outside the asado place. i approach them tentatively. they all smile and get me to join them munching the big famous beef, pig, brains, tongue, pollo asado that argentina is so famous for. incredible food. i cant resist. brains are har dto get used to as the fellas all laugh at my struggle swallowing the grey matter. could you resist if you were here ?! it would turn any veggie back into a carnivore , im sure . the wine is just as good as the munch. corrrrrrr. we stay a night . buenos aires seemingly moving further away from us. mikes bike is in great hands. jose and the boys deal with the stroppy sensor easy. creating a new gasket for it out of nothing. Theres a firework display on that night at midnight. its new years eves, eve. we ride the bikes down there. we are crowded out by loads of people. i am actually asked for my autograph. i can only think they thought i am a dakar racer. i felt fake. i didnt try and be anything else apart from a foreigner riding his bike into town. i thanked them more than they thanked me, for doing it. im sure the next morning they must have confused expressions saying, "who the hell was that baldylocks ?" and "what actually is fragile x syndrome ?" ..... we get going the next morning, hard goodbyes again. mikes oil starts weeping out again. its not too harsh coz we can sort it in buenos aires. he just keeps topping it up every so and so miles.... its new years eve now. we full throttle for the city , with dreams of a special night out in a romantic lively city. night falls too quick. we end up staying in a small town 70 miles out of buenos aires. our hotel is a back street homage to the days of art deco. a dusty smell in the air, a ticking clock, and mumbling men, who become our companions for the celibrations. the owner is maria, a right laugh. she takes the mick out of all of us, even though i cant understand a word she says , im still belly laughing. we find an asado shop with a circular grill the size of a large car. dead animals stretched all around it. we buy cow and chicken. i stuff my face with the butter like meat, smiling and not missing the dreams of the big city night out i was dreaming about. 12 oclock comes. me, mike, maria and an old boy toast the ano nuevo with gorgeous sweet champagne. bed by 1, sober and glad. Sunshine new years day and off to buenos aires. im excited. all that has conjured up in mind over the years about this city and now im just gonna ride into it. Not many cars about . all must still have their heads in their pillows and why not. the suburbs come past miles out of where the signs say the city is. this place must be huge. 13 million im told. a mad alien space ship car comes roaring past us on 5 lane highway. Im reminded, this is where the dakar rally is this year. gone from africa. some say coz of terrorist threats , some say coz of the amount of racers that get killed every year. who knows. im just excited that its here, where i am. we roll into the city getting lost straight away. i run out of petrol on a very busy road. i have my spare jerry can topped. Another space ship flys past. we chase it into a garage, right next to the river plate stadium. im grinning like never before. im next to this amazing famous stadium. who remembers argentina 78 ? mario kempes, those 2 ugly dutch twins ? and archy gemmils goal ? .. we chat to the team in the mad car. russians. very friendly and insightful about the nut case rally. people crowd us as much as they crowd the car. i feel like a kareoke rock star again. this is buenos aires. the streets are wide the buildings high. each one a different character. the people are all dressed immaculate. no litter anywhere. the buzz of the dakar is all over. a ridiculous truck burns down a street, its a back up vehicle for a racer. built to drive vertical up the andes and over the atacama desert. the bikes are lined up down a closed street. everywhere we stop, people come flying over to say hello. i manage to get a radio interview straight away. it is polish radio station, covering the rally. they want to know why i have ridden from alaska to here and what i think of those mental racers, who i admire more than any other racing genre racers. that evening KTM are having a conference. mike needs a new sensor desperate now. he has a ktm shirt. we must blag our way in and meet the stars and get his sensor. can i leave this city ?


Cordoba. they say the Americas cultural capital ?

Cordoba traffic. Not as nut case as other cities.

Cordoba

Cordoba

cordoba

cordoba

Carlos, his son , Luis and his son frank. All incredible people, who spent an afternoon helping and cheering up a total alien stranger. I would still be there now , leaning on that yellow shop head in hands, if it wasnt for them.

Ignacio, Luis, Mike, Frank and Elvio. All mates withing a matter of minutes. Elvio coaches a local basketball side. top luck to him ! Luis and frank run a car fixer and sprayers shop. All immaculate work. Ignacio a top translator. Gregg his brother is out of picture , coz he ran down a few blocks to get myself and mike a gift. Cordobans ! thank you !!

