FEATURE:
2015 BMW GS SAFARI
It was honestly one of the best days
of adventure riding I’ve experienced
you also learn about the other battle
you will most likely face for the entire
week — the battle between red wine
and good times vs sleep and a clear
head for the next day’s riding. The
struggle is real, people, but it’s a fun
war to fi ght.
Needless to say we probably
came off second best regarding the
aforementioned battle and headed off
on Monday morning towards the rear
of the group. A common assumption
about Safari is that it must be very
busy on the ride with around 200
riders, but that’s not the case. It’s
not a group start each day but rather
a start window that you must leave
within. Generally it’s between 7.30am
to 9am and with this system it’s not
unusual to ride for long intervals
where you don’t see another rider.
We dropped our bag off at the
luggage truck and began the 278km
ride to Mittagong in New South Wales’Southern Highlands region. The fi rst
part of the ride was fun back-road
bitumen but it wasn’t long before we
turned off that and onto some nice
fl owing gravel roads. This is where
you really start to enjoy the riding.
Leaving at the rear of the group
meant we were catching our share of
riders, but most will see you approach
and give you a wave past.
The day was a relatively easy
one — a great ride to get everyone
back into Safari mode and ready for
the four days that still remained. We
reached Mittagong without incident
and retrieved our bags from the
luggage truck, checked into our
accommodation and dug in to begin the
day’s bench racing and start the nightly
battle. Before we caught up with the
crew for dinner, every rider attended
the nightly riders briefi ng which looks
back at the day and then covers all that
is required for the next day’s riding. It’s