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GlobeBusters tour on top of the world: British bikers ride to Everest Base Camp

29/06/2010

The GlobeBusters Silk Road East Expedition, a seventeen strong team all riding BMW GS bikes, had left the Ace Café in London some ten weeks before and had ridden over 8,000 miles of difficult and unpredictable terrain through Europe and Central Asia to reach Everest.

“To get here we’ve had to ride through some of the most extreme conditions I’ve ever faced”, said Kevin.  “The weather has been particularly harsh and road conditions at times seemed impassable, but everyone pulled through.  We had to divert from our planned route too: Kyrgyzstan became off limits due to the ethnic violence and some of the main roads in Tajikistan had collapsed due to torrential rainfall.”

Once in China the next challenge was crossing the Tibetan Plateau.  It is a journey of around 1,400 miles to get to Everest from the border and much of the route is no more that dirt roads. The path reaches altitudes over 16,500ft above sea level.

“It’s remote, wild and as far away from the modern world as it is possible to get and that’s part of what makes this expedition so challenging”. 

There was a tinge of sadness for the group at Everest as one of the riders only a few days before had succumbed to serious altitude sickness symptoms and had to be taken directly to Lhasa for treatment and then flown back to the UK.

“It’s an indication of the nature of this trip.  It can’t be underestimated or taken lightly.  The risks out here are very real.  That’s what makes reaching Everest is really special and a massive milestone both emotionally and physically for the rest of the team.”  From Everest, the team head to Lhasa and then onto Beijing. 

Follow the Silk Road Expedition through the GlobeBusters Travel Blog on www.globebusters.com.  For quick updates, go to the GlobeBusters Adventure Motorcycle Expeditions page on FaceBook or catch up with the latest video footage on www.youtube.com/globebusters.  For intrepid motorcyclists, a few final places remain on the Silk Road Expedition 2011.