In the town of Villa Maria, where mikes bike was leaking oil. Jose at GAF MOTOS was no end of help and laughs. These boys no how to get the job done and laugh. the next day full of concerns and questons. not just letting yet another punter just go away.

Villa Maria, adado restuarant. this food is tasty incredible. more meat on that grill than the field next door ! sizzling and smoking all day long.

nearing Buenos Aires

New Years eve munch ! more and more meattttttt !!

New years eve celebrations. Quiet and funny. welcome 2009

A glimpse at the River Plate stadium. Buenos Aires

The russian NART TIME rally raid team. look out for them in the rally. number 356. racers : K . Zhiltsov and Y . Solouyev. friendly blokes who gave us time in a petrol stop.

Its an american designed engine that screams like a banshee exiting the fires of hell !

buttons, leavers and more buttons. how do you decide what button to press at 150 miles an hour in deep sand and altitude ? for hours on end

grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr !!!!

Senor Zhiltsov. driver of the NART TIME. squeezing time in his busy schedule to chat about the fragile x pedition. good luck chaps !

The Dakar bikes. ready to roll . all tuned and built for some real brutality. "they aint riding those bolivian roads i did though !" to scared i recon !

Dakar 2009. Argentina - Chile

What i would do for an hour on this beast

The KTM riders in conference.

Mike can be scene here pushing his luck. he managed to get the KTM team to not only take the needed oil sensor off one of their show bikes, they are fitting it for him also.

BIG THANKS TO : Raul Becker at Becker motos, Tucuman, Argentina

David Edgardo Paredes at Paredes motos, Cordoba, Argentina

Jose L.Saul at Gaf motos, Villa Maria, Argentina

Argentina - the final country

A few days waiting on an ATM machine to be fed in san pedro de atacama, which didnt happen, then out. back up the hills past the bolvian border again but onto Argentina. It felt strange to know this was the last country i am visiting. Not feelings of sadness though. Basically im suprised i even made it passed canada. Its not the last time i cross a border thouh. down south i have to cross into chile a couple of times, to see the wonders that are down there. Patagonia is split between Argentina and chile. Knowing xmas was just around the corner i wanted to try and get to a large town to try and celebrate in somesort of way that seemed to be what i know. i imagined maybe catching the blues , without being in the company of family and friends. Didnt get the blues at all. its full on summer down here and i had no sense of xmas what so ever. Anyway. i crossed the border straight away riding into a greener landscape and higher octane fuel. After seeing yellow and orange landscapes for ages, it was lovely to see green again. Purmamarca was the town night caught us. A high pass with strong cross winds brought us into this gorgeous town. winding roads splattered across the mountains. hairpins that completely double back and more.

purmamarca is very layed back. boca juniors, argentinas man utd, are fighting for the championship. all wear their shirt. just like man utd in the UK. the town isnt layed back for 90 minutes.

the surrounding hills and mountains are all filled with extreme coloured sand. the whole place changes as the sun moves over the sky.

incredible riding here.

heading south now to salta. salta is a large town. 3 nights and some sorting stuff out and we are off. i look at the map, it seems like i havent got anywhere. argentina is humunguss. everywhere is layed back. salta was packed with people, but everything is slowed down. even a day before xmas, the pace is calm. cafayatte turns up. a beautiful wine producing village. vineyards roll around on the surrounding hill sides. small trees line the avenues. the plaza is empty , except for the locals siestas in the cafes. this is my xmas town for 2 days, spent in a hostel with 4 germans, mike and dan and dans huge steak dinners. a top munch.

boxing day riding out of cafayatte, the bikes starts spluttering down. im not at altitude now so im concerned. keep the revs down and all seems alright. the starter button doesnt work constantly. somethings not right all over with the bike. mikes ktm is gaining problems by the day now also. tucuman is the town with a ktm dealer. im here now. both bikes are being taken care of by an ex argentine enduro champion. raul becker. now a mechanic. spent today overseeing and getting in the way in his work shop. the bikes will be sparkling reliable tomorrow im sure. towards buenos aires. who knows how many days . argentina is huge. style is everywhere